yim noi

I am seriously considering setting up a charity foundation here in Thailand. However, I cannot find much information so far. Do companies like Sunbelt who do company registrations do charity foundations too? Is it much the same process and payment? Do the majority of the board have to be Thai? If anyone has any experience in this then please let me know.

I have used the new Courage Interactive 2 software and found it very complete. There are 99 lessons and thousands of sound clips!

This and other software can be seen here:

http://www.thaiphrasebook.com/links.php?cat=6

I applied for residency last year. I received an official letter about 3 weeks ago saying that my application had been denied. No reason was given. However, about a week before the letter arrived, a member of the immigration division visited my school to speak to the principal. He said my application was about to be declined because they weren't paying me enough money. To be more precise, I wasn't paying enough taxes. He said I should be paying taxes on at least 80,000 baht for a period of time. He said I shouldn't apply again unless my cirumstances changed - i.e., a payrise or I get married to a Thai national.

Obviously if they had told me this in the beginning then I would have saved the 7000 baht application fee and all the hassle of getting the documents together.

I think you mean you want a font comparison chart:

http://www.learningthai.com/thaifonts.html

Se-ed is every where! You will find them in department stores such as Central and in hypermarkets such as Big C and Lotus.

If you are in Thailand, try Se-Ed. If not, visit thaistudents.com, there are lots of useful links for stuff like that. Some books you can buy and others are written by Thai students and are on the internet.

I have had the same kind of experience with so called "less educated" Thais. Either they are not very good in Central Thai dilect themselves or they just don't expect a foreigner to be able to speak Thai. It is like their ear flaps are closed and they refuse to listen. Say the same phrase to an "educated" Thai or someone who knows that you already speak Thai and they seem to have no problem.

Thanks for your replies - that was exactly what I was looking for.

dr_Pat_Pong, there is nothing going on, I just wanted to know what my basic rights are.

I have been teaching legally at the same school for ten years. I am wondering what rights as a foreign worker I have. For example, if the school administrator says to me tomorrow that I am fired and that I have to pack my bags straight away, am I entitled to any rights? For example, one month's notice or at least some pay for a certain number of months?

If I played the lottery and won several million baht, can I collect the prize?

Also, can anyone who has played, give advice on the different kinds of lottery. I am a bit confused when they seem to be making up the prices for the tickets.

My favorite site is http://www.thaiphrasebook.com. It has lists of many resources for learning Thai. Some you have to pay for, but there are many free downloads and free web sites.

Some of my favorite free downloads include: English-Thai dictionary, Romanization of Thai words, Thai alphabet trainer, Thai typing tutor and a lot more for free!

You can stay permanently in the Kingdom forever without leaving (if you want to), and without having a work permit or to prove any particular level of retirement funds. You can also apply for citizenship after five years.

Thanks everyone for your replies. I just wanted to clear up one of the contradictions which is important to my peace of mind. It is always at the back of mind that if I lose my job I have to rush to find another in only a few weeks or I will lose my visa.

If I have a PR, and I lose my job, is there any pressure to find another job or can I live off my savings for as long as I like?

The Thai-English-Thai dictionary by Benjawan Becker is very popular. It has three sections so you can either look up words in English, Thai or Roman transliteration. It costs about 425 baht and is available at all good book stores in Thailand. It can also be bought online. Just google the phrase "Thai-English-Thai dictionary by Benjawan Becker".

I have researched this site about the process you have to go through to apply for a residency. But I cannot see anywhere which says what are the benefits. I see it says it makes it easier to be a company director of your own company and work permits are easiers - but what else? 190,000 baht is a lot of money and I wanted to make sure first that I will get something out of it!!

Thanks for your time.

The one above is good (especially as itis free), but there are plent of other professional software programs out there. Here is a good list:

http://www.thaiphrasebook.com/links.php?cat=6