ChrisP24

If thieves came for *my* advent calendar they'd have to go through me, my dog, and my early warning system (EWS) rigged from empty advent wine bottles first......

And maybe work out a secret code language. A code using only Emojis could be interesting..... Casino - Phone Call Code - YouTube

$10,000 x 8% (that is .08) per annum = $800 annual interest. But they pay semi-annually so they pay $400 every six months. And then when your bond matures at the end of the 10 years you get your $10,000 back plus the final $400 interest payment. It would be prudent to know in advance for certain what the penalties are for early redemption (cashing out) your bond. Typically with bonds you give up some amount of interest, but there are also some that cannot be redeemed early, they can only be sold on the open market which can be a hassle. I have no idea what method is customary with regard to redeeming Laotion government bonds. There is also the issue of income taxes to figure out.

Back to topic, a couple of months ago I fell in love with a scooter in Thailand, she had an Italian name but she was born in Japan. Now back home in the U.S. I am looking for one of her sisters and finding few choices, and what few I can find are at much higher prices, some one or two states away. And for oil changes or other services I doubt there are many sources other than overpriced dealerships. No hope at all for a roadside tire repair stand or village shade tree mechanic. So I agree with OP.

Technically that could be a category....

Now that is cold.

After seeing the pic of her outfit I'm already happy.

You guys are lucky, having the option to buy one from your local showroom just by either financing it there or by paying a bit of a premium over MSRP. Here in the U.S. I'd have to drive to another state to find either a Yamaha or Honda new in stock for the 150cc models. The 125s are only slightly more available. On the other hand there are lots of Taiwanese scooters to choose from.

Out of curiosity, does anyone on here know whether it has it been established yet whether Tricare (Tricare For Life health coverage for retired U.S. military over age 65) meets these new requirements? If so that would be a magic bullet for those eligible, eliminating issues with cost / pre-existing conditions / aging out of eligibility for private coverage. Same question on other countries' coverage for their retired military.

Personally, I'm tired of being targeted, and I hereby resolve to lower my quality in an attempt to avoid it.

Thailand is accepting the US CDC card even though it only has name, DOB, vaccination date(s) and vaccine batch/lot #s.

Filipinos including OFWs and balikbayans can return now with no quarantine if they are coming from greenlisted countries, as can fully-vaccinated foreign SRRV (retirement) visa holders. And as mentioned in an earlier post, the Philippines has resumed processing new SRRV applications. And the Philippine bureau of immigration has been gearing up preparations for international arrivals. There is no date yet but these are all good signs. Bureau of Immigration ready for the Increased International Arrival | Philippines| October 2021 - YouTube

Good Chinese food too, in fact you can find a wide variety of good international food in any area with foreign presence, which is pretty much everywhere that you are likely to want to go other than the deep province. In the past when visiting the province I've brought along some of my own food, things like sardines, corned beef, canned tuna, nuts and trail mix and that sort of thing to make sure I wasn't completely dependent on locally-prepared food. But if I had a kitchen (vs. being a guest in someone else's kitchen) that wouldn't be necessary as there is ample good quality available at provincial grocers and markets.

^^ this^^ Compare Thailand with the Philippines where tourism is still completely locked down / locked out.

Good point - it is worth checking out USAA and Navy Federal Credit Union, I recall that Navy Federal used to do car loans for overseas purchases, not sure if that was only for active duty.

What a lovely, helpful comment. He doesn't need to finance it, it is just tax-advantageous for him to finance it so that he doesn't have to take it out of this IRA and incur the associated tax hit. Oceanbreeze, one thing you might do would be to build something small (and even better - expandable) to live in initially, and then save up from your military retired pay + SS (which together greatly exceed your living expenses) and then either build onto it in stages as you accumulate funds, or work out a slow progressive cash-and-carry construction timeline. Actually living on the land and taking time to leisurely plan out what you want to build could be quite an enjoyable undertaking. You could well think of things you wouldn't otherwise have, while not having to un-do anything already built. Another option might be if you have family willing to lend you the approx. $90k on a ten year loan or some such. On the off chance that repayment gets tough you still have the IRA to draw on.

Depends on the business. Lots of small or family sideline business just have a facebook page and not a proper website, because they understand facebook better and can get information across more easily, while also connecting to customers' facebook accounts for future communications (marketing) if they are thinking ahead. It's a step up from buying from someone with just a craigslist ad or similar. But I would not buy anything of much value online (where they ship the product) from someone with just a facebook page.

Sorry OP, I know you are trying to get advice on how to get the tax letter, but I have to agree with those saying that sure seems like an unnecessary hassle when it would be easier for your friend to plan on just withdrawing cash (or a cashier's check) and then ask "what is the best way to get cash safely transferred to Thailand?" Plus give the approx. amount and what country your friend is transferring it from. Although that doesn't answer your question, I hope that those advising this general course of action are being helpful inasmuch as it would accomplish what your friend is trying to accomplish, albeit via a different (and simpler) method.

In order to add yet more value to this thread (if that is even possible), I'll share a bit of trivia with you. Do you know what happens with the parts that are removed? They are actually put on ice and sold to China. The foreskins in particular are quite valuable, a skilled craftsman can use them to make wallets. And then when you rub the wallet it expands and turns into a suitcase.........

Not sure the reasoning for blurring his eyes, but leaving the tattoos and publishing his (purported) name. Maybe the photo came to them that way but still blurring eyes but not tats makes no sense.

OP wanted to buy Kasikorn Bank shares and that is one way to do it. The ADRs do of course have a much lower trading volume, but as I post this early in the afternoon on a trading day, Kasikorn's ADR bid/ask spread is $16.75/$17.10 vs. 140.00/140.50 baht for the Thai shares (while Thai market is closed). ADR shares trade every market day, with an average daily volume of over 20k shares. So yes, it's not an entirely efficient way to buy, but it is a way, and might make sense for OP depending on OP's circumstance. Personally I would rather have my investments held in a brokerage account in my home country. And as for taxes, if OP is a U.S. citizen then his dividends and eventual capital gains are going to be taxed in the U.S. no matter which share he buys (and he will get a foreign tax credit for anything withheld/paid to Thailand on either share). But individual situations differ and I agree that this would not be the best way for someone in your situation.

JoeBloe, good luck and I hope you post an update on how it goes (and I also hope we only read about it here instead of seeing it on any of the Thai news channels).

Justanotherone, are you a U.S. citizen, or do you have access to a U.S. brokerage account? I looked at Kasikorn and SCB recently as I think that the larger Thai banks are undervalued. Kasikorn Bank actually trades OTC in the U.S. as an American Depository Receipt (ADR) under the symbol KCPCY. One KCPCY ADR share = 4 Thai shares, so the ADR price hovers right at four times the price at which KBANK is trading, after converting baht to dollars. SCB also trades in the U.S. as an ADR under the symbol SMUUY. Not sure what the ADR-to-Thai share ratio is.

Yep. Hope for the best, but plan for the worst and take steps before you tell her the news. Maybe it will go just fine, but even if it does, your own stress level will be lower if you've first done what you need to in order to limit possible damage.

If the bank / loan company thinks he is not good for it, then I'd be inclined to agree with them. So, not no but "heck no!" Seriously what possible good can come of your wife guaranteeing the loan? If this were your home country and your home-country wife approached you with this idea for a home-country ex-husband, what would your answer be? And, sorry to say it, but what is her current residual relationship with the ex-husband, and more pointedly why does he think that whatever it is warrants her still being entangled enough to even consider doing such a thing?