Expats, Investing and Thailand: The Can, the Should and The Don’t

Are you an expat living in Thailand? If so, are you taking advantage of all the tax and investment benefits that come along with living abroad? If you aren’t, you should be, according to Richard Cayne of Meyer International.

Expats often enjoy financial and tax incentives that make investing even more attractive than it is for their peers residing in their home country. Do you know what those incentives and benefits are?

Read on to find out why expats should be investing more in their years living abroad – and the surprising reason that they often don’t.

Why Expats Can Invest More

Expats tend to be on fairly well-paid compensation packages that may include housing, a company car and more. What’s more, if they are residing in Thailand or another country where the cost of living can be low, chances are their expat salary goes much further than it would in their home country.

What this means is that expats tend to have more discretionary or, as financial planning consultants such as Richard Cayne might like to say, investible income than they would if they were living in their home country; paying their own rent, mortgage and transportation costs.

This is the reason why expats often have the resources to invest heavily during their years living abroad.

Why They Should Invest More While Living Abroad

Expats living in Thailand can enjoy great tax breaks when investing during their years of residing in the country.

One of the many great things about life in Thailand for expats is that the country does not tax on investments made outside the country. So, if expats have lots of discretionary income and use it for investing while living in Thailand, they can watch their wealth grow larger, faster than it would if they were living almost anywhere else in the world!

Why They Often Don’t Invest While Living Abroad

While people always seem to be able to come up with lots of reasons why they aren’t investing their discretionary income, in this case, there is one large reason why expats living in Thailand aren’t taking advantages of the benefits of investing while living in the country.

The reason is this: they just don’t know. Richard Cayne is often surprised by how few of the people he meets don’t know about the investment tax laws in Thailand and how they can use them to their advantage.

So, people can’t be expected to take advantage of something they know nothing about. The best thing to do when you want to learn about something new is to talk to an expert. Finding a good financial planning consultant and sitting down with him for a conversation about your resources, options and what might work best for you might be the best thing you do with you time – and can  your finances – while living abroad.

Isn’t it time you starting your expat investing experience?

For further information about life expat tax laws and other investment topics, Richard Cayne and Meyer International can be reached at (+66) 02 611 2561.