Caldera

Not like long-term residents enjoy the many annoyances and disturbances caused by short-term rentals. Even if legalized, many condos would probably still ban them by vote.

I don't buy either side's story. These Chinese gangsters and bent Thai officials seem to deserve each other. But it will do wonders to Thailand's reputation as a safe tourist destination among the Chinese. Yet again.

Now the sky is really falling.

Good decision, the Isaan region already has enough if not too many airports offering a few domestic flights per day. If Thailand had decent highways, most wouldn't even be needed.

The problem with that silly approach is that you won't know if they haven't contacted you because (a) your registration is fine and your name match is confirmed or (b) they haven't gotten around to it yet or have screwed up the notification. I've heard nothing from my banks and I know that my SIM card is properly registered in my name. No need for me to worry, says the guy. And yet, there's a lingering suspicion that their name matching exercise could go wrong, especially with foreigners and complications like middle names. Now I'm in Thailand and could fix whatever needs fixing with relative easy, what worries me is that they might have another go at it while I'm abroad and unlikely to be able to visit my bank at a moment's notice.

If I was him, I wouldn't want to rock the boat. I think public sentiment would be in favor of requiring those who receive state pensions to spend them back home. It wouldnt surprise me if you'll need to be resident in your home country to receive these kinds of pensions in the not-too-distant future, given the precarious financial situation of Western governments and social security systems. Allowing this guy to relocate to Thailand and to spend his pension money here? I'd bet many of his fellow pensioners who are stuck in Blighty resent that!

Having a physical altercation over a dime-a-dozen Pattaya slapper is beyond stupid.

What makes you think that doing a P2P crypto exchange is legal in Thailand?

Same here, I just make free instant transfers from my Bangkok Bank account to my Kasikorn Bank account as needed. No problem.

Wearing just a scout scarf with otherwise regular attire is just sad. Either do it right or don't do it at all.

I stopped using my Bangkok Bank card for online payments many years ago, ever since they changed to TPN it has been unreliable at best. No problems whatsoever with my Kasikorn Bank cards, on the other hand. So that would be my recommendation if you're looking for a reliable alternative.

Like every year at this time. Meh.

Yes.

I had to check my calendar reading this. Surprisingly, we're more than three weeks past April 1st already.

I'd argue that not having access to this "famed" yet shoddy instant coffee isn't a big loss!

Looks like Thailand is yesteryear's destination of choice for Chinese travelers, nowadays they prefer to travel to Japan I don't think there's anything Thailand can do to change that. Those scams, boat accidents and abductions sure didn't help!

Better make sure that your payment terminals work at all times then. I still remember trying to pay cashless at an IKEA restaurant once when the lady couldn't get the terminal to work. Back then I could pay cash, what would I do in the future?

The "promise" of future income doesn't matter. You can qualify with $40k/yr income plus an investment. Which is what you have in mind, just why you mention 10 million baht is a mystery (it's $250k).

For people already in Thailand, going to a hotel elsewhere in Thailand for a few nights to be eligible to apply for the certificate of residence at a more accommodating immigration office would be a lot easier and cheaper than going on a visa run. That's why I threw that in.

It's worth noting that many immigration offices do issue a certificate of residence to someone who entered Thailand visa exempt. Even Bangkok nowadays, where that used to be impossible in the past. Which means that, being a tourist on visa exempt, you can "shop around". If you're in Surin and they refuse to issue you one, book a hotel in another province where they do issue them to tourists. Sorted.

Clearly he wasn't a suitable person for his park ranger job.

Good grief.

And pre-Covid? Everything looks great when compared with times of closed borders.

I think it's just your perception. Thailand has been chasing a higher tourist spend for years, so there's been no shift. It just doesn't materialize, no matter what they try. The result is always the same: they open the flood gates and make do with whoever they can attract. Only to whinge about low quality tourists later.

They didn't make it temporary unlike when they had previously upped it to 45 days though. So whatever they'll do next (and when) remains to be seen.