khunPer

Many a huge company started in a bedroom, kitchen or garage and reached top level in relative short time; if you are innovative you got a chance to make it in a lot of countries, including Thailand.

2 hours ago, RichardColeman said:

Work from home, become a global nomad, and save the planet

 

Notice they do not address using the air conditioner whilst working from home !

On the other hand, they save heating...

9 minutes ago, Hummin said:

Can a danish export his pention to Thailand? I met one who said he had to spend 6 months in Denmark every year, if not he lost his pention? 
 

Norway have been thinking about changing to simular rules, but far just been aired as possibilities for the future. 

If you stay outside Denmark for more than 180 days - apart from certain conditions as stationed, working abroad for a limited period, or taking a sabbath year or two; all without giving up a tight connection to Denmark - then you loose a number of basic right, as not being living permanently in Denmark.

You are entitled to receive your Danish government pension (Folkepension) abroad, if you are entiled to that pension, however only the basic part of the pension, not the additions (tillæg). If you are single and are entitled to maximum additions, you loose about 40 percent of your pension, when moving abroad outside of EEC and a few other countries (see my other recent posting about more detailed calculations).

Those Danes keeping a relationship to Denmark - i.e. the 180-day rule - do it to keep their additions and rights to healthcare...????

It's not only UK retiree expats that feel unequal to retirees that stay home, Danes are in a similar situation - Philippines also excluded - where government pension is cut, when moving out of EEC and other areas with similar agreement. It might have to do with some international treaties.

A retired Dane living in Thailand with nothing more than the government pension receives little over 5,500 Danish kroner after income tax - Denmark still claims its right as source country to income-tax the pensions - which equals 27,750 baht, and little less right now due to the lower European currency value.

However, the Danish pension is indexed, but only half of the index points, so less and less buying power every year.

To compare national pension you need to compare costs of living, and there might be quite a difference between living in London or in the country side, same for Copenhagen and outside. According to Expatistan Cost of Living Index, where Prague is index 100, London has a value of 237 points, while Brighton and Hoves is down to 171 and Belfast as low as 139. Copenhagen has index 190 and is the only Danish city in the index. Point is, that apart from London, and perhaps Copenhagen, the cost of living in UK and Denmark is relative close to each other, so the UK pension worth 31,237 baht each month is actually good.

If you then compare with Bangkok's 108 pint in the same index, your buying power is double if you originates from London and are living in Bangkok - Krung Thep Maha Nakhon, to be precise - it's only little cheaper than staying home in Belfast, but it might also be cheaper to live outside Bangkok, so that's also a possibility.

I use to mention this when my fellow Danes are complaining, because they are loosing more than the Brits. If a Dane stays at home or within the EEC and other countries in the economic community, the lower incomes - people that did not save up a lot in a private retirement fund - will have some addtions to the basic pension, making the total value after income tax is in the area of little more than 9,000 Danish kroner, which equals to 45,000 baht each month. With the difference in cost of living between Bangkok and Copenhagen, where Bangkok is 43 percent cheaper, it fit quite well with the basic government retirement pension, i.e. 45,000 baht minus 40 percent that equals 27,000 baht.

So in real buying power for cost of living it's same-same; however different, as health care is not free for expats in Thailand.

My conclusion is, that it might be more complicated than just UK - or Denmark - adjusting their pensions to retirees that choose to live in Thailand; even that we might save our governments some money by not using our home country's health care system and other retiree benefits. It might have to do with some economic treaties. On the other hand, nobody asked us to leave, we did it voluntary; and nobody stopped us to save up some funds, or pay into a private retirement fund during our working era.

But I agree, it's unfair with index adjustments of the pension, it's hard enough with half of the index points.

28th February 2022

Samui, +20 new cases 

Phangan, +29 new cases

Koh Tao, no new cases

Source: KoSamuiLife.com

Well written article and good overview on the situation as present.

27th February 2022

Samui, +39 new cases 

(RT-PCR 31 positive, ATK 8 positive)

Phangan, +36 new cases

Koh Tao, no data

Source: Kohmui.com

Thailand has entered its fifth wave of Covid-19, with highly contagious Omicron replacing Delta as the dominant strain. The Omicron subvariant is now estimated to account for around 95 per cent of new cases, with Delta accounting for the rest...

Read more here in The Nation Thailand's article How Omicron differs from other Covid waves.

26th February 2022

Samui, +18 new cases 

(Bophut 7, Ang Thong 4, Maenam 2, Na Mueang 1, Lipa Noi 0, Taling Ngam 0, Maret 4)

Phangan, +41 new cases

Koh Tao, no data

Source: Kohmui.com

1 hour ago, brianj1964 said:

my extension is valid until January 1st 2023, i am going to the uk next month for 9 weeks and returning June 8th, do i require to buy a policy that covers me from June 8th (arrival date) until January 1st (extension expiry date), i just asked the same question on a facebook group and someone said i only need insurance for 90 days.

Both the insurance amount, and need for a Covid-insurance at all, could have changed by June.

So far, in principle, you need a Covid insurance, or so-called health insurance, fir the length of your stay. Other long-stayers have mentioned that they were let in by showing a insurance with cover for 30 days.

4 hours ago, Tropicalevo said:

FMP was on the 17th Feb this month. Between 18th and 25th there were :-

Samui  158 reported cases. Population 50,000 - 60,000

KPN     213 reported cases. Population 10,000 - 12,000

(No Covid numbers for 22/2)

 

That is a big spike in KPN considering the difference in the population between the two islands.

I've been having same thoughts. There has been FMPs since November, but only booming from December/New year, In general Phangan seems to have relative higher number of Covid cases compared to the smaller population.

I store water in a 900 liter tank on the attic - it holds around 700 liter due to a floater and closing valve. My water supply is by a 2 cubic meter tank-car from hill bores, as I live by the beach where well water is not good (ocher and rust).

The supplied water supply is held in 2,800 liter (4 x 700) external tanks from where it's pumped to the attic. After the pump I have two filters, a 5 micron, which is changed when it's getting dirty, and thereafter a ceramic filter that effectively filters 0.30 micron to 0.80 micron, and cleans 99.9% of most stuff; according to the supplier. Only the 5 micron filer gets dirty, while the ceramic filter keeps clean, but is changed one a year.

In the attic tank I have a small circulation pump that filters the water through a 5 micron filter and continue through a small UV-lamp, and finally air inlet - just like it's done in an aquarium pump - so the outlet works like a miniature version of a water work's water step.

We use the water for shower, toilet flush, dish washing and cooking. We could probably survive drinking it as it is.

For about 9 years we also used the water as supply to an American-style fridge for ice cubes, but through a 3-level filter-set consisting on ceramic-charcoal-ceramic; we survived that exercise.

I'm not an expert; however, the problem I see is the storage tank where algae - and in worst case scenario also Legionella Bacteria, where Thai temperatures are excellent growth environment the for that kind of species - can build up, which is why I chose circulation, filtration and UV-light, plus air. I run the circulation pump and UV-lamp by a timer, so it in principle circulates the contains of the tank about twice every 24 hours. The 5 micron filter indicates that the water is clean, it will last for about a month or longer before it starts to get dirty; I change it monthly anyway. The 5 micron filters cost 25-30 baht in Mr. DYI, or from a net-shop like Lazada, and the ceramic filter is around 300 baht, so affordable.

Photo shows filter and UV-lamp on the water tank in the attic...

25th February 2022

Samui, +29 new cases 

Phangan, +31 new cases

Koh Tao, no data

Source: Kohmui.com

You can find a number accounting companies and lawyers that can help you with the paperwork, but if "special skills" is ment beyond that, the answer is to my knowledge no; we have never heard or seen posts about people with such skills on Samui...????

6 hours ago, Negita43 said:

- looking for visa for Spain and BLS (where Thais have to apply) website says Thai Astra not accepted because no WHO approval - must be well out of date and not very helpful to potential tourists.

Thai manufactured AZ has been WHO-approved, I read long time ago in the news, there is an official linke HERE.

24th February 2022

Samui, +29 new cases 

Phangan, +29 new cases

Koh Tao, no data

Source: Kohmui.com

23ed February 2022

Samui, +27 new cases 

(Bophut 9, Maenam 6, Ang Thong 3, Na Muang 1, Lipa Noi 1, Taling Ngam 1, Maret 6)
Furthermore Test & Go 5 cases.

Phangan, +49 new cases

Koh Tao, no data

Source: Kohmui.com

21st February 2022

Samui, +30 new cases 

Phangan, +33 new cases

Koh Tao, +1 new case

Source: Kosamuilife.com

9 minutes ago, Danderman123 said:

If testing is poor, the reported numbers per million cannot be accurate. 

 

The number of excess deaths in Thailand is three times the number of reported deaths. 

Reported cases cannot be use for comparison between how countries are performing during the pandemic due to difference in testings.

Yes, excess deaths might be different from reports of "Covid deaths" - some countries has little lower excess deaths figure than reported Covid cases, for example Denmark - excess deaths are probably the best comparison of the true impact of the pandemic.

Thailand is not performing that bad when compared, even that the excess deaths number is about three times higher than the number of reported Covid deaths...

11 hours ago, Danderman123 said:

The official numbers show that Thailand tests less than most countries.

 

To be precise, Thailand ranks #146 in testing per capita.

 

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/#countries

 

 

Disgraceful.

You cannot use Covid-tests to show a result of the disease, number of deaths per million, and number of excess deaths per million shows the impacts of the virus; Thailand is not doing that bad, and better than for example UK that perform huge amounts of tests.

You can have registered mail send to a P.O. box (Post Office box) in Thailand, so EMS should be the same. I've received registered letters, and once I also had a returned EMS in my P.O. Box (returned from abroad).

You will not be noticed about arrival other than a note in the P.O. box, so you need to check the box regularly. With the note from the box - and some places probably also identification - you can pick up the mail either inside the post office, or by the counter servicing the P.O. boxes (if there is such a counter). There will be a timelimit - typically about a week - before the mail is returned to sender.

Odd season heavy rain is part of weather, not a climate change. There was also a case in 2011 in Southern part of Thailand, which was said to equalize, or just beat, a 100 year old record, so there were also heavy rain 100 years earlier...

11 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Please do not refer to him as Khun. That is way more respect than he deserves. He is a failure as a health minister, and he is a huckster. He deserves only scorn and humiliation. 

I regret, but I'm generally polite and might use "khun" again...????