Smart visas: Some high earning foreigners may soon be able to work without a work permit

[DrTuner]

2 hours ago, Michael Hare said:

I still do not understand while those with permanent residence still have to get an annual work visa.

Because the laws around here are a collection of random thoughts. Mane from the 50's and have never been updated. The entire immigration act and working of alien act need complete overhaul to bring them to this millenia. But if it's the junta doing changes, they'll likely be for the worse.

[TMNH]

13 hours ago, fforest1 said:

200,000 baht a month or 6,300 dollars a month....A ok salary for the west....A huge salary for Thailand....

6300 in baht or US? Even at that standard, many people in the US go pay check to pay check, so most would not be considered "highly skilled" (which I am) because like most countries that allow foreigners, "unless you possess a skill that natives do not possess", good luck coming here. I have a friend who works in Phuket and the s..t her company has to go through to maintain not only Visas for foreign owners, but all the other BS astounds me. So now "if" you have enough money (and presumably have that 5:1 ratio) you are exempt now from that usual BS scrutiny and ultimate paying off immigration?

 

Again....I will take my friend out of this abhorrent country in due time. Corruption is not in my vocabulary nor should it be in anyone else's "if" you're ethically OK. If not, then I won't even waste my time explaining morals and ethics:).

[tabarin]

So basically this is an additional service for a tiny minority in Thailand while that same minority did not experience any problems with getting a work permit (is all serviced and taken care off by the company with such positions and salaries). Great job to waste time on this rather than solving real Immigration problems.

As always the focus & time is only for the elite, rich and beautiful.

[wobalt]

If you work for an Thai government organization the required salary is much lower


Gesendet von iPad mit Thaivisa Connect

[tabarin]

2 minutes ago, wobalt said:

If you work for an Thai government organization the required salary is much lower


Gesendet von iPad mit Thaivisa Connect

And your work permit is taken care of regardless too. 

[mokwit]

I would guess that if you look at the terms it is actually a technology/knowledge transfer visa

[brain150]

Everything is called "smart" by stupid people !

Insanity at its best. A world wide phenomena.

[TMNH]

26 minutes ago, tabarin said:

So basically this is an additional service for a tiny minority in Thailand while that same minority did not experience any problems with getting a work permit (is all serviced and taken care off by the company with such positions and salaries). Great job to waste time on this rather than solving real Immigration problems.

As always the focus & time is only for the elite, rich and beautiful.

As Ed Mcmahon said: "You are correct sir!"

[bkkgriz]

14 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

 Children aged over 18

Aren't those people usually called adults?

[fforest1]

33 minutes ago, tabarin said:

So basically this is an additional service for a tiny minority in Thailand while that same minority did not experience any problems with getting a work permit (is all serviced and taken care off by the company with such positions and salaries). Great job to waste time on this rather than solving real Immigration problems.

As always the focus & time is only for the elite, rich and beautiful.

The Smart visa is closely tied in with Thailand 4.0.....Which focuses in on Big business,Big industrial estates,Big agriculture-factory farming,Big hi-tech,....Big whatever....

The Smart visa also goes along with Smart citys,Smart growth,Smart Bla Bla Bla ......

This visa was designed to make sure the average guy could not use it....Only Companies who are fit in the Big Hi-tech mold....The average person seemingly is usually forgotten in all this smart talk....

  

[Kwasaki]

15 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

To be eligible for a Smart Visa, foreigners also need to earn monthly salary of at least 200,000 baht.

1%. ????

[newatthis]

51 minutes ago, tabarin said:

So basically this is an additional service for a tiny minority in Thailand while that same minority did not experience any problems with getting a work permit (is all serviced and taken care off by the company with such positions and salaries). Great job to waste time on this rather than solving real Immigration problems.

As always the focus & time is only for the elite, rich and beautiful.

Shucks! Disqualified by "beautiful."????

[webfact]

Bonus benefit added for ‘smart visa’ holders

By The Nation

 

Foreign specialists and investors in 10 targeted industries who have four-year “smart visas” will not need work permits to have secondary jobs in Thailand.

 

Lt General Werachon Sukondhapatipak, deputy spokesman for the Prime Minister’s Office, said on Monday a Labour Ministry proposal had been approved to let the visa holders to have a side line outside their registered fields.

 

Their spouses, if they’ve been in Thailand at least one year, and their children over 18 will be allowed to earn wages without a work permit in professions not reserved for Thais.

 

Werachon said the objective was to promote investment and attract highly skilled professionals to work in the targeted industries.

 

The smart visa introduced in February 2018, a considerable convenience compared to the usual 90-day visa required, is available for four categories of foreigners involved in the targeted “First S-Curve” (Thai-based) industries and “New S-Curve” industries. 

 

Eligible are people in specialised fields who earn at least Bt200,000 a month and have contracts of at least one year, people who invest at least Bt20 million in the targeted industries or in companies that invest, and corporate executives working in targeted industries, earn at least Bt200,000 a month and have at least 10 years’ experience. 

 

First S-Curve industries include the next-generation automotive, smart electronics, medical/wellness tourism, “food for the future”, and agriculture/biotechnology industries. 

 

New S-Curve industries are automation and robotics, aviation and logistics, biochemicals and eco-friendly petrochemicals, digital businesses and medical hubs.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30365279

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2019-03-06

[Vacuum]

31 minutes ago, bkkgriz said:

Aren't those people usually called adults?

You mean children over 18.  I've seen 45-50 year old ladies wearing 'Hello Kitty' outfits. Adults?

[DrTuner]

49 minutes ago, mokwit said:

I would guess that if you look at the terms it is actually a technology/knowledge transfer visa

Sounds like something straight out of China's playbook, just omit the 'forced'. No worries here though, there are no viable recipients.

[kannot]

15 hours ago, baansgr said:

How many smart visas have been issued in the past year since inception.

i  lost  all  ten  digits in  a  freak meat  cleaver  accident but  even i  can still  calculate  that

[4MyEgo]

I retired at 55, my salary back in the old country when converted to Thai baht was 350,000 per month baht gross/before tax and these guys are suggesting someone who makes 200,000 baht per month to qualify for the smart visa.

 

I couldn't see many takers on this, after all, one would have a mortgage to pay back in the old country, pay for kids international school fees, if family relocating as well, private health insurance, etc etc.

 

I average 120,000 baht per month tax free here now sitting on my behind, why on earth would I want to work for 200,000 baht and then pay tax ?

 

As usual, not a clever idea once again, if Thailand wants to build off the backs of foreigners, they have to relax their visa rules, suffice to say I see a lot of retired Xpat's, mostly on the pension sitting on a stool in a bar that would come out of retirement to help the Thai's if asked for a couple of extra baht and a free visa ????

 

[akirasan]

17 minutes ago, kannot said:

i  lost  all  ten  digits in  a  freak meat  cleaver  accident but  even i  can still  calculate  that

Amazing that you can still type really

[suzannegoh]

I wonder if this might be inspired by Singapore, as the phrase “Foreign Talents” is commonly used there.

Traditionally in Singapore (as in Thailand) an expat’s visa and Employment Pass were tied to the company that you were working for, so if you were laid off or resigned you would have to leave the country.  To address that, Singapore introduced something called a Personal Employment Pass, that would be tied to the employee rather than the employer.  Introducing that made it much easier for expats to do things such as change employers while living in Singapore or to work independently as a consultant.  This new Thai visa sounds a bit similar to that.

[4MyEgo]

19 minutes ago, kannot said:

i  lost  all  ten  digits in  a  freak meat  cleaver  accident but  even i  can still  calculate  that

Dare I ask how you take it out of your pants, on second thoughts, no need to answer that ????

 

[TMNH]

52 minutes ago, Vacuum said:

You mean children over 18.  I've seen 45-50 year old ladies wearing 'Hello Kitty' outfits. Adults?

LOL- I had to reply:)

[TMNH]

26 minutes ago, suzannegoh said:

I wonder if this might be inspired by Singapore, as the phrase “Foreign Talents” is commonly used there.

Traditionally in Singapore (as in Thailand) an expat’s visa and Employment Pass were tied to the company that you were working for, so if you were laid off or resigned you would have to leave the country.  To address that, Singapore introduced something called a Personal Employment Pass, that would be tied to the employee rather than the employer.  Introducing that made it much easier for expats to do things such as change employers while living in Singapore or to work independently as a consultant.  This new Thai visa sounds a bit similar to that.

Of course with those typical  "exceptions" which equate to a greased palm. Whether Singapore or Thailand, foreigners have expertise over and above their natives. What these countries have to decide is whether the expertise is welcomed OR it is accompanied by constant Visa extensions, fees, whatever. You already have a 5:1 ratio demand for foreign employers.......is that not enough? And does that not employ Thais? My goodness...the restrictive BS in this country is beyond description.

[ThomasThBKK]

If they want real entrepreneurs maybe they should get rid of their bullshit company ownership system and their bs 4 thais per work permit rubbish. 

 

No other country in the world where people like to setup companies have these brainfarts. 

 

Oh dear thailand why don't you just copy singapore and stop coming up with your own non sense... 

[TMNH]

4 minutes ago, ThomasThBKK said:

If they want real entrepreneurs maybe they should get rid of their bullshit company ownership system and their bs 4 thais per work permit rubbish. 

 

No other country in the world where people like to setup companies have these brainfarts. 

 

Oh dear thailand why don't you just copy singapore and stop coming up with your own non sense... 

"If" you want foreigners investing and employing local people, then as you say cease the restrictive ownership criteria ( I recently spoke to a friend who is a Thai native personal assistant). She was overwhelmed with the immigration/ Visa-related  paper work (a foreigner employing Thai natives) and it is pure BS.  So to the Thai "governing" inept individuals...."if" you want to encourage non-thai business owners who will employ Thai natives, then I am available to consult with you and readily tell you how screwed up you are with regard to your inane requirements. Again, my friend tells me about all of the BS paper work and I'm surprised that any farang would ever want to come to Thailand and attempt to conduct business.

[SiSePuede419]

If you're making only $75K/year in your home country in any of those industries, you aren't a "high earner" in your field (in your home country).

 

And you want to move here and take a pay cut + less prestigious job.

 

Red flags going up. ????

[Sydebolle]

Do I read correctly ...... "FOREIGN" talents? Upto now I only read aliens, farangs and other similar degrading titulations ..... 

[PETERTHEEATER]

16 hours ago, baansgr said:

How many smart visas have been issued in the past year since inception.

Both of them.

[BritManToo]

1 minute ago, Sydebolle said:

Do I read correctly ...... "FOREIGN" talents? Upto now I only read aliens, farangs and other similar degrading titulations ..... 

I think they're talking about Chinese, not us.

[suzannegoh]

1 minute ago, BritManToo said:

I think they're talking about Chinese, not us.

No, they are talking about college educated people with a track record in industry.

[BritManToo]

17 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

To be eligible for a Smart Visa, foreigners also need to earn monthly salary of at least 200,000 baht.

Earning 200kbht/month in the UK was easy (1990s). I retired in 2001 earning more than that.

I doubt there are many jobs in Thailand worth that much, easier to just stay and work in the UK.