FforestFach

Re the "retirement visa", OA non-immigrant visa, NOT based on marriage, you would have to apply for that at the Thai consulate in Pretoria, your country of origin/citizenship. That's what I did about 5-6 years ago, cost about R2200 then, the biggest delay was getting the SA police clearance certificate which took about six weeks. In total it took about eight weeks. A straightforward procedure. After two years I then extended one year with the B800,000 route. The Thai Consulate will tell you exactly what's required but make sure it's for the OA-Non-Immigrant visa, at first they gave me the procedures for a different visa. 

Rawai, Phuket. October 2015, 5700km, excellent condition, accident free, one owner, Green Book, licenced and insured to October 2017, serviced by Honda at 1000 and 4000km, Givi box included, red/white colour. B70,000.00

20% was also my rule of thumb from home country but I had read somewhere that 1-3 year old good condition motorcycles in Asia "held their value" so I was hoping for 5-10% off. Many thanks.

Is there a rule of thumb for motorbike depreciation value in Thailand? e.g. 5% pa or 10% pa since first year of registration? I'm trying to value a one year old Honda PCX150, no accidents, 5500km, one owner, serviced by Honda, recently renewed tax and registration. Thanks.

FYI I went to the Phuket driving test/licence office last Tuesday week and returned to collect the IDP the next day, cost B505, valid one year. Documents required - original certificate of residence (from immigration office), copies of passport, visa, departure form and two passport photos. Easy process, thanks for the advice.

Thanks guys, lot of food for thought! Not as straightforward as I hoped it would be. Regards.

Why a "bad idea" please? What would be a good/better idea?

Many thanks KhunBenq and Georgy, I'll go to the Phuket licence test centre next week.

Could you perhaps tell me which private companies I can go to in Phuket please?

I have a five year Thailand motorbike licence based on passing all Thailand driving tests. I have an extension of stay based on retirement (originally an OA non-imm visa). Is it possible to get an International Driving Permit for motorbikes from my local/Phuket licence office so I can legally drive motorbikes in Vietnam/Laos/Cambodia when I visit there? Thanks for your help.

Is it possible to export my 2015 Honda PCX 150 to Vietnam and can anyone recommend a company that can export the bike from Thailand and import into Vietnam paying whatever export/import duties/fees/taxes? Many thanks.

Try World Nomads

I have a non-imm OA "retirement visa" and extension of stay. I intend travelling a lot next year outside Thailand, is there a minimum number of days I have to be in Thailand before I apply for my next extension in August 2017? Many thanks.

Two years ago I boarded this overnight train at the station near DM, I forget the name of this station, my seats/beds were numbered and reserved, 2nd class AC carriage.

I have an AXA medical insurance policy from the UK with my residential area as "Thailand" since this is where I reside most of the time. I cancelled the AXA travel insurance add-on when I later learned it only covers "return journeys" to the principal country of residence i.e. Thailand and not when I travel around without a confirmed return ticket. Travel insurance trip lengths are limited to 90 or 95 days maximum per trip and 183 days per year. Beware the travel insurance requirement that you have to return to your home country and need evidence of that i.e. a return ticket of some sorts

You will almost certainly fail the first one because as per above there are some "logically-correct" but incorrect answers - at the end you can go through the failed questions and the machine gives you the correct answer. Study these carefully then you can start again another 50 questions immediately. Two consecutive failures mean you have to return the next day, a third "go" on the same day is not permitted.

Try AXA, it has a Thailand office (axathai) and in my experience is quite responsive and helpful with enquiries

16 hours ago, fiddlehead said:

A tourist told me she uses the app "Grab" for taxis in Phuket. 
I think it is for the company Grab Taxi. 
Said it's legal and approved by the govt. 

Does anyone know about this , or use it? 

Said it's much cheaper than the taxis or tuk tuks. 

A friend in Patong uses Grab a lot, mostly along the west coast and down to Rawai, says it works well and much cheaper but best to "hail" a Grab a short distance away from any traditional taxi hangouts so as not to antagonise the traditional taxi guys when you're collected/dropped off.

2 hours ago, Evilbaz said:

More nomenclature confusion!

From the quoted example it appears Phuket Immi are calling an Extension a "Visa".

I don't think so...this document refers to the OA Non-Imm visa...not the extension which may occur, what is it? - 13-24 months after the OA visa is issued? In my case I didn't do a 90 day report from the date of OA visa issue because I left the country within 90 days of that date then the 90 day clock started from the date of my re-entry.

9 hours ago, ocddave said:

This brings up a good question, how many pages are possibly needed for a 4-5 year stay on a Non-Immigrant "O" Visa (Marriage)? If I need to go back to the states say once a year, will a normal US passport book fill up too fast? What I do if it does? 

Happened to me, my passport filled up shortly after I received my OA Non-Imm visa; for a while I carried both old and new passports around with me as per advice from Phuket immigration office. Then after a couple of 90 day reports they asked me why I did this and hadn't had the OA visa "transferred" to the new passport. They then, on the spot, hand wrote the OA visa details in the new passport, stamped it and had the office chief sign it off. Now I submit copies of both original (and expired) visa from the old passport and the handwritten, stamped one in the new passport for reports/re-entry permits/extension of stay, etc.

BUT...I had a problem with a letter of invitation I issued to a Vietnam friend at the Thailand Ho Chi Minh consulate when applying for a TV; they didn't accept the hand written version, although officially stamped, nor the original visa in the old passport because that had by now expired. It took a few days delay and three or four visits to that Thai consulate before they understood and issued the TV. Crazy.

To quote an official typed advice note given to me by Phuket Immigration Office on this subject during Q4'15 "You are required to report to immigration every 90 days from either : The issue date of your FIRST Visa OR from the date you arrive back into Thailand if you have left the country since your visa was issued."

I guess the OP has received the same advice from that immigration office and has asked Thaivisa a fair question which does not warrant some of the rude responses received.

I asked the forum a similar question some months ago (I'm in Thailand on a Non-Imm OA "retirement visa") and was advised to visit my local Phuket tax office, which I did, and was told to return and apply for a Thai tax number after I had been in the country >180 days during the calendar year as evidenced by visa stamps in my passport. I shall indeed return to that tax office in October. No work permit required as experts on this forum have explained.

The times reported are incorrect; I arrived at about 5.45 and the guy was already covered up in towels, dead, with emergency vehicles on the scene. The lifeguards were still on duty and, so I'm told by a person who witnessed it, had brought the man in and performed CPR. The guy had been in the water a long way from the yellow flag safe swimming area, 100m or so outside this "safe" area. Red flagged no swimming areas are clearly displayed along the beach every day, all day. In my opinion hotels/guest houses need to hand out multi-lingual swimming-advisory-warning notices to each and every guest every single day. The lifeguards are there and doing their job to the best of their ability.

I had a similar experience, told I was too old at 56 despite being fit, healthy and a regular donor for 38 years. The explanation was a first time donor in Thailand has to be <=55.

I am a Non-Imm OA and went to Phuket licence centre in December to convert my home country car DL into a Thai one and was told "come back February 8"; another foreign guy there at same time who wanted to rent a car and wanted a Thai licence was told the same​. So I've not driven a car since (I don't have a IDP) and just stick to the bike for which I have a Thai licence. So I'm looking forward to what happens when I return on Feb 8...