Caldera

The main issue is, can a foreign investor trust the muppet pictured in the article? I have my doubts.

Shameful, but not at all surprising. There's not a single Thai university that meets international standards. That there are a few that made this list - in many cases: barely - really isn't a matter of pride, just look at the ones from other countries that they compete with for those spots.

Careful @djlest, the usual apologists and shills will be here in no time to tell you in no uncertain terms that you paid for 5 years and that's all you're entitled to.

This whole discussion just reinforces my long held belief that you cannot trust the Thai government and any of its shady outfits. Not now and certainly not five or 20 years down the line. I'll use that to my advantage and continue to pay as I go (someone will always be there who's corrupt enough to indulge me) - no prepaid "Elite" for me!

I have and I like Netflix, lots of great stuff to watch. My Thai friends like it, too, although there's almost no overlap in what movies and series we like - I think that just shows how broad the range of what they have on offer is!

This is really just silly. At least he didn't wear a Hitler outfit.

I buy the gist of her story, if not every little detail of her account. However, she should have known that it's unwise to tamper with your passport like that.

While I certainly agree that Thailand does an atrocious job when it comes to ensuring the well-being of people who are incarcerated (for whatever reason) and deserves to be shamed for this whenever an opportunity arises, in her particular case, she could have easily avoided the whole situation.

2 hours ago, Hotrudester said:

Take revenge and creep up on him from behind and give it a good hard bite to show him who is Boss around there!!!!

 

 

That's the advice my uncle gave me when I was a little boy and his dog tried to bully me. It worked a treat, but then again, dogs in my home country are a lot cleaner than dogs in Thailand, you would probably die from catching all kinds of diseases when sinking your teeth in.

I flew into DMK yesterday, also with Air Asia. They seem to have fixed this problem, they handed out the forms pretty much once we were in the air.

That said, I didn't need the form but I always keep a spare and fill it in before departing, as my handwriting is bad enough even when I'm not on a shaky plane.

Another vote for Kasikorn Bank. Linking their web shopping card (to spend/shop/pay with PayPal) and savings account (to withdraw money from PayPal) works fine and I've never had any issues whatsoever. I've been using this combination since more than 10 years and have been a pretty frequent user, for what it's worth.

It doesn't really matter! An oath by a man who has neither ethics nor honor is worthless anyway.

OP, while it's obviously completely retarded and beyond ridiculous to criminalize something harmless like that, there's no feasible visa and/or work permit option for you to help your girlfriend at the market legally.

Well said, OP, the "spice of life" does have its magical draw. Best of luck whatever you decide!

Unfortunately that seems to be a big issue pretty much worldwide. Some Thais I've talked to simply don't seem to understand that having to pay interest will trap them for a very long time, especially with credit cards and their astronomical interest rates. And heaven forbid something unforeseen happens (illness, unemployment).

5 hours ago, Suradit69 said:

You seem to be laboring under the impression that everyone in the world is entitled to stay long term in Thailand and the method should be both inexpensive and convenient.  Failing that you then should be free to change the rules to suit yourself.

You need to face the fact that many people see Thailand as their b-tch, and for good reason. Long may it last.

On a personal note, what does the 69 in your handle stand for?

You know what!!

It's as clear as mud.

Compared with having a convicted drug trafficker in one's cabinet, the subject matter he's embarrassed about here is actually not very embarrassing.

It's quite telling nonetheless, I wonder where they got the idea from that he's good for a (another) handout?

Boris, just say it one more time and I might just believe you. Really, I mean, considering what a fine and upstanding gentleman you are.

????

Careful there, President Putin might not like that one bit. It does give the impression that Mr Snowden doesn't like Russia too much. I wonder why?

2 hours ago, elviajero said:

The fact that people continue to get away with long stays as tourists does not change the fact that they are not supposed to.

If I were some kind of a DB developer who has wasted his prime years working in an IT backwater such as Thailand, I would be jealous of those long-term tourists, too. Trust me.

What you need to focus on, however, is the Thai authorities. What you think doesn't really matter. There's simply no consistency whatsoever, not even at DMK. Another supervisor could well have denied entry to our OP. Not because "the rules" say that you cannot spend 8+ months per year in Thailand as a tourist, mind you.

4 hours ago, elviajero said:

We are visitors given permission to enter/stay for specific reasons. Tourism is just one reason, and although it's not specified is expected to be a short stay (max 90 days) after which they expect you to return home/move on.

 

(...)

 

Nothing in the visa system gives any indication that "rinse and repeat" is a legitimate way to live in the country or the correct use of VE/TR's.

Move on, yes, certainly. You do need to leave Thailand whenever your permission to stay is up. No argument there.

But there's "nothing in the visa system" that says that you need to return home, or to your country of (permanent) residence, either. That's just something you've dreamed up. If you're from a far-away country and you have a METV, it's the norm rather than the exception that you travel within the region before returning for another stay in Thailand.

You might have missed that this isn't a denial of entry report. The OP's IO did let the OP in. Unless you want to accuse that particular Thai IO of dereliction of duty, you need to accept the fact that the OP's history - AS A TOURIST - was fine with them. Personally, I think asking for an outbound ticket isn't unreasonable.