JB300

Are people experiencing the same stringent requirements with the single-entry visas? Or are those still as easy to get as ever?

Stringent how? Because they would prefer people who have a job and a little money in the bank?

It's stringent in that the Liverpool, UK Consulate require six months consecutive statements (nor printouts) where I've binned mine for years.

It's stringent in that at 62 I can't comply with the requirement to supply a letter from my employer (I've been "lucky" to be medically retired)

It's stringent in that they require a photocopy of the hotel booking - not a printout of the email, or if I owned a condo!

It's stringent in that you have to comply with ALL of their requirements.

easyride

You appear to have confused the single-entry tourist visa which JepSoDii was referring to with the multi-entry tourist visa whose conditions you seem to be referring to.

You may need to go back and look again at the application process.

I also thought JepSoDii was referring to the Multi-Entry as he mentioned funds & a job, proof of which are only required for the METV.

Are people experiencing the same stringent requirements with the single-entry visas? Or are those still as easy to get as ever?

Stringent how? Because they would prefer people who have a job and a little money in the bank?

Um, yes. "How" should be obvious. By every definition, the new requirements are stringent compared to the old requirements. And as for people who have jobs to which they would return, well, most of those are presumably people would be best served by SETVs. So it's pretty obvious to most people the METV is not desired by only those who have a job and money in the bank, and the new rules are indeed more stringent to anyone who wants the METV.

Not sure if it was earlier in this thread or an earlier one, but somebody posted about the METV being of great value to people from countries like India & China that need to get a Visa on Arrival (I.e. Pay the 1000b & get a sticker in their passport) & could have been conceived to encourage them to visit more/for longer (maybe using Thailand as a base to visit other countries in the region) though it seems at the same time they're doubling the VOA to 2000b (maybe to encourage a "Better Class of Tourist" from these countries).

I do know that if I accept a new project in Singapore & so get a new Long Term Pass, I'll pick one of these up from the Embassy there (no problem with the funds in the bank there) as I do visit Thailand for a few days around 8-10 times a year & hopefully this will enable me to open a Bank account so I can seed the money for the Non-O retirement).

Apologies if this has been posted/asked before (I did do a couple of searches & couldn't find anything) but noticed this in Stickman's 31st January piece & wondered if it had been confirmed/refuted by any other source...

"Finally, there is some clarification on why some people are getting challenged at Immigration after visiting the country a number of times on visa waiver stamps. There had been much confusion because some people reported being asked questions after x number of visits while others claimed to have visited just as many times without so much as a word said. A visa run company advises that the Immigration computer system has a system alert feature which flags any traveller who has spent 90 days or more in Thailand in a calendar year on visa waiver stamps. It would seem that the number of entries someone makes to Thailand on such stamps is not relevant - but the total period of time spent in country is. If a flag comes up it seems the Immigration officer must ascertain your reasons for visiting and then has to make the decision whether to allow you entry or not. It seems that generally they will tell you that this time it's ok but next time you enter you must have a visa. I am not aware of anything official being announced by Immigration nor does there appear to be anything in the Immigration Act about it - but then there needn't be. Anyone who spends so much time in a country other than their own should expect to be asked about their travel plans. This applies only for time spent in Thailand on visa waiver stamps i.e. those who arrive without a visa. If you have a visa in your passport this does not count towards the 90 days in a calendar year and there won't be an alert".

(I'm one of those people who have entered 8 or 9 times in one year, once for 4 weeks, once for 10 days but the rest mainly 2 or 3 days & so total comfortably less than 90 days & never been questioned of had the IO look particularly closely at my Passport).

NBTC confident to receive first instalment payment for 900 MHz spectrum from two bidders...

BANGKOK: -- The National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC) is confident that the two winners of 900 MHz spectrum will not default their first instalment payment amounting to 8,040 million baht as widely speculated, said NBTC secretary-general Thakorn Tanthasit on Monday.

True Corporation and Jasmine International won the bids for 900 MHz spectrum by offering a total of 151.95 billion baht – 76.3 billion baht for True and 75.67 billion baht for Jasmine.

Mr Thakorn said that the bidding conditions are very stringent that it is very difficult or almost impossible for the winners of the bid to miss their obligation of instalment payment.

In case of a default, he explained that each of the successful bidders would have its 644 million baht money posted as guarantee for the bidding confiscated and and would have to bear the damages caused to NBTC for the default and expenses to incur in case new bid is to be staged by the NBTC.

Moreover, he warned that the two winners might be disqualified and lose their existing operating licenses.

Both True and Jasmine International have enough time until March 21 to come up with the first instalment payment

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/891411-nbtc-confident-to-receive-first-instalment-payment-for-900-mhz-spectrum-from-two-bidders/?utm_source=newsletter-20160201-1529&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=news

Don't need to sign up for Alluc, just search the streams for the programme you want to watch then filter on the best provider (I tend to use thevideo.me, bestreams.net, allmyvideos.net).

E.g. This search "gold rush s06e15 host:allmyvideos.net" will bring you episode 15 of series 6 for Gold Rush.

Can be a little tricky closing the adverts but you soon get used to it, e.g. In the above example, if you click on http://www.alluc.ee/l/gold-rush-s06e15-dead-even-hdtv-mp4/w10h2i5z link, you need to click on the small black "X" before clicking on the red play button.

There's a nice Indian restaurant (more like a cafe than formal restaurant) around the corner from Papagayo go-go (there's a small walkway with restaurants on both sides, good steakhouse there also), can't remember what it's called but it's more of an authentic Indian place than the British takeaway type.

I take it the OP meant Feb 7 as Feb 2 was a Tuesday (& my 50th which I celebrated on Soi6 so didn't notice if the TVs were working or not )

I use http://Www.alluc.ee

Good job Harry the war hero never had to return to the UK for health reasons as I doubt his 39 quid a week would have covered the charges

Seems if you're an EU citizen you can claim to be ordinary resident (& so free NHS) from the day you land in UK, no more having to wait 6 months...

(Apologies for quality of the pic, taken from a pub copy of the Daily Mail)

I doubt they would try to reduce the personal allowance of ordinary ex pat pensioners if the up rating came to be, more at risk would be those who consider themselves to be "non-resident" but I think that would be unlikely as well, the income from such a move would be peanuts in the grand scheme of public finances, as indeed is the cost of up rating the expats pensioners, Osborne is a miser who is loved by very few outside the Bullingham Club, I hope he never becomes PM after DC he is the worst possible option. He has never lived in the real world.

In my world, an expat is UK non-resident, otherwise he's not an expat, he's just a tourist, or did I miss something.

There's non-domiciled & non-resident, an Expat is non-domiciled but could still be resident for tax purposes.

Personally I don't think they'll remove the personal taxation allowance for UK Pensioners but might do so for UK citizens who are working overseas (as I've said before, this isn't totally unreasonable as these guys will typically be receiving a personal allowance from the country they're working in so in effect get 2 allowances).

Watching nothing to declare

Thank god im not Australian !

In AUstralia it shows as 'Border Security'

I always reckon the people get off easy on that show...

Outside of Australia, Border Security is the Canadian version... http://natgeotv.com/ca/border-security

I Love both shows & the US one To Catch a Smuggler http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/to-catch-a-smuggler/

Thanks for that, it is encouraging. I may be able to do "self assessment tax" whatever that is. Education, if there are some flexible schools like you say, then that's possible. I'm not likely to go to Samui, except maybe for a month or so, but maybe some of those schools would do Skype sessions if they are flexible. And, I saw somone posted a cheap AirAsia flight to Melbourne. That's always possible. Thanks again, jspill.

Melbourne doesn't ask for the employment requirement, and thankfullly it seems a bit more than anecdote as their own website doesn't state the residency or employment requirements either.

Consulates elsewhere have alternatives for the self-employed like a copy of self assessment tax.

It is officially 8 hrs/week for the Ed visa yes, in practice though is a different matter. Not sure about Chiang Mai but I know some Samui schools are still being very flexible.

Have you weighed up the cost of an ED Visa + School Fees + 90 Day Extensions + Exit the country every year to get a new visa against the Thailand Elite visa which will give you 5 years (possibly almost 6) with yearly extensions without having to leave the country for 500,000 THB?

Man in the High Castle turns out to be excellent. Very well done, good plots and good acting. Impressed

Sent using Tapatalk

Pilot episode was a little slow at the start but storyline is interesting (have seen Fatherland many years ago) & positive comments here meant I stuck with it & glad I did as its warming up nicely now [emoji106]

On an SETV, you need to leave Thailand after 60-90 days (you can extend the original 60-day stay by 30 days at an immigration office within Thailand). However, you do not then have to return to your home country. You can visit a country bordering Thailand (such as Malaysia, Vietnam or Laos) and get another SETV. With an METV, you still need to make trips outside Thailand. You just have greater flexibility about where to go and how long to stay. If an METV becomes too troublesome to acquire, the alternative of back-to-back SETVs is quite feasible.

Citizens of some countries cannot obtain visas from anywhere other than from their own country of permanent residence.

http://www.thaiembassy.org/kualalumpur/contents/files/services-20150909-173935-504463.pdf

That is true. For that reason, I was careful to read the earlier posts in the thread and confirm that the OP was from a country (British citizen) where this does not apply.

Now i'm confused. People from countries which are not on the list can obtain a METV in Kuala Lumpur?

Not the METV but they can get other visas there and other locations.

KL being a bad example, much easier to use Penang (for an SETV).

The more I read the more attractive the Elite Visa gets. Yes it costs a bit more, but it saves trips and visa runs. No need for re-entry permits, etc. No need for income statement affidavits, embassy trips, bank account money seasoning issues, etc. If one can afford it, and if one comes and goes a lot or travels in and out, it has a lot of pros. Less chance of overstay issues and penalties as there is only one yearly thing to check on each year correct? You are still stuck with the 90 day resident reporting stuff, but that applies to all > 90 day stay processes.

Being myself convinced about the advantages of the Thailand Elite visa, I don't see why any financially comfortable foreigner would chose any other type of visa.

Because the Thai system of government may not be stable and you would be spending 500,000 baht on a system of rules and regs that could be negated at any moment ?

That would be one reason

Second reason is you might change your mind...I know it's rare...but relationships with Thailand and more importantly with Thai women can go awry leaving you with the dreaded "I can't wait to get the hell outta here" feeling. 500k baht is a big chunk of change to walk away from.

With retirement extension you give up nothing but a little flexibility on where your funds are held. And when you leave you take it all back.

Agree with the comments about the Thailand Elite visa becoming more & more attractive, but as per the post above, I'm just not sure I'm going to want to stay in Thailand longer than a year or 2.

Especially as my partner (of > 5.5 years) is one of those rare Filippinas that doesn't want to live full time outside of the Philippines & "We" (in reality "She") have just bought a new house there.

Apologies for wandering OT, hope the OP reports back here on how he gets on & good luck with the move.

A Few More Ways To Say Someone Is Intellectually Impaired

- A few hairs short of a wig.

- Three feathers short of being fluffy.

- The dip stick doesn't reach the oil.

- Sharp as a bubble.

- Nice toy---no batteries.

- A few quacks short of a duck.

- A few peas shy of having a casserole.

- A few trucks short of a convoy.

- An experiment in artificial stupidity.

- An intellect rivaled only by garden tools.

- Doesn't have all the dots on their dice.

- Forgot to pay the brain bill.

- If brains were taxed, he'd get a refund.

- Couldn't tell which way an elevator was going if she had two guesses.

One wheel short of a unicycle

A couple of roos short in the top paddock.

- A sandwich short of a picnic.

- Not the sharpest knife in the drawer

- Fell out of the stupid tree & hit every branch on the way down

In a similar position (though from the uk & been living in Asia for the past 8 years, 7 in Singapore & 1 traveling around the region) & would like to get a Non-O based on being over 50 but am confused about the best way to go about this.

My "Plan" was to go somewhere local (Laos or Penang) & use evidence of funds in my Singapore bank account to get the initial Non-O, then use this to open a Thai bank account, seed the funds, get the 1 year extension etc... but I've recently learnt that I have to have the money in a Thai bank account BEFORE I can get the Non-O (my problem being I don't have a Thai bank account).

Is there anyway of getting "on the Retirement ladder" using evidence of funds in a non-Thai bank account (I can't go down the income route as my pension doesn't kick in for a few years but I do have sufficient funds to last me until it does)?

Happy to go back to the uk to do it but from what I've read I'm not confident of getting what I want from there either, especially as my cash is sat in a Singapore Bank account & my assets in the UK are my house & brokerage account there.

An account with a bank in Thailand.

Thanks, I'll try to open an account when I'm in Pattaya/Bangkok at the end of Jan to celebrate my 50th.

Failing that I'll head to Savannakhet instead (Penang is a little easier as I'm staying in KL in between trips but, then again, I've never been to Laos so good excuse to visit ).

All nearby embassies and consulates will want to see the money in a Thai bank to get a single entry non-o visa for being 50 over.

Savannakhet is not a good location to get one for being 50 or over. They frequently deny them unless you have a letter from your embassy stating you are retired.

Vientiane is a better place to go once you have the money in the bank or proof of 65k baht income.

Thanks Joe, I thought I'd read that Savannakhet didn't need to see the cash in the bank (or would at least accept a bank statement from UK/Singapore).

Feels like being stuck in a catch-22 situation, difficult to open a Thai Bank account without a long-term visa, difficult to get a long-term visa without a Thai bank account [emoji15]

An account with a bank in Thailand.

Thanks, I'll try to open an account when I'm in Pattaya/Bangkok at the end of Jan to celebrate my 50th.

Failing that I'll head to Savannakhet instead (Penang is a little easier as I'm staying in KL in between trips but, then again, I've never been to Laos so good excuse to visit ).

The 800 K has to be in the bank for 3 months when you apply for Non O for over 50 retirement in Penang,His money has only been in for one month

The flights have been booked to KL by another friend on a promotion fare can not get refund so will have to fly return from KL to Penang, Anyone know if he will get Non O with money only in for one month

No problem. The money just has to be in his account on the day of application. No seasoned funds needed.

Does it have to be in a Thai bank account or will they accept equivalent in a non-Thai account?

Thx

JB

Now that is scary .......applying in Cyprus. I will make enquiries.

I wonder how the Embassy in London would know that you wasn't a uk resident.

Obviously they'd know if you used a return address outside of the U.K. but you are required to put a phone number on the application form so there's always the possibility of them finding out that way.

If you're a legal resident in Cyprus then there should be no problem with you applying for a non-OA there or you can -

- Apply for a Non-O visa in a country local to Thailand (Savannakhet in Laos seems to be favourite)

- Enter Thailand on Visa Exempt / Tourist Visa & convert to Non-O retirement in Bangkok.

I wasn't applying for a TV - mine was a Non O (retirement).

But the next day pick-up is on their website.

Very interested in finding out more about your experience in getting a Non-O (retirement) from Penang, would you recommend it as a good option for people looking to get their 1st Non-O?

Any tips on hotels to stay near the embassy there?

Many Thanks

JB

No way its dead,big big bar up for rent Soy Boocow 100 baht a day, stock included,3 year deferment on rent,now it is overly expensive I know 25 baht a day might get someone biting

Is it my eyesight or did somebody really have a banner printed that big & managed to misspell "Baht" as "Bath"!!!

I do not agree Pattaya is dead. Maybe in March but this month is very busy.

When I was booking a hotel in Soi13 for 6 nights at the end of Jan, Dynasty Inn was full & a few others were showing only 1 or 2 rooms available on Agoda etc...

Brain wave. Deposit 8k for what. This is stupid notion of financing a trip. My and so many other people have what's called line of credit. Not talking about credit cards.

The world today is have assets/debt. Money in bank is appropriate for those with very little.

Bit of a simplistic view don't you think as it depends on your age, financial goals & appetite to risk.

I follow an old adage that says keep (at least) 6 months money "In the Bank" to cover any emergencies as I don't want to be in a position where I'm having to "fire sale" any of my assets should something crop up.

Realistically how much money could you (with minimum risk) make from £8,000? Say 3% pa (£240) before tax?