Equatorial

Precisely. With my 90-day Non O, I tried 4 different banks, each came up with different BS requirements and refused to open an account. Finally I got a letter from the IO stating that I needed an account, and I managed to get an account opened at SCB. It took them 4 hours and 45 minutes to open the account. Bureaucracy compounded by attitudes further compounded by incompetence. Kinda typical.

Thanks @atpeace for the helpful suggestions and links. I am shopping for a treadmill as well and this is a great starting point.

I second that (the ease of making much better breakfast at home) and wonder about why people would bother with the crappy 100 Baht food. The one place in Pattaya that used to have really good breakfast was Pig and Whistle on Soi 7. Sadly, that place has been closed for a while now... Regardless, thanks for bringing back memories, @ChuckInBangkok, been to many of those places for a quick drink or a cup of coffee...

https://bigthink.com/the-present/yuri-bezmenov/

I'd like to know as well if 401(k) income counts against the $80k requirement. I think in should, given that most 401(k)'s can be converted into an annuity which definitely would count as passive income.

I was going to speculate that it's a civil rather than criminal offense, but it may actually be a indeed a criminal offense. N.B. the word prosecution. Not worth the risk. The alcoholic beverages and cigarettes exempted from duty are listed as follows: No more than 200 cigarettes or 250g of tobacco or 250g of all types combined No more than 1 litre of alcoholic beverage The excess quantities of cigarettes, tobacco or alcoholic beverages must be dropped in the box provided by Customs, otherwise prosecution will be carried out. Source: https://www.customs.go.th/list_strc_simple_neted.php?ini_content=individual_160503_03_160905_01&lang=en&left_menu=menu_individual_submenu_01_160421_01

Ah, Tapatio sauce...

I applied first week of February this year with the target of starting the SS pension in March. I was notified that the process was finalized by the end of February. My pension started with the March payment on time.

What is the difference between a classifier and a partitive? I always thought of the the Thai classifiers as what you describe as English partitives. Two boxes of cereal. Three loaves of bread. Four flocks of seagulls. Etc. In fact, that parallel helped me learn to use the Thai classifiers...

Hi @Tod Daniels - based on your post I am in a similar stage with Thai language as you were when you wrote this post in 2011. I agree with the quoted sentiment, and I have looked into learning the class and tone rules. However, I found it incredibly tedious and ineffective. I spent hours trying to internalize those rules and I felt I was getting nowhere. The consonant classes alone would probably be manageable, but when you add the tone marks that modify the tones in what appears to be a completely chaotic manner, it seems like an insurmountable task to remember all that! Schoolchildren in Thai schools go through years of reciting the tables with all of the combinations of the tones, so it makes sense that it becomes second nature to them. So, here is my question (to everyone, not just Tod Daniels) - what approach and method do you recommend to master the consonant classes, tones, and tone marks?

A similar philosophy is nicely captured in an outstanding book The Courage to Be Disliked by Ichiro Kishimi. https://www.amazon.com/Courage-Be-Disliked-Phenomenon-Happiness/dp/1501197274

I understand that this is the requirement. I am curious, what are the option in case the balance drops below either the 800k during the 5 months or below 400k during the remaining 7 months. Let's say someone has had several extensions but for the current extension there was a brief (or even not so brief) period of time when the balance dropped. Are there options other than leaving Thailand and starting all over?

And yet, and yet... never happened to you doesn't mean it never happens. TIT.

I doubt that Thailand has any rules against it. However, entering with the Aussie passport she would (most likely) be subject to the rules as a foreigner, e.g. visa (on arrival or otherwise), limited length of stay, etc. The thread below may also be of interest... m

I would never make such an assumption!

It's been my experience that on several occasions, but not always, the Thai immigration officials, when stamping out a Thai passport, asked to see the foreign passport. (I do understand that airline staff may do so as well.)

I think the entire thread rather than a single post has a label "Opinion." I too am curious how those labels are assigned...

First of all, @DrJack54 - many thanks for all your helpful and informative posts, in this thread and many others!!! How about for EOS based on marriage using income method - do the funds need to be show from abroad? Or does that only apply to the EOS based on retirement?

I just want to make sure I have all the details right; EOS based on marriage requires 400k in the Thai bank seasoned for two months, right? I don't believe it requires proof that money were sourced from abroad does it? What are all the cases requiring proof of money sourced from overseas?

Yeah, having world-wide coverage is totally awesome! Btw, I am in the same boat as you. Apart from here, I spend a portion of my time in the U.S. and also in Europe, and it's good to know that I am covered. Even though the premium eats up a substantial portion of my pension, it is well worth it to me!

Unfortunately, BC/BS "plus one" is almost as expensive as "family." The rate really goes down for "self only." Look into it so that you're not surprised when you make the change.

Daughter would create a Google Account, providing her mobile phone during the registration. She would further create a Google Voice number. Finally, she would give you access by providing the login credentials. Then you could log in here and use Google Voice (and all other Google services). No different from someone creating the Google Account in their home country and then using it (and its services) while travelling to a different country. An important thing to point out - there is nothing illegal or even fishy about this. (I haven't read the small print in Google End User Agreement but, unless this is done for a nefarious purpose, there should be no issues.)

AIS offers a similar deal. At 2.5 Baht per minute, why bother with anything else.

If the wife has status in Australia based on her Australian citizenship, which is most likely, exiting Australia with a Thai passport would flag her as being in violation. So it makes sense to get the tix and exit Australia with an Australian passport/name. If DTAC is not required for Thai citizens, then she doesn't need to do it. She's entering Thailand as a Thai citizen, and her Australian status, citizenship, and name are irrelevant. At times, Thai immigration will ask to see the foreign passport. E.g. when existing Thailand with a Thai passport without a foreign visa. I believe the intent is to verify that the traveler can actually enter the destination country and, in my experience, this has never caused any issues.

The page https://www.ais.th/en/consumers/package/international/international-call/00500 shows the rate of 2.5 Baht per minute for calls to the US for AIS Postpaid customers. Has anyone used that service? Does one need to apply before using it?