FarAngMoh

3 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Musk is South African isnt he? Not sure he qualifies.

That’s right, and his mom was Canadian, not American… so he’s out of luck.

6 minutes ago, Sparktrader said:

Lets hope Republicans pick good people and smash the Democrats for this farce. Biden is the worst ever.

TBH, my fervent hope is for a third candidate to win the next presidency. Maybe Musk will run as a Libertarian.

I haven’t examined all of the evidence, but on the surface it does appear that Trump might have at least indirectly been involved in provoking the riot. If true, it was 100% wrong of him to do so, even if the election was stolen - and I’m not totally convinced it wasn’t. I saw clear irregularities that have never been explained in the voting data from cities like Philadelphia, Detroit and Milwaukee. If true, that would be 100% wrong as well.

That said, why must it be like choosing the least worst candidate? Many liberals really didn’t want Biden, but they’d take him over Trump. Many conservatives didn’t really want Trump, but they’d take him over Biden. Both candidates actually lean moderate, and neither uphold their party’s ideals in many ways (although Biden now seems to just be in “where do I sign” mode, and agrees to anything his party wants). There plenty not to like on both sides — I don’t see how people can have so much zeal for either side.

2 minutes ago, ozimoron said:

Trump is an avowed racist. He deserves hate.

Not a Trump fan, but I haven’t seen any hard evidence of racism, only media spin. 

On 10/20/2022 at 4:04 AM, georgegeorgia said:

I checked out Cebu & Mactan island a few months ago ready for my retirement, but not to my liking, too busy , overcrowded traffic etc 

 

I need somewhere like a nice island but with the amenities 

If you want quiet/suburban living, try Subic Bay Freeport Zone, well connected to Angeles City and Manila via expressway.
 

If you want simple/rural living, try Valencia near Dumaguete. It’s just a bit of a pain to get there from Cebu.

I have followed several expat YouTubers from the Philippines for last 5-6 years, but haven’t been there in person since 2003. Having lived in Southeast Asia since 1996, I enjoyed taking a break from Asian food — the Philippines has the most authentic Western food (for the price) compared to anywhere in Asia. The only local food I found to my liking was chicken cordon bleu… an adapted/adopted local dish and a wonderful one at that.
 

I used to fly into Manila at night and it seriously reminded me of Blade Runner. After just a few days I was blowing black stuff out of my nose. I did manage to visit Puerto Gelara with some friends and stayed on White Beach - very rustic. I also visited Cebu, stayed on Mactan, took the fast ferry to Tagbilaran and went to Panglao, did some snorkeling off Alona Beach. Good times. But it wasn’t without some craziness too. 

3 hours ago, earlinclaifornia said:

My friend tells me the retirement visa is the easiest anywhere, more so than Thailand.

Third largest island in the world.

The island of Borneo (Kalimantan) is divided between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
 

Indonesia has a retirement program for 55 and up, but it’s a lot of paperwork; I wouldn’t call it easy. Indonesia taxes your worldwide income once you stay beyond 6 months and become a tax resident, so it’s not easy in that sense either.

An argument could be made for the Malaysian (Northern) part of the island, and specifically the state of Sarawak because they still have the old MM2H program with the lower financial requirements. You can now even work in Sarawak with this visa (a rule change they made recently). So maybe that is what your friend is talking about. It’s almost like a poor man’s LTR. But let’s be honest, the Philippines is still easier. 
 

Brunei only occupies a tiny fraction of the island — it is an oil rich but highly conservative Muslim state. If you lived on the island, about the only reason you’d go there is to visit your embassy. 

Thailand is ready to welcome these tax refugees.

2 hours ago, K2938 said:

Malaysia has abolished this, Vietnam does not have any long-term/retirement visas and the Philippines is a rather dangerous place. 

 

What has Malaysia abolished? It has a territorial tax system, the same as Singapore… it doesn’t matter what visa you are on, your overseas income is not subject to tax. 
 

Vietnam had the DT visa which is good for an entire 12 months (for US passport holders) with no visa runs. Most US retirees there use that one. Although it is technically a business visa, even exploring business opportunities is sufficient. 
 

For the Philippines, I don’t deny that it is less safe than many other parts of Asia, but it is mostly petty stuff. Like many parts of the US, the usual precautions apply, plus some extra awareness and prep. 

Both sides are bad in their own way, and neither side is innocent of fear mongering. 
 

Democrats are not going to turn the nation into a socialist state, and Republicans are not going to cut social security, that would be political suicide. 

7 hours ago, Misty said:

LTR visas allow working, so also very suitable for those who wish to work. For some that may be the main attraction.

You are right - that really is a unique and major differentiator, for those who can take advantage of it. 
 

Plenty of other countries offer zero tax on overseas income… Malaysia, Philippines (for non-Filipinos) and Vietnam (for certain types of investment income), so that feature is not so special. AFAIK, the only major country in Southeast Asia where a foreign retiree’s overseas investment income is subject to tax is Indonesia, but even there, tax treaty might eliminate some or all of it.

Anyone can cherry pick a few things can make it seem like a threat. Fox News does it all the time. 

7 minutes ago, pepper402 said:

Sounds like you have close to $8 Million in your account (based on the S&P dividend yield).  Nice!  I applied for the Wealthy Pensioner and submitted income statements from some employers.  The analyst at BOI seemed to indicate that he was looking for pension income and not work income.  Presumably you will be able to use dividend income if you are applying for the Wealthy Global Citizen.  Good luck! 

I said a portion of the income requirement, not the entire income requirement! 
 

$8m would be nice though!

One thing I noticed on my monthly TD Ameritrade statement, it shows a total estimated annual income based on the current dividend yield of my equity holdings. I would think such a document should be usable as for a portion of income proof. 

Not sure which Bloomberg article you are referring to, but this Bloomberg opinion piece picked up on the “all too convenient” timing…

https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2022-09-01/republicans-need-to-get-serious-about-social-security

22 hours ago, aussiexpat said:

Having worked in aviation management for over 20 years (35 years total), wondering how many airlines really care about the cost of one possible passenger not being accepted by Thai immigration. I mean they make billions of $ per year, but the main reason given on here for requiring an onward flight is the airline has to fly you out of Thailand at their cost, omg, the impact to the airline must be profit destroying to give up an otherwise empty seat lol

 

If ever questioned by airline, ask to see supervisor/manager, show proof of funds to fly out, they'll always crumble to keep your flight and future business

 

In my experience, the supervisor/manager is an even BIGGER stickler. The idea that they will crumble out of fear of losing your future business… good luck with that. They could care less. Most of the time they follow their policies, to a fault.

I’ve flown hundreds of flights all over the world. Sure, you might get lucky once in a while, but once the airline staff think they are right, they won’t easily back off… even when they are wrong! 

If you want an age gap relationship, you’ll have better luck in the Philippines.

The LTR does seem best suited to a narrow demographic — those who are about to retire., are 100% set on Thailand and making $80k the last 2 years. All stars must align.
 

I know an American guy who retired last year from a US company Singapore. He had lived in Asia for decades and was a Singapore PR. He had the option to keep it but was also considering Thailand. He earned many multiples over $80k. But, last I heard he moved back to the states. And let’s face it, is what most (without a connection here) end up doing, even expats. 

The last time I flew into SG there were a whole bunch of lemmings who didn’t have the electronic arrival card filled out and caused a big mess at the immigration line.
 

Trust me, you will be glad you did it prior to arrival.