Thingamabob

The law states that to obtain an extension to a non-o retirement visa you are required to keep 800k in a Thai bank for a specified period. If you employ an agent in order to pretend you are obeying the law, because in reality you do not have the statutory 800k, you are breaking the law. If you have the statutory 800k, and you are employing an agent for convenience, you are not breaking the law.

Not exactly a life threatening problem, however the more you pay the better you get. Also, only open the supply valve when in use.

Lending money to either women or men in Thailand is a mug's game.

Enter Thailand then apply for a non-O retirement visa. In due course you will have to apply for annual extensions based on 800k in the bank, or proven minimum income requirement. During nearly 40 years in Thailand I have never once used an agent for this or any other purpose however, at 80 years of age, there will soon come a time when I may need to. In the old days Immigration would come to your house to grant extensions if you were too old or too sick to attend in person. I'm not sure if they still do so.

U Turns are a nightmare in Thailand. I have heard that in many cases the road-builders have budget funding for U Bridges but construct U Turns and pocket the difference.

Opened accounts at SCB head office when Standard Chartered withdrew from retail banking in Thailand. I have found the service at SCB to be just about adequate, nothing better than that. I am considering moving my accounts to, probably, Bangkok Bank.

Tell us more.

I fear there will be no tigers in the wild in Thailand within 10 years. Too many people.

See a doctor. You need help.

Been married to my Thai wife for 40 years. Never encountered any of these problems either in Thailand or, in my case, in the UK.

Looks like a sunbeam to me. As with most snakes good to have around for rodent control. Very few snakes are dangerous if left alone. Some even make good pets.

Dual pricing exists all over the world. Get over it, or go away.

I'm confused as ever on this issue. Does this mean smoking/ingesting pot will become legal ? I think not.

Oil and gas trader.

This is a long term disaster. The alleged 'clean up' has done enormous damage. Utterly disgraceful.

Certainly there are many lovely Thai women, and nearly all are attractive if not beautiful.

I would suggest that this post should not be taken seriously.

ONLY 39 tons ? That is one heck of a lot of oil, on top of which the real number is likely much higher than that.

The effects will last much longer than one year, sad to say.

The system will remain clogged. The last thing the elites want is young, well-educated people.

Tyre retailers in Thailand have convinced most Thais to change their tyres every 3 years. Good for their business, but total rubbish.

Excellent Rooster. Happy days, fun times. Back then it really was the Land of Smiles.

Retired Brit, living in Bangkok and Rayong for 40 years. Had two good pals here, one Aussie, one American, both dead. No wish to befriend anyone else.

Quote from one of the foregoing comments 'If you don't have the funds, use an agent'. Good advice, if that's the way you want to live here.

At 80 years if age I can understand the need for an urgent pee, but not the rude and crass need for it to be so public. Neither can I understand driving into a stationary kiosk. As has been said many times on Thaivisa the quality of expats arriving here now is demonstrably lower than it was 30/40 years ago.