BestBitterPhuket

Dear forum members,

I am married to a Thai citizen and we have a common child, who is also a Thai citizen. Due to the nature of my work I have visited Thailand on visa exemptions on a regular basis, but I am now planning to stay for longer periods, without embarking on a career as a visa runner.

I am a bit confused about the visa rules. My understanding is that I have to apply for a 90 day visa first, which later can be extended for up to a year. As for the 90 day visa, I have not been able to find out what the exact requirements are. Do I need submit copies of my marriage certificate, my child's birth certificate, proof of financial standing? Someone mentioned that I need to have a sponsor in Thailand? Is that correct and if so, can my wife act as one?

Thanks!

This guy must be totally delusional. With the legal infrastructure in Thailand, such as regulations on capital inflow/outflow, ownership rules, restrictions on foreign employees, availability (or lack of) local talents, taxation etc etc, it is no way they EVER get close to Singapore. Malaysia is not a financial hub, maybe with the exception of Islamic banking, but it still towers over Thailand. There is no way that Thailand will get out of its comfort zone and offer what is needed to create a financial hub rivaling singapore or Malaysia. This is just empty talk for the gullible foreigners.

How about sentencing some of the fishing boat owners and captains to life in prison for kidnapping like Thailand's laws allows. How about following thai law, even if the rich and influential lose out. How about that?

Obama received the Nobel Piss Prize, so he must be the best ever!!!

Why has Thailand never attempted to arrest this "fugitive" through Interpol and other means. In reality he is not a fugitive, but an exiled man.

Good they make arrests, but what about convictions in court? They need to increase the penalties for crimes against tourists, and let it be known.

Good! Now he and his gang are off the streets.

They should put young professional soldiers in the police for a period of a few years each. They have a different training and discipline and would probably strengthen the police by their mere presence.

I would think they would be facing the death penalty back in China given the amounts involved and severity of the crime.

One is better than none. Next is to go after the police involved in the thousands of similar pubs, many of which are breeding grounds for crime and drug use.

Pigs have higher intelligence than a dog, but the Americans and British have no issues about eating them and subjecting those animals to grotesque living conditions. However, eating dogs or whales or anything that looks cute, is a huge taboo. Epic double standards.

I would never eat dog, but would never criticize anyone for it.

When the useless people who are responsible for the failures are allowed to continue in their jobs, be it officials, engineers, maintenance contractors etc, the failures will continue every year.

"The suspect claimed self-defence, saying the tourist, who appeared drunk, knocked him down and was about to beat him with the stick."

Fleeing the scene of a crime kinda rules out the self defence argument in most cases imo.

The big problem is that the police and courts seem to believe these stupid excuses and use them as mitigating factors to limit the punishment to a minimum. This is undermining the rule of law.

This will be huge, internationally. I hope Thailand grows up a bit and does the right thing: removing these draconian defamation laws.

These laws are nothing but a tool for the elite to use to oppress the poor, working class and middle class. Thailand will never be a better place unless they change things like this.

Not many tourists in Cape Panwa, but there is a naval base there.

Section 38 is ancient. They should scrap it altogether.

Yes! Most of the public service is ineffective and ancient. Why don't they copy singapore or some other country that has functional and effective systems and legislation. These stupid rules and systems make outsiders look down on Thailand and Thais.

Packing? They should investigate the wealth and lifestyle if some of these officials to see if there is anything unusual. If they corroborate with the prisoners, they should not be sent "packing" but sent to prison for a very long time. The Thai elite just can't punish their own. Only the lower classes and foreigners are punished in Thailand.

No one is bashing moderate Muslims. The complaints are about radical Muslims and fundamentalism. They are the ones issuing the death threats against moderate Muslims for petting dogs. .

For many of this lot, there is no difference.

If the supposed "moderates" would out the "radicals", I could agree that "moderates" exist

. Until that happens, the world must treat all muslims as suspiciously as we would treat known radicals.

Inactive complicity is essentially support

. The "radicals" would not be able to function outside the area controlled

by the new Militant threat in the middle east without the silence of those who know

and dont report... ... ...

Time after time after time, moderate Muslims HAVE INDEED come out and rubbished the extremists.... Do some research.... Uninformed claptrap.

Take a look at who is assisting the Americans in their Air Strikes against IS. It is Muslims.... Have look at who the people MOST affected by radical Islam, actually are.... Moderate Muslims....

Sure, not being able to pat a dog is nonsense to us..... but equally nonsensical to a non Buddhist, is not being able to touch the top of someone's head.... without causing offense... And before you come back about Buddhism being a truly peaceful religion (tho that is generally true) ask the Rohingyas how that is working for them....

Classic Muslim apologist. The majority of Muslims are not "moderate". Just because they don't blow themselves up OR they help the Americans to save their own skins, don't mean that they are moderates. Only a few Muslim countries has a majority of moderates.

Malaysia is becoming more and more intolerant, every day. It is truly developing into a racial and religious tyranny. Malaysia has always been a place of institutionalized racism, but currently things are taken to new heights. This place will become uninhabitable for its prominent minorities in the not too distant future. Everything used to revolve around race, now also religion.

At least they did a good job this time.

They should stop all scholarships ASAP. These Muslim schools, especially in the Middle East are breeding grounds for terrorists. AND these studies are completely useless for the thai economy. Put money into engineering and science scholarships instead.

Again, it's a feeble reaction. What is needed is proactive measures, such as teaching locals that it is "not cool" to commit crimes on tourists. Instead of a slap on the wrist, harsh penalties needs to be meted out and it has to be known that if you commit these crimes, you will be punished much harder than usual, because it's also a crime against Thailand's reputation and all the honest people involved in the tourist industry. Prayuth needs to change the laws or instruct the courts and police.

I assume most of the victims approached the ladyboys for immoral purposes, and then get robbed. Why else would anyone go to these areas knowingly and willingly at the hours when these crooks operate.

How stupid. A THAI boy who has only ONE nationality, THAI, but one foreign parent,and who has lived all his life in Thailand, is not fit to fly an Air Force jet? Again Thailand is depriving itself of talent. Without meritocracy, Thailand will continue to be a third world country on par with Cambodia, Laos and a whole lot of African countries.