drbeach

41 minutes ago, Madeline Thompson said:

it is indeed ridiculous.  This government (which remains a dictatorship

under the emergency decree), has a prissy attitude towards alcohol. Like

many other of its 'attitudes' it is detrimental to the tourist industry and

unnecessarily paternalistic towards the people of Thailand. 

 

 

Granted, it goes further back than that. Several anti-alcohol laws upon which the current ones are based, date back to the Thaksin era. Same as 90-day reporting. It's something about the mentality and attitude of every Thai government that is the problem here, and not necessarily only the current one.

6 hours ago, madmitch said:

Who will lose out by this action apart from consumers? Small independent brewers and importers and suppliers of foreign beers and wines.

 

Who will gain? The big brewers, whose profits won't be up to the usual obscene amounts due to the COVID-19 restrictions.

 

This is yet another example of the Government finding an excuse to help the elite families of Thailand.

In a sense, but how does it benefit the big brewers if their own products are restricted in this way? Besides, every time there is a religious holiday their products can't legally be sold (which is the case this long weekend I believe).

After all, craft beer and imported alcoholic beverages can be purchased easily in-store or at restaurants and bars, which are the main sales channels anyway.

I would be reeling at this draft law, irrespective of whether I was a big brewer or small importer.

On 7/4/2020 at 8:29 AM, Airbagwill said:

I'd love to hear why you think staying on Samui for 4 months makes you think you know better.....   I lived on Samui for 2 years....so what?.

 

As I said the Kaeng Krachan ranger station also actually used to have a sign explaining that foreigners with proof of living/working in Thailand were permitted in at the Thai persons' rate

 

If you got a ticket at on entrance for 40 baht and on the same day, the guy on the other entrance is asking foreigners for 400 baht, what do you call that....????

 

Of all the times I've been to Samet I've never paid their entrance fee. Oops you mean Samui. But in Samui you only pay that if you visit the national park, which doesn't cover the whole island. Whereas on Samet it does.

Just on couriers, which have largely been unaffected by all the flight restrictions and lack of commercial flight operations recently, I've read on this forum that for orders from the likes of iHerb (especially supplements and nutritional products), it is best to use the normal postal route, even if it's just for one small order. This is because couriers may ask lots of questions or request an import permit.

I've got a package valued at US$39 waiting in a warehouse in California, with 13 days left to make a decision on how/where to send it.

Given there are more flights this month than last and some people here have received recent orders, would it be wise for me to select USPS airmail shipping as opposed to DHL or Fedex?

Has anyone had any experience contacting a broker or trading firm that imports supplements from abroad and use them to send the shipment to? Would they be willing to do it ? I would have no problem with paying them some kind of administration fee for their efforts. I know it might seem too much effort for a small shipment, but clearly all sorts of supplements are available locally even if they're expensive, and they can be imported legally in any case. Just that the law is quite vague with regards to small shipments for personal use and what constitutes "commercial quantity" shipments. I'd rather pay a bit extra for piece of mind than take the risk of a seized package even though it's only a small quantity.

In my case, I'm trying to ship various supplements in separate packages even though the shipping cost will be significantly higher, but I'm doing this to avoid possible scrutiny, even if I only have 1 item of each type in the package.

23 hours ago, jimn said:

Not correct. I can name Australia, New Zealand, who are not allowing people in. I think there are others too.

Practically all Asian countries are closed to non-nationals with limited exceptions similar to Thailand's.

Essentially only Europe is open without quarantines and covid testing.

4 hours ago, worgeordie said:

Double pricing, scamming, are a Thai way of life,

no way is it going to change anytime soon,if ever.

regards worgeordie

Scamming, that may be here to stay for a while. Whereas dual pricing may very well go the way of the dodo. After all, with zero tourism income, if the Thais don't play this card correctly it will cost them big time. Already a couple of privately operated tourist sites have confirmed they will officially grant expats the local price. Not tourists though, but it's a step in the right direction.

13 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

I don't know. But there was some scuttle circulating around here that some Thai Post destined mail was running into problems because supposedly Thai Post had some kind of exclusive carriage agreement with Thai Air... which, if it existed, supposedly has been or is now being undone because of Thai Air's lost of government agency status.

 

I see. Pretty ridiculous though, given that even when THAI was flying (it isn't currently, except on limited routes like Hong Kong) it hardly covered the whole globe. For US origin shipments, one way or the other a non-Thai airline has to be used, since THAI stopped flying to the USA in 2015 AND THAI doesn't operate it's own fleet of cargo aircraft nor does any other Thai or foreign carrier operate direct services between the United States and Thailand.

Even Fedex, UPS and DHL don't operate non-stop US bound services. Cargo carriers service such destinations as Sydney (Atlas Air), Fedex (Guangzhou, Hanoi, Singapore and others) and that Luxembourg carrier that operates a cargo service between BKK and Luxembourg.

Anyway, Thai post has hopefully undone that agreement because it doesn't make any sense. It is totally unworkable during the current times but even during normal times it makes limited sense.

3 hours ago, JohnBZ said:

Time slips away. It is already summer time.  Virus is almost non existent  in Thailand and surrounding countries. How many more months do we have to wait before we are allowed to move across borders.  I hope Auguest.  Otherwise we may be stuck here for months when cold weather comes back.

With minimal or no restrictions, indications as of the time I'm making this post are September or October. Wouldn't be surprised if this gets dragged out until next year though.

Hard to say, since governments are flip flopping and making contradictory statements almost on a daily basis. My gut feeling is that since decisions seem to be made on a month to month basis, things will be a lot clearer by August 1. That said, I am quite sure that August will still be restrictive. Expect limited tourist arrivals then, but more along the lines of an "open air prison camp" type, where you are only allowed to visit one island and not permitted to travel elsewhere, or only after 14 days, with continual monitoring, covid testing and all. If you want to avoid that, you'll need to continue waiting.

On 5/8/2020 at 6:19 AM, Number 6 said:

It's absolutely insane to require masks for people walking about on footpaths or alone / with family in some setting distanced from others. The only thing more inane is wearing masks in private cars.

 

It just goes to show how government ministers, officials don't understand how communicable disease spreads other than vd. The general population is entirely ignorant as well.

 

What's worse I think the virus is largely gone from Bangkok outside the more dicey slum areas.

Add to this the officials caught red handed in black market operations of masks.

 

I've said it for year's this emerging market is no longer emerging. There might be growth after Thailand sorts itself out in a few years but the education so lacking all it can do is borrow from the West. No innovation. New model:  Philippines.

 

Fines?! Is there an actual statutory law on the books covering masks and fines? Doubt. Just pocket money BiB.

 

There was never a blanket requirement to wear a mask when outside your own home and even back when you made this comment barely 50% of the people around me were, now it's even less. Then again, how could anyone enforce such an ordinance, or law or whatever you want to call it. You'd have to establish a totalitarian police state with complete surveillance in all public areas extending to rice fields and forests! A simply impossible task. Might be possible one day, but not for the foreseeable future. Thailand is an autocratically ruled country (like the Philippines) but it's far from a developed country. Keep in mind that since you made your comment many US states have followed with their own stringent mask laws.

My personal view is that the provinces that introduced a blanket law that seems to require masks worn anywhere in public, despite not being enforceable, are lacking in common sense OR (probably more likely when you think about it) want to control people as much as possible by stepping up the fear mongering as high as possible. And of course make some money off of the fines.

I fully agree with your sentiment, which is why I've avoided places where I'm required to wear a mask since late March. Now I'm going to more and more places and seeing fewer and fewer people wear masks. That said...I think it's only public transport operators and the big retailers which definitely require them, as they are in lock step with government policy.

My hunch is mask laws will remain to enter these stores and public places/use public transport as long as the emergency decree is in force, but will go as soon as it ends (probably after July 31). Same as seems to have happened in parts of China - some schools no longer require students to wear masks since June, though keep in mind schools have been back since early April.

One exception - airports and onboard aircraft. It seems likely that masks will be required on board most airlines worldwide until late August or possibly longer.

On 7/1/2020 at 4:57 PM, JensenZ said:

I haven't been to a single store yet that does not require masks to be worn and temperatures to be taken. 

You must live in downtown Bangkok or somewhere like that then. Mom and pop stores certainly don't require either and 711s in my area don't take temperatures. And reportedly the only ones that do anyway are the busy ones in major cities.

I know they've been progressively removing them starting all the way back in early May, but what is unclear to me is whether there are still any of these checkpoints left. On a recent YouTube video from a Thai celebrity who drove from Bangkok to Chiang Mai via Sukhothai and Lampang posted on July 4 (unclear when the trip took place, but probably fairly recently) he and his friend encountered one such checkpoint just outside of Chiang Mai city.

I have been told by many people who've traveled recently and even as long as a month or 6 weeks ago, they haven't encountered any, but that was for trips south of Chiang Mai and between Bangkok and beach provinces like Rayong.

Anyone still encountering them in July? Any website I can check the locations (Thai is fine)?

On 7/3/2020 at 7:46 PM, JohnBZ said:

All countries with land borders with Thailand have zero or close to zero new local infection.  What are the reasons  they don't open borders to each other.  What are they waiting for?  

 

Tourism among these countries may be small but it is something.  Also, opening up to these countries will build up experience and overtime show everybody the extremely low risk of traveling between low risk counties is the same as traveling within the same country.

Their hands are tied. They can't just "open up" because you want them to. This covid thing is a global agenda. They will open up whenever they are allowed to. Whether that's in 1 month, 2, 3, 4 or 6 months, I don't know. We'll find out soon enough.

No one knows what the situation will be like come October, let alone what countries will be open by then (other than European ones). I suggest finding a way of extending your stay without leaving the Kingdom.

On 6/26/2020 at 7:39 PM, Deli said:

Sri Lanka and Maldives plan to open in July. Turkey, which has his biggest part in Asia, is desperate for visitors.

Sri Lanka opens in August but under VERY stringent conditions. Foreigners are barred from using public transport, for one.

9 minutes ago, kingofthemountain said:

If i understand the rule, you don't have to do it only if you cannot because of the covid

if you are already in Thailand and not in an hospital, i recomand you to do your 90 day report

as usual (With only few days in late you should avoid the fine)

i will do mine next week.

There is NO fine because you are allowed to delay it until after the amnesty ends.

6 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

Just an update on the above post of mine:

 

Yesterday, the Thai Post delivered to my home in BKK on the same day all of the half dozen or so different small packages that I had sent from the U.S. via airmail on different days during the first week of June.  So end to end delivery time was about a month, much longer than the normal 2 weeks I usually get.

 

So it would seem airmail packages from the U.S. ARE getting thru these days...just much delayed compared to past "normal" delivery times.  Dunno if that kind of delay is going to be an ongoing thing, or was just a temporary problem they had because of Thai Air or some other passing issue.

 

Not sure why THAI Air would have anything to do with it. Other commercial carriers are flying, so presumably, US origin packages are sent on an airline that is currently servicing both the USA and Thailand, such as Korean Air.

18 hours ago, Mike Teavee said:

You're not running around illegally but you should really have extended your permission to stay (you cannot renew a visa) when it was due to be extended as per normal. 

 

It's probably worth speaking to your immigration office to explain that your embassy could not provide you with what you needed (presumably letter of income) & can you extend now (backdated to the original extension date), failing that (& failing any "Special" arrangements being introduced) you will have to leave Thailand per whatever rules are introduced when the amnesty ends & get a new Non-O for Marriage.

 

I would imagine they can almost certainly backdate an extension as I've seen that happen before.

By contrast, Swiss banks - amazing and efficient. No questions asked, no delays, everything done online.

Unfortunately, I was forced to close my Swiss bank account down back in 2016 due to new rules regarding residency. Never mind I hold Swiss citizenship (I hold multiple passports) but apparently that wasn't enough for them.

2 hours ago, LivinLOS said:

I have to do silly amounts of banking in Europe / globally.. I find French and Belgian (french speaking) banks especially poor, lost transfers, strange paperwork needed, long delays where the funds are not in either account, etc etc.. 

Agree with the person above, open a transferwise borderless account, fund that, send from that to Thailand 'for the purposes of long stay' etc. 

I would also add, never had inbound transfer issues with Kasikorn. Just in case SCB is also a weak link. 

And yes, to add to my previous response...you are absolutely correct.

French banks need all sorts of weird paperwork like "invoices" I "issue" to my employer to "justify" the transfer because apparently French banks view Thailand and Myanmar (and several other countries in the region) "high-risk" for money laundering. Absolutely ridiculous, considering I have never been asked for any paperwork to transfer funds to Thailand from Australia since the first time I started doing so in 2003.

And then it takes them ages to carry out the transfer and for some reason, it can't be done online? I've been doing online telegraphic (wire) transfers from my Australian bank since 2003 and now we're in 2020.

Seems like some kind of anti-Asian bias is prevalent in France.

2 hours ago, LivinLOS said:

I have to do silly amounts of banking in Europe / globally.. I find French and Belgian (french speaking) banks especially poor, lost transfers, strange paperwork needed, long delays where the funds are not in either account, etc etc.. 

Agree with the person above, open a transferwise borderless account, fund that, send from that to Thailand 'for the purposes of long stay' etc. 

I would also add, never had inbound transfer issues with Kasikorn. Just in case SCB is also a weak link. 

I've never had issues with Bangkok Bank (my other bank). Some time ago, I decided to switch to SCB as my main everyday bank mainly because they have higher limits for internet banking and ATM withdrawals, but since I maintain active accounts with both banks, it might be an idea to keep SCB for domestic transactions and Bangkok Bank for international ones. In fact, I use Bangkok Bank exclusively for outgoing international transfers, which are always received in my Australian bank accounts the following business day first thing in the morning.

I'll look into transferwise though I have been using Western Union successfully with SCB. In fact, WU transfers I make online from my Australian account end up in my SCB account the following business day between 1 and 130pm, even if I make the transfer at midnight Thai time; the transfer will arrive the same day. For Bangkok Bank, it's the same thing but they usually credit funds between 2 and 230pm.

7 hours ago, Sophon said:

You should never add Mr/Mr/Miss in the receiver name field. Honorifics are not part of your name, and while they in most cases probably won't do any harm they will never increase the chance of your transfer going through.

Interesting. Just that on my account statements the Mr is part of my account name.

That said, in previous years I've never encountered problems receiving funds from abroad into my Thai bank accounts excluding the Mr. So I think it must be another issue. From the email my boss received from his bank, it looks like they made a major cock-up: my Thai account number has 10 digits, but they typed a number containing 16 digits (with the last 5 and several others blacked out with an "X"). The other issue is, they have two spaces between 2 digits of my account when it should be one.

I am wondering whether some incompetent employee might have written down my account number completely the wrong way, because that's what it looks like to me.

Actually, last time the funds didn't arrive on my SCB account may not necessarily have been due to the missing "Mr". I just assumed that, but when I checked a previous transfer made to my Bangkok Bank account from China without the Mr, it arrived just fine.

I think both times there was some kind of banking stuff-up. Maybe they misspelled my name the first time round (they did, when sending to Australia after the SCB rejection) and the second time it was probably because they didn't get my account details right.

Total amateurs, these guys (small rural bank).

Just following on from my previous post, which i think has been adequately answered (and I now believe the reason the funds haven't arrived in this case is likely due to some stuff up at the sending bank in France, who got my account number wrong) has anyone ever had problems with funds not arriving on the Thai end because the sender didn't add "Mr" or "Mrs" to the beneficiary name?

I mentioned in my previous post that I once had a problem with funds not being accepted due to the account name being incorrect (or incorrectly spelled) can't remember which one, but what if you do everything right but don't add the "Mr" pronoun?

1 hour ago, Curmudgeonly59 said:

Years since I've used counter service inside a Thai bank and yesterday I suddenly remembered one of the reasons why. Cash advance on a VISA debit card. Passport, ok. Then she asks me to sign a photocopy of my passport and (on the same A4 sheet) copies of both sides of the debit card, including the three digit CVV code! When I politely queried the need for that, it was straight into the usual officialdom and over compensatory aggression. Always amusing to watch the lightning fast switch from smiles and servility to open hostility, even at such a banal level of transaction. I smiled, and set about obliterating the CVV code. But really, with the debit card number, personal details from my passport, signatures all over the place they're not going to have the CVV number into the bargain. Bangkok Bank, by the way.  

Strange...when I make such queries I receive an appropriate answer and that's that. I've never been given "attitude" but when it comes to matters like the one you describe, I just let them do what they need to do. If I was paranoid about bank staff getting access to my details, I probably wouldn't even have the courage to open a bank account in the first place.

1 hour ago, Bangkok Barry said:

Being unable to buy online will have absolutely zero effect on the smaller suppliers. As well as being used to access the internet, phones used to be used to make calls, back in the old days. How about turning the clock back and calling the supplier. Not too difficult.

When you look at it that way, it's not really a big loss. After all, it hasn't been more than a couple of years since online grocery shopping has even been possible in Thailand. I can't remember when it came into being, but doubt it existed before around 2015.

Still, sometimes technology does provide great benefits to society (online grocery shopping being one example) that if you're not able to offer a particular type of product due to regulatory reasons, it kind of makes the whole experience a little less useful to the point that you might give up on it altogether (unless you're not in a position to go out, such as if you're sick or disabled) and just go back to regular in-store grocery shopping.