persimmon

They all want something , or else why would they be looking for a foreign partner ? Maybe the trick is to find one with realistic expectations , not one who wants a new 20 mill baht house and new Merc just because someone in the next village got that . That`s the problem though - choosing a partner who`s just there for the $£ s - however much you give them , they always want more .

Is there a way to freeze the physical Wise card when it`s not being used so it can`t be hacked and money stolen . Or , is there a way of keeping money in a separate part of Wise and transferring into the active account when needed ?

I need a way to access the net whilst moving around in Thailand , reasonable size to carry about and inexpensive , just for emails , bank accounts and general light web browsing . Samsung tablet is about the same price as a cheap 14 " laptop , then there`s the Chromebooks . A tablet would be the easiest to carry , but is it just a bigger version of a Samsung phone ? If so I might as well use my phone and save the £ . So ,which would be best ? Thanks .

Well done , not much fun being in the UK at the moment , freezing temperatures and high electric and gas prices .

OK thanks ...what about the bus from the border into town ?. There is a money exchange counter in the basement at Central , Udon ...I suppose I could get a few thou / million ? kip to see me ok for a couple of days .

Maybe it`s best to be prepared for all eventualities if a border bounce is needed - ask at departure if you can come back in on the same day and be prepared to spend a couple of days in Vientienne if not. By the way , can you pay for buses , food etc . in Baht or do you have to carry the local Lao currency ( is it Kip ? ) .

Maybe the answer to the bank account problem is just to rely on having a Wise account ?, unless they decide to follow the others and restrict access to UK residents only .

Trouble with some of these out-of-the-way places is , what would you do all day ? OK if you have a Thai GF / wife and nice house where you can relax , but if stuck in a small hotel with no pool ....? There`s nowhere to walk and no beach to sit on . Best idea would be to just travel around from place to place , although many of these small towns look the same .

That`s what worries me about a permanent move to Thailand - it would mean leaving all my pastimes and hobbies behind and trying to find new ones . Just sitting on a bar stool and drinking beer all day - well maybe it`s ok for some , but I think I would get bored of that fairly quickly .

Some of these charity bosses are on 6 figure salaries . No way that I would ever give to one of those .

It`s possible - live under a bridge and sit on the pavement / sidewalk with a begging bowl . Or busking in Pattaya ( until the police arrest you ).

I`m thinking about getting a Wise card . Tried to apply online but they want me to send a pic of my PP or drivers license . Is this really needed or am I being scammed ?

Happened to me a few years ago - girl on the check-in counter asked why my return flight date was longer than my TR visa allowed . I had to argue with her for a while . She finally called a supervisor over who allowed me to check in . Neither of them seemed to know much about how the system worked in Thailand , yet they were trying to stop me boarding WTF !

The Grace Hotel on Suk 3 used to be a major meeting place for these types of people . I remember walking past there on my way home when I was approached by a dodgy looking character who said something like " Hey mister , I make business with dollars , you interested , do you have a mobile number " . I politely declined his offer .

Taking out life insurance with the wife as beneficiary .

Last time I had a return flight to come back to the UK after 5 months . Thai Airways never asked any questions . I had a SETV. Do you think if I did the same but without visa they might demand a flight out within 60 days ?

Maybe the locals could club together and hire some private security guys . Suitably armed with BB bats they would soon discourage these low lifes who plague Patts . I remember a few years ago at a concert there was a scruffy old Thai guy harassing 2 members of the audience . The security soon dealt with him by ripping his shirt off and giving him a kicking with their large boots . Instant justice . Shame things like this aren`t allowed in the Liberal West anymore .

Food prices are a rip-off compared to non tourist areas . No complaints about the quality of the stuff at my favourite veg . restaurant ( been going there for nearly 20 yrs and the food is exactly the same every time ) , but the prices are now at western ( UK ) levels - 110 bt for rice ! By comparison , same thing in Udon would be a quarter of the price . Now I prefer to make my own , all the ingredients are available , so why not ?

I think a Thai can open an account with Interactive Brokers . Then , it`s just a matter of choosing investments that throw off a 5 % dividend - there`s lots of options such as REITS or high yield bonds or ETFs comprised of a selection of higher dividend yielding global shares . Currency conversion losses might be an issue , ie. Baht ---> $ , then back to Baht again . Also accounting problems for tax purposes .

re. places to stay , why bother booking in advance - there are loads of cheap resort places every few miles .

Same here , such a relief not to have to go through that arcane procedure of applying for the TV online . Let`s hope this new rule is here to stay .

£ 14 k / month is scandalous ! Better to spend everything in Thailand and go back to the UK penniless and get everything for free , or throw away your pp and arrive in a small boat and claim asylum and get luxury accomodation and priority healthcare .

Life in Issarn can be interesting . There are lots of places to visit and sights to see , but ...you really need a Thai GF / wife with a car because many of the most interesting spots are off the beaten track and not well publicised . Without this you are stuck in the major towns and reliant on buses which really limits things . One thing I like about Issarn towns - they feel like real places , not like Patts which feels like a stage set populated by hoards of tourists .

The problem might be the anxiety and hassel caused by having to submit many documents that are hard to get hold of . Another potential issue for UK residents is income from ISA which is tax free in the UK but may not be in Th .

If the new 60 day VEE comes in it should make life easier ie. 60 + extension ( 30 ) = 90 , leave the country and re-enter gives another 90 , total 180 .