All guides Money & Payments
Paying for things in a region where the card in your wallet is often the wrong instrument.
20 articles, each checked against an official source and dated.
Thailand
Thailand's Condominium Act lets a foreigner own a unit outright if foreign owners hold no more than 49% of the building's unit floor area and the purchase money arrives from abroad in foreign currency. The Land Office will not register the transfer without the bank's proof.
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Malaysia
A Malaysian tax resident's foreign pension is exempt when it is brought in, if it was taxed where it arose or left untaxed there for a listed reason. The law now runs the exemption to 2036; the tax office's guideline still says 2026.
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Thailand
Since 20 June 2026 every international departure from Thailand's six AOT airports carries a 1,120 baht passenger service charge, collected inside the airfare. A separate 1,000 baht departure tax on all nationalities is open for public comment until 29 October 2026 and is not law.
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Malaysia
Kuala Lumpur's land office applies a RM1 million floor per unit to foreign buyers, serviced apartments included. It publishes no lower price for MM2H participants.
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Malaysia
Penang's land office sets the lowest price a foreigner may pay, and MM2H participants get their own, lower floor. Then come a RM10,000 application fee and a levy of up to 3%.
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Malaysia
Selangor sets RM2 million in its Klang Valley districts and RM1 million beyond them, strata only. Johor sets RM1 million. Neither gives MM2H buyers the lower price Penang does.
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Malaysia
Federal MM2H's cheapest tier ties up a US dollar deposit and a compulsory home. Sarawak ties up a ringgit deposit and lets you rent. Here is every upfront sum, side by side.
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Malaysia
Since 1 January 2026, a foreigner buying a home in Malaysia pays stamp duty at 8% of the whole price. A Malaysian buying the same home pays 1% to 4% on a sliding scale.
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Malaysia
Melaka lets foreigners buy condominiums from RM500,000, MM2H participants included, but not in its Heritage Zone. The state's approval fee is 3% with a RM30,000 floor.
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Asia
Thailand tests a pension in baht and the Philippines in US dollars. If yours is paid in anything else, the rate decides whether you qualify, and it can change its mind.
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Thailand
Since 2024, foreign income a Thai tax resident earns and later brings into Thailand is taxable. The Revenue Department's own guide sets the two tests, and money earned before 2024 is outside it.
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Asia
Spending is free when you hold the currency. The e-wallet top-up fee, the ATM rules and the conversion a merchant adds are where the money actually goes, and two of the three depend on details nobody checks.
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Thailand
Thailand licenses its money changers, and the rules set what they display, record and may sell you
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Philippines
The USD 10,000 currency threshold, the PHP 10,000 duty-free limit on goods, and the 30 percent surcharge for not declaring them.
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Japan
Purchase minimums, a consumables ceiling, and what you actually save: 10 percent on most goods, 8 percent on food and drink.
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Korea
Korea's threshold is USD 10,000, and skipping the report carries a real penalty
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Japan
Japan Customs sets the threshold at 1,000,000 yen, and applies a stricter rule to travel involving North Korea
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China
How to pay like a local in China without a Chinese bank account or phone number
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Asia
Who actually converts your money when you pay abroad in Asia, what that conversion costs, and who sets the rate.
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China
Where China's own guidance is clear on mobile payments, and where it goes quiet
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