crees

Same boat, different city … thanks for the post question many are interested in

Thailand is great, but I chose Viet Nam because of the visa rules. Asia is full of really great people and places. 

Great information for those of us that want to remain in Asia but need to move on from Thailand. Thailand is my families first choice, P.I. is second and Viet Nam is third

I have tried to change my address through SS Manila since Feb 6th. I wrote to BB and it still has not been done. The Manila SS Office is either asleep on the job or over whelmed with address changes. They do not reply back … except for an automatic reply that keeps telling me to give them 5 business days to reply. 

10 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

This one is good for regular direct deposits. https://www.gsa.gov/cdnstatic/SF1199A-12a.pdf?forceDownload=1

This the one for IDD when it becomes available.  https://www.ssa.gov/forms/SSA-1199-OP107.pd

 

Thankyou, just wondering if this form will work for direct payments from the American VA

1 hour ago, lopburi3 said:

A regular savings account with only passbook access (that is key factor).  

and an address in Thailand! Told to me by Bangkok Banks main office

I Googled and found the form SSA-1199-OP107.pdf , used it, e-mailed it in and ???? SS Manila has not replied in the last few weeks. I would suggest trying to go around Manilla if possible, they don't seem to have anyone in that office

The impression I have gotten from SS Manila is they have no time to answer anything. I keep getting an automatic e-mail reply that I must wait 5 business days before trying to contact them again … what they mean to say is "good luck and see if Jesus will help you"

I have been using the information from this forum to try and fix my Thailand SS address but so far, SS seems to be over whelmed and nothing has been accomplished by them. Bangkok Bank has been very helpful … US Government … not at all … go figure 

I have used this method for some time, using Bangkok Bank. You have to go in person and I have never had a problem. I might add, satellite branches don't work well, go to the main branch in town. Depending on what week you get your check, it will be in Thai Time 

1 minute ago, GalaxyMan said:

Would they just do that automatically without being asked to by the farang?

I really didn't ask, as soon as I got another account … that Immigration Officer was transferred 

I had the same problem the immigration in my province, for some reason they needed to let everyone in the waiting room know what I brought in a month and my bankbook balance. With that out of the way they wanted me to file under 'retired' and not 'marriage'. I fixed this problem after about four years of the same thing always happening. I opened another bank account just for Thai Immigration. I am not trying to hide anything, I just don't want to get mugged on the way back home. A second account from Bangkok Bank took a lot more paperwork than the first account … it also brought me peace of mind

So now retirement visa has to keep 800 thousand Baht in the bank for a total of six months and after that leave a minimum of 400 baht in for the other six months. I have a marriage visa now and my immigration office keeps asking me to go to a retirement visa and save everyone some paperwork. Can anyone, other than Thai Immigration, tell me why I should use the Retirement Visa over the Marriage Visa that I have had for quite some time now?

Manners go along ways. Best to have your best smile, speak with respect in your voice and dress with respect. That seems to make smooth sailing. All to often I see expats give the counter a good fist pounding … that seems to throw a wrench into what they won't help you with.

Ah, so many things to worry about and only so much time … maybe we cross that bridge when we get to it

If we are forced, key word here is forced … they are not forcing you to be here, just exit already

Has the Marriage Vise Baht amount changed? I thought it was either 400,000 baht in the bank or at least 40,000 baht shown in a Thai Bank every month. I will be happy when they done with their changes. I understand the new Retirement Rules, but I am still up in the air about the Marriage Visa

I am in the same boat as the poster. I have been using my Thai wife's account to write a US check to, I went to Bangkok Bank yesterday to open a bank account so, because of the new rules, I am bringing in enough money to qualify to stay here. It took half of my day because of America's rules on foreign bank accounts. The checks were taking 30 days to clear, now it is 45 to 60 days. They collected everything but my used underwear. Good luck to you Adam1948, I can really understand why you want to stay … my feelings are the same as yours … as my wife says, "go get a room" 

I did read about the new requirements and did try to show a years worth of deposits and a letter from Bangkok Bank. That was 21 Dec. 2018. Immigration said no good, I must have an Embassy Verification Letter. I did get an Embassy Verification Letter and filed before 01, 2019.   

1 minute ago, overherebc said:

Don't think that's an option for someone 65/70 plus.

Wouldn't think that spending their life in safron robes and getting up with the sun every morning is part of their plans.

Point taken, I was 55 at that time

If you really want to live in Thailand, go through the path of becoming a Thai Buddhist Monk. I took that road some years ago and it turned out to be the turning point in my life. Life is full of surprises for the one's who are not afraid of something new. I was Ajon Khanti Palo Dama at Wat Nong Wang. It cost me nothing, and brought me everything in life. My wife was a Nun at that time, she was a teacher at the Temple school.

4 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

You certainly do need to check with Bangkok Bank to find out if your transfers are in the IAT format or you may not get a payment from the SSA in April. Since you are using a US address for the SSA I would say there is about 90% chance that they are not in IAT format.

Thank You, I will get my Social Security address changed to Thailand

44 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

You need to check with bangkok to determine if your transfers form the SSA are in the IAT format. I think they may not in that format. Is your address registered with the SSA?

If you aar sending a check to Bangkok Bank in  New York that will still be accepted and transferred into your account here.

My VA address is my address in Thailand and my SS address is in America, I am pretty hard not to find

The banking rules always confuse me as much as Thai Immigration does … so I'll ask here. I have an American S.S check that is automatically  turns up in my Bangkok Bank on the 3rd Wednesday every month. I have another check from the VA that is deposited in a Wells Fargo bank. I write a personal check from my Wells Fargo Bank to a separate Bangkok Bank account. My question is, will I still be able to write a personal check from my Wells Fargo personal to my Bangkok Bank account after April 1st? Thank You