Barley

It always takes a little longer with the EU, since 27 member states need to sign off.

As far as my experience goes not inside the Euro Zone, meaning from a Wise account held inside the Euro zone to a non-Wise bank account also inside the Euro zone. I usually transfer money in the afternoon Europe time, which may also be a factor.

Inside the Euro zone there are two different transfer choices which most banks give: SEPA and Instant. Wise automatically transfers via SEPA which is not instant, but takes a day. 

Unless things changed with Wise... ???? But that was my experience.

Outside the Euro zone, and especially for Baht, Wise is usually instant except in Thailand when you transfer larger amounts or you specify Long Term Stay reason during transfer to get an FTT mark in your passbook. Then it can take a day if you initiate the transfer in the afternoon Thailand time. Morning transfers *may* be faster.

However overall Wise is IMO the easiest, safest, and best all around money transfer service and my go to provider. Just in special cases - as I laid out above - Revolut is minimally cheaper.

I have tried both.

They both have my foreign address, not Thai.

I found Revolt to be minimally cheaper on very small transfers to Thailand as long as you stay within your monthly rolling fair use limit, and Wise becomes cheaper on larger transfer above a few hundred dollars.

Revolt has the advantage of free and instant transfers inside of Europe, whereas Wise needs at least a day inside the Euro zone.

Generally Wise is cheaper to most destinations and it seems easier to use in my opinion.

Their debit cards are both good. Revolut has some bells and whistles which I don't use much.

@FriendlyFarang

Could you please give a valid and verifiable source for your statement? 

Yes, I also have thought about some of these concerns.

I looked for a model with a removable battery so that I can charge it in my apartment and not use my landlords electricity.

The model I am looking at uses lead batteries, the same technology that has been used in cars for decades. I think the news reports come mainly from electric scooters which probably use a different technology. 

On this picture one can recognize that the seat is adjustable but probably not by much. I plan to use it only in Chiang Mai, so almost all my trips will probably be 3-5 km, maximum rarely 10-15 km. 

I have difficulty believing that the local dealers have different models in the same class, because they all come from the same Chinese manufacturer and then are branded. The local sellers simply charge a lot more (50+%). The pictures I have seen from local shops on the web seem to confirm this. Of course one could expect that they give better warranty and have some parts, I agree.

Hello, 

I see more and more of these electric bicycles on the road in Chiang Mai. 

I would be interested in buying this model 

https://s.lazada.co.th/s.RrUNW

for myself but I am not certain if I need (and if I need - can I) register this electric bicycle and if I need to pay insurance and wear a helmet. 

My opinion is that I don't on all three counts, since this model has pedals, but I would like to hear your opinions. 

Also if anyone owns a similar or same model, I would like to know how you like it. 

Thanks a lot for your replies. 

I pulled 2 all nighters in a row to finish my work before a trans Atlantic flight quite some years ago. 

Then I missed my flight. ????

Drove back home from the airport and slept 24 hours straight. 

No drugs, not even coffee or similar were involved. No microsleep, but definitely ups and downs. 

Because I used to fly 100 times a year for 15 years my body was somehow used to these changes. But after that time of 15 years it took me 1 and a half years to recover and get rid of the deep accumulated exhaustion. 

Yes, I know that's what the link said. 

I am already a customer and I applied in the app and it said it too. 

But when I started the order I was accepted (I have retirement visa) and the card was in my mailbox 7 days later. 

I just ignored all the warnings and clicked on Continue or similar. It was a little confusing but it worked for me. 

Imagine one of these scenarios:

You cannot enter Thailand for example for reasons of health, visa problems, different life planning etc. but you have a lot of money in Thailand, for example for purposes of a retirement visa.

By having the Krungsri Boarding Card you can get your money out of Thailand with a fair exchange rate and by saving a 2% surcharge. This was my thinking.

And yes, the Bangkok Bank Debit Card charges a 2% surcharge outside of Thailand.

The exchange rates on the Krungsri Boarding Card seem very fair, I think they make money on this card by the merchant fees.

I was asking because many news services mention Thailand specifically as a land where Netflix has/will cut prices of certain tiers.

https://www.bbc.com/news/business-64753499

@seeall 

Sharing could be ending soon:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/kateoflahertyuk/2023/02/09/netflix-password-sharing-everything-you-need-to-know/ 

There is no subscription with ads in Thailand, so no - 99 THB subscription has no ads.

Limitations are: Can only watch on mobile phone or tablet, NOT on PC or TV (I tried all tricks, really cannot - no casting mirroring, android emulator, Android/TV stick etc), maximum resolution 480p, no sharing and you can watch on only one phone or tablet at a time.

I think basic is 720p, that would be good enough for me.

Even the 480p resolution is surprisingly good on my 10in. tablet

Hello,

 current Netflix rates are: 

https://help.netflix.com/th/node/24926/th

Service Fee (Baht)
Mobile: 99 baht/month

Basic: 169 baht/month

Standard: 349 baht/month

Premium: 419 baht/month

Were these rates recently lowered and would you know what the old rates were?

You can buy this detergent from Ubon at Line ID: Ujbonbon with delivery to your home. I believe the product is even made in Chiang Mai.

I had 2 BB savings accounts at 2 different branches but both shown in my app. 

I went to my current branch a few weeks ago and asked them if they could close the account on the other branch. 

They told me they can't do it but I should empty the account completely and then it will be closed automatically after 12 months. I asked about potential liability for charges and they said there won't be any. 

I believe that the debit cards mentioned charge you something like a 2% conversion fee for every transaction in foreign currency. 

You can open a Krungsri Savings account, sign up for internet, and in their app get a special Krungsri Card called Krungsri Boarding Card which doesn't charge you this fee. One restriction on this card: ATM withdrawals overseas ARE possible, but NOT in Thailand. 

But you can use this card in Thailand except for ATM and for ATM withdrawals use their app for card less withdrawals. 

Don't be discouraged by some text in the app that you cannot get this card, it worked just fine for me with a retirement visa. 

My experiences for the Krungsri Boarding Card are very positive once you take a few minutes to familiarize yourself with the concept and consider the benefits for yourself. One of them is an easy way to spend your deposits outside of Thailand without a big loss if that should ever be desired. 

Continuing on this thread:

I have just signed up for the Netflix 99 Baht deal for Smartphone/Tablet only. I have a 10inch tablet and was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the albeit low resolution of 480p for the 99 Baht deal. I expected much worse, but it was actually very clear and (for me, others may feel different) enjoyable to watch.

Now my question:

What happens if I physically go to visit US or Europe, will I be able to watch Netflix there without a VPN to Thailand?

Can I use an Android TV Stick and put Netflix on it and then watch Netflix on my big TV in 480p, even though the plan is supposed to be for smartphones/tablets only?

Hello, 

I am thinking of flying to Da Nang from Chiang Mai and stay from mid February till end of April. 

What are my visa options? Possibly I can change to less than 60 days, if that makes a difference. 

Thank you for all of your comments.

An important criteria for my account is the flexibility to take the money out at any time - even while I am out of the country.

So therefore I am very interested in the Mee Tae Dai account. The SCB EZ account may also fit the bill.

I wish someone could tell me more about his or her experiences with the online no passbook version of these accounts and how immigration reacted to it.

I believe I have read some posts in this forum in which people said that IO gave no problems for the SCB EZ online account, but I am not sure about it.

It may also depend on the IO office, of course. Mine would be Chiang Mai.

I wanted to give my opinion, but didn't want to read through 5 pages, so if my advice is redundant, please understand:

My Background: Computer enthusiast and network administrator for several NGOs/Businesses/and private people, though my work is pro bono. I have used VPNs myself and set up several VPNs for others.

Here is my advice: Don't throw money at it yet. Use a free VPN in the beginning, but beware: Most free VPNs want to spy on you and are Chinese owned.

This one does not and is an honest operator and gives you several Gigabyte free traffic every month (I have an unlimited pro account, so not sure about the exact amount): https://windscribe.com/download

Tip: Download only the BROWSER package for the browser that you plan to use. Why? Some websites are picky and don't allow you to connect if your computer time is from a different time zone than your connection would indicate, f.e. Asia time, but you pretend to come in via VPN from USA on Central time. The Windscribe BROWSER extension fixes that, the OS download does not.

Check if this will work for you. Then you can stay with the free program.

Re. Static VPN: If you REALLY NEED this feature (most people don't! - only if the free account isn't working for you) please read this first: https://blog.windscribe.com/port-forwarding-static-ips-and-lies-bcf427fdb283/

and then get a STATIC IP with Windscribe, but NOT a really expensive DEDICATED IP.

I hope this helps. Many companies try to make money in the VPN business by trying to upsell and confuse the customer. Keep it to the simplest working configuration and don't let yourself be confused,

I just got the the new Krung Sri Boarding Card, a Prepaid Card mainly for international use because no 2.5% currency surcharge, and I did the full process in the app without a work permit.

I know it says work permit on the web sitze, but at least for me that wasn't necessary. So I would assume the same applies for the Mee Tae Dai online account.

BTW the card is free of charge (I think for 2 years, not sure) if you apply by March. https://www.krungsri.com/en/personal/card/krungsri-boarding-card

Anyway, my question remains unanswered:

What are your experiences about the Mee Tae Dai online account and immigration?

Hello,

I read here about the Mee Tae Dai account, people were saying it gives really good interest rates.

So I wanted to open the account through my KrungSri app.

Then I saw in the conditions that the online account with the better interest rates does not come with a bank book. So I wonder if I should get the branch account which I assume will have a bank book which I can then present to immigration when it comes time for my extension.

The one think I really like about the Mee Tae Dai account as opposed to a straight term deposit account is that I can withdraw money through the app even when overseas, whereas the traditional term account requires a visit to my branch.

What are your experiences about the Mee Tae Dai online account and immigration?

Slightly OT: What about if he had the blue book, even though it is her name on the blue book 

1 hour ago, gargamon said:

Just did this myself. 800k in the bank for years.

2k for the NR-O and 1900 for the 1 year extension.

 

Only fools and destitutes need to use agents.

If you had 800 k in the bank for years, what was the procedure to prove that the money came from outside of Thailand for your NR-O?