Prajak

I need a TM30 for my new driving licence, for buying a motorcycle and for extension of my ret extension. TM 30 says "notification form for house master, owner or the posessor of the residence where alien has stayed" .

It is simple, they need this thing. I made copies and supply one each year to Nongkhai Immigration.

But they do not ask for it when I do my 90 days thing.

So sad this story. Do you look for help at home or in a hospital or nursing home ? You are not so far from the university hospital Srinagarin in KhonKaen and if your father in law is a Thai national than he can go there.

In Nongkhai a farang died (liver cancer) and he had 2 retired nurses in his house 24/7 to take care of him and to supply the morphine pills in milk...... But there was no palliative care possible. For palliative care you must be in hospital.

The Nongkhaimap forum ? Anything going on there ? The last post about accomodation is from March 2010.

A Swedish run volunteer thing. That could be something like "teach to learn" or "learn to teach". These people have an international website; the leading lady here indeed is Swedish. They have an office in NK close to town. You pay, they arrange a visa, and you can teach at schools. If I can help just ask me. I live close to town.

Nongkhai Immigration demands this for a few years now. They even send you a letter by post close to renewal and it states clearly that the income statement from your embassy must be verified at Chaeng Wattana. So I follow their rules. They check this extra paper too. And the letter does not say that this rule is only for Dutch nationals.....I heard that German nationals have the same questions.

In October and November you don't need an aircon room. And in December you need a pullover in the evening.

Try this.

http://www.thailand-travel-help.com/khiang-khong-guest-house.html

wifi in the central room and in some of the rooms. Tel nr and email on the website. Centre of town, close to the river. Quiet as far as I know. So try and call them.

And visit the website of mutmee Nongkhai and call Julian. May be they have internet too.

An appartment with wifi will be hard to find for a few weeks.

Good luck.

So, even a good guesthouse can do for a few weeks IF there is an internet connection. I will ask tomorrow. Did you try to find the website of mutmee guesthouse ? I will try now.

No. No problems in Nongkhai town. Smell of cars and tuktuk's but their noice is worse. And in the hills no smoke in the way other parts of the country suffer. Yes, they sometimes burn rice fields but people here have small ricefields, one or two ngaan, and than you smell smoke just one day. That's the way they work here. Some fields are with rice, some fields are resting, some fields will be burned and than they start working with the iron buffalo. I live 8 km from town and never had a problem with my longs.

What would you like to pay for a furnished appartment ? The so called CONDO condominium close to the river and the Chayaphum market has several furnished rooms to let. The hotel next to it has cheap rooms for a month or two. A few guesthouses offer a cheap monthly rate. I guess in a commercial building you pay about 4 tot 5 k baht per month. Cheaper will be hard to find. Internetcafe's are in town.

In Nongkhai the embassy letter stating your income MUST be in English or Thai AND must be verified in Bangkok Chaeng Wattana. This is a rule for many years there. The bank statement must be from the same day you apply. Nowadays they want you to sign a letter stating that IF circumstances change after you had a new extension they can kick you out of the country. My lawyer asked them about these conditions and their answer was that there had been fraud with embassy papers. I talk about a ret extension; do not know about other extensions.

If mutmee is full (but this is the quiet season) try a new building at the river front close to the Tha Sadeth market, near Rolf and Kan restaurant. Clean, new, quiet, about 600 b. Tuktuk's to the bridge at 50 m.

I have never heard of such a question by the tax authorities. Not in 8 years.

" A Thai national can own property, including land, even when married to a foreigner. In the past a Thai woman couldn't own land if married (..to a farang..), but the law changed. "

True. The law has been changed since a court ordered that this was discrimination.

Find a good lawyer if you want usufruct in your name. By the way, the "gift" before marriage has been seen through by a few land offices. You need a good lawyer. Ask your ambassy, they usually have a list. Better pay 30 k for GOOD advice and help than lose your money.

Treaties first, than national law. If your "home" country has a tax treaty with Thailand than your income is taxable in a country according to the treaty. In the standard tax treaties you see that government pensions are taxable in the "paying" country and private/company pensions in the country where you live, in this case more than 180 days per year. So check the tax treaty first. If there is no, well, than check the Thai laws. And may be you have to wait a year. A year ? What is "a year" in this case ? Does it mean "earned in this calendar-year, taxable in this calendar- year" or is "a year" 12 months ?

Insulation is NO solution for a leaking roof. Find the problem and repair it. Rooftiles are cheap. When the roof goes down more and more you will never find the spot or it will cost you much more. And the water will get through the insulation on the long run. Check your roof first.

90 ? And still...? Could be a setup or maybe it happened ? Did he pay the parents ? Did they know ? Did they allow ?

It's up to the judge now. In jail ? Not likely. Take his money to compensate the children ? Than send him back to Down Under ?

Why does this only happen in Thailand; or does this happen more than we know...?

In Udon you can rent a taxi (private) for about 800 baht at the airport. Taxi's in town tend to be more expensive. They will bring you to the bridge in 45 min max. You can also sleep in NK for an amount between 200 en 2.000 baht and take an early tuktuk to the bridge. But forget that you have your stamp in one day. It is "queueing up" in the ambassy.....

And take a look at official Thai holidays......and Lao holidays...... Or call the embassy in Laos before you go.

You can do the Lao visa in Laos. You do not need an agent. Take a pic with you.....

But early in the morning the busses from Udon arrive and they get priority in Laos. So you have to wait some time.

The tuktuk fee from the RR station to the bridge should be 20 baht but since the tuktuk drivers are waiting long time for customers they charge 30 and will try 40. 30 Baht is OK than. But you can walk too, it is not far.

Be careful. Some visa agents in NK are not accepted at the other side of the border. They will send you back or let you wait long time. Some agents use stolen visa stamps...

Again, you can do all visa stuff at the other side of the bridge. They speak English. Signs are in English too.

Good luck.

You must always obey the law ! Even when the customs officers are sleeping. So if you leave the shuttle bus as the last person, and you dawdle over the entree card, can not find your passport, can not find your glasses, are the last one in the queue, get your stamp and ask the officer how long you can stay this time, see the shuttle bus leave (it is only one hundred meter to the station...) than you will find the customs officers back in their office. No one will notice you. But you still must report....... But do you ?

In Nongkhai the officers accept a letter which is 6 weeks old. But my embassy gives me, on my request, a statement about the income IN THE PREVIOUS YEAR.

Is time important ?

Both Nongkhai and Surin have railway but not the same line. From NK you can take the 3d class train about 13 h to Korat. It will be there about 19 to 20 h. In Korat trains go to Surin. Departure time, please google for the state railway of thailand. In Nongkhai a train leaves for Saraburi (not Korat) about 6 am and two trains to Saraburi in the evening. Both in Saraburi and Korat you can take a train to Surin.

I wonder if it is better to take the aircon bus from NK to either Khonkaen or Korat. I am sure there is an aircon bus from Korat to Surin. From Khon Kaen to Surin I do not know.

A sleeper train from NK brings you to Saraburi in I think 8 to 9 hours. You will be there very early in the morning.

Why not take the 13 h train to Korat, sleep there, and find a train or bus to Surin. But there is no real comfort in a 3d class train.....and very crowded.

Nobby has never been "mister kind" ! But he is a hard working farang. His wife Noi is OK. I know Nobby for more than 17 years now and he is OK but sometimes (...always...) a grouser. But his food is OK and his servive too unless you want a big smile. Appreciate the man for his food and forget the other things. It is a pity he left Nongkhai but his stuff is still for sale here.

Julian is a nice guy. Convince him that your lady is not a h@@ker and you have no problems with him. I know Julian for more than 15 years and he is just concerned about his place...and likes to avoid short time business. Right he is !

Ruan Thai is OK.