Thanks for the extra info and no, I didn't think you were a promoter for this visa.

But, you know, I have a strong sense of deja vu here as MM2H was launched by the Malaysian Tourism ministry who heavily promoted the tax-free nature of this visa only for it to be hijacked by Home Affairs, its terms drastically changed and the tax benefits largely withdrawn.

It would worry me greatly that the supposed tax-free nature of the Thai LTR visa is not embodied anywhere in the Thai tax code 2022/23 but maybe that is a worry for another day. In any case, I think they have pitched the price too high for the dubious benefits of living in their Kingdom, time will tell if they get anywhere near their target on one million applicants.

I agree with @tdrinker that, whereas none of us wants to pay tax, focussing on zero-tax destinations excludes other places which maybe provide a better balance between cost of living, quality of life and personal safety.

Yes indeed, I feel cheated and lied to by Malaysia and I'm very angry about it. What they've done has hugely disrupted my life here and wrecked a lot of plans for the future - like moving to another part of the country and buying a new home. That and other 'big ticket' purchases will no longer be happening and that has indeed damaged my lifestyle here. No, I won't pay an extra 30% on everything I buy here now, no way will I reward duplicity.

You didn't search for the decree that I posted obviously. If you did, you'd see that the law is indeed gazetted, and is reported so by numerous global accountancy firms, including Deloitte and PWC. Go ahead now and Google it.

There are 5 different categories of the LTR Visa. Most of them would be of zero interest to me too. But the 'Wealthy Pensioner' category that I applied under will cost me 50,000THB (1,200 STG) for a 10 year visa, with all the tax benefits. A bargain.

Thailand is one such place - with the added benefit of no tax (did you Google it yet?). I'll keep my place here in Malaysia, and probably maintain tax residency here for the DTA. But I'll split my time now between here and Thailand, and look into buying a property in Phuket instead of Penang. Not being taxed gives me the freedom and disposable income to make choices like that instead of being too poor to do anything about it but whinge.

It's better not to have all your eggs in one basket in this mad uncertain world we live in now, and politically Malaysia is an unstable and potentially dangerous place for non Malays in future. Their discriminatory laws have never sat well with me.
Time to diversify.

Yes, I did but it wasn't very illuminating. Phrases such as ""The incentives (which include a reduction in the personal income tax rate or a personal income tax exemption for certain income, depending on the circumstances)." are not very helpful when neither the income nor the circumstances have not been clearly explained. It is not even stated whether such exemption would include pensions. I assume this will be codified by the Thai Tax authorities in due course as was the case in Malaysia when Hasil came up with a very different interpration of what politicians had announced.

I'm not convinced I'd be fairly treated in Thailand in the event of a conflict with a local, e.g. traffic accident, property dispute, or in any interaction with the police. The requirement to register with the authorities frequently under certain visas feels xenophobic and rules have changed frequently. Therefore, I wouldn't feel confident making a significant investment in Thailand, e.g. property purchase, although I may be overly cautious as it's worked out well for many people.

in the summary page by pwc they say that foreign income is only taxed if remitted to thailand the same year.

https://taxsummaries.pwc.com/thailan...ersonal-income