mikekim1219

I get what you are saying, Uptheos. I have all the time I need. Not in a hurry. Time is my friend till the last breath

Plan B: Do nothing.

I was there in 2002. That was long time ago. Thing were much cheaper than.

Thanks for your advice.~

Mike

Hello Guys and Girls,

I am 53 year old USA citizen. Having my sight on Chiang Mai for several years, I am finally ready to take the plunge. However, I have read many horror stories and some over optimistic figures on cost of living in Chiangma. I plan to visit the city for a month to see it for myself . I have lived in BKK for 18 month between 2001 and 2002. However I would appreciate experienced sound objective advices and opinion you wise people.

The one thing that worries me is the finance situation. Since it is hardly unlikely I will find a job, I was planning to build house and sell them. Of course this requires honest smart Thai wife to obtain land. (Let's not worry about difficulty of finding a builder and all the headaches that comes with it. That's for another topic). But now I am hearing that by law you cannot give money to Thai wife to buy land and build house. Is this true?

I can probably take about 7 to 10 million baht. I have small saving, leftover after the crash, in 401K (100k USD). I am not sure SSI will be around when I am ready to collect it.

What is your collective wise advice for someone like me? Anybody with similar experiences?

Mike

I am planning to move to Chiang Mai. What is the cost of Thai health insurance and accident insurance?

Thanks for the comments, Pass and BigJohn,

I tend to agree with Pass. I have been living in Asia since 1999 and have met many wonderful people. I find that most are genuine and willing to help. There are always some who will try to take advantage of you if given a chance. And there are few who are looking to take you for whatever its worth. At over 50, if you can't weed out the good from the bad, then you deserve to be taken.

Regarding funds, I decided to transfer all my funds to China anticipating RMB appreciation. Since 2006, yuan has appreciated 30%. So it was not a bad deal. There are other legal ways and some band handed options to transfer the fund. The problem is I will lose roughly 5% during the transaction. I was just exploring more options and hoping to save few buck. I always like to check all options before making a decision.

Thanks for your input and perhaps we will run into each other

Mike

I plan to move to Thailand in May.

I am a USA citizen and I am now living in China and all my assets are in China. I need to move it to Thailand. This being China, there are lot of red tapes and waiting.. probably more waiting..

Has anyone have this experience? Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance

Ah sorry, I converted using Chinese Yuan. Lived in China too long. Guess it's time to leave

Seems 800k is the best deal. Can you do anything with 800k, like buying a condo?

Mike

Am I reading it correct? 65,000 a month is about $14,000 a month.

Using today's exchange rate of 29.69 for US $100.00 bill; 65,000 Baht a month = $2,189.

Am I reading it correct? 65,000 a month is about $14,000 a month. Many of us want to retire in Thailand because of cost of living. For that amount you can retire in Florida comfortably.

What are other options of living in Chiangma? If I marry a local girl, what are the requirements? 9 years ago when I was in BKK, they use to have bus run to Cambodia border. Does this exist in Chiangmai? What are other options?

Thanks in advance

Mike

Since you're over 50, you can get an extension for a year of your non-immigrant O visa on the basis of retirement. You will be required to show a balance of 800,000 baht in a Thai bank account in your name. This will need to be in your account for (initially) two months prior to your application for visa extension. In subsequent years the two months is extended to three . (I don't know why). Alternatively, you can pop along to your embassy and ask them to confirm and certify any pension income you may have. The amount of your pension, if any, may be offset against the 800,000 baht requirement so that at visa extension time you need to show both your holding in baht in your Thai bank and the certification from your embassy. As long as the sum of both amounts to 800,000baht you'll be able to extend.

No, you will not have to show 65,000/month in addition to the above. The requirements for an extension based on marriage are different from the above, but you have not asked that question. In my opinion, the retirement extension (if you can raise and show evidence of that 800,000) scores highly, because it is simple and requires less "local participation" in your affairs. Any further queries, someone here will be willing to help.

I am bit confused about the retirement visa. I am 53 years old and have no steady income. I have small savings (7 to 10 mil baht, not counting IRA). Am I still eligible if I deposit 800,000 baht in the thai account? Do I still need proof of 65,000 a month income?