Red Phoenix

Lol - ChatGTP putting you on the wrong foot with their answer, although the program sensibly recommends to "contact the embassy or consulate beforehand to inquire about specific requirements and procedures for applying for a visa."

I seem to recall from another post that it was possible, but in order to make sure I just asked ChatGPT (featured on AseanNow - 7th tab in the top ribbon on the AN Homepage) > Can a US citizen apply for a Visa to visit Thailand at the Thai embassy in Japan? And the program provided the following answer: > Yes, a US citizen can apply for a visa to visit Thailand at the Thai embassy or consulate in Japan. As long as you are in Japan and meet the requirements for a Thai visa, you can submit your application at the nearest Thai embassy or consulate. It is always recommended to contact the embassy or consulate beforehand to inquire about specific requirements and procedures for applying for a visa. = = = But of course, applying for the eVisa in his home-country would be far easier and the flight-itinerary would most probably not pose a problem (especially if he provided both reservations covering the full itinerary US - Japan - Thailand).

Some interesting facts in that Reuters press-release: #1 - The updated shots from Pfizer (PFE.N) and BioNTech (22UAy.DE) or Moderna (MRNA.O) are single-target vaccines aimed at the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant of the coronavirus, which was dominant in the U.S. for much of this year but has since been overtaken by other variants as the virus evolves. #2 - ... by Sept. 21, around 4.4 million Americans had rolled up their sleeves for one of updated or new shots. That's 1.3% of the US population. #3 - Around 56.5 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, received last year's version of the vaccines.

https://www.reuters.com/business/healthcare-pharmaceuticals/about-4-mln-americans-got-their-updated-covid-vaccines-sept-2023-10-04/ Oct 4 (Reuters) - Around 4 million Americans received the updated COVID-19 shots in September, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), even as some people have found it difficult to book vaccination appointments or find the vaccines at no cost. "The Biden-Harris Administration, through HHS, has been working directly with manufacturers and distributors to ensure that the vaccines are getting to pharmacies, hospitals, clinics, and other vaccination sites, including long-term care facilities as quickly as possible," a spokesperson for the department said in an emailed statement. The updated shots from Pfizer (PFE.N) and BioNTech (22UAy.DE) or Moderna (MRNA.O) are single-target vaccines aimed at the XBB.1.5 Omicron subvariant of the coronavirus, which was dominant in the U.S. for much of this year but has since been overtaken by other variants as the virus evolves. Another updated COVID shot, made by Novavax (NVAX.O), was authorized on Tuesday but is not yet available. Rollout of the Pfizer and Moderna shots began in earnest after the U.S. Centers for the Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommended them on Sept. 12. The rollout of last year's updated shots targeting two virus variants started about 10 days earlier, and by Sept. 21, around 4.4 million Americans had rolled up their sleeves for one of them. U.S. public health officials have expressed hope that Americans will welcome the new vaccines as they would an annual flu shot. But demand for COVID vaccines has dropped sharply since 2021, when they first became available. Around 56.5 million people, or 17% of the U.S. population, received last year's version of the vaccines.

When applying for the eVisa that needs to be done from your home-country. So in your case it would be recommended that you provide both flight reservations (the one from USA to Japan, as well as the later flight from Japan to Thailand) when applying for the eVisa. Alternatively you could when in Japan apply in person at the Thai Embassy/Consulate for the Visa. But that would probably require 2 visits (one for the application and one to pick up the Visa after approval - and if the Thai Embassy in Japan keeps your passport during the application that would be rather inconvenient).

According to Thai law it is the 'housemaster' (which can be the owner, landlord or resident) that has to notify the local Immigration Office that a foreigner is staying at the premises. The form to be used for such notification is the TM-30, and it needs to be done (either on-line or in person) within 24 hours of arrival of the foreigner at the premises. Hotels/guesthouses can simply do such notification on-line for foreigners staying there, and those foreigners that are in Thailand on a Tourist Visa (or entered Visa Exempt) and want to apply for a 30-day extension of stay, can ask the Hotel/guesthouse for a copy of that TM-30 notification as the local Imm Office will not provide any service without 'proof of address'. When staying in a rented/leased place or in the house of your wife/girlfriend, and wanting to stay longer-term in Thailand, the local Imm Office needs additional evidence that you are actually residing there. And such evidence can consist of a rental agreement (in case of renting/leasing) or the Housebook of the place you are staying. And in both cases Immigration also requires a signed front/back copy of the Thai ID-card of the owner/landlord of those premises. Also most Imm Offices are somewhat lenient and do not insist on having this done within 24 hours as the law prescribes, but it is recommended to do it within the first 1-2 weeks of you having moved to the place where you will be residing long-term. NOTE that you will come across many posts of long-term residents in Thailand, claiming that 'they never did a TM-30'. But what happened is that at their first encounter with Immigration that they (or their landlord/wife) provided the required evidence (i.e. rental agreement or housebook, together with copy of Thai ID-card) and that their local Imm Office filled in the TM-30 form for them without them being aware. The fact alone that they were able to get services from that office is already proof that they have met the TM-30 notification requirement.

Looks pretty complete to me, and you should have no problem when applying at CW for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement, with all the above. Success!

For this first 6-months trip to Thailand, and suggested already by previous posters, an METV (MultipleEntry Tourist Visa) would be your best option, with the additional advantage that you can extend your visit to max 9 months if you desire to do so. For your next annual long trip to Thailand another METV (allowing you to reside 6-9 months in the country) would also be possible. But after that you might experience some difficulties as border-immigration based on that history of two 6-months (or longer) stays in Thailand during a 2-year period, could result in them not considering you a 'genuine tourist' and denying you entry. Of course that's +2 years in the future, so your plans might change, and if you still want to make such annual trips, there are other options for long-term stay in Thailand. So the advice to apply for an METV for this first trip to Thailand is for sure still your best option.

Actually you would need to provide the evidence of meeting the financial requirements already in 2-3 months during the last month of the 90-day Non Imm O Visa Permission to stay, when you have to apply for your first 1-year extension of stay. Obviously you would only have to provide evidence of having met the requirements for the 2 months preceding your application, consisting of #1 - a bank-account statement printed on letterhead-paper of your Bank, stating that you are the sole owner of that personal bank-account, and also providing the balance (+800K) on the moment of issuance, of that statement, which has to be on the date of application for your 1-year extension of stay application; #2 - your Bank Pass-book updated on the day of application - preferably with a small transaction done on that day - and copies of the transactions made during the 2 months preceding the day of application and showing that you never slipped under +800K during that period. > Depending on your Imm Office they might also require you to provide a transactions-overview by your Bank over those 2 months (which basically provides the exact same information as your Bank Pass-book). However, such transactions-overview is not (yet) required at CW.

The codes besides the transfers on your Bank-account Passbook (or the codes on the funds-transfers overview that your Bank can provide you - see my previous post) will indicate whether the transfer was 'domestic' or 'originating from abroad'. Note that when you used WISE to do the transfer(s), the code will turn up as 'domestic' and you would need to bring also the WISE transaction statement which will show that the transfer(s) originated from abroad. That WISE transaction statement is accepted by most Imm Offices as evidence that the funds indeed originated from abroad.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2052297523000914 Title of the study > Efficacy and safety of in-hospital treatment of Covid-19 infection with low-dose hydroxychloroquine and azithromycin in hospitalized patients: A retrospective controlled cohort study The study was conducted to compare the 28-day mortality rate in 352 patients treated with hydroxychloroquine with or without azithromycin (HCQ-group) in a hospital with a contemporary control group of 3533 patients receiving standard of care from the Belgian Collaborative Group on COVID-19 Hospital Surveillance The conclusion of this recently published retrospective analysis reads: ‘It is very plausible that the observed survival benefit reflects a true treatment effect.’ In other words, the treatment was effective.

You mentioned low vaccination rate, and that's indeed a definite Plus, as it clearly indicates that the country's government has not been mandating/coercing its citizens into forfeiting their right for bodily autonomy.

At my Sisaket Imm Office evidence of having met the financial requirements for the 1-year extension application based on a Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement, consist of providing 3 documents: #1 - A bank-account statement issued on the date of application for the 1-year extension application, printed on Bank-letterhead paper, and stating that the account is on your personal name only and providing the updated balance of that account on the day of issuance (which must be above +800.000 THB); #2 - A recent document issued by the bank, listing all transactions made on that account over the last 12 months, showing that during those 12 months you never slipped under the 800K and 400K tressholds. Note: Some bank-branches (e.g. Bangkok Bank) only have access to the last 6 months of the transactions you made during the preceding period, and hence need to order the 12-month bank-transactions document at Headquarters, which can take up to 5 working days before it is available at the local branche. So you need to 'order' that 12-month statement 1 week in advance to ensure that it is available for pick-up at date of application for your 1-year extension. As Immigration is aware of that limitation they do not require that that document was issued by the Bank on the date of application for your 1-year extension. Also, if you have a Fixed Deposit Account with Kasikorn Bank, the small transaction you need to make on date of application for your 1-year extension, will not show yet on the 12-month overview that the Bank will create on date of application. > And hence Immigration also requires that you bring with you: #3 - Your bank-account passbook featuring the small transaction you made on date of application. Note: Some Imm Offices instead of #2 (the 12-month bank-transactions document) still only require copies of all pages in your Bank-account passbook covering the last 12 months. But if your Bank consolidated the transactions when you did not regularly update your Bank-account passbook, Immigration will not be able to check whether you did not slip under the required tressholds during such 'consolidation period' and hence several Imm Offices (like mine) now require the 12-month bank-transactions document.

It is not impossible (I have done it some years ago) to make a generic Guidance document for each of the 4 most common application scenario's at a Thai Immigration Office: - Application for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement; - Application for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of marriage; - Application for 1-year extension of stay from a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement; - Application for 1-year extension of stay from a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of marriage. However, as @DrJack54 correctly states, each Guidance document would become a very long and almost unreadable document, when it has to address all the possible options. This because every Thai Imm Office has slightly (or sometimes even major) different requirements as well as pertaining to the specific evidence that Immi Office requires from the applicant to meets those requirements. And on top of that, the Imm Office requirements are not 'cast in stone' but at some Imm Offices are frequently changed/amended (e.g. a New boss wanting it 'his way').. So to provide fully correct and applicant-specific advice, this means that in practice the applicant would 1 - First have to provide all the necessary details of his personal situation (age, nationality, marriage, Thai children, date of Permission to stay, etc.) 2 - Have to get hold of and provide the requirements document for the scenario (Visa-application / 1-year extension + purpose < marriage / retirement / other >) he will be applying for at the Imm Office where he resides. And in cases where the Imm Office does not have such a requirements document, it would be a matter of getting in touch with others that have applied for the same scenario at that same Imm Office. Note: And of course when browsing the Forum for advice or posting a thread to get hold of the relevant information, you will often be put on the 'wrong leg' by some of the well-meant advice of posters, that are not aware that the local Imm Office requirements of THEIR Imm Office pertaining to THEIR specific situation, are not universal. In view of the above, it is only natural that the SAME questions and requests for information pop-up time and again on the Visa sub-forum, as each applicant's situation is different and each Imm Office has its own requirements.

# Fargo (all 4 seasons are great, but the first season is absolutely epic) # After Life (by and with Ricky Gervais - hilarious and at same time deeply human and touching) # True Detective (with Woody Harrelson, say no more)

Your first 2 questions = YES. As good as all Hotels/Guesthouses did register their premises on the on-line TM30 website, which allows them to notify local immigration of any foreigners staying at their premises (as required by Thai law). That website does allow the Hotel/Guesthouse to make a print out of the TM-30 notification they did, as their guests tha need an Immigration service have to present to the local Imm Office evidence of the place where they are staying. = = = Note that when you are not staying at the Hotel anymore at the time of application for your 90-day Non Imm O Visa application, and are now renting/leasing an apartment, that you would need now a TM-30 of you staying at that new place. And on top of a copy of the TM-30 notification (done on-line or a signed paper-copy), you will also need a copy of the rental agreement and a signed front/back copy of the Thai ID-card of the owner/landlord of those premises.

Hi likerdup1. As I wrote earlier: Yes, there have been several reports that CW does accept a statement from the Hotel where you are currently staying, that you will be staying there longer term while you are searching for a long-term residence in the Bangkok area. But indeed when applying for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa at CW you should ON TOP of the above statement ALSO bring a copy of the on-line TM-30 notification with you, that your Hotel did when you checked-in there stating that you - a foreigner - is residing at their premises. On simple request from your part, your Hotel will be able to provide you with a copy of that TM-30 notification.

Here you go > downloaded from https://www.immigration.go.th/en/?page_id=3202 TM 86 - Application for change of Visa - 19.คำขอเปลี่ยนประเภทการตรวจลงตรา-ตม.86.doc

Check out Loei (and ChiangKhan) and NongBua Lamphu, they are on the way from Chiang-Rai to Udon Thani, and personally I like them more than Udon...

From later posts it seems that the OP is not limiting his search for a nice rural place in Thailand close to a big-city. So yes, he could also consider North Thailand with several very nice places. Mae Hong Song and Nan are both in a rural setting and very beautiful. One thing to take into consideration when opting for North-Thailand is the dreadful burning season in months January to March, with record-breaking Air-pollution which makes life almost unbearable in Chiang-Rai, Chiang Mai and even some lower laying provinces .

All brown and dusty???? Most of the cities yes, but the OP is looking to stay in a rural place, with a near-by city.

Beware that most and certainly the larger Thai cities are 'concrete jungle' except when you are staying in the 'old part' of town. But as you would be living outside the city in a rural environment, and only want a large city near-by for shopping and occasional visits, you actually have a much larger choice depending on the max distance to a large city and region of your liking. Instead of the 4 Isaan Biggies (Udon, KK, Korat & Ubon) you could imo also consider Surin, Nakhon Phanom, Mukdahan, Roi Et, Loei and NongBua Lamphu. I would recommend that before making a choice, that you do the Grand Tour of Isaan (would take you some 1-2 months) and get the flavor of each place. A tour could be starting in Khorat, then Eastwards to Buriram, Surin and Ubon Ratchathani. Then going North upstream the Mekhong to Mukdahan, Nakhon Phanom and NongKai. Then West again to Udon Thani, NongBua Lamphu, Loei (and ChiangKhan). Finally going down again to KhonKaen and RoiEt. And you will find that each part of Isaan has its distinct flavor and charm. Success in finding it out!

Chiang Mai is in Northern Thailand, and not in Isaan (NorthEast). But you will indeed find that Chiang-Mai has many english-speaking locals, because of the large expat community there.

Originally I wrote Rambuttri Road, but the Google map posted by 2long with directions to the Bookstore referred to it as Ram buttri Aly (and hence I updated my post). And it should be Rambuttri Alley...

I think that you are referring to the large and fine Used book store on Rambuttri Ally. Just google Rambuttri Village Hotel for directions. When you come from Khao San road and you head towards Chao Praya river, you have to cross the busy Samsen Road, and then you are in Rambuttri road (the Wat Chana Songkram temple grounds are on your left when having crossed the street. The first part of that pedestrian road (closest to Khao San road) is quite busy but its worth walking that road as it is less crowded the farther you walk it and it has nice restaurants and shops. I prefer Rambuttri over KhaoSan road as it has the same atmosphere but far less crowded. The Used bookstore is approx 100-150 meter when walking into Rambuttri road coming from Khao San road and it's on your right-side. Actually ALL restaurants, hotels, shops there are on your right side as the left side of Rambuttri Ally is the wall to the large temple complex of Wat Chana Songkram. I always buy one or more used books when I am at that bookstore. Note: 2long just posted the map to that bookstore.