NorthernRyland

If you remember let us know what they say. There's practical reason this should be a problem but they get so wedded to arbitrary rules that you never know.

My wife works for them and she says the government won't let them make e-cigarettes now even. They've raised taxes on Thai tobacco so high the business is in the red and may fail. The current plans to turn a profit now are for hemp.

So there's no policy you're aware of? Maybe was a communication error then because it doesn't make any sense to me either.

Good that gets me pretty close. Related, do you know what they said to come back in 45 days to get the extension? I will have had the 400k in for 2 months before that date but they still said 45 days for some reason.

I'm in the process of converting my tourist visa to a non-o based on marriage. Currently I need to wait 3 weeks until the visa is issued and then they said 45 days until I go in to get the 12 month extension. I usually go back home in early July or late June but because of how this process has aligned it's going to cut into my usual travel plans. I can deal with it this year since I already invested all this time but for next year I want to do the extension earlier than the 12 months. Is this possible at all?

Then why test the unvaccinated if it doesn't matter if infected people enter the country? What are you actually trying to accomplish here?

So they're going to let COVID positive people who were vaccinated into Thailand and quarantine unvaccinated people who are COVID negative? These restrictions don't even have anything to do with a virus anymore it's just about getting people to take an injection every 6 months.

I just had to get.a letter from immigration to open a bank account (for a non-o visa) and it wasn't exactly easy. First we had to talk to banks and ask them personally if they allowed this (not all do!) and then go to immigration in person and get a letter sent to us which took 2 weeks.

As an American I learned during COVID that the NHS is the same as public schools in America, they're given more money every year and every year they're underfunded. ...never satisfied and always wanting more.

What is the nature of this 5 day quarantine for unvaccinated? Is it locked in a hotel room or road around Phuket?

Exactly. In any other context this would be seen as medical discrimination. Governments are still operating as if they are preventing some global pandemic from occurring but that ship sailed months ago!

That thing made me so sick I don't care. Governments are desperately clinging on to this for no justifiable reason and people aren't going to put up with it forever. May 1st may be too soon but eventually it will fall apart.

And what if you're not vaccinated? For health reasons I refuse to take another M-RNA shot

That TM30 thing was temporary right? I remember it was attempted and fell apart. This was the worst I've seen Thailand get in terms of respecting foreigners and was a symptom of the current government AKAIK. Hard to say if this reflects new trends or just a hostile government in power. The 90 day reporting in Thailand is the worst thing they do here and certainly gives you the impression they see us as potential invaders that need to be kept a close eye on. Other that that I can go anywhere I want here and it feels very free. I got the impression China was not at all like that.

Curious, how big is this house? 25% price increase in materials is devastating.

If that's how the feel then there is probably a deeper cultural problem which is going to surface in other areas. Are you going to get pulled over and harassed by the police like in China (so I'm told) if you go off the beaten path? Do you need to notify the police if you leave your city for more than 24-hours?

papers out of order or crumpled corners is an automatic 1 year ban.

in that case just ride out multiple entry tourist visas if he's employed, otherwise 600k may be the least hassle if he's well funded and looking to escape.

LOL, yeah no one escapes the eye of Sauron, man women or child.

OP: there you go. Figure out how to get 1 million baht and forget about immigration struggles for 20 years.

I lived in US 2 months + Thailand 10 months for 15 years on tourist visas but that's basically over now, especially after COVID. I think you can scam visas for schooling etc... but that only last a couple years I think (correct me if I'm wrong). If I were to start again now my advice would be to find a plan to make the 1 million baht for the elite visa every 5 years until age 50. If that's impossible then I would get married and weigh the fallout from that against not living in Thailand.

Maybe I don't have a good sample of the population but the Thais I know and live around are actually very afraid of COVID and want the masks etc... to stay. I still see people wearing masks cycling, in cars alone or walking around outside alone. It's likes they learned nothing and progressed 0% since the start of the pandemic.

Can you pay to get a land assessment? I'm looking at one plot which I can see has been vacant since at least 2011 (judging by Google map images) and I'm curious what they think it's worth (he wants 800k for 3/4 rai).

assuming they're actually interested in selling. I've seen many times buildings that have been on sale for literally years and they never sell. I assume it's because the owner insists on an imaginary price and it would be too shameful in their eyes to take less although it could be they've invested too much while initially acquiring the property. All of this nonsense could be solved by having a public record of property transactions but this doesn't appear to exist here.

what I see is tons of people trying to sell but it doesn't look like there's buyers. The only thing I've seen sold fast are these subdivided plots of 4-5 rais where you buy 50 sq wah lots for 250,000 baht, which people can afford. This would be a nightmare though because the area will be a construction zone for years while people build things here and there.