OzMan

On 4/28/2021 at 10:10 PM, treetops said:

The main western produced ones are all being sold at cost until the WHO declare the pandemic over.  Prices may well go up if anything when that happens.

I would not be too sure about that...

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/05/04/business/pfizer-covid-vaccine-profits.html

48 minutes ago, OzMan said:

"must be for the period of your stay". I am on an O visa with 11 months left, if I buy junk insurance to satisfy immigration that means I have to buy insurance for 11 months. Not cheap.

I thought of way round this, although I am not sure it will work. When I return from Europe have a refundable plane ticket to go back to Europe in, say, three weeks. Then, I only need buy COVID insurance for a month (minimum cover). When back in Thailand, cancel the full-fare flight back to Europe.

On 5/7/2021 at 6:59 AM, stapoz said:

I have the same problem with my Aetna ins. I think the best solution is to buy a cheap covid insurance approved by immigration "for show only" and for short period (must be the period of your stay - visa period or outbound ticket). Thai like everything "for show" even if it is silly and worse than the real one. 

"must be for the period of your stay". I am on an O visa with 11 months left, if I buy junk insurance to satisfy immigration that means I have to buy insurance for 11 months. Not cheap.

I tried getting government approved travel insurance to re-enter Thailand, but they did not sell it people 70 or older.

I would like to leave Thailand to return to Europe for a month, but the cost of health insurance on my return is putting me off. For a 72yo, health insurance is expensive. Has any older expats found an inexpensive insurance policy allowing them back into the country? The insurance policies I have seen offer treatment at hospitals like Bumrungrad, which I do not want. What do Thais buy and is it available to expats?

Thanks in advance.

Has anybody looked into getting a COVID vaccination in Europe if they are not resident there? I have a British passport and plan to travel to Europe, not UK, later this year. The information at present implies this is not possible, except perhaps in Serbia.

Thanks glegolo, Crossy, and ubonjoe.

Step 1: I need to contact BKK ampour and ask how to get a yellow book.

To apply for a Pink ID card it says I need to take the original ta bian ban (Yellow Book) with me to an amphur or Tessaban. I assume my landlord has an original Yellow Book and is unlikely to lend it to me. Is a copy OK?

Chulalongkorn wrote to me to say the semester fee for a person with a Thai passport is 25,500 baht. anybody without a Thai passport there is an extra fee of 138,000 baht, making the total semester fee 163,500 baht. Two semesters a year, the yearly fee for a non-Thai is 327,000 baht. Considering some people have been living here since birth, e.g. from Vietnam who came with their parents, this is extortion.

Looking at undergraduate fees at Chulalongkorn university, it states clearly that only Thai citizens are eligible for lower fees. non-Thais living here, even if permanent resident and living here for years, have to pay the much higher international student rate. Chulalongkorn's web page said this was a government rule. Has anybody any contrary experience with this?

https://www.reg.chula.ac.th/tuition-fees-en.html

I must have misunderstood what was required to transfer an Australian to a Thai drivers licence. Once the eye test was over, and sat through a film in Thai on road rules, I paid 205 baht and was given my licence. I was expecting to sit a test on road rules. No such test for me.

Retook the test this morning and passed in 5 seconds. Only asked to make one attempt. I was in by 7:55, and the tester just wanted me out of there. No multiple attempts asked for. Try once and passed. Same for side vision test. Looking at shadows helped, but buying glasses would help more. From other posts  I could see coloured dots on door on left, and moving shadow on them. But bad eyesight stopped me taking full advantage of this. Tried at Mo Chit. Staff very helpful yesterday, gave me a lot of coaching and allowed multiple tries.

Just took test, but failed eye test when aligning two vertical rods. Need to go back tomorrow. Any tips on passing this?

One page on the Web said the trick is to look at the shadow from the lit-up rod onto the unlit rod. Try to work out the shadow, or light, of one onto the other. The tester allowed me to re-enter the queue for testing four times and failed each time, a Thai guy in front of me got kicked out first time.

This morning I tried to convert my Australian licence to a Thai licence, but failed the eye test where I needed to align two vertical rods. Any tips on how to pass will be appreciated. I need to return tomorrow to retest.

Thanks Ubonjoe.

My last 90-day report was one month before my O retirement visa expired. When will I need to do my next 90-day report? three months after my last 90-day, or three months after my O was renewed?

I am trying to figure out the process? I complete a form and assemble documents, I personally take them to a Land Transport Office, without making a prior reservation, and hand in the documents. They will then give me a date to attend for the test. Is this correct?

Since I am not an experienced motor cycle river, and do not want to drive in Bangkok, it is probably better to take the test in Pattaya or Ayutthaya, where roads are not so congested and motor scooters are available for rent. Otherwise use am motor scooter test school in Bangkok.

Thanks BritTim

I was planning to take my application to renew my O retirement visa to Immigration tomorrow, but noticed on an old document the application needs to be in at least 15 days before the old visa expires. What are the implications if I am late with my application?

Thanks everyone.

Later this week I plan to change my car drivers license from Australian to Thai. Plus I want to get a motorcycle license, which I do not have on my Australian license. I believe I need to complete a driving test at the Land Transport Office. Do I need to bring my own car and motor cycle? How is the test conducted?

"If your prescription cost you $200 AUD I think most of that must have been the drug itself. Imported drugs are very expensive in Thailand." All of the $200 was for the consultation, the prescription was extra, even that was extortion.

Where is an inexpensive place in BKK to get a health certificate for a drivers license? medconsultasia gives them for 250 baht, but I went there for a prescription renewal and there were other fees on top of what I was told initially, such as clinic fees in addition to seeing the doctor. End result: $200 AUD for a prescription renewal. Any other places apart from medconsultasia?