THAILAND – Income Tax Receipt Now Required for Long-Term Visa Extension
Effective July 6th, 2015, the Thai Immigration Bureau at the One Stop Service Centre (OSSC) requires first-time long-term visa extension applicants, employed by companies not registered with the Board of Investment (BOI), to submit proof that monthly personal income tax has been paid.
This means that the applicant can no longer apply for the work permit and visa extension on the same day.
New Procedure
From July 6th, 2015, a new foreign national employee at a non-BOI company which qualifies to use the OSSC in Bangkok must apply first for a work permit, which should still be issued on the same day if the application and supporting documents are in order.
After the first payment of monthly salary withholding tax has been paid, the employee can then apply at the OSSC for their first long-term visa extension, submitting the official certified copy of the tax form (PND1 if on local payroll or PND93 if on home payroll) and receipt for the latest month in support of the application. Monthly salary withholding tax (personal income tax in Thailand) is paid after the 7th day of the following month.
In addition, the Immigration Bureau now requires the submission of evidence of the payment of monthly salary withholding tax for all foreign national employees with work permits, for all long-term visa extension applications.
Finally, the Immigration Bureau now requires the Director of the company to sign the form confirming the number of foreign national employees in the company. The designated form can be collected at the OSSC and must be submitted every time an employee submits a visa renewal at the OSSC.
Background
The Immigration Bureau at the OSSC discovered that some companies had made fraudulent filings in the past to avoid withholding tax payments for foreign employees. The new regulations are being put in place to counter this problem.