alw22

So are DTV holders going to be able to open bank accounts now? Seems like they're trying to make it as difficult as possible to spend money here.

I wouldn't say I'm desperate to buy one. But I'm in my 30's and have a house here so I see a lifetime visa as an investment in my long-term future. Who knows what the visa rules will be like 20 or 30 years from now. Maybe an elite visa will be worthless then, but maybe not. I have some money now, so might as well use it to possibly reduce some risk.

Appreciate the insight. I realize it will be expensive and willing to pay a substantial amount for it. I had a look on FB but couldn't find anything. Were you referring to the private Elite Visa group or somewhere more generic?

I believe that's true for the 2nd iteration (after 2005?), but as I understand it the very first version can be transfered indefinitely in theory and retain the lifetime status of the new holder. As for the benefits and perks, I don't mind losing them, so not a big deal for me either way.

If anyone has any information on agents or individuals looking to sell the original lifetime transferable Elite visa, please drop me a message.

That's good. If you go to MBK the upper floors are full of Indians selling junk.

I don't think anyone knows at this point. There's been speculation that they may ask for updated proof, just like they may ask for proof of current remote employment, but I haven't heard of this being common yet.

That's not been my experience. I went to my local immigration office to transfer the stamp to my new passport. They said not possible, need to go to the airport, only the immigration officers there can do it. At the airport, the immigration officers said it's also not possible to link an e-visa to a new passport, but because the two passports are linked, it's not a problem as long as you always bring both passports.

No, they're not. In fact, they're a big boost to the economies of many "offshore" countries and territories. The real reason countries crack down on these things is giving in to pressure from the US and EU, who want to maintain their control over global financial systems.

Yes, the card should work overseas at ATMs and payment terminals (I've used it in the past many times), but you may need to adjust the limits and as with any foreign card, it sometimes fails for risk controls or seemingly random reasons. After my account was frozen, I could still use their app, see my balance, and adjust settings, but any payments fail after the last confirmation step with a generic message to call them. So if you just want to test whether your account is frozen, try a 20thb topup for your mobile number or a small QR payment or transfer.

It took me a while to realize why there's so much bitterness and resentment on this forum. My theory is that tourists and expats enjoy visiting foreign countries because of the reasons it differs from their home countries, so they'd prefer that as few as possible other tourists and expats come to their country of choice because then it will become more like their home country and lose its appeal to them. They also enjoy the special treatment of being a "rich foreigner" in a poorer country, but will lose that unique status the more foreigners that come here. It's pretty silly to have that attitude on a forum meant to help other foreigners though.

Why not allow it? No one absolutely "needs" a bank account, but it makes a lot of things a whole lot easier. Why ban something without a good reason? If you're concerned about crime, then increase actual targeted investigations. Don't make the lives of regular people more difficult because you're too lazy to do proper police work. Actual criminals will always find ways to use local bank accounts, so these bans just affect regular people.

Why would one need to make a trip to the immigration office? If you're able to enter using both passports and the e-visa, why not continue doing that until the e-visa expires?

Looks like that's only for physical visas in your passport, not evisas. My guess is you just keep your old passport and show both at immigration.

What I don't understand is that there are plenty of rich and powerful who live in Bangkok. Unless they spend 1/2 the year out of the country, the air pollution affects them too, especially if they have a nice condo with panoramic views. I'd think that keeping them happy would put some pressure on the government to actually do something.