TallGuyJohninBKK

I'd imagine, that was one of the principal purposes for the vaguely detailed 10,000 baht plan.

The police official who proposed increasing the financials for retirement visas/extensions is a very senior leader in the current Thai police administration, as well as a current candidate for becoming the new national police chief, and former head of Thai Immigration. While others have roles in the ultimate final decision on whether that kind of increase actually occurs, it's blinders thinking to suggest that someone like Gen. Surachate Hakparn publicly proposing such an increase has no significance. "Pol Gen Surachate Hakparn, nicknamed Big Joke, is a Thai police officer and current deputy national police chief of Thailand. He previously served as the chief of Immigration Bureau of Thailand. He had held several posts, including commissioner of the MPB, or Tourist Police Bureau." https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Surachate_Hakparn I never said he could unilaterally impose such an increase solely with his own authority. And as noted for background previously: "As part of the efforts, Pol Gen Surachate promised that he would propose an amendment to the immigration law, especially concerning retirement visa extensions, through the police chief once a new government takes office. ... "First, as an individual of great influence with both the Royal Thai Immigration and Royal Thai Police, when Mr. Hakparn speaks it is best to listen. He is well known for many reforms and changes, many admittedly unpopular to foreigners, when in charge of Thai Immigration." https://thepattayanews.com/2023/08/05/opinion-editorial-no-it-isnt-time-to-worry-about-retirement-visa-changes-yet/ All of the above is why I mentioned it. The specifics of just what he actually may propose to the new government remains to be seen, as does the ultimate fate of his original (very general) public proposal. But with the new government soon to be formed under the new PM and a new national police chief soon to be appointed, I suspect we'll all be finding out in the not too distant future.

Oh yes he did "consider".... Act on that plan, no. "a heated Oval Office meeting Friday in which Trump heard arguments about invoking martial law to stay in office had some Trump officials sounding the alarm to the press. ... Trump dismissed reports of the martial law discussion as ‘fake news’ in a tweet Sunday, but two people familiar with the matter told CNN that the the plan was argued in the Oval Office Friday – although it remains unclear if Trump endorsed the idea." https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/20/media/stelter-trump-martial-law/index.html

Yes, but that only works if you get all that done on the same day you visit Immigration, as the bank book update that Immigration wants to see must be done on the day of your visit to Immigration prior to you submitting your paperwork. And since most Thai bank branches don't open until 8 a.m. or later, that seems like it's going to set back / delay your ability to get an early start with Immigration... especially in a place like Bangkok which has long Immigration queues and time-consuming travel.

And Republicans like Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger: How Brad Raffensperger stood up to Trump Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (R) will testify before the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 riots on Tuesday afternoon in what could be another revelatory hearing on the events leading up to the attack on the U.S. Capitol. Raffensperger, 67, will likely offer insights into how he defied former President Trump’s efforts to pressure him into overturning the 2020 election results in his state. Fulton County in Georgia convened a special grand jury to investigate the pressure campaign, which centers on a January 2021 phone call in which Trump asked Raffensperger to “find” enough votes to reverse President Biden’s victory in the key swing state." https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3530732-how-brad-raffensperger-stood-up-to-trump/

Because Trump failed as he's done with most other things in his life with his attempted insurrection. And because some brave Americans around him, who actually believed in the principles of the U.S. government and Constitution unlike Trump, refused to go along with his machinations. Among those: "Former senior Justice Department officials testified Thursday that they told former President Trump he'd have mass resignations on hand if he installed former assistant attorney general Jeffrey Clark to run the DOJ. Why it matters: Trump had considered naming Clark to replace then-Acting Attorney General Jeff Rosen after Rosen refused to investigate baseless election fraud claims. Clark, an environmental attorney, pushed a plan to overturn the election which former DOJ leaders called "nuts" and a "murder-suicide pact" at the Jan. 6 select committee's fifth hearing." https://www.axios.com/2022/06/23/jeffrey-clark-jan6-hearing-trump In the end, Trump backed down from his plan to hijack the Justice Department in the face of those threats / warnings from its leadership.

You mean, like considering with his advisors as president to declare martial law in the U.S. as a means of preventing opposition to his attempted insurrection against his own/our own country and its lawful process for electing a new president? "a heated Oval Office meeting Friday in which Trump heard arguments about invoking martial law to stay in office had some Trump officials sounding the alarm to the press. Michael Flynn, Trump’s pardoned former national security adviser, discussed the martial law plan on right-wing television network Newsmax last week and was invited to the White House Friday. Trump dismissed reports of the martial law discussion as ‘fake news’ in a tweet Sunday, but two people familiar with the matter told CNN that the the plan was argued in the Oval Office Friday – although it remains unclear if Trump endorsed the idea." https://www.cnn.com/2020/12/20/media/stelter-trump-martial-law/index.html

For me it was a close call... I'm still trying to decide! ????

This one, I believe, happens to be a FAKE one of Trump... Unlike the mug shot photo above.

Let's compare two booking photos here each with maniacal stares, and let folks decide on their own which of the two shown looks crazier.... Option No. 1: Option No. 2: https://pixels.com/featured/charles-manson-mug-shot-1969-vertical-tony-rubino.html

I think it's something of a mixed bag. The actual rules for retirees to stay in Thailand right now are not too difficult from a financial end of things, compared to other countries. However, the price we tend to pay for that is a sometimes mind-numbingly bureaucratic Immigration system that unfortunately also suffers from opacity (the opposite of transparency) to its clients and operational policies that vary and change from place to place and time to time, creating headaches and confusion at times. It will be very interesting to see what becomes -- if anything -- of a top police official's recent public trial balloon proposal to substantially increase the current financial requirements for Thailand's retirement visas/extensions.

My Krungsri MTD account credits interest monthly...which is one feature that makes it handy for Immigration purposes. But my regular BKK Bank savings account, as you mention, credits twice a year...

It's not being ON the BTS that you have to worry about... It's being UNDERNEATH the BTS that might be cause for concern! And hi-so's do get driven underneath. ????

I'd want to go... considering I've never been to Japan before, and it's long been on my bucket list.... And for reasons having nothing to do with any price differences between Patpong and Kabukicho. Plus I wouldn't mind taking a flight along with 30% Japanese women... There are worse fates in life. ????

The Non-O ME visa for marriage is valid for a year....but does require the holder exits the country every 90-days, as you suggested.

Is your account the kind that doesn't credit interest on a monthly basis? The normal interest credit would become a monthly entry and update in your bank book (the kind of transaction that reassures Immigration). On an 800,000+ baht deposit, I certainly hope it's an account that's earning interest!

Safety No. 1 in Thailand... for sure! Or as the saying goes... LOOK OUT below!!!!

On that point: Lock Him Up? A New Poll Has Some Bad News for Trump ... "A new POLITICO Magazine/Ipsos poll provides some bad news for Trump: Even as he remains the clear frontrunner for the Republican nomination, the cascading indictments are likely to take a toll on his general election prospects. The survey results suggest Americans are taking the cases seriously — particularly the Justice Department’s 2020 election case — and that most people are skeptical of Trump’s claim to be the victim of a legally baseless witch hunt or an elaborate, multi-jurisdictional effort to “weaponize” law enforcement authorities against him. ... Fifty-nine percent of respondents in the poll said that the federal trial in Trump’s 2020 election subversion case should take place before the 2024 Republican primaries begin early next year." https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/politics/lock-him-up-a-new-poll-has-some-bad-news-for-trump/ar-AA1fKXl3

Last year, when I was demanded unexpectedly to produce a 12 month statement at BKK CW, the Krungsri branch there also was able to generate one within a half hour or so, I think, for the same 200 baht fee.

My custom, for the more than decade that I've lived here, has been to always get my reentry permit at the same time I do my annual extension at BKK CW. Which I would assume is pretty common. And in almost all prior years, it was the more involved extension part of the process that generally took longer than the simple reentry permit application. So I had no habit or custom to rely on airport exits as my route for doing reentry permits... Plus, my international flights out generally tend to be at or after midnight here local time. And frankly, I've never been sure that the Survarnabhumi Immigration desk for reentry permits would necessarily be staffed at those off hours, and didn't want to risk getting left high and dry, which would mean considerable grief. Also PS - I didn't KNOW it was going to take FIVE HOURS when I sat down to wait at the beginning of the reentry permit process... All I knew was I was given a queue # of 171 at 10:10 am that morning, and they were on #70 for people submitting their applications at that point. As it turned out, I was able to submit my application (the first part of the process) just before the noon lunch break. But then having done that, with things in their processing stage, I didn't get my passport returned and stamped until after 3 pm....

Could be a variety of things... 1. Sometimes, people run into individual IOs or IO offices at particular points in time that are just rogue A-xxxxxs. 2. Sometimes, if the IO has some problem with the way your bank book entries are listed (such as if it appears some entries are missing or have been combined into a recap entry), they'll demand a formal bank statement covering the past year. I had the demand for the formal, annual bank statement happen to me last year when, during the prior 12 months, I had one bank book end upon being filled, and then a new one issued for the remaining part of the year. And Immigration didn't like the way the bank had handled the carry-over entries into the new bank book. And probably some other possible explanations as well.... FWIW, lately, at least with Krungsri Bank and some other Thai banks, customers can request prior 12 month full bank statements for free on their own via either the banks' website or via their mobile apps, which are then sent to you via email.

Wow... a brand new poster so loudly on the Trump train... Obviously, your timing is PERFECT... Just when he's facing multiple criminal cases for multiple different kinds of alleged criminal activity. He's got a presidential candidate resume now like no other in U.S. history.

Regarding my 5-hour wait for a reentry permit at BKK CW yesterday, the waiting area is all indoors with nominal air conditioning. As evidenced by the hours log wait, the queue was moving at glacial pace. So folks waiting could leave and go out to get a drink or snack at the various eateries in the Govt Complex, and come back later without too much fear that their queue number had been passed, at least when they're still far down in the queue. Nonetheless, a 5 hour wait for a stupid thing like a reentry permit isn't going to rank high on my list of fun things to do... BTW, has anyone ever asked... why can't the IO who considers and processes your extension also do the stamp for the reentry permit if one is requested, especially since they already have all the required info and paperwork? Nah, that would make too much common sense and interfere with busy work assignments for Immigration officers.

Trump's gone where no U.S. president has ever gone before: Past presidents, while never indicted, have faced legal woes of their own "If you live in America today, the one historical fact you are most likely to have heard is that former President Donald Trump is the first U.S. president ever to face criminal charges." https://www.npr.org/2023/04/03/1167662256/past-presidents-while-never-indicted-have-faced-legal-woes-of-their-own\ Nixon didn't. Clinton didn't, despite their misdeeds. Neither did any of the prior presidents in the U.S.'s almost 250 year history. It took Trump to become the first, now four times over.

I wonder if there's going to be a new entry for Trump in the Guinness Book of World Records as the "most criminally charged" former U.S. president? Might even be on the comparable list for prosecuted world leaders, except he's probably got a lot of competition there, https://www.axios.com/2022/08/26/countries-where-former-leaders-jailed-charged "The big picture: In reality, leaders who left office since 2000 have been jailed or prosecuted in at least 78 countries — including in democracies like France, Israel and South Korea." "In the vast majority of cases all over the world, the charges former leaders have faced relate to corruption." https://www.axios.com/2022/08/26/countries-where-former-leaders-jailed-charged