kimothai

Exactly. I couldn't have said it any better.

I'm not quite sure where you got your information from. The LTR is for 5 years, and the only requirement is to report once a year to immigration using a tm95 and that's only if you don't exit Thailand in which case the 1-year clock starts again (similar to the 90-day process). There is NO yearly paperwork (excluding the tm95 if necessary). Only after 5 years when you renew the LTR visa do you have to show paperwork which is similar to the original paperwork (just updated). To say that other visa cost far less is very misleading. I used to pay 1900 baht for my retirement visa (OA) and another 3,800 baht for multiple re-entry visa which equals 5,700 baht/year (10 years would be 57,000 baht). I get the same thing for 50,000 baht with the LTR visa. Granted, if you don't use a re-entry visa the LTR visa is more expensive but if you use the multiple re-entry every year you save 7,000 baht (not to mention the hassle of going to immigration to do the extra visa work). I'm not sure I would use the term "precious" when referring to the LTR visa but to each his own. Personally, I appreciate the fact that I don't have to do all the paperwork associated with a Retirment visa, no more bank reports/letters (in fact you don't even need a bank account), no more maps of where I live, no more providing residence documents, no more Thai only health insurance required by OA, no more queuing at Jomtien, no more going back the next day to receive passport and my personal favorite - no more Immigration Officer telling me I forgot a document because we changed the f***** rules.

I use SKYPE when I want to call the USA or when I need someone to call me (from USA). SKYPE works great for voice calls. Some financial Institutions will not allow a VOIP such as SKYPE or Google voice (PayPal will kick you out immediately). I've been using Mint for the last 18 months (which is part of T-Mobile now) for receiving OTPs from my Bank and USA credit card. So far it works great with no problems receiving text OTPs. I don't use it for anything else such as voice or data - it's way too expensive for that but I do use it when I go back to the USA (since it's already paid for). I use an e-sim for the Mint service which I installed while living in Thailand. You'll need an e-sim compatible phone and be willing to spend about $200/year. I used a relative's phone number for years. I would notify him via Messenger that an OTP was coming, and he would relay it to me via Messenger. Sometimes that can be inconvenient due the time difference.

For repair of small appliances/tools you may want to try the Father Ray Foundation on Sukhumvit. If you enter via the road (road that Big C Extra is located on) that runs parallel to Sukhumvit it's the first building on the left. There are usually security guards around that can direct you. It's been a while since I've been there, and I assume it's still operational since covid. The kids/young adults that work there may be handicapped but they are very smart and accomplished at repairing things.

Or worse yet if they ban bum guns.

I don't think the bank statement is new at all. I think the BOI was simply asking for additional information to verify income or possibly using bank money in lieu of health insurance. I think there is an extenuating circumstance that required BOI to request the information noted. You don't even need a bank account to receive an LTR visa. As with so many posts on the forum there always seems to be information that is not included either inadvertently or conveniently. My experience with the BOI was similar to yours (with USA data). I think the BOI was extremely professional and most helpful when I had a question.

I haven't had any problems as of yet. Last week I was watching NETFLIX in the Philippines (on tablet) while my gf was watching here in Thailand on TV. Not a family account. 2 users on the account (1 password)

As of April 17 I was able to pull up the log in page. Didn't try to log in.

I've donated books in the past to the library at the Father Ray Foundation located in Pattaya. You can call them and explain your situation.

I quit eating at these food troughs a long time ago. If this is what they think is acceptable for customers, I question what is acceptable for the kitchen.

I was in the same boat with OA visa and BlueCross and having to use Pacific Cross. It gave me a great sense of pleasure to cancel the expensive Pacific Cross that I never used for 3 years and get a partial refund. Not to mention not have to deal with the silly 90 day report or bank reporting. LTR was like a breath of fresh air.

I have found going to a Dermatologist and having them burned off with liquid nitrogen has worked 100% for me. At least when you see a doctor they can determine exactly what is wrong. This whole self-diagnosis/self-treatment is risky and could lead to further complications IMHO. This procedure with the whiskey and razor is a bit too barbaric for me.

The motorbike parking at Central Festival in Pattaya has become a nightmare since they allocated space for the big bikes. Simply not enough space for non-big bikes. Smaller bikes are parked on top of one another. My solution is to simply not to go there anymore. I go the extra distance to Terminal 21 where there is plenty of parking. If I absolutely have to go to Central, I'll park across the street and walk over.

I had that same problem with PC WIN 11. The PC would randomly shutdown or restart. Turned out it was UPS software for auto-shutdown if power loss. The software made my desktop think it was a laptop in respect to the power settings. Was never able to resolve the problem so I just use the UPS without the auto-shutdown feature. I have idea if you are using a UPS. Just thought I would mention it.

"She speculated that she may have unintentionally cut him off". Now there's a laugh. Driving in Pattaya, seems like I get "unintentionally" cut off half a dozen times just going to the grocery store.

To answer your question about how I checked the exchange rate, I used a FX app on my phone at the moment of the transaction. I've done this same process with my Capital One Credit Card (not debit card) and the difference was night and day. I didn't write down all the specific numbers, but I recall the exchange rate fee of my debit card was about triple that of my credit card. I only did this "exchange rate experiment" because a friend, who also has a Schwab account) who had heard the exchange rate with the debit card was not so good. He was right. Don't misunderstand my opinion of the Schwab debit card - I love my Schwab debit card, it's a perfect backup for my Capital One in case I have a problem. I just reserve the use of the debit card to making USD purchases.

I would think a scanner would be a better option than a Webcam (or phone camera) for saving documents to digital format.

I can't speak about the NFCU problem, but I've had the same issues with play store "not available in your country". Because I use an Android phone that is located in Thailand (Google/play store account), I found a used iPhone that I located in America with the Apple account. I do my banking/credit card that are country sensitive on the iPhone. You don't need a sim or phone number in the iPhone - just an internet connection. I'm only using the iPhone as a platform, not a phone.

Yes. I (American citizen) opened a Charles Schwab International account while living in Thailand. As part of the initial application for proof of residence (in Thailand) I used a scan of my electric bill (from electric company - Thai language) and my water bill (from condo - English language). I did this about a year ago when I was informed by Morgan Stanley that I would need to close my account due to foreign residency (even though I did have a USA mailing address) but that's another story about how that all came about. After the account was approved it has to be funded with 25K USD. I accomplished this by transferring my 2 Morgan Stanley accounts (1 brokerage and 1 Roth IRA account) to Charles Schwab International. Each account has to be transferred separately (same process twice) but that's only if you have more than one account. Schwab provides you with instruction for the transfer. The whole transfer process was less than 3 weeks. I was initially apprehensive about how difficult it would be to do the account transfer, but it turned out to be super easy. If you use I different method to fund the account, I can't comment on that. Note: as a foreign resident you are not allowed to have mutual funds registered in USA so you'll probably need to convert those to something different (probably should call Schwab to determine course of action if mutual funds are involved). I didn't have any, so it wasn't an issue. Once your account is open and funded you can use your Thai number for OTP's. You can get a debit card and checking account that will be mailed directly to your Thai address. The exchange rate for the debit card is terrible so you may want to limit use to USD transactions. The whole process was a lot easier than I thought it would be. To be honest I like Schwab better than Morgan Stanley.

Your complaints will only fall on deaf ears. Simple solution: double pane (or possibly triple pane) windows & class lanai doors. If in a condo they'll have comply with condo regulations to have same cosmetic appearance on the outside. Had a friend in Bangkok who did exactly that to kill all the traffic noise.

I agree with everyone that says you don't need an agent to complete the LTR application. The BOI people ate very helpful if you call with excellent English speakers. They usually responded to emails the same day. If you do yourself, you should have a PC or laptop and a printer/scanner along with the basic skills to make a multipage PDF file. Good luck

15,000baht/month is a total rip off. For that amount you can get a gym membership for a year. Have a look at Fitness 7 in the Avenue shopping center on second road. They keep it clean and machine maintenance is very good. The trainers that work there will teach how to use the machines (for free). My gf uses the place as well as a lot of other girls. Never heard of any problems. A trainer will give you guided tour and you can see if it's what you are looking for.

I agree that this road construction could be better coordinated but that’s only half the problem (in my opinion). The other half I’m referring to is all the double parking. I see it everywhere and it creates every bit as much chaos/backup as the road work (especially on narrow roads such as Soi Bukaow). The shame of it is that it could be alleviated by law enforcement which require more police presence on the roads but sadly, most know what the odds of that is. This whole double parking, running red lights, driving on the wrong side of the road, etc, etc is like an endemic road disease in Pattaya. I don’t expect anything to change.

I think the Tik Tokers are just being creative and figured out a way to boost the sales of offensive T-shirts. After all, this is Thailand and it's always about the money. Always!

Correct. You cannot initiate an international wire transfer from a Capital One account. Only domestic transfers are allowed. I linked my Capital One to an account that allows international wire transfers. Very easy to do. Been using Capital one (including CC) for about 5 or 6 years. Never a problem.