4MyEgo

Would you pay to read it ?

Best thing I ever did when I met my wife, was come back and take her to my country for 9 years, away from the bubble she grew up in. It was an adventure for her and she saw first hand how foreigners work and how expensive the cost of living was, and that not all farangs are rich ATM machines, like most Thai's think. Did she learn anything in those 9 years, yes she did, why, because she has an open mind, she became a citizen with ease, not like me, her husband has to report every 90 days and do annual extensions, gee, she didn't even work or have to speak fluent English, just sit for a test and answer some questions about the history of the country that even I didn't know. She even received free health care while not a citizen. She despises how Thai governments control her people and how corrupt they are, and how their departments function, and how Temples are not what they were supposed to be. Does she put her family first or ours, does she put her husband 1st or Thai's 1st, does she agree with the builder when he says the opposite of what I have requested, or does she tell him that as Mr Farang is paying you to do the job the way he wants you to do the job, you should do the job the way he wants you to do it, or he will find someone who will, up to you, keep it simple, keep it sweet. Does she agree with what others think, or does she correct them or does she just keep to herself and say, it's not worth the effort or has she enlightened those who she believes have open minds and told them that there is actually land on the other side of the ocean and how things actually are. Oddly enough, when she goes to the local markets, the grocers selling there produce ask her why she is the only Thai married to a farang that doesn't dress up and have a designer brand bag, with her reply being, because I am not a madam.....LOL Sounds like you didn't look into the product before you purchased it, and you have too options, explain to her that it's your way or the highway. Don't get me wrong, I argue/disagree with my wife on occasion, only natural, and she can be stubborn, and so can I, but as she learned very early in the piece that I have certain boundaries, e.g. when we were building the house and the father-in-law kept coming over everyday acting like the supervisor, he said something to her and she relayed it to me, I still remember it clearly to this day, she knew she had to relay it gently because I could raise my voice in front of her father and she didn't want any problems. It was in the 40'sso it was hot which didn't help and I was pushing the wheel barrow with heavy loads up and down, and she said, Tiruk, Papa said you cannot put toilet in the house, I said, really, why, and she said because Thai don't want house to smell, to which I replied, that is why we put a stink pipe outside, oh, she said (I have knowledge in building), so I explained it to her and she relayed it to her dad, the builder and workers were all close by and listening to the conversation, and all of a sudden the old man started to raise his voice, wife tuned into a little mouse from her father's reply, and then he started talking to the builder, I then asked the wife what was going on, she said, he is old darling, and I don't want to upset him, I said well if you don't want to upset me, then you better tell me what is going on. She said he said no, you cannot put the toilet in the house, and he is telling the builder not to put the toilet in the house. That is when the father-in-law learned to respect me, I said Pau, he turned, and I beat my chest like an ape and pointed to the front gate, I think the look on my face told him that if he didn't get the F out of here, he would see my wraith, he left in a huff, I then turned and looked at all the workers who were dumbfounded and I said to my wife, to tell the builder to do as I ask of him, however if he or anyone else isn't happy with things, they can follow my father-in-law, they smiled, gave me the thumbs up and carried on. Wife went to the family house that evening and thought the father would be livered, he was quiet and while they were eating he said to her, I like your husband, he has balls, he will protect you, good man.....LOL, respect can come at a price, he has never tried to show me who's boss ever again, we smile at each other and put the chin up when we see each other, he knows I am not a Thai son in law, so he can't get away with it. Happily married 15 years, my advice would be to ignore her and perhaps fade away, do your own thing and when she asks what's wrong, tell her your taking to a farang fortune teller who says this and that, make it up as you go, and when she starts to question the logic, then explain to her that that is exactly how you feel when she talk about Thai's knowing better, in other words, what's good for the Goose is good for the Gander, or is it.

Don't be such a racist, low life's are in every country.

So who's fault is that, his own in my opinion. Surely he could have had a wife, a friend of a friend's wife or someone translate the form to him, Dr's adding the part about amputating his leg after he signed I find a little disheartening. Sad that he lost his leg though, but if people don't know not to sign something in another language to me is like carry a bag for someone you just me at the airport. Light on full information, e.g. was he married, retired, didn't he have someone translate the document to him other than hospital staff, if they actually did, which I am sure they would have told him, his leg needs to come off, I say that because I know a farang who recently had his amputated, (motorcycle accident) and he said the Dr's in the public hospital said, he leg wasn't improving and had to be amputating to which he agreed and it was removed from the knee down.

Are you serious, that works out to 7,000 baht saving over 10 years. I only report to immigration once a year to do my renewal, 90 days are done on line effortlessly. Re-entry permit at Swampy on my way out, 1,000 baht, again, effortless. If you have an income stream of $80,000 USD, you can do what you want, I don't make that kind of money from my investments, but if I did, I wouldn't change things, I park money in my account once a year for my annual budget, it doesn't effect me regarding what and when the amount was put in for immigration purposes, I just time it right and with enough money in there not to worry about peeing some I/O off.

That is sad. There is a major problem in Australia for anyone who things the grass is greener on the other side and the government ) both governments, no just Liberal, also Labor place huge restrictions on those of us who want to go. Let me provide you with a couple of examples to which you may not be aware of, and possibly others. Once your out for 183 days, you could lose your residency for tax purposes, this is my opinion happens automatically if you don't lodge a tax return, which means you will pay 32.5c in every dollar tax earned in Australia. If you have a property under the NEW legislation (2022), as a non resident for tax purposes you will pay capital gains tax at 42c in the $ from the day you purchased your principal place or residency, regardless if you have rented it out or not. Medicare goes out the window once your absent for 5 years and you have to go back to reapply. You cannot vote anymore once you are a non resident. I could go on, but I won't, everyone has to do there own research and look how best they can live a life in Thailand without being penalised by the government back home. What I am trying to say is that some of us have to cut ties to an extend, e.g. not worthwhile holding onto property if you cannot keep your residency, any increase will be taxed at 42c as mentioned, and if you do rent it out, you cannot claim diddly squat on it until you sell it, yes any negative gearing, repairs etc are non claimable until you sell it. Oh, there's also the annual land tax for non residents, which is on top of the council rates, although I will stand corrected if that is not the case. For me, forcing me to cut ties with Australia has worked out well, e.g. I invest in Oz and pay zero tax, it's possible, you just have to do your research, I still use Medicare to my advantage when I return (under 5 years) and get my card renewed before expiry date, i.e. don't wait for them to send it to you, won't happen. As for voting, couldn't give a rats a$$, renew my drivers licence every 5 years at the motor registry and pay the hefty $194, why because you don't know what tomorrow will bring and I don't want to go through a process whereby I would have to sit for a driving knowledge test and driving test and I know I would tell everyone to F off, if I flunked, too old for that sheet. If coming here with nothing and not on the pension, those falling short of the old age pension age have to return and do their 2 year jail term to have it made portable to be paid here. The above said, I would never even dream of coming to Thailand on just a pension, what kind of existence would that be, yes, I could imagine it being tougher in Oz, but if one didn't put in the hard yarns when younger to get ahead in life, it wouldn't be a pretty existence here or in Oz in my opinion, that said, life would be much better here with the money you would have from the sale of an asset, and personally, I don't care about any capital gains back home, they can have it, my last place increased by $30,000 per annum for 6 years after I sold it, so that incoming owner had to pay $30,000 in stamp duties, agents reselling costs $15,000, allow $30,000 for council/water rates/strata levies for that 6 year period, add solicitors buying and selling fees of $5,000 and that $180,000 increase over that 6 year period that I have lived here has been reduced to $100,000, that said, I have made more than $180,000 tax free living here in that period, which works out to be about 62,500 baht per month on that figure, debt free, car paid off, no money owing to anyone, and no work, stress, pressure, just living the life. Not working hard, poor planning will provide you with a poor existence in Thailand IMO, as for the old age pension, they can have it, who knows how much longer they will allow it to be portable ?

I built mine for 1/10th the cost, i.e. $100,000 in a rural area, that said, I knew of a bloke up the road in the same area who paid $240,000 (6,000,000 baht) to build the same house, but half the size of ours, i.e. 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, the land was however was double the land size of ours, i.e. 2,000 square metres, and not included in the build price, it is also on a main road with double bogie's passing by frequently tearing up the bitumen. For $270,000 Dave would not want to be in a rural area IMO, i.e. unless that price includes a huge land parcel, in any event, he could have invested too much of his wealth, because when and if the relationship goes south, he could be out of pocket half of that amount at least and take years to sell. The guy who built the house in our area, no longer lives there, wife kicked him out and later sold it for 4,000,000 baht to another farang married to a Thai. Rumour had it that the brother-in-law built the house and bought a new Ford Wild Track shortly after the house was completed, not bad at 1.6 mil, thanks for coming Mr Farang.

I know of a bloke who applied for one, said would take 45 days and 50,000 baht with his application, he also had to prove that his annual income, not money in the bank, annual income was $80,000 USA, guess that will stop 99.99% of those intending to apply for this 10 year visa. If they had half a brain and were over 50, they could park 800,000 baht in the bank and apply for a retirement extension for the huge sum of 1,900 baht per annum, plus 1,000 for the re-entry permit or the multi re-entry permit for 3,800 baht which includes the annual renewal fee, I believe ? This all sounds to me that Thai's think foreigner's are rich with massive income streams, bound to be another flop in my opinion.

Back in the old country there was a section in the Trade Practices Act, which I believe was Section 32 or something like that, but would have changed these days, and carried a $200,000 fine, something Thailand lacks, It was called Misleading and Deceptive conduct. Vest thing you did was walk out, and make sure you don't return and tell others as you have here, but of course don't mention the name otherwise you could see yourself being sued, hence the reason it's all wrong here. Next time your out and about, buy a pizza from another place who have their name on the box, and go stand out the front of this place and eat it, taking your time of course and showing them that you are enjoying it, nothing wrong with that oi ! If that's not enough revenge for you, ring them and tell them that you want to place a large order for a party, but will have to be COD, if they say can't, say it's at least 5,000 baht's worth, then if they bite, make the order, and give them the cop shops address, the cops will appreciate the free food, just make sure it's a new sim your using in someone else's name ???? Must jet, my pizza just came out the over.

Summed up to perfection. I have lived here 7 years now and have returned 4 times in that period to see family, some close friends, some Specialists, and some Dr's for me and the Mrs, and to get a years worth of subsidised meds for me which are 5 times the price here. Medicare gives us something back, usually 50% for the Specialists and Dr's albeit it they have moved the bar on pap smears to every 5 years now, previously 3, so they stuck it to the Mrs, or should I say me for 4,000 baht, but no point in crying over spilt milk, health comes 1st. I did enjoy the colder climate and walking a lot in it, the public transport and cheaper food prices at the bigger stores vs paying higher prices here because of their import duty for the same items. Staying 14 kilometres outside the city in a 2 bedroom apartment through Airbnb was 6,000 baht per night and was cheaper and larger than any hotel room, was centrally located and had parking, the same apartment would rent for 15,000 baht per week on a 6 month lease which makes me think how on earth do people afford to live there. One would have to earn $31,200 net, just for the rent which would mean for a 2 income family, one income provider would have to earn $35,000 gross to cover the rent, no doubt that would be the mum, who would also have to pick up kids from school, and the other would have to earn pretty much the same to basically survive, if you could call it that. The husband or other income provider would pay for everything else, e.g. electricity, gas, car registration, petrol, car insurance, car maintenance, public transport, parking, food, clothing, appliances, occasional dentist visit, pre-school, school uniforms etc etc, suffice to say the cost of food isn't cheap and one would have to be selective, and as for eating out, that's a non even as I found out, a simple rib-eye steak at a local RSL would set you back 1,125 baht, a schooner of beer pretty much 200 baht unless it's during happy hour which would drop down to 125 baht. What kind of existence would that be ? Would I return, not a chance in hell, i.e. unless I was booted out of here, life is good, take the good with the bad in every government run country. It is much cheaper here to live that is for sure, but also depends on what you like to eat, drink and where you choose to go for holidays. Won't be going back in a hurry, although the daughter who lives there did say her wedding would be in 2 years, I said make it 3 + ????

What I find here is that every office has different rules, some know what they are doing, others don't, this is not only a Thai thing and happens overseas, depends on who you get. But from what I have heard is, there are some offices that don't want to give out yellow books, for what ever reason, that said, we had to provide them with a stack of documents, which included marriage certificate from abroad and overseas address. I believe you need to get your marriage certificate from here stamped at the British Embassy and then here in Thailand for what it's worth, in other words everyone wants a bit of the cherry and it costs at both. As for the address overseas, give them a mates address. Having had the yellow book for years, never used it, so if it's too hard, just let it slide, your here to chill, don't let them spoil that over a piece of paper, that or do as they want and see what they want next. Remember this is the land of no sense and paper pushers,

I had 3 doses and caught it, milder than any flu I had in the past, not bad enough to stop me going about my day, soar throat for a day in the beginning, head ache around the back of the head, some muscle pain and being lethargic, that's all.

Sack the judge and any other judge who does this, do a complete retrial and put the guy away for 10 years with no parole, DUI, 2 lives taken, 1 seriously injured, throwing money at them might help the families, but we all know it's a bribe, so give them the money and the driver a 10 year jail term, that is how you send out a clear message. He will be out by his 39th birthday and will have the rest of his life ahead of him.

You must be the only one as all I read on forums and hear from friends how long it takes, 6-12 weeks. I recall renewing my kids passports in Phuket on a return overseas trip, it took about 3 weeks, that was in 2019. They didn't want to send them to me, I said them you catch the 2 hour flight to Udon Thani, then drive one hour and deliver them to me. After threatening the staff member behind the counter who was a typical no flexible government worker that I would escalate it all the way to the Minister in Canberra, she walked off, came back with another member and he said, we don't trust EMS, I said, well I do and I accept full responsibility if they get lost, that would then be my problem, wouldn't it, he nodded and they agreed as a one off to send them by EMS, which they did. What they don't understand is that I will go back for a holiday again and repeat what I did with the wife's and my passport next time as it's cheaper than flying to Bangkok and having to return or cross over to Laos and return, it should be a one way event, they should also have an outreach post for it's Citizens to be able to lodge them and then send them, but typical Australian Government bureaucracy, always making life difficult for it's Citizens instead of working with them, in my opinion.

Your a funny guy, did you say I was bagging you in previous posts....LOL No seriously, I really appreciate all your time and "frustrations", only one thing you overlooked I believe, i.e. yes I do have a dual sim mobile, I have a sim for overseas clients who call my number back in the old country which is on roaming and I get the call here, answer it and call them back from my Thai sim, e.g. I explain to them that I am here at the moment and will call them from a Thai number so they don't think it's a scammer calling them. Keeping the overseas number is a money maker so I can't take that sim out of my mobile, therefore it leaves me with the other sim (Thai) and not wanting to lose my Thai number for the overseas codes, I must retain that sim (number) and add internet to it as opposed to getting a new sim (number), it's a no brainer to me. I think it's pretty clear what I have to do, and like I said, I appreciate all your efforts and getting your nickers in a knot. That said, I see that I will have to continue to waste 632 baht per month on 3BB to provide me with internet at home for the kids, the wife, and myself on the laptop, i.e. if we don't want to lose our mobile numbers by getting new sims, so the wife and I have no option but to get the 1,800 baht + VAT internet add on's to our existing sims. There is also one other thing if I went down your route, i.e. how would the kids get internet access when I'm not home and the mobile is with me, you must be single ? As for reading hardcopy books, it's been a while, any suggestions ? Have a good day ????

I think that's all good if you don't have kids chewing the internet from watching Netflix and playing iPads and Tablets. To keep my same number looks like I will have to go with the unlimited True package with 1Mbps which I believe will be enough for me to use Bank Apps, Messenger, Line and WhatsApp when I am away from the house, and maybe a little YouTube or Google to find something that I might want when away from my laptop. But I hear you load and clear, so for me I believe the best option for me is to get the 12 month add on with my existing number for 1,800 baht + VAT. I need the same number for texts from overseas which give me bank codes and other codes to identify myself, trying to tell them that I have changed my mobile number from here is like trying to catch a rocket to the moon and it cannot be done online, tried it before and I had to wait 45 minutes on the phone to talk to a real person. The above is affordable for me and should work well, thanks for all of your information and others, much appreciated.

Told you I was behind the times....LOL

Flew into swampy late on a Friday afternoon, no one at counter, walked straight up, handed my passport, did the bio's and was out in less than 3 minutes, bags took a while which is understandable given the time they take to travel around the airport from the plane. Exiting Sydney in Oz for Thailand on the Friday morning was a joke, at least 45 minutes to get to the self check in counters where you put in your passport and then get your photo taken, then you go through another zigzag que for about 15 minutes to put your carry on through, an hour all up, that was a joke, with 10 minutes to spare to get on the plane, heart rate was definitely up. It's a bit like renewing a passport, Thailand passport, went in on the Monday, was in the mailbox on Friday, as for Australian passports, I hear it takes between 6-12 weeks W-T-F !

Thanks for the information, appreciated, as for me bagging your comments, that would be a rare, perhaps differences of opinions, no offence should be taken, and personally I can't recall bagging your comments, as I said, I rarely have differences of opinions with other posters, albeit it there is one or two, but I don't have a little black book. FYI: As of this morning, wife has found a yearly add on with True for something like 1,980 baht per annum which sounds like the way to go, and as for hard line internet with 3BB, it works well for me the wife and the kids for watching Netflix, kids playing with their iPads, Tablets and me on the laptop as mobile screens are far to small for me to spend hours on. Again, thanks for your input, and never hold a grudge towards another posted, call it water off a ducks back, the ones that really got under my skin in the past got blocked, easily done, suffice to say, as you haven't blocked me, I would say it would have been a mild bagging ?

Thank for that, I will look into this, that said, my wife says to NEVER use Wi-Fi in public areas as they are unsecure, for me personally, I have no idea, perhaps she is referring to when doing withdrawals from the banking app, I don't know, as I am well behind the times as mentioned. Even as recent as staying in a hotel with free Wi-Fi, she said don't use it and let me piggyback from her internet using hotspot, just for doing normal stuff on the internet, no banking, is she right ? I don't really have an amount that I spend on credit every month, I just top up online via my bank on my laptop, usually 1,000 baht as I do make some overseas calls to clients every now and again, as I use messenger or Line or WhatsApp to talk to friends overseas. I will look at your link and the 3BB situation thanks, just not sure if shopping centre Wi-Fi and hotel Wi Fi is safe, others say it is, wife says it's not, but is that only for banking or can others see what your doing, not that I care, but if it's for banking, that's a no brainer.

I don't think the 10k baht is a deterrent as he and others still drive over the limit, agree it's about making money, and not saving lives at all. Stick them in the think tank, that would be the deterrent I say.

What a confusing story to say the least, even after my 2nd black coffee.

I heard first hand from a bloke that I know in Udon Thani that he was slightly over at about 10.15pm on a Saturday night, and was given two choices, i.e. pay 10k baht or so and go home, otherwise go to jail for the night, pay 20k fine and go to court the next day. He was driven to an ATM and paid and was let go. Is this a deterrent or is it for their pockets I ask you, who is policing what ?

I don't have a package, only use phone for calls, and when at home use the Wi-Fi from the 3BB router for internet, and when I go out and require internet the wife will provide me with free Wi-Fi for the day so that she can send me pics of what she requires, if I'm not sure (shopping), no, she doesn't have me well trained, I just find it's cheaper if I do the shopping, in and out in less than an hour vs checking every shelf of every isle for 4 hours and walking out with much more than wanted ???? I have always been the one not wanting Wi-Fi as I don't use it when out and about, that said as mentioned earlier, technology has caught up with me with banking apps, and others, so it's like the old saying goes; swim or drown. As you suggested I will go into True and see what they offer as an add on and go from there.

Not wanting to steal the posters forum, but I am interested in getting Wi-Fi when I leave the house, e.g. I only have internet when I am at home and seldom have the need for Wi-Fi when I am out, but now trying to keep up with technology and having to us apps, I will need to see what I can do about paying for data so I have Wi-Fi when I leave the house. I like the sound of 1,000 baht for 1 year for 10Mbps, however I have always been worried about losing my number, so one of my questions is, would I have to give up my number, I am have been with True Move for years. The other questions is, will I need to use a separate sim, as I have 2 sims at the moment, one is for her and the other for overseas, that said, I suppose I could take out the overseas sim when leaving the house and putting in the new one, but that would be a pain. If there is such a thing like buying data without having to change sims or losing my number, I would like to be brought up to speed, and yes, I know, slower than a snail, but I like it that way, except for when I leave my cave and go into the real world.