CaptainJack

I typically don't reference non official websites,  but regarding the discussion about retirement in Mexico, this is a good reference. 

Also, just as with Thailand, different consulates use different rules.  Can't get away from the old "which IO or office does what" stuff. Yuck. Nobody follows the rules as set out it seems.  I suspect the USA is the same.

https://www.expatsinmexico.com/mexico-immigration/

11 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Don't answer if it's too personal, but if you choose Mexico do you plan on applying for the pension method or the show money in the USA method (one year or lifetime option)? 

No worries.  I'll do the retirement pension program.  I'm too old to dump money in an investment property and want to keep as many options open as possible. I have no problem with monthly income. 

18 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Possibly. You present an interesting case with that. As you're out of Thailand already I suppose the best idea is to apply without the Thailand document and hope for the best. Then if they push it back then you can help us find out if/how you can get the proper document (with apostille and translated) when you are no longer in Thailand for the specific nation you will be applying to.

I'm hoping over time (years even) we can gather multiple current reports from people that have lived in Thailand and are moving to the specific Latin American nations. 

By the way, as an insight into my strategy,  I will stay in Mexico for a month or more on a tourist Visa,  bank a lot of my pension money back into savings and get myself a better buffer.  There is some method to my madness.  Lol.

By the way. When it comes to tourist visa runs from one Central American country to another,  you cannot simply land cross or fly to an adjacent country.   They all formed a pack and share via a computer system where you have been.  If in a Central American country for 90 days, you have to leave Central America for at least 3 days, where South America or North America.  

5 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Great. What kind of Thailand visa stamps do you have in your passport though?

Sent from my Lenovo A7020a48 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

Non immigrant o retirement.  That may or may not be an issue.  I'll find out. 

2 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

It really depends. When you decide on a country please post. You don't always need a lawyer and you don't always need to start in the home country.

Sent from my Lenovo A7020a48 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

True. Mexico is one you have to apply from your home country consulate,  get your initial stamp, all your documents and then go to Mexico,  submit everything to be apostlized and wait.  Every country is different. 

8 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Something to add on the police record thing.

In case you'll need it for your home country too which I kind of assume it would be wise to get anyway if there is any uncertainty at all there will be scads of information already that you can find about how to do that for the USA and Canada. Other nations, probably not so much. So in this thread I'm suggesting a focus on the THAILAND related issues with getting required documents. 

I've already read some requirements for police reports.  It will be common to have to produce police reports from both your home country and Thailand. 

9 hours ago, Jingthing said:

I want to add yet another item to the PRIORITIES list of things you might want to consider when choosing a destination in Latin America. 

 

That is -- dressing norms.

 

Latin American cities have dressing norms. They are usually more FORMAL than the norms you might be used to if you've been living in Pattaya or Phuket. People living in Bangkok will be closer to the norms.

 

The point is if you move to Latin America you are probably going to want to blend in somewhat and not present as a gringo tourist everyday. Sure tourists can dress everyday in shorts and sandals and be seen by all as foreign tourists. Living there, most people won't want that or it could even cause you problems if you do. 

 

So as far as the priorities, well, if being super casual with dress (and also saving time and money on maintaining a more formal wardrobe) is very important to you, you could choose a beach resort area in Latin America such as Cartagena Colombia, Puerto Vallarta Mexico, etc. Short of that you could choose a more working class provincial town or city where shorts everyday wouldn't be cool but you could still dress rather shabbily. 

 

This could be a bigger deal than you might think. I do own socks but they stay in my drawer. 

Agreed. Don't even think of wearing shorts to a government office or anything even semi formal. 

9 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Hi there.

Have you retired in Ecuador?

If so, did you do so after living in Thailand?

This is a really important part of the intention of this topic. 

Ecuador and most other Latin American nations will require a police report document if you've been living in Thailand. It has to be from an approved Thai source, it needs have an apostle, and it needs to be officially translated. I assume they would also probably require similar from your home country even if you haven't recently lived there.

This can be a major pain.

Specifics may be different for each nation.

I wonder if the Latin American nation's embassies in Thailand can assist (or you need them to assist) in some cases.

The intention of this thread is for it to last for months and years and for people that have recent reports of how they dealt SPECIFICALLY with the Thailand aspect of this (which as far as I know would only be about this police record document) in the cases where such a document is required.

These documents will all have TIME LIMITS.

For example -- six months.

If you're moving to a nation where the application can possibly take several months, you can see the potential problems there.

Also how do you get this report if you're no longer in Thailand?
Is it realistically possible?

Perhaps you failed to get it before leaving or the time runs out on the limits even if you did.

These Latin American nations do NOT kid around with these types of required apostle documents. Either you have them and they are exactly right for their requirements (which can change on you just like Thailand) or you'll have ZERO chance of getting approved. Make or break stuff. 

I understand you may not have lived in Thailand or Ecuador.

This post is meant to be a GENERAL message about the potential long term VALUE of this topic for people that have lived in Thailand that may want to move to Latin America.

We are not going to learn this THAILAND specific information on general websites or forums about these topics for the various countries.

I hope people understand what I am talking about here and the reason it can be very important for people to post specific reports as some MAY go through this process for the various nations over the years.

Thanks. 

You are absolutely correct.  In fact, if I decide I want to retire to almost any country in Latin America,  I'll have to repatriate to the USA for anywhere from two months to a year, often need to hire an attorney and wait.  Retirement to a Latin American country is not like Thailand or Cambodia. 

Good Morning, 

I've been super busy and not had a chance to check in.  Couple of quick thoughts.

Once again, I cannot state strongly enough badly I messed up by not planning, knowing or understanding what I was doing deciding go retire in Thailand. 

When I finally understood the visa agent deposited 800k baht into my checking and withdrew it the next day, I was then totally confused.  Duh! It was not until three months later, the scare at immigration and my resulting "education", did I start to really understand the immigration system in Thailand. Wow! I think I was truly in La La land for three months  

This was a perfect storm for me.  One of the main ssues that raised it's ugly head, was as I was starting to work on getting the 65k every month deposited and try to work on the medical insurance issue, was I found out that do do my extension, I needed to produce my previous bankbook and all the other supporting financial documents. 

There was no way I'd be able to conceal the obvious fraud committed by the visa company.  At that point, It was truly in my best interest to leave.  There was no way I was going to risk getting caught.  It has been a tough lesson, but, I have learned. I guess for what it is worth, the idea I could be detained,  arrested and deported was just more then I was willing to risk to be in Thailand,  on the other side of the planet from home.

Anyway,  for what it is worth,  I could wait until my current retirement visa expires the end of September and fly back on a visa exemption stamp, or get a 90 tourit visa or other legal method and start all over.

I'm not going to try again,  because for me, my love of Thailand does not balance out all the ongoing hassle and what the medical insurance would cost at age 67.  

I checked in today, this probably my last time to report in that I have done the research,  know what type of visas are required,  how much money I'll need, how to manage the medical insurance issue to go and take six months on the coast of Mexico to check out living there.  I'll be leaving after the needed rest and recovery here in the USA for the coast of Mexico,  where I will have in hand my six month multiple entry tourist visa.  I have rented a short term rental and have appointments to look at furnished one bedroom apartments that run around 350 USD a month.  Everything is walking distance,  there is Uber and I am a 7 hour flight back to the USA if I need major medical attention. 

My plans are check out on 10 day trips Panama and Costa Rico. Maybe I'll like living in Mexico.   As a child, we were there a lot and as an adult I've taken a hundred vacations there.

I started this topic not in the best of moods, and blamed Thailand and others, but the responsibility was mine.  I know that. 

I do have one suggestion for a strategic perspective if an expatriate here finds himself up against a wall.  It's this.  Quit going it alone.  Reach out to each other and meet.  Combine resources and work together.   Alone, we each can be overwhelmed,  both emotionally and realistically.  You are stronger together working as a team then alone. 

Good luck.  Sorry my topic was not well thought out or presented.   I hope you all find away to keep the LOS yours.  But if not, all I ask is you leave on your terms, not theres.

Cheers.....

CJ

5 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

It's interesting that you say you traveled since many years.

I don't want to play the hobby psychologist but are you sure you want to settle down in one place?

I guess after all your travel you should have experienced enough places which you like. Some more and some less.

Personally if I would want to settle down I would think about the places I know and pick the one which I liked most (and which I can afford, etc.)

But it seem you don't pick one of the places you know already. You look for new places which you don't know.

That's obviously in itself not a problem. But it sounds for me like you like the experience of new places and you don't really like to settle down. That's fine. But I think we all look at places differently if we think about spending there a couple of months or if we think about settling down there.

What do you actually want? Settle down or explore places?

(I don't expect that you explain this to me or others, but I think it's a question you should ask yourself)

I'm happy to answer.  I am moving my reply to a post because I think the reply is better suited for all.

4 hours ago, OneMoreFarang said:

How does that work? It seems not so good...

I don't like fb but I understand when some people use it for business or to stay in contact with existing friends who are far away.

But I can't imagine those virtual "friends" have much to do with real friends.

I think it's not difficult to have friends in Bangkok. And it's definitely not difficult to have acquaintances.

I think what some people are miss are friends visiting friends in their home. I guess that happens not so often here. I say I guess because I never was a fan of that even in my "home".

I see friends mostly for coffee, dinner, a couple of beers, etc.

Maybe one aspect is that I think many people in Thailand (and maybe elsewhere) want some time before they accept new people as a friend. Having a beer is ok, telling your personal story not so much. I guess one of the reason for that is that lots of charlatans run around here with wonderful business opportunities, special tips, etc. It's a good idea to be careful with them...

I understand your point.  For me, I've been traveling the world since 2014.  Never in one place long enough to really make friends.  I think for me, if I would have stayed in Thailand longer, I'd probably have made more inroads.   Hard to say.  I have found it more difficult as I have gotten older.  Probably a combination of me and everyone else?

I'll be at my new Latin home starting March 11th.  I'll rent a nice furnished apartment for six months and see how it goes.  All an exercise in being stable in one place long enough to get acquainted  

The cost of living in comparable to Thailand and it is only 7 hours to Austin if I need serious medical care.   There is a substantial American expat community too.  I'll see how this goes. 

Good points by the way.  Thanks!

Good morning from Austin, 

A quick check in and a few things that are working.   When I moved to Thailand,  because I have been on adventure travek since 2014, most my friends were virtual. Many I have met in person,  but they are scattered all over the planet.   I have used Facebook as a virtual network of friends. 

I have several I'm in touch with only a few hours away, and am connecting with them for some real human interaction.   That is a strategy not to fall into depression from loneliness. 

The research is ongoing on the next destination.  I'm 95 percent sure it is the west coast of Mexico.   There is a decent sized expat community in close proximity too.  

I got in to see my doctor for my annual physical.   Everything's good. Yea!

Oh, I had not mentioned this before, but I think this is important.   One of the things that happened when I was living in Bangkok was I was only able to make two farrang friends.   I never was able to get any traction beyond that.  I'd meet guys at expat bars, talk, but nobody ever seemed very open.  I'm normally a very easy to like and get to know guy.

All the expats that had girlfriends were focused on them.

My one real expat friend,  once he got a new girlfriend,  he was always busy with her.  I fell into the same routine too.  It was just me and my girlfriend. 

I think it is Bangkok.   It just seemed too hard to make friends.   If I'd have gone elsewhere,  it might have made a difference.   Who knows.  A little late now.

That's it for now.  I'll check back in a few days.  Good luck to all and thanks for cutting me some slack.  I was feeling pretty down the other day.  Cheers.

19 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

The world is full of 'girlfriends', no need to move your current one to a new country, there will be another waiting for you to arrive. Applies to children as well.

I am the 'star' in my movie, who plays the bit parts, doesn't really matter.

I'm not being satirical. Thank you for being honest,  I was just wanting to not go down that path.  My own reasons, but I understand.  What a world we live in.  And, for what is worth, your comment can be construed as an exit plan and strategic way of thinking, as strange as that may sound. And I an NOT a drama queen.  I'm a real person with real feeling and emotions for those that want to rip me apart.  I would not do that to another human being....

2 hours ago, madmen said:

leaving your GF who you miss is a bad decision IMO. Real love is hard to find and I wonder why you didn't make plans to take her with you or you could have stayed as there are currently a few work arounds regarding immigration

And this is the other route.

http://www.integrity-legal.com/us-visa/immigrant-spouse-visa.html

2 hours ago, madmen said:

leaving your GF who you miss is a bad decision IMO. Real love is hard to find and I wonder why you didn't make plans to take her with you or you could have stayed as there are currently a few work arounds regarding immigration

Just an FYI.  Thailand is not part of the USA Visa Waiver Program.  I have also copied the relevant information I found when I first researched this question.  As a footnote, one of my girlfriend friends applied for visas to visit USA.  This is a Thai married couple. The husband was approved and his wife was not.  The American Embassy does not provide a reason for denial, only, "you are denied".  Come up with another 260 U.S. Dollars for the fee, and try again.  Just visiting the USA for a Thai is difficult.

FAQ - Visa Refusals

1. What is Section 214(b)?
2. How can an applicant prove "strong ties?"
3. Is a denial under Section 214(b) permanent?
4. Who can influence the consular officer to reverse a decision?

The United States is an open society. Unlike many other countries, the United States does not impose internal controls on most visitors, such as registration with local authorities. Our immigration law requires consular officers to view every visa applicant as an intending immigrant until the applicant proves otherwise. In order to enjoy the privilege of unencumbered travel in the United States, you have a responsibility to prove you are going to return abroad before a visitor or student visa is issued.

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Q.1 What Is Section 214(b)?

Section 214(b) is part of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA). It states:

(b) Every alien (other than a nonimmigrant described in subparagraph (L) or (V) of section 101(a)(15), and other than a nonimmigrant described in any provision of section 101(a)(15)(H)(i) except subclause (b1) of such section) shall be presumed to be an immigrant until he establishes to the satisfaction of the consular officer, at the time of application for a visa, and the immigration officers, at the time of application for admission, that he is entitled to a nonimmigrant status under section 101(a)(15). An alien who is an officer or employee of any foreign government or of any international organization entitled to enjoy privileges, exemptions, and immunities under the International Organizations Immunities Act, or an alien who is the attendant, servant, employee, or member of the immediate family of any such alien shall not be entitled to apply for or receive an immigrant visa, or to enter the United States as an immigrant unless he executes a written waiver in the same form and substance as is prescribed by section 247(b).

Our consular officers have a difficult job. They must decide in a very short time if someone is qualified to receive a temporary visa. Most cases are decided after a brief interview and review of whatever evidence of ties an applicant presents. To qualify for a visitor or student visa, an applicant must meet the requirements of sections 101(a)(15)(B) or (F) of the INA respectively. Failure to do so will result in a refusal of a visa under INA 214(b). The most frequent basis for such a refusal concerns the requirement that the prospective visitor or student possess a residence abroad he or she has no intention of abandoning. Applicants prove the existence of such residence by demonstrating that they have ties abroad that would compel them to leave the United States at the end of the temporary stay. The law places this burden of proof on the applicant.

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Q.2 How can an applicant prove "strong ties?"

Ties are the various aspects of your life that bind you to your home country. Strong ties vary from country to country, city to city, and person to person, but examples include:

• Your job;
• Your home; and/or
• Your relationships with family and friends.

While conducting visa interviews, consular officers look at each application individually and consider the applicant's circumstances, travel plans, financial resources, and ties outside of the United States that will ensure the applicant’s departure after a temporary visit.

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1 hour ago, madmen said:

leaving your GF who you miss is a bad decision IMO. Real love is hard to find and I wonder why you didn't make plans to take her with you or you could have stayed as there are currently a few work arounds regarding immigration

Hi,

I did not take her with me because I do not have a foundation back in the USA to bring her to.  I checked about getting her a tourist visa to come visit in the future.  That is definitely a possibility, but only if I have decided to settle down in the USA, which I am not yet.

But the more important reason is really simple, and she an I have talked about it.  It is the lack of community or anyone she knows that can help her fit in and find work.  She has to have a job and security when I pass away.  To bring her to the USA, no family, no income and no friends right now would be selfish on my part. 

At this point, the priority I see for helping her is to get through this this change of being together and let her decide what she wants to do.  The entire program of being your girlfriend to the USA is way harder then I think anyone who has not attempted can imagine.  I have talked with several Americans who have married their girlfriends in Thailand and are trying to take them to the USA.  They are all running into the same problem.  Their wives go for their interview at the U.S. Embassy and are routinely denied a visa.  It appears coming (qualifying) for a tourist visa is the only sure route, and to get that the Thai woman needs supporting documentation on where she is staying, how she will support herself, etc.

Your question is a good one and it deserves an answer, which I hope this suffices. And you are right.  True love is hard to find and I believe in my heart we have true love.  This is just one other aspect of this decision to leave I have and still am struggling with.

If you can give me some concrete information and advise on how I can get her to the USA, all other issues aside, I am open to hearing that.  Please share your knowledge for me and anyone else.  I hit a brick wall on this endeavor.

Thanks in advance.  I appreciate anything you can offer to help me.

33 minutes ago, Ashto said:

I’m increasingly convinced that flying several hours east is punishing but flying west not so. 

Definitely. 

5 hours ago, MuuKondiao said:

I see from the comments that some people ignored your request to not bother with personal insults and leave this blog to those of us who are quitting Thailand to share experiences and plans.

I will be looking forward to learning  how you adapt temporarily to life in the States and what you come up with for the next destination.

  

Thanks. I'm only going to be here a couple of months.   Right now I'm living on easy street with my best friend and his wife. Stayed up watching movies the last three nights in his home theater. 

Seeing my doctor today for a yearly check up.  The weather is not super cold, so a sweater and coat and I'm toasty.

I am just getting my sea legs, have 95 percent decided to go hang on the west coast of Mexico.  I can rent a nice, furnished studio apartment for 350 usd a month and get high speed Internet.  Quite, small town.  Twenty minutes by bus to the ocean.  I'll not press my timeframe to the point i make anymore mistakes,  and extend here for 2 to 3 months if necessary.   I'll need to rent an Airb&b,  expensive,  but time to plan correctly is imperative...  that's it for now.

6 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I'm not sure a McMansion in an Issan village can be converted to cash.

Especially if it's in someone else's name.

 

I have a couple of clapped out scooters, maybe 15k for the pair.

Hi!

I forfeited my deposit on my apartment.  It was not a major loss.  All my furniture and accessories I gave to my girlfriend to use in her new apartment.  We got a truck and loaded everything the week before i left and her family helped us unload and get it upstairs.   I had been using Transferwise to move 65k every month to my bank at Krungthai.  That is another reason I has enough of the hoops to jump through.   I checked to see how my 9 months of transfers were coded, after reading about that issue.  Sure enough,  they are all coded as local.  Enough said on that. I'm gone and don't have to deal with that issue.  Still makes me angry though.  I need to let that go.

My remaining cash in my Thai bank account? It was about 20,000 baht. I could have drawn it out at an atm, but just used it to buy as many things my girlfriend needed and transferred the rest to her bank account.  

That is all of my assets in Thailand.  Oh, i donated all my extra clothing that would not fit in a Gregory 65 litre backpack.  

That was what i did.