BangkokBernie

It's semantics how you wish to interpret the new tax structure. The question was whether or not people's spending habits have changed in 2024 as a result of the fact that they could be expected to pay personal income tax on money (starting this year) that they remit into the country into their own Thai bank account via an overseas bank or fintech transfer.

Thank you, but as I said in my OP, the purpose of this topic is to discuss changes in spending habits as a result of the changes to the Thai tax laws that will effect foreigners residing in Thailand. Anyone's individual tax situation is only anecdotal. Also, it remains to be seen how much of people's taxes already paid overseas on the imported money will actually get applied to their tax liabilities in Thailand under any double taxation treaties. I anticipate a number of situations where the TRD can't understand the contents of the documents that foreigners are presenting as evidence of tax already paid overseas and, thus won't accept them.

How do you define tourist ghettos? And, no, I don't know who. Who are you referring to? Russians, Indians, Arabs, Chinese, it can't be the Brits, right?

Now that nearly a year has passed since the Thai government put a new law into affect that created a personal income tax on all cash transfers into Thailand which applies to all residents of Thailand, I’m curious how this change has affected your lifestyle and spending habits over the past year. Have you found yourself reducing your spending in Thailand and/or canceling or indefinitely postponing any large purchases you were planning to make here? Personally, while I’ve continued spending about the same amount, I’ve made a conscious decision to stop bringing significant sums of money into the country and to avoid keeping it in Thai banks. My Thai bank account balances have been steadily decreasing rather than staying stable or increasing. This approach, I think, isn’t achieving the taxation benefits the Thai government was hoping for. Instead, I’ve started using overseas debit cards for a lot of my spending here. While I understand that, technically, these transactions are also supposed to be reported to the Thai Revenue Department (TRD) and taxed, I’ll be honest, that’s not going to happen. I’m struggling to see how this policy is a win for the Thai government. They aren’t going to collect any income tax from the money I spend in Thailand from my overseas savings, and, like many others, I’ve scaled back on transferring as much cash as possible into Thailand. The result is that they’re likely receiving less revenue from foreigners overall. Maybe this policy benefits the TRD on Thai nationals earning money abroad and transferring it back home. But for foreigners, I think it’s far more likely to discourage spending and investment in the country. In fact, it already serves as a deterrent for retirees and potential long-term residents. If you don’t already have the ฿800,000 in a Thai bank account required for a retirement visa, who’s going to transfer that amount in (plus 20% more) and then lose 20% of it to taxes just to meet the visa requirement? This feels like a long-term misstep for Thailand. Policies like this may discourage large purchases, property investments, and even retirement plans for foreigners who might otherwise bring significant amounts of money into the country. The only way I see this policy working in Thailand’s favor is if it were limited to taxing Thai nationals on any overseas income they repatriate while leaving foreigners out of it. That way, foreigners could continue to spend freely, providing a big boost to the Thai economy.

I’m thinking of heading down to Pattaya for a few days, and while I’m there, I’d love to have some egg noodle soup with red pork and pork dumplings (Ba Mee Kiao Moo Daeng) a few times. I really enjoy it, but I don’t get to eat it as often as I’d like when I’m in Bangkok. For those of you who live in Pattaya and know the area, could you share your top three spots for Ba Mee Kiao Moo Daeng? They don’t have to be full restaurants—street stalls and stalls in food courts are great too. I’ll likely be staying at the north end of Pattaya, so places within walking distance would be ideal. I’d be open to spots as far south as Central Pattaya Road, but I probably won’t be venturing much further south than that. Thanks in advance! If you have any photos of the noodle soups from these places that you've eaten, I’d love to see them. Google Maps links would also be really helpful for finding each location. In Bangkok, I think the best Ba Mee Kiao Moo Daeng is still around Chinatown at night, though I haven’t made it down there in years (and really should!). I’ve also seen some great street noodle spots on Instagram from around different parts of Bangkok, but many of them aren't so central and so I haven’t made the effort to visit them. In Pattaya, I find it easier to get around in general, so I’ll make a point to try a few different spots. If I remember right, there isn’t a stall offering it in the food court at Terminal 21 down there, either. Thanks again!

I ended up taking it for only four days and then stopped taking it. The side effects were making me sick. Also, the issue that was giving me a lot of anxiety is mostly resolved now. So I don't really need to take anything at this point anyway.

Thank you for your clarifications and concern. After I made my OP earlier, I looked at the box and realized it is indeed made in India and is then distributed through a local Thai pharmaceutical company. I already have some experience with antidepressant medication. Around 10 years ago, a Thai doctor put me onto Deanxit for an off label use. I think I took it for around 8 to 10 months and it helped me quite a bit for the needed purpose. In fact, I might have stayed on it a bit longer, but at the time I had eventually read some things about the dangers of that drug and how it wasn't even approved for use in the USA, the UK and most of Europe. It's manufactured by a European company, but yet it's only really used in India, Thailand, and a few other developing countries. From some studies I read, which were conducted in India, it turns out the drug is fairly high risk for seizures as well as some other issues. So that is why it's probably not approved for use in most countries and was the main reason I stopped it abruptly. The doctor who put me on it probably wasn't aware of the dangers, unfortunately. In hindsight, I wish I was given a different drug instead, but we can't change the past. And after I stopped taking it, there were luckily no issues and I also realized that I didn't need it any longer anyway. By comparison, Escitalopram is a much milder drug, and I had no noticeable side effects from using Deanxit for close to a year, so I think I should be fine. My plan is to only use it for a few months at most to help reduce some anxiety, but I'll try it for a month first, and if it's not working well for me, then I'll just stop. It's possible by then I may not even need it any longer. It's not something I'm planning on using long-term, so I'm less concerned about general side effects. Also, I've studied all three of the drugs I mentioned pretty closely and Escitalopram seems to have the least number of side effects overall than the others. So it sounds like it's the most conservative choice as well.

I searched for recent post on this topic to seek answers to my questions below, but I didn't find anything very recent so I decided to post a new topic about it. It seems the 3 main SSRIs available in Thailand are: 1. Escitalopram (Lexapro) 2. Sertraline (Zoloft) 3. Fluoxetine (Prozac) Out of the 3, I've read that Escitalopram is the most well tolerated with the least amount of side effects. It also seems to have the least of any possible side effects on sexual function. I have a few questions on Escitalopram please: 1 - Is it available in Thailand in 20mg tablets so that it can be split in half to save on cost when taking a 10 mg daily dose? Or are there only 10mg tablets available? 2 - There is a locally made generic available for Escitalopram in Thailand under the generic brand name Esidep (from Sun Pharma) which sells at around 650 Baht for 28 tablets of 10mg each. Is this the best low cost option for this medication? 3 - I saw that there is another generic brand in Thailand of this medication called Esopam. I haven't seen it being sold in pharmacies in Thailand though so I'm wondering if the price is roughly the same as Esidep or is it much different? Thank you.

Speaking of potentially haunted sites, The King Power Mahanakhon Building on Naradhiwas Road (adjacent to the Chong Nonsi BTS station) was partially constructed on top of land belonging to the old Hokkien Cemetery which is located directly behind it. Most of the cemetery is gone now, but a tiny piece of that Chinese cemetery is still there in Soi Seuksa Witthaya, which is also known as Silom Soi 9. I believe they spent years relocating the old Chinese graves (prior to construction of that tower), and that some of the graves used to reside directly underneath where parts of that building now sits, but I am surprised that nobody was worried about ghosts when building a skyscraper on top of that old Chinese cemetery land. Given that the current owners of the building are Thai Chinese (King Power Group), you would think that there would be more superstitious issues involved with a property like that.

Bangkok Kush has been discussed a lot in this thread as an online seller with good prices, but I discovered they also have a retail shop run out of a small townhouse on Pracha Uthit Road Soi 54 (the area known as Bang Mot or Thung Khru). There you can see all the weed they have in stock and buy from them directly if you like. The location is about 15 miles outside the city center on the outskirts of Bangkok. They seem to have at least 15 strains of greenhouse grown mid-grade bud on hand to choose from and it's all in the 20-25 Baht per gram price range. Stuff is kept in large white plastic containers. Looks and smells quite fresh. I reckon the THC averages around 13%-17% on most of this mid-grade stuff. Good for people who like to smoke a lot and/or not get too high from such high percentages of THC. Lots of good, clear photos of many of their low cost strains are also shown on their website at http://bkkushhh.com Below is their Google Maps location link which also has some photos of their shop: https://maps.app.goo.gl/cymKpARuZjFvHK9D7 Attached is a photo of the shop interior from Google Maps.

It would be interesting if the government created a temporary ID card for foreigners that would have your photo on it, passport number, and current visa expiration date for any foreigner residing in Thailand on a one-year visa (or longer) who wants one. Not to make the ID card mandatory, but as an option for foreigners who would like to have it and then not have to carry around their passports, or any other form of identification, to prove that they are present in Thailand on a valid visa. The government could charge ฿200-฿300 for the card every year and I think many foreigners would go for it. It would be helpful for everyone, create a few more jobs, and add a boost to Immigration Dept revenues.

I have a friend coming into town. He's gonna stay with me for a few days in Bangkok and then I think he plans to go down to Pattaya. In the past, I've seen many car services advertise around town that will take people in private cars from hotels in Bangkok, or from the airport, directly to Pattaya for somewhere around ฿1000-฿1500. I think most of them already include the cost of the tolls as well. I haven't kept any of the ads or links though that I had seen in the past. Can anyone recommend a reliable car service that would pick somebody up from a condo in Bangkok in a comfortable car and then drive them directly to Pattaya for no more than ฿1500 including tolls? Or would it just be better to call a Bolt car for him? I see you can hire an economy car on Bolt for as little as ฿1075, but not sure if that includes the tolls or not.

Good analysis of how foreigners in Thailand no longer seem exotic to the locals. But that doesn't necessarily change the lifestyle of a foreigner in Thailand. I also don't think that the foreign men living in Thailand will struggle to find a local partner if they want one simply because of dating apps and the digital revolution. Anyway, my questions were more about what draws foreigners to the lifestyle in Thailand rather than how the locals may now feel about foreigners. Also, the friends of mine who finally left, didn't leave for any of those reasons. They mainly missed the natural and clean environments of where they came from. They missed hiking, the seasons, the outdoors, the better air quality, etc and they seemed to have gotten a bit tired of all the adventure when living in a developing country.

When people move overseas to a foreign country, they often say that what makes their new environment so unique and interesting is not the new and different surroundings but the exciting new lifestyle. So, thinking about Thailand and the lifestyle you’ve created for yourself here as a longtime resident, what would you say is so special about your life in Thailand that makes it worth living here versus living somewhere else? Or do you think the lifestyle in Thailand is not so great and that you would actually be much happier and feel more fulfilled living somewhere else? Thirty years ago, I met other foreigners in Thailand who had already been living here for 5-10 years, and at the time, they said they probably would never leave. However, I think sentiments have changed for some people since then, and I haven’t heard anyone say that to me in quite some time. In fact, I know a couple of those who told me that they planned to be lifers, but have since already upped and left. Maybe that’s because Thailand has changed and had a much more positive general feeling about it back then than it does now? Well, I’m not sure. But aside from some people having started a family in Thailand to keep them busy, what do others see as the ideal aspects offered by the lifestyle that are available to foreigners and to be enjoyed in Thailand? Is it perhaps simply the exoticism of living somewhere in Asia off off the beaten path, or is it something much deeper and greater than that? What also comes to mind are the poetic opening words from Michael Caine in the film "The Quiet American":

I often see posts on here from retired expats in Thailand talking about their daily routine and many seem to do very little that involves leaving the house. In addition, many are routine drinkers and smokers, which they also seem somewhat proud of. Some do have some social activities, and also do a bit of exercise, travel, reading, watching movies, etc, but not so much. Complacency, lethargy and spending time on this website seems to be the name of the game for many. Also, very few seem to have any serious hobbies or passion projects that they work on regularly. So, I do wonder, if they were still living in their home countries, would their lifestyles be any more productive? Especially in a Western country where the social and civil society around them might encourage them to be more active in other ways?