WhiteBuffaloATM

UK Embassy does considerably help sick, broke & imprisoned Brits to return home. Refer TVF UK Embassy Posts here. If they didnt care no purpose having an embassy. If Embassy present, it has to perform very well with its expected duties. It appears to mostly do that....... Embassys do not initiate policy, only report back to UK Govt. ... Embassy staff are Not Politicians.

I’m no UK Bkk Embassy fan btw, they illegally denied my lady (mother of our Brit Son) a UK Tourist Visa which cost me GBP 6500 in legal fees to correct. But that was the Consulate section..... so credit where credit is due....

yes, pray explain.... uk pensions are naff all to do with eu....or brexit fcs....

scandalous they are so low relative to av.income though....

eu pensions seem generous until you see the c**p eu salaries & taxes !

eu dont understand self employment very well..nearly everyone must be “employed” and taxed at source PAYE....

in my profession as uk contractor I have earned 6-8 times eu salary for the same work......with minimal tax.... so ten times the disposable eu income....

and forget private pension schemes which halved in value 2008-9.....

my pension is my saved asset wealth.........

but curiously I still qualify for uk min.pension GBP 105 week when 67.....

and still get Free UK NHS......paid tax but no uk tax / ni for over 30 years......

as for the gloating USA  / EU here... yes you may have a fat pension but you’ve paid for it ten times over with high taxes and just having to survive in unhealthy dangerous (USA) West....as you typically wont survive 5-8 years in retirement .....if being typically obese/diabetic /respiratory / heart diseased. ....actuaries have it worked out you know........

cue emojis of covid / cancer / pneumonia viruses & arterial,plaque & stroke factors; rubbing their hands.....fat sick rich retired farangs.....dinner is served !

effective exercise & diet are not up for philosophical debate.

they clearly confer life changing / life saving benefits.

diet should primarily avoid eating junk/processed foods ( plant/fish based).

exercise should be HIIT with near maximum effort each day (avoiding joint wear);  standing bike sprints, fast swims, heavy weights/ low reps.; increase resistance if appearing to easy.

beach & road plodding walks often seen are quite useless & delusional.

one level up from couch potato status I suppose.

try to lose significant weight first by diet ( 10%+) before any HIIT exercise......

1st AZ jab is fully effective (as a first jab only) after 14 days.

then you might feel safer socialising. swimming has nothing to do with vax.

and “strong ties” to ( schengen-qualified)person they are travelling with, like long term proven relationship ( current emails / photos going back two years or so ). EU quite relaxed compared to UK but not daft. EU not simply going to allow in a non - EU holiday gf type with non- EU companion !

EU country will just assume gf being brought in EU to work illegally.

Listen to OP. React only to his stated needs. nobody cares about your alt.life.

YES, OP states “ Cheap Housing” as primary benefit . Phuket Property (around 10-15% western equivalent) BUT cannot own land & near impossible Resale ( unless million dollar + Laguna Villa) . This factor  alone trumps ALL Negatives to Phuket Living, never mind the considerable benefits largely unavailable to regular folk in western countries. 

Key DONT Additions to my earlier comments:

Non- Professional GF without Property / Car / Income =AVOID

Physical Shop Business / Any Local “Partner”= AVOID

Boxing Adage Applies: “ Protect Yourself at all Times “.....

possibly yes. check Schengen Rules & Visa Form for destination country. do own research not TVF !

believe the “ possibly yes”  would require Sponsor having EU Official Resident  / Work Visa status or EU Family , in dest. country . btw I have actually done this stuff personally as EU Citizen ( before Brexit) & EU Resident (Still) ; sponsored my thai lady (mother of our son) many times for Spain & Italy........also got her a UK Ten Year Tourist Visa.

very common thai on thai event. IF the woman is thai (not stated) no idea why this subject, reported of course in the main news, is appearing on this forum, as no Expat involved. never seen this type of article here, otherwise there would be one thousand subject OP every week...... or here because in expat area ? then post all similar hundreds of such deaths in Bangkok too......can the Moderators kindly explain relevance here ?

Spain requires sponsor to have residence TIE and police letter. Pain.

Italy requires only residence for sponsor. Form & Process Real Easy.

oldgit; due to very little OP info, I assumed for posting purposes OP was an expat, sponsoring a thai, you dont have to be an EU citizen to sponsor, only official resident, so jumped in with my own experience on the “easiest place to apply” part..... self - sponsoring i suppose must be allowed, just never heard of it before..... as stated from my personal experience the “rules” are certainly not uniform across countries.

Well if Shopee & Lazada are merely Sales Platforms not Retailers like Amazon then yes careful Direct Seller Selection is the Key .......

there is (or should be) no DLT Driving Test for Western Full Licence Holders.......

Consider getting Pink Photo UK Driving License Online. No Agents !

Go amyway to DLT with COR / UK Valid Paper License ( seriously dude ?! )/

DLT Medical  Cert ( any Clinic)/ Passport / Visa.Originals + Two Copies of All..

Get your DLT Car & Bike Licence together.....Longstay Visa gets 5 Year DL.

Otherwise 2 Year DL.......

Should pass DLT Stage 1 ( Application Acceptance& Appt. ) with those docs. alone. Much Later is Stage 2 (Eye Test & DL Issue). 

TIP: Bring a Next Day Flight Reservation to make it a Walk In DL Issue at Stage 1 .......

whale is correct. you should have separate wills;

uk will for uk assets to uk citizens ( your kids)

thai will for thai assets to thai citizens ( wife & kids ).

 no crossover. no conflicts. keeps things simple.

structure your assets and wills accordingly 

Spain requires sponsor to have residence TIE and police letter. Pain.

Italy requires only residence for sponsor. Form & Process Real Easy.

Just Find Out Yellow Book WRITTEN Requirements from Your Municipality.

If a long list ( >5) my advice is to forget it......it will be hell ....like mine was....

If only4-5 simple things then process will be easy and resultant Pink ID after YB easy in ALL cases...... be advised YB / ID confers ZERO Significant Material Advantages.... just psychological benefit of feeling maximally invested here.

you do NOT need to be married....YB is “ Foreigner House Registration” using Alien Reg. No.

Get Muny to give Actual Printed List of YB Qualifiers never take any Verbal BS (Obstacles)&  dont argue just ask politely to see YB List or Deputy Mayor (start of my YB process anyway) .

Important : DO take a Thai Witness for Initial & Continuing Muny Visitation.... 

“Masters Degree” kills it stone dead....completely irrelevant criteria which almost nobody interested would meet.....unless bought backdated from some <deleted>hole country.......Zero Democratic Institutions & Unsaleable Property Market & No Permanent Residency........Result: Stillborn on Arrival ( IF it arrives at all).

Obviously you will make a post- covid / pre- movement ground recon. ....

Its All Here. Full Service Economy. KEEP YOUR WITS ABOUT YOU. 

Like Anywhere Really ........ Study The Culture.

Very Fine Italian / Other Restaurants abound.

Full Tropical Island Lifestyle : Weather/ Beach / Jungle Hill/ Sailing/ Scuba/

Gyms/ Food / Malls (high end) / City ( small)/ Intl Airport/ Nightlife/ Dating.

Location & House ( New) & Vehicle ( New) are your largest initial issues.

Right Developer New Build House will prevent you needing Lawyer/ Builder.

Try to avoid directly using Agents /Lawyers/ Builders / Used Gear.......

Use Good Managing Architect for any Custom House Build/ Land Purchase.

Use Good Broker for Local Insurances (House/ Car / Health/ Accident)

Bangtao Laguna or Rawai / Kata House possibly, given your profile.....

”Other places in Thailand”.....er, just No.......based on your profile...seen ‘em all.

Any  Best House needs Management (Very Important)/AC/Hot Water Tank / Car Port/ Sundeck/ Wood Floors & Shutters/ Western Kitchen/ Swim Pool/ Garden/ Large Balcony, Large Windows& Doors / Hill Jungle  SEA Views.

Using Good House Developer / Architect removes considerable Work / Risk / Worry., leaving you free to focus on enjoying the Tropical Island Lifestyle.

thais dreaming of earning 9000 baht a month ?

maybe if lazy or Isaan farm laborer ....

yet yes 2k is official poverty level ( 1k rent / 400 utilities / 600 food ? jhc....

govt pension of 25% official poverty level ?

confusing but still very hard to believe.......

basic street/ market vendors (one small stall) earn around 2x 9k at least ?

govt full time salaries would not be below 9k monthly surely

which is a burma worker low earnings........

why on earth would any customer wait four months or four minutes for such an ordinary vehicle..... move at once to best discounted stock alternative .......at the showroom next door

totally unsuitable posting for any govt. body

the offence is surely wasted taxpayer funds

anybody conducting intl long haul tourism, combined with launching a new life, during a worsening global pandemic, is either not thinking straight or a desperate fugitive........

seriously why would anybody visit or live in samui with phuket offering wayyyyy more in every respect...... ? and yes I have been there....