keestha

In the deep south there are only problems at the Pacific coast, not at all at the Andaman coast.

Many pensioners established companies just to be able to buy land, and obviously these companies have been dormant since they were established. But possibly the rules could be different or be applied in a different way for companies that have been established more recently. I would like to hear from somebody who knows more about this.

If you have your own company, than you will also have to use the services of a bookkeeper, among other things fo file your tax return. Let the bookkeeper help you with the paperwork needed to apply for a work permit.

Sure, that is exactly what I am doing now and I know that it functions, but it isn't what you would call practical. The button "insert link" should just do what it is supposed to do. Hotmail used to give an option to report a problem and they promptly looked into the matter and sent you a reply, but this cannot be done anymore. You can still report a problem, but they tell you honestly beforehand that they won't answer you.

Hello all,

Recently my hotmail account was upgraded to Windows Live Hotmail, though I never requested for this to be done. Since this change took place, I cannot insert clickable links in my emails anymore by simply clicking on the "insert link" button. The button is there, but it doesn't light up when I mouse over, and clicking on it doesn't produce any result. It would not be a practical option for me to change to another emailaddress, since I have a business and a large number of customers have my present emailaddress. Any help would be greatly appreciated.

Well I have been here almost 40 years, on and off, and have never had to pay tea money of any kind.

Am I right in presuming that you have never had a business in Thailand?

Also take a look at khaolak.de, click on the Union Jack to get it in English.

The best beach is at Bang Niang, at the northern end of Khao Lak. Pakkarang cape at the very northern end is also a nice place to visit. There are various waterfalls such as Chong Fah waterfall and Sai Ruang waterfall. Much more detailed information can be found on my website, which can be accessed through my profile on thaivisa.com. Once you are on the site scroll down, the top part gives info about my resort, and the part below gives a lot of general information about Khao Lak and its sights.

Is a certificate of residence something else than a tabbian ban? If yes, what is the expression in Thai for this?

Slight correction as you fill out a TM.6 on arrival. It can be much clearer than the official immigration web site instructions for 90 day reports:

If a foreigner leaves the country and re-enters, the day count starts at 1 in every case.

http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/en/base.php?page=90days

That's cool if you live in Bangkok, but local immigration officers upcountry might very well not know this rule, and just insist on you coming every 90 days, no matter if you left the country or not. Personally I wouldn't take chances with this. Because of the loss of face thing it might not be a good idea to show the officer a printout of the Thai version of the URL mentioned above.

Hi Edwin,

I am also curious. You can put a link to your website on your Thaivisa.com profile. Click on My Controls, and then on edit profile information. Wishing you all the best, Kees.

Also take a look at this thread http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=105865

Found the answer already: with the mail opened, right click, on the drop down menu select encoding, and click on Thai.

This thread is 5 years old, so maybe by now somebody knows a solution for this problem. Mail written in Thai sent to my hotmail address becomes junk, is there any trick to make hotmail properly handle Thai fonts? Thanks in advance for useful input.

Intriguing though this thread is, it could drag on for a long time to come, and not really lead anywhere. Some of the posters seem to know this guy and to live in Bangkok, why doesn't one of them bribe him with a few bottles of Chang to read this thread and contribute his own thoughts? Simply take him to a place which has internet access and also sells beer.

I have a quick question for Khorat based expats, or others who know the city well.

How much would it cost to buy or to rent a shophouse in downtown Khorat? With a shophouse I mean the typical 3 story building you see in all Thai cities, with room for a shop, office or restaurant downstairs, and rooms to live in on the other 2 floors. And how difficult would it be to find something like this? Thanks in advance for useful input.

Try Oichi, at the ground floor of the Index store right next to Phuket International Hospital at the bypass road. I believe it is 300 Baht for as much as you can eat. It can be very crowded with Korean tour groups though.

For a long time I have been receiving these fraudulent booking enquiries regularly. Bad grammar written by someone assuming a typical Anglosaxon name like George Woods makes them easy to recognize. But I am sorry for the Thai owners of small and middle sized hotels who will often be unable to recognize the bad grammar, and might fall for this scam. Without being stupid they also might not know that repayment by Western Union is an absurdity.

Can confirm that any official document with Thai writing on it, such as drivers licence, work permit or tax ID card will usually but not always get you into the national parks for the local price. Sometimes it doesn't work though. Once, though I had my work permit and tax ID card with me, the lady manning the entry booth of a very small national park in Trang simply wouldn't budge. To no avail I explained her that I work and pay taxes in Thailand.

Now excuse me for going off topic.......It has been raining angry letters to the editor in the English language press about the dual entry price system. But those making the decisions are living in a universe that is 100% Thai. They won't read the Bangkok post's Postbag, and forums like this even less likely.

Sad, because it is damaging the tourism sector.....How can you expect a young farang couple to pay two times 400 Baht national park entry fee in order to use the parking lot and the toilet next to the waterfall, when they have done quite a bit of footwork to find a 400 Baht guesthouse room?

Just found the following article on the news feed page of a Thailand focused website called emedia-asia.org. I dont know how reliable this source is, but here it comes:

New laws may restrict foreign businesses.

Posted: 2007-11-06 23:26:58 UTC

Thailand, the country known as the Land of Smiles, is considering legislative amendments that may restrict the ability of foreigners to live and work in the country. Although the law and the attitude behind it, is unlikely to affect the average short-stay tourist to the country, they do reflect a deeper feeling to foreigners than is portrayed in the average sunny smile.

In the past seven months, the government has taken a tougher stand on tourist visas which are often abused by long-stay retirees and expatriate workers. In January, a bill was first proposed which, if approved, will restrict the operations of many foreign companies.

“There’s been a trend that suggests rising economic nationalism,” said Thitinan Pongsudhirak, a professor of political science at Chulalongkorn University.

Although the average person in Thailand certainly welcomes tourism in the country, those who have been exposed to foreigners who are not tourists in Thailand often have stronger feelings on the subject.

“We are getting a lot of weird retirees here,” Vongthip Chumpani, an adviser and former vice president of Bangkok Bank, said. “They can’t survive in your country so they come here.”

Vongthip also feels strongly about the former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra’s policies regarding foreign investment. Prior to the coup which removed him from power in September, Thaksin was busy negotiating a number of free-trade agreements with countries such as China, Japan, Australia and the United States.

“We bent over backward all the time to accommodate foreign investors,” Vongthip said.

The new law may force some companies such as Federal Express, to relinquish control of their operations in Thailand, with more power and privileges being transferred to Thai-owned companies. Other companies, such as Carrefour, may be banned from expanding their operations in the future. And property purchases by thousands of non-Thai born people could be declared illegal.

The Foreign Business Act amendments have already been accepted by the Thai cabinet and are now undergoing a review process by the Council of State.

Thailand, a country with a population of 64 million, hosts approximately 15 million tourists every year, with numbers growing each season. Often gross disparities are evident between local residents and expatriate residents.

“In years past we’ve always targeted numbers: trying to achieve the highest numbers of arrivals possible,” said Chattan Kunjara Na Ayudhya, a spokesman for the Tourism Authority of Thailand. “It’s time to change. If we continue to focus mainly on numbers, some destinations will not be able to handle that many people.”

don't know the name but there is big furniture store on the road to Phuket town from chalong on the LHS. They have all that sort of stuff in the back. Not that cheap though so you might be best getting on builkt exactly the way you want it

Thanks.....but what is the LHS?

This question has been raised here before, but using the search function and digging through old threads some as far back as 2005 didn't result in finding a definite answer.

So here it comes:

If a Thai natural person wants to legally start a business as the sole proprietor (so we are not talking about a company limited) at which government office does he/she have to register the business? What documents will have to be submitted in order to register? How high are the government fees that will probably have to be paid? Is there an obligation to do proper bookkeeping and file tax returns? Are there any other legal obligations the person in question should be aware of?

It might be useful to know the business would be a small tourcounter (travel agency). Almost certainly the turnover would be below the threshold above which VAT has to be paid. I am aware of the fact that a travel agency needs a TAT licence.

There must be a lot of guys in here who have financed a business for their Thai wife or girlfriend, and they should be able to answer most of my questions.

Thanks a lot in advance for any useful input.

Does anybody know where in Phuket I could buy a ready made small counter, the type which is used for instance by travel agencies in Patong conducting a business on the sidewalk? It should be not more than about 2 meters wide. I am a frequent Supercheap customer, but cannot remember ever having seen anything of the kind there. Thanks a lot for any suggestions.

And my wife's opinion:

She maybe is not comfortable because her family has helped look after the baby for the first 3 months, so it's like she's only really looked after the baby for 2 months herself. I felt nervous at first and needed someone to help me. She might also be nervous because the baby will start to be able to move a little around this age so she might be expecting the baby to roll, or fall or otherwise hurt herself.

Exactly. Fear that an accident will happen when the baby is left unsupervised for a few moments, that's what it is about.

Thanks a lot for all the good advice, especially Mark&wife, Bina and Mike. Asking advice and getting useful replies, that's what this forum is for.

For the next 6 months I am fine. I own a seasonal business ( bungalow resort) and employ a lot of female staff from the end of october till april, and yes, the women are happily volunteering to help out taking care of the daughter. After about April 15 I will be alone with the wife again, the baby will be 11 months old then, and I will see how the situation develops then.

My girlfriend refuses to be left alone with the baby, even for a few moments. When she has to take a shower or even go to the toilet , she calls me into the bedroom to keep an eye on our daughter.

I'm confused.

Does she not like to be on her own with the baby, or does she not like leaving the baby on his/her own, ie: unsupervised.

You are right Mark, i didn't formulate it so clearly. Her problem is that when she is alone with the baby, she unavoidably has to leave her unsupervised sometimes briefly.

When she leaves me alone with the baby, it is never for longer than 15 minutes or so.