Working Remotely in Pattaya: Visas, Where to Work and Tax

If you work online, Pattaya is a great place to do it. My advice is simple: bring your clients with you.

Who works remotely here?

I know quite a few remote workers in Pattaya. They work in digital marketing, social media management, software development, web design and graphic design. SEO used to be a big one too, less so now because of AI search. Basically anything digital that can be done entirely online.

Most of the people I know don't work for big international companies. They work for a handful of small businesses back home, mostly in the UK and US, that need someone but can't afford Western wages. The pitch is: I'll give you the same standard of work, but because I live in Thailand you don't have to pay me as much. That's been a trend for the last ten years or so.

The visa: it's official now

Before the DTV, people just worked from their condos on tourist visas with extensions and visa runs, on ordinary non-immigrant visas, or on education visas while learning Thai. They weren't taking a job from a Thai, so it was mostly overlooked. And how would anyone catch someone working on a laptop in their room?

Thailand then did what Singapore and other countries had done and set out to attract digital nomads. The DTV (Destination Thailand Visa) made it official, and most remote workers here should now be on it. It covers remote work for employers and clients outside Thailand. For the details, read visas in Pattaya.

The downsides

Honestly, the only real downside is the time difference. If your clients are in the UK or US, you might have to start work in the afternoon. You manage it. If you work with Australia, it's hardly an issue.

The internet isn't a problem. It's fast, and even in storms these days it very rarely goes down.

Loneliness isn't a problem either. Pattaya is a friendly place and it's easy to make friends. And think about it: in the UK, by the time you finish work it's pitch black and cold. In the south-west of England, after six o'clock everyone's indoors until morning. Here it might be dark, but it's warm, and there's plenty going on after work.

Where do people work?

There are at least three co-working spaces in Pattaya. I've never been to them. I looked at one in Bangkok to see whether the model would work here, and decided it wouldn't, because there are so many free options.

The Starbucks at Central Marina, for example, has a big upstairs area full of tables, and plenty of people work there. All you have to do is buy a coffee, which you'd probably do in a co-working space anyway. My view is that co-working spaces here will eventually die out.

Lots of cafés and restaurants are happy for you to work if you buy a coffee or some food, and Hemingways is one of them. Hemingways Jomtien is a big restaurant and it isn't busy enough in the daytime for us to ever ask someone to give up a table. Plenty of people simply work from home, too.

What about local clients?

A lot of remote workers eventually try to win local clients, offering Pattaya businesses the same services they sell abroad. Local businesses won't pay what Western clients do, but it diversifies your income and pays you in baht.

Be careful, though. The DTV only covers work for clients abroad. Working for Thai businesses technically needs a work permit, and that's where you could get into trouble.

Bring your clients with you

Don't come hoping to pick up local clients. Plenty of people already do that and it's very competitive. Line up international clients before you come. The world is a big place.

If you're working remotely in the West and only just covering your bills, seriously consider Thailand. Even if you negotiate a 10 or 20% cut in pay so your employer lets you work from abroad, I think you'd end up with more disposable income at the end of the month, and it goes much further here.

What about tax?

Check this before you move. If you spend 180 days or more in Thailand in a calendar year, you're generally a Thai tax resident for that year. Since 2024, residents can owe Thai tax on foreign income they bring into the country. The DTV is a visa, not a tax exemption, and tax treaties with your home country can change the picture. I'm not a tax adviser, so get professional advice on your own situation.

If you look into it and the numbers make sense, I think it's a move you won't regret.

This is part of my series on working in Pattaya. Read finding a job as a foreigner, teaching English and working in hospitality, and for the lifestyle side, Pattaya for digital nomads.