Tuvoc

Yes, I think he is correct on that.

I'm looking at prices NZ to BKK in May, and they seem fairly decent. Unfortunately Thai Airways have not resumed direct flights since the onset of Covid, so there is at least one stopover, sometimes two. No direct flights anymore.

Yes, I have bought directly from Airlines for a while now. It was particularly important during Covid. Having said that, on internal flights on Thai Vietjet I was buying from the airline website, but then found quite by accident an agent who did the same ticket for far less last time. Not so much at stake of course with an internal flight, money wise.

I should say "applied for". Criteria need to be met etc.

Yes, an extension based on marriage does allow a work permit to be obtained which is not possible with a retirement extension.

Yes that is what I did and what many others have done. I got a 90-day Non-O in the UK based on marriage, and then have done 12-month extensions based on retirement after that, using 800k money in bank method. You say you don't want to tie up $22k ?

Head injuries are sometimes not immediately apparent. Some time ago my wife's nephew came off his bike and seemed perfectly fine. No visible injury. Hours later at home it became clear all was not well (not sure exactly the symptoms) but he was rushed to hospital but sadly died, swelling on the brain. A really tragic ending for this young Thai man who was living his dream against all the odds. Rest in peace.

True, but receiving a salary does.

Yep, that is exactly what I will do next time.

Personally I would never use 15w-40 unless the car was old and knackered, but 5w-40 or 5w-30 yes.

Yes of course Toyota source the engine oil from someone else and brand it as their own, common practice. I'd love to know who makes it. A couple of websites say it is Mobil. Anyway I'm also inclined to prefer a 5w-40 for this climate, certainly for a petrol engine. But for a low-revving diesel the 5w-30 must be OK, Toyota wouldn't use it otherwise. The counter-argument is that all they have to worry about is the warranty period and nothing beyond that.

Looks normal. Find another Wiildtrack in the supermarket carpark and take a look.

Toyota branded diesel oil is 5w-30 from memory. I'd probably prefer Mobil 1 5w-40 for the hot climate, but our Fortuner gets what Toyota put in which is their 5w-30. Anyone else annoyed that they give you all the empty containers ? Sems they firstly don't have a bulk supply as I'd have expected, and secondly they leave the disposal of the empty containers on you. Lazada: TOYOTA น้ำมันเครื่องดีเซลสังเคราะห์โตโยต้า 5W-30 ขนาด 1 ลิตร | Lazada.co.th

Not CW for me but Chaing Rai. No problem at all. No questions asked, even though the previous agent extension was out-of-province. Smooth and trouble-free.

Second retirement extension and re-entry permit completed. Exemplary service from the Chiang Rai office. This time I booked a slot through the online reservations system, and I was in and out within half an hour. Back the next day to collect the passport, less then 5 minutes. No change to the documentation requirements.

I just did a retirement extension in Chiang Rai. With Bangkok Bank, you can request a statement for the last 12 months via your phone app, and it is emailed to you in minutes. They helpfully told me this in the branch. I then simply printed it off and immigration accepted it. Not certified, stamped or signed by bank officials. It is a proper statement, not an online printout. Your experience may be different.

"Visa" and "extension" tend to be used interchangeably. Even by lawyers who should and do know the difference.

Oh, I always do mine both together in the one visit. About to do the same again next week ! Am I better to just get the re-entry at the airport then, what is the advantage of doing that ? Surely the re-entry is only valid up to the end-date of the extension ?

Well actually no, some agents do offer 15 months. On the expiry of my initial 90-day Non-O back in 2021, the ThaiVisa forum agent here had two options for me, 12 months and 15 months, the latter being very much more expensive. I don't know how they would have got 15 months and the legal basis for that because I didn't go for that option, but they did have a price for it. EDIT: Here we go from my email correspondence back then: The cost for a Retirement Visa for 15 Months is at THB 38,000 and Retirement Visa for 12 Months the price is at THB 26,000.

Another year has gone by, time to do my extension next week. In on Monday, will have to return to pick up the passport a day or two later, and then fly out of the country Friday. With a re-entry permit as well. Hopefully it will go as smoothly this time and nothing has changed. I got great service last time, I think a lot depends on the particular IO that you get on the day. Yeah I was there 3 hours or so, that is a given.

Thanks, seems incredibly easy !

I haven't looked, but very likely too that second hand values don't hold up as well as the Fortuner. So you save 200k baht or so on the initial purchase but lose it and maybe more due to heaver depreciation. Worth checking for any new car purchase.

Very true, and more broadly they can change anything at any time. For example, there could become a time when they start to require compulsory medical insurance for standard Non-O extensions. Or they increase the 800k. Anything can happen.

Didn't know that, I'll do a search.

Yes, Everest is also very appealing to me, except for the 10-speed transmission which is pretty bad and unreliable ? A fact I didn't know until recently - the top selling new "car" in New Zealand is the Ford Ranger, a ute ! With that 10-speed transmission too. With Toyota you know you're getting the most reliable product.