Malaysia Paypal Goooodnews!!!

NOW we(Malaysian) can withdraw money direct to our Malaysia Bank account!

Just log-in to Paypal this morning and notice this latest good news.

After log-in, the first thing they(Paypal) ask you to renew your new password(must NEW one), set 2 security questions and conform your email.

After that, when i click on the withdraw link, the new page come out and there's a new button(link) with the words "Withdraw to your Bank in Malaysia".

Then i go back to my profile and add the Bank Account info. Just key in your account number and the MEPS number(you can find out your bank's MEPS number by click on the details link).

That's all.

It only take 2~3 working days to transfer your money from Paypal to your bank account, and its FOC(free on charge) if your withdraw is more than RM400(minimum withdraw). Less than RM400 will be charge RM3 per-withdraw. And it seems like NO withdraw limit.

update 11 Nov 2009

After i transfer money to my Malaysia Bank account, i received email from Paypal:-

You asked us on Nov 9, 2009 to transfer $$$ MYR from your PayPal account to your bank account. We are processing your request.
The transfer takes up to 2-3 business days.
The money should be in your bank account by Nov 16, 2009

Nov 16? its like 1 week time(7 days), not 2-3 business days?

update 13 Nov 2009

Hahahaha! i check my bank account this morning, the money i transfer from Paypal to my Malaysia bank saving account last Monday is already there. They REALLY only took 2~3 business days to process.

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So looong never update

Moved to new place with NO internet connection...

Have to online @ Starbuck.

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Who draw the twitter bird?

You might wonder, who's the artist who created the twitter blue bird? How much money he have make from this little blue bird???
His name is Simon Oxley, a exclusive artist from istockphoto. By the way, he is also the one who designed the istockphoto logo....

click on picture for larger preview

There'a a interview with Simon Oxley on tutsplus.com by Sonali Vora. Here's some of the intro copy taken from tutsplus.com....

Simon Oxley is a British Illustrator and designer living in Fukuoka, Japan. Simon moved to Japan to work in a design company based in Harajuku, Tokyo. Since 2002, he runs his own design and illustration studio, Idokungfoo, and works for clients from all over the world.
He produces illustrated imagery for iStockphoto and he designed the iStockphoto logo. Simon is also the creator of the cute bird graphic that you see on Twitter's homepage. His work features strong Japanese influence and his illustrations are simple and refreshing. So, let's take this opportunity to have a digital chat with him! (text taken from tutsplus.com)


For the full interview, please click on link to visit tutsplus.com

Click on link to find out more about Simon Oxley.
Simon Oxley's website: www.idokungfoo.com
Simon Oxley's istockphoto profile page.

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MyFotolia

To all fotolia contributors, now you can have you own fotolia gallery with your own domain (http://my.fotolia.com/yourname)....

click on picture for larger preview

What's MyFotolia?

A personal image gallery
Manage your own image gallery using your Fotolia portfolio. No more competition, visitors will only access your personal files via your individual URL.

A great advertising place for all your work
Only your work is displayed on your site and at any time, visitors can buy your images via Fotolia.

An easy to set-up image management system
No need to spend time creating a web photo gallery on your own, with MyFotolia all your photos or images are already online and waiting to be bought.

A customized site that adapts to your personality
Change colors and display order, upload your own banner to make it more personal, you are the only designer of your image galleryl.
(text taken from my.fotolia.com)

For more info, please click on link to visit my.fotolia.com

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My latest Upload :: Simplified Man (1)

Request by a reader SHAM886, he/she hope i can post my vector illustration together with the outline preview screenshot....









Here you are SHAM886, hope you'll like it :)

You may found this series of vector illustrations @ shutterstock, Dreamstime, 123rf, fotolia, istockphoto, stockxpert and bigstockphoto.

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shutterstock non-US submitter have to pay tax

Every shutterstock submitter (non-US citizen) should have received the email this morning...

Subject: Withholding Taxes for Foreign Submitters

Dear vuifah,

This letter is to advise you of changes in the amount of tax that will be withheld from your Shutterstock earnings.

In reviewing our files we discovered that we do not have a record of having received any US withholding tax certificates from you. Based upon the information in our files it appears that you are not a citizen or resident of the United States, or a resident of a jurisdiction which has an income tax treaty with the United States that provides for a reduced rate of withholding tax on royalties.

If our information is incorrect, and you are a citizen or resident of the United States, please provide us with a signed, completed U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-9, Request for Taxpayer Identification Number and Certification. If you are a resident of a jurisdiction which has an income tax treaty with the United States that provides for a reduced rate of withholding tax on royalties, you will need to complete U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Form W-8BEN, Certificate of Foreign Status of Beneficial Owner for United States Tax Withholding. We are in the process of installing an online version of Form W-8BEN; however, in order to complete the form you must have a U.S. Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN). If you do not currently have an ITIN, you can obtain one by filing a Form W-7, Application for IRS Individual Taxpayer Identification Number, with the IRS. This process takes only 4-6 weeks and could reduce your withholding taxes significantly.


You can complete the most recent version of Form W-7 by checking Box a (Nonresident alien required to obtain ITIN to claim tax treaty benefits), providing the information requested in Lines 1 through 6, and signing the form where indicated. You must provide certified or notarized copies of documents, such as your passport, that substantiate the information contained on Form W-7.

After completing the W-7 form and providing the required documentation as described above, you can apply for an ITIN in any of three ways:


1. by mail through the IRS, with details available here:
http://www.irs.gov/individuals/article/0,,id=96287,00.html

2. using the services of an IRS-authorized Acceptance Agent in your country

3. or by visiting an IRS Taxpayer Assistance Center in Frankfurt, London, or Paris, where they will provide in-person help with ITIN applications on a walk-in or appointment basis.
http://www.irs.gov/localcontacts/article/0,,id=101292,00.html

Please note that without an ITIN and a completed IRS Form W-8BEN or Form W-9 on file at Shutterstock, we will be required to deduct a 30% US withholding tax from royalties payable to you. 
Your early June royalty payment will not be subject to withholdings but subsequent royalty payments may be.
If you have questions on tax withholding from your Shutterstock earnings, please visit our submitter forum.
Thank you for your cooperation and attention to this matter.

Best Regards,
Shutterstock Images LLC
(original email from Shutterstock)


Read my post IRS Withholding Taxes for non U.S. Submitters (taken from shutterstock forum) or click on link to read the original post at shutterstock forum. Check your country through the list and see how much you need to pay.
For us (from Malaysia or Singapore) are not on list (Non Treaty Countries 30% 30% ), so it means we need to pay 30% from our monthly income.


What we can to do to avoid this 30% tax?

1. Move to a neighbor country that have lesser tax (or 0% tax) like India, Japan, Russia...

2. Close shutterstock account & concentrate on other RF stock site.

3. Just complete the paperwork, submit the form, do whatever they told us to do and continue produce our illustration/photography and continue submit to shutterstock and continue living with the 30% less monthly income. (better than nothing :)

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