The LTR visa in Thailand: ten years' stay and tax-free foreign income, for those who clear the threshold

Yes, Thailand has an arrangement that treats a pension or wealth favourably for tax, but it is tied to a visa with a high threshold. The Board of Investment's Long-Term Resident visa (LTR) gives ten years' stay, and a royal decree of 2022 exempts the holder in three of the four categories from Thai income tax on foreign income brought into Thailand. For a pensioner the threshold is 80,000 dollars of passive income a year. The pitfall for Dutch couples: a partner you are not married to cannot come along as a family member.

What do you get with an LTR visa?

According to the BOI:

• a visa of ten years, with first five years' stay and then five more if you still meet the requirements;
• a yearly report instead of the report every ninety days, and no separate re-entry permit;
• fast track at passport control at international airports;
• permission to work with a digital work permit, except in the category for remote work;
• a flat rate of 17 per cent for highly skilled professionals, and an exemption for foreign income.

Your landlord's report (the TM30) remains mandatory, also with an LTR visa.

Who qualifies?

Category	Core of the requirement
Wealthy Pensioner	aged 50 or over, passive income of at least 80,000 dollars a year; between 40,000 and 80,000 only with 250,000 dollars invested in Thailand
Wealthy Global Citizen	at least 1 million dollars in assets, of which at least 500,000 invested in Thailand
Work-from-Thailand Professional	80,000 dollars income a year (40,000 with a master's), employed by a listed or large company abroad
Highly Skilled Professional	work for a company in a targeted industry in Thailand, 80,000 dollars income (40,000 with a master's in science and technology) and five years' experience
All categories	health insurance with at least 50,000 dollars of cover, or 100,000 dollars in an account in your own name, for at least twelve months

For the pensioner, passive income includes pension, rent, realised capital gains, dividends and interest. Salary does not count, nor do monthly withdrawals from your own capital, unless they clearly come from a retirement account. The investment of 250,000 dollars goes into Thai government bonds with at least five years left to maturity, a direct investment in a Thai company, or Thai property in your own name, and must already have been made before you apply.

An unmarried partner cannot come along. Only a legal spouse and children under twenty count as family members, up to a maximum of four. The BOI writes that partnerships are not recognised under Thai law. Whoever cohabits or has a registered partnership needs a separate visa for the second person.

How exactly does the tax exemption work?

Royal Decree No. 743 of 21 May 2022 has two rules. For the Highly Skilled Professional, wages from a company in a targeted industry are taxed at 17 per cent, if he opts for it and claims no refund or credit. For the Wealthy Global Citizen, Wealthy Pensioner and Work-from-Thailand Professional, income is exempt that was earned in the previous tax year from employment or a business abroad, or from assets abroad, and is brought into Thailand.

That is exactly the rule that ordinary residents run into: for them, foreign income earned from 1 January 2024 is taxed as soon as it enters Thailand. Do bear in mind that the exemption only settles the Thai side. What the Netherlands may keep taxing under the tax treaty on your pension or AOW is separate from the visa; see AOW, pension and tax in Thailand. The decree also provides that whoever does not meet the conditions in a given year loses the benefit for that year.

What does it cost and how long does it take?

The application to the BOI is free. After approval you pay 50,000 baht per person if you collect the visa in Thailand; through an embassy or the e-visa it can turn out more expensive. The BOI reports the check on your qualifications within twenty working days, and after the endorsement letter you have sixty days to have the visa issued. The renewal after the first five years you apply for between 120 and 60 days before your stay expires, and that second check costs no visa fee.

All requirements apply for the whole term: your investment, your income, your balance and your insurance must stay in place. How the LTR visa relates to the retirement route with 800,000 baht is in the visa routes to Thailand; the order of the steps at /thailand.

In Vertrekklaar this is phase 1 of 5 of the journey, step 1.2: the same steps, but for your situation — in your order, tickable, and with the deadlines watched. See the whole journey to Thailand or go straight to step 1.2 in the open plan.