parallaxtech

Koh Samui shops are offering to buy back the gold bars at a 30% discount from the current price. Is that common in Bangkok? If you want to fly to Bangkok to sell your bars, can you fly with them in your hand luggage?

It was 30K (if no money in the bank) many years ago. What scares me is an old friend (85) didn't know any better and paid 60k, received a fake stamp, and was arrested and put in Samui Detention where they asked him for 80k to be released which he refused. He stayed over the weekend and saw the judge on Monday and had to pay 600 baht.

There's a good reason she's never been fired. It would be difficult to find a jai dee woman who must antagonize foreigners daily as a job description. SIO has some lovely women who wouldn't dare take that job. I witnessed her screaming in Thai at a Russian couple with babies who didn't understand a word. She then yelled at them in English to go back to Bangkok. He finally said in broken English that they had just arrived from Bangkok. I would love to meet any foreigner who would marry her.

That makes sense. There's Thai law and then there's Samui law. I guess I'll just stay in Samui and avoid this mess.

To add more confusion on the subject of the TM30, according to the law firm konradlegal.com, the hotel or rental place must submit the TM30 and as long as your TM30 shows you're within your allowance (mine is 365 days), you don't need to resubmit a TM30: TM 30 Registration for Short Time Stays You might be asking if you need to record your residency every time you go away for a few days and come back. This is dependent on whether you return within the stay term set on the most recent TM30 you submitted. You do not need to submit a new TM30 if you return within the time frame stated on the form. You must submit a new form if you return beyond the time frame specified on the TM30. If, for example, your most recent TM30 indicates that you will be staying in your home property for another three months, you will not need to report when you return home. If you live in a rented residence, the same regulation applies to your landlord. In this case, your friend, like a hotel, still he/she must disclose your stay. This is because your most recent place of residence needs registration in the immigration database. This database is under Section 37 (2) of the Thailand Immigration Act of 1979. It’s a different matter if people truly follow this guideline, and let’s face it, most people don’t. Remember that if you stay in a hotel or guest home, you won’t have to bother about reporting because they will take care of it for you.

I guess ankle monitors or GPS chips are next. Does anyone know any country in the world that requires this?

Hi Tropic! Thanks for the information! I registered online for the TM30, but it keeps asking for the address where foreigners will be staying. I don't rent out my house or have guests so am reluctant to put my address down. Is there somewhere on the site where I tell them I returned home or must I fill out the entire TM30 form each time I stay in a hotel? What about people who go back and forth to Bangkok weekly?

KP! Thanks for the info and the TM30 link. It seems that the TM30 is for the owner of a residence allowing foreigners to stay at his place. That will never be my case. I'm the owner. If I visit a hotel in Thailand, the hotel reports the TM 30, correct, or both of us submit it?

You nailed it just as I suspected.

Please remind your friends that Immigration will be closed on Monday (12th).

Someone who is not a newbie can correct this if it's wrong. You can't apply for a one-year extension outside of the province where you reside: You can submit the TM7 form, which is used for extending your stay in Thailand, at the local immigration office where you are requesting the extension. For example, if you are in Bangkok, you would go to the Bangkok Immigration Office. If you are in a different province, you would go to the respective immigration office for that area12.

Thanks, I'll follow up on this. I've lived here for twenty years, with a house in my name for 17, but I need to notify them if I get a hotel room. Sounds normal to me. Yes, I remember Nok, and heard he paid 10M baht for that job. I'm sure he cleared that in a month. The fat one extorted me 5 years ago by making me wait until they closed (sat for 8 hours) and then asked for 5k or my passport might get lost.

Can someone comment on whether this is allowed? The first question would be why I was not applying in Samui since I lived there. I remember years ago on thaivisa others commented that you can't apply for a one-year extension anywhere outside of your province.

That's the one! She seems to enjoy her power as she demeans expats.

If my Thai girlfriend leaves me, the house burns down, and the animals all die, I'll probably travel again. I traveled the world when I was young but am not very interested these days. I guess I built a mausoleum in 2007 without realizing it.

Thanks Tropic! No, I always value your advice. So, each time I return from a trip in Thailand or overseas, do I need to advise them when I return? Do you know the website? Last year, I stayed in a hotel in Samui and SIO gave me all kinds of grief. So, they're not out to get me and what they asked for is normal? If so, I don't think many people are going to be happy.

Hi PJ! I wasn't aware we could go anywhere else unless we moved there. I'm just trying to determine if they want to torture us into paying 30k baht for a broker who may or may not give us a legitimate stamp.

After 20 years of extensions, I've seen everything, and usually try to calm myself, gather all the paperwork, and hope for the best on that unpopular day. I was the first in line this morning and saw only 5 others, so I was expecting a quick turnaround. After sitting upstairs for 2 hours (only 5-10 people waiting), she called me over and returned my paper with a note listing 6 things in Thai. I asked her what she wanted and she rudely said to get a lawyer or broker, She then mentioned that I moved to Bangkok without telling them. I thought she confused me with someone else until I remembered I went to Bangkok for a medical appointment and stayed 8 hours in a hotel. I explained it to her, and she said I invalidated my living arrangements in Samui. Here is what she required: Tabien Baan (home occupants) TM30 (home ownership) 100 baht DBD (corporate ownership) 1100 baht Chanot Title (land title) 2 other things Has anyone else gone through this?

Oh, I didn't realize it was closed before today. Each time I tried online it didn't work. If anyone is using it consistently, please let me know. Khun Per, I'm complaining only about the wait on the basement floor, not above in the office. The 90DR and Long Stay Visa are in one queue. It took her two seconds to give me the queue number vs 5-10 minutes per person holding stacks of visa papers. They should have a machine or someone to hand you the queue number for a 90DR. I will make sure to check on holidays before returning next time.

I was in and out in under twenty minutes for the last few years. Today (Tuesday), I arrived at 10 a.m. expecting the same, but seeing a crowd of over 100 people, had to wait one hour downstairs and a half hour upstairs. The 90-Day and Long-Term Visa are now in one queue. I initially went to the front and showed the 90-Day, but she said to get in the back. When I finally spoke to her again, she said the rules had changed and everyone had to wait. This doesn't make sense since you only need a queue number downstairs, and the LT visa requires many documents to check. Does anyone have a suggestion?

I think it's better for resale plus I may rent out the guesthouse with pool in the future.

I know this question has been asked several different ways over the years. but I am still researching it after seventeen years and don't want to give up. I'm trying to add a 2/2 Bali-style with a 4x8m pool to my present house. It took three builders (fired the other two) to partially complete my present house (the original design was with a guest house and pool). After that, I swore I'd never build even a doghouse again on Samui, and here I am still hoping to one day complete the project. I've met with approximately five Thai and five British builders. I'm sorry to generalize, but I feel the same confidence in a Thai builder that I would with someone on death row. I apologize again, but the British builders seem to just pick high numbers out of the sky. I'm aiming for around 20kbaht/sqm. It's on one rai of land with a thirty-degree slope and the roads are concrete. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks everybody for all the great suggestions! I just ordered a portable off-grid system from Lazada and will see how it goes for a few months. If that doesn't solve the problem, I will add batteries or switch to a complete on-grid solar system.

Thanks TM and KhunLA!

250w for the desktop and 1000w for the water pump. I can survive w/o the water pump but need the computer running at all times. I have solar indoor/outdoor lights.