Getting a Thai Tax ID (TIN) as a foreigner: who needs one, where to apply & what to bring.

First: do you even need one?

A TIN is only required once you have assessable income in Thailand. That covers a Thai salary, rent from a condo you own here, freelance or business income earned in Thailand, and — if you are a tax resident (180+ days in a calendar year) — foreign income you remit into the country. Simply living here on a tourist or retirement visa with no Thai-source income doesn’t, by itself, oblige you to register.

Not sure whether you owe anything at all? Start with our residency and income guides: Tax for expats — residency & foreign income and Personal income tax: rates & filing.

TIN vs the pink-ID 13-digit number

A common point of confusion: the pink ID card issued to non-citizens carries a 13-digit personal number, and the Revenue Department will often accept that same number as your TIN instead of issuing a separate one. So:

• Have a pink card already? Ask the Revenue Office whether your existing 13-digit number can be used before applying for anything new.
• No pink card? You don’t need one first — apply for a TIN directly at the Revenue Office.

For more on the pink card and the matching yellow house book, see our yellow book & pink ID card guide.

Where and how to apply

You register in person at your local Area Revenue Office (สำนักงานสรรพากรพื้นที่) or its district branch (สำนักงานสรรพากรพื้นที่สาขา), covering where you live. Foreign nationals apply on Form L.P.10.1, and the Revenue Department’s own deadline is within 60 days from the date you first derive assessable income — it is not tied to the filing date. There is no fee. Two routes cover most people:

• Employed by a Thai company? The HR or payroll team usually registers you for a TIN automatically with your first payroll — check with them before queuing at the office.
• Self-employed, a landlord, or remitting foreign income? Go to the Revenue Office yourself with the documents below; staff complete the registration and issue your number, often the same day.

Procedures and the exact paperwork differ branch to branch, so it’s worth calling ahead or checking the Revenue Department’s website first.

Sources for this section: the form number and the 60-day deadline are stated on the Revenue Department’s own Tax Identification page (English) — “Form L.P. 10.1… within 60 days from the date he derives assessable income” — and the Thai office names are taken from the department’s Thai-language guidance for foreign nationals.

Documents to bring

• Passport — photo page plus your current visa or entry stamp.
• Proof of a Thai address — a rental contract, TM30 receipt, certificate of residence from immigration or your embassy, or your yellow house book.
• Evidence of assessable income — an employment contract, a withholding certificate, or proof of rental/remitted income.
• Copies — bring originals and photocopies; some offices ask you to sign each copy.

Requirements vary by office, so confirm exactly what your branch wants before you make the trip.

Online vs in person

The Revenue Department keeps expanding its e-services — the e-filing portal, the RD Smart Tax app, and, since 1 January 2025, the newer D-MyTax platform, which brings My Tax Account, e-Filing, e-Donation and e-Appointment together behind one login (Bangkok Global Law). Some registration steps can now be started online, but many foreigners still do the first TIN registration in person, because the office wants to sight original documents and verify your address. Once you hold a TIN, you can normally file your annual return online, which usually gives a slightly later deadline than paper filing. Because the digital services change, check the current options on the Revenue Department’s site.

The statutory deadline itself is not vague: the Revenue Department states that a taxpayer must file and pay “within the last day of March following the taxable year” — 31 March (Revenue Department, Personal Income Tax). In practice the department has repeatedly granted online filers an extra eight days, to around 8 April, by fresh notification each year (pattern confirmed across recent tax years via Sherrings’ summary of Revenue Department filing deadlines) — but the extension is re-issued (or not) every year, so we do not print it here as this year’s guaranteed date. Read the current extended date off the e-filing portal or D-MyTax rather than carrying over last year’s.

What to do once you have it

• Use the same 13-digit number on every tax return (PND.90 or PND.91) and keep it on file.
• Give it to your employer or tenant so withholding certificates carry the right number.
• Provide it to banks and brokers when they ask for a tax number under CRS reporting.
• Keep your withholding certificates and receipts — you’ll need them when you file, and a TIN lets you reclaim tax that was over-withheld.

Ready to see what you might owe? Try the Thailand income tax estimator.

Common mistakes to avoid

• applying for a new TIN when your pink-ID number would already do
• treating March as the deadline — the Revenue Department’s rule is 60 days from your first assessable income, well before any filing date
• turning up without proof of address or copies of your documents
• assuming a bank’s CRS request for a tax number means you owe Thai tax — it usually doesn’t
• not getting a TIN at all and then being unable to reclaim over-withheld tax

Frequently asked