We put this page together from documents of the Revenue Department (rd.go.th), Thailand’s tax authority, and checked them on 19 October 2026. It covers only what the law and the department’s own explanations say: who is a tax resident, what is taxed and at what rates. It is reference material, not tax advice.
Who is a Thai tax resident
The rule is simple. Section 41 of the Revenue Code treats as a resident anyone who spends 180 days in the country in a tax year. The Thai tax year is the calendar year, 1 January to 31 December. Days are added together, so it does not matter whether you stayed in one stretch or came several times. Nationality, visa type and having a Thai address play no part.
In its Q&A the Revenue Department gives these examples:
- 366 days in 2024: resident
- 184 days spread over several trips: resident
- 179 days: not resident
- 250 days in a row, 100 of them in 2024 and 150 in 2025: not resident in 2024 or in 2025, because each year has fewer than 180 days
The department’s documents give the tax year in the Buddhist calendar: 2568 is 2025 and 2569 is 2026.
What is taxed
The Revenue Department splits a foreigner’s income into two kinds.
| Kind of income | What it is | Who pays tax |
|---|---|---|
| Thai source | work performed in Thailand, a business in Thailand, assets in Thailand. It does not matter where you were paid | resident and non-resident |
| Foreign source | work, a business or assets outside Thailand | resident only, and only when brought into Thailand |
For Thai-source income the department’s leaflet says it directly: tax applies “whether such income is paid within or outside Thailand”. A non-resident pays tax only on Thai-source income, so foreign income is outside the Thai tax net for them.
Income from abroad: the remittance rule since 2024
The rule for foreign income is set out in Revenue Department Order Por. 161/2566 of 15 September 2023, clarified by Order Por. 162/2566 of 20 November 2023. Foreign income is taxed when both conditions are met:
- It arose from 1 January 2024 or later, and in that year you spent 180 days or more in Thailand
- You brought it into Thailand, in full or in part, in the same year or in any later year
Tax is paid for the year in which the money was brought in, not the year it was earned. The order applies to money brought in from 1 January 2024.
The four cases from the department’s table:
| When the income arose | Days in Thailand that year | Taxed when brought in |
|---|---|---|
| before 1 January 2024 | fewer than 180 | no |
| before 1 January 2024 | 180 or more | no |
| from 1 January 2024 | fewer than 180 | no |
| from 1 January 2024 | 180 or more | yes |
The department’s own example: a person spent 200 days in Thailand in 2024 and earned rent from a property abroad. In 2025 he transferred that money to a Thai bank account. The tax is due on the 2025 return.
What “brought in” means
The department reads it broadly: any way of getting the income into the country. A bank transfer, an online transfer, or cash you carry in with you. The exchange rate used is the one on the day the money is brought in.
What is not income
From the Revenue Department’s Q&A:
- Money you sent abroad yourself and brought back. The transferred amount is not income. If it comes back with interest, only the interest is taxed, in the year it was brought in
- Unrealised gains. Shares went up but you have not sold them: no income yet. Income arises when the shares are sold, and is taxed in the year you bring the proceeds in
- Savings built up when you were not a resident. Money earned in years with fewer than 180 days in Thailand is not taxed when brought in
- Income the Revenue Code exempts. An inheritance, for example
- Everything received before 1 January 2024
The taxpayer decides which part of the money brought in is income and which is capital. The department stresses that documents proving the source of income may be requested.
Tax paid abroad
A Thai resident can credit tax paid in another country under a double tax agreement. In November 2025 the department named 61 countries with which such agreements exist. The credit cannot exceed the Thai tax on the same income. If there is no agreement with the country in question, the tax cannot be credited. Residency for the purposes of an agreement can be defined differently from Thai domestic law, so it is checked separately. In November 2025 the Revenue Department released an online tool for calculating the credit, with a manual.
Income tax rates
Tax is calculated on net income: expenses and allowances come off first. For example, a personal allowance of THB 60,000, the same for a spouse with no income of their own, and THB 30,000 per child. Rates are progressive, from the table in the Revenue Department’s instructions for the 2025 return.
| Net income for the year, THB | Rate | Tax for the band, THB | Cumulative tax at the top of the band, THB |
|---|---|---|---|
| up to 150,000 | exempt | 0 | 0 |
| 150,001-300,000 | 5% | 7,500 | 7,500 |
| 300,001-500,000 | 10% | 20,000 | 27,500 |
| 500,001-750,000 | 15% | 37,500 | 65,000 |
| 750,001-1,000,000 | 20% | 50,000 | 115,000 |
| 1,000,001-2,000,000 | 25% | 250,000 | 365,000 |
| 2,000,001-5,000,000 | 30% | 900,000 | 1,265,000 |
| above 5,000,000 | 35% | no upper limit |
Our calculation from this table: on net income of THB 1,200,000 the tax is 115,000 + 25% of 200,000, which is THB 165,000.
The Revenue Department’s English page on personal income tax labels its rate table “for the 2013 and 2014 tax years”. The current 2025 table is in the return instructions, linked in the sources.
How and when to file
Foreigners file the same returns as Thais. Thai-source income and foreign income brought in during the year are added together in one return. If foreign income is brought in only in part, the part brought in is taxed proportionally.
- P.N.D. 91 is for people whose only income is a salary
- P.N.D. 90 is for people with other kinds of income, or several kinds
By the instructions for tax year 2025, a single person must file P.N.D. 90 if income is above THB 60,000, and a married couple if combined income is above THB 120,000. The filing and payment period runs from 1 January to 31 March of the following year. Tax can be paid in three parts: 31 March together with the return, 30 April and 31 May. If you miss one part, the right to pay in parts ends. For late payment after March a surcharge of 1.5% a month applies.
You can file online at rd.go.th, at an area Revenue Department office, or by registered post (for people domiciled in Bangkok). For e-filing deadlines, check the announcements on rd.go.th. The Revenue Department hotline is 1161.
LTR holders and other reliefs
For some categories of the LTR long-term visa, Royal Decree No. 743 of 2022 gives reliefs: exemption from tax on foreign income brought into Thailand (for Wealthy Global Citizen, Wealthy Pensioner and Work-from-Thailand Professional) and a 17% rate on a Thai salary for a Highly-Skilled Professional. The conditions and caveats are in our guide to the LTR visa. We found no tax reliefs for DTV or Thailand Elite holders in the official documents we read.
What we did not find in official sources
- Guidance on remote work. How the Revenue Department treats work for a foreign employer done while you live in Thailand as “work performed in Thailand” is not on the department’s site as far as we found. We also found no special rules for DTV holders: residency is determined by days of stay
- A relaxation of the remittance rule that has been adopted. In 2025 an exemption for income brought in during the year it was earned or the next year was under discussion. The “New laws” section of rd.go.th (last updated 14 October 2026) contains no such act, and the Revenue Department’s manual of November 2025 describes the current rule without exceptions. Until an act is published, assume the rule above applies
- Exactly 180 days. Section 41 calls a person a resident once they have stayed “up to one hundred and eighty days” (that is, reached 180), and the department’s Q&A and leaflet say “180 days or more”. The department’s English page on personal income tax says “more than 180”. We follow the Thai text and the leaflet: 180 days is enough
We re-check this page every 60 days. Tax residency and remitting income depend heavily on your situation: other countries where you may also be resident, the kind of income and the double tax agreement. Before bringing in a large sum or filing a return, consult a tax specialist or the Revenue Department.
FAQ
How many days in Thailand make me a tax resident?
180 days or more in a calendar year, from 1 January to 31 December. Days are added up, whether consecutive or in several trips. The Revenue Department gives examples: 184 days in a year is resident, 179 days is not, and a 250-day stay split into 100 days in one year and 150 in the next gives residency in neither.
Is a salary from a foreign employer taxed if I live in Thailand?
It depends on where the work is done and where you are tax resident. Section 41 of the Revenue Code taxes income from work performed in Thailand, wherever it is paid. The Revenue Department has not issued separate guidance on remote work for a foreign company, so this is a question for a tax specialist.
Is money I simply transfer to Thailand from my own foreign account taxed?
Tax applies to income, not to capital. According to the Revenue Department, money you sent abroad yourself and then brought back is not income, and of a transfer made up of principal plus interest only the interest is taxable. The taxpayer decides which part of a transfer is income and has to be able to show it.
Is income earned before 2024 taxed?
No. Orders Por. 161/2566 and Por. 162/2566 apply to income arising from 1 January 2024. Income earned earlier is not taxed even if it is brought into Thailand later. The order and the Revenue Department Q&A both say so directly.
Can I credit tax I already paid in another country?
A Thai resident can credit tax paid abroad if the double tax agreement between Thailand and that country allows it. The credit cannot exceed the Thai tax on the same income. The Revenue Department recommends a tax payment certificate from the foreign tax authority, with documents in English or Thai.
Sources
- Revenue Department. How do foreigners living in Thailand pay tax? (leaflet, 2024)
- Revenue Department. Order Por. 161/2566 on tax under Section 41 paragraph 2 (15 Sep 2023, amended by Por. 162/2566 of 20 Nov 2023)
- Revenue Department. Q&A on Orders Por. 161 and 162/2566 (in Thai)
- Revenue Department. Revenue Code, Sections 38-64 (Section 41, in Thai)
- Revenue Department. Manual for Foreign Tax Credit Calculation Tool, November 2025
- Revenue Department. Instructions for the P.N.D. 90 return, tax year 2568 (2025), in Thai
- Revenue Department. Personal Income Tax (general overview in English; the rate table on that page is outdated)
- Revenue Department. New laws (section updated 14 Oct 2026)
- BOI, ltr.boi.go.th. Royal Decree No. 743 B.E. 2565 (tax benefits for LTR holders, unofficial translation)
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