LogicThai

Yes of course, electing to continue on the Sickness Benefit is particularly good value. Unlike private insurance, it stays with you for as long as you contribute, and your contribution remains stable with advancing age. One other aspect is that my country (Belgium) is negotiating with Thailand on a bilateral Social Security Agreement, that would allow people in either scheme to benefit from the other. This is a bit of a long shot, but if and when ratified, it would enable me to get back under Social Security "using the back door", so to speak. They wanted my Yellow Book, they did not ask if I was a PR or anything. I did not inquire about what would happen if I were a PR, but I would assume that if you are one, you have a Blue TB and a Pink Card, you are all set. In practical terms, getting Social Security to accept one under Section 39 is quite straightforward, but they probably are making it harder than it should be by demanding quite superfluous documents, just as additional roadblocks. There was no mention of a refund or anything, but I have not been in the SS for very long. I had known that Section 39 was available for a long time, I simply arranged for a visit to the SS office with a Thai speaking staff from my former employer, and my request was turned down. it will remain stalled until I can produce the Yellow TB and Pink ID they want, and then it will resume and eventually go through. Either that or I will reintegrate SS by way of Section 33 and "classic" employment.

I know. None of the many things one might assume would be proof of identity seem to be acceptable: having been in the country for years, married to a Thai and having had Thai children, all documents translated and certified many times (including family name indeed), issued a driving licence, paid taxes, etc. All of that is to be disregarded entirely. Strange country...

The Social Security Office denied application of my request of transfer from Section 33 (Employee) to Section 39 (Own Insured). They demanded presentation of a Yellow Tabien Baan (Thor.Ror.13) and a Pink ID, both documents I had never seen the need for, and never sought to get issued with. I produced a Certificate of Residence issued by the Immigration Office, but that was rejected. I will now have to go through the steps of procuring a Yellow Tabien Baan and a Pink ID, which is not such a big deal. I probably should have done so already. My main concern was that it will take time to process all that, but I was told by Social Security that I have 6 months to make the shift from Section 33 to Section 39. This is quite irritating though, obviously. My identity is proven by my passport, visa etc., my membership to the Social Security scheme is established by my having a number, card and contribution record, and my address is certified by Immigration. More annoying was the attitude of the person at the Social Security Office in Silom, who was clearly more than unhelpful. I did not deal with her directly, I was only standing in the back while a delegate from my former employer was doing the talking, but I had the vivid impression of being given a rare glimpse of more than mere administrative unhelpfulness. Sad.

It is, but English is another official language of Cameroon. This originated from the aftermath of the First World War. Cameroon had been an Imperial German colony, that was split between France and Britain. Upon independence in 1960, the two parts reunified for form Cameroon as we know it, but they kept their respective administrative languages.

Young and middle-aged urban bangkokite professionals are not ambivalent about all that either. Especially after a few beers, one hears all sorts of unflattering comments. It is increasingly clear that a broad wind of change is blowing, which is exactly what the powers -that-be are so afraid of.

I don't really know, since I never use metered taxis, but by all accounts yes, Grab is at least 50% more expensive. Much more than that actually, since I usually book Premium category (most often a Toyota Camry). Such cars are larger and more comfortable when riding with colleagues or family, and they are often more available than Regular Grab, but Premium tends to cost 50% more than Regular. But it is all relative. A metered ride might cost 75, Regular Grab 120 and Premium Grab 180. No big deal, and a much improved user experience. Every morning, usually within minutes of booking, a Camry picks me up at the door of the condo and gets me to the door of the office. No hassle, for 200 baht. Most evenings, I go home with the BTS, which sort of evens out ????

We have an office credit card to charge our business-related trips, and that info is uploaded into our accounting system. For private use, it is good never to have to worry about exact change, coins etc., and even for private use, it is useful to have access to ride data for further analysis. It all depends on one's particular situation, actually. A retiree spending his own money might not care about any of that, but I do.

I only use Grab in Bangkok. It usually is quite reliable, the use of the app removes the need to communicate with the driver, as your destination is pre-set before you even get into the car and the total fare is predictable. Also, you have a choice in a wide range of vehicles for different needs (large cars, SUVs, pet-friendly, etc.). Also, it charges your credit card (or in my case several cards depending on business or private rides), ... All in all, even with the traffic issues, I think that Grab is great.

No. There was no check whatsoever. At the check-in in Singapore, I was asked if I was vaccinated, but that was it, no request to prove anything. At arrival in BKK, no mention of any vaccination. I did not see any thermo scanners either.

Just flew in this evening (at Suvarnaphum). The airline did not distribute TM6 forms, none were available at the desks prior to immigration, the IO stamped my passport with a permission to stay date in sync with my Work Permit (well into 2023, and that was it. No mention of TM6 at all. Also, the entire immigration process took about 3 minutes, no queue anywhere.