mgsrus

It appears to be common practise, in my experience to date, that items bought within the region are always marked as 'gifts' on the customs declaration. I am looking to buy some LED light bulbs from Hong Kong, as they are rare as hens teeth here and priced accordingly; the Thais are still on the transition to CFL's as can be seen by the mind-boggling selection in your local Homepro et al. Is this 'gifts' declaration an informally accepted practise or is it possible/likely I could get stung with some ludicrous import duty? The duty can be bad enough but then the tax on the duty and the tax on the tax + duty would soon wipe out any savings. Thanks

I am not aware of any visa run services from Chiang Mai. Most reports are from people that have taken a bus via Udon.

In KL you will only get a single entry tourist visa.

Edit: You can find more info here about visa runs to Vientiane. Check the last few pages of this 49 page topic.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/Vientiane-La...sa-t158561.html

Thanks for that ubonjoe -- Mai Sai has lately been the preferred destination for visa runs from CM, with many companies running services, but with the new restrictions limiting many to only a 15-day visa I would have thought that Vientiane, especially with it's free visa offerings from time to time, would have been attractive but it doesn't appear that anyone offers a service from here to there now.

Anyone know of a reputable, and of course still in business, visa run service operating out of CM and going to Vientiane? I need to get a double entry '60 day' tourist visa before the 17th and understand that's the best place to go.

Alternative question: What's the best currently I could get at the KL embassy? A flight to KL appears to be reasonably priced whereas getting from CM to either Udon Thani or Vientiane seems to be only available via Bangkok these days.

Thanks

In Vientiane they have a place to tic - most forms just have a place to tic the type of visa and you enter 2x there (or multi if for multi non immigrant visa). Also good to say two entry when you hand it over and they will double check so no mistake is made.

Thanks for your time -- appreciate it

A two entry visa would cover 120 days with one exit/return or 180 days if you also extend each entry for 30 days at immigration for 1,900 baht.

You do have to make your second entry during the 90 days that the visa is valid for use so be aware of that if you extend.

Thanks lopburi3 --- if I go to Viang Chan with a 'visa run' company they will know the form but if we travel independently is there any special procedure to getting the two entry as against the standard tourist visa? Just ask for it?

I can do the 60/90 day run to get the full period via Mai Sai?

Vientienne will issue a Double Entry Tourist Visa free of charge. This would give almost 6 months with extensions and a border run in the middle.

You will not be able to extend your current permission to stay. You need to get a Visa.

Also exit/enter by land without a Visa will only give 15 days.

Thanks for that Lite Beer

Just to be sure I understand: my current one year visa is RIP but if I go to Vientienne before the 17th Sept they will issue me with a "Double Entry Tourist Visa free of charge". I can then put off my return to the UK for a new one year visa for up to 60 days. Right?

I have just had confirmation at my annual medical that I have a partially collapsed lung problem; this makes me even more wary about contracting the H1N1 virus myself in addition to passing it on the my pregnant fiancée. My non-O one year multi visa expired in July and I am currently on a 90 day which commenced June 20th and expires Sept 17th. I have no desire to expose myself to two busy airports in Bangkok and Heathrow plus 14 hours confined with maybe 300 others and a recirculating air con system. What are my chances or getting an extension for maybe 60 days until after the new vaccine becomes available -- predicted as October/November? In my circumstances can I get two contiguous 30 day tourist visas via Mai Sai or maybe one 60 day visa via Ventiane?

Any knowledgeable advice would be so much appreciated

As the GBP rate on the rise? thread has followed the usual pattern of disappearing up its own pipeline, I will [naively?] post my related question as a new thread. Apologies to all if it goes the same way!

Most of us who are based in GBP, don't understand how forex works and why it performs the way it does ---- likewise I believe many who think they do ---- all we are concerned about is the number of Baht that end up in our pocket when we need to exchange our hard-earned [for me anyway] spondulies into this walk-on-water currency that enables us to build our house, give the missus her 'salary', buy beer etc etc

The onshore rate for GBP/Baht [amonst others no doubt] still varies significantly to the offshore rate -- this morning SCB opened with 54.155 and EX.com gave the rate at 54.6352. They both jump around more than Zebedee and that was the XE rate 2mins before I checked SCB, 2 mins after XE was lower at 54.1314 -- which confirms convergence at least -- but why the difference? There was a lot of chat last year about the rates being allowed to converge under 'market forces', which they did many times, and thereon being locked into one rate -- was I dreaming? Did 'somebody' change their mind? Did the financial crisis put paid to that, if so why?

My daughter arranged for a transfer of £5K into my foreign currency account last week --- it never arrived. She just checked with her bank in the UK and they said it was blocked by SCB, reason given "The Baht is too low" !!!!!!!!

Any similar experiences or helpful comments?

Only one helpful comment: don't let your daughter do your money transactions. The excuse that the baht is too low is simply BS and you can transfer such an ammount anytime. I deal as well with SCB and what you describe is impossible/unthinkable.

i second that!

Thanks for your input guys -- you echo my opinion in general.

Just wanted to get a consensus before taking it up with SCB on Monday.

hello guys

we are a new import & export business,we got a message from africa for a big order of organic compound.

we have send them all the documents like invoice etc.,but now they ask us to visit their country (africa) to sigh a registration form and the cost are for us (8.350 USD administration costs) but they can not garantee that we will get this contract because their office gonna choose "who will win the contract"????,because there are more foreigh suppliers and they will choose one by end of the month.

so if we don't get the contract we will simply loose a lot of money + costs for the flight etc ?

can someone tell me if this is the normal procedure because it all looks very strange to me and very illogical.

thanks in advance

luc

Africans, and in particular Nigerians, are up to every scam in the books and this looks so typically like one to me --- especially at this time when they know that many are desperate to get whatever few export contracts there may be.

My daughter arranged for a transfer of £5K into my foreign currency account last week --- it never arrived. She just checked with her bank in the UK and they said it was blocked by SCB, reason given "The Baht is too low" !!!!!!!!

Any similar experiences or helpful comments?

Anyone had any reasonably recent experience of getting a dental implant in Chiang Mai? As with most areas in Thailand there are loads of dentists to choose from but personal recommendation is usally the best way to go. Just had a filling done by a guy near the moat and it's okay but he seems a bit 'old school' [including his equipment!] which concerns me in getting him to do an implant -- as did his quote at 70,000Baht as that seems to me a Bangkok or farang [or both] price. It's a molar tooth by the way.

Any recommendations?

It's already started out here in the outskirts of CM. Kids mostly wasting precious water. Makes me wonder how the mooban water system will handle the increased demand with all the klongs dried up??

No water for washing....mai phen rai!!

Worried about a lack of water for normal living? How do you think they filled up the moat? By far the highest since I arrived in November; can only be from the reservoirs! Maybe you need to get used to being dirty and stir-frying 'till the rainy season arrives!

You can't eat your house. Can you? So it's only common sense not to be taken account of when it comes to the retirement extension.

Hopefull that's more like uncommon sense!

It's common sense that a farang who is paying rent instead of 'owning' a house has that much less to live on.

Hi Cosmic surfer -- if with the frustrations of this meandering post you are likely even to see my belated response.

You have been here 6 years but are still frustrated by Thai ways -- I do not propose myself as your therapist but why is this?

I arrived from England some 5 months ago and still have much to learn; especially the language! I empathise with your frustration but is this not simply the price we pay for being somewhere we choose to be other than our place of birth?

Yesterday I applied for a driving licence; I had all the required documents in duplicate, even those that are not required on the handout they give you [in English mercifully] I even got the 'health check' certificate which required me to visit a 'shop with nothing to sell' and no doctor that I could see to pay 30 baht for a stamped form. Even so it still 'wasted' 2 hours of my time while I went through meaningless layers of bureaucracy [or jobs for the boys/girls as it used to be in the British civil service] and the odd critical look as I couldn't speak Thai until they gave me my licences with a pleasant smile.

Happy to pay the 'price' -- see my other post soliciting opinion on why property ownership does not contribute to your proof of solvency to see that I am on your side; just intent on keeping stress in the lives of others and not mine.

Good luck and best regards

Possibly a subject that has been aired before but I haven't seen the thread.

Just a daydream but one about which I would like to solicit the opinion of the positive contributors to this forum; plus others whose opinion is not simply dismissive or abusive.

We all know that the requirement of 800K baht, or the equivalent in pension funds or other proven income, is far in excess of what the average Thai family lives [even thrives] upon. That's fair enough; as we are guests and being farangs we must dance to the rhythm of a different drumbeat. However, a farang who is serious about choosing to live 'long-term' in the LOS has a different agenda to those who are treating this as a sojourn for escapism, gap year, mid life crisis or lower-self reasons. If we create a solid base here by way of buying a condo or 'leasing' land and building a house in order to establish a home for our Thai partner and family, and probably their dependants, why should this investment not be taken account of when justifying the continuance of your 'retirement' visa; or whatever alternative has worked for you? Of course I don't expect it to happen TIT :D but if we discuss such matters just maybe some representation can be made to someone in the 'new' government who actually wants to move forward; apologies for that being far more than a daydream.

Sensible opinions welcomed as I haven't been here that long and am happy to learn from those who have acrued wisdom and knowledge.

Do the funds have to be in Baht or will a foreign Currency Savings Account do?

Those that should know don't know and those who think they know don't appear to either -- but I still thank them for the pieces of the puzzle they gave me.

I have recently spent a good deal of time obtaining an import permit for my dog and here follows the procedure that worked for me -- should be the same or similar for other pets -- hope it saves others from the same frustrations.

Go to the following page of the Department of Livestock Development website http://www.dld.go.th/dcontrol/move/imex_e.html#L1 under the section headed Importation of Live Animals go to the link (Form No 1/1) and download the form. The format in which the form was composed results in it looking a bit messy in many web browsers, complete it as best you can.

I was not confident that it would be correct as I do not read Thai and the English translation struggles a bit in places so I repeated all the details of the animal, where it was coming from/going to and why in plain English in the email just to be sure; you'll see what I mean when you see the form. You must also attach a photocopy of your passport and visa.

Send the email to:

I found that I had to send the email a second time as the first one came back as undeliverable; it is the correct address so keep sending until it sticks. If you don't get a reply after a few days it's quite possible that your email ended up in their SPAM folder and, as they get a lot of spam, it could stay there for a while/indefinetly! So it's best to call them on the number above, they speak English and a polite and friendly request for help should get it found and processed -- allow a week overall and you should be OK. The permit when issued is good for 45 days and you will most likely need it to book your pet on the flight; Thai Air insisted on seeing a copy. You will also need an Export Health Certificate which is available from your local DEFRA office. They need the exact date of departure from the UK which you probably won't have as you need the import permit before you can book the flight [!!] however, submit the form to get it into the system and add a note stating that you will call in with the date when available; if you submit at the same time you apply for the import permit it will hopefully all tie up. Ten days before your departure they will send the certificate to your nominated vet, they need to check the animal within 72hrs of departure and will then issue the certificate to you. This assumes you have already found out about the rabies shots/passport/leptospirosis jabs etc etc.

Now you are ready for the painful part!!!

In my experience all airlines that take pets from the UK [not all will] have a strict 32Kg limit [all up including IATA approved carrier and bedding etc] for checking into Excess Baggage >>> over that and the pet must go as cargo: the only significant difference being that you have to get it to the cargo depot 4hrs before the flight leaves. Be prepared for the cost as it's dearer than taking a number of children with you! With Thai Air it's £34 per Kg actual weight as excess baggage [as at Oct 07], the per Kg by cargo is much less BUT they use a volumetric weight calculation which can mean the cost is very similar to the Excess Baggage charge. I booked Thai Air as they appear to be good with pets and fly direct into Thailand, I didn't fancy the idea of my dog being left on the tarmac in the hot Sun somewhere like Dubai for several hours waiting for a delayed connecting flight.

The Thais think we are crazy for paying so much to bring a pet over when there are so many homeless strays available there - maybe we are!

Check out the second to last post on this thread Importing a pet into Thailand

Thanks sbk - very helpful

I have read the good, the bad and the ugly about bringing pets to Thailand -- or indeed taking them anywhere longhaul -- but have decided nonetheless to bring my dog to Chiang Mai with me next month, as this will be [political situation allowing!] a long visit. I have got all the rabies shots and passport stuff done and will be completing the forms and notifications nearer the time.

[Question] I am looking at coming Thai Air as they go door to door and appear to be good with animals -- anyone know different or can confirm? As we will be 'in transit' through BKK my port of entry will be CNX and I would hope that would be the same for the dog. As you can't assume anything in Thailand, anyone know for sure or can point me to someone who would? Anything else I should be aware of?

"If you try you may succeed but if you just sit at home and think about it, you won't"

Hi Again

Dont understand it, i have no problem to get in.

http://www.thaiclassiccar.com/index2.html

http://www.thaiclassiccar.com/

Thanks for your info HDRIDER --- links work now, must have been a glich on their site. All the best

just buy one in thailand, and restored your self, dont thinking about import !!!

(advice from former mg-b owner)

Thanks - good to know there are some there and if I simply wanted an MGB that would be the sensible choice.

There are very good reasons why I want to bring my own - anyway, life's too short to be sensible.

So what are you going to do with them when restored ??

Wont be able to road register or legally drive them.

Good point - that's the next problem

What's the situation regarding cars on foreign plates in Thailand?

Maybe sell them to the Japanese

There's a lot about living in Thailand I am looking 4wd to but no doubt a lot that will frustrate the hel_l out of me.

Hi - moving over there soon and trying to get some facts on that complex subject of bringing in cars or car parts.

I had an MG restoration business in the UK for many years and still play about with them now that I am 'retired'. I would like to carry on my hobby over there but everything I read suggests that there is no way of importing legally without paying a fortune in tax. As I wish to remain a free man it has to be legal but anyone know of any actual successes in bringing in 'work in progress' classic cars? The tax reduction with age listing on the customs website stop at 10 years old and mine are over 30 years; they are also completely unroadworthy and I assume [?] that the tax shown is for roadworthy cars.

Appreciate any advice or referrals