simon43

I know all about HS custom codes, and if I check the specific customs code for that item, the tax (like almost any type of goods imported from China under the ASEAN-China FTA), is listed as exempt from all taxes 🙂

A place with no religion...

Well, I met the UPS guy and had to pay 1,043 baht. The import statement says that about 500 baht of that was import tax (why??), plus service fees plus VAT etc. However, the good news is that this pole from the Chinese 'scum' seller is of great quality, well-made and well-packed. I've already used it to lift a wire over a 15 metre tree 🙂

The goods are valued at about $250 USD, 8,000 baht or so. After informing the UPS caller about the ASEAN-China Free Trade Agreement, which exempts my goods from import tax, UPS has released the goods for delivery BUT will only hand them over to me if I pay about 1,500 baht to the delivery driver. God knows where that figure comes from. I can either refuse the goods or pay the 'ransom' fee. Since, as stated above, the Chinese scum is the only supplier, and since I would have minimal/zero chance of getting a refund from that supplier, I have little choice but to hand over the money.

Unfortunately, the Chinese scum was the only supplier of this item that I found..... FYI, it is a carbon-fire, telescopic fruit-picking pole of 21.6 metres in height. No, I have no fruit growing 21.6 metres above the ground, but I do have a wire radio antenna for my ham radio hobby that needs to be mounted as high as possible 🙂

I think there is one, based on my receipt of goods sent from China over the past decade. No import tax was levied by Thai customs. Now (unfortunately), a supplier in China has sent me something by UPS (why oh why didn't they use China Post?!). Of course, UPS is now holding said item for 'ransom', demanding payment of customs duties. I used to have the link to the online database which indicated what import tax (if any) would be due on different kinds of items that are imported into Thailand from China. Does anyone know the link? I want to double-check the tax situation for my item before I 'do battle' with UPS. Thanks

Hmm, I read the link. Whilst GB News breached rules about using serving politicians as news readers, interviewers etc, there was nothing in that link to say that JRM had actually been impartial in his comments and presentations....

GB News is an excellent, independent media organisation that isn't afraid to expose important news stories that other MSM media ignore. Muslim rape gangs, discrimination against the indigenous population and so on. Long may they continue their good work!

I'll correct your statement: "I managed very large retail outlets in my country many years ago and this reported situation would never stand the test in Court IN MY COUNTRY" This is Thailand, put something in your pocket and have a track record of stealing from the same shop? You're guilty!

Top bloke Mr Farage. At least he has the guts to admit past errors of inadequate candidate vetting. Hope to see him in #10 in the future 🙂

All of them are totally brain-dead if they thought that it was morally OK to accept these gifts, (regardless of the legality of it). God help us if these are the types of politicians we have - unable to predict anything further than the end of their Pinocchio noses...

Here in Khao Lak I notice that cars do stop for tourists as they cross the main road on the zebra crossing. The first time I wanted to cross, I was completely 'thrown' by the sight of cars stopping for me. I think I've been in Thailand too long!

Please watch this wonderful short clip of a cat climbing up a homemade ladder: https://www.facebook.com/reel/835863325336745 Many humans have a fear of heights, but why not animals?

Although many overseas banks will cancel or not renew your credit card, once you permanently live outside your home country. That's what my UK banks did >> refused to renew the cards when they expired (some 20 years ago...)

Well, I'm too old to have interest in creating wealth - I'm very happy with my modest lifestyle. As for discounts, cash back etc, I seem to manage very well at my 'level' of cash purchases. I regularly get discounts in the shops where I go because I speak Thai and have a good sense of humour 🙂 When I buy something, I'll often ask 'loat mai?' with a smile and the price is often reduced. Many years ago, one of my charity enterprises was called 'Xtrer': https://www.24-7pressrelease.com/press-release/143465/if-only-1-of-twitterers-used-xtrer-it-would-generate-more-than-1-million-for-charities-every-month The slogan for that venture was 'A little Xtrer helps', which sums up my view that even a small amount of money can make a big difference in your own or other's lives. I used to buy 300-page school science books in Myanmar (printed locally on the thinnest of paper) for $3, but that small outlay would make a big difference to the studies of middle-school students. Call me a cheap charlie perhaps, but I was once a $ millionaire (doesn't mean much nowadays!), and as times have changed, I have adapted and learnt to live a happy and fulfilling life without the trappings of consumerism.

I travel, I stay in hotels, no credit cards for yonks. Ever heard of cash? 🙂

Exactly! But it seems many people don't realise this...

In other words, do you have financial debts, such as credit card loans, bank loans, loan shark loans and so on? When I moved to Thailand about 22 years ago, I slowly 'lost' my UK credit cards for various reasons (long forgotten). This means that for the past 20 years, I have had to live using only my income, ie - living completely within my means. It would be near impossible to borrow from a Thai bank, and borrowing from a Thai loan shark would be a crazy move! I never borrow from friends, or have the need to do so. This inability to borrow money has been a very good thing. I have learnt to live within my means and not 'waste' money on unnecessary consumer items. I owe no money to anyone. Any ongoing financial liabilities can be terminated without a 'fine'. (My rent car has no contract - I can hand it back without financial penalty etc - My rented property can be handed back at 3 month's notice) How about you? Do you rely on credit to survive? Or do you use credit/loans in a sensible manner and pay them off on-time?

Some posters have a very skewed idea of what Pattaya offers. Yes, there is the bar scene of course. But the majority of Pattaya has none of that, and no doubt many people who live in Pattaya partake in none of that either. I have lived in Pattaya many times, typically 3-6 months at a time. Like other posters who replied, I too have never partaken in the bar or P4P scene. I like Pattaya for its boardwalk for exercise, large shopping malls, restaurants, largevariety of shops etc etc. The only reason why I have never settled in Pattaya is because long-term I prefer a rural location with a garden for my ham radio antennas 🙂

I've recently lived in both towns. Luang Prabang is still as beautiful as before, but the numbers of 'locust' tourists in increasing rapidly since the train line opened. Plus the burning season pollution gets worse every year (and that is what finally drove me to leave..). Vang Vieng might be OK for a short holiday, but as a long-term stay it is definitely not! Thinking of relocating from Luang Prabang, I stayed in VV for 2 weeks, riding around by motorbike to seek out houses to rent. The choice was abysmal - everything was targeted at short-stay tourists. Plus eateries were expensive and 'useful' shops (supermarkets etc) almost non-existant.

I never eat at any establishments that impose a service charge and don't clearly show any compulsory taxes/VAT. It is also totally up to me to tip or not, based on the service...

As an ex-space scientist and someone who teaches space science every single day to young students (in China, Russia etc), I explain that a valid answer to many questions about space is simply :"We don't yet know"! That's the honest truth, no point in trying to complicate and confuse your students with technical details far beyond their understanding.

Yes indeed! I must update my location. I left Laos because the burning season was doing my lungs in, wanted to return to Phangan, but it was a mess, stayed in Koh Lanta for a few weeks, but the call to prayer and ever presence of 'black crows' made it a depressing place. My ex's offered to look after me in Phuket, but I prefer to keep them at arm's length, or at least at 90 minutes drive away. The house I've rented in Khao Lak seems a fair enough place to stay - I need to stop moving about!!

Well, they have memorials in Ban Mam Khem and the navy boat memorial right in the middle of Khao Lak, so they are hardly 'hiding' this natural disaster. I think Thais prefer to look forward, not back. (As a tourist police volunteer years ago, I laid wreaths at that navy boat during the annual 26th December ceremony). I think many more than 2,000 died in Khao Lak ...

Not expensive for me. I live 'in the hills'. 9,000 baht/month for a brand new 'studio' house in a garden, with a mountain stream just metres from my door. As for the beaches, plenty of people swimming in safe areas. I don't recall hearing of drownings, (unlike Karon/Kata beach in Phuket).