TroubleandGrumpy

I get vitamins from Lazada - most of the 'pharmacys' here either dont stock them much, have old stock, and are way over-priced.

Send him the bill - and all the other greenie nutters getting lost in the remote forests trying to be 'at one' with nature. He is lucky nature didn't get to cycle his body back into the collective.

Good question. I would say it depends on which Judge/s get the case and what the Govt announces is their desired outcome. I think (hope) that the Thai Govt will realise from their current review, that they have made a bad decision targetting short term tax revenues gains with such short notice, at the expensive of future businesses and investors due to the uncertainty about potential future changes.

Dont leave - the Vogons are not here (yet).

Sorry - no one knows the definitive answer to your situation - not even two Thai tax/accountants I have contacted. You could well be the 'target' group the Thai RD is after - people who earn income overseas and then bring some of it into Thailand. My advice is to wait until the Thai RD releases their 'clarifiying explanations' - they are currently reviewing the impacts and outcomes of this change and how best to proceed going forward. Hopefully they will follow Malaysia's lead and delay implementation for a few years to give people and companies a reasonable time period for both to assess their future financial decisions. If they do not provide that 'clarity' or do not give enough time, it is extremely very likely that this matter will go to the Thai Courts. People and Companies have been making financial decisions based upon a method of operating by the Thai RD, than has been ratified in the Courts for over 30 years, and making such a change with 3 months notice is very lieley to be ruled as being against the Tax Laws/Constitution.

That is not my read of the Thai RD guidline - but it could be correct in how the Thai RD actually acts: Section 56 Every taxpayer except a minor or a person adjudged incompetent or quasi-incompetent shall, on or before the last day of March every year, file to the official appointed by the Minister a tax return reporting the assessable income received in the preceding tax year in the form prescribed by the Director-General, if such person- (1) has no spouse and has the assessable income of the preceding tax year exceeds 60,000 baht, (2) has no spouse and has the assessable income of the preceding tax year under only Section 40 (1) exceeds 120,000 baht, (3) has a spouse and the assessable income of the preceding tax year exceeds 120,000 baht, or (4) has a spouse and the assessable income of the preceding tax year under only Section 40 (1) exceeds 220,000 baht. That 60K figure I think is 'lost in translation' as 150K is the tax free threshold. Section 40 is all about Assesable Income. Chapter 3 Income Tax | The Revenue Department (English Site) (rd.go.th) All Thai Laws (Tax, Immigration, etc etc) and the Thai RD Guidelines, are very 'interpretable'. The reason is because the Thai Legal System (Courts) are not based on what we call 'Common Law' and they do not base their rulings on past 'Precedents'. Unlike our systems which are very rigid and defined, with rulings going back hundreds of years, the Thai legal system is basically a case by case situation. Perhaps I have not explained that enough before, when trying to explain to some posters that 'those words do not mean what you think they mean'. That is the reason why in Thailand any Immigration Officer or Policeman can make a decision - within certain limits. I personally like some parts of that legal system - IMO a 1960 Toyota rustbucket with balding tyres being driven by a 70 year old woman and going at 100Kms is far more dangerous than a brand new Mercedes SL500 driven by a 40 year old man going at 130Km. In Thailand you can talk to the Policeman and 'sort things out' (even slip a few baht) - but it the west the very dangerous Toyota is ignored and the Mercedes is impounded - because the legal definition of dangerous driving is 20+km over the limit.

Thanks Sheryl - much appreciated. Clearly Wiki has got it wrong.

Because of the internet people everywhere (maybe not Chine, Nth Korea, etc) are far more informed about their leaders - both truly informed and more so misinformed. The leaders in our pasts were just as bad, if not worse, then the curent mob. It is just that we know more about them and what they get up to these days, than we did in the past. Churchill said - Many forms of Government have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pretends that democracy is perfect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democracy is the worst form of Government except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time.… What I do know is that the people are far better off when their Government (Politicians and Public Servants) is as small as possible - making them larger does not solve any problems, it just makes them interfere and screw around everyone's lives more (just look at the Covid debarcle).

Yes indeed - The Junta has been replaced by the 5 wealthy Bangkok Thainese families of which both Thaksin and Strettha are members. Those two groups have been exhanging power and control of Thailand and its people for many decades. Seems clear to me that both Yellow and Red shirts are vested interests, and those interests are their own. I hope next time the Thai Govt becomes Orange and that it slowly slowly takes both the others down - after all Red and Yellow makes Orange 🙂

Pheu Thai (and MFP) will take Thailand back to its pre-Junta stance of being neutral between China and USA and Japan and Europe. The Junta basically made Thailand a subservient supporter of the Chinese expansions in SEAsia (Belt and Road etc) in return for Tourists.

That is why blocking is a good idea.

This will be the first of many junket trips and consultancy fees for what is basically a ridiculous idea. It apparently saves 2-3 days for a ship at sea - not much at all compared to the Suez or Panama canals. And all the charges to unload, move and reload shipping containers, plus port costs and delays, makes this IMO a stupid idea. A canal could be economically viable for the shipping companies - but a land bridge IMO is just a waste of time and money. But then again, when did not wasting money on 'hubs' and other rubbish, ever stop the junkets and kickbacks in Thailand.

True. But the manufacturers always make a certain number in a few basic colours - the colours that sell well. White is very popular for many reasons, including that for commerical vehicles it makes any advertising signs stand out much better. They all make white (excluding top end vehicles) and many years ago they also made a red variation - nowadays most have a blue or a silver/grey or both.

No specific problem - we live nearby and it looks big (1000 beds) and that it would do most procedures. It is apparently (Wiki) linked with both Burapha University and the Phramongkutklao College of Medicine. Just looking for any feedback regarding the Hospital.

Before leaving check Thai Embassy website in his home country - what is needed for 90 day non-immigrant Visa to visit family. Go home and earn/save some money - get all the paperwork needed together. When ready apply for a 90 day non-immigrant Visa to visit the wife. Come back on the 90 day non-immigrant Visa. Deposit the 400K in bank account in your name ASAP after arriving. Go see local Immigration with Thai wife and ask what is needed for 12 month extension (varies Office to Office). Show bank book with the 400K and Passport with non-immigrant Visa - that will help get the right answers. Go back tio Immi Office and apply the date they say to come back and apply. Good Luck.

Yes I agree - colour does not make that much difference regarding a car sitting in the sun getting hot inside - most heat comes through the windows not the panels. Which is why all my cars in Thailand have had window tinting - which also brings me to my point. Visibility at dusk and dawn, in terms of someone seeing your car, is better in a white car than in a black car - especially on the highways. It is even more so when the person looking does not have great eyesight, and/or is affected by alcohol, and/or has a too-heavily tinted front windscreen. I remember telling the guy fitting window tinting to our City many years ago - 'no please - only 60 on the front windscreen, 70 for driver side window, and 90 OK for the rest - it is hard to see when dark and in rain'. He looked at me very wierdly - the wife explained what I wanted - he did it - but I bet he told his mates later over a 20 baht bottle of rum - 'guess what stupid farang made me do today ..........'

Thanks for trying Sheryl - some people are just 'to diificult' for their own good. Thanks for that list of 'top' hospitals in Thailand - much appreciated. As a related question - have you any feedback or information about the Queen Sirikit Naval Hospital in Sattahip ?

I just opened a bank account on a non-immigration Visa (visiting family), so that I could deposit the funds needed to apply for a 12 month extension (marriage). I did the same thing many years ago and it was a lot easier then - not so now. I had to go to the local Immigration Office and get a 'Residency Certificate' to open a bank account - that is what it will say (in Thai) on the document. Take that and all documents with copies - Application, Passport, TM30 from the Hotel, and Photos. OR - Find an Agent and they will do all that for you, and help you open a bank account. Do not give the Agent a lot of money to deposit into the account (1000 Baht only) and dont pay them until you have the bank account book and ATM card and all your documents returned. If they demand all the money up front, smile and walk out and go find another Agent (never argue). I have always found Bangkok Bank to be the eaiest to deal with - both before and afterwards. Maybe just walk in there and ask what you need to get in order to open a bank account so that you can deposit 800K to apply for a Retirement 'Visa' (extension). Use a bank account that is in a Mall - they are open a lot more and longer than the street Branches. In the future get a second bank account from another bank - always good to have a backup account in case something goes wrong with Bangkok Bank (mine did that while we were in holidays). They do not operate Nationally - they are like local francises - for anything serious (blocked account) you must go back to the Branch where you opened the account. That is why I got a new account this time around - had to go all the way to Chiang Mai to reopen my old account to get new ATM card and updated book.

If you were employed by a business, or own a business, or recived 'taxable income', it is compulsory to lodge a tax return in Thailand if your taxable income was over 120K Baht PA. The interpretation and implementation ofg Thai tax laws are very 'fluid' depending on how the Thai RD are instructed. The recent change that led to this Post and lots of media reports, was an instruction from the Thai RD to change their previous interpretation of the tax laws.

If the people who live in Gaza did not want this to happen, they had one obvious thing to do - remove Hamas from power. They voted them into in 2006 (from PLO) and they have enabled and supported them ever since. The PLO was not popular because Arafat tried to negotiate peace, and after he died his group (Fatah) were attacked and removed by Hamas. Since then Hamas has been repeatedly attacking Israel with rockets and terrorist attacks - which always results in Israel responding harshly and Hamas using that for their own political means. This latest atrocity by Hamas (and the people of Gaza) has resulted in Israel embarking on the path of destroying Gaza - all of it. There is a verse from the Bible that fits perfectly: "You reap what you sow". Isreal is reaping now, exactly what the terrorists in Gaza have been sowing for decades - the Gaza is going to be destroyed. There is no other options IMO because there is no other genuine solution to dealing with a terrorist organisation that has been enabled and supported by the majority of the population of Gaza. Only now are the people of Gaza realising what that really means, and only in the future will they know what that has really cost them. Many decades have passed since the PLO under Arafat attempted to reach a peace settlement, and the hard-line Hamas taking over - they want Israel removed and all Jews killed. And to anyone saying this will make the people of Gaza hate Israel more, I say the obvious. What - you mean more than making them want to kill over 1300 people inside Israel including innocent civilians like 30 Thai workers??

I have been told (in emails) by two Thai tax lawyers/accountants that they believe that in the future a TIN will be required for annual extensions for all Expats. They pointed out that all working/business Expats are required to do that for their annual extensions, and that they could expand that requirement to those on retirement and marriage too - if they wanted to. According to one of them, if you are a Thai tax resident and you have revenue earned anywhere in the world and you bring money to Thailand, you are supposed to lodge a tax return and declare that. He stated that it is very unlikely that you would be required to pay any income taxes, and that is why they dont bother chasing non-working/business Expats for returns now. But IMO they are both saying that to get business from me/Expats - but they could be right - and as you say - never say never.

In Australia and most western countries, banks require a Tax Number or they withold part of the 'earnings' and report that to their Tax Dept. Likely that one day Thailand will also adopt the same practice - if directed by Thai Govt (very suprised if SCB has already done that). Also a possibility that in order to receive an extension in the future, a TIN and last year's tax certificate/return will be required (years away).

Anyone here use 'Nova Tears' Eye Drops - Perfluorohexyloctane. NovaTears® - AFT Pharmaceuticals

Both. I am not a 'fashion' addict who gets what is popular - and I do not have a 'reality' issue. White Color Costs More to ProduceYes, white generally cost car manufacturers more compared to lets say red, silver, black or gray. Why? Because white requires more coats of paint, base and other necessary coats during the whole painting process. Reasons Why White Cars Cost More? (noahsgarage.com) PS - here is some more reality for you: While color trends can change over time, white is always in style. There are many reasons for this: White better reflects heat. Dark colors absorb heat from the sun more efficiently whereas white stays cooler. White paint fades less noticeably. While all materials exposed to the sun will fade over time, it is white which fads the slowest. White makes objects appear larger. This is very helpful for rooms that need to seem bigger or for fleets who want more presence. White is a clean color. While white can get dirty faster, it also shows customers you are clean if the vehicle is kept clean. White is the ultimate background. Whether white is part of your brand or not—logos look great and stand out on a white background. But if you want to choose matt black, because it looks 'cool', then you go right ahead mate.

USA UK AUSTRALIA GERMANY JAPAN KOREA I could go on and on - but I think that will do. Wait one more CHINA