Mac98

Keep the equivalent of 65,000b in your home bank. When you see one of those "no deposit" months coming use those funds to cover yourself, then you can leave the funds from the double deposit month to refill your home account.

I'm up on the hill in Pattaya along Pratamnak. My balcony is sideways to the bay and near constant breezes sweeping over the hill keep things cool. Hardly use air con. Great for coffee on the balcony at sunrise and sunset. Short jump down Soi 5 to the beach. Condos, pools galore.

Jomtien pretty strict and the IO  said reporting not needed when returning home from travel within country.

if you can't get approved for insurance, or can't afford what is, then you should be able to sign a waiver: No treatment above (fill in the blank). Like signing to pull the plug. Even Social Security pays enough death benefit to send you up the chimney.

Unless the Thai Embassy in the Netherlands requires an onward flight at the end of his first 60-day stay (Los Angeles consulate does, although they OK an onward ticket in 90 days with explanation of applying for 30-day extension), then you might be stuck using an airport rather than Nong Khai.

Yes, you need 800,000 if you live in Bangkok or Pattaya or Phuket. If you want to live in the countryside, or any town designated as "in need" by the Thai government, they should be happy to welcome all comers. We live in a divided world, the top 10% who have 90% of the wealth, and then the rest of us. After 5 years of maintaining a residence in a poor area all restrictions would be lifted. By then you would be used to employing a maid and cook and won't want to live in a Bangkok broom closet.

6 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Berlin is not Hanoi. Different embassy different rules. The embassies and consulates near Thailand are more likely to require proof of funds.

6 hours ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Berlin is not Hanoi. Different embassy different rules. The embassies and consulates near Thailand are more likely to require proof of funds.

L.A. also requires bank statement for SETV. Just got one.

Who cares? If you can't afford to lose a few baht on your currency you are a failure in life and should pack up and go home! (Although it's more expensive to live there, so that really doesn't make any sense).

   Sorry, I just had to mock the attitude of those who post about anyone not having 800,000 sitting around to put in a Thai bank.

   On topic: I believe the dollar was down to 29 a couple years ago? If uncertainty is the culprit then with Trump in office I'd peg the dollar at 17. On the bright side (for expats) China is having some problems. That may slow the tourist bonanza as they will want to keep that money at home. That could drop the baht a bit, but then they would double the taxes on beer and tobacco to make up for it.  

22 hours ago, BritTim said:

That is normal. An onward flight is not needed when you have a visa. If travelling without a visa or onward flight, make sure you look well groomed and affluent. You are asking the airline supervisor to waive their normal policies. You may well need to sign an indemnity form anyway.

I read that if I have a SETV I must have a flight out in 60 days, even if I plan on getting an extension and staying 90. What's what? Anyone?

Is the chance of being turned back dependent upon your age? These rules seem to be directed at keeping those entering the country from working there. So they might be a bit more strict on back-to-back entries for a 35-year-old visitor than a 75-year-old visitor. True or false anyone?

18 hours ago, BritTim said:

France has for years been more strict about issuing tourist visas than Thai consulates in most other Western countries. Your experience does not shock me. Unlucky.

They know what the French are up to. ????

6 hours ago, jackdd said:

That's something that some embassies made up, for example in Germany this requirement does not exist.

And a retiree using METVs does not have an employer to write such a letter so it can't be required in all cases.

14 hours ago, jackdd said:

You should not have any problems (carry 20k THB cash with you to be safe)

Crossing at land borders is safer than at airports.

Cambodia has a law that doesn't allow entering / leaving on the same day at land borders, and you should avoid the Poipet crossing, but sounds like you didn't consider Cambodia anyway, so this doesn't matter for you

If you leave / enter without getting a tourist visa you will get a 30 day visa exempt which can be extended by 30 days, but this is limited to two times per calendar year at land borders.

Doesn't that law rule out border runs? I would do the single entry tourist visa for 90 days, then a border run for 30+30 more. Now I have to show an ongoing flight after 90 days (the rules say 60 but if planning an extension I can't be paying hundreds of dollars to change flights) so I fly to Cambodia for a week or more to get my money's worth, and then return without a visa for my 30+30. No problems so far.

14 hours ago, bubba said:

"Betrayed by the embassies"? In order to continue the income verification letters, they were being asked by Immigration to provide some sort of documentable review and verification service that is far beyond the scope of their responsibilities, capabilities or resources.

If you go to your embassy, show your passport, your Social Security number, and your Social Security payment on document issued by your government, why can't your embassy accept this as proof? That's how government works, be it a cop asking for your drivers license and registration, or your passport to enter a country.

On 11/13/2018 at 11:52 PM, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

More poor reporting, as usual...

 

What exactly does it mean to say you're gonna allow an "unlimited number of visa waivers per calendar year" for land border crossers/arrivals, but then also say it's only going to be for "a two-month pilot period."

 

I'm sure there's some explanation, but lord knows what it really is, based on the writing of the article.

  

It means a vote of passage would allow unlimited entries without them rewriting the bill before a vote, which would require further debate and uncertainty.

We will know more in the new year when the new rules are supposed to go into effect. Likely no clarification at your local office until mid year.

Get a place with a fan, a pool, a balcony, and sea breezes. Shirts are for girls .. or maybe not.

The government is going to have to convince the banks to make it easier to open an account. Difficult to import retirement funds into a bank who won't accept your business.

On 10/29/2018 at 6:29 AM, simoh1490 said:

50,000 expats times the 10% who refuse/can't/don't have the 800k Baht to keep in a bank in Thailand is a very very small number when compared to the USD 450 billion that is the Thai GDP. 

If it's such a small number and so trivial, why bother doing it?

11 hours ago, HHTel said:

The British equivalent is not a sworn affidavit but a letter confirming the documents they have seen.  In my case, I submitted 1 years bank statements (each transfer in is accompanied on the statement by who transferred it), along with letters from my pension companies and a copy of the UK P60 which shows tax paid in the UK.

The problem with this is that none of that is verification.  I see the same problem with any embassy.  They can confirm the evidence, but that's all it is.  It's not verification.

A driver's license is evidence you can drive, not verification. You have to operate under common sense rules and penalize the violators, not just shut down the system.

3 minutes ago, Nyezhov said:

My difficulty with that is that I dont need 65K a month to live here, so why would I want to draw that much into an account every month, especially if I carry a base balance of like 200K?

Sorry I wasn't clear. The SS money could still be going into your bank at home. That's the point of Embassy affidavit.

Not sure why the embassy can't document a retirees Social Security income. We each have the government statement showing monthly and annual income, and it could accompany a bank printout showing it going into your account. That would cover most applicants. The ones getting their money from some dead cousin's trust would follow the new rules. 

ADVICE? I reported at Jomtien after 30 days in Chiang Mai. I did report up there. Jomtien said no need to report back after in-country travel, only foreign trsvel. OK. So I am going to USA and returning to Bangkok for a 3-day stay before returning to Pattaya. The Bangkok hotel will have filed the TM30, I understand. Now when I actually get to Pattaya it will be from local travel. Do I need to go to Immigration or not? Thank you for any help.