MangoKorat

I have no wish to sound negative but are you saying that you intend buying residential units and renting them out to tourists? If so, you might have a problem there. I haven't kept up with this but there was some problems with AirbnB lettings for example. I believe a law has been introduced stating that rentals must be for a minimum of 1 month but others can maybe advise you better on that.

What is your shareholding?

An often discussed matter. Owning property via a properly registered and fully trading Thai company that has a maximum of 49% foreign shareholding (sometimes 39%) can be legal. A Thai Ltd company that doesn't trade but employs a book keeper to basically falsify accounts and pay a little income tax in order to own land in Thailand is most definitely illegal. The 'book keeper' is often part of a package offered by the lawyers that set the company up. Whilst its true that many do it and they've never had a problem - that's simply because they have not been investigated. There is no guarantee and more recent news stories seem to indicate that such 'companies' are starting to be investigated. The key is a clause in the Thai land laws that refers to circumvention. Even a properly registered and trading Thai company can fall foul of that if it can be shown that the company was set up purely or mainly to circumvent the Thai land ownership rules. I can't see a problem for a company who's stated aims are property developing but you should seek advice on that from a lawyer that is not in the business of setting up Thai companies for foreigners. A company that has no reason to own land may also fall foul of the law - for example, you may have a fully fuctioning Thai company making tables and chairs. That does not entitle the company to purchase land and build a house for the foreign shareholder to live in. Owning the land on which the factory sits though, would be legal. If there is clear circumvention, you are at risk and what is clear will be up to the Thai court to decide. If a company is investigated, the Thai shareholders will almost certainly have to prove that the money used to purchase their shares was their own. You would also need to show that the company actually employs Thai staff and pays them a salary - not just pays their social security as some 'lawyers' will tell you.

Yes, I have never been able to work that one out. As a biker, my basic survival instinct would not allow me to pull out into potential traffic without even a glance.

They will not however, be doing anything about the hundreds of other bikes that ride against the traffic every day.

Whilst it can seem daunting the first time, collecting the supporting documents is the most time consuming and you have to do that whether you use an agent or not. There are probably people on here that can help the OP just as much as an agent can. Absolutely. I once helped a friend out who'd previously applied for a UK visitor's visa using a Thai agency in Bangkok. The agency had encouraged her to lie on the application, the lie was discovered and the application was refused. She was effectively 'banned' from applying again because she had lied. It took almost a year of emails going back and forth between myself and UK Immigration to get the decision reversed and another 6 months before she got her visa. Apparently she could have been banned from applying for 10 years but after translating an e-mail from the agent to the applicant, UK Immigration accepted that the agent was the culprit. I believe we have a UK visa agent on here, although I haven't seen him post for quite some time.

Wouldn't it be refreshing if a company, any company, held their hands up and said "yes, we've been having a few problems recently" instead of the usual BS corporate reply. Concerned after reading this thread, I messaged Wise and got this back - means absolutley nothing! Hello XXXX, Thanks for getting in touch! I understand your concern is about sending money to THB account and would like to confirm if any issues on it. Sending money has its different time frame, it depends on the payment method and currencies you are using. Transfer to THB can take up to 1-2 working days to arrive in your recipient's account. You can learn more about THB transfers here for more information. You also can check in our pricing calculator here. I hope this helps. Let us know if you have any more questions. Regards, Wise

Yes.

Yes, as usual but 'clicks = cash' don't they.

Both UK and Schengen visas are straighforward - no need for any agent. You will have to provide a considerable amount of paperwork to support your wife's visa applications and there is no way an agent can remove the need for any of that. If you still decide to use an agent, use a British or European one, I've heard horror stories from people who used Thai agencies.

Its totally mind boggling that one man, a lunatic at that, can hold the whole world to ransom. How has this been allowed to happen? It seems we learned nothing from WW2. The signs have been there for years - nobody with good intentions needs to control the press, convince their people that the West is against them and the cause of all their problems. A reasonable and decent person doesn't need to dispose of their opposition, rig elections and raise nationalism to huge levels. Its plain and simple 'conditioning' of the people. There are clear echoes of the manipulation that Germany experienced from 1933 - 1939. People may say that Putin wouldn't dare 'push the button', that he would not be able to do it alone. Does anyone believe that Hitler wouldn't have used nuclear weapons if he'd had them? Who in Russia, would have the guts to stand up to Putin? Most of those who might have already been dealt with and the rest live in fear. It must be remembered that we are not dealing with a reasonable person - Putin knows exactly what his destiny is. If he loses the war in Ukraine, he loses power in Russia. If he starts something bigger and loses, he'd ultimately die. To use the words of Winston Churchill - 'Beware of driving men to desperation. Even a cornered rat is dangerous'. I wouldn't put anything beyond Putin and I think the West will regret not standing up to him sooner.

I am saying that it is my belief that they were officially notified. Whatever, its yet another cock up in announcments from the Thai government. It's unlikely but entirely possible that this matter has ruffled some feathers somewhere - somebody possibly had to 'sign it off' and thinks they've been over-ridden. There could also have been some 'back tracking' behind the scenes - it wouldn't be the first time. I just hope that nobody has booked a return flight/flight out that is beyond the current 30 day exemption - they could well be denied boarding at check in.

I don't see how who posted what changes anything. All I am saying is that it has become clear that the 60 day exemption is not yet available and that despite the Thai authorities claims that the confusion is down to press interpretation, the British government are unlikely to have amended their advice if they had not been officially notified of the change. Therefore, the Thai authorities are being 'economical' with the truth in blaming press releases. Someone official, must have advised the British government - wrongly as it turns out. I don't believe the British government would change anything without official confirmation.

I think you misunderstand. I'm fully aware (from the OP) that people are not being stamped in for 60 days. You might note that a poster said his company had been in touch with the Thai authorities who have said that the new 60 day exemption is currently going through the system - it is not law yet and they blamed it on press releases. As others and myself pointed out, the British government amended their website to state that from 1 June 2024, the visa exemption for British citizens would be 60 days. The point I'm making is that I very much doubt the British government's advice is based on press releases, I am sure they will have received official notification. Therefore I don't believe this anomaly is entirely the result of press releases.

I have an up to date Smart TV and use an Android Box to watch TV when in Thailand - mainly UK stations. The box does have several Thai stations listed but they buffer a lot and are sometimes not available. I would like the 'main' Thai TV stations to be available for when Thai friends come to stay. Are they available online (legally) without being part of a package or would I have to use a satellite system/old fashioned aerial?

Covered here: https://aseannow.com/topic/1328713-suvarnabhumi-airport-still-stamps-30-days-instead-of-60-days/

I'm not sure the purpose of the OP will ever provide a true reflection of crime in either Thailand or any other country - its all subjective. For example: I would consider that the area where I live in Thailand is much safer than the UK. However, whilst in Thailand I've: Had my house broken into once - never in the UK. Second break in attempted - never in the UK. Been pickpocketed twice - never in the UK. Been drugged and robbed once - never in the UK. Had my car broken into once in the UK - never in Thailand. I would stress that the above events took place over almost 22 years. As I say, its subjective - take for example, the drugging and robbery. That happened in Bangkok when I was drunk and stupidly walking back to a hotel, way down a dark and dingy street. Big cities anywhere tend to experience that type of crime far more than other areas. I think I would have been just as much at risk if I'd done the same thing in say, London. I just have never done that in London.

That changes nothing. I would be amazed if the British government changed the information it provides to those intending to visit Thailand based on a press report. I repeat, they will have been notified.

Sorry to be pedantic on this but its quite clear that Thai government is the culprit here. They can blame the press all they want but as I pointed out earlier, the British government doesn't change its advice to travellers based on a news story. They will have been notified by an official government department.

Not doubting what you say at all but I am doubting the sincerity of what your office was told - blaming it on the press. I don't think the UK government gets its information by reading what various news sources say yet as others have pointed out - the UK is saying the from 1 June, its 60 days. Visa requirements From 1 June 2024, British passport holders arriving by air or land can enter Thailand without a visa (visa exemption) for the purpose of tourism and short-term business engagements for a period not exceeding 60 days. https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/thailand/entry-requirements

I understand very well that 'should' doesn't mean 'always' so don't be an a s s. When you've sent payments regularly and they've literally taken seconds (something Wise gloat about), it can be a bit worrying. It can also create problems - depending on the reason for your transfer. If Wise are having problems and a payment is likely to take longer, it would be courteous of them to tell you - not continue with the same 'should arrive in seconds' message.

You don't think people should be able to rely on this then?

Crimes and bad behaviour is not limited to any particular section of Thailand's expat society - I suspect if you could access the actual facts, not just those reported on here, you'd find that the Russians are probably involved in far more wrong doing - of all sorts in Thailand. To think of Asean Now (previously ThaiVisa) as a site where you can come for real world visa advise is fair, I think that's why a great many arrived here in the first place. However, you need to understand that Asean Now is a commercial enterprise - its not a free visa advice site. Look behind the arguments and verbal slagging that goes on here and you may notice on every page here (and far more if you don't employ an ad blocker) a large amount of advertising. At least Asean Now hopes you notice that advertising. Are you starting to understand now? Asean Now is not a Community Help site for expats and its 'raison d'etre' is making money. Not that there is anything wrong with that. So, imagine you are the site's owner, how would you attract advertisers to your site and thereby gain income? Advertisers want to see traffic so your job would be to produce that traffic. How do you do that? Well you can start by providing a space where those in the know can provide 'community advice' etc. but you'd also want growth right? What better way to get people talking (fighting and posting) than posting news articles that affect foreigners? Let's say that from doing so you notice that posting certain subject matter provokes additional fights and comments - would you locate more such stories and post them or less? You have just arrived, let me make a suggestion - learn to read Thai. When you have, go out and buy a Thai newspaper every day for a week. Then, at the end of that week add up all the stories you've read that include bad behaviour by foreigners - in particular, make a note of how many of those stories include accounts of British Expats/Tourists behaving badly. When you've arrived at your total, go back through your newspapers and locate all the stories of murders, fights, kiddly fiddling, thefts, assaults, drug deals etc.etc. perpetrated by those 'lovely' Thai people you mention. I think you might just realise that your thinking about British Expats is about as out of date as that of those who suggest we eat '99 baht breakfasts and Fish & Chips'. Thailand has quite a high 'actual' crime rate, much of which can be attributed to the lack of policing. Crime/bad behaviour is actually rampant in some areas of Thailand- especially in deprived areas where few expats venure, let alone live. The country has very big drug problems - particularly with one called 'Yaba' which accounts for a high proportion of crime. You'll read some of those stories on here but they are a tiny proportion of what actually goes on. Give some thought as to why you read so many stories on this site that involve certain branches of the expat commumity behaving badly. If you owned a website like Asean Now and you wanted to make money, would you post news stories about Thai's or Expats? If you noticed that posts aimed at a particular section of expats were popular, would you promote such stories or not - 'clicks = cash remember. Also keep in mind that Brits form a substantial part of Thailand's expat community. As shocking as any expat focused story may seem, I guarantee you that there are ar least 100 more shocking stories regarding 'lovely' Thai nationals every week. Don't be fooled by what you read, think of what lies behind it. Its called 'Populism' - Trump and Johnson became leaders of their respective countries by applying the same theory. Populism does not necessarily portray the truth - it simply is what it says - popular.

I will make this final post. You simply cannot help yourself can you? You try to appear to be making a sensible suggestion yet you also make an attempt at a jibe. I have also not been beating around the bush in any topics - you are drawing conclusions that simply don't exist. I guess I'd say that I'm moderately well off. I own several properties in both Thailand and the UK, I receive rent from some of them and I work full time in a decent job. I would have no problem in raising 400,000 baht to comply with the requirements to apply for an extension of stay. However, for a number of reasons, one being that I don't need such an extension, I have no intention of placing any more cash in a Thai bank account than I need to. There are many people who are in relationships with Thai nationals and/or have children in Thailand who may not be as fortunate as I am and through no fault of their own. Believe it or not, many people are struggling with the cost of living at the moment and that comes just after an income sapping pandemic. Not everyone can use 'forward planning' as you previously suggested. You're a pedant and a know it all - you clearly look down on anyone who might not be particularly well off and think they should not be considering a life abroad. I am also single and unlikely to get married again. I was posting on the subject initially to reply to someone asking questions in another thread and you know that. I don't always post on matters that affect myself. If its something I've been involved in or that has affected friend's etc, I often post on that subject Now you know a little of my personal circumstances, which bush have I been beating around then?

Entirely up to you. I have shown you where you said I was wrong. I have also suggested that we may have misunderstood each other - yet your response is to report rather than reply. I will not contribute to this forum any longer.