wpcoe

Sounds like if I take my current Hawaii state drivers license, that they will waive the written and driving test for that, right? I don't have an International endorsement, which sounds like a 50/50 chance based on what I've read.

Since I don't have a motorcycle endorsement on my Hawaii license, I will have to take both the written and driving test, right? What is required of the motorcycle driving test? Just weaving through cones?

Does anybody know if the Pattaya office also requires you to be there by 0800 to start the process?

Does the Pattaya office rent bikes/cars, too? If I have to take both driving tests, it's hard to have one of each of my own available. :-)

If you have to do the full exam then yes it is available in english too

Thanks for the quick confirmation. I will have to take the exam, as my US (Hawaii) licence does not have a motorcycle endorsement.

But maybe the new tighter rules will play a part here too? But I hope it's as easy as you say. How long does one have to sign up for, when getting phone and adsl? And how cheap/expensive is it? Are there also good and bad companies?

Well, I hope immigrations rules wouldn't affect the business policies of the ISPs and phone companies, but this IS Thailand, so....

I'm not sure the current rates/deals available in Bangkok, as I live a few hours south, in Jomtien. My phone bill here is B107/month plus any calls I make (very few, as I rely on mobile phone.) My ISP, TT&T MaxNet, is B790/month for 512k, unlimited access/download.

My ex-roommate in BKK was paying less than B1,000 for True 1Mb service not too long ago.

All the ADSL plans I have had required a six-month contract.

Reading this it seems that you don't have a license? If that is the case then you should invest in the time to go and get one. Your insurance will be invalid if you dont have one (some companies are specific in that you have to have a Thai licence) and could cause you big problems if you involved in a serious accident. Its really easy anyway so theres no excuse not too

Applogies if I have misunderstood

Oh! Good point! I have been using my overseas driver license to rent bikes. Do you know where in Pattaya area I go for the license? I think I remember hearing that you can take the test in English now. Is that correct?

Thanks for the tip!

Best on the market is Honda Wave 125cc. The gears are easy, and yes has an automatic clutch. This bike is best quality for the money.

Good dealer is on the corner of Pattaya Thai and soi Bakaw.

Barry

Thanks for the suggestion. I will check them out. Think they'll let me test ride a bike, seeing I've never ridden a "manual gear" bike? ;-)

Not sure if this matters, or if it's just technical nit-picking, but the OP asks about converting a tourist visa, and my situation (in the referenced thread) was about applying for Non-Immigrant O visa from a 30-day passport stamp.

The process for a tourist visa may be similar (same?), but I just wanted to point out that there MIGHT be a difference, "just in case."

If you don't have a non 'O' visa , to what I know, you can't get adsl line. To subscribe, you need to fill out the form and produce either work permit or non-'O' visa. This is one of the requirements. Likewise, you can't apply for phone line under your name.

As for apartments, most owners do not have 'direct lines' and they don't allow you to apply for it.

This was my experience before I got my non 'o' visa

You might like to double check this

Yes, please DO double-check on it. Here's my experience:

In my five years in BKK from 1999 to 2004 I subscribed to ADSL from QNet and KSC (at different addresses) with no visa nor work permit, just a 30-day stamp in my passport.

About a year and a half ago, I move to Pattaya and I subscribed to ADSL from TT&T with no visa nor work permit, just a 30-day stamp in my passport.

I know plenty of other farang who also have ADSL on just a 30-day passport stamp, including from TOT and True.

So there are five possibilites that I know of: Qnet, KSC, TT&T, TOT and True -- all with no visa nor work permit.

PS: Same-same for owning a telephone line. People will tell you that you need a visa and work permit to apply, but I had TOT phone service at three different locations in BKK and TT&T phone service in Pattaya ... [broken record:] all with no visa and no work permit.

Interesting that even the rubber stamps for the extension are not the same!

When I lived in Bangkok over a 5-year period I rented two apartments and one townhouse with just a 30-day waiver stamp in my passport.

Ditto for ADSL, just with a 30-day waiver stamp in my passport. I believe the minimum contract for ADSL is six months? Just be sure that when you rent the apartment that it has a phone line that you can use to subscribe to ADSL.

The man at counter #8 told me distinctly that I needed two copies of the bank guarantee letter, "two originals, no copy". So, that's what I got.

YMMV (your mileage may vary)

Am I reading the first quote wrong, or does there seems to be disagreement on what a "Certificate of Residence" is?

Certificate of residency is just that - as in been granted Permanent Residency - different to be here on a visa - PR's are not subject to any visa restrictions...

A Certificate of Residence is only required should you want to apply for a Thai Driving Licence, buy a car in your own name etc. You can readily get one from the Immigration Bureau should the need arise.

I read the first quote to mean only people granted Permanent Residency can get one, whereas the second quote says Dave (the OP, who does not have Permanent Residency) can get one.

One man in the queue said he had heard a whisper that Thai Immigration Bureau are working on he possibility of 90 Day REPORTING being possible via email

There is a procedure in place for one of the forms - not sure if it's the TM47, though - that you can e-mail the day before. I'm not sure what the benefit is? Maybe you don't have to queue when you come in the next day? <shrug>

I found what I was "remembering". On the Thai Immigrations main page:

Featured Service:

- If you are in Bangkok area and you have an Internet access, you could fill in a TM.8 form and send it to [email protected]

- You should e-mail the completed form 1 day in advance.

- You have to submit a 2" photo and pay a permit fee at counter 7, the Immigration Bureau (soi suanplu office.)

Perhaps they will expand the service to permit TM47? Using the downloadable .doc form and completing it in MS Word would be easy enough, but getting the signature on the form would be a problem, unless it were scanned, but how many retirees have a scanner laying around? Hmmm...

Aaaargh! Nope. I mis-typed.

I meant: "They wanted the original of the Embassy letter and one copy."

At Pattaya Immigrations. Go figure.

PS: The bank letter had to be two originals.

How long is the Non I O?

what reason did you tell or did you need to tell a reason?

I have thai wife

It was a 90-day visa, extended to one-year.

The reason for my Non-Immigrant O visa was "retirement". Yes, you do need a "reason" for them to issue a Non-Immigrant O visa. Yours could well be "marriage" if you meet all the criteria (bank savings/income, etc).

2) Are foreigners not allowed to open any Thai Bank Current Accounts based on a Retirement Visa. What have other members of the Forum Had to produce if they live in Thailand on a Retirement Visa?

I'm not a financial advisor (far from it, in fact), so I'm not sure what "Current Accounts" are, but you clearly can get a run-of-the-mill savings account. I have one at Siam Commercial Bank, and other friends have theirs at Bangkok Bank.

I know about 90 reporting, but if there any other things a new Retirement Visa holder is obliged to please also advise.

Please forgive me for stating what may be obvious, but you know about re-entry permits, don't you? You may not need one soon, or forever, but if you plan on leaving Thailand at any time and intend to re-enter, then you need one. Other than that if there's anything we Thai-Retirees need, it'll be a surprise to both of us.

Pattaya immigration required the bank certification letter (confirming amount of money in the account at the time letter is issued) and copies of bank book can be used to confirm monthly deposits. You also need the embassy letter confirming your pension. One nice thing, you get to keep the original of the embassy letter (cost $30) after they see it and can use the same one every year when you get your annual renewals. Only need a new letter if/when you get a new passport (as the new passport number would no longer correspond to the number stated in your old embassy letter). Therefore, saving $30 a year and a trip to Bangkok.

They kept my original (today) and told me I must get a new one for next year. This was at Nong Khai. Tit.

Same-same for me in Pattaya last week: They wanted the original of the bank letter and one copy.

Visa(s) for the most part are obtained outside thailand, don't see how one can get confused over this?

But that's the confusing part. SOME visas CAN BE and ARE issued in Thailand when the person enters on a 30-day passport stamp, but OTHERS can NOT be.

Case in point: last week I took my passport with a 30-day passport stamp (not a visa) and received a Non-Immigrant O visa.

It could easily be deduced that one could take a passport with a 30-day passport stamp and receive a Tourist visa. But, that deduction apparently is wrong.

I gave him my two TM.47 handwritten Retirement Application forms. He glanced at them and said "TM.47 forms printed off the Internet are not acceptable, you need to use TM.47 forms collected from an Immigration office.

Dave, by any chance did you print out the front and back of the form on two sheets of paper, versus print them two-sided on a single sheet of paper? If so, I think that was what he objected to. At least, that's why MY printed-at-home forms were rejected.

I looked at the Passport stamp. I noticed that there was NO reference to the basis for which type of Visa I have been granted.

This may confirm your suspicions/fears. The stamp in my passport that extended the period to one year *does* have a separate stamp clearly saying "RETIREMENT":

One man in the queue said he had heard a whisper that Thai Immigration Bureau are working on he possibility of 90 Day REPORTING being possible via email

There is a procedure in place for one of the forms - not sure if it's the TM47, though - that you can e-mail the day before. I'm not sure what the benefit is? Maybe you don't have to queue when you come in the next day? <shrug>

Regardless, CONGRATULATIONS on your new one-year extension!

I'm ready to buy a motorbike. I'm not interested in bike trips across the country. I just want basic transportation to get me to/from the grocery store, the barber, Tukcom center, restaurants, etc. I have rented Yamaha Nuovo bikes before and pretty much decided to get one, but still have questions.

I looked at the Mio and decided it was a bit small. I like the size of the underseat storage cavity on the Nuovo: big enough to lock up the helmet while shopping and to hold a small bag of purchases on the way home.

How does the Honda Click compare to the Nuovo? Is the water cooled engine a good thing or not?

Are there other automatic transmission bikes worth considering? I understand that the Honda Wave 125 is an auto-clutch bike, but would I find the gear-shifting cumbersome (or difficult for this clumsy 51-year old retiree to learn) for the type of stop and go driving I'm planning? The only two-wheeled motor vehicle I've ever driven is the Nuovo.

Then, there's the question of WHERE to buy. There must be a dozen Yamaha dealers in Pattaya. Are they all the same ... should I just choose the closest one to home? Anything to look for in a dealership? Are prices negotiable, or is it a fixed-price situation? Any reports of good/bad experiences with particular dealers?

bangkokrick: If you are 49, at least you have less than a year to continue the visa/visa-waiver tap dance. :-)

Apparently, you will need to alternate 30-day-stamps-on-arrival (if your country's on the eligible list) with genuine Tourist Visas acquired at a Thai embassy/consulate outside of Thailand.

After you hit the magic 5-0, you can get a retirement visa. See: www.wpcoe.com/visa for details.

BTW, if my name sounds familiar, it should. <g>

Feel free to send me private e-mail.

Jack: I'm not the one who kept his money in pounds sterling. That was sleepyjohn.

It sounds like he has a foreign currency account, not a standard savings account.

Attn: sleepyjohn, can you provide more details: bank? type of account?

For some reason, there is no edit button on my post #31 above, so I'll "edit it" here:

Hi, I am interrested in the SCBSFF account

Is it possible to withdraw from it with ATM or via internet banking ?

How is the interrest calculated on daily balances ?

Thanks

There is no ATM card available, and I doubt the internet banking. To withdraw funds, you need to come into the bank before mid-afternoon (2pm?) to request withdrawal, and then return the next day for the money.

Every time I've gone in for a passbook update, there is an increase in the balance. I opened the account on 16July, and on 19July, 04Aug, 07Sep, and 13Sep the balance had increased.***

If you read Thai, I'm think all the answers are here: http://www.scbam.com/download/summary_pro/sff_imp.pdf

I'm not sure if that .pdf file is current: it shows Cummulatve Annual Returns for 3mos/6mos/1yr/3yr as 1.75%/1.64%/1.48%/2.07%. I deposited B50,000 on 14July. On 13Sep (not quite two months) the balance was B50,349.54. The increase of B349.54 is .699% which if multiplied by 6 to get a simple annual return is just over 4%. Perhaps this account has rather volatile rates of return?

[added later:] I just remembered that I got an "SCBAM Newsletter" and it shows "Performance" figures in line with what I am seeing in my passbook: 4.21% for 3 mos, 3.98% for 6 months, 3.35 for 1 year. (see copy from the SCBAM newsletter)

***[edited, even later, after I took the time to examine my passbook and read the newsletter]:

I was incorrect, and unintentionally misleading, when I first referred to the SCBSFF fund as an "interest-bearing bond fund account." It is a bond fund account, period.

With my initial deposit, I received "x" number of shares at a given share price. Each time I've updated my passbook, it simply reflected a new share price (higher each time, in this case) multiplied by the static number of shares (since I had made no more "deposits"). There is no "interest", just a daily change in the share prices. The prices can go up or down, unlike interest, which once accrued is yours to keep, as is your original deposit.

Please accept my apologies for any misunderstanding/confusion I caused with that ill-informed comment.

(Click here for a list of investments in the SFF fund.)

Did you have to show you tor tor 3 -- or a certificate of residence -- during this process? As far as I know, you could be living in a hotel to get your retirement extension (i.e., proof of condo ownership or a rental agreement is NOT needed to get a retirement extension).

No. No proof of address required, although please note that the various forms ask for your "Address in Thailand."

My understanding is that if you move, you are required to report your new address within 24 (?) hours. If you used a hotel address on the form and move to another location, you would need to notify the address change immediately. If you had put a hotel address on the form, and left the country directly, my guess is that you should high-tail it down to the Immigrations office immediately upon your next arrival if you are staying someplace else. Not sure, just speculating.

Hi, I am interrested in the SCBSFF account

Is it possible to withdraw from it with ATM or via internet banking ?

How is the interrest calculated on daily balances ?

Thanks

There is no ATM card available, and I doubt the internet banking. To withdraw funds, you need to come into the bank before mid-afternoon (2pm?) to request withdrawal, and then return the next day for the money.

I'm pretty sure interest is calculated AND POSTED daily. Every time I've gone in for a passbook update, there is an increase in the balance. I opened the account on 16July, and on 19July, 04Aug, 07Sep, and 13Sep the balance had increased.

If you read Thai, I'm think all the answers are here: http://www.scbam.com/download/summary_pro/sff_imp.pdf

I'm not sure if that .pdf file is current: it shows Cummulatve Annual Returns for 3mos/6mos/1yr/3yr as 1.75%/1.64%/1.48%/2.07%. I deposited B50,000 on 14July. On 13Sep (not quite two months) the balance was B50,349.54. The increase of B349.54 is .699% which if multiplied by 6 to get a simple annual return is just over 4%. Perhaps this account has rather volatile rates of return?

[added later:] I just remembered that I got an "SCBAM Newsletter" and it shows "Performance" figures in line with what I am seeing in my passbook: 4.21% for 3 mos, 3.98% for 6 months, 3.35 for 1 year. (see copy from the SCBAM newsletter)

It took 8 days for a wire from Bank of America to be processed into Thailand into my personal account at SCB so DO IT NOW

You got screwed, probably in the US??

International transfers from the UK take 3 days max!!

My two SWIFT transfers from my USA credit union took only three business days to reach SCB, also. Last Friday evening I initiated a transfer, and it was already in my SCB account by Tuesay afternoon.

Lammas: Did you use SWIFT, or another transfer method?