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NordicMan
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Posts posted by NordicMan
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Here's what happened to a guy I know:
He ordered some food service equipment for his business and some sealed packaged foods to go with them. He told the shipper in the states not to send the food with the equipment since it had to be submitted to the Thai FDA before it could be shipped.
The shipper included a sales receipt with the equipment shipment that showed the purchase of foodstuffs even though they were not on the pallets or even listed on the bill of lading. Thai Customs refused to allow the shipment into the country, refused to inspect the shipment to see that there was no food, and refused to allow the shipment to be returned to the shipper in the states. Why? Because there was un-approved food on the receipt.
In other words, they confiscated the entire shipment which I am sure ended up in the playroom of some Thai general's kids. All this happened even though one of the biggest customs brokers in Thailand was paid to facilitate importation, and all appropriate "extra-ordinary fees" were offered.
My point: BE CAREFUL. Make sure everything is perfect because if it is not, you will lose any goods that appeal to the Customs official.
Hi, this sounds quite strange. When you ship goods, there are normally 3 documents to follow it
* Bill of Lading
* Packing List
* Commercial Invoice
If the commercial invoice (what you refer to as receipt) shows goods that are actually not in the container, you are not only breaking the law, you are also creating unecessary trouble for yourself. The items on the invoice should match the packing list - if it doesn't, the freight forwarder should notice it and contact the shipper to have it corrected. Until documents are in order, the shipment should be refused (we do, at least).
brgds
nm
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Does anybody know where to get a mortgage for Thai property in the UK, or elsewhere outside of Thailand?
I heard that Bangkok Bank in Singapore used to...
Many thanks
Generally a UK bank will not have the legal right to reposess your Thai property in case you used that for security and do not repay your loan. They will thus not offer you a normal housing mortgage on your Thai property.
1. If you already have a UK property, you can re-mortgage that. Either contact your existing mortgage company to ask for an extended mortgage, or re-mortgage with another mortgage company. They will need to re-value your property, and will lend you for example 85% of the newly appraised value minus the amount you have already borrowed. This will be paid out as a cheque, you are free to use that money for whatever you like (ie. buy a Thai property). Note that your monthly mortgage repayment will increase and if you do not manage to pay back, the bank may repossess your UK property (the can NOT reposses your Thai property). (if necessary, you could borrow higher percentage than 85% too, but usually at higher interest rates)
This is what many people do. Do not confuse the term mortgage - you are NOT given a mortgage on your Thai property, it is simply an extended mortgage on your existing UK property.
2. Take an unsecured consumer loan in UK. This will have higher interest rates than #1. Again, you're just given a cheque, spend it on whatever you like.
3. Approach UOB or Bangkok Bank in SG or others, as per suggestions from other people in this thread.
cheers
NM
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I have a quote from a famous agency whose reply when questioned why a business turning over say 5m with costs of 4m could possibly make 2m profits was that I should undertake due dilligence. My further email asking why they publish such absolute rubbish remains unanswered some years later.
To the OP, I also worked in an investment bank but as a risk analyst and my starting point is that if you don't lose money then you are still in with a chance of making a profit. I have also used models to evaluate businesses in Thailand and a common trait is that people tend to think the intrinsic value of their business is worth much more than it really is, largely because they fail to factor in specific country, legal and other risks. Often owner operators forget about their remuneration or lack of it !
Agencies are poor but they offer the only real solution to many vendors who have no knowledge of what a business is worth but you have to trawl through an awful lot of rubbish to find something worth looking at and then you often find a lack of accounts, some mumbo jumbo from the seller and even hostility when pertinent questions are asked.
The idea of a franchise could appeal to me but I suspect they want silly money due to the amount of people with sums to invest who want to "live the dream" but don't really want to work.
As for starting a business which is "out of the box" thinking then beware. I have had one on the table for 2 years which my prospective customers agree offers them a far better service and at a reduced cost but they are hesitant to commit. Despite multiple meetings I have been unable to start the engine as I cannot get launch customers. They are just too stuck in their ways and things are ok at the moment. It is like I cannot give them money !
I would assume that for an existing business, unaudited accounts are a huge barrier to reliable valuation. How can you trust the accounts provided? What stops the owner from simply making up whatever financial statements he wants? I have yet to figure that out
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A friend of mine in Los and myself have the same opinion as Torrenova...but worse...my friend a business operator and 23 year expat here has not seen one business advertised by these 'business sellers' that stacks up.
When asking prices are reduced from the ridiculous to mildy ridiculous, then its obvious the the person listing the business has no idea what he is selling and simply is in it for the biggest fee he can get. So what you may say, sure I agree that buyer beware and if anyone is silly enough to pay the ridiculous prices asked, then so be it. I have seen things advertised for tens of millions and reduced by half or more over a few months of little interest.
Thing is that the broker is on the side of the seller, not you the buyer in reality.
I definitely agree with you on that point - the seller is in it to make money for himself, which he gets from as big commission as possible, which again he gets from selling the biz at as high price as possible within a reasonable timeframe...
brgds
NM
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If you really don't know, I suggest you keep your money in the bank. Perhaps if you were working in Bangkok then you would know what sort of work you were suited to.
From my experience, agencies selling businesses have no idea how to value them. One particular one went down from Bt55m to some Bt30m in a couple of weeks. Certainly the agents just put up whatever bullshit the client tells them to.
Hi, thanks for the feedback. I have also worked as a corporate finance analyst in an investment bank, so have some understanding of valuation of businesses. As for high valuations... I guess any owner would like to sell it (or any asset) for as high price as possible. It shouldn't be for the agency to value it, but for the owner, no?
I lived 7 years in the Asia region, so also have some idea of what I am suited for. My family recently purchased a smallish factory, as the previous owner wanted to retire, and that business is doing rather well now. I'm not working there myself though.
My aim was merely to generate some ideas on what type of business would be suitable, based on my circumstances. I definitely have some industries in mind. Any suggestions would be welcome.
Best regards
NM
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Hello,
I have some questions that maybe some of you guys can answer.
first, I'm graduating from San Francisco State University soon, and Im hoping that I can move back to Thailand and work there.
I was born in Thailand, but now hold a US citizen, but ever since my last couple visits, I feel like my home is truely in Thailand and I'm
looking for a good opportunity to work there.
My major is International Business, I can speak, write, and read Thai fluently.
I will be done next semester and I was wondering if any of you think I will have a good opportunity in working for a US company that has a Thailand branch. I know Unilever is one of the company that does have a branch in Thailand, I was wondering if anyone else know a good place I can look into if I want to continue with this plan. Maybe some place I can intern, hopefully around bay area.
Hopefullly if it works out, I will be getting paid in american dollar while working back in my home country.
Thank you in advance,
sincerely,
In my opinion, if you are looking for a regular "office career path", you will be much better off by working for a well-known American company in USA for a couple years first.
With little relevant work experience, it will always be easier to obtain a good job where you actually are. It takes time to get a job, the probability of taking a quick trip to BKK, get some interviews and land a job, are quite small. If you go to BKK for a longer trip (ie. months) to look for a job, you will lessen your chances of getting a job in USA in the meantime. Returning to USA after several months in BKK, to start looking for a job in US will be theoretically possible, but will in reality be difficult.
Your attractiveness in Thailand will be much higher if you have a couple years work experience in a well-known Western company in USA first... This is the case for people returning to most developing countries - those few years gained in a well known company overseas is worth gold.
Your chances of going back to USA after working a couple years in a not-so-good job in TH are also less than desireable. You will have been away from the market for a while, your work experiences may not be so relevant, and generally it will be more difficult to get a job in USA while you are not physically there (can't go to job interviews etc.)
I am sure there are many exceptions to this... myself, I quit my job in my homecountry, bought a 1-way ticket to Singapore and spent every day looking for a job. After 10 weeks I got a quite decent job, and worked there for 3 years before I returned. I wouldn't do that now, though, being married and having many financial obligations.
There are no guarantees and no absolutes... this is just my opinion on how to maximise the probabilties of getting what you want.
Best of luck
NM
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Hi all,
It has dawned upon me that the chances of either a transfer to Thailand from my current company, or independently landing a good office job in Bangkok, are rather slim.
Me and my Thai wife are considering to instead purchase an existing business - as joint partners or outright ownership.
I have spent some time looking around on sunbeltasia's website.
Any suggestions for what type of business would be suitable?
Considerations
- Capital available for investment 10-15mn baht
- Need to come with work permit for myself
- My experience are in sales, accounting, project management, consulting and general operations, mostly in IT and in shipping/logistics (retail and manufacturing).
- Either a partnership with existing owner, or a full purchase.
- Location preferrably in Bangkok
I am not looking for a go-go bar in Pattaya, or for selling properties to foreigners. It needs to be a profit making venture, a full-time job, with potential for growth. Not a semi-retirement activity.
Many thanks
NM
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My understanding is that you can get Norwegian PR with ease if (these are the key, relevant conditions)
- you are married to a Norwegian citizen
- you live in Norway, with your Norwegian spouse, continuously for 4 years
- the Norwegian spouse have his/her own accomodation and a job
- you do not spend more than 7 months outside Norway in total during this period
- you do not have a single trip of more than 3 months outside Norway during this period
If you live with your parents, it's difficult. If you don't have a job, it's difficult. If you, like me, move around with work frequently, it is very difficult.
You left out, amongst the other exemptions from the subsistence requirements:
- You are the spouse or (EVEN!) cohabitant of a Norwegian citizen, provided that both parties are aged 23 or over, or the child of a Norwegian citizen
- There are strong humanitarian considerations
Agree, but these are not very relevant for us on this forum. Strong humanitarian reasons are usually invoked for asylum seekers and refugees and their families. More relevant to us - a Thai woman married to a Norwegian, who already live in Norway and gives birth in Norway, then get divorced before receiving the PR. In this case, the woman is usually allowed to stay.
The issues for unemployed but married/cohabitants are illustrated in the examples below:
(Background: To apply for a one-year resident visa, the person must enter Norway on a 7-day TypeD visa. If the person arrives on a regular Schengen tourist visa, she can not apply for a resident visa)
Situation 1: You are unemployed and live in Norway, she live in Thailand. You get married in Thailand. In this case, she will not get a Type D visa, so can not stay in Norway. She can get a tourist visa to come see you, but cannot extend this indefinitely.
Situation 2: You both live in Thailand, married or cohabiting. You lose your job and go back to Norway. Your partner may get a Type D visa (valid for 7 days only), but if you do not have a job before the TypeD expire, she will have to return. Again, she can come on tourist visa in the meantime.
Situation 3: You live in Norway but don't want to get married, just to cohabit. If she's not already in Norway, she will of course not be allowed to enter the country just to cohabit with you. She may see you on a tourist visa, but this can't be extended for a longer period.
Situation 4: You are employed, she live with you in Norway, then you lose your job. In this case, the above paragraph will be invoked, she will not be kicked out.
I was in situation 2 myself, except living in Singapore not Thailand. When my company closed down and I returned to Norway, she came along on a TypeD visa. If I didn't find a job within 7 days (which I did), she would have to leave Norway until I did so. if i did not find a job, this could have been delayed by submitting an application anyway, as she would be allowed to stay until the application had been processed (and rejected).
You meant to say like the UK (and many other, if not all, western countries, for that matter) and UNLIKE Thailand where you CANNOT buy a house (or property in general), just condos and under very strict and limiting provisions.And, like Thailand and UK, (AFAIK) you can buy a house without a visa. It is your own responsibility to consider whether to buy a property or not, if you don't have a visa.
SORRY?I do not see that Thailand is in any unique position in that respect.Thailand is certainly not in any unique position if you compare it to the other 3rd morld countries, but it definitely is if you compare it to western countries like I guess it's here implied.
My point was not related to the visa. My point is that many countries allow you to buy a property even if you do not have a visa to stay in that country. Many people buy property in Thailand, then get upset because they are not allowed to live in it afterwards. This situation is not unique to Thailand. I was a bit imprecise in the use of the word "house". That was not the key point though. I am aware of the propery purchase rules in Thailand regarding ownership of condos, land etc.
Agree?
We also do not automatically give out any visa to people who invest in property (e.g. Malaysia style).Norway doesn't need to...
All in all, I don't get your point.
If staying in Thailand, for a spouse of a Thai citizen, was half as easy as staying (and getting the many benefits and rights) in Norway for a spouse of a Norwegian citizen you wouldn't hear many people complaining about the Thais' unfairness and sheer stupidity.
Why stupidity are you asking?
Easy (and I thougth very obvious and clear for all to see): because while Thai spouses of Norwegian citizens are usually TAKING from Norway, Norwegian spouses of Thai citizens are usually GIVING to Thailand and because Norway is a country which grants many rights and benefits to its citizens and their spouses and Thailand is a country which grants very few rights and benefits to its citizens and almost none to their spouses.
I can't believe I really have to point all of this out...
I don't think it was unclear to me in the first place, and can't remember to ask for it to be clarified. I do of course know that it's much easier for a spouse of a Norwegian to move to Norway, than it is for a spouse of a Thai to move to Thailand. I do agree that the rules are unfair, and appears not very clever.
I do point out that Norway have a similar issue as Thailand - you are fairly free to buy a house (more free than in Thailand), but that doesn't mean you necessarily will be allowed to stay there.
I still believe that Thailand is not very unique in its visa rules or property ownership rules. Slightly irrelevant, but funny example: It's only until a few years ago that a foreign woman with Singaporean husband could get a Singaporean PR, but a foreign man with Singaporean wife could NOT get a PR.
thanks
nm
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Norway, one of the top 3 richest countries in the world (depends a bit on how you measure) generally does not allow dual citizenship. That said, there are some room for exceptions.
As I wrote "the western countries I know of", I didn't know about Norway's laws in this regard.
Anyway, to prove the important points: can you confirm that a spouse of a Norwegian citizen can, with relative ease, get PR and, if so he/she wishes, citizenship?
Now, to get back briefly to the dual citizenship issue, like you say there is some room for exceptions. You can hold dual citizenship in Norway:
- if you are born with dual nationality because you have Norwegian and foreign citizenship through your parents (for example a Norwegian mother and a foreign father)
- if you are born to Norwegian parents in a country that applies the territorial principle (anyone born in a country becomes a citizen of that country) In that case, you can have both Norwegian citizenship and citizenship of the country of your birth.
- if you have applied for Norwegian citizenship and it is not possible for you to renounce your original citizenship
- if a child born before 1 Septmeber 2006 becomes Norwegian by notification.
All of this has never been possible in Thailand under their previous no dual citizenship laws (which, BTW, have been changed very recently and for the reasons outlined, reasons which would hardly apply to Norway...).
My understanding is that you can get Norwegian PR with ease if (these are the key, relevant conditions)
- you are married to a Norwegian citizen
- you live in Norway, with your Norwegian spouse, continuously for 4 years
- the Norwegian spouse have his/her own accomodation and a job
- you do not spend more than 7 months outside Norway in total during this period
- you do not have a single trip of more than 3 months outside Norway during this period
If you live with your parents, it's difficult. If you don't have a job, it's difficult. If you, like me, move around with work frequently, it is very difficult.
And, like Thailand and UK, (AFAIK) you can buy a house without a visa. It is your own responsibility to consider whether to buy a property or not, if you don't have a visa. I do not see that Thailand is in any unique position in that respect. We also do not automatically give out any visa to people who invest in property (e.g. Malaysia style).
cheers nm
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Now this would make for an interesting poll - Would you give up citizenship of your home country if Thailand would grant you citizenship? For me the answer would be a definate NO, even though I cannot stand the UK.
I wouldn't find it a particularly interesting poll since the western countries I know of all allow dual citizenship. The countries that make you give up your citizenship, if you were to take up another one, are, AFAIK, all non western. (And doesn't that tell us something..?)
Norway, one of the top 3 richest countries in the world (depends a bit on how you measure) generally does not allow dual citizenship. That said, there are some room for exceptions
In English:
http://www.udi.no/templates/Tema.aspx?id=7397
If you wish to become a Norwegian citizen, you normally have to renounce your previous citizenship.
rgds
nm
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Heres my story.
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I explained that I have 2 condos but I cant live in them - how mad is that?!!!
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The message is clear. Give us your money and get out!
But actually... I think foreigners can buy property in UK as well, without having any long term visa. I can not remember anyone checking my visa when I bought a flat in London. Similar situation to Thailand?
cheers
NM
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An absolutely impossible task. People from some native-speaking English countries cannot get their own transcripts. How do you certify your documents if your embassy doesn't do it for any price? I have my transcripts, and they look absurd.
A certified copy does not certify the original. A certified copy merely confirms that the copy is identical to the original.
Certfifying the original is done by MoE contacting the institution that issued it.
Thus, you do not need to involve your embassy.
Just bring your original to a solicitor that can make a certified copy.
If you cannot get a transcript from the institution you attended... that says quite a lof of the quality of the place that gave you your degree in the first place.
Perhaps this is impossible for a small minority... but I can't see how getting a transcript should be "an absolutely impossible task" for most people.
I had no problems getting transcripts from universities I attended in australia, norway and UK.
I don't doubt this could potentially raise the standard of teaching.... but I don't think most Thai people can afford it. Let's face it, top quality teachers, at top quality institutions also cost top dollars.
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This was just updated and released Oct 26th 2006 by the Royal Thai Government.
Annex attached to the Royal Decree
Prescribing works relating to occupation and professional in which an alien is prohibited to engage B.E.2522
38. Office or secretarial work
Source: Sunbelt Asia Group 2006-10-27
I don't get it... is all office work banned??? That covers quite a lot of jobs...
-nm
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But will the fingerprint actually be linked to the travel documents?
As long as there is no biometric information stored in the passport, I don't see how they can do that?
Will it stop people from buying passports from village people who have no intent to use it themselves?
Or will the fingerprint only be linked to some sort of national database of (un)wanted people?
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I have just bought a condo for Bt5 mill in BKK. I have a work permit, but if the worst came to the worst, I could always rent it out and live in another country.
Not ideal if I had a Thai wife here I agree, but financially I am not buggered.
Am I missing something here? I just leave Thailand and rent out my condo.
That is indeed I think what a lot of people will be doing.
But the problem is who will you rent to?
All the farang will have gone (thinking very much like you) and they are the vast majority of the high end rental market. Thai people tend to stay with relatives or have their own property.
Holiday rental is an option, but a pain in the arse to fill the calandar to get a steady income.
Agreed there will be fewer short-term foreigners renting, but my property in central Bangkok is, I imagine, attractive to the longer term stayer.
Everything happening here lately will shag the tourist industry though. In time a few of the more influential Thais (especially hoteliers, tourism moguls) will realise what's happening and I think attitudes will soften- just as in 97.
The leaders in this country never learn....
My thoughts....
The problem is that there will be fewer long-term stayers, and fewer potential buyers of your place. rental income will go down... Same for sales price.
It's not that there will be NO long-term tenants. Just that there will be fewer of them.
The supply of rental condos is then likely to increase, as the current owner-tenants may have to leave (like you) - thus creating additional space for rent.
Long-terms condos in Bangkok are not very attractive for holiday stayers - tourists levels may stay about the same, but they won't rent your condo so it doesn't really matter.
Increased supply and decreased demand....
Cheers
NM
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Is there an advantage having the domain name .co.th or .ac.th as opposed to .com (they seem to be more expensive) if the website is for a thai audience - (although not based in Thailand)?
I recommend you to consider getting both, and forward one to the other.
You want it to be easy for people to find your website - also for people who only vaguely remember the name of your site.
I used to work in a company building public websites for MNCs and I was always amazed at how they didn't think twice of spending $100,000 on a website yet wanted to save $50 on registering a few more domains.
cheers
nm
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What I really want to know is..
5. ........ is it a proud thing to do, as is it looked well upon by the local people.....
I have my reasons for wanting to know. This guy is yanking everyones chain in the family as
well has turned the sister into a cheap charlie snob so to speak just like him.....
If it is respectful and on the up and up then ok, but if it is not I want to be able to call the
kettle black as it is...
In my opinion it seems like not the right thing to do..
I welcome all your next opinions and knowledge of what it is in England...
In my opinion, it varies very much from family to family, and also from location to location. Most people in my family, including myself, very much looks down on this and it is considered something that only very "low" people will do. Then I know friends of friends who think leeching as money off the government as possible is the most natural thing to do.
I would be a bit careful about this in public - if you publicly express that you approve of this, you may lose a lot of respect from others.
When I hear Thai housewives sit and talk about how much money they can get off the government, I get p*ssed off and asks them...
If I walk into your village in Thailand, tell everyone that I do not want to work, i just want to sit home, and I want everyone else in the village to give me a few baht each, per day, so I can buy drinks and food. That's what you do in England - you don't want to work, instead you ask people like myself to pay tax so the government can take a bit money from each of us and give it to you. Is that common in your home village??? If not, then <deleted> off.
And I think your wife's friend's Portuguese guy does the same - nothing but a leech on society. He is happy to ask for free handouts from the government because that is inpersonal, but he doesn't have the guts to look me in the eye and ask me, and everyone else in his street and neighbourhood, to give him 10p every day.
cheers
nm
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Now we know.............It Costa-lot.....
Need a Pay Rise..........
The survey is indexed against New York and measured in US dollars.
3 New York 105.0
7 Zurich 100.0
How can it be indexed against new York, when NY is 105.0 and Zurich 100.0 ????
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So what and why have you given up anything to be with this woman? How long have you known her that you would give up anything to make a relationship work. Seems if it was worth any trouble that she would be willing to take the TIME to get everything else together befor asking or talking about the problems she seems to have.
As others have posted: It's no problem to sell a house that has a mortgage and I would think that you would have enough brains to figure this out. It would be totally ILLOGICAL to think: OH shucks, I have this house but it's not paid off yet but I want to sell, oh what am I going to do???
Now, if you had stated that they can no longer keep up the payments on this house and had problems, then I might have thought differently, but then again if they asked you to pay it off, I sure as hel_l would run if I were you.
Sounds like at least the MOM (if not others) is playing games.
Well, I live in London and I have a big problem selling off my mortgaged house. The bank requires an early repayment fee of 6% of the outstanding amount if I repay within the first 2 years - which I rather not pay.
This doesn't make it impossible to sell it off, but it's not something I easily can do.
Who knows if there are any restrictions on the mortage in question by the OP. It's worth putting in some time to verify it - check with the bank that issued the mortgage for example.
rgds
nm
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I may be wrong, but I reckon the potential loss of investment from farang house owners doesn't even warrant a footnote on the agenda of Thaksin and his cohorts right now.
And whoever wins the election - probably TRT - it will still not raise anyone's pulses for a very long time to come.
We flatter ourselves if we really think they give a shit about either us, intenational opinion or the effect on the regional economies.
Eventually they may do something, but many farangs may get burned in the meantime.
I have asked several of my Thai, foreign-university educated friends in Bangkok, none of them had even heard of the recent enforcement of the restrictions on farangs buying land. It seems that you are dead right, this is not a big thing for neither the upper middle class Thais, nor for the majority of the population in the agriculture and villages. The few people I have met who are a bit interested are those with foreign husband ... and the majority of Thai's actually don't have foreign husbands.
On a similar note, I must admit that I am not terribly interested in foreigners ability to own versus lease land in neither my home country or where I'm staying now (England), and it is not something that influences who I will vote for on upcoming elections.
cheers
nm
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Do the USA and UK authorities watch for prescription-type drugs being brought in from Asia?
Most Euro countries will watch for it. If you bring in large amounts of Viagra, Valium or steroids, you can sell them in the huge black market in western europe for 2-5 times the price you bought them for in pharmacy in Bangkok.
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The Samui land grab has been a big topic in the Thai news for several weeks. Now it takes 100 officers to arrest a (probaly low-ranking) land officer and two "ordinary people"? They were "using influence to pressure local businesses and people to sell business and land to them"? How does that work in practice? And then bribe the one officer who was arrested to forge land papers, and if more were bribed, why weren't they arrested as well? What about the head of the land office? Wait, there was a foreigner arrested and thre more involved... They sent money received (from abroad) for overpriced property back abroad. Money leaving Thailand, now this is sinister.
Good it was just one lowly officer and a bunch of farangs, not corrupt politicians and their cronies. Biggest bull I've read in a long time even considering that TIT.
If you had any knowledge of the biker gang Bandidos, as they are alleged to belong to, your question would be superfluous. Not long ago a gang member fired a military rocket into the compound of the rival gang. And the gang responded by mowing down a member at the airport with a submachinegun. (The events could have happened in reverse order, i don't remember the exact details) Torture and murder are commonplace. That sure "influences" most normal people. If someone threatens to gangrape your daughter while you are forced to watch, I would consider it as "influence to pressure". if someone suggest they will burn down your house with your family inside while you are sleeping, I would also consider it as "influence to pressure".
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You've probably seen them. Glossy four page real estate ads that actually cover up the front page of the Bangkok Post.
On Friday, there was another one. This time showing all farang buyers and giving short captions of these happy homeowners basking in the luxury of their new houses in Bangkok's Sukhumvit-Srinakarin area.
Well only someone who is brain-dead or just never reads the news inside the paper would not be aware that it is ILLEGAL for a foreigner to buy and own property.
So then, is the Bangkok Post breaking the law by allowing its advertisers to suggest otherwise? I'm sure there is some legal clause that lets the Post off the hook. But what about a newspaper code of conduct? Is there one that covers this? Should a newspaper knowingly publish adverts that encourage readers to break the law?
What is the problem? Bangkok Post is a Thai newspaper in English catering for a large group of people including many entitled to own land in Thailand. I find Bangkok Post to be a good newspaper trying to cover news for Thais as well as "non-Thais". They are pretty "open" and many of my Thai friends read it as well. Do not be narrowminded.
Agree, what's the problem? I am a foreigner, my wife is Thai. Should Bangkok Post be banned from advertising houses that we could be interested in? It is quite common knowledge that Bangkok Post is read by many Thai people as well.
Bangkok Post is not widely circulated outside of Thailand, it is unlikely that some foreigner unaware of the real estate market in Thailand will pick up B.Post at a newsagent in Casablanca or Bratislava and instantly commit his life savings to buying the property.
Lastly, in case you haven't noticed, Thailand is not a heavily regulated society. There simply are not rules and laws covering every minute detail of life, and where there is, they are not always strictly enforced. People are generally happy this way. It does place some responsibility on the individual for considering his actions. If you thrive in a more regulated society, there are plenty of them, also in tropical locations (e.g. Singapore).
Best regards
NM
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Hi,
How much are all the charges for buying a house in Pattaya at around 5mill bht?
I'm thinking of stamp duties, lawyers fees etc.
It will be in my Thai wife's name, no need for company set-up (if that still works)
rgds
nm
Import/export Questions.
in Jobs, Economy, Banking, Business, Investments
Posted
I assume in your friend's example, the shipper had to take responsibility for the problems and re-sent goods free of charge. As I see it, this was caused by the American freight forwarder, not the Thai customs broker. What could the Thai broker do? The only thing they could do was to notice the discrepancy in the documents and ask the freight forwarder to correct their error. You could say that it was sloppy work to present incorrect dox to Customs, but the error was not caused by them in the first place.
It's best to be vigilant when dealing with American freight forwarders
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