skatewash

I use a free Google Voice number in the US to receive 2nd factor authentication SMSs on an almost daily basis. Have not experienced any problems with that. The Google Voice number was based on having a MagicJack VOIP phone number when I signed up for the free service. If want to get started with Google Voice from Thailand you might need to use a VPN set to the US to sign up and activate. It may even be possible for someone in the US to help you set up the Google Voice number. I usually ship things from the US by USPS as it seems to garner less interest from Thai customs, although I understand in this case because of the battery restriction USPS isn't possible. I guess one of the couriers is the only alternative, DHL, FedEx.

I'm in Phuket so can't give first hand information regarding Bangkok. I guess I would use Google Maps to locate the Bang Chak BTS and then use search nearby to find a "medical clinic." I think most such clinics near an LTO office would be more than willing to offer the medical certificate for something like 100-150 baht (those are Phuket prices, may be cheaper in Bangkok). Not surprised to hear about the motorcycle taxi medical certificate service as it's really a silly bureaucratic requirement from long ago. The medical certificate certifies that you are not currently suffering from five dread diseases that have little if anything to do with driving: leprosy, tuberculosis, elephantiasis, drug addiction, and third stage syphilis. The only thing that gets examined in my experience is the money that you use pay for the certificate. Although to be fair some of those conditions can probably be diagnosed by visual inspection or even from the casual observations of a motorcycle taxi driver. ????

Good information. Aliens should be very happy. ????

There's a little information at the immigration site, but agree it would be nice to have an expanded guidebook somewhere. https://www.immigration.go.th/en/?page_id=1666

Folded newspaper.

Someone capable and willing to do one year of forward planning is the exactly the sort of person most unlikely to use an agent in the first place. And vice versa. ????

Or you might say that his mistake was going outside the system in the first place. If he had stayed inside the system he would be paying 1,900 baht. Although I understand from a previous reply that he didn't have a choice but to employ an agent. I think this case is instructive that once going down the agent route it's not always an easy path back into the system, by which I mean doing one's extension of stay oneself following the rules established for doing so at your local immigration office.

The true cost of using an agent who gets your extension for you by sending your passport out of the province where you live is often deferred until the time you attempt to not use an agent and get the extension from your own immigration office according to the rules. You may want to go straight but the gang won't let you.

This site indicates it is (see "IN CASE OF FOREIGNER RENEW THAI DRIVING LICENCE [BY YOURSELF] FIVE-YEARS DRIVING LICENCE" section at the bottom of the page): https://www.dlt.go.th/en/two-year-license/ I don't think it was the last time I renewed my 5-year license (a year ago), but then I seem to remember that it was changed to be required. It's something that may differ depending on which Land Transport Office you use. As the medical certificate costs only 100-150 and takes less than 5 minutes to get, it may be better to get it than show up at the LTO and need it.

I vaguely remember a similar problem from the early days of the covid vaccination. When one tried to register online one could enter one's "Thai ID number" from the Pink ID but the numbers on the back of the card weren't accepted as they were in a different format than those on a blue Thai ID card.

https://www.cabi.org/isc/datasheet/20053#toidentity https://www.projectnoah.org/spottings/21321613

If anyone is interested in pursuing the SSO Section 40 thing further here is the application form referenced by the QR code in the Ministry of Labor link given earlier: https://www.sso.go.th/section40_regist/ The form is in Thai so you may wish to open the link in the Chrome browser to get automatic Thai to English translation. You might wish to respond in Thai as well to improve the chances of your application succeeding. I have my doubts about it succeeding and then even if successful whether it would actually be honored at a public hospital is unlikely it seems to me. But if there's a pioneer out there who would like to give it try I would like to hear your experience. ????

Interesting. It would seem from Section 40 that: In my own case, I am not self-employed so I think I would fail the first test. While I have an identification card (pink ID) with the first digit starting with 6 (which I think is standard for farang who apply for a pink ID/yellow house registration book) I'm not sure I would qualify as a minority group, which I believe would possibly only cover people such as Karen hill tribe people, that is people who were born and have lived in Thailand their whole lives but for whatever reason never obtained Thai citizenship and are not registered with a Thai ID number.

If you intend on opening more than one bank account, I wonder if the bank would accept you showing them the original residence certificate, have them make a copy for their records, and then give the original residence certificate back to you to use at another bank. Worth trying perhaps.

Interesting. Haven't heard this before. Do you have any more information about this? Maybe a link?

It hasn't changed to my knowledge, but it is apparently a policy of the Phuket Immigration office (and one not followed at any other immigration office that I know of) so I guess they could change it at any time. It's also likely although the link doesn't say this that you must have continuous extensions of stay from the start of the grandfathering; any gaps would likely end the grandfathering. The way I understand it if you have had continuous (no gaps) retirement extensions of stay based on an Non-OA visa issued to you before 2017 (read the link for details) then you would not have to show evidence of health insurance at the Phuket Office. Of course, you should copy those pages in your passport that demonstrate that you have had continuous retirement extensions from your original Non-OA visa when you apply for your new retirement extension.

Actually, Phuket Immigration does have "grandfathering" (see link above), but my understanding is that in most or all of the other immigration offices what you say is correct.

Take a look at the Medical Insurance section: https://piv-phuket.com/long-stay-extensions/retirement/

If a person were getting a driver's license for motorcycle and for a car, and they also needed to register a motorcycle and a car, then they might legitimately need four residence certificates. ????

If he can get an income letter from the French Embassy then that's all he needs. No actual bank transfers need ever occur. Only Americans, Brits, and Australians need to do the actual monthly bank transfers because their embassies unilaterally stopped issuing the income letter. The French Embassy still does.

I suspect that the recipient of your residence certificate, say a bank for instance, won't care that that the residence certificate was obtained from immigration for the purpose of obtaining a driver's license. The residence certificate is the same in any case. Specifying one of the two legitimate reasons indicated by your immigration office is only to make the office feel secure in the knowledge that you're getting a residence certificate for a serious purpose rather than because it's a Tuesday and you thought it would be fun to get a residence certificate. Don't swim against the bureaucratic current, go with the flow. Pick a reason that satisfies your immigration office. The residence certificate produced by that office will satisfy your bank or indeed the Revenue Department for your Tax ID. Everyone gets to tick their boxes. All will be well.

A non-refundable tax credit on your US taxes gets you no money unless you happen to have a US tax liability that same year. Filing the Thai Income Tax Return always gets you any money that was withheld on interest earned (assuming you have no other reportable income in Thailand and you don't have over 20,000 baht in interest income). Once you have the Thai Tax ID you can file your PND-90 Thai Income Tax Return online. A few weeks later you get a check in the mail from the Revenue Department. The only running around beyond the first year is remembering to ask for your Tax Withholding Document from your Thai bank when you visit it after the new year begins. By registering your Thai Tax ID with your Thai bank savings accounts you can avoid having the 15% tax on interest earned withheld in the first place (until you earn more than 20,000 baht in interest).

No there are two times when health insurance coverage is needed. One when entering Thailand and that is now the $10K coverage you mentioned. Two is when you apply for an extension of stay based on a Non-OA (note the A, it is significant). There is no insurance required to apply for an extension of stay based on a Non-O (note the absence of the A).

You can get a Thai Tax ID number without having a work permit. As explained above involves going to the local Revenue Department and requesting one. What Tax ID number you are issued may or may not match your Thai ID number as listed in your yellow book or pink ID (if you even have one or both of those). If you're saying that once you have a Thai ID number from a yellow book/pink ID then you can simply use that number as your Thai Tax ID, I'm not sure that would work. Seems to me it's different than going to the local Revenue Department and requesting a Thai Tax ID and showing your yellow book/pink ID card. Doing so may result in your being issued a Thai Tax ID that matches that number or it may be a different number. In my case I showed my yellow book with Thai ID number (didn't have the pink ID card yet) and it did NOT result in my getting the same number for my Thai Tax ID. Instead I was issued a different Thai Tax ID number (not matching my yellow book ID number). I was responding to your comment that the numbers (Thai Tax ID and yellow book/pink ID card) are always the same. They aren't necessarily.