timendres

Trump believes this move will bring jobs to the US, something he wants to accomplish. It is not designed as some sort of punishment, although anyone who understands economics knows that any action that benefits some people (bring back manufacturing jobs) also hurts some people (increased prices for tariffed products). Trump has far too much on his plate to spend time worrying about a few expats. I am more concerned about the financial pressures on social security causing unpopular changes that affect expats.

That is interesting, since pharmacies here sell a version of Kamagra manufactured in Thailand.

He almost certainly had a Non-B visa, which he used until he obtained an extension based on work permit. You are correct that, by this time, the original visa has expired.

I bought mine at HomePro.

Thank you for confirming this. I was told by numerous people (an agent and a CW IO) that I could not get a retirement extension using my Non-B visa. It is good to hear confirmation that someone has done it with a Non-B. Sounds like immigration just wants to create more business for itself (in my case).

Wow. Looks like a genuine glitch in the system. The algo forgot to check and not offer the same product at any price.

Thank you. That is good to know.

Came to meet a girl. Fell in love with the country. Had to wait almost ten years to make the "jump". Before the jump, I spent a full month here twice. Each time, I just wanted to stay. Fifteen years here full time, and I am still very happy with my decision.

In fact, every one of my employees signed an employment contract. This contract spelled out very clearly the circumstances under which employee could be fired. It also stated that the company would adhere to the Thai labor laws. You should be up to speed on those laws, as they have real implications for your business.

You are SO right about that. I was dealing with Chaeng Watthana. They were very strict about the 800K.

As mentioned above, I exited Thailand and re-entered the next day, but using visa exempt. I doubt I could obtain a Non-O visa "in one day" outside of Thailand. You are correct, however, that if I had obtained a Non-O outside Thailand, it would already meet the 800K requirement. That said, I have my doubts that 800K sitting in a Thai bank account could be used to obtain the Non-O outside Thailand. Maybe I am wrong about that,

The issue was that I was here on a Non-B visa, which I extended based on work permit. However, my working days ended and I wanted to change to a retirement extension. The retirement extension requires a Non-O visa. You cannot obtain a retirement extension based on a Non-B visa. Thus, I was required to leave and re-enter the country to obtain the Non-O. There are some who claim to have managed to make the change from Non-B to Non-O without leaving the country, and at the moment I cannot remember the circumstances that allowed then to do that, but prevented me from doing the same. Having left and re-entered "visa exempt", then obtaining the Non-O in country, I was required to show the 800K and demonstrate that it came from abroad - requiring both bank statements and the transfer "credit advice" from the bank.

As @khunPer stated, obtaining the Non=O domestically will require proof the funds came from abroad. I know this first hand, because I complained vehemently about it. I had worked here for 10 years, and saved up the 800K required. But I was forced to wire it to my bank in the US, then wire it back. Eating the fees and spreads. In my case, I was required to show evidence of the "Credit Advice", which is the document that a bank produces when wiring money abroad. I had to show the credit advice from the US and from Bangkok Bank. I also needed to provide the bank book showing the deposit and current balance.

When you go to renew your extension based on a work permit, you will be required to show the social security tax payments for your entire staff for the 3 months prior to the renewal. That's assuming that they do not show up at your office asking to see your staff before the renewal, or even shortly after you obtain your extension. For me, they showed up at the office four months into the extension expecting to see the staff in the office.

1. I don't hang out in Sukhumvit, so not a problem. 2. Occasionally a problem in my building, but rare. 3. Actually, I see courtesy at the crossing I use. 4. Have never seen an "Arab" where I live (Ratchayothin) 5. No touts here. 6. The few soi dogs in this area are placid and nice. 7. Not too much construction here, and what there is has been quite nice. 8. No expat bar clowns here. 9. Temples here are nearly 100% Thai and operate as such. 10. We get a little flooding in some sois around here, but mine does not flood. Fact is, you have described Sukhumvit. Not a part of Bangkok I would recommend for anything except the occasional night out. I find Ratchayothin to be a fantastic place to hang out, and there are many other places in Bangkok that are equally nice.

Love this place. Love these people. Love that photo.

As some have noted, the agents place funds in your account temporarily, and the IOs do not check on its maintenance. There is also the case where a senior IO can "waive" the requirement altogether. Not sure how often that actually happens.

The worst day on the BTS is better than the best day on a New York City subway.

I filed my return. Specifically because I received a royalty payment into my KBank account. Also, I filed tax returns for the ten years prior, since I worked in Thailand. Thus, I already had a TIN. I owed no tax. But I received income directly into Thailand, and I am a tax resident. That said, for those who will owe no tax, I think not filing is an okay strategy. At some point, if they get serious, they will tie our extension to a tax filing. But so far they have stated clearly that they will not do that. So, for now, not filing should be okay if you owe no tax.

My "contract" was to start one month after I re-entered Thailand, but the company belonged to me, so I managed all of the details - that made life much simpler. In your case, I think you need at least the week that it will take to complete the work permit. Two weeks to be sure.

What I described was not a "renewal". It is the process I went through for my first work permit, and the following extensions based on the WP.

Hence the reason I stated "These ETFs are not for the uninitiated. They have real risk if not traded properly." But the QID has definitely delivered on its promise over the past two months: QQQ down 5%. QID up 10%

This was quite true back in the day. But now we have ETFs that mimic shorting the market. For example, QID is a 2x short on the QQQ, which is an ETF that tracks the NASDAQ. These ETFs are not for the uninitiated. They have real risk if not traded properly. I use the QID (and others) ETF as a hedging vehicle in my IRA (retirement account).

Are you going to be obtaining a work permit? If so, you must obtain an extension based on work permit before the Non-B visa expires. To get the extension, you must complete the work permit process before applying for the extension. You can apply for the extension within 30 days prior to the visa expiration. It should not take more than a week to complete the work permit. Mine was completed by my agent in 3 days, once the proper documents were in order. So, the "around 60 days" seems like a decent estimate.

My father was a civil engineer for the state of Michigan, USA. He told me of many stories of fatalities during construction projects. He really drove home that construction is an inherently dangerous phase of development. That said, the number of incidents here speaks to a clear need for better management. The workers in the field can only perform as well as they are directed. They are not engineers and can only pray they are being deployed safely.