kmw

A lot of the vpn providers use leased lines, if your after better speeds it's best to use a commercial/corporate vpn provider, I use CNS vpn, while it's not the cheapest they have their own network, and also several options for ip, being shared private and even tor

I dont think you should worry, I've had several mistakes with dates from IO stamps on my passport, it really depends if you want to sort it out now or later,

Also I think I should add, I have two insurance providers, allianze for health insurance and great lakes for travel insurance,

The premiums are high but yet to have any issues with claims

3 hours ago, Noob81 said:

They are not, only WP works 100% these days. Opening a bank account with mickey mouse ED visa is a lot easier in fact, even Bangkok Bank which is an official partner of TE will give you grief if you just walk in (TE concierge should contact the bank first and arrange an appointment) - I was told my visa was fake as there was no PE type visas mentioned in their manuals

Yes from what I know the PE Visa is not well recognized with the banks, hence the reason thai elite do the booking and send a representative to help opening an account, the friend of mine who has the 5 years sometimes has issues with immigration, as sometimes the io just stamps the 30 day exempt,(aus passport) he said it's not usually an issue as hes out of Thailand usually before then, but he has to tell the io and say "elite" in order to get the yearly stamp, 

On 12/9/2018 at 1:29 PM, beau thai said:

it would depend on the nature of the emergency but I would choose Bangkok Hospital for the most professional expertise and care.   I have endured bad experience of nursing care and related inadequate procedures at Ram. twice.

Definiaty bangkok hospital chiang mai, its probably the most expensive, but also the best, and much better then ram,

I unfortunately suffer from pancreatitis and if I eat certain foods I end up being hospitalized severel times a year, last incident was in September I was in ICU for 11 nights and then a private room for 3 nights, total bill came to 743k thb, 

Insurance covered 710k thb, so my gap/excess as per the photo was 33k thb

I think they over service and over charge but its worth it

8 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

PE do not extend your permission to stay automatically.

 

When you enter Thailand you will be "Stamped In" for 1 year, if you're still in Thailand when your permission to stay is getting close to expiring, you need to either contact them so they can extend it for you or contact Immigration & extend it yourself, if you're sat on a beach 1 day after your 1 year permission to stay expires, you're on overstay, even if there's 4 years remaining on your visa & you have another 15 years on top of that left on your PE.

 

There's a thread on here from a guy who thought 5 years meant 5 years, ended up overstaying by > 90 days and was blacklisted for 1 year.

 

 

Key date to always keep in mind is the "Permission to stay until". 

 

 

Yes that's correct, my bad English, what I was trying to state that generally they do everything for you, except the need for the yearly extension, 

I'm seriously looking at the 5 year option as I've been on I think now 6 metv back to back along with a 2 x 90 medical extensions, my immigration history probably looks terrible when the io see it in the computer, however I only get grilled at bkk airport, immigration being into bkk itself, never an issue immigration desk for transfer onto chiang mai, phuket etc, 

My apologies, but I don't see why people would want to risk entry if they cannot afford to carry 20k thb, I'm also sorry to hear you have been mugged before, yes it's a risk of losing it but the hassle of being denied entry way outweighs the salary of a few days work, 

I'm not trolling and never have or will, I was just stating that if a person cannot afford, or take the risk of the 20k thb something is wrong, 

20k thb will last a few days in Australia, yes risk of loss is an issue, however we are double expat foriegn income, 20k thb in Thailand usually last us a bit over a week, but this does depend on the outgoings, as we are developers, 20k thb can be gone in a day, for example to clear 300 sqm of land with two excavators and a Forman money just flies out of the window!

20k thb is nothing, what are you on about? Its less then half a week wages, based on Australian median income, honestly if someone cannot afford to hold 20k thb to ensure entry for a Visa, sorry but something is very wrong

I have a friend on the PE elite Visa, no need to do the 90 day report, they take care of it for you, I think by law its necessary but they have some kind of agreement with immigration so they do it for you,

Also the PE Visa once issued cannot and has not been revoked, from what I know thier are about 4900 people on this Visa currently, 

Yes the 90 day medical extensions can be extended indefinitely, I only did it back to back twice, as I felt I was gaming the system,  just thinking, it would be a PR distaster if someone was deported who was unfit to fly or needed medication attention,

however a 12 month medical extension is also available

I drive regularly between nakon sawan and Chiang mai, fines are always 500thb, I usually drive around 130km, yet see others fly past me with a death wish,

One thing that shits me is that I've used a friends car a few times, he has a new benz, e350, and regardless of what speed I'm doing I never get fined, I asked him if he gets fined and he does not, is this normal?

Hey OP,

I'm in the same boat as you, and seriously considering the PE elite Visa, I've been here now 4 years, but mainly on the metv 6 month Visa that can be pushed out to 9-12 months with a bit of planning however I feel I'm pushing my luck a bit,

I am 35 years old and receive a foreign income from Australia, I also dont qualify for any other Visa, I'm not married, not old enough for a retirement Visa, and not willing to park the 10 million thb in a thai bank account that earns terrible interest, 

As your thinking about moving here I reccomend go for at least the metv Visa and see if you enjoy life here, if all ok then obtain the PE elite Visa, the 20 year is definiaty much better value, best to break it down and align it with your home country CPI, inflation, income etc and it's a no brainer, cheers 

1 hour ago, Danthai said:

Can one get a long term visa to stay with permanent medical conditions and requiring permanent monthly treatment, sometimes twice a month. 

This is a grey area, legally Thailand does not offer any long term medical visas, however thier are ways around this as I mentioned before. regardless of what Visa you arrive here on a, 90 day medical extension can be obtained at a hospital, they do all the paperwork for you and your passport is back the next day, no need to go to immigration, this can also be continually extended however dont push your luck, I've done this twice (180 days in total) as it's easier and cheaper for me to do this, instead of flying back to Australia to obtain another Visa, the medical extension Visa also heavily depends on the actual doctor/specialist and more importantly the hospital you are at, and the relationship they have with immigration, I live in chiang mai, and know that ram hospital and bangkok hospital chiang mai offer this service, I doubt unfortunately any of the public hospitals, or GPs/clinics would be able to offer the service.

Generally you would need a medical condition that would require at least monthly visits to the hospital along with prescription only medication thats not available at the usual pharmacy's,

I think it depends on the hospital and doctor who applies for the medical extension with the immigration department, I've had no issues at all with bangkok hospital chiang mai, yes they over service and overcharge

I personally need to see my doctor at least once per month to obtain medication, as I've been here for about 4 years they understand that its financially easier and better for me to stay in Thailand, also not to mention the hospital financially gains as well, as we all know its generally a user pays system here, and I do feel sorry for people who may need a medical extension and were not able to obtain it.

Enter a few days prior the expiry, on the metv so that's 6 months plus 60 days, then extent the tr for another 30 days(1900 thb) then it's possible to extend another 90 days on a medical extension, bangkok hospital chiang can do this, the medical extension is 1900 thb but they charge in total 5000thb inc the 1900 ext fee, they do it all for you

Wondering why dont you just fly back to Canada and get a metv? You can then stretch this out to 9 months, and possibly 12 months, I've been doing this for the last several years with no issues at immigration 

20k thb reality is nothing, it's less then a weeks work!!! (In relation to Australian median income), especially for peace of mind, myself being on back to back metv always carry 20k thb or equivalent, never been asked to show though, this being immigration at bkk and cnx,

Ah ok, was not to sure as it's all in thai, but I got it the 90 days on top of the 30 day extension that was on top of the 60 day by entering a few days prior to the metv running out, so in all I got just under one year in total

Yes that's correct, medical extension is max 90 days,

Tourist extension is 30 days,

Also sorry I dont know what paperwork was filled out, as I was in ICU so the hospital did everything for me, but from what I know my Visa was changed from tourist to medical 

6 hours ago, scottiejohn said:

I do not think we are kidding.

The surprise is to me that as a Brit is that a PO BOX does NOT appear to need a PO BOX number.  If true this is to me unusual. 

Most UK Banks will not accept PO BOX numbers for card delivery, except to a very limited number of countries (normally where that is the only method!).

Even if your bank does not accept PO BOX, just get them to send via courier, ie DHL, in the event you are not home or out of the country they can hold the item for you, and you can pick it up at the local depo,

All banks should be able to send via some sort of courier service, ie DHL, UPS, FexEX, Toll, TNT, if they cannot sell you may want to consider changing banks, as no bank that I know of will purely rely on public post services 

Myself being an expat I have never had any issues with replacement cards or sensitive documents for the last 3 years, I pay extra for my bank in Australia to send via DHL, only downside is that any parcels always get held up at customs, but envelopes always arrive usually within 24-48 hours,

Thai post and EMS I try to avoid 

On 8/3/2018 at 8:37 AM, bbi1 said:

Sydney is fine with you not giving them a outgoing flight ticket out of the country within 60 days of your 1st entry and just writing on the form that you will make a land crossing? When was that??

 

Two months ago when I called them before applying for a new METV they repeatedly told me that I must show them a flight ticket out of the country within 60 days even though you can extend another 30 days at immigration, which that lady seemed a bit surprised it could be done even though I've told her I did it for many years.......but that's another story. Anyway, I had to waste money on buying a ticket out of the country within 60 days to fulfill their requirements.

Hi, Visa was issued on the 15th March 2018 with the consulate in Sydney, from experience consulates tend to be more relaxed then embassies,

When at the counter the representative checks all the details, to ensure the Visa will be approved, this has started in the last 2 years, the application form is a bit confusing as it does not ask for exit, only for single and double, but not for metv, well that was the last time I checked, the main things they want are bank statement and entry flight, 

I always fly into chiang mai and I have never had a problem, I'm currently on my 4 metv back to back and all seems fine so far, I think I may be pushing it a bit so am considering the elite/pe visa