Kalasin Jo

The clowns are not just Thai politicians and economists. Worldwide, economic growth is still the mantra in every developed country. At what cost and for who's benefit are questionable. We know the so called trickle down domestic growth model is a failure or more correctly a con, the rich prefer to keep and grow their wealth not share some of it with the masses. It's human nature isn't it to do so if you can? Rich countries would rather sell arms to poor/ undeveloped countries than provide aid for their starving populations. Whilst most systems of state taxation favour the wealthy and punish the workers.. The UK being a prime example where the bosses pay a far lower % of their earnings in direct and indirect tax than those who work for them. That is if they pay any tax at all...think offshoring and "non dom' status.

Now the answer is yes. A few years back I was never even asked for it.

I'd that what Thai criminal law says? English criminal law requires "mens rea" meaning a prior and settled intent to kill for a murder charge. Recklessness, eg: driving whilst drunk and so causing an accident in which people die is manslaughter.

How very sad. But why on earth did he take 2? Even with the genuine article the advice packaged with the product is no more than 1 in 24 hours.

And Pattaya grew I understand from US GI's heading there for R&R during the Vietnam War. No doubt taking girls from Bangkok who then stayed on " I wait you come back" but actually to " work", sending word back to their village " sisters" of the new goldmine. Beach front shack bars opened and so it began. Before that a humble fishing village with a nice beach, how lovely that would have been and, just 70 or so years ago.

So what exactly are the SS benefits that a qualifying and contributing person can claim? Just curious. I doubt anyone in my Thai family qualifiies. Subsistence farmers, selling produce grown in our garden in local market, Mom & Pop shop now almost closed by too much new, modern, competition. But still no 7/11!

Exactly the same here.

Panic attack response to fearing death in a mid air explosion or crash landing? Frankly understandable in this case. I've seen many Thais become hysterical over very minor things. I was once on a plane that had to make an emergency landing at the nearest airfield with a hopefully long enough runway ( it was) because we were informed the hydraulics for the airbreaks had failed. The flight deck were calm and reassuring ( other than letting slip perhaps as an attempt at humour that they'd only practiced this once in training). cabin crew were excellent, there was no panic amongst passengers, just silence as people, including me, reflected. Brace position was mandatory. It was thank goodness a feather light landing and we came to a stop with runway to spare. Cheers and clapping from the passengers.

Agreed. But the OP will need to ensure he is here for the renewal date and make sure he gets a re entry permit before he leaves Thailand or his extension of stay will be cancelled by exiting.

How did Italian "Eddie* manage to enter Thailand in February 2021? Thailand's borders were firmly Covid emergency closed to all except repatriating Thai nationals weren't they?

I'm a Brit, so no pension letter from my Embassy these days. Sad to say the Embassy offers very little assistance to British expats these days. When the Embassy announced at the end of 2019, I think it was, they would no longer do them allegedly after a meeting with high ups in Thai Immigration ( I think "Big Joke" was in charge then) I complained pointing out other Embassies, with a couple of exceptions, were still doing them ( even today). The justification for withdrawing this service was that they were told at this meeting with the Thai high ups that Thailand " assumes" Embassies verify the source and amount of the pension(s) identified in the letter which the Brit Embassy said they do not and cannot do. A rather Thai reaction that I thought; cannot. As I read the situation almost certainly a UK Foreign Office civil servant sitting in a windowless basement office in London reacted in horror at this revelation, reading far more than necessary in to the report of "what Thailand assumes" and instructing the Embassy to discontinue the service asap, a service which had been happily running to everyone's benefit for years with the Embassy collecting a nice fee for doing not alot. Of course it's a nonsense, I'd be surprised if any Embassy ever did this. For those lucky enough Embassy letters are still being produced and still happily accepted by Thailand's Immigration. Ask no questions tell no lies. Without it the only options in Thailand are either money in the bank or to produce a Thai bank statement for the 12 months prior to the date of your extension application showing each monthly pension amount Thailand requires coming in, in total slightly more than the money in the bank option. Simples? Perhaps if that's how you have had the previous 12 months set up in this way. On a first extension very unlikely. Back then I did actually have a 12 month bank statement but my IO ( Kalasin) asked for evidence that it was actually pension income as I didn't have direct payments in from the UK Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or any other pension provider for that matter. I transferred sums myself according to need which as it happened exceeded the Thai monthly requirement but crucially not identifiable on the bank statement as pension payments. So he said " very sorry, cannot". You must either transfer the required capital amount straight away ( as this was a first extension application on a Savannakhet visa ( before that Consulate's change this year to money in a Thai bank) or you must leave Thailand and start again. This was in 2020, the first year of Covid and before Thailand introduced or at least before I, or presumably the IO as he said nothing about that, became aware of the Covid extensions for foreigners marooned here. Unfortunately I had already used the 60 day extension to the original 90. Not being in a position to make such a transfer on such a tight timescale and with the border at now Mukdahan closed I managed to find a "repatriation" flight. Despite the emergency Covid extensions of stay here it was but for a high price always possible to get back to Europe. But not to come back to Thailand any time soon after leaving. The flight to Europe I got was virtually empty as were the airports and public transport. And fortunately no hotel quarantining on arrival, just at home there, although getting a test here was a challenge. Seems utterly surreal now. As a postscript, if you haven't switched off way back, I also took the opportunity to explain to the IO that the UK state pension is way, way below the Thai immigration financial requirement, made worse by the poor exchange rate GBP to THB, from around 55 baht to below 40 baht at that time I recall ( following the 2016 brexit vote from which to this day the GBP has never recovered much against any major currency). Today it's 44 baht. That a state pension from a '"rich country" ( the IOs words) was so low and needs substantial topping up from other sources to meet the Thai financials genuinely surprised the IO. Obviously the usual Thai perception that all farangs are by definition wealthy, coming from rich countries which provide fat state pensions, was as alive and well in this setting as on Nana and Soi Buakhao.

I didn't even get as far as the British Embassy let alone MoFA before giving up. If Immigration accept your passport surely other government agencies, even local government ones such as an Amphur should. My Amphur wanted an Embassy certified copy of the ID page. No mention then of a translation but I anticipated that would also be required then legalised at MoFA. The last and only time I went through the legalisation process at MoFA I found extremely stressful. Time consuming to get out there ( and back to central Bangkok), queuing, rejection of translation as inaccurate, get and pay for fresh translation by onsite agent ( who of course appeared like magic at my elbow at that moment), waiting and hoping we would not be told to come back next day as closing time approached, fortunately we weren't. It took all of a very long day for us. And my wife is not the most patient.

Indeed. A publican/bartender can legally refuse to sell or continue to sell alcohol to a person he/she believes to be intoxicated/drunk and ask that person to leave the premises, calling the police in if the person refuses or causes a disturbance.

I read somewhere little while ago that Chinese police operate in the UK. Obviously not openly on the streets. Their purpose, Hong Kong Chinese opposed to the regime in HK who are living in the UK have said, is to keep tabs on them, not visiting Chinese tourists.

The ones I've met live single lives unless congregating together. Their comfortable lives may well originate from farangs though. They all speak good English

All Thais in government or government employees seem to have uniforms with lots of scrambled egg on peaked caps, epaulettes and bars on chests showing awards for this and that. They do look magnificent! Even the new PM who I understood is a businessman not a general. These alternate with business suits depending on the nature of the event and photo op. Are they genuinely military? Methinks not so. Just a love of uniforms for formal occasions even for civilians eg state employed teachers, doctors, I think even PEA employees. Up to you, I say, but now the generals have gone from government at least from public view I can't help but think this is slightly ridiculous and gives the impression of a society not truly free.... or is it just me?

As usual with Thai government announcements it's " shoot first ask questions later". This "lets tax foreign income" and "let's start in January 2024" is madness. No consultation before the announcement, no detail in or after it and now only 2 months to go unless postponed to allow consultation, clear and practical detail as to how it works and what we need to do.....in English as well as Thai. I would say this: if it turns out I have to register for tax purposes here and am liable to tax here I expect in return the same entitlement to benefits as Thai citizens receive. In particular access to the 30 baht government health service. European countries such as France require foreign residents to register for tax, make annual declarations etc and ALSO require them to register in the French healthcare system where they are then treated in exactly the same way as French citizens. To round off: I am well aware there can be a difference between tax residency and immigration residency. But as long as the best immigration status I can afford here, as it is for most of us, is a 1 year permission to stay which must be reapplied for before that expires and subject to satisfaction of the same terms and conditions as my very first, with refusal always at the discretion of the Immigration officer/office handling it I do not regard myself as resident here however many days in a tax year I may spend here. I am a long stay visitor, 11 years now, who pumps money in to the Thai economy and supports a family here but I receive no recognition in return. My personal experience in France where I was resident as a foreigner for 19 years is completely different. There, after 5 years of legal residency and a taxpayer there, benefitting from the French healthcare system from the start, I was entitled to apply for and obtained permanent residency status without financial conditions then and for the future. And my Thai wife, subject only to de facto ( though no happy snaps required, no home visit took place ) and de jure proof of ongoing marriage, was granted the same status and entry in to the French healthcare system.

Well it's hard keeping track of Lao kip currency. Even a coffee costs thousands. But from my last experience most places happy to accept baht, USD, Euro....but not GBP. But the change comes in kip.

Agreed. Many rescuers with little experience or swimming ability have themselves died trying to rescue a drowning person. Doesn't explain the reported laughter although I've heard it said that this is a common Thai reaction to unfolding tragedy and violent death nor the shocking response of just videoing, taking photos and posting on social media, although sadly it seems that's the first response from a great many these days to unfolding tragedy.

Not so. They stay home with other ageing ladyboy and transgender friends and/or go back to the villages and towns where they grew up. I've seen, even met, a few up here in Issan. Always seem to be comfortably off.

For long stays at cheaper rates hotels often only clean rooms and change linen once a week

French toilets are often unisex other than in upmarket establishments. Have always been as long as I can recall. Then for the gentlemen there's also the pissoir sites on the street ( what about the poor ladies then?) but these are now bring replaced by the somewhat alarming fully enclosed automatic self cleaning toilets. If your unlucky you can be subjected to a full hose down and air-dry whilst innocently standing locked in there with your chap out.

Beautiful island, lovely beaches and crystal clear water to swim. For a chill out it's great. No nightlife so take your own totty and stock up on beer etc in your bungalow Have a great time.

Alcohol and smoking too. Since I drink alcohol, always have since of legal age, same with cigarettes I probably look older now than my actual age of 71.

Oh dear. Sorry to hear that. Hope you will mend soon.