BangkokBaksida

2 hours ago, Someone Else said:

I've alerted a few messages here that contained verifiably blatant misinformation.   It had nothing to do with "fear" or my opinion, it was based on what I know to be true based on decades of professional experience.  I don't think that makes me a "monster".  

 

While I would agree there is plenty of poor behavior and superficial understanding of complex issues on both sides that hinders meaningful discussion, I'm don't see how spreading obvious misinformation could be characterized as "courageous".   

 

What gives YOU the right to decide what I should see?  Instead of reporting something that YOU consider to be verifiably blatant misinformation, why not rebut it?  That's what a man of principle would do.

For example, I'm an anti-COVID-vaxxer, but I am not afraid of anything you pro-vaxxers might say, even though I disagree with most of it.  And I would never dream of reporting your misinformation, as I believe in freedom of speech.

19 minutes ago, alanrchase said:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.thaiembassy.com/faq/do-retirees-pay-income-tax&ved=2ahUKEwjvwfXu8aLzAhWf3jgGHT_QB-AQFnoECAQQBQ&usg=AOvVaw3RjU6Kt4nXl936x3kY0UAl

Thanks very much.  That's very clear.

6 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

I don't think Hanoi or the Ho Chi Minh City consulate is participating in the e visa scheme. Nothing about it on either website.

I am in Ho Chi Minh City now, facing the same problem as the OP.  I just tried to do the eVisa at the link given by PoorSucker and the website told me that I am not eligible to apply for it - and that I have to apply directly at the consulate - which is closed now.  So for now it appears that I will have to wait until the consulate opens again.  (Maybe that's why I can't apply for it here - because the consulate is closed due to our total lockdown here?  Or maybe there is another reason.)

17 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

No problem to do that. They will not tax it other than for the interest earned.

 

I thought I remembered reading some time ago that they make a distinction between money that was earned in the current year and money that was earned in a previous year and if you transfer money that was earned in a previous year it is not taxable, or something like that.  But if I understand you correctly, they don't even care about that - and the money will in any case not be taxable?

Thanks very much for sharing your time and knowledge.

I would be using the 800k in a Thai bank option, Ubonjoe.

I am planning to retire in Thailand as soon as I am able to enter the country.  I intend to have a certain amount of money transferred into the country every month to cover my living expenses.  Will that money be taxable by the Thai authorities?  If so, at what rate?  And even if it might be taxable by law (which is my question), how does it work in practice?  Will immigration ask me any questions about this money during my annual visa renewals?  Or are they satisfied to know that I am able to support myself?

Thanks. 

25 minutes ago, Fairynuff said:

I’m an avid YouTube watcher, I get most of my bread recipes there. For Covid stuff I prefer facts over freedomtube

So you judge videos by the platform they are on rather than their actual content?  Does that seem reasonable to you?

1 minute ago, Fairynuff said:

One word tells me all I need to know.... “freedomtube”. Sounds more like a condom brand than a reliable source of information 

So you only watch YouTube - the site that censors everything that goes against the official narrative?

2 minutes ago, Dart12 said:

I think you can still get in.

 

no idea about future enforcement though.

 

and nothing open unless you go to Chang Mai 

 

I believe Mexico is totally open ,

and my friends in Bali still living the life if you can get in.  Everything open.

 

Business visa just $500 for one year and very simple to get.

Thanks very much for that advice.  Practical and useful.  I had considered Mexico because I had heard that they aren't forcing people to get vaccinated, so it's an option for me.  That being said, I have never been there and I wouldn't know where to go there - not to mention the potential culture shock.  I have been living in Asia for the past 30 years, so maybe Bali would be an option for me.  I will investigate it.  Thanks again very much.

2 hours ago, BritTim said:

All correct. Technically, you need proof that the funds originated from abroad when applying for the Non O "conversion" visa. However, most offices will waive that requirement (often very difficult to achieve years after transferring the money into Thailand) if you can show the money has been in your account for a long time.  Most of the money has been there for years, both from the time I lived and worked in Thailand before coming to Vietnam as well as money that I sent there from Vietnam over the years I've been here.  And I will probably send another lump sum of several million baht there from Vietnam shortly before I leave here.   So by the time I go to Thailand, there will be a combination of money that has been there for a long time, and money that I can prove came from abroad.  That should cover me.

 

I hope you do not run into trouble at the HCMC consulate. Sometimes, they can be resistant to offering visas to those with those with nationality from a non first world country. I would expect you could talk them round, if necessary, under current conditions.  Thanks for the warning.  I understand.  But I haven't had trouble getting visas from them in the past, as I have a residence card here in Vietnam based on my work permit.  They did, however, require me to get an "invitation" from a Thai friend in Thailand.  I expect they will do the same again.

Thanks very much for taking the time to address my concerns.

3 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Yep, you have it covered.

Note you don't need to obtain the non O (retirement) as soon as you arrive. The tourist visa stamps you in for 60 days. Obtain the non O prior to expiry of that per period.

When you obtain the non O that stamps you for further 90 days. 

In last 30 obtain your 12 month extension.

 

Great.  I am much relieved to have a workable plan now.  Thanks very much!

I lived in Thailand from 1995-2015.  For the past six years I have been living and working in Vietnam (Ho Chi Minh City).  I would now like to return to Thailand to retire.  What are my visa options for doing that?  (Note that I qualify for neither visa-free entry into Thailand, nor visa on arrival.)  So I will have to get some kind of visa from the Thai consulate here in Ho Chi Minh City before going to Thailand.  Also note that I still have my bank account in Thailand from my time working there - and that account has well over THB 800,000 in it - if that matters/helps.)

My understanding is that I could enter Thailand on a tourist visa and then in Thailand convert that visa to another visa that would allow me to stay for retirement?  I also understand that there is an option to get the "retirement" visa in advance, before entering Thailand.  I further understand that there is a difference between these two options regarding the need for getting insurance, but I don't know in which case the applicant would need the insurance and in which case not.  So maybe someone can address that issue as well.

I am obviously aware of the difficulties of entering Thailand at the moment (not to mention the impossibility of leaving Vietnam now - actually we haven't even been able to leave our homes for the past two weeks - even to go shopping - as we are under total lockdown here.)  So I would hope to implement this plan as soon as it is feasible, hopefully around Dec/Jan/Feb.

Any advice would be appreciated.  Also please let me know if there is anything else that I need to consider, aside from the things that I asked/mentioned.

Thanks very much in advance.

Here is a young lady whose hair I photographed at a supermarket in Mandalay, Myanmar some years ago.  Now that's a mane worthy of a Thai Visa article!

"Many of the 5,000 are thought to be Thai prostitutes working in the country where the virus has taken hold. There are also agricultural workers among thousands who work illegally in the country on tourist visas."

So, a couple of agriculture workers managed to slip in - pretending to be prostitutes.

So it's not for nothing that the Thais call it "Soi Sick".

12 hours ago, Chomper Higgot said:

I personally agree the Catholic Church should not have a church at Auschwitz, the Catholic Church has blood on its hands from the Holocaust and it is offensive for the Catholic Church to have a Church at Auschwitz.

 

I don’t however agree there should be no Christian presence, Christians and others who were not Jews were also amongst the victims at Auschwitz, they too must be remembered.

 

I personally would like to see a pantheon, multi faith place of prayer and remembrance for all the victims of the Nazi death camps.

 

Again. I agree, get the Catholic Church out of there and let individual Catholics pray and remember alongside anyone who comes to pray and remember, regardless of their faith.

You are aware that Poland is a sovereign nation - and a predominantly Christian one at that, right?

9 hours ago, jingjai9 said:

It seems as though the Dutch Prime Minister is trying to do a noble thing. Why oh why can't America apologize to the African Americans that were enslaved for hundreds of years? Slaves who helped build America. Why?

https://wethoughttheywerewhite.tumblr.com

https://www.amren.com/videos/2019/09/did-slavery-make-america-rich/

2 hours ago, Roy Baht said:

If honesty were a common virtue, they wouldn't make such a big deal of it when it occurred.

Exactly.  Not to mention the fact that one person's honesty (or dishonesty) is not a reflection on the rest of the people who happen to live within the borders of that same country - or in that region.  When somebody returns a wallet in Japan, do we say, "Hm, Asians sure are honest."?  So why would we give all Thais credit for being honest just because this one was?  All we can say in this case is that "This appears to be an honest man."

On 1/6/2020 at 3:17 PM, jimn said:

If they want to catch people just arrest all those Russian hello girls outside the Russian bars and gogo's on Walking Street. And the Russian dancers inside. I doubt if they have even got visa's let alone a work permit. It makes a mockery of the whole thing. No one touches them though, I wonder why?

I suspect that these Russian dancers get away with working illegally precisely because someone DOES touch them.

On 8/23/2019 at 8:03 PM, amexpat said:

try to demand an extra 100 baht as you depart. 

 

Somebody is pretty simple, all right. 

I did something similar with a taxi driver in Cairo, Egypt, many years ago.  We had agreed a price of 10 Egyptian pounds for a ride to a market.  When we arrived there, he said "15 pounds".  Without missing a beat, I said, "Five pounds!".  He just laughed and I paid 10 pounds and left his taxi.  I had no idea that he was going to ask me for more money, and I certainly hadn't planned to offer him less.  The words just popped out of my mouth at that moment.  And to this day, if anyone tries to ask for more than the agreed price for anything, I offer less - just to let them know that renegotiation of deals can go both ways.

"The assailant, identified as Connor Betts, a 24-year-old white man . . ."

I can't remember the last time I read an article about a crime committed by a black person in which it was mentioned that the perpetrator was black.  I guess it's only allowed to identify whites by race when they commit crimes.  Identifying black criminals as black is racist.

"CCTV footage posted on Facebook showed an aging foreigner at a supermarket checkout in Pattaya."

We are all aging.