#  >  > Living And Legal Affairs In Thailand >  >  > Thai Visas and Visa Runs >  >  BIG Changes to banked money method for retirement extensions.

## toddaniels

The newest police order put out (which takes effect on March 1st) spells out totally NEW criteria for people getting yearly extensions of stays based on being over 50 using banked money.

You now need the 800K baht in a thai bank account in your name only for TWO months prior to you applying for your extension, AND for 3 months AFTER you get your extension, THEN the money cannot drop below 400K baht for the remainder of the year. 

I am guessing they will give a 3 month "under consideration" stamp when you apply for your extension making you come back with an updated bank book to show the 800K baht is still in the account after 3 months and then ink the rest of the 9 months extension into your passport
AND the following year they will look at your bank book and make sure that at no time did the balance drop below 400K baht. 

I won't link to the article as it's from the Thai Visa group, sorry for that but they broke the story.

It is already getting a LOT of blow back from foreigners AND immigration officers alike. Conveniently the person who signed the police order has been "unavailable for comment" since the breaking of the news.
New Retiree Visa Rules Bewilder Thai Immigration: Source

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## toddaniels

These new changes come right on the heels of the earlier changes which affected the people using the monthly income method for proof of funds when the 4 consulates (US, USA, Australia & Denmark) stopped issuing affidavits of income from abroad notary letters.

If you come from one of those countries and are using monthly income as a method to show proof of funds you need to transfer in from abroad at least 65K baht EVERY month for the 12 months prior to you applying for your yearly extension.  

There is also a matching police order which states this first year (when people are caught unaware they can't get the income affidavit) that the immigration office show "leniency" <- but it does not spell out how lenient they will be.

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## David48atTD

Does it mention those 'grandfathered' under previous provisions?

Any changes?

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## Dragonfly

ridiculous rules by ridiculous people, another reason to leave that shithole

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## jabir

Muppets in charge of a country!

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## rickschoppers

I will just go back to my home country and obtain a one year, multiple entry Non-Immigrant O visa based on marriage to a Thai like I have done for the last 13 years. Much easier and not nearly as many hoops to jump through when getting an extension. When they tell me I can no longer do that, I will live somewhere else like Panama or Belize where they have very friendly immigration requirements. Things are getting rediculous here anyways.

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## toddaniels

> I will just go back to my home country and obtain a one year, multiple entry Non-Immigrant O visa based on marriage to a Thai like I have done for the last 13 years.


Or like I have been telling you for 5+ years why not forgo the trip back to your country and just go to the thai consulate in Savannakhet Lao to get the SAME exact visa you get in your country? Savannakhet is just across the river in Mukdahan and the documentation is minimal as far as what's required to get the year-long, multi-entry Non-O visa based on marriage.

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## headhunter

seems to have rattled a few cages on the other planet,over 1,900 posts since thursday.
time for hakpan to drop the BIG JOKE its not anymore.

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## Pragmatic

I can't see this ending as it is. What's next I wonder?

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## tomcat

> What's next I wonder?


...I imagine Immi officers are wondering the same thing...

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## headhunter

> I can't see this ending as it is. What's next I wonder?


how long has the 1yr.extension been 1,900bht.?

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## toddaniels

> how long has the 1yr.extension been 1,900bht.?


at least since 2000.. 
ALL extensions of stays are 1900baht no matter how much time they're issued for.

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## headhunter

> at least since 2000.. 
> ALL extensions of stays are 1900baht no matter how much time they're issued for.


so it could have been 20yrs.TDD.maybe another   0 added to the FEE. :Confused: 
one for BJ =BIG JUMP.

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## headhunter

after fridays experiance at the LH BANK korat where i have several accounts [7yrs].are the banks in CAHOOTS with immigration,the bank wouldn't let me open another fixed deposit acc.without a letter from immigration confirming my address.last one cost me 500bht.its only 8weeks ago they done my letter confirming my 800k.was still in a fixed term,been there for over 6yrs.and January they gave me my tax withheld certificates for tax refunds.so anyone else who gets aggravation from their bank POST IT HERE.
I am waiting for a reply from LH.at bkk.

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## nidhogg

> seems to have rattled a few cages on the other planet,over 1,900 posts since thursday.
> time for hakpan to drop the BIG JOKE its not anymore.


Sure are a lot of bunched panties over there, a lot of whom think this is some deep dark plot to get the farangs out of Thailand.  

Me?  I think its more of the same.  My experience is that Thailand has a lot of highly convoluted regulations on many matters, all of which fail to do what they are supposed to do.  

The first thing was to try and fix the gap left by some embassies not issuing letters, while to me, this looks simply like ham-fisted attempt to do away with people borrowing money to make it appear as though they have the required funds to stay.  

As always, people try to play the system and so another layer of regulations gets put in place to try and stop that.  People will again find a way to apparently comply with the regulations while not actually meeting the regulations, and so later another layer of regulations will be slapped on top.

Sadly, people will get caught in the system - and they should not blame the Thais completely - they should blame the people who have played the system resulting in the Thais having to paper over the cracks yet again. 

We have a perfect example on this board.  Someone who "works" without a work permit.  What ever loophole or crevice in the regulations he is exploiting will eventually be papered over -resulting in more inconvenience to all the thousands of farangs who were in complete compliance with the law.

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## tomcat

> resulting in more inconvenience to all the thousands of farangs


...how the tears will flow at Immigration offices: inconvenienced falangs! *sniff*...

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## nidhogg

> ...how the tears will flow at Immigration offices: inconvenienced falangs! *sniff*...


Really?  That's your take?

The whole renewal process for YOU will be more difficult because of those farangs  that bend or abuse the rules - and yes the immigration officers will not give a shit.

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## tomcat

> and yes the immigration officers will not give a shit


...*_cough_*...that was my point...

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## nidhogg

> ...*_cough_*...that was my point...


Indeed.  My point was that *that* was your point.

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## tomcat

> My point was that *that* was your point.


...in that case: well spotted!...

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## jabir

> at least since 2000.. 
> ALL extensions of stays are 1900baht no matter how much time they're issued for.


Long time ago but I think my first couple of extensions in soi 8 early 2000s were 500, then it went to 1,900.

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## jabir

> Sure are a lot of bunched panties over there, a lot of whom think this is some deep dark plot to get the farangs out of Thailand.  
> 
> Me?  I think its more of the same.  My experience is that Thailand has a lot of highly convoluted regulations on many matters, all of which fail to do what they are supposed to do.  
> 
> The first thing was to try and fix the gap left by some embassies not issuing letters, while to me, this looks simply like ham-fisted attempt to do away with people borrowing money to make it appear as though they have the required funds to stay.  
> 
> As always, people try to play the system and so another layer of regulations gets put in place to try and stop that.  People will again find a way to apparently comply with the regulations while not actually meeting the regulations, and so later another layer of regulations will be slapped on top.
> 
> Sadly, people will get caught in the system - and they should not blame the Thais completely - they should blame the people who have played the system resulting in the Thais having to paper over the cracks yet again. 
> ...


Fair points, though as I recall in true Thai fashion BJ announced these new changes as an anti-corruption measure. As you say, ham fisted attempts to paper over a fissure, since all these will do is squeeze more farangs into filling visa firm and corrupt IO pockets with even more money than before due to the new rulez being more rigid 'and expensive' to circumvent.

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## headhunter

could be a big rush on BROWN ENVELOPES.
who is goner STOP it.
BJ. has enough on his plate already.

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## Shutree

I was looking at the straightforward route of putting B800K in a fixed deposit, accepting a small rate of return and going for the retirement visa.

However, it seems from your post that I might struggle to open a fixed deposit, even if the money is already sitting in the same bank?

Second question: The new rules talk of the B800K being in an 'active account'. By definition, a fixed deposit shows no activity. Does that mean it is a non-starter?

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## Shutree

Headhunter - I was looking at the straightforward route of putting B800K in a fixed deposit, accepting a small rate of return and going for the retirement visa.

However, it seems from your post that I might struggle to open a fixed deposit, even if the money is already sitting in the same bank?

Second question: The new rules talk of the B800K being in an 'active account'. By definition, a fixed deposit shows no activity. Does that mean it is a non-starter?

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## headhunter

> Headhunter - I was looking at the straightforward route of putting B800K in a fixed deposit, accepting a small rate of return and going for the retirement visa.
> 
> However, it seems from your post that I might struggle to open a fixed deposit, even if the money is already sitting in the same bank?
> 
> Second question: The new rules talk of the B800K being in an 'active account'. By definition, a fixed deposit shows no activity. Does that mean it is a non-starter?


I have had a million in a fixed acc.with LH. bank for over 6-7yrs.its never been touched,but immigration sometimes ask what are you living on.i show them a different acc.that I use for living exs.i had just done a transfer uk.to Thailand for this yrs.exs.so to ease the loss on the rate [TT] I thought why not put half of it in a fixed acc.for 6months and earn about 4,000bht.me and mrs.HH have about 7accs.with LH.BANK so by them giving me some aggravation I am not a happy chappy.
too go and get a letter confirming my address,it means taxi there and back,plus imm.last time 6yrs.ago charged me 500bht.i wasn't prepared to do that.
as for the rate of return fixed for 3yrs.was 2%.but there are some banks CIMB offering decent rates.[promotions] but you need to go into one of the malls that have a lot of banks,then you will have to put up with illiterate staff.
good luck. HH.

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## Norton

> What's next I wonder?


Health insurance.

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## cyrille

> you need to go into one of the malls that have a lot of banks,then you will have to put up with *illiterate* staff.


It's somewhat ironic that you are unable to express the sentiment in your first language that other people sometimes struggle in their second language.  :Very Happy:

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## VocalNeal

So as i see it one just has to be organized? Transfer 65,000 a month form overseas every month but you can't use it for 1 year. After that it will be be automatic.  65,000 in and whatever out you need to live and the rest stays in the bank. When you die or leave the money goes with you or to your relatives etc.

It is not necessarily to keep law abiding people of European descent out? More likely the chancers/Nigerians/et al who want to subsist here while working/sponging illegally.  As has been said it is all the agencies who find all the gaps who are partially to blame but then again most agencies seem quite friendly with immigration officers and are often ex immigration themselves.

They are treating everyone the same? Are they not? They are not making up rules to exclude any particular nationality or creed?

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## headhunter

> It's somewhat ironic that you are unable to express the sentiment in your first language that other people sometimes struggle in their second language.


DIOLCH UN VAUR. :kma:

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## headhunter

as I read it,it states that the 800k.has to stay in the back for 3months after the extension date,then you will be allowed to withdraw any amount as long as the remaining fund does NOT BE LESS THAN 400K. before the next extension date.

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## jabir

> as I read it,it states that the 800k.has to stay in the back for 3months after the extension date,then you will be allowed to withdraw any amount as long as the remaining fund does NOT BE LESS THAN 400K. before the next extension date.


iow give 400k to your bank for 6 months each year, and another 400k for them to keep indefinitely. 

That sounds fair enough.

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## David48atTD

???????




> Does it mention those 'grandfathered' under previous provisions?
> 
> Any changes?

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## Shutree

> I have had a million in a fixed acc.with LH. bank for over 6-7yrs.its never been touched,but immigration sometimes ask what are you living on.i show them a different acc.that I use for living exs.i had just done a transfer uk.to Thailand for this yrs.exs.so to ease the loss on the rate [TT] I thought why not put half of it in a fixed acc.for 6months and earn about 4,000bht.me and mrs.HH have about 7accs.with LH.BANK so by them giving me some aggravation I am not a happy chappy.
> too go and get a letter confirming my address,it means taxi there and back,plus imm.last time 6yrs.ago charged me 500bht.i wasn't prepared to do that.
> as for the rate of return fixed for 3yrs.was 2%.but there are some banks CIMB offering decent rates.[promotions] but you need to go into one of the malls that have a lot of banks,then you will have to put up with illiterate staff.
> good luck. HH.


Thanks HH.
The translated new rules do not say accounts, plural. Logically a fixed deposit of 800k plus a savings account with some activity should satisfy Immigration. But logical isn't a word that gets used a lot around here.
We shall see.

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## Pragmatic

Farang Thai wives work as teachers, nurses etc so why can't their wages be taken into consideration as to the funds of a 
'Marriage Extension'? It's all fcuking wrong that my wife can't support me in times of hardship.

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## ootai

> Farang Thai wives work as teachers, nurses etc so why can't their wages be taken into consideration as to the funds of a 
> 'Marriage Extension'? It's all fcuking wrong that my wife can't support me in times of hardship.



I agree with the idea that my Thai wife should be able/allowed to support me. That is I put the 400K in a Thai bank in my name but then I shouldn't have to show what I live on but rather what we live on which would include her money. I struggle with the notion that they cannot accept that her money and my money is really "our" money.
I deliberately transferred my salary into her account for over 6 years so that if I died there would be no issues with her having to go to a court to get it and it would have prevented my family making any claim to it in the event of my dying.

The sad part is when I went to my bank (Kasikorn) to get a receipt to show the a deposit was an International transfer I was connected to the Bangkok office by the locals (who couldn't help me) and the numpty in Bangkok told me to go to my bank and they could give me a receipt, I would have loved to seen his face when I told him "you are my bank" as he couldn't provide it to me.

Personally I am just going to continue to get the missus to transfer money from her account to my account whenever it gets down close to the magic 400K. Time will tell if they (Immigration) then want me to prove it was sent from overseas.

I suppose when they ask what do I live on I could say I just catch rats, frogs, snails and insects to eat and we grow our own rice to eat with them.

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## RPETER65

> I will just go back to my home country and obtain a one year, multiple entry Non-Immigrant O visa based on marriage to a Thai like I have done for the last 13 years. Much easier and not nearly as many hoops to jump through when getting an extension. When they tell me I can no longer do that, I will live somewhere else like Panama or Belize where they have very friendly immigration requirements. Things are getting rediculous here anyways.


As I go to the U.S. every six months I will do the same,its not that big of a deal,to cross the border once in six months.I have a good friend from high school days who moved to Panama,says he loves it.

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## crackerjack101

Yup, It's worked perfectly for ,e for the last 6 years.

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## Stumpy

Us guys here on Marriage Visa extensions nothing really changed as far as I see it.  Just make sure you have 400k bht in YOUR bank account 3 months before ( I buffer it with an extra month prior to) your annual extension.  We live off that money all year and then I just wire another lump sum and the process just goes on.  Never had an issue. When my wife and I travel we put it all on our card in the US and I just pay online from here.  

That said, guys here with retirement Visa extensions have an entirely new set of rules.

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## HuangLao

> Sure are a lot of bunched panties over there, a lot of whom think this is some deep dark plot to get the farangs out of Thailand.  
> 
> Me?  I think its more of the same.  My experience is that Thailand has a lot of highly convoluted regulations on many matters, all of which fail to do what they are supposed to do.  
> 
> The first thing was to try and fix the gap left by some embassies not issuing letters, while to me, this looks simply like ham-fisted attempt to do away with people borrowing money to make it appear as though they have the required funds to stay.  
> 
> As always, people try to play the system and so another layer of regulations gets put in place to try and stop that.  People will again find a way to apparently comply with the regulations while not actually meeting the regulations, and so later another layer of regulations will be slapped on top.
> 
> Sadly, people will get caught in the system - and they should not blame the Thais completely - they should blame the people who have played the system resulting in the Thais having to paper over the cracks yet again. 
> ...


Well said, Nidhogg....

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## Stumpy

> Me? I think its more of the same. My experience is that Thailand has a lot of highly convoluted regulations on many matters, all of which fail to do what they are supposed to do. 
> 
> The first thing was to try and fix the gap left by some embassies not issuing letters, while to me, this looks simply like ham-fisted attempt to do away with people borrowing money to make it appear as though they have the required funds to stay. 
> 
> As always, people try to play the system and so another layer of regulations gets put in place to try and stop that. People will again find a way to apparently comply with the regulations while not actually meeting the regulations, and so later another layer of regulations will be slapped on top.
> 
> Sadly, people will get caught in the system - and they should not blame the Thais completely - they should blame the people who have played the system resulting in the Thais having to paper over the cracks yet again.


I think this exactly right Nidhogg. There will be collateral damage as grey areas are identified and patched, its nothing more than that. I suspect that there are hundreds of cases that are reviewed about expats "working the loopholes". I mean we (us) have no idea how many expats get caught all over Thailand on a daily, weekly, monthly basis for non compliance. When I was in renewing my annual extension there was some guy in there that was flat full of crap about his stamp not being in his book and was an over stayer by 45 days. The immigration officer was not buying his story. He blamed some immigration offer in Mae Sot not stamping his passport blah blah. 

To your point, the rules changes are not discriminatory by race nor are they singling out a certain group. They put the new rules out there and if you can comply then do so. If not, well then that individual should make plans to exit to another destination. I know quite a few that even though married, chose to use the retirement Visa extension as it was easier and they felt all the pictures, documents etc were a pain in the ass. It takes my wife and I about 1 hr to put it all together (I have her doing it a template so all we have to do is sign them basically). We stopped at the bank prior to our appt and I got a statement from my SCB for the balance and off we went. Really not to complicated.

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## HuangLao

> after fridays experiance at the LH BANK korat where i have several accounts [7yrs].are the banks in CAHOOTS with immigration,the bank wouldn't let me open another fixed deposit acc.without a letter from immigration confirming my address.last one cost me 500bht.its only 8weeks ago they done my letter confirming my 800k.was still in a fixed term,been there for over 6yrs.and January they gave me my tax withheld certificates for tax refunds.so anyone else who gets aggravation from their bank POST IT HERE.
> I am waiting for a reply from LH.at bkk.


There shouldn't be any fabricated conspiracies to ponder, HD.
Financial institutions have always been in line with government policies, especially regarding such issues as related to Farang and associated things. 
It is what it is. 

There are alternatives for resident Farang that many don't pursue, though drawbacks would be considered inconvenient compared to the already complicated and angst notion of pursuing the standard non-imm [O,B, etc] visas.

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## rickschoppers

> As I go to the U.S. every six months I will do the same,it’s not that big of a deal,to cross the border once in six months.I have a good friend from high school days who moved to Panama,says he loves it.


Panama is first on my list to live if Thailand continues to play immigration games.

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## Pragmatic

> I suspect that there are hundreds of cases that are reviewed about expats "working the loopholes".


 What jobs are all these expats supposed to be working at/on? I'm lost on this. If some farang is working then he's not going to get more than the Thai equivalent. So what stupid farangs would want to work for the Thai rate?

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## ootai

> What jobs are all these expats supposed to be working at/on? I'm lost on this. If some farang is working then he's not going to get more than the Thai equivalent. So what stupid farangs would want to work for the Thai rate?



Pragmatic
I don't think he means that they are actually working as in being employed.
I believe he means that they are putting in effort (working) at exploiting the loopholes rather than just abiding by the rules.
I think it just the same as the rich in western countries are always working the loopholes that exist to avoid paying their fair share of tax.
Hope that clears it up.

By the way I do know of at least 1 who would work for the Thai rate. My missus once said to me Thailand is a nice place to live if you have money but try living here if you don't have any money.

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## toddaniels

> ???????


The ONLY grandfathering mentioned was people who were on retirement extensions and were already 60 y/o on Oct 21st 1998 <- those people show 20K baht a month in income OR 200K baht banked. AND people who were between 55 and 60 on Oct 21st 1998 <- those people show 50K baht OR 500K baht banked. BUT they have had to be on unbroken yearly extensions of stays since that date <- meaning they have 20+ yearly extensions and have never "broken the chain" since then. 

AT THIS TIME <- meaning right now, NO provision for grandfathering people in under the current system is in place AND the changes that take effect on March 1st will affect EVERYONE on a yearly extension based on retirement.

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## Stumpy

> Pragmatic
> I don't think he means that they are actually working as in being employed.
> I believe he means that they are putting in effort (working) at exploiting the loopholes rather than just abiding by the rules.
> I think it just the same as the rich in western countries are always working the loopholes that exist to avoid paying their fair share of tax.
> Hope that clears it up.


Thanks Ootai, that's exactly what I meant by my post.

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## headhunter

> I agree with the idea that my Thai wife should be able/allowed to support me. That is I put the 400K in a Thai bank in my name but then I shouldn't have to show what I live on but rather what we live on which would include her money. I struggle with the notion that they cannot accept that her money and my money is really "our" money.
> I deliberately transferred my salary into her account for over 6 years so that if I died there would be no issues with her having to go to a court to get it and it would have prevented my family making any claim to it in the event of my dying.
> 
> The sad part is when I went to my bank (Kasikorn) to get a receipt to show the a deposit was an International transfer I was connected to the Bangkok office by the locals (who couldn't help me) and the numpty in Bangkok told me to go to my bank and they could give me a receipt, I would have loved to seen his face when I told him "you are my bank" as he couldn't provide it to me.
> 
> Personally I am just going to continue to get the missus to transfer money from her account to my account whenever it gets down close to the magic 400K. Time will tell if they (Immigration) then want me to prove it was sent from overseas.
> 
> I suppose when they ask what do I live on I could say I just catch rats, frogs, snails and insects to eat and we grow our own rice to eat with them.


I am with you 100%,we lived in the uk.and sold up everything when we moved here permanently,house bought 6million,assets in the wifes name total over 15mill.,but they immigration insist that the marriage or retirement money has to be in my name only,but your wife must play a big part in obtaining extension of stay.home,photo's ect.
we have been married for over 30yrs.so I am happy for her to have 95% of everything[wills made in Thailand] but dam it if I am expected to feed the greed of ins.co's and all them that treat us like some lump of shit on the bottom of your shoe's.i have already had a guts full of my bank LH.been a customer for over 8yrs.and have 95% of our cash there aswell.yet they insisted that if I wanted to open another acc.i have to get permission from immigration.before anyone say's why don't you move to another country,it took us many yrs.to find the right place to live and I am VERY HAPPY with where we choosed.and at 74yrs.old that would be a NO NO.so them that keep treating us like fools,that have spent many millions of baht over the past and present and have NEVER broke the rules and went along with the stupid idea's that they dream of can do what the katoey's do.    GO AND F-K YOURSELVES.

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## stroller

> Personally I am just going to continue to get the missus to transfer money from her account to my account whenever it gets down close to the magic 400K. Time will tell if they (Immigration) then want me to prove it was sent from overseas.


Plenty of good info available. No need to wait for their reaction, unless you miss some excitement in your life & want something to moan about later.

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## nidhogg

> yet they insisted that if I wanted to open another acc.i have to get permission from immigration..


"Permission" from immigration seems unlikely.  I do know that when I wish to open a new bank account I need a letter from my employer.    Think the letter merely states my employment and length of time I have been employed. I would think they merely want a letter supporting your residence status (and possibly proof of address).

Quite honestly, Thais do not do anything without ridiculous amounts of supporting paperwork.  Its part of the cover your ass mentality here.  

Time after time I have to remember that things are NOT directed at me personally - it just feels that way some times.  

One more point - my bank limits foreigners to a maximum of three accounts - not the same for Thais of course who do not have the same limit (as far as I am aware they can open as many as they want). 

 Again, I needed to remind myself that this was not personally directed at me.

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## headhunter

not sure has this been discussed,800k.for 3months after extension has been granted.
after that date you can draw down 400k.
till your next extension date the fund MUST not be below 400k.
this is my question what date has the balance of 800k got to be made up,before your next extension.as it is now,2or 3 months.this means that for most who will draw down funds from their fund of 800k.its goner be tied up for 12months out of 18.
so for them that will find it tough going,it will be best to go the marriage route. 400k in and not touching it,but it still means another trip to immigration,and maybe another letter from your bank showing the funds have not been touched.
as my 800k.hasnt been touched for 7yrs.i will still have to go to imm.with proof,that will be an extra taxi fare there and back.++

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## Pragmatic

> Pragmatic
> I don't think he means that they are actually working as in being employed.


 I disagree. If you don't transfer monies into Thailand every year/month then you must be working/employed here. That's how I think they see it.

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## stroller

> If you don't transfer monies into Thailand every year/month then you must be working/employed here.


I don't need 65k a month here, do you?

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## Stumpy

> not the same for Thais of course who do not have the same limit (as far as I am aware they can open as many as they want).


Along these lines my wife just got this tid bit of bank weirdness the other day. So typically we buy everything on our Thai credit card (KTB) (except food locally) and then at the end of the month pay it off. I used this method in the states for years and I get all the bonuses and rewards and pay no interest. My wife liked the idea so we opened up the KTB acct. Last week when we went into to pay the bill she was told anything over a 20K payment  requires forms for the govt. So she had to make 2 payments separately because the balanced owed was over 20k bht.

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## nidhogg

> Along these lines my wife just got this tid bit of bank weirdness the other day. So typically we buy everything on our Thai credit card (KTB) (except food locally) and then at the end of the month pay it off. I used this method in the states for years and I get all the bonuses and rewards and pay no interest. My wife liked the idea so we opened up the KTB acct. Last week when we went into to pay the bill she was told anything over a 20K payment  requires forms for the govt. So she had to make 2 payments separately because the balanced owed was over 20k bht.


Never, ever heard that - and I regularly pay 50k or more at one time.  

Most often I now pay in 7/11 - quicker and easier than the bank.  However, the limit is "less than 50K" in one payment so 49,900 does the trick

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## rickschoppers

As with everything in Thailand, the rules are different wherever you go. Banks are no different. I tried several times to open a Bank of Bangkok account in Udon Thani and told "can not." Last month, while in Hua Hin, I opened an account at Bluport. All they needed was my passport and telephone number. The moral is not to give up or believe anything you are told. Keep trying until somebody says "can."

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## Pragmatic

> I don't need 65k a month here, do you?


Your point is?

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## Dragonfly

Thai monkeys say jump, white monkeys jump  :rofl:

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## stroller

> Last month, while in Hua Hin, I opened an account at Bluport.


Now you're chances are good to 'transfer' that account to a branch in UT.

----------


## stroller

> Your point is?


Although I can't show the required transfers, I do not work here. But I do 'work' the loopholes.  :Smile:

----------


## David48atTD

> The ONLY grandfathering mentioned was people who were on retirement extensions and were already 60 y/o on Oct 21st 1998 <- those people show 20K baht a month in income OR 200K baht banked. AND people who were between 55 and 60 on Oct 21st 1998 <- those people show 50K baht OR 500K baht banked. BUT they have had to be on unbroken yearly extensions of stays since that date <- meaning they have 20+ yearly extensions and have never "broken the chain" since then. 
> 
> AT THIS TIME <- meaning right now, NO provision for grandfathering people in under the current system is in place AND the changes that take effect on March 1st will affect EVERYONE on a yearly extension based on retirement.


Thanks *TD*

----------


## Seekingasylum

Todd,

Looking at the police order of January 2019 it seems that there is now only two methods of qualifying for a retirement extension: either the 65,000 baht monthly income route or the lump sum alternative. A combination is no longer an option. Furthermore, there is no mention of how the monthly route is to be implemented, whether one's embassy can still verify or not. 

No wonder the various offices are scrambling for clarification.

Can you confirm from your Laksi contacts just what is going on? 

Clearly, if combination is no longer an option, then hundreds, if not several thousands, are going to be affected.

----------


## stroller

^ been answered already: 
https://teakdoor.com/thai-visas-and-v...ml#post3884454 (Amendments to Police Order 138/2257 (using monthly income))

----------


## jabir

> Todd,
> 
> Looking at the police order of January 2019 it seems that there is now only two methods of qualifying for a retirement extension: either the 65,000 baht monthly income route or the lump sum alternative. A combination is no longer an option. Furthermore, there is no mention of how the monthly route is to be implemented, whether one's embassy can still verify or not. 
> 
> No wonder the various offices are scrambling for clarification.
> 
> Can you confirm from your Laksi contacts just what is going on? 
> 
> Clearly, if combination is no longer an option, then hundreds, if not several thousands, are going to be affected.


And those thousands will end up either leaving, overstaying, or feeding corrupt IOs, which defeats the cunning plan of these measures to reduce corruption.

----------


## Pragmatic

> feeding corrupt IOs


 That's the first thing to get sorted out.  The police have now to wear 'GoPro' cameras on their helmets when doing traffic stops and that seems to have helped in them not obtaining tea money. May be for immigration the fitting of online webcams in their offices may help?

----------


## Seekingasylum

> ^ been answered already: 
> https://teakdoor.com/thai-visas-and-v...ml#post3884454 (Amendments to Police Order 138/2257 (using monthly income))


No, I'm talking abut something else entirely. The new Police Order supersedes that bollocks.

The new order implies there is no combination route available. Whether that is restricted to those applicants whose embassies no longer provide income verification letters  or also applies to all applicants is not made known. Other visa agencies elsewhere have raised the very same point and are trying to get clarity for their clients. I am asking Todd for the same via his Laksi contact.

----------


## Seekingasylum

This new order is a mess and the product of minds that clearly have no concept of what it entails. They are in fact demanding a minimum amount in excess of a million given that the 800k must remain on deposit for a 6 month period. Similarly if they are still demanding that 65,000 is transferred monthly then it would mean a gross monthly income of around 85,000 is now required. 

Relating that to British residents with income/savings denominated in Sterling it means a lump sum commitment of £25,000 for sic months or an annual gross income of the same. The question remains, just what the fuck would a pensioner living alone  in his own property in a third world country spend it on? That income in fact is way in excess of the average pension available to the majority pensioners living in Britain. 

It is so mind boggling stupid but there it is. 
When they stopped the visa-running regime the number of Europeans in Thailand fell off the cliff, a phenomenon that was felt everywhere when the usual expat haunts gradually lost their customer base leaving an ever more noticeable rump of we ageing grunters on retirement/spouse extensions. It is clear that those numbers are going to be depleted even more as retirees sans spouse are forced out. 

Certainly, Brits facing an exchange rate of 40 baht are in trouble.

----------


## NamPikToot

> This new order is a mess and the product of minds that clearly have no concept of what it entails. 
> 
>  The question remains, just what the fuck would a pensioner living alone  in his own property in a third world country spend it on? 
> 
> Certainly, Brits facing an exchange rate of 40 baht are in trouble.


In order

1. They don't care
2. Why don't you tell us your experience
3. I'm sorry to hear that

Next.

----------


## tomcat

...^ :rofl: ...pithy: I like that in a stinging retort...

----------


## Dragonfly

SeekingAss, the message is clear, they want farangs to fook off and for good reasons, the country might not be safe politically for the next decade

don't want farangs casualty and farang witnesses

----------


## Pragmatic

I'm really sorry for your predicament 'TheGents' and I can honestly say I hope things turn out okay at the end of the day. All joshing aside, things are looking to be difficult for all.

----------


## Norton

> Brits facing an exchange rate of 40 baht are in trouble


£1,625 transferred monthly into a Thai bank account seems the way to go.

----------


## buriramboy

All these people moaning about the new rules is obtaining a years multi entry non imm O in Penang or Laos not an option and border runs every 3 months. Especially for those living in Pattaya would give you something to look forward to every 3 months.

----------


## Pragmatic

> All these people moaning about the new rules is obtaining a years multi entry non imm O in Penang or Laos not an option and border runs every 3 months. Especially for those living in Pattaya would give you something to look forward to every 3 months.


 But age is against most and the ability to travel isn't going to last forever. So what happens then? Is there a plan B for that happening?

----------


## Chittychangchang

> SeekingAss, the message is clear, they want farangs to fook off and for good reasons, the country might not be safe politically for the next decade
> 
> don't want farangs casualty and farang witnesses


Indeed, thought crossed my mind with the election in the pipeline. 

Might get a proper coup this time, which will see peace and a puppet government for a generation.

Flights are going down in price to Thailand because of this uncertainty. 
I've cancelled my plans for a trip to Thailand this year prefering a safer nearer destination.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> I'm really sorry for your predicament 'TheGents' and I can honestly say I hope things turn out okay at the end of the day. All joshing aside, things are looking to be difficult for all.


I'm pretty much ok, thank you, but I'm more concerned about the poor fuckers who have played a straight bat, now in their 70s, who are now in trouble. 

I actually spoke to a Brit visitor recently with whom I discussed this quandary many are in and he replied, somewhat crassly in my opinion, that if they couldn't afford it they should go back. He was obviously quite stupid and as I focused more on his beady, lumpen look only the English lower end can cultivate, I asked if he voted to leave in the referendum. He did. I walked away. One simply cannot relate to a moron.

----------


## Dillinger

> Relating that to British residents with income/savings denominated in Sterling it means a lump sum commitment of £25,000 for sic months or an annual gross income of the same. The question remains, just what the fuck would a pensioner living alone in his own property in a third world country spend it on?


Hookers? :Smile:

----------


## Dillinger

> they insisted that if I wanted to open another acc.i have to get permission from immigration


Certificate of residence.

Everyone needs that to open a bank account here now.

You can get it from your Embassy as well as immigration.

----------


## rickschoppers

^
Actually, you don't. I opened an account at the Bank of Bangkok in Hua Hin with just my passport and a picture of my wife's house book and my wife was not with me. Different banks or branches, different rules or variations.

----------


## stroller

But when was that?
I opened an account with nothing but my passport & a tourist visa, 20 years ago.

----------


## Dillinger

^



> Last month, while in Hua Hin, I opened an account at Bluport. All they needed was my passport and telephone number.


Where or what is Blueport?

Maybe you found someone new to the job, as with sim cards, bamk accounts were tightened up after the Bangkok shrine bombing I think







> my wife just got this tid bit of bank weirdness the other day. So typically we buy everything on our Thai credit card (KTB) (except food locally) and then at the end of the month pay it off. I used this method in the states for years and I get all the bonuses and rewards and pay no interest. My wife liked the idea so we opened up the KTB acct. Last week when we went into to pay the bill she was told anything over a 20K payment requires forms for the govt


Where were you paying from? American or overseas bank accounti'd guess. 

I've paid near 100k off mine before a few times  in branch...Do you look a bit like Maanaam? :Smile:

----------


## Norton

> I opened an account with nothing but my passport & a tourist visa, 20 years ago.


Rules for Herr Stoller, a rich Yerman, differ from rules for us common folk.  :Smile:

----------


## Chittychangchang

My Bangkok bank account was closed for no reason even though my bank card was still valid. 
The bank teller just gave me a blank look when I complained and asked for my balance,  fortunately there was only a few hundred baht lost.
Doesn't inspire confidence in the Thai banking system.

----------


## ootai

> But age is against most and the ability to travel isn't going to last forever. So what happens then? Is there a plan B for that happening?


Find a high rise balcony and make one last flight!

----------


## headhunter

> SeekingAss, the message is clear, they want farangs to fook off and for good reasons, the country might not be safe politically for the next decade
> 
> don't want farangs casualty and farang witnesses


you and all of us KNOW WHY,farang knows TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH.THEY NO LIKE.

----------


## headhunter

> Certificate of residence.
> 
> Everyone needs that to open a bank account here now.
> 
> You can get it from your Embassy as well as immigration.


I already have 3accs.1million bht.for my extensions hasn't been touched for seven yrs.one acc.for the interest,paid monthly,and one acc.to cover an emergency.

----------


## Pragmatic

> ^
> Actually, you don't. I opened an account at the Bank of Bangkok in Hua Hin with just my passport and a picture of my wife's house book and my wife was not with me. Different banks or branches, different rules or variations.


From another forum. Posted yesterday.




> Went to Bangkok Bank in Soi Boonsampan, East Pattaya today and walked out half an hour later with a new account, with atm card and internet access. All they wanted was my passport although I did show my driving license later for the lass to copy my address from, because I can never remember it!

----------


## jabir

> Rules for Herr Stoller, a rich Yerman, differ from rules for us common folk.


I had no problem opening savings and Bualuang accounts at Bkk bank 18 years ago on a tourist visa, cash, and a mate with an account at the same branch, then used those passbooks + passport to open accounts at TFB (KBank) and TMB.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> My Bangkok bank account was closed for no reason even though my bank card was still valid. 
> The bank teller just gave me a blank look when I complained and asked for my balance,  fortunately there was only a few hundred baht lost.
> Doesn't inspire confidence in the Thai banking system.


You dozy clot, Thai banks close all moribund accounts with less than, say, 500 baht. It's a policy.

----------


## lom

> You dozy clot, Thai banks close all moribund accounts with less than, say, 500 baht.


but first after 5 years of account inactivity, afaik.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> you and all of us KNOW WHY,farang knows TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH.THEY NO LIKE.


Actually, you are not too far off the mark. Westerners are difficult in that they inconveniently lobby for protection under laws and if thwarted unreasonably they complain vociferously, publicising their case and lobbying authorities who are identified individually publicly as the person, or persons, responsible. This sets a bad example for the locals and is cultural anathema in that as we all know the Thai do not have a rule of law that is applicable to all and they certainly do not respond well to personal culpability.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> but first after 5 years of account inactivity, afaik.


Current Bangkok Bank rules state that if an account shows no activity in a year and has a balance of less than 2,000 baht it will be closed. 

The Government Savings Bank sets the minimum balance of 500 baht.

----------


## rickschoppers

> ^
> 
> 
> Where or what is Blueport?
> 
> Maybe you found someone new to the job, as with sim cards, bamk accounts were tightened up after the Bangkok shrine bombing I think
> 
> 
> 
> ...


I opened a Bank of Bankok two weeks ago at the Bluport branch ( for Dillinger, that is a large shopping mall in Hua Hin where they have a bank zone on the bottom floor) with only my passport and a picture of my wife's house book that I sent to the teller's email address. I paid 400 baht for an ATM card which I have used several times without any problem. I also transferred some money from my new account to my wife's B of Bangkok account.

So, I will repeat what I said that different bank branches have different rules and SOPs much like immigration, so try different bank branches to open an account in only your name. Dillinger, how long have you lived in Thailand? If it is a long length of time, you should have already known this. You obviously haven't been to Hua Hin lately either. You need to get out more.

----------


## rickschoppers

> Or like I have been telling you for 5+ years why not forgo the trip back to your country and just go to the thai consulate in Savannakhet Lao to get the SAME exact visa you get in your country? Savannakhet is just across the river in Mukdahan and the documentation is minimal as far as what's required to get the year-long, multi-entry Non-O visa 
> based on marriage.


Yes, that is a very good option Todd and I may use that in the future if it is still available. My trips back home are more to visit my two grown boys and many good friends, but while I am there, I just get a new one year visa which is very easy. Maybe I will skip it this year and go your route before next December. Thanks

----------


## Dillinger

> will repeat what I said that different bank branches have different rules and SOPs much like immigration, so try different bank branches to open an account in only your name. Dillinger, how long have you lived in Thailand? If it is a long length of time, you should have already known this


I opened my first bangkok bank account on just a tourist visa about ten years ago. You can't do that now.... although this is Thailand so you probably can if you try hard enough so I stand corrected in a way. However I can open a bank account in any branch with a visa and cert of residence, as you could have done, which is a 20 minute job to get that cert...and I haven't been turned away at a couple of dozen banks :Smile: 





> You obviously haven't been to Hua Hin lately either. You need to get out more.


I lived next door in Cha Am for a few years, I remember it being a boring old place with a shit load of traffic jams and a Market Village.
i do remember another  mall come to think of it, a small one with a creepy Ronald McDonald sat on a bench, maybe that was it :Smile:

----------


## rickschoppers

^

Actually, Bluport is a much bigger and better planned shopping mall than Market Village. If you were to go, I think you would agree. Very geared to the westerner and many good places to eat. Hua Hin has many good restaurants which is why I spend a fair amount of time there. Cleaner than most any other city in Thailand, the main road is full of new businesses and is maintained well. Dillinger, you may want to pay another visit.

Why should I spend time getting a cert. of residence when I didn't need one to open a bank account in my name?

----------


## Dillinger

^ you said yourself you had to try a few branches. :Smile: 
Anyway, fwiw and to give you advice that may be relevant to you :Smile: , Bangkok Bank will give you a couple of platinum credit cards if you drop 100k which they put in a fixed deposit account or platinum leaders if you pop in 300, it earns a little  interest too and you can get it back when you want after a year.
Also with their Bualang app you can easily transfer money to your wife from your phone and pay bills, easy pass, top up your phone etc.
Another bit of advice, if you withdraw or deposit money in Bangkok you will get stung with charges because your branch isnt in Bangkok. I have a account in Pattaya and Bangkok to avoid that and can easily transfer from one account to the other on that app for free.
Hope a bit of that is worthwhile to you :Smile: 

I see that Bluport opened  in September 2016, thats why I never heard of it, bit of a jaunt from Pattaya unless i take the ferry which I don't trust :Smile:

----------


## OhOh

> Last week when we went into to pay the bill she was told anything over a 20K payment requires forms for the govt.


I pay in and withdraw 100,000s of baht in cash, regularly. Last time 2 weeks ago .Never had any problem at BBK.

----------


## mudcat

Opened a fixed term account at Bangkok Bank's Nang Rong (Buri Ram) branch in late December to receive my 800K retirement "hostage" account so I can use my regular savings account through ATM and internet banking for my regular expenses..  Had my passport and yellow book along with my wife with her house book to meet third bullet point in required documents for foreigners without work permits:

 2. Foreigner without work permit

PassportA reference letter issued by one of the following institutes or organizations or required document
Embassy located  in ThailandAn overseas bank where the customer holds an account sent via SWIFTTrusted individuals such as a Bangkok Bank staff member or customer, director of a private company, permanent residence in Thailand, government or private educational institutes located in Thailand trusted by the BankTrusted companies, e.g., an employment letter from the company if the customer is in the process of applying for a work permit.Document showing ownership of a fixed asset such as a condominium sale/purchase agreement (a condominium which is acceptable to Bangkok Bank) Or a property reservation agreement valued at 100,000 baht or more with a reference letter from the property developer that is acceptable to Bangkok Bank.

Although the requirement states reference letter, I guess my wife's presence with house book was sufficient.   The only issue I seem to have is remember how to sign my name the same as I did when I opened the accounts - 

Steve

----------


## beerlaodrinker

> Indeed, thought crossed my mind with the election in the pipeline. 
> 
> Might get a proper coup this time, which will see peace and a puppet government for a generation.
> 
> Flights are going down in price to Thailand because of this uncertainty. 
> I've cancelled my plans for a trip to Thailand this year prefering a safer nearer destination.


Pussy. Grow a set of nuts chitty. Political instability is a beautiful thing for pissheads gourmands and issan chrome pole molesters. Baht is overrated to the squid the US doller and the Aussie doller. Cant figure out why the bahts so strong against those currencies given the fact that its basicly a 1 party state. Bit like Laos.   Visa scene getting harder and thais giving farangs the message FOOK OFF xenaphobic coonts. Hope they do have another kou. . Baht might shit itself again . Bring it on i say. Oh anyone care to take a bet that prayuth will renege on the election?  I reckon nothing will change. If im wrong ill by the TD herd bevvys

----------


## tomcat

> If im wrong


...if?...terribly confused, misinformed and poorly read...choose one...or all...

----------


## jabir

Several conflicting versions on the rounds, and fear is an effective motivator. Last I heard is that soi 5 is open for discreet business as usual, while other reports say the local boss will be firm in following the order, which is understandable since that heightens fear and increases the bahts. Other IOs without definitive guidance seem to know about as much as we do which is little to nothing, and take whatever position is most convenient.

But as I understand it this is just a draft order, and won't become law until it passes several committee stages before facing Parliament, which won't pass it since even at this level there can't be more than a handful of Thais capable of supporting measures to fuel corruption as part of an anti-corruption drive.

----------


## stroller

> ...if?...terribly confused, misinformed and poorly read...choose one...or all...


Add semi-literate to the list.

----------


## Norton

> But as I understand it this is just a draft order, and won't become law until it passes several committee stages before facing Parliament


Something all should keep in mind. We have had all sorts of trial balloons put forth before only to burst.

----------


## HuangLao

> ...if?...terribly confused, misinformed and poorly read...choose one...or all...


As many are...

Oh, well.

----------


## stroller

A naive quuestion, perhaps, but... 
Why can't they think it through or have it peer-reviewed before publishing it?
The sheer incompetence of these people is an embarrassment and should be seen as a loss of face for the authors.

...and loss of faith for the suckers who depend with their life choices & savings on such idiots.

----------


## buriramboy

> A naive quuestion, perhaps, but... Why can't they think it through or have it peer-reviewed before publishing it?


Is a minion in a Thai office going to tell his Thai boss he's wrong?

----------


## jabir

If a Thai boss says the Baiyoke Tower is made of rice, his worshippers will insist it's Thai rice which is the best.

----------


## tomcat

...It does little good, imo, to moan about Thai bureaucracy's non-linear thinking (A doesn't necessarily lead to B or C or D, but rather to L and F)...the cold hard fact is that retirees (and others) either jump through the various hoops or leave in search of less arbitrary regulations elsewhere...Immigration whimsy concerning its own SOPs will forever muddy the visa waters and frustrate those not possessed of Thainess...if one's status as a falang in Wonderland is unsettling, maybe it's time to move on...or go into hiding...

----------


## bowie

It really is a "dead" subject. It is their country, their regulations, their laws. You/I/we are visitors in their country, allowed to stay at their "whimsy" 'tis why the wording is; at the "discretion" of the IO, being granted "permission" to stay until _______ "

So Be It - can't change it, gotta comply with it. whining, moaning naught more than human nature, expats in other countries also complain about regulatory hurdles. Human nature to complain that the burden you are "forced" to bear is a much heavier load, but, that is because it is your burden. 

The exit door is always open.

And, the Thai's do NOT care about the so called "huge" amounts of money we contribute to their economy. "Peanuts".


You and I are visitors in a Foreign Country - we will comply with their laws or suffer the consequences.

----------


## ootai

> You and I are visitors in a Foreign Country - we will comply with their laws or suffer the consequences.


I agree with this statement but what gives me the shits is the non-uniformity of the HOW do we comply.

----------


## tomcat

> the non-uniformity of the HOW do we comply


...'tis the wonder of Thainess: a hookah smoking caterpillar in charge of Rules in Wonderland...

----------


## HuangLao

> It really is a "dead" subject. It is their country, their regulations, their laws. You/I/we are visitors in their country, allowed to stay at their "whimsy" 'tis why the wording is; at the "discretion" of the IO, being granted "permission" to stay until _______ "
> 
> So Be It - can't change it, gotta comply with it. whining, moaning naught more than human nature, expats in other countries also complain about regulatory hurdles. Human nature to complain that the burden you are "forced" to bear is a much heavier load, but, that is because it is your burden. 
> 
> The exit door is always open.
> 
> And, the Thai's do NOT care about the so called "huge" amounts of money we contribute to their economy. "Peanuts".
> 
> 
> You and I are visitors in a Foreign Country - we will comply with their laws or suffer the consequences.



.....and some are much more foreign than others.

----------


## rickschoppers

Bottom line is that everyone has their tolerance level regarding the requirements to stay in this country. Once that tolerance level is surpassed, it is time to find another resting spot in the world. For me, after 14 years of jumping through all the different hoops to stay in Thailand, I am approaching my tolerance level and have starting looking at alternatives. Maybe 6 months here and six months in either Belize or Panama will suit me better. I have yet to decide since the summer months here consist of the rainy season and  are least likable to me. The issue is that the summer months are also rainy seasons in those two countries I mentioned. I need to think more along the lines of spending the summer months in Europe, an eastern block country or back home in the US as I have been doing for a long time but only for a few months due to the cost. No final decision yet.

----------


## Stumpy

> It really is a "dead" subject. It is their country, their regulations, their laws. You/I/we are visitors in their country, allowed to stay at their "whimsy" 'tis why the wording is; at the "discretion" of the IO, being granted "permission" to stay until _______ "
> 
> So Be It - can't change it, gotta comply with it. whining, moaning naught more than human nature, expats in other countries also complain about regulatory hurdles. Human nature to complain that the burden you are "forced" to bear is a much heavier load, but, that is because it is your burden. 
> 
> The exit door is always open.
> 
> And, the Thai's do NOT care about the so called "huge" amounts of money we contribute to their economy. "Peanuts".
> 
> 
> You and I are visitors in a Foreign Country - we will comply with their laws or suffer the consequences.


^ Exactamundo. Its really that simple. The endless whinging fixes and changes nothing. 





> Bottom line is that everyone has their tolerance level regarding the requirements to stay in this country


I agree wholeheartedly RC. I think some create their own angst by diving to deep into the system or lack there of and then it just consumes them to the point that they have had enough. For me, most of this is noise. Sure there have been numerous changes since I was first coming here back in '05 but I realized it would change. Of course I agree that their implementation of things is not as sound as I would like it but to your point, you establish what is needed in your area and forget about what can be done or is being done elsewhere.

----------


## Seekingasylum

The withdrawal of the combination method for singleton retirees on hitherto adequate budgets who have complied with the laws for the past 20 years will be in some difficulty and one assumes they will either have to capitalise an asset back in their own country or here, but if they have none then it will be a return home.  
To force this on folk on a mere two months notice is really nothing short of disgraceful, even for the Thai.
I think if pushed to nail their worst fault, one of the many, I think I'd have to say it's their hypocrisy - all that fucking land of smiles and wai-ing shit but really a bunch of greedy, thoughtless, inconsiderate,  selfish fuckers sort of thing.

----------


## tomcat

...^so, which airline has the cheapest one-way flight to frozen hell then?...

----------


## toddaniels

> The withdrawal of the combination method f


and who pray-tell told you they were discontinuing the combination method? It's still in effect. It wasn't mentioned in this police order because that only mentioned things that had CHANGED.. Seeing as the combination method did not change it was not mentioned.

If you're from one of the 4 consulates that stopped issuing the affidavit of income from abroad notary letters you transfer in every month from abroad into your thai bank account for 12 months AND then you have banked in your thai bank account the difference that makes up 800K baht and that banked money must meet the seasoning requirement. 
It's still an option it's just harder to use because of the consulates stopping the affidavit of income notary letters making people show 12 months of incoming transfers instead

----------


## Dragonfly

> The withdrawal of the combination method for singleton retirees on hitherto adequate budgets who have complied with the laws for the past 20 years will be in some difficulty and one assumes they will either have to capitalise an asset back in their own country or here, but if they have none then it will be a return home.  
> To force this on folk on a mere two months notice is really nothing short of disgraceful, even for the Thai.
> I think if pushed to nail their worst fault, one of the many, I think I'd have to say it's their hypocrisy - all that fucking land of smiles and wai-ing shit but really a bunch of greedy, thoughtless, inconsiderate,  selfish fuckers sort of thing.


of course they are, all asians are like that, took you that long to get it? the shit environment of these countries make them this way, like it does for the farangs who stay for too long

----------


## Dragonfly

get the fuck out of Thailand, you won't regret it

why are farangs so brainwashed like the locals after a few years of staying there?

life is much better and much simpler in Europe, and Spain is cheap and only 2 hours away (pre-Brexit) from the UK

----------


## Stumpy

> get the fuck out of Thailand, you won't regret it


I think for some, they cannot and this is why they are so wound up about it. Others that have options this is not a big deal. Just a different process to stay.

I agree Thailand is not nirvana nor paradise but the ones that never saw it that way are now getting this cold slap in the face. To many of us from highly governed western countries, this is just another law that is on the books.

----------


## OhOh

> Europe, and Spain is cheap


Do you have a link regarding the 12 months multi entry visa requirements, costs and any "reporting/border run/medical/income" requirements for non-EU citizens?

Just to show how"cheap" the authorities deem it is to live in an EU country.  :Smile:

----------


## bowie

> I agree with this statement but what gives me the shits is the non-uniformity of the HOW do we comply.


Yup... tweaks many folks jaws. But, keep this in mind - the only thing that matters is *"How you comply"*, how others can/may/will or do comply does not amount to a hill of beans to me. All that matters to me is the approval of MY one visa extension.

----------


## bowie

> there have been numerous changes since I was first coming here


Change is the only thing you can count on - things will change. 

The latest uhm... "problems" being presented to eliminate the so called sleigh of hands concerning the "lump sum money" and visa brokers "tricking" the Thai IO's will be in effect and in force shortly. But... I am certain, the workarounds by the visa brokers are already being engineered. Probably more difficult and probably more expensive. So Be It. Am certainly glad (and fortunate) the changes do not and will not affect me, other than the possible "additional" trip to the IO Office. Can't change it and, of course, accept it. 

If I intend to stay in Thailand (with the many, many, many fleas on this dog) which I do - I will comply with whatever they require. So Be It. 

Expect changes, always have and always will.

----------


## headhunter

I have only 1 issue,that is if it is passed by cabinet,is the mandatory ins.scam,i have a history of surgery,health problems,and probably other ailments,besides my ext.money that has never been touched,i have got about 500k.cash,and plenty of other in the way of fixed accs.which are in my wife's name only..now my concern is,ins.company's that insist that I must take out a policy with them.any where in the uk.wouldnt touch me with a never ending barge pole,but T.I.T.and I don't like being scammed by anyone who thinks I am easy prey.WHAT DO I DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO.if imm.insist I take out policy with a THAI.INS.CO. that could cost the price of a million bht.even then there would be the exclusions that start at the top of the head and end at my feet.I.O. say,s no ins.NO EXTENSION.
my thoughts are do I become a MONK and live at the TEMPLE. or join my beloved dog who was more or less treated in the same way [corrupt vets] for 3yrs.before he passed away. 
HH.MARRIED OVER 30YRS.to a wife who I love very much.

If I intend to stay in Thailand (with the many, many, many fleas on this dog) which I do - I will comply with whatever they require. So Be It. 

Expect changes, always have and always will.[/QUOTE]

----------


## lom

> have only 1 issue,that is if it is passed by cabinet,is the mandatory ins.scam


You will die of a stroke if you continue to worry over things that has not happened, be happy while you can and take care of the problems when/if they come!

----------


## headhunter

> You will die of a stroke if you continue to worry over things that has not happened, be happy while you can and take care of the problems when/if they come!


my moto is BE PREPARED,if you think its not goner happen you are deluded.there is TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO MUCH FACE involved in the proposal to be scrapped,just go on tv.and read the concerns,must be over 5,000.just look at whats goner happen after march 1st.
at 74yrs.old and you say DONT WORRY,does that mean you havnt thought about it.

----------


## tomcat

> just go on tv.and read the concerns


...probably the worst advice to offer: the aging TV hens will worry themselves into early (or perhaps not so early) graves over concerns about all the injustices inflicted upon their decaying frames by a) Thailand, b) Thainess or c) the rising cost of Viagra...old age neuroses, like FaRTian posts, tend to include grossly excessive repetition and a healthy dollop of tedium...

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## stroller

Might be a good time to go into the health insurance business - special rates for policies canceled after visa approval.  :Very Happy:

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## headhunter

> ...probably the worst advice to offer: the aging TV hens will worry themselves into early (or perhaps not so early) graves over concerns about all the injustices inflicted upon their decaying frames by a) Thailand, b) Thainess or c) the rising cost of Viagra...old age neuroses, like FaRTian posts, tend to include grossly excessive repetition and a healthy dollop of tedium...


you have lost me TC.with words I was never taught at school,old age neuroses,only a little bit but no mental illness,viagra whats that,tedium only when someone else is driving,excessive repetition that one definitely I do get a lot of gerd owing to my hiatus hernia.
GOOGLE IS MY FREIND.who's yours.

----------


## Switch

> The withdrawal of the combination method for singleton retirees on hitherto adequate budgets who have complied with the laws for the past 20 years will be in some difficulty and one assumes they will either have to capitalise an asset back in their own country or here, but if they have none then it will be a return home.  
> To force this on folk on a mere two months notice is really nothing short of disgraceful, even for the Thai.
> I think if pushed to nail their worst fault, one of the many, I think I'd have to say it's their hypocrisy - all that fucking land of smiles and wai-ing shit but really a bunch of greedy, thoughtless, inconsiderate,  selfish fuckers sort of thing.


As a single retiree with no ties, I lasted 10 years. Having been fucked about by professionals, I see no need to remain in LOS and be fucked about by rank amateurs. 
Finance is not the issue, boredom is. I have moved already.  :Smile:

----------


## Stumpy

@ headhunter. I think the point TC was making is you have become on the verge of neurotic on some of these changes. Is it a good idea to be aware of potential changes.... (The optimum word being POTENTIAL")...Yes!, Is it healthy to lose your mind over them...No. Its silly and counterproductive. Go live life man. Spend all the money you claim to have in all those different accounts. 

As for TVF.......That site should be called the "Bitter End Forum". I'd venture to say that the average age on that site is 70+ and with that comes a large population of men who have very little or nothing to do but sit around in front of a computer 24/7 and read every bit of horseshit news spewed by "Webfact" and other sources. Then starts the endless "Thailand is a fk'd up place"  which whips the audience into a frenzy.

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## taxexile

> but if they have none then it will be a return home.


where they can join the lengthy queues behind all the ragheads, albanians, syrians, africans, single mums and dossers for council houses, soup, healthcare and financial handouts.

if, after a life of work, they cant scrape 800,000 baht together to remain in thailand,  how on earth will they survive in the UK.

----------


## headhunter

> As a single retiree with no ties, I lasted 10 years. Having been fucked about by professionals, I see no need to remain in LOS and be fucked about by rank amateurs. 
> Finance is not the issue, boredom is. I have moved already.


me and mrs.HH.would do the same,but taking a long time to find the perfect place to live here,and me being the age of no return,i have to BITE the bullet and put up with it.
we have a big house,which would be difficult to sell,then again its finding where to go,the wife is a lot more active than me,and she can put up with my whinging.

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## rickschoppers

I hate the words "maybe" and "possibly" since what follows is only opinion. I never listen to or react to opinion since it is not fact. If you like to listen to opinion and perspective, be my guest and worry about things that have not happened yet. Me, I wait for the facts before jumping.

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## jabir

> You will die of a stroke if you continue to worry over things that has not happened, be happy while you can and take care of the problems when/if they come!


Good advice, it's pointless worrying about something over which you have zero control or influence.

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## OhOh

> Might be a good time to go into the health insurance business


Or an OAP home.






> I have moved already.


What were your pros for moving and if it's not a secret where did you end up?

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## headhunter

i have now become a member of the daily moan club.i think whats made me like I am,is the grief that has burnt a hole in my heart and has made me into a miserable old man.its almost a yr.since our loss and for me its not getting better but worse.i am sorry but any trust that I had,  not counting my wife has gone down the sewer.

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## Seekingasylum

> where they can join the lengthy queues behind all the ragheads, albanians, syrians, africans, single mums and dossers for council houses, soup, healthcare and financial handouts.
> 
> if, after a life of work, they cant scrape 800,000 baht together to remain in thailand,  how on earth will they survive in the UK.


Tax, is it your incipient dementia that has dimmed the faculty whereby cognitive ability is aided by the power of creative thought?

The combination route to retiree extensions has been in force for over 20 years during which time many folk have bought property and established roots subsidising indigenous Thai extended families with nary a thought that they could not qualify for their residence. The 800,000 baht is no longer the £12,000 they once saw but has now increased by 65% to £20,000. One is always mindful of exchange fluctuations but the recent Brexit crash has been a blow for many. As I said, they will have to capitalise and return to Blighty. Incidentally, the average pension in the UK is in a range of between £13,500 and £18,600 per annum. The truth of the matter is that for many, retirement in the UK  is simply not possible and if divorce strikes in one's 50s then you are probably quite nicely fucked given one's pension will be shared despite living alone.
Illness is again a problem. Insurance policies are no longer viable, hospital costs are prodigious and one's nest egg, already reduced by currency crashes, can be depleted further.

All this is if course mere grist to the mill of life, or rather death to be more realistic, but to only give two months notice after a 20 year regime is truly fucking atrocious.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> and who pray-tell told you they were discontinuing the combination method? It's still in effect. It wasn't mentioned in this police order because that only mentioned things that had CHANGED.. Seeing as the combination method did not change it was not mentioned.
> 
> If you're from one of the 4 consulates that stopped issuing the affidavit of income from abroad notary letters you transfer in every month from abroad into your thai bank account for 12 months AND then you have banked in your thai bank account the difference that makes up 800K baht and that banked money must meet the seasoning requirement. 
> It's still an option it's just harder to use because of the consulates stopping the affidavit of income notary letters making people show 12 months of incoming transfers instead


Thanks for your input, Todd, but I could not see in that Police Order any reference to it being limited to only those who could not obtain embassy verification of income letters? It looks fairly unambiguous to me and clearly states that retirement extensions can only be issued on the basis of income transferred or by a lump sum deposit to be held for six months. 

Where is the accompanying information confirming the Order is limited to applicants of the nations whose diplomatic representatives can no longer verify incomes?

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## toddaniels

> Where is the accompanying information confirming the Order is limited to applicants of the nations whose diplomatic representatives can no longer verify incomes?


That notice was put out weeks ago as soon as those 4 consulates discontinued the income affidavits. 
I posted about it here
https://teakdoor.com/thai-visas-and-v...257-using.html (Amendments to Police Order 138/2257 (using monthly income))

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## terry57

Look, the only fukers who give a flying fuk about these new rules are peasants like Stroller and his fookin ilk. 

The vast majority of punters have a few buks in the bank and this is fook all in the grand scheme of things innit. 

Farang peasants Out and cashed up Coonts In.  :Smile:

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## headhunter

one thing that hasnt been debated is,this doesnt involve me as my extension money hasnt been touched,but as the new rules state that now the 800k must NOT be touched for 3months after your retirement extension is granted.yet you will be able to draw down no more than 400k.thus leaving a balance of 400k.NOW are you expected to top it back up to 800k.before your next extension of stay.or are they goner make sure that the 400k.is goner be classed as a deposit for health cover.because thats the figure that was quoted in the proposal.
if so what about them that take the marriage route,for their extension ?they are no different [expats]  are they goner be treated the same as us,or will they be classed different. both are classed as long term [1yr.visas] and will be included in the mandatory health cover.myself I am no different,married,but i go the retirement route,but how are they goner work this out.the only way I can see so far is,them that go the marriage route will have to keep 400k.in the bank for the full 12months.
maybe someone with a bigger brain than mine can work this one out.

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## stroller

> .NOW are you expected to top it back up to 800k.before your next extension of stay.


Of course, two months before you apply again at the latest.



> or are they goner make sure that the 400k.is goner be classed as a deposit for health cover.because thats the figure that was quoted in the proposal.


Speculation.

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## tomcat

> Speculation.


...indeed, 6 pages of it...Immigration would be delighted...

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## RPETER65

> My Bangkok bank account was closed for no reason even though my bank card was still valid. 
> The bank teller just gave me a blank look when I complained and asked for my balance,  fortunately there was only a few hundred baht lost.
> Doesn't inspire confidence in the Thai banking system.


Exactly why I dont keep 800,000 baht in a Thai bank.

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## Stumpy

> Look, the only fukers who give a flying fuk about these new rules are peasants like Stroller and his fookin ilk. 
> 
> The vast majority of punters have a few buks in the bank and this is fook all in the grand scheme of things innit. 
> 
> Farang peasants Out and cashed up Coonts In.


Welcome back Terry.... :smiley laughing:

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## bowie

> if it is passed by cabinet,is the mandatory ins.scam


HH:

Forewarned is prepared. So, follow the old adage pray for the best but prepare for the worst. Concerning the specific issue of mandatory health insurance. I do believe it will occur. Hopefully not in the near future, but, eventually. Why? Simple, because they can. Insurance company lobbyists will eventually get it pushed through. We cant do anything to prevent it. 

When it occurs, we will comply, we wont have a choice. If you want to dance you have to pay the piper. Ive already looked at the added cost to my current expat medical insurance, have to add outpatient at USD $150/month. Brings us from @ USD $5k/annum to @ USD $7k/annum. An inconvenient and unnecessary burden. Another Tax.

I cant allow myself to get upset about it as theres nothing I can do about it. When it is a requirement, I will get it. Or, the minimum required plan to comply. I do expect that when it does become a requirement, cheaper plans with greater payout restrictions or conditions will be offered by insurance companies to garner premiums. Competition is a good thing and insurance companies live and die by statistics. They arent going to pass up free money and mandatory insurance is free money to them.  So Be It.

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## HuangLao

Suckers....

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## headhunter

> HH:
> 
> Forewarned is prepared. So, follow the old adage “pray for the best but prepare for the worst”. Concerning the specific issue of mandatory health insurance. I do believe it will occur. Hopefully not in the “near” future, but, eventually. Why? Simple, because they can. Insurance company lobbyists will eventually get it pushed through. We can’t do anything to prevent it. 
> 
> When it occurs, we will comply, we won’t have a choice. If you want to dance you have to pay the piper. I’ve already looked at the added cost to my current expat medical insurance, have to add “outpatient” at USD $150/month. Brings us from @ USD $5k/annum to @ USD $7k/annum. An inconvenient and unnecessary burden. Another Tax.
> 
> I can’t allow myself to get “upset” about it as there’s nothing I can do about it. When it is a requirement, I will get it. Or, the minimum required plan to comply. I do expect that when it does become a requirement, “cheaper” plans with greater payout restrictions or conditions will be offered by insurance companies to garner premiums. Competition is a good thing and insurance companies live and die by statistics. They aren’t going to pass up free money and mandatory insurance is free money to them.  So Be It.


when you actually read who's involved in this,YES BOWIE it is goner happen,will all of us have to go for a medical check up.or will they take our word for it,with them saying you MISSED OUT having a stiff prk. so the policy is NOT PAYING OUT. how difficult will it be if you are involved in a accident with a non insured person,we all know the farang is always WRONG and NEVER RIGHT.
it would be interesting for someone else like me who is self assured,age in the 70's,a long history eg.open heart surgery,double by-pass,stroke,siezure's and a few other problems for good measure.as the saying goes we WAIT WITH BAITED BREATH.
HH.

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## Seekingasylum

> Look, the only fukers who give a flying fuk about these new rules are peasants like Stroller and his fookin ilk. 
> 
> The vast majority of punters have a few buks in the bank and this is fook all in the grand scheme of things innit. 
> 
> Farang peasants Out and cashed up Coonts In.


The problem for the Brits is that they can no longer rely on the combination route and with the Brexit fall in exchange rates they now have to deposit £20,000 in an account whereas in 2015 it was £16,000 and that deposit has to remain intact for 6 months which means another, say, £10,000 is required to defray expenses in the first year. Additionally, the income route entails a monthly transfer of at least £1,600 that in practice would require a gross income of around £22,000 to generate.  

That's going to rattle quite a few cages inhabited by the British contingent for sure, especially those who retired in the Noughties, up to 2006, when the criterion was a deposit equivalent to £11800 or a monthly income of just £940. People who have not visited Thailand for quite a while remark on the absence of the Brits when they poodle about - no surprise really, income-wise the country has become a third world coon state. 

Where have  you been? You still in that bothy?

----------


## taxexile

seeking asylum




> The combination route to retiree extensions has been in force for over 20 years during which time many folk have bought property and established roots subsidising indigenous Thai extended families with nary a thought that they could not qualify for their residence. The 800,000 baht is no longer the £12,000 they once saw but has now increased by 65% to £20,000. One is always mindful of exchange fluctuations but the recent Brexit crash has been a blow for many. As I said, they will have to capitalise and return to Blighty. Incidentally, the average pension in the UK is in a range of between £13,500 and £18,600 per annum. The truth of the matter is that for many, retirement in the UK is simply not possible and if divorce strikes in one's 50s then you are probably quite nicely fucked given one's pension will be shared despite living alone.
> Illness is again a problem. Insurance policies are no longer viable, hospital costs are prodigious and one's nest egg, already reduced by currency crashes, can be depleted further.


well, as you say, thats life, so deal with it.

its no different to suddenly being confronted with a large bill to repair the gearbox on your car, repair a leaking roof or replace that leaking boiler.

anyone who has spent more than 5 minutes in thailand should know full well that the rules and regulations that define our permissions to stay are subject to constant, contradictory and often unannounced changes and if we havent factored the possibility of surprises into our finances and plans ........ well .... then we leave ourselves at the mercy of the ubiquitous chickenhead and the politicians that legislate our trading arrangements. the financial crisis of 10 years ago that caused havoc with so many expats dreams also seems to have been forgotten by many, believing that such a thing could never happen again.

so for those struggling to come up with 800 large, just cut down on the beer, the expensive falang food and use the fan instead of the aircon....... or move back to the uk and let the nanny state wipe your sorry arses for you.

life throws up many surprises, and the more resilient of us will swallow our pride and make whatever changes are necessary to survive these upheavals and continue to live happy lives, it's all about ones expectations in life.
the truth is, we are entitled to nothing.

the less resilient will just moan, cry and blame the cat for their misery and go on and on and on about how unfair life is.

i believe charles darwin had a lot to say on this matter.

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## headhunter

HH. wants to know,could i be a throwback of DARWIN. :cmn:

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## Seekingasylum

Irrespective of your editorialisation spun from that squeaky old bath chair in which you are now no doubt reclining as you clack away in splenetic fury against the species from which you yourself evolved, the fact remains, it is now practically as cheap to live in Britain as here in the LoS for many. 

Portugal and Spain, Cyprus and Malta are by far much better economic bets for those who wish to ease arthritic bones and enjoy the sunshine although Brexit has fucked that now.

The point lost on you Tax is that the status quo in Thailand has remained for nigh on 20 years and recent lurches into distress have all been as a consequence of the British and their government fucking things up, and has fuck all to do with Thai who are simply reacting to it in a somewhat stupid way.

The folk who are going to come a cropper are mostly the decent folk who live quietly, comply with the laws and bother no-one who have always lived within their means but through no fault of their own are being sacrificed on the altar of stupidity by the lumpen British too fucking stupid to know their fucking arse from a hole in the ground.

They are fucked and it is all down to their own people. 

As an Irishman the irony is positively delicious.

----------


## cisco999

> I can't see this ending as it is. What's next I wonder?



What's to stop the government from saying starting now, one years extensions will be ฿30,000?    Take it or leave it.

The government can always make exceptions for more desirable visitors from what are considered non falang countries such as China, Korea, Japan and India.

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## Seekingasylum

They should raise the fees to something like 20,000 baht an application and then grant PR after, say, four years of consecutive residence and scrap the re-entry visa nonsense.

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## bowie

> charles darwin


Darwin? now come on, the Creationists are right - the evidence is in your face on a daily basis, you see the idiocy that abounds here, just ain't no way this genealogy could have survived Darwin's "survival of the fittest" to modern times

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## taxexile

> The folk who are going to come a cropper are mostly the decent folk who live quietly, comply with the laws and bother no-one who have always lived within their means but through no fault of their own are being sacrificed


has it ever been any different, anywhere.

life has never been fair.

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## Seekingasylum

Darwin was wrong, disproved by the undisputed fact we are here.

It is not the fittest who survive, it is the most fecund and the human population is expanding exponentially. In terms of social hierarchical structures, the prime motivating force establishing them, as correctly observed by Einstein, is of course stupidity. One only has to glance around to see that but if any doubts remained and needed dispelling then incontrovertible proof can be found anywhere in Wales, in the Brexit decision and of course the election of Trump.

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## Pragmatic

I went to a 'Visa' agent yesterday in Soi Post Office. Just to find out things. I asked about the changes that may be coming up. I was told "we pay their wages and nothing will change for the agents or the farangs. Best extension to get is a 'Retirement'. 'Marriage' too much paperwork. Price 25,000 for the first year, 15 months. Thereafter, 12,500 every year." 

They do the 90 day reports. Drop yer passport in at 8am, pick up 4pm.

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## Seekingasylum

Indeed, there is another nearer to the immigration office itself that used to do it for 20,000 baht but I think they are more circumspect these days.

The 90 day agents are a bore and should be shot. Many a time we wait our turn and as the moment approaches an agent turns up with a handful of 12 passports that are passed to the jobsworth for processing and we mere mortals wait........

Corruption in progress and a wonderful metaphor for this hypocritical country.

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## terry57

^
Fuk me Thegent,

 90 day reports are fuk all. Only silly retarded fuks like Stroller would ever go to an Office to  do one. I did mine last week on my mates computer. Took us five fookin minutes and was approved next day.

Regards the extra time required to have ya coin sitting in Sumchais bank goes..... sell ya fookin collection of exotic colostomy bags eh, ya don't need em fookin all eh.   :bananaman: 

Farang cheap charlie peasant fukers should just be fuked orf.  No coont likes em.

Stinky piss pant fookers they are, nasty little whinny shitters.  :Smile:

----------


## Switch

> Irrespective of your editorialisation spun from that squeaky old bath chair in which you are now no doubt reclining as you clack away in splenetic fury against the species from which you yourself evolved, the fact remains, it is now practically as cheap to live in Britain as here in the LoS for many. 
> 
> Portugal and Spain, Cyprus and Malta are by far much better economic bets for those who wish to ease arthritic bones and enjoy the sunshine although Brexit has fucked that now.
> 
> The point lost on you Tax is that the status quo in Thailand has remained for nigh on 20 years and recent lurches into distress have all been as a consequence of the British and their government fucking things up, and has fuck all to do with Thai who are simply reacting to it in a somewhat stupid way.
> 
> The folk who are going to come a cropper are mostly the decent folk who live quietly, comply with the laws and bother no-one who have always lived within their means but through no fault of their own are being sacrificed on the altar of stupidity by the lumpen British too fucking stupid to know their fucking arse from a hole in the ground.
> 
> They are fucked and it is all down to their own people. 
> ...


I only lived there for 10 years, but your comment on 20 years of “status quo” is as superfluous as your claims of gbp usd parity.
There have been changes every year that I remained in Thailand. Don’t even think about the flexibility of using a different immigration office. That just multiplies the opportunity for different interpretations of the same laws, and the catch all discretionary powers of the IO.

Accept your status as an alien pauper or move on, but for fuck sake stop crying in your beer and everyone elses.

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## Seekingasylum

You truly are a fucking idiot. 

Look, mungo mofo moron, the requirements for a retirement extension has not changed in 20 years in that the lump sum of 800k, monthly income of 65,000 or a combination of both have been the " status quo " for the entire fucking period. You gormless buffoon.

Engaging with you TD numpties reminds me very much of a visit to the Dusit Zoo monkey enclosure.

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## NamPikToot

> Engaging with you TD numpties reminds me very much of a visit to the Dusit Zoo monkey enclosure.


Sadly closing so where are you moved to now Gent? 

ThaiVisa is more your go i think.

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## stroller

Amongst your 30+ posts per day, is there ever one which isn't a snide attack on another member, NumPrik?

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## Switch

> Irrespective of your editorialisation spun from that squeaky old bath chair in which you are now no doubt reclining as you clack away in splenetic fury against the species from which you yourself evolved, the fact remains, it is now practically as cheap to live in Britain as here in the LoS for many. 
> 
> Portugal and Spain, Cyprus and Malta are by far much better economic bets for those who wish to ease arthritic bones and enjoy the sunshine although Brexit has fucked that now.
> 
> The point lost on you Tax is that the status quo in Thailand has remained for nigh on 20 years and recent lurches into distress have all been as a consequence of the British and their government fucking things up, and has fuck all to do with Thai who are simply reacting to it in a somewhat stupid way.
> 
> The folk who are going to come a cropper are mostly the decent folk who live quietly, comply with the laws and bother no-one who have always lived within their means but through no fault of their own are being sacrificed on the altar of stupidity by the lumpen British too fucking stupid to know their fucking arse from a hole in the ground.
> 
> They are fucked and it is all down to their own people. 
> ...


Someone with forensic historical knowledge of the cheapest way to retire in LOS is rubbing his hands with glee about changes to this historical bargain.
You are billy bullshitter and everyone knows you are up shit creek without a paddle. Moving your sterling pension to the bog so it can be paid in Euros, won’t do you any favors in the long run. Mwahahahahaha

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## NamPikToot

> Amongst your 30+ posts per day, is there ever one which isn't a snide attack on another member, NumPrik?


You sir are a fine upstanding citizen who always posts highly of others here and it is a veritable boon to have you here.

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## Stumpy

Just finished off my marriage Visa extension through 2020 today. In talking to the IO, he mentioned to me about the changes for the retirement visa. I said Oh yeah it has a great portion of the foreigners here in an panic. He said that he has been instructed to flag closely anyone who appears to be using an agency for funds. So it appears all the numpties flapping their lips about using agencies etc on forums has already raised a big flag. My wife asked him why about the changes and they were told it was to be fair to all being there are some that comply and others that cheat around the back door to meet the requirements. The IO officer said that there are quite a few that are living off their pensions but it does not meet the new requirement and they warned them about their the next Visa renewal. It appears some leniency is being used currently to give some ample time to get their financial situation in compliance.

Honestly I expect more changes coming as they close the loopholes and work arounds foreigners think they have found.

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## taxexile

S.A.




> and recent lurches into distress have all been as a consequence of the British and their government fucking things up,


you drivel spouting gimp, always looking to apportion blame to anywhere but where it actually lies.

anyone who finds themselves in "distress" has only themselves to blame.  currencies have fluctuated since time immemorial, and anyone who expects to survive in a third world military dictatorship known for its ever changing views on foreigners residing in their precious land and the satisfaction they get showing those foreigners who's boss and making them jump through hoops for their entertainment without a substantial backup of funds is only asking for trouble.

likewise the idiots who sever all ties with their homeland,  "englands a shithole, i'm never going back to that freezing paki infested dump, it can go fuck itself . full of muslims and coons with knives, last time i went back it were £5 a pint in weatherspoons, they can all go fuck themselves".... how many times a week do we read stuff like that here.

people fuck their own lives up, its not governments, its not regulations, its people themselves for not thinking ahead, for not having a plan b and a plan c, and for not realising that everything is transient, nothing is permanent and can and often does change tomorrow.

surely those living on the edge with  their uk pensions must have realised for years now that the pound is falling and unlikely to rise in the near future, the visa agents who bend the rules for them will not be allowed to continue, regulations regarding retirement visas will change and thai immigration officers will not be denied their fun  (or their bribes) at having to refuse visa extensions for a few hundred old dossers who  have taken things for granted for far too long and clearly haven't really thought this "living the dream" thing through properly.

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## Pragmatic

> all the numpties flapping their lips about using agencies etc on forums has already raised a big flag.


 The agency I visited tuther day, post #160, says business as usual.

----------


## Stumpy

> The agency I visited tuther day, post #160, says business as usual.


Maybe for now..... I mean think about it. Why tell you no. Those agencies stand to lose a lot of free money.

Lets see how this all shakes out in the coming months.

That said, if they start messing with Marriage extensions etc I have told my wife depending on what they change we might sell up and move. She said NO Problem

----------


## Pragmatic

> Maybe for now.....
> 
> Lets see how this all shakes out in the coming months.


 I agree. They'll keep taking the farangs money as long as they can. And the farang will keep paying as he has little choice.   :Smile:

----------


## Stumpy

> I agree. They'll keep taking the farangs money as long as they can. And the farang will keep paying as he has little choice.


And that's what will drive it. There is loan shark money to be made for now.

----------


## stroller

Lots of farang mansions in Issan will be up for sale soon.  :Very Happy:

----------


## HuangLao

> Lots of farang mansions in Issan will be up for sale soon.


....and proceeds distributed back upon the extended family.
Clever Thais.
Sucker Farang.

 :Smile:

----------


## bowie

> messing with Marriage extension





> Originally Posted by Pragmatic 
> I agree. They'll keep taking the farangs money as long as they can. And the farang will keep paying as he has little choice.  
> 
> And that's what will drive it. There is loan shark money to be made for now.




The "work-arounds" will always exist - as soon as one door is shut another opens, it doesn't really matter how smart or clever the cops are, the cons will find a way to beat the system, always have, always will. Human beings are an ingenious and inventive lot, "demand" will produce supply. Yup, it'll cost more. How much more it will cost, yet to be determined, depends on what the market will bear. 

As long as people are people and greed exists backdoors will open - the question of how much it "cost" will be determined by how much risk is taken.

The visa broker cottage industry will continue to operate - just not in its current style or flavor 

As far as "marriage" extensions, perhaps next in line, you all know the history and the cycles; education, marriage, retirement, tourist, border runs, as immigration concentrate and focus on one...

----------


## Pragmatic

> Lots of farang mansions in Issan will be up for sale soon.


 You looking to buy or sell?

----------


## Seekingasylum

> S.A.
> 
> 
> 
> you drivel spouting gimp, always looking to apportion blame to anywhere but where it actually lies.
> 
> anyone who finds themselves in "distress" has only themselves to blame.  currencies have fluctuated since time immemorial, and anyone who expects to survive in a third world military dictatorship known for its ever changing views on foreigners residing in their precious land and the satisfaction they get showing those foreigners who's boss and making them jump through hoops for their entertainment without a substantial backup of funds is only asking for trouble.
> 
> likewise the idiots who sever all ties with their homeland,  "englands a shithole, i'm never going back to that freezing paki infested dump, it can go fuck itself . full of muslims and coons with knives, last time i went back it were £5 a pint in weatherspoons, they can all go fuck themselves".... how many times a week do we read stuff like that here.
> ...


The people who retired in 2015 and lodged their applications with immigration having made the move to LoS based their calculations on the reasonable assumption the £ had strengthened in light of Cameron's majority election and as a consequence of the austerity programme. The markets and most, if not all, international forums were of the same opinion and accordingly the £ rose from its more usual range of 45 - 50 baht to 54 baht in August 2015. This reflected the many signs of recovery from the 2008 crash and indeed the IMF/OECD all published reports endorsing this progress and opined that the £ was now almost achieving a reserve currency status preferable to the euro and as a stable alternative to the US$.

But as we know Brexit destroyed this happy trajectory. 17.6 million idiots voted to fuck up the economy, the future of the union, the future of the nation's children, the future of 4 million EU citizens in Britain, the future of 2 million Brits in the EU and erode the finances of nigh on 4 million expat Brits living abroad on devalued sterling denominated incomes.

This was not a bunch of "old dossers" taking things for granted, this was not some daft Micawberism fantasised by deluded old people, this was not some economic ill wind blowing along because of some foreseen trend, it was the result of an insane action of the most stupendous stupidity ever inflicted by a people on itself for absolutely no benefit whatsoever.

And because of that mass economic suicide the £ now stands at 40.08 baht, a value that has thrust a significant proportion of Brits retired here into economic jeopardy through no fault f there own.

And just when one thought it couldn't get worse the Brit Embassy then withdrew a vital service that has truly fucked its own people in a way that they could never have reasonably foreseen.

Shit happens but don't make it sound as if it were some natural occurrence or phenomenon ignored by silly old duffers "living the dream", they got fucked, plain and simple and by their own people.

----------


## taxexile

SA



> The people who retired in 2015 and lodged their applications with immigration having made the move to LoS based their calculations on the reasonable assumption the £ had strengthened in light of Cameron's majority election and as a consequence of the austerity programme. The markets and most, if not all, international forums were of the same opinion and accordingly the £ rose from its more usual range of 45 - 50 baht to 54 baht in August 2015. This reflected the many signs of recovery from the 2008 crash and indeed the IMF/OECD all published reports endorsing this progress and opined that the £ was now almost achieving a reserve currency status preferable to the euro and as a stable alternative to the US$.


SA



> the reasonable assumption


if you make  assumptions based on the blatherings of the press, the imf, the markets, the international forums, the pundits and all the other overpaid so called experts who have been proved wrong time and time again then those assumptions are hardly reasonable and are based purely on the guesswork of "experts" and the belief that ones hopes will be realised come what may whilst dismissing blindly any reports that were in conflict with ones hopes.




..... in other words, it was a bunch of dreamers and dossers taking things for granted and not having a plan b or a plan c.

you might as well base your future financial planning by consulting mystic meg at the end of clacton pier as listen to the "experts".

you civil servants spend all your lives stroking your chins and staring at graphs yet you always manage to get it wrong..... just like the dossers and dreamers who may shortly become unstuck.    




> Shit happens but don't make it sound as if it were some natural occurrence or phenomenon ignored by silly old duffers "living the dream", they got fucked, plain and simple and by their own people.


nonsense. simply put, they got fucked for taking the words of politicians, rule makers, thai immigration and pundits at face value.

i do both understand and sympathise that 10 years in pattayas turgid funk can dumb one down somewhat but hasn't life taught you anything ???

----------


## headhunter

as this yr.2019 will be the 10th.extension i will have to do.as my 800k.hasnt been touched for the past 7 many times imm.have asked me what i live on.
i have always shown them another acc.pass book showing exs.withdrawn every month.never a problem.
so if the 800k.is living exs.how do they expect those that withdraw monthly amounts goner manage when it cant be touched for an extra 3months.thus making the money they live on not available for 10months out of 17.
if the 800k.is as they previously stated is living exs.those who relied on drawing down,now find that 400k.cannot be touched how the hell are they goner manage.
all them that will find theirselves in that position had better sort it it NOWand not take the thai way,LET IT HAPPEN FIRST.

----------


## stroller

> so if the 800k.is living exs.


Your speculating again and another inch closer to your next heart attack.  :Sad:

----------


## headhunter

> Your speculating again and another inch closer to your next heart attack.


sorry stroller its NOT speculation the clauses.police order 138/2557 have already been amended.
just done my B.P. 141/73---53.

----------


## OhOh

> Clever Thais.
> Sucker Farang.


What price can a mature European put on pristine tropical beaches, colourful historic monuments, food to die for, affordable accommodation and flexible companions. Many of these life's necessities have long disappeared from their  reach elsewhere.

----------


## stroller

> sorry stroller its NOT speculation the clauses.police order 138/2557 have already been amended.
> just done my B.P. 141/73---53.


Where does it say 800k is for living expenses???

----------


## HuangLao

Some will never get it....

----------


## stroller

Farangness...

----------


## headhunter

> Where does it say 800k is for living expenses???


so why is the extension money has got to be available INSTANT,immigration ask what do you live on? if its in a fixed acc.its has always been known as living exs.but the new clauses don't allow for that,SO WHATS NEXT for them that got F.all.
come on mate you are not that thik.are you.

----------


## stroller

> come on mate you are not that thik.are you


No, I am not the thicko who replaces knowledge with conjecture & speculation.

----------


## Norton

> speculation


A lot of that going on. Only thing we know for sure is Immigration has drafted a change pending parlimentary approval. In summary:

"You now need the 800K baht in a thai bank account in your name only for TWO months prior to you applying for your extension, AND for 3 months AFTER you get your extension, THEN the money cannot drop below 400K baht for the remainder of the year."

In another thread, if no Embassy letter, must show bank statement showing minimum of 65k baht per month transfer into a Thai bank. This is not a change btw.

----------


## headhunter

> No, I am not the thicko who replaces knowledge with conjecture & speculation.


as dick emery used to say,"OH I DO LOVE YOU"

----------


## headhunter

> A lot of that going on. Only thing we know for sure is Immigration has drafted a change pending parlimentary approval. In summary:
> 
> "You now need the 800K baht in a thai bank account in your name only for TWO months prior to you applying for your extension, AND for 3 months AFTER you get your extension, THEN the money cannot drop below 400K baht for the remainder of the year."
> 
> In another thread, if no Embassy letter, must show bank statement showing minimum of 65k baht per month transfer into a Thai bank. This is not a change btw.


I know it doesn't affect me,but you have to wonder those of that need the money after they get their ext.how they will manage must be a big headache.but there again if they don't have any back up funds [I do know of 2] THE LOAN SHARKS will help.

----------


## bowie

> I know it doesn't affect me,but you have to wonder those of that need the money after they get their ext.how they will manage must be a big headache.but there again if they don't have any back up funds [I do know of 2] THE LOAN SHARKS will help.


Not so much a matter of helping as it is of continuing their business. And, apparently it is quite a business. 'tis the visa brokers that Hakparn has targeted and "set his eyes" upon. So, their business will be disrupted, but, only for a short time. They'll adapt, change, find different methodology. Primary rule of a successful business is you Must change with the times. 

There is a "demand" and the visa brokers will fulfill the need.

Be glad the impact on us (legit folk) is "minimal". Speaking only for myself, the impact is non-existent (at this point in time). Maybe, just maybe, I'll have to make a second trip to the bank and the immigration office. Oh well, naught more than a minor inconvenience. So Be It.

----------


## headhunter

for me its only,a second trip to the bank[i wonder will they ask for another letter to confirm the balance] i have always got the letter the day before i go to imm.its never been a problem.our bank LH. in the mall korat doesnt open till 11am.otherwise i can update the book in the machine.
extra cost is taxi fare there and back.home -imm.-home 700bht.

----------


## stroller

For those under financial pressures, the 65k/month route may be the better option, no requirement to let it 'mature' in the bank. Additional costs for recycling funds need to be calculated in as recurring monthly expenditure, might get a bit too tight for a few guys.

The dream of living a care-free life with limited funds/income is evaporating faster with each new twist in the Immi knickers.

----------


## Switch

> For those under financial pressures, the 65k/month route may be the better option, no requirement to let it 'mature' in the bank. Additional costs for recycling funds need to be calculated in as recurring monthly expenditure, might get a bit too tight for a few guys.
> 
> The dream of living a care-free life with limited funds/income is evaporating faster with each new twist in the Immi knickers.


You’ve had that dream for way too long stroller.
At least posters planning to come here, take drugs, and eat dogs know where they stand now.
Well done champ.

----------


## stroller

I am not effected by the changes, ya miserable coffin dodger.  :Smile:

----------


## Switch

> I am not effected by the changes, ya miserable coffin dodger.


‘affected’

----------


## taxexile

from phuket immigration office. today.


GRANDFATHER RULE




> Stunningly, under the new order the old provisions that people who have been living in Thailand for continually on a retirement visa since before Oct 21, 2008 can still apply under the exact same conditions that they were first approved.
> 
> Under this “grandfather rule”, applicants who are over 60 still only need to show that they either have B200,000 in a Thai bank, or receive at least B20,000 income per month.
> 
> Likewise, applicants under the same grandfather rule who are 55-60 years old can apply showing that they have B500,000 in Thai bank account or an income of B50,000 a month.
> 
> For these people there is no option to provide a combination of monies to reach any special target, Col Acheep explained.
> 
> They must have the money in the bank or receive the required monthly income; they cannot add them together to try and reach any special figure, he said.
> ...


https://www.thephuketnews.com/holdin...SZQI9mLQC3U.97

----------


## tomcat

...^wait til Big Joke hears about that...

----------


## Pragmatic

> GRANDFATHER RULE


 Anyone know whether the 'Grandfather Rule' only applies if a 'Retirement Extension' has been obtained EVERY year other than maybe once or twice when a 'Marriage Extension' has been got?

----------


## lom

> Anyone know whether the 'Grandfather Rule' only applies if a 'Retirement Extension' has been obtained EVERY year other than maybe once or twice when a 'Marriage Extension' has been got?


What is it you don't understand in "continually on a retirement visa since" ?

----------


## buriramboy

If/ when I move back to Thailand I've still failed to read anything that would convince me to do anything different to what I did before as in a one year multi entry non imm O or B obtained outside of Thailand and a nice trip out the mad house every 3 months or day trip to Cambo or Laos border and I could happily meet the financial requirements for a 1 year obtained in country.

----------


## Stumpy

I think anyone really concerned about all these changes just go to YouTube and listen to all the asshats and wankers that have all the answers .  :Smile:

----------


## Pragmatic

> What is it you don't understand in "continually on a retirement visa since" ?


Cuz in 2007/8 they had an extension based on being supported by a Thai child. I got one but they cancelled that extension fairly quickly as farang didn't have to show money. I can't remember if they cancelled it before or after 2008.   :Smile:

----------


## jamescollister

> If/ when I move back to Thailand I've still failed to read anything that would convince me to do anything different to what I did before as in a one year multi entry non imm O or B obtained outside of Thailand and a nice trip out the mad house every 3 months or day trip to Cambo or Laos border and I could happily meet the financial requirements for a 1 year obtained in country.


Your another one that has not bothered to read the rules/regulations on visas from your home country.

Think you are from the UK, maybe wrong, but the Thai foreign office rules are the same in most western countries.

Multi o means showing 20,000 Baht, in a bank, not 400.000 Baht in a Thai bank.
London, embassy will grant a non immigrant spouse visa [no border runs] if you can show 400,000 Baht or equivalent in a UK bank. Or 3 months of monthly deposits of 1,500 pounds.

All this, local, alleged new immigration rules are land based, not covered by the Thai foreign office, not seen where they have changed, or are going to change laws.

Also these changes in local [Thai] laws are only temporary, after the elections the new government has to vote them in or reject them.

Been here a long time and the more things change, the more they stay the same, don't worry be happy.

----------


## stroller

> maybe wrong, but the Thai foreign office rules are the same in most western countries.


You're wrong.

----------


## buriramboy

As far as I know London will still give me a years multi non O visa, good for 15 months if do a border hop just before expires.

----------


## jamescollister

> As far as I know London will still give me a years multi non O visa, good for 15 months if do a border hop just before expires.


That's correct, I use the same visa, for me no problem, live on the Lao land border, go to Chong Mek every 90 days. enter Lao, come back to Thailand with a load of duty frees, take the wife, cousins and any one around.

Thais pay 30 Baht for a one day pass, but can carry back a litre of booze and a cartoon of cigs, win win for me.

Guess the question would be, is a multi O on Koh Samui with a border run every 3 months better than getting a non O spouse extension of stay from your home country.

----------


## lom

> Guess the question would be, is a multi O on Koh Samui with a border run every 3 months better than getting a non O spouse extension of stay from your home country.


???
You don't get any extension of stay from your home country, they can only be obtained from an immigration office within Thailand.

----------


## buriramboy

> That's correct, I use the same visa, for me no problem, live on the Lao land border, go to Chong Mek every 90 days. enter Lao, come back to Thailand with a load of duty frees, take the wife, cousins and any one around.
> 
> Thais pay 30 Baht for a one day pass, but can carry back a litre of booze and a cartoon of cigs, win win for me.
> 
> Guess the question would be, is a multi O on Koh Samui with a border run every 3 months better than getting a non O spouse extension of stay from your home country.


This makes me totally confused as per your previous post.

----------


## Jack meoff

> Multi o means showing 20,000 Baht, in a bank, not 400.000 Baht in a Thai bank.
> London, embassy will grant a non immigrant spouse visa [no border runs] if you can show 400,000 Baht or equivalent in a UK bank. Or 3 months of monthly deposits of 1,500 pounds.


Can someone explain this?

----------


## Chittychangchang

^Fook knows.

Just go native if you really wanna live in the mad house eternally.

Loads do it!

No money, no paperwork, no stress.

Just live in Nakon knowhere and become a hermit.

----------


## buriramboy

Correct me if I'm wrong as I must still be missing something if you want to be a bitch and jump through hoops and leaving loads of money in a Thai bank and have loads of stress you get a 1 year visa in country that they can change the criteria anytime they want but if you want an easy life with no requirements no hassles and no stress you get a one year non O outside Thailand utilise it for 15 months and life is good. WTF  am I missing that you drama queens ain't?

----------


## Chittychangchang

Getting the zimmer frame on the visa run bus causes problems for the gent :Smile:

----------


## Switch

> Correct me if I'm wrong as I must still be missing something if you want to be a bitch and jump through hoops and leaving loads of money in a Thai bank and have loads of stress you get a 1 year visa in country that they can change the criteria anytime they want but if you want an easy life with no requirements no hassles and no stress you get a one year non O outside Thailand utilise it for 15 months and life is good. WTF  am I missing that you drama queens ain't?


I got a retirement visa at the Thai embassy in U.K. in October 2015. They had just tightened up the application from my original visa from a U.K. consulate.
London embassy only now, and a few hoops to jump through. Income proof notarized, plus U.K. police report etc. I reckon it’s still the same. As you say, good for 15 months if you play it right.

----------


## tomcat

...this thread has become TVized: plenty of interpretations, misinterpretations, confusions, corrections, misunderstandings and generalized nausea...Thai Immigration officers would be highly amused...if they understood English...

----------


## Stumpy

> ...this thread has become TVized: plenty of interpretations, misinterpretations, confusions, corrections, misunderstandings and generalized nausea...Thai Immigration officers would be highly amused...if they understood English...


Oh many do TC and they follow sites.  This is why I laughed at all the posters that spouted the agency work around.  You know that is already being discussed.  

As Bowie said a few pages back,  people will spend what it takes to stay until it reaches their personal threshold.  The agencies will survive because they might have less clients but they will double or triple their fees.

----------


## tomcat

> This is why I laughed at all the posters that spouted the agency work around. You know that is already being discussed.


...I believe agency workarounds are sacrosanct to immi officials: any new regulation must ensure the dodge before promulgation. Of importance is the appearance and apparent enforcement of strict regulations...the reality, I suspect, is that the income stream from agency owners to officialdom will be kept flowing...more discreetly, perhaps, but cascading nonetheless...because: Thainess...

----------


## headhunter

just to give you an idea of whats been going on, fri.the 15th.it was reported on tv.thai news,that BJ.had raided a visa agency who catered for people from myanmar.
they found close on 500passports and 29 counterfeit stamps,for fake visa's and 90day reports.
nothing new you would say but,this business has been going on for OVER 10YEARS.
so you can imagine the amount of money that's going into someone's coffers.

----------


## raycarey

> Correct me if I'm wrong as I must still be missing something if you want to be a bitch and jump through hoops and leaving loads of money in a Thai bank and have loads of stress you get a 1 year visa in country that they can change the criteria anytime they want but if you want an easy life with no requirements no hassles and no stress you get a one year non O outside Thailand utilise it for 15 months and life is good. WTF am I missing that you drama queens ain't?





1. you can't get a 1 year visa 'in country'.  you can only get an extension
2. the only way to get a 1 year visa is 'outside thailand'.
3. the MFA can change the criteria for issuing visas anytime they want.  not just extensions.

ever heard the expression, 'loud wrong'?

because you do it.

a lot.

----------


## terry57

Fook me Fookers, ya still bolikin on bout fook all eh.

This is for fook stiks like me who travel in and out of this Shithouse and  who aint peasant scum like Stroller.

 Just get a fookin Retirement Visa in ya home cuntry and make the coont work for 2 years. Ya show ya money in your bank plus sum other Gay arsed basic shit and Bob's ya fookin Uncle innit. 

So fookin easy and ya By-pass any dealings with Thai Immigration and the shit stains working there who like to make shit up depending on how they feel after their morning wank. 

On the other hand, if you are peasant scum like Stroller Big Joke has got ya fooked.

See ya later koonters eh.  :Smile:

----------


## headhunter

news regarding the holding of 800k.bht.for an extra 3months after extension has been granted,and the drawing down of 400k.bht.will be verified at your next application for your extension.if your bank pass book shows that you have not abided by the new rules there will be NO EXTENSION.
t.v. news jonathan farfield.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> If/ when I move back to Thailand I've still failed to read anything that would convince me to do anything different to what I did before as in a one year multi entry non imm O or B obtained outside of Thailand and a nice trip out the mad house every 3 months or day trip to Cambo or Laos border and I could happily meet the financial requirements for a 1 year obtained in country.


This is a fine alternative  but in truth it gets old very quickly. Years ago I did the three-monthly hops but never travelled by bus to Cambo preferring to spend three days in Penang or elsewhere, HK or S'pore. As you say, it's a nice respite getting away from Thai stupidity but in the end it became a chore not least because when the time came to travel because I had to, I invariably didn't fancy it at all or, according to sod's law, I was ill from some bug or had the shits. It also got more expensive with £ depreciation - the idea of spending 12 hours on a bus to Cambo was too horrible to contemplate.

In some ways I miss my trips to Penang and get quite nostalgic for the curries and the pleasant hours under the casuarinas of Batu Ferringhi beach with a couple of beers in the Soho bar.

----------


## NamPikToot

Lets hope the GBP increases Gent and then you can afford a trip or two. If you book early enough, like 6+ months you can get really cheap AirAsia Rtns.

----------


## Pragmatic

> Years ago I did the three-monthly hops but never travelled by bus to Cambo preferring to spend three days in Penang or elsewhere, HK or S'pore.


 What's wrong in using an agent in Pattaya to do your extension?

----------


## Stumpy

> This is a fine alternative but in truth it gets old very quickly.


Exactly right. I did the 90 day border trips and after about a year of it, it grows thin on your patience.  I would do flights to different places even though the company offered a van ride to Cambodia because the nonsense at the border gave me a headache. Nothing enjoyable about it. At least the flights were basically a stamp in and out. But as you say having to always travel somewhere because you have to isn't fun especially after you have seen all those places.

Now a 15 min drive to have lunch first then a quick "Hello I am still here" once every 90 days is far more pleasant.

----------


## buriramboy

> This is a fine alternative  but in truth it gets old very quickly. Years ago I did the three-monthly hops but never travelled by bus to Cambo preferring to spend three days in Penang or elsewhere, HK or S'pore. As you say, it's a nice respite getting away from Thai stupidity but in the end it became a chore not least because when the time came to travel because I had to, I invariably didn't fancy it at all or, according to sod's law, I was ill from some bug or had the shits. It also got more expensive with £ depreciation - the idea of spending 12 hours on a bus to Cambo was too horrible to contemplate.
> 
> In some ways I miss my trips to Penang and get quite nostalgic for the curries and the pleasant hours under the casuarinas of Batu Ferringhi beach with a couple of beers in the Soho bar.


Used to work out well for me, a trip to Penang or where ever every 15 months for the visa, one trip to the Philipines to see friends, one trip to Indonesia to see the old man, so that only left max 2 Cambo trips a year if couldn't be fucked to fly anywhere for a weekend/ week. Did that for best part of 10 years.

----------


## Dragonfly

> If/ when I move back to Thailand I've still failed to read anything that would convince me to do anything different to what I did before as in a one year multi entry non imm O or B obtained outside of Thailand and a nice trip out the mad house every 3 months or day trip to Cambo or Laos border and I could happily meet the financial requirements for a 1 year obtained in country.


agree, that's what I did, it was far better than dealing with frigging idiots at the immigration office

that said, the extension procedure are difficult, and the officials needs to be as difficult as their procedure

why would anyone want to go through that shit, when a country does everything because they don't want you there

----------


## Seekingasylum

> What's wrong in using an agent in Pattaya to do your extension?


You miss the point. I don't need an agent and I qualify for extensions in my own right. We were talking about years ago when I was on a multi '0' annual visa necessitating a departure every three months. This has the virtue of never having to deal with a Thai immigration officer ever again. In itself this has to be a bonus. If I were younger I would do it in a heartbeat and fuck off extensions and their shitty offices, their fucking rudeness and their fucking arrogance, not least because one can also travel to see other places. Different game now as a grunter and I can't be arsed to travel, immigration office is a lesser evil.

----------


## Seekingasylum

Butters, the problem with that now is, although I can use Irish nationality and therefore have freedom of movement for myself and the wingman, we would not be classified as economically active, since I would be establishing our residence as persons of independent means and not as workers, and therefore we would require mandatory health insurance cover. At my age that would be a challenge. Even so, I would still do it if it were just me, but the wingman and Spain would not be a good fit.

----------


## stroller

> But as you say having to always travel somewhere because you have to isn't fun especially after you have seen all those places.


Same here.

----------


## taxexile

SA



> Even so, I would still do it if it were just me, but the wingman and Spain would not be a good fit.


Have you considered Portugal, it's considerably cheaper than Spain, the Portuguese are much nicer and more welcoming than the dago, and I believe they are offering all sorts of tax advantages to retirees. Residents are entitled to healthcare, and again, I believe that includes retirees. 
Like Thailand they also have an incomprehensible language and a strange cuisine

We are making a visit there in June, and will look into the possibilities of a legal bolthole there. Porto is a delightful town.

Corbyns taxation proposals, his one off wealth tax threats and the strong possibility that if elected he would turn the UK into an Eastern Germany circa 1960 within a couple of years has made me very fearful indeed. Brexit is nothing compared to Corbyn.

----------


## buriramboy

Also have the Canary Islands, even cheaper and tax free and a better climate during the winter months than Spain or Portugal.

----------


## Pragmatic

> Thailand has become an overpriced shithole with only cutoff fools and idiots staying,


    I'm stayin.    :Smile:

----------


## Chittychangchang

Portugal the Indian of Europe.

One foot in the Algarkirk,  would be perfect for the Gent.

----------


## Dragonfly

> SA
> 
> 
> Have you considered Portugal, it's considerably cheaper than Spain, the Portuguese are much nicer and more welcoming than the dago, and I believe they are offering all sorts of tax advantages to retirees. Residents are entitled to healthcare, and again, I believe that includes retirees. 
> Like Thailand they also have an incomprehensible language and a strange cuisine
> 
> We are making a visit there in June, and will look into the possibilities of a legal bolthole there. Porto is a delightful town.
> 
> Corbyns taxation proposals, his one off wealth tax threats and the strong possibility that if elected he would turn the UK into an Eastern Germany circa 1960 within a couple of years has made me very fearful indeed. Brexit is nothing compared to Corbyn.


Portugal has been invaded by French pensioners, you are going to love it there  :Smile:

----------


## taxexile

nothing wrong with the older frog once it has seen sense and left france. i associate with a few frenchies here in hua hin and find them excellent comapany, much better in fact than most of the chavvy lowrent brits that seem to gravitate to thailand.

----------


## Seekingasylum

Tax, if you want to avail yourself of an EU residence, other than Ireland, you had better get your skates on. The situation is in a state of flux given the ERG position but if Britain crashes out next month sans a deal then your proposed plan may not get off the ground unless, of course, you apply as a third country national under the 'golden visa' schemes.
These require a property purchase in excess of 500,000 euros and an element of capital investment.
There are few Thais in Portugal but as far as I know most Thai that are there are spouses of Brits retired on the Algarve.
I know a little about Portugal but in truth you and Mrs Tax will be somewhat isolated if you choose an area away from the Algarve. Portuguese are quite conservative and reserved, and if you cannot speak the lingo then north of the tourist zone will be difficult for you. The cultural difference between Spanish and the Portuguese is quite extraordinary when one considers their proximity. Up country in Portugal, in the boonies, in the Minho, Porto,  around Braganza etc, they are pretty much done and dusted by 9 o'clock in the evening, they eat quietly and go to bed early. I loved touring around there and relished the sedate pace of things. But as a place to hang one's hat? Sure the cities are fine but they do have problems with urban crime, mugging etc and the legacy of their African colonies has yielded unwanted dividends. 
Frankly, you would do better upping stumps for somewhere like Cyprus or Crete. The thing is, when you start bouncing off the walls in your dementia poor Mrs Tax will have to negotiate things by herself and this is challenging for most Thai but in foreign climes it will be more of a bugger and in truth would be testing for the average Brit.
Stick with Scarborough, pay your tax and enjoy pootling around the Dales interspersed with your jaunts in the Hua Hin bathchair.

----------


## taxexile

> Tax, if you want to avail yourself of an EU residence, other than Ireland, you had better get your skates on. The situation is in a state of flux given the ERG position but if Britain crashes out next month sans a deal then your proposed plan may not get off the ground unless, of course, you apply as a third country national under the 'golden visa' schemes.
> These require a property purchase in excess of 500,000 euros and an element of capital investment.
> There are few Thais in Portugal but as far as I know most Thai that are there are spouses of Brits retired on the Algarve.
> I know a little about Portugal but in truth you and Mrs Tax will be somewhat isolated if you choose an area away from the Algarve. Portuguese are quite conservative and reserved, and if you cannot speak the lingo then north of the tourist zone will be difficult for you. The cultural difference between Spanish and the Portuguese is quite extraordinary when one considers their proximity. Up country in Portugal, in the boonies, in the Minho, Porto, around Braganza etc, they are pretty much done and dusted by 9 o'clock in the evening, they eat quietly and go to bed early. I loved touring around there and relished the sedate pace of things. But as a place to hang one's hat? Sure the cities are fine but they do have problems with urban crime, mugging etc and the legacy of their African colonies has yielded unwanted dividends. 
> Frankly, you would do better upping stumps for somewhere like Cyprus or Crete. The thing is, when you start bouncing off the walls in your dementia poor Mrs Tax will have to negotiate things by herself and this is challenging for most Thai but in foreign climes it will be more of a bugger and in truth would be testing for the average Brit.
> Stick with Scarborough, pay your tax and enjoy pootling around the Dales interspersed with your jaunts in the Hua Hin bathchair.


sounds like a reply from an agony aunt, but thanks for the effort anyway!

the algarve, or at least the coast, hold no attractions, and should it come to it, porto or the douro would suit just fine.  like the portuguese, we are also conservative and reserved and value highly our privacy and quiet. 

as you say, brexit may very well put paid to our ideas. ive never been to either cyprus or crete and so cannot comment, but if the worst comes to the worst, and should brexit truly isolate the uk, though i doubt very much it will,   then yorkshire and h-h will suit just fine. ....... but there is no way the traitorous pig corbyn is getting his grubby hands on my hard earned and distributing it to the feckless, the lazy and the arab.

----------


## lom

^^^ A  short Penang vacation is not the same as a border bounce.

----------


## jabir

Bit stretched there, lom, to suggest an extended 'bounce' to the other side of a border to satisfy visa requirements is a vacation and not a visa run. 
 :Smile: 
In that case I have never paid for sex, though being generous by nature I did in the past help to support Issani families.

----------


## OhOh

> a border bounce.


Border bounce? 

Is that going to the border, giving your passport to a little man, retiring to the border brothel, a few beers and one, or two, of the attractive hostesses bouncing on top, another beer and receiving back your newly stamped passport?

If it gets tedious visit the other brothels, but I'm told the hostesses don't stay long :Smile:

----------


## lom

> Bit stretched there, lom, to suggest an extended 'bounce' to the other side of a border to satisfy visa requirements is a vacation and not a visa run.


Not at all, I've done the one day border run with minibus as well as the 4-5 days in Penang with Firefly from Samui. 
A bounce is out and then immediately back.
A short vacation in Penang equals relaxing on the beach with a Tiger bear or five and eating good Indian and Malay food, it recharges your mental batteries and you return very relaxed. 
Somchai Fittipaldi with his minibus can offer none of that..

----------


## buriramboy

Does it matter if every 3 months you do a same day return by car/bus/plane or stay a few days/ week somewhere? The point is the ease of which a non O /B multi entry visa can be obtained outside of Thailand without having to jump through immigration hoops compared to the one year extension people obtain in country.

----------


## Dragonfly

actually, even overseas Thai embassies have started to make things more difficult for non-O and non-B, asking all kind of silly paperwork

----------


## jamescollister

> actually, even overseas Thai embassies have started to make things more difficult for non-O and non-B, asking all kind of silly paperwork


Application form has been the same for years, only thing that has  changed is they now use the same generic form for all visas, be they tourist, or multi O page 2.

Since you can do them by post in your home country, how would they ask for extra silly paper work.

----------


## Switch

> Application form has been the same for years, only thing that has  changed is they now use the same generic form for all visas, be they tourist, or multi O page 2.
> 
> Since you can do them by post in your home country, how would they ask for extra silly paper work.


As I posted some time ago, in U.K. the only authority for initial retirement visas is the Thai Embassy in London. The easier option via consulates is now finished.
All supporting documentation for the application now has to be notarised, or the Embassy will not accept it. Proof of incom, Doctors letter and Police report all need a solicitor or notary public to authenticate them.

----------


## Boon Mee

> I'm stayin.


Yeah, me too. The alternatives don't add up.

----------


## OhOh

> All supporting documentation for the application now has to be notarised, or the Embassy will not accept it. Proof of incom, Doctors letter and Police report all need a solicitor or notary public to authenticate them.


None of which are difficult to officially obtain. Expensive and time consuming but all are accessible, some online. The easily found notary I used years ago was amused but accepted his cash fee and took out his brass stamps and red candles.

As we know Thais like the multiple coloured stamps. :Smile:

----------


## headhunter

> Yeah, me too. The alternatives don't add up.


I don't have a choice,my root's are so DEEP,the only alternative will be [when the time comes] is the trip to the KNACKERS YARD.

----------


## tomcat

> my root's are so DEEP


...so, you've been deeply rooted then...

----------


## Texpat

All the moaning....

Whack 800k into a fixed account and immigration officers suddenly turn from probing, untrusting, snide, assholes into quasi-efficient administrative functionaries intent on getting you out of their office so they can fuck over the next whining Brittle sitting uncomfortably in the seat behind you.

It's the money they want to see. Nothing more.

----------


## tomcat

> It's the money they want to see.


...I hate agreeing with a persistently vexatious homophobe, but there it is: even a stopped clock is right twice a day...

----------


## Pragmatic

> It's the money they want to see. Nothing more.


 I've always thought that they like to see you squirm.

----------


## OhOh

> I've always thought that they like to see you squirm


The gleam in their eye when they demand yet another piece of "evidence", previously uncalled for, is obvious. They have a scoreboard updated for every applicant.The weeks winner receive another star  shaped button for the uniform.

----------


## toddaniels

UPDATE TO EXTENSIONS USING BANKED MONEY METHOD

Had a friend go to Chaengwattana and get a yearly extension based on retirement using the 800K baht banked money. 

They got the full year extension and only had to sign a paper stating they understood the money needed to stay in the account 3 months after the extension was granted AND that the balance for the rest of the year wouldn't drop below 400K baht. 

Evidently ALL the vetting as far as IF you follow those terms will be done NEXT YEAR when you apply for your new yearly extension.

----------


## taxexile

Todd, any comment or knowledge about this from february 22nd?







> GRANDFATHER RULE
> 
> Stunningly, under the new order the old provisions that people who have been living in Thailand for continually on a retirement visa since before Oct 21, 2008 can still apply under the exact same conditions that they were first approved.
> 
> Under this “grandfather rule”, applicants who are over 60 still only need to show that they either have B200,000 in a Thai bank, or receive at least B20,000 income per month.
> 
> Likewise, applicants under the same grandfather rule who are 55-60 years old can apply showing that they have B500,000 in Thai bank account or an income of B50,000 a month.
> 
> For these people there is no option to provide a combination of monies to reach any special target, Col Acheep explained.
> ...


https://www.thephuketnews.com/holdin...SZQI9mLQC3U.97

----------


## toddaniels

> Todd, any comment or knowledge about this from february 22nd?


Yep they posted a correction because they got it wrong. The date you have had to be here on unbroken extensions of stays was Oct 21st 1998..

----------


## taxexile

thanks for that.

----------


## toddaniels

UPDATE to people getting their retirement extensions based on banked money from the immigration office in Jomtien .

They are now giving people a paper that states a return date of 3 months where you come back and show the 800K baht is still in the bank account.

AFAIK; this is the ONLY office that is doing this. In Bangkok they don't do anything. Just give you the year extension and make sure you understand the terms.

Here's what it looks like. You can see this was issued on March 5th and at the bottom it has a report back date of June 4th

----------


## Switch

Thai immigration. Making shit up since forever, because they can.

*
...... at the discretion of the immigration officer ......
*
There’s a plot for nice farang Thai soap opera right there, but sadly, no media opportunity for Big Joke to make a splash.

----------


## buriramboy

> UPDATE to people getting their retirement extensions based on banked money from the immigration office in Jomtien .
> 
> They are now giving people a paper that states a return date of 3 months where you come back and show the 800K baht is still in the bank account.
> 
> AFAIK; this is the ONLY office that is doing this. In Bangkok they don't do anything. Just give you the year extension and make sure you understand the terms.


Is there anything stopping SeekingAss destitute friends living in the slums of Pattaya but applying for their extension in Bangkok or you have to apply in the province you live in?

----------


## bowie

> media opportunity for Big Joke to make a splash.


Yup, splish splash...

https://humanlife.asia/the-top-cop-on-his-rise-and-plans-for-expats-and-visa-good-guys-in-bad-guys-out/

01/16/2019 - The Top Cop on his Rise and Plans for Expats and VisaGood Guys in Bad Guys Out!

Lt. Gen. Surachate Hakparn *I can guarantee it will be easy to apply and live here*

Thai Easy  now what more could you ask for?  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):

----------


## Texpat

If you understand the origins of the Royal Thai Police as revenue collectors for the tax department, all this makes more sense. 
They have far less interest in traffic safety, public safety, border control or drugs and firearms than they do collecting money from people.

Thais evolve at about 1/10th the rate of other humans.

----------


## nidhogg

^^^^^as always, thanks todd.

----------


## Norton

> have to apply in the province you live in


At the immigration office area of coverage you live in.

----------


## Pragmatic

> Thais evolve at about 1/10th the rate of other humans.


 Rumour has it that you're luk khrueng.   ::chitown::

----------


## Johnny Farang

Whoever typed that up mush've been pr'ee drunk...

----------


## Phuketrichard

asked in Phuket today about the report back to show 800,000 3 months after and the head honcho said it will be "randomly "applied.

Didn't push it as to what criteria they would apply to who would need report back
so guess no one here will know until they do their application.

----------


## headhunter

> asked in Phuket today about the report back to show 800,000 3 months after and the head honcho said it will be "randomly "applied.
> 
> Didn't push it as to what criteria they would apply to who would need report back
> so guess no one here will know until they do their application.


they can start with all of us that have our retirement [800k] in fixed accs.over eg.mine hasn't been touched for over 7yrs.as for the 90day reports[say F all] is the best.

----------


## tomcat

...I'm reading of retirement renewal experiences on TV...in certain locations around the country, a bank confirmation letter certifying an account of B800K+ for over 2 months must be obtained on the day of applying for the retirement visa renewal. My Bangkok Bank branch (Siam Square) opens at 8:30am and, allowing 30 minutes or so for a confirmation letter to be produced, the earliest I could arrive at CW would be around 9:30-9:45am, well past my usual 7:00am arrival to get a ticket number and long after the hordes of Filipinos and Mormons already have their queue numbers.

My question: will CW immigration accept a bank confirmation letter showing account activity and a B800K+ deposit dated the day before I apply for a renewal? If not, can I get the confirmation letter from the Bangkok Bank branch at CW on the day I go in for a renewal?

Thanks in advance...

----------


## taxexile

if you get the letter the day before, then update your book, or make a small deposit and update at any atm machine/local branch on your way to the immig. office.

thats how it works in hua hin. 

even when i turn up in the afternoon with my bank certification done that same morning, they make me go to a nearby branch and make a small deposit and update my book. 

they said maybe after getting my letter in the morning, i could have taken all the money out of the account.
i said i could drain my account on the way home from here, to which they replied "well at the time we renewed your visa the money was in the account".

there is neither rhyme nor reason to their logic.

----------


## bowie

> there is neither rhyme nor reason to their logic.


Sure there is...




> I've always thought that they like to see you squirm.

----------


## Switch

> Yup, splish splash...
> 
> https://humanlife.asia/the-top-cop-on-his-rise-and-plans-for-expats-and-visa-good-guys-in-bad-guys-out/
> 
> 01/16/2019 - The Top Cop on his Rise and Plans for Expats and Visa…Good Guys in Bad Guys Out!…
> 
> Lt. Gen. Surachate Hakparn *“I can guarantee it will be easy to apply and live here”*
> 
> Thai Easy – now what more could you ask for?


I have just completed my retirement visa in another ASEAN country. Much simpler, much cheaper and no overhanging hassles. Happy to give full details to worthy posters via pm.

----------


## Seekingasylum

> if you get the letter the day before, then update your book, or make a small deposit and update at any atm machine/local branch on your way to the immig. office.
> 
> thats how it works in hua hin. 
> 
> even when i turn up in the afternoon with my bank certification done that same morning, they make me go to a nearby branch and make a small deposit and update my book. 
> 
> they said maybe after getting my letter in the morning, i could have taken all the money out of the account.
> i said i could drain my account on the way home from here, to which they replied "well at the time we renewed your visa the money was in the account".
> 
> there is neither rhyme nor reason to their logic.


Indeed, they are truly the most irrational people in the world, and the stupidest. 

But of course with the change in rules to banked funds the minimum funds to be held annually will in practice be around the 1,200,000 mark given the original 800k is now held hostage and one needs money on which to defray the day-to-day expenses.

Frankly, if it were not for the wingman I'd be long gone.

----------


## Dragonfly

> if you get the letter the day before, then update your book, or make a small deposit and update at any atm machine/local branch on your way to the immig. office.
> 
> thats how it works in hua hin. 
> 
> even when i turn up in the afternoon with my bank certification done that same morning, they make me go to a nearby branch and make a small deposit and update my book. 
> 
> they said maybe after getting my letter in the morning, i could have taken all the money out of the account.
> i said i could drain my account on the way home from here, to which they replied "well at the time we renewed your visa the money was in the account".
> 
> there is neither rhyme nor reason to their logic.


absolutely ridiculous, and really looking for new ways to make your life there miserable

why do people even bother, sheeple and idiots

----------


## buriramboy

> Indeed, they are truly the most irrational people in the world, and the stupidest. 
> 
> But of course with the change in rules to banked funds the minimum funds to be held annually will in practice be around the 1,200,000 mark given the original 800k is now held hostage and one needs money on which to defray the day-to-day expenses.
> 
> Frankly, if it were not for the wingman I'd be long gone.


You cant persuade the wingman to decamp elsewhere, even another Asian country? Surely she would love to get out of Pattaya.

----------


## taxexile

> why do people even bother,


i sometimes wonder myself, but immigration departments are probably much the same the world over.

my wife, who holds a british passport was made to return to thailand before she could renew her british passport, she had to change the maiden name on her thai passport to the married name on her uk passport , so that her uk passport and thai passport were both in identical names. a new regulation brought in when teresa may was at the home office, it was hardly publicised and we only found out when her application to renew was refused on those grounds.

it was impossible to actually get to see somebody in the uk passport office to discuss the matter, the only contact was with phone line operators and each one told us a different story,  the thai embassy in the uk would not help and in spite of a letter from our mp to the passport office we were told that unless my wife would be in danger from imprisonment, torture or gender or religious based persecution from the thai authorities she had to return to thailand to change her name, then her id card, and then apply for a new thai passport.

they did say that if she formally relinquished her thai nationality then she could renew her uk passport !!!

dealing with the thai authorities was actually a piece of cake once the reams of paperwork, translations, approvals and notarisations  was organised, it was all done face to face, there were no queues and each of the many departments we had to visit were as helpful as could possibly be.  all done and dusted in 4 or 5 days. 

mrs. t is quite surprised when she sees and hears the way thai immigration officials talk to falangs and how they make life as difficult as possible for some.  

our experience with other thai government departments has been quite different.

----------


## Boon Mee

> absolutely ridiculous, and really looking for new ways to make your life there miserable
> 
> why do people even bother, sheeple and idiots


Actually, it's very simple.
Stash that 800K in the bank and forget about it.
What's so hard about that?

----------


## happynz

Interesting... We've had no dramas about anything when it comes to my wife's Thai or Kiwi passports. The UK immi sounds like an ordeal.

----------


## Boon Mee

> Interesting... We've had no dramas about anything when it comes to my wife's Thai or Kiwi passports. The UK immi sounds like an ordeal.


Same here with my old lady and her US Passport.

----------


## tomcat

> if you get the letter the day before, then update your book, or make a small deposit and update at any atm machine/local branch on your way to the immig. office.


...my strategy will be thus: a letter from the bank the day before, then, while waiting for my line-up number to be called, I race to the Bangkok Bank ATM in CW, withdraw some cash, immediately update my bank passbook (assuming BB has a passbook update machine at CW), race to the the copy center to copy my bank passbook, then rush to join the crowd of Mormons, chattering Flips, agents, and probably Todd Daniels...thus, I will have bank proof of B800K that is less than an hour (or so) old...

...on the other hand, one of the old immigration cows could walk me to the ATM machine in handcuffs and see the proof for herself...

----------


## Texpat

> a letter from the bank the day before


Not in my Imm Office. Must be same day.

But this office stopped accepting embassy letters about 2 or 3 years ago. Money in the bank or no extension. It's old hat to us.

----------


## Boon Mee

My Immigration office allows a week max on the letter but the passbook has to be updated the day the visa is applied for.

Noted a new deal this last time _moi_ went to renew - the letter has to be issued from the branch that the passbook was opened.  Bangkok Bank.

----------


## taxexile

> withdraw some cash


deposit some cash!

----------


## tomcat

...^what's the difference? The balance stays above B800K and is so recorded by the Passbook update machine...the important thing to immigration officials is the balance, not whether cash is deposited or withdrawn...

----------


## jabir

Anyone extended at soi 5 recently? Is it rumour or fact that they've decided there's more money to be made by rejecting monthly transfers and accepting only banked money?

----------


## taxexile

> ..^what's the difference? The balance stays above B800K and is so recorded by the Passbook update machine...the important thing to immigration officials is the balance, not whether cash is deposited or withdrawn...



...... if you say so.

----------


## tomcat

> if you say so


...I do: the bank passbook shows a monthly deposit from the US and several withdrawals for living expenses...just as immigration would expect to see (I assume) from an account used for daily life in Bangkok...

----------


## Dragonfly

Tax, using the UK as a counter example is a bit pointless

I do agree each country has pointless immigration procedure, but Thailand and the UK are at the top of their game

immigrants in Germany and France have it much better, once they have everything, no personal pictures or silly bank money non-sense to deal with

the problem is Thai immigration are stuck in a time tunnel, using procedure created 25 years ago, with a different kind of demographics, they can't or won't evolve with their time and the new demographics expectations

----------


## taxexile

> would expect


when it comes to dealing with thai immigration officials, it is better not to have any expectations. however, good luck with your renewal.

----------


## Boon Mee

> ...^what's the difference? The balance stays above B800K and is so recorded by the Passbook update machine...the important thing to immigration officials is the balance, not whether cash is deposited or withdrawn...


100% correct.  :Smile:

----------


## Seekingasylum

One wonders if Todd has any information on the alleged removal of Hakpan from his post and if there might be any impact on the recent daft changes as a consequence. He usually  has his ear to the ground, his nose twitches in the breeze and if any scuttlebutt is to be scuttled he's the man.

----------


## cyrille

Early days.

----------


## tomcat

...a friend is extending his retirement visa next week at CW following my strategy...I'll report his experience on this thread...

----------


## headhunter

> One wonders if Todd has any information on the alleged removal of Hakpan from his post and if there might be any impact on the recent daft changes as a consequence. He usually  has his ear to the ground, his nose twitches in the breeze and if any scuttlebutt is to be scuttled he's the man.


has anyone seen TOD lately?

----------


## headhunter

> ...a friend is extending his retirement visa next week at CW following my strategy...I'll report his experience on this thread...


whats the ODDS TC that the NO TIP SIGNS ARE DOWN.
 :smiley laughing:

----------


## tomcat

> has anyone seen TOD lately?


...yes, he was at CW last Thursday escorting a group of...clients(?)...

----------


## Norton

What will not change is the UK AUS and US embassies will continue to not issue income verification letters. All else is subject to change. At the discretion of your local immigration office of course.

----------


## Maanaam

> What will not change is the UK AUS and US embassies will continue to not issue income verification letters. All else is subject to change. At the discretion of your local immigration office of course.


Yep. And rightly so.

----------


## headhunter

what i have read and understand [I THINK] is a lot of the changes have become new police laws.i do know that them that go the marriage route are being or should i say they will be shafted in one way or the tuther.BE PREPARED.

----------


## jabir

At sometime somehow it will trickle up that farangs are leaving. Then the junta will need to decide if this proves their campaign for good in bad out rich in poor out is a glorious success, or they fcuked up something rotten. 

I know where the smart money is.

----------


## tomcat

> Then the junta will need to decide if this proves their campaign for good in bad out rich in poor out is a glorious success


...I can't imagine the junta even noticing...

----------


## taxexile

for every penny pinching and  impoverished falang that leaves, half a dozen free spending chinese or koreans will quickly replace them. the thai authorities will not even blink, as said above.

the ageing euro long stay expats in thailand ,with all the baggage, penny pinching complaining and sense of self important entitlement that they tend to import with them are dinosaurs now,  square pegs in round holes. asian expats are a much better fit here

----------


## jabir

> ...I can't imagine the junta even noticing...


If they do notice it'll be as a cause to celebrate.

----------


## Dragonfly

again, the point is to have "farang" witnesses leave before the country dramatically transform itself

Think Saigon, without the underlying war, except the war on Democracy

----------


## Stumpy

> for every penny pinching and  impoverished falang that leaves, half a dozen free spending chinese or koreans will quickly replace them. the thai authorities will not even blink, as said above.
> 
> the ageing euro long stay expats in thailand ,with all the baggage, penny pinching complaining and sense of self important entitlement that they tend to import with them are dinosaurs now,  square pegs in round holes. asian expats are a much better fit here


^Pretty accurate and they (Chinese and Koreans) don't constantly whinge like the European expats.  They move to a foreign country and want all the conveniences they had back home with a low cost of living.  It just doesn't work that way but most don't seem to be able to comprehend this simple reality.

----------


## cyrille

So, tax is heading out then.  :Very Happy: 

Doubtless when he returns the status of the white man will be returned to its former glories with the natives.

----------


## taxexile

i'm perfectly integrated here snivel,  i've got the walk and i've got the talk  :Roll Eyes (Sarcastic):  and i'm pretty much treated like a local in both of the neighbourhoods i reside in, apart from at immigration where i'm just another falang to be inconvenienced for their amusement like we all are. 

a large percentage of the westerners who wash up here, either as holidaymakers or as longstay expats , and there is no other way of putting it really, are fat ugly low end trash.

how about you cyrille, do you integrate well here with our hosts or do you tend to feel an outsider, fed and watered well and looked after but always on the sidelines, just outside the circle and never quite knowing the full story of whats going on around you and so unable to contribute much, other than financially of course.  :Smile: 

must be so frustrating being unable to enliven conversations with all those snide one liners you insist on recycling endlessly. they probably dont translate too well either.

----------


## tomcat

> there is no other way of putting it really


...of course there is: you're just being hateful...



> do you integrate well here or do you tend to feel an outsider, fed and watered well and looked after but always on the sidelines, just outside the circle and never quite knowing the full story of whats going on around you and so unable to contribute much, other than financially of course.


...I'll take the "or" option, thanks...

----------


## buriramboy

> i'm perfectly integrated here snivel,  i've got the walk and i've got the talk  and i'm pretty much treated like a local in both of the neighbourhoods i reside in, apart from at immigration where i'm just another falang to be inconvenienced for their amusement like we all are. 
> 
> a large percentage of the westerners who wash up here, either as holidaymakers or as longstay expats , and there is no other way of putting it really, are fat ugly low end trash.
> 
> how about you cyrille, do you integrate well here with our hosts or do you tend to feel an outsider, fed and watered well and looked after but always on the sidelines, just outside the circle and never quite knowing the full story of whats going on around you and so unable to contribute much, other than financially of course. 
> 
> must be so frustrating being unable to enliven conversations with all those snide one liners you insist on recycling endlessly. they probably dont translate too well either.


From having read his posts on Subzero and Ajarn he doesn't integrate at all which I don't think anyone will find much of a surprise.

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## Seekingasylum

> i'm perfectly integrated here snivel,  i've got the walk and i've got the talk  and i'm pretty much treated like a local in both of the neighbourhoods i reside in,


Jesus H Fucking Christ on a bike, just what the fuck do you think you are playing at?

Since when do decent white chaps from Albion fucking integrate in some bongo-bongo, coon reserve just because they have a billet here?

Totally unnecessary and quite, quite unhealthy. Clearly, you are going troppo in that incipient dementia of yours but really, it's just so very wrong on so many levels. Just because you can speak a bit of the lingo, use a bum gun and can simper away at the Thai without saying anything remotely interesting, important or sensible does not mean you are integrated, you daft chump. The only way you can do that is by fucking reincarnation as a chickenhead or decapitation.

Anyway, taking a swipe at your kith and kin here is bad form. We white chaps on long term visas/extensions number around 200,000 and most are bona fide folk subsisting on their incomes and savings while supporting assorted wingmen, any number of ancillary erks and trainee sprogs. 

Stop all this going-native malarkey just because you get to put a finger up some hiso's arse from time to time and he gives you a smile, these people are not your kind, never will be and there is no fuckimng way they'll ever truly accept you. 

Honestly, most folk south of watford wouldn't accept a northern whippet fucker like you, never mind a bunch of cognitively impaired hottentots from bongo-bongo land.

Get a grip!

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## jabir

::chitown::

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## bowie

Actually - the only way anyone will be accepted by the locals as a local (Thai) is to be born Thai - with full Thai parents. 

Status, status, staus, face, face, face. All who live here know full well the Thai caste system - 'tis etched in granite and cannot change. 

Still, much better to be born and recognized as a falang vice an asian. 

Been to and lived in a great varity of locations and countries. Thai asians (in a broad brush stroke stereotypical manner) are as prejuducial and biased as they come. They've been raised that way and their "training" is continually reinforced. Chat chu thai!

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## Seekingasylum

Thai are ignorant, uneducated, mostly stupid and self-centred to a degree that suggests autism is their currency. I have travelled through many countries, made friends, shagged a few and lumbered my way through the thickets of their culture but I have to say the Thai are the only folk on the planet whose men are generally the equivalent of a used tampax. 

Got to tell it the way it is. A group of Thai in truth could reasonably be described as a "rape of Thai.".

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## NamPikToot

Good grief Buttchugger. A damning indictment of a country you've chosen to live in, of all  the countries you could choose; i can only surmise that your low intellectual capacity is bolstered living here amongst the "rape of Thai."...

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## taxexile

> Stop all this going-native malarkey


i never said i go native, i merely indicated that i feel perfectly comfortable around thais.

i dont clump around waiing like a fucking madman at all and sundry and certainly dont patronise them with simpering grins, endless khop khum khraps, fawning compliments and offers to foot the bill all the time. for gods sake asylum, i'm a yorkshireman and we dont give way for nobody. 

but i have learnt to see the good side of the thai, especially the females, and to dismiss the boorishness and self absorption of the male with polite good humour rather than anger and insult.

but then again i rarely associate with the lower end, the peasant and the bugmuncher if you will and even at that level i find that most folk are of a kindly and helpful disposition and are merely trying to earn a living under difficult circumstances. 

obviously, those locals whose only contact with the falang is through tourist type services will perceive us to be fair game for their duplicity but falangs who are unable to see when they are being taken for a patsy or are misled in that direction by their wives  or doxies deserve all they get.

the  inbred cynicism we northerners possess as a result of our upbringing and the  treatment we receive  as second class citizens by the  southern cabals of priviledge who rule over us acts as a sturdy suit of armour protecting us against the excesses of the thai psyche and their penchant for duplicity, and we yorkshiremen, or at least we yorkshiremen of a certain class and style, are more than a match for their games and soon gain their respect and have them eating out of our hands.  

the hypertensive and insulting rants about your hosts will elicit nothing but laughter from the targets of your bile and the certainty that,  in spite of the best efforts of your long suffering wingman to placate them, your path will be littered with the obstacles and booby traps that the thai are so good at placing in the paths of those whose progress they wish to impede.

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## cyrille

> how about you cyrille, do you integrate well here with our hosts or do you tend to feel an outsider, fed and watered well and looked after but always on the sidelines, just outside the circle and never quite knowing the full story of whats going on around you and so unable to contribute much, other than financially of course.


 :Very Happy: 

Yeah tax, I'm sure you're right 'in the circle' with the locals. I bet they just won't _hear_ of you paying for a drink.

 Hope they can somehow fill the void over the next few months.

 :Wiggle:

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## bowie

phuketrichard thx for the red - off to my loser locker

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## tomcat

_...a friend recently extended his retirement visa. He sent me the details of his experience at CW_:

I went to Chaeng Wattana today to renew my retirement visa. I left home at 6am and when I arrived there were 167 people ahead of me.

I had a letter from Bangkok Bank but they didn’t like that I had done the letter a couple of days before (not as you suggested — the day before).  So, they asked me to go down to the Bangkok Bank branch on the floor below to get a new letter and to have the bank update my bank account book with today’s date.  I had the receipt from an ATM received this morning but they wouldn’t accept that.

So, you might consider going through the queues, getting your number and then going down to Bangkok Bank to update your account book before seeing an immigration officer.

I was handed the latest list of regulations dated January 18, 2019.  If you don’t have it and want it I can scan it and send it along.  One of the points made was that you must have 800,000 baht in your account two months before re-applying but also for three months after receiving your retirement visa extension.  Also, during the year you can’t let your balance drop below 400,000 baht.

In my original letter from my Bangkok Bank branch, I asked them to mention what funds I had in my account 3 months previously (since I done a wire transfer then) as well as the current balance.  The current balance was well above the 800,000 baht required.  

When I asked for the new letter at the CW Bangkok Bank branch they said they could only indicate that this was my account and what the current balance was.  So, I asked them to additionally print out a statement of the two previous wire transfers — which they did — but the immigration officer just handed those back to me and only accepted the new letter with the current balance.  I thought you had to have proof that you had funds in your account for 2-3 months which is what I had tried to do. But my “proof” of that was just handed back to me.

Although there are regulations in place it has long been my experience that they are interpreted differently by individual immigration officers.  So, whether they would be willing to accept your letter from your bank written on the previous day is not something I can answer.  It’s not clear to me that my case and what happened with me today would apply to you.

When I got down to the bank, there were few customers and after some consultation about what the bank would be willing to put in the requested letter it did not take long to produce.  After I got into the “inner sanctum” to get a queue number for the visa extension, I got a #14 despite the 167 folks before me.  But, that was more than enough time to go downstairs to the bank and get what I needed.

I hadn’t previously seen an indication that you have to keep 800,000 baht in your account for 3 months after receiving the visa extension or that you had to keep a minimum of 400,000 baht in the account  during the year so for me that was useful information to receive.  Curiously, the January regulation handed to me says “after you receive permission” you can remove funds from your account after 3 months.  Not sure what that means exactly.

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## PAG

For the past 9 years I've had the option of going either the Retirement or Marriage extension route, and always electing the latter.    However, this year decided on the Marriage option though still have banked monies for either.

I thought I'd share my actual experience of yesterday/26th.    Important though to appreciate that this was at Phuket Immigration, and as we all know, different locations have different requirements/local rules so important to check with the office which you are intending to use (albeit, as also have been documented, there can be variances between individual IO's in the same office).

Firstly, the list of required documentation listed by the Phuket Immigration Volunteers in their website (Marriage (M) ? Phuket Immigration Volunteers) was spot on.   Regarding photos, one exterior photo with you both in and showing the house number, and one house internal photo (we were sat at our dining table, none of this sat on bed embracing each other crap that I've read about).

The only extra documentation was a form I had to sign which detailed the conditions under which the extension would be cancelled due to change of circumstances.   It was explicit that the death of a family member through which the extension was granted (i.e. wife) would not then cancel the extension.

One requirement that wasn't listed is that a witness has to be in attendance for the application (this only applies when changing from a Retirement to Marriage extension, and only for the first year).   A quick phone call from my wife to one of her former staff working not far from the Immigration Office solved that problem, with the lady there in 5 minutes.   We were told that one witness should be at the house when they confirm day/time for visit.

Another slight deviation.   My current Retirement extension expires on the 25th May.   My new Marriage extension commences today 26th April, with a 'Under Consideration' stamp in my passport, with a requirement to visit the office/get new extension stamped in passport etc on 24th May.   To reiterate, the new extension will be valid for 12 months from 26th April.

IO confirmed ability to use any and all bank funds effectively immediately, and no requirement for further proof/seasoning when returning on the 24th May.   90 day report slip also updated, next one on 24th July.   1900 baht fee, no request for 'extras' in any shape or form.   The whole exercise took about an hour as we were seen almost immediately when we arrived, around 0930 this morning, having been to the bank for the letter, 3 month statement, and copies of my bank book pages (the bank provided 2 copies of everything at no cost other than the 200 baht for the bank letter).   Finished off the morning with a very good lunch.

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## Boon Mee

> Thai are ignorant, uneducated, mostly stupid and self-centred to a degree that suggests autism is their currency. I have travelled through many countries, made friends, shagged a few and lumbered my way through the thickets of their culture but I have to say the Thai are the only folk on the planet whose men are generally the equivalent of a used tampax. 
> 
> Got to tell it the way it is. A group of Thai in truth could reasonably be described as a "rape of Thai.".


Yeah, 'ol Rudyard Kipling got it right when he stated:  "East is east & west is west & never the twain shall meet"

Thai men?  Even those who've been 'westernized' living in the States for decades are a different type of cat.  For _moi_?  Don't give a fig what the neighbors' priorities are but they sure don't seem to be the same as mine.  :Smile:

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## nidhogg

Had fun yesterday.  Immigration at Suvarnabhumi, apparently I did not show sufficient "respect" to the immigration officer.  Was taken from the booth to the on duty head to be processed.

Seems I omitted to put the province on my TM card, and did not immediately twig to what the officers "where you go" meant.  When the penny dropped I added it (apparently in a non-respectful manner), so he made me write the full address again on the back of the form.  Which I did - without saying anything.  Handed it back - and in response to his yet again "you not show respect to immigration" gave him a flat look back.  That was enough to set him off and drag me off to his superior.

Sigh.  Welcome back to Thailand.

Fortunately his superior was a lovely, polite woman who had me done and dusted in two minutes with nothing more said.

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## OhOh

> polite woman who had me done and dusted in two minutes


I don't suppose she gave you her contact details?

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## Maanaam

I'm wanting to open a bank account in my name alone. Currently I have a joint account with my wife at BKK Bank. Wife rings up the closest branch (at Big C, with about 3 tellers windows and a service desk, maybe 5 or 6 staff). No, can't open an account there because the branch does not have a manager qualified to open accounts. FTF?

Ring up the main branch where we have our joint account. My wife was told that before I can open a sole account, I have to get a letter from my embassy, and a work permit. What's that about? How do retirees (and others with no WP) open their accounts? What's the embassy letter for?

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## Pragmatic

You either get a letter from immigration confirming address or you show a 'Yellow Book'.

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## Maanaam

> You either get a letter from immigration confirming address or you show a 'Yellow Book'.


Right, SWMBO has been doing some other ringing around. Kasikorn said get a letter from Immigration stating that you need the bank account for the purpose of a visa.
Either way, that sounds pretty easy. I rang the Aus embassy and of course they don't issue any letters to assist Aussies getting a bank account here.

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## Headworx

> I went to Chaeng Wattana today to renew my retirement visa. I left home at 6am and when I arrived there were 167 people ahead of me.


That alone makes me feel even better about paying an agency to get mine done each year, while I play golf. 

Fuck. That.

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## tomcat

> Fuck. That.


..to clarify: not all of the 167 in front of me were there for the same reason...there were only 3 before me for retirement extensions and so my business was concluded by 9:30am or so...

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## Pragmatic

> That alone makes me feel even better about paying an agency to get mine done each year, while I play golf. 
> 
> Fuck. That.


 No nastiness intended but I'd rather queue behind 167 people at immigration than play golf.      :UK:

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## Headworx

^And I'd rather have a root-canal done without anesthetic than queue up in _any_ Thai gov't department behind 167 people or 1.67 people, knowing there's a big chance some fucken pleb with an IQ of 40 and nett worth of $8.55 will be telling me I need to get some piece of paperwork re-done and get in the queue again. But I'm definitely not someone who thinks life's too long either....

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## Dragonfly

> I'm wanting to open a bank account in my name alone. Currently I have a joint account with my wife at BKK Bank. Wife rings up the closest branch (at Big C, with about 3 tellers windows and a service desk, maybe 5 or 6 staff). No, can't open an account there because the branch does not have a manager qualified to open accounts. FTF?
> 
> Ring up the main branch where we have our joint account. My wife was told that before I can open a sole account, I have to get a letter from my embassy, and a work permit. What's that about? How do retirees (and others with no WP) open their accounts? What's the embassy letter for?


depends on the bank or the branch,

but not a problem with your magic work permit  :Smile:

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## Dragonfly

who in his right mind show up at Immigration at 6am? show up at 11am, fewer people in line, and should be out by 3pm

all the stupid people go there before 10am, creating a huge roadblock, by 11am, half are gone because insufficient documents or given up

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## Seekingasylum

> I'm wanting to open a bank account in my name alone. Currently I have a joint account with my wife at BKK Bank. Wife rings up the closest branch (at Big C, with about 3 tellers windows and a service desk, maybe 5 or 6 staff). No, can't open an account there because the branch does not have a manager qualified to open accounts. FTF?
> 
> Ring up the main branch where we have our joint account. My wife was told that before I can open a sole account, I have to get a letter from my embassy, and a work permit. What's that about? How do retirees (and others with no WP) open their accounts? What's the embassy letter for?


If you go to the BKK Bank International branch in Sukhumvit Rd, Bangkok  between Soi 10 and 8, you may find you will get a different response. All you need is a savings account which will get you a debit/ATM card. The only requirement is some evidence of a long tern visa/extension. Take the wingman too, easier for the girl to do the paperwork without you asking stupid questions. Asking fuckwits in regional offices, small branches and Big C outlets is futile, you might as well go to the Dust zoo for the day. Maybe take evidence of moo baan, too.

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## Luigi

> My wife was told that before I can open a sole account, I have to get a letter from my embassy, and a work permit. *What's that about?*


Money laundering and other facets of criminality.


Happened about 5 years ago or so. 

They only want legally employed foreigners to have Thai bank accounts.

Possibly/probably happened after the Junta took over.





> I'm wanting to


btw, I heard this called the 'Indian clause', as it's how Indians speak.






> If you go to the BKK Bank International branch in Sukhumvit Rd, Bangkok between Soi 10 and 8, you may find you will get a different response. All you need is a savings account which will get you a debit card. The only requirement is some evidence of a long tern visa/extension.


Bangkok Bank and some Kasikorn branches are known as the softest for this.

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## taxexile

if you insist on having an account at bangkok bank, then go to their head office on silom road in bangkok. they have a dedicated section for foreigners and all the staff in that department speak excellent english.  the service at the head office is both efficient and excellent.

alternatively,  try a large branch of the foreigner friendly krungsri bank whom i have also found to be very good, they gave me a credit card (i'm on a retirement visa) and have waived the 4000b p.a. fee for this.

attempting to get anywhere at the smaller local branches of any bank, staffed as they are by the less able, is an exercise in futility and you may very well  find yourself misinformed and messed around with by the managers and their penpushers who know little about the rules and regulations that control the lives of foreigners in thailand and would rather refuse you a service than risk ticking the wrong box and losing their job.

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## Seekingasylum

Essentially, mid level Thai supervisors exercise no initiative and certainly they do not encourage their minions to consider any discretion. If you have the time, forbearance and inclination you could always ask them ' why ' whenever you receive a negative response. Some replies are a hoot and worthy of an eight year old recalling some dream they had but mostly it's just a gormless smile as a neurone generates a loose electrical pulse that careens around their frontal lobe before it fizzles away into the when-is-it-somtam-time void.

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## Bogon

^ Do we have a "Post of the Month" competition going yet?

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## headhunter

> ^And I'd rather have a root-canal done without anesthetic than queue up in _any_ Thai gov't department behind 167 people or 1.67 people, knowing there's a big chance some fucken pleb with an IQ of 40 and nett worth of $8.55 will be telling me I need to get some piece of paperwork re-done and get in the queue again. But I'm definitely not someone who thinks life's too long either....


just hope you never have to go into a GOV.HOSPITAL you might :kma:   find your queue no.is 16,700 bottoms up old chap.

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## OhOh

> who in his right mind show up at Immigration at 6am? show up at 11am, fewer people in line, and should be out by 3pm


I agree, this queuing for hours before the office/hospital/..... is open indicates the Thai mentality.

Turn up at 2 in the afternoon with the correct paperwork and a coffee and enter a deserted room. The officers appear busy but immediately start processing ones application. Once completed they are available to answer any questions.

 l suspect it helps being as, in what feels like my own VIP IO, my local office is situated in the sticks.

 :Smile:

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## OhOh

> your queue no.is 16,700


Once received time for a breakfast, a jog around the lake, a relaxing massage..... 

So many alternates to staring at the back of a snoring brit or his tattooed tart.

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## Maanaam

> They only want legally employed foreigners to have Thai bank accounts.


How do people on a retirement visa have sole accounts? How do you?



> btw, I heard this called the 'Indian clause', as it's how Indians speak.


You should try to improve your own pikey grammar and vocab before trying to correct my far superior English.

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## Luigi

It's like conversing with a young child.  :Smile: 


An angry young child.  :Bigeyes: 




> How do people on a retirement visa have sole accounts?


They went to the bank and opened them.

Trouble understanding the word 'want'?




> How do you?


I went to banks and opened them.

The first one I opened was a K-Bank account in Silom around 2005-ish. The last one I opened was a BAY มีแต่ได้ for lump sum immigration purposes. Was quite a nice interest rate at the time, 3.65% paid monthly iirc, down to around half that now. That was probably around 2012-ish.





> You should try to improve your own pikey grammar and vocab before trying to correct my far superior English.


I wasn't correcting. I was pointing something out.

Blimey, someone is all agitated and _wanting_ a bit o' a vindapoo.  :Smile:  



Your legal employer should have..... oh...._ legal employer_..... ...whoops.  :Smile:

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## Headworx

> just hope you never have to go into a GOV.HOSPITAL you might  find your queue no.is 16,700 bottoms up old chap.


With worldwide private health insurance guaranteeing USD $1,000,000 cover, the chances of finding myself queued up in a Gov't hospital are exactly the same as finding me in a queue to get my retirement extensions.

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## jabir

> I'm wanting to open a bank account in my name alone. Currently I have a joint account with my wife at BKK Bank. Wife rings up the closest branch (at Big C, with about 3 tellers windows and a service desk, maybe 5 or 6 staff). No, can't open an account there because the branch does not have a manager qualified to open accounts. FTF?
> 
> Ring up the main branch where we have our joint account. My wife was told that before I can open a sole account, I have to get a letter from my embassy, and a work permit. What's that about? How do retirees (and others with no WP) open their accounts? What's the embassy letter for?


I've heard of so many obstacles in opening bank accounts, must say I've never had a problem in that regard though they do give me grief when trying to close the occasional account. 

Have you tried telling them in one breath so it sinks in before the preprogrammed head shake, that you want to deposit 800k for immigration needs in the new account?

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## lob

i was in krungthai bank back in may, on other business, and they offered me an account there and then.,  i have had the odd prob over the years.

my first account was scb 1998. no prob.

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