Regular features from February 2005 110th Issue

A Pause for thought & disposal of UK Property

It is difficult to comprehend the destruction and loss of life in the wake of the Tsunami. The sheer scale dwarfs anything in living memory. One thing is for certain though and that is that the areas will recover, the survivors will rebuild their lives, communities will come together and this generation will build for the next. The resilience of the human spirit is what will keep everything going and is what allows us to move forward after such a tragedy.

Having worked in this industry for many years and seen the impact on families who have lost a loved one, it is important to remember in a large event such as this, that these are individual losses, many children are orphaned and families have lost livelihoods and breadwinners.

For farang's who were holidaying, the financial support at home will be much greater than for those expatriate families living in Thailand . Most employers in Western economies will provide for children and spouses in the form of pensions for life and lump sums to meet costs of education etc.

Ex-pat families tend to have little or no benefits unless they work for the very large international companies. Few take the time and trouble to contemplate the impact on their families of long term illness or their untimely death. The mere act of writing a will or last testament seems to make death all the more real and thus is avoided by many.

If we learn anything from this disaster please let it be, that we get our family affairs in order. And on to the more mundane things of living.

Recently a UK domiciled gentleman asked if he transferred his valuable property in the UK into an offshore company, would that action remove it from the inheritance tax that would be liable on it on his demise?

This is not an uncommon question and one which many struggle with when living or retiring abroad. Whilst at one point inheritance tax was once the preserve of the super rich, the unprecedented rise in property prices mean it is a tax faced by almost anyone with a modest property.

The first thing to understand is that proposing to move a property into an offshore limited company will not necessarily remove it from the inheritance tax net in the UK . The tax is applied to your worldwide assets as long as you are either domiciled or deemed domiciled in the UK . You would need for example to have retired in Thailand for some 20 years to lose your UK domicile.

In addition the transfer of your property into an offshore company would be a realization for capital gains tax purposes and would raise further issues. Having said that, it is important to understand that planning for succession should be an advice led process rather than a rush to purchase a “quick fix” that could be attacked by subsequent governments as has been the case recently with pre owned assets legislation.

Anyone in this situation should be asking themselves the following questions.

What is the purpose of the property now-does it produce income that you need? Is the income taxed or alternatively do you need the property for visits back to the UK ? What is your ultimate goal? What would you like your current or estranged family to inherit and when? Which of these different priorities is most important now?

If for example you said that an income for your lifetime was the overriding factor then I would typically suggest you consider issues such as tax efficiency, risk and diversification. Can selling the property and investing for security, growth and income meet your objectives better than holding on to it?

If on the other hand the property has been in the family for many years and you wished this to continue then you might consider gifting this now. Provided you survive for the next seven years your family will have no inheritance tax to pay. However for this to apply there are very strict rules re occupancy and taking income from rental which must be adhered to otherwise your family could lose all the benefit.

For further information on this article please contact Jerry at info@swissinvestcenter.net or visit his website www.swissinvestcenter.net

In The Can

This month I am going to give you a guide to the big films due to be released this year, as well as those released in the last month or so. Most of the release dates are for the USA , so for Europe they may be up to 3 or 4 months later, but in Thailand they will be about the same. You may not be too surprised to see them available in DVD format shortly after (or even before!) these dates too, but of course these will be illegal pirate copies, most likely of poor quality. Add about a year to these dates and they will start showing them on satellite or cable television channels, and they will also be available in your local video rental store. Where known I have listed the style of movie as well as the main stars and/ or director.

RELEASED IN JANUARY

Alexander – historical biopic/action, Colin Farrell/ director Oliver Stone

White Noise – horror, Michael Keaton

Vera Drake –drama, director Mike Leigh

Closer – drama, Julia Roberts/J ude Law

Million Dollar Baby – boxing drama, Morgan Freeman/ Hilary Swank/ director Clint Eastwood

Team America : World Police - puppet comedy from South Park creators

Vanity Fair - remake Reese Witherspoon

Assault On Precinct 13 – action, remake Ethan Hawke/ Laurence Fishburne/ Maria Bello

Ladder 49 – action/ drama, Joaquin Phoenix/ JohnTravolta

Ray - biopic of Ray Charles, Jamie Foxx

Meet The Fockers – comedy, sequel to Meet The Parents, Robert De Niro/ Ben Stiller/ Dustin Hoffman/ Barbra Streisand

FEBRUARY

Oceans Twelve - sequel to Oceans Eleven, George Clooney, Matt Damon, Brad Pitt, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Andy Garcia, Julia Roberts

Son Of the Mask – belated sequel to The Mask, Jamie Kennedy, Alan Cumming

SpongeBob SquarePants:The Movie - cult childrens cartoon

Hide And Seek – horror, Robert De Niro, Dakota Fanning

The Magic Roundabout – based on cult children's TV show of the 1960's, voices of Tom Baker/ Jim Broadbent/ Joanna Lumley/ Ian McKellen/ Bill Nighy/ Robbie Williams/ Kylie Minogue/ Ray Winstone

Shall We Dance? - romantic comedy, Jennifer Lopez/ Richard Gere

The Life Aquatic – comedy, Bill Murray/ Owen Wilson

Coach Carter – drama, Samuel L Jackson

The Flight Of The Phoenix – remake, Dennis Quaid

Spanglish - comedy/drama, Adam Sandler/ Tea Leoni

MARCH

Hitch – romantic comedy, Will Smith/ Eva Mendes

The Machinist – thriller, Christian Bale/ Jennifer Jason Leigh

Constantine – comic book adaptation, Keanu Reeves/ Rachel Weisz/ Djimon Hounsou

Robots – animated comedy, voices of Ewan McGregor/ Halle Berry / Mel Brooks

Melinda And Melinda – comedy, Woody Allen

Nanny McPhee – family, Emma Thompson/ Colin Firth

Pooh's Heffalump Movie – Disney cartoon

Miss Congeniality 2 – comedy sequel, Sandra Bullock

Valiant – British animation, voices of Ewan McGregor/ Jim Broadbent/ John Cleese/ Ricky Gervais.

APRIL

Be Cool – sequel to Get Shorty, JohnTravolta/ Uma Thurman

Man Of The House – comedy, Tommy Lee Jones

The Ring 2 – sequel, horror, Naomi Watts

Sahara – action/adventure, Matthew McConaughey/ Penélope Cruz/ Steve Zahn

The Assassination of Richard Nixon –true story/drama, Sean Penn/ Naomi Watts/ Don Cheadle

A Lot Like Love – romantic comedy, Ashton Kutcher/ Amanda Peet

The Interpreter - thriller, Nicole Kidman/ Sean Penn/ director Sydney Pollack.

Sin City – action/drama, Bruce Willis/ Elijah Wood/ Benicio Del Toro

Unleashed – action, Jet Li/ Bob Hoskins.

XXX 2: Next Level – sequel, action, Ice Cube/ Willem Dafoe/ Samuel L Jackson.

In Her Shoes - Cameron Diaz/ Toni Collette

MAY

Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy – sci-fi comedy, Sam Rockwell/ Martin Freeman/ Zooey Deschanel/ Mos Def

Monster-in-Law – comedy, Jennifer Lopez/ Jane Fonda

Kingdom Of Heaven – epic action, Orlando Bloom/ director Ridley Scott

Friday Night Lights – drama, Billy Bob Thornton/ Derek Luke

Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge Of The Sith – final episode of the sci-fi series, Hayden Christensen

The Pacifier – action comedy, Vin Diesel

A Sound Of Thunder – sci-fi, Edward Burns/ Ben Kingsley/ Catherine McCormack

JUNE

House Of Wax – remake, horror, Elisha '24' Cuthbert/ Jared Padalecki.

The Cinderella Man – true story, drama, Russell Crowe/ Renée Zellweger.

The League Of Gentlemen - Royston Vasey - Big screen spin-off of the popular BBC series, Mark Gatiss/ Steve Pemberton/ Reece Shearsmith.

Mr And Mrs Smith - Comedy-thriller, Brad Pitt/ Angelina Jolie

Batman Begins - Christian Bale/ Michael Caine/ Liam Neeson/ Gary Oldman

JULY

Madagascar – animation, voices of Chris Rock/ Ben Stiller

War Of the Worlds – sci-fi, Tom Cruise/ director Steven Spielberg

Fantastic Four - comic book adaptation, Jessica Alba/ Ioan Gruffudd/ Michael Chiklis/ Chris Evans

Fun With Dick And Jane – remake, comedy, Jim Carrey/ Téa Leoni

Chicken Little - Disney computer-generated animation

Charlie And The Chocolate Factory – remake, kids' classic, Johnny Depp/ director Tim Burton

AUGUST

Stealth – action, Josh Lucas/ Jessica Biel

Because of Win-Dixie – drama, Jeff Daniels/ Dakota Fanning

Herbie: Fully Loaded – remake, Disney, Lindsay Lohan/ Matt Dillon/ Michael Keaton.

The Island – sci-fi, Ewan McGregor/ Scarlett Johansson/ Steve Buscemi Bewitched – comedy, adaptation of 60s sitcom, Nicole Kidman/ Will Ferrell

Dark Water – remake of Japanese movie,horror, Jennifer Connolly

Doom - Video-game adaptation, Dwayne 'The Rock' Johnson/ Rosamund Pike

SEPTEMBER

Elizabeth Town – romantic comedy, Orlando Bloom/ Kirsten Dunst/ director Cameron Crowe.

Pride And Prejudice – period drama, Keira Knightley/ Matthew MacFayden/ Judi Dench/ Donald Sutherland

Legend Of Zorro – sequel, action, Antonio Banderas/ Catherine Zeta-Jones

OCTOBER

Wallace & Gromit In The Great Vegetable Plot – animated comedy from Oscar winners Aardman Anymation,

The Corpse Bride – animation, voices of Emily Watson/ Johnny Depp/ Helena Bonham Carter/ director Tim Burton

Aeon Flux – sci-fi, Charlize Theron

Sky High – action/kids, Bruce Campbell/ Kurt Russell/ Kelly Preston.

NOVEMBER

Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire – 4 th in the series, usual cast plus Ralph Fiennes/ Brendan Gleeson

Land Of The Dead – zombie/horror, director George A Romero

DECEMBER

Memoirs Of A Geisha – December, Ziyi Zhang/ director Rob Marshall/ producer Steven Spielberg

The Chronicles Of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch & the Wardrobe – adaptation of the C.S.Lewis book, Rupert Everett/ Tilda Swinton/ Dawn French/ Jim Broadbent/ Ray Winstone/ Brian Cox

King Kong – December, Naomi Watts/ Jack Black/ Adrien Brody/ director Peter Jackson

Cars – animation from Pixar

Please note all dates are subject to change.

Now lets see how much you movie buffs know! I have compiled a Movie Quotes Quiz (answers at the bottom). All you need to do is identify the movie and the actor who spoke the line (1 point for each). Roll camera!

1. “It's 106 miles to Chicago , we got a full tank of gas, half a pack of cigarettes, it's dark and we're wearing sunglasses.”
2. “Here's Johnny!”
3. “You gotta ask yourself a question – ‘Do I feel lucky?' Well, do you punk?”
4. “My momma used to say that life is like a box of chocolates – you never know what you're gonna get.”
5. “You can't handle the truth!”

1. “What have the Romans ever done for us?”
2. “Do you know what they call a quarter pounder with cheese over there? A Royale with cheese.”
3. “I could've been a contender”
4. “A sphincter says what?”
5. “Funny how?”

1. “There's no crying in baseball!”
2. “Why can't we just get along?”
3. “Call that a knife? Now that's a knife!”
4. “Pour me a John Daniels.” (“Don't you mean Jack Daniels?”) “When you've known him as long as I have you call him John.”
5. “I'll find him for three, but I'll catch him and kill him for ten.”

Answers:

1. Dan Ackroyd in “The Blues Brothers”
2. Jack Nicholson in “The Shining”
3. Clint Eastwood in “Dirty Harry”
4. Tom Hanks in “Forrest Gump”
5. Jack Nicholson in “A Few Good Men”
6. John Cleese in “The Life Of Brian”
7. John Travolta in “Pulp Fiction”
8. Marlon Brando in “On The Waterfront”
9. Mike Myers in “ Wayne 's World”
10. Joe Pesci in “Goodfellas”
11. Tom Hanks in “A League Of Their Own”
12. Jack Nicholson in “Mars Attacks!”
13. Paul Hogan in “Crocodile Dundee ”
14. Al Pacino in “Scent Of A Woman”
15. Robert Shaw in “Jaws”

Your rating:

Score under 5 – You are the unnamed henchman who gets killed in the first scene!

6 to 10 – Stunt double

11 to 15 – One line walk on part

16 to 20 – “And introducing..” in the opening credits

21 to 25 – Co-star

26 to 29 – You have a star on Hollywood Boulevard !

30 – Removed from the set for cheating! (Oh alright then, you are a superstar -have a five film contract)

Enclosed is Janne together with his girlfriend Noi celebrates his 70th birthday december 21.

Graham singing his heart out after a meal at Crawfords.

Hua Hin Music Society get rockin’!

Bengt with his girlfriend Sunnee celebrate his 80th birthday on christmas Eve december .

Mick looks dubious about the yard of ale despite encouragement from Khun Wit - he didn’t get very much further!

Children’s Day went down well with happy faces!

Useful Telephone Numbers for Hua Hin

Railway station
032-512 770, 032-511 073

Bus station of Hua Hin
032-511 654, 032-512 543

Bus station of Prachuabkirikhan
032-601 901

Bus station of Pranburi
032-621 443

Hua Hin Hospital
032-520 401

Dog Rescue Center
0-1981 4406

Wild life Rescue Center (Tayang)
032-458 135

Department of Land Cha-am office:
032- 430 846-7

Department of Land Hua Hin office:
032-536 164, 032-512 407

Department of Land Prachuabkirikhan:
032-611 211

Department of Land Pranburi
032-622 199

Local Government (Hua Hin)
032-521 340, 532 471

Local water supply
032-511 677

The Power Board of Hua Hin
032-512 215, 032 513 165

Observer office:
032-531 078

Red Cross.
032-512 567

San Paolo Hospital
032-532 576-85

Polyclinic International
032-516 424, 032-516 425

Shell Cooking Gas
032-511 144, 032- 515 620

The Communication Authority of Thailand
(Hua Hin)
032-511 351

Rotary Club of Hua Hin
0-1916 6637
Meeting every Thursday 8.pm
at Hua Hin Grand Hotel & Plaza

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