thaikahuna

Why do you say you have no USA address? There is an address shown in your passport, and if for some reason that cannot be used, you should have a domicile. Have you tried checking with the relevant authorities in the USA? Have you contacted the U.S. Embassy in Thailand?

Anyone know which is the government hospital for Pattaya and its location. Many thanks.

Well, you voted for them . . . stop complaining or vote in someone who can do the job properly instead of shopping or posing for the cameras.

And they expected prices to stay the same after they begged for a wage increase to 300THB per day? Before it even went into effect street vendors were jacking up prices.

The Thai Coroner was quoted as saying, OOPS, Saved one!

Not surprising since the average Thai seldom goes more than 5Km from their home. Most could not tell you how to find Victory Monument if they had a food stall there.

Hardly worth the effort for the time he's going to do.

The whole problem as I see it is that John Q. Falang comes to Thailand and buys from the first unscrupulous bastard that comes down the pike without doing any research. Then Mr. Falang drops a million on what amounts to little more than a hotel room because that's what passes for a condo in Thailand.

Mr. Falang then drops another million or possibly two to make it homey and suits his lifestyle. Then his little hotel room becomes too crowded for him and needs more room to spread out as it were. Now Mr. Falang wants to move and puts a 3 million price tag on his POS hotel room (condo). It's on the market for 2 years with no interest. WHY? SIMPLE! The owner has a POS he wants 3 million for in a location where a million is over-price. The real estate folks do damn little to move it because it is a POS and also he doesn't have to.

There are too many people out there with more money than brains buying like there is no tomorrow. Traffic sucks, the infrastructure is totally inadequate to support what already exists and still they continue to build like there is no tomorrow. You are looking at potential water shortages (that already exist), blackouts and brown outs, rolling blackouts, worsening traffic (as if that can happen) and why? Because everyone wants to live in the worlds largest whorehouse.

WAKE UP, smell the coffee and realize A)Owners, you may not recover all you invested in your POS hotel room (condo) because you did not research. It is not a great place to buy regardless of what the agents tell you. C)Agents, quit acting like you are the know all, you aren't. Granted you have a big leg up on the rookie buyer but you don't know it all. D) Try doing a bit more for your money and quit thinking you have to drink B200 beer every night.

Thailand is a good place to live but it is not a good place to buy...not anymore.

Gov Maitree wais to United States Ambassador to Thailand Kristie Kenney.

If they met in America, would she hold out her hand to shake his?

Arai wa?

And this is the high point of the news today? lmfao

You're going to get answers from some claiming you can manage on Baht 25,000 per month all the way up to others who think you'll need Baht 100,000. How much does it cost to live in Manchester or in Dallas or Sydney? Many different answers depending on a whole lot of variables.

If you already have "my Thai lady" and a child on the way, you must have some experience with living expenses in Thailand. Most people feel that a lot of the basics have risen quite a lot in the past year or two, especially if your income is coming from outside Thailand, due to the strength of the baht.

Why in particular do you want to stay in Pattaya?

Unless someone was a really high earner and didn't ever want to set foot in the US again, and preferred to gain citizenship in a country which has low taxes, I can't imagine doing it. There are too many benefits to being able to land on US soil at will. It's also a great passport to have.

Would I really want to live in Singapore which is so tiny, and where I feel like a stranger, when the US is so big and varied in choices of living area, costs, and lifestyle? The US is also a cheap place to live. Even downtown NYC is much cheaper than Singapore or London or Sydney or Melbourne or Paris or Geneva or Tokyo or Oslo...

No city in the US is on the list of the ten most expensive cities in the world. Link. People forget that it isn't all about income and capital gains taxes. It's about opportunity and overall costs, too.

That said, if your friend wants to do it, he makes application and settles up with the IRS. That settlement isn't unfair, but they want to collect any taxes due before they'll release citizenship.

That is a huge decision.

Nothing wrong with a Singapore passport. Accepted in as many countries as a US Passport and can land in the US with "visa on arrival" status. And more importantly, no world wide tax to deal with. That is the biggest gripe I have and my friends all have as expats. World wide tax. Get rid of world wide tax and less people would be looking to ditch their citizenship or try to hide money IMO.

British friend of mine married and living in Singapore for many years chose a Singapore passport for his daughter when she was an infant as he saw that as the 'path of least resistance' as she grew up and went to school there. Now she has been offered a place at University in England and he is ruing the day he opted against a UK passport with the rather onerous UK student visa requirements. Having said that, I have no idea if he explored dual-citizenship (and concurrent UK passport) for her. Maybe Singapore doesn't permit that?

What is "world wide tax" btw?

Yeah that is the downfall, Singapore doesn't allow dual citizenship ... so can be hassle for some things. But, in general their passports are as accepted as UK or US ones for visa free travel. Even to the US, just "apply" online (forget what the website is called) like a UK passport holder would do ... and travel. Which is why I wouldn't mind given up my US passport .... since I could still travel to the US relatively easily.

Worldwide tax is the US tax policy that taxes US citizens income whether earned in or out of the US. So even though I work overseas for the past 10 years ... I still have to pay tax on my income over $96,000 (I think that is the latest figure). Which is a bitter pill to swallow for some expats.

Here's an idea, now remember it's just an idea...why don't they try picking up customers and working instead trying to cherry pick everyone? Then they can make their $15 a day...

Surely they have to do something soon.

It is not just the expats, just about all nationalities, which are being hit hard but the businesses that trade with overseas companies could find it getting rough with their customers seeking cheaper suppliers.

Inevitably it will hit the tourist areas with people who come here for a holiday and the ex-pat living off his pensions, finding their currency is no longer enough due to a 10 -25% loss in value in the last 6 months. Yes most expatswill stay and touristswill still come to Thailand but less Baht means less goods being bought.

This is made worse by inflation here which has been quite noticeable over the past year.

Will not hold my breath though, the powers that be in the Thai government will continue to do the same as always, talk but no action.

Thanks Asiaexpat & Lopburi3. . the US traveller already has the triple entry tourist visa from one of the thai consulates in canada. What we're trying to figure out is: if when those 6 months are finished they get another triple entry from the same consulate or a consulate in europe, is that permissible (and more specifically , IMMEDIATELY permissible , like within a week or two; or does THAI immigration frown on it or rather see someone spend 2 months out of the country as someone else posted online) . The real concern is with the Thai Consulate's disclaimer that a tourist visa does not guarantee entry into Thailand and its at the sole discretion of the immigration officer whether a person is admitted. So, the nightname scenario being a person flies to europe/us to get the visa and back a week later and when they get to the airport for no reason (or maybe because its just back to back or something) are told no.

Is it safe to assume that if a person gets a triple entry from one of the thai consulates then theres not going to be any issues for that person when they get to immigration in Thailand. Is this something they state but happens less than 1% of time or you guys know of travellers who've done it within a week or two and had issues. . . .

Someone mentioned online Immigration's concern that people don't mis-use tourist visas for work

and thats why the embassies/consulates closest to Thailand not issuing them freely. Assuming a person isn't using it for that, then, another question is if Immigration had a concern with someone at the airport or said no do they offer the chance to show they're not working/misuing the visa etc.; is their any redress process you're aware of w/ Immigration.

I would also suggest that they go after the Belgian's insurance to get him home as well.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y2iEkw7itkc

When are these coach and minivan companies going to be held to a higher standard? I understand that this is the only transport some people can afford but I will make the same argument I make to a friend of mine about the red buses in BKK. Aren't the poor people entitled to a SAFE and comfortable ride as well? I hope they sue the pants off of them.

Do they have fire fighting equipped helicopters in Thailand? Seems like that would be the ticket.

Even f they do, a close plentiful water supply is not nearby. The pond at the park on Sukhumvit and the Queen Convention Center are inadequate.

RT @191Thailand: Soi Charoensuk is a dead end road. Many narrow alleys in that area. Fire trucks cannot get close to the fire.

Well that's handy.

Let's hope everyone was able to get away in time, and perhaps all future buildings will be built where there is access by fire engines.

Don't hold your breath.....