JimGant

How could America be so stupid for so many years? We've got a lot of problems 967bn would help solve. Just read somewhere that Europe is really upset that the future means they'll have to now sacrifice social programs for defense. Yeah, social programs subsidized for decades by the US taxpayer. Hey, maybe this Trump guy is the real deal....

Yeah, why not let the war, with all its death and destruction, go on for another 5 years? Or, why not do something to stop further destruction of Ukraine, and death on both sides? That this may mean Russia gets to keep some to the Russian-speaking territory they've already conquered -- is maybe a 'good deal,' if it means peace -- especially if the folks in those territories have more affiliation towards Russia than Ukraine..... And, yes, part of any reasonable deal means Europe will have to provide peace keepers in Ukraine. But, not the US. Here is where Trump gets my nod -- pulling back the US from NATO, where we're only a trip wire, at the cost of 967 billion dollars per year. And, yes, finally making the EU pay for their own defense, including taking care of the Ukrainian problem. Trump may be a moron. But he's a cagey moron. A true bull in a china shop, I'm loving all the broken china -- that needed breaking. He's certainly making some moves that appear questionable. But I'll sit back and enjoy the dismantling of many of the progressives' stupid rulings under Biden: no more hairy transgenders on a girls volleyball team; no more requirement to buy an EV; and a results-oriented military, no longer hampered by touchy-feely DEI mandates. Yeah, he takes liberties with the truth. Witness his recent Congressional speech. But the bigger embarrassment during that speech were the Democrats. Actually, it was a pretty good speech -- from the patriotic angle. Just hope 4 years from now we can be thankful a cagey moron was elected. Looking good now, from how I'm viewing it. Just wish my stock portfolio would settle down.....

Yeah, me too. This for a LTR-WP. I do recall seeing a 2 year requirement for some other form(s) of the LTR visa.

I really don't care if the EU has to teach their students the Cyrillic alphabet. Just glad the US finally has a leader -- as weird as he is -- who is finally forcing the Europeans to provide for their own defense, and not mooch off of the Americans. Those annual 967 billion dollars we waste on NATO certainly will go a long way to finally helping America -- and not the "old world," that my ancestors turned their backs on several centuries ago, for good reason. And, sadly, I guess, we'll never see final repayment on the Marshall Plan trillions we poured into Europe -- maybe we should have been more specific about those monies being a loan, not a grant... But, that's ancient, albeit galling, history -- as the books have never re-balanced. As an American, I'm not really happy about being taken as a sucker for these many years. Now it's kinda fun watching Orange Hair, playing bull in the china shop, finally breaking all that china that needed breaking. So solly, Europe. Anyway, good luck Ukraine. Europe now has your back. Not that they're prepared to do what's necessary.

Yep, it's a disaster. But I can still scratch my head when I see someone who knows absolutely that he owes no taxes -- but opts to go to TRD rather than the golf course. Owing no taxes means he has nothing to worry about in terms of fines, interest, or jail. Exactly what hand holding is he expecting from TRD? Heck, I wouldn't even file, let alone bother TRD, if my assessable income exceeded one of those arbitrary thresholds of 60/120/220. As Ben Hart implied in one of his rants: those thresholds aren't even codified, so why worry about them. Yes, some folks need TRD assistance to get their 15% withholdings back. Those arent' the folks whose motives I'm curious about.

Which of these 180 degree diametrically opposed statements is the real truth?

If you knew you didn't have to file a tax return -- or didn't need a TIN -- why in the world did you waste your time at Jomtiem RD? We're hearing more and more of this on this forum, and I can't for the life of me figure out why people are wasting their time.... Is it because of the Mike Lister syndrome, from his reports in the early tax threads, where he recommended you take all your paperwork regarding your non assessable income, sit down with the nice TRD lady, and receive assurance you don't owe taxes, and you don't need to file a tax return? Anyway, don't mean to pick on you -- you're just one of many reporting on this forum about wasting time going to TRD, trying to get a TIN, and being thrown out on your ear 'cause you have no, or not enough, assessable income to require paying taxes. But I am curious why so many seem to be doing this. Have recommendations on this forum -- by a few prime suspects -- scared you into wasting a day at TRD?

Why would you even waste your time going to TRD? You had NO assessable income -- and even if you did, if it was below the arbitrary 60/120/220 thresholds, you'd have no reason to file a return, let alone chat, and confuse, a bunch of clueless TRD clerks. I think a lot of this began a few years back, when Mike Lister, and his alter ego, Chiang Mai, bragged about showing up at TRD and presenting all their numbers of NON ASSESSABLE income -- prancing about as if TRD even cared about these presentations. Fortunately, these two (one?) clowns have evaporated from this forum. Jeez, why would you worry about having proof that you owed no taxes and thus needed proof to that effect? You think the future here in Thailand is that TRD will need to chat with every farang about his taxes, and then issue to 90% of those a piece of paper saying they owed no taxes? Get real -- TRD isn't going to ramp-up to support such stupidity. But, if this worry -- brought about by Mike Lister/Chiang Mai bothers you -- wear a wire recorder on next year's ridiculous visit to TRD.

Gross. That was a question many of us had early on in this game, and they came back very emphatically saying "gross."

Then, let's get the hell out of NATO -- and save nearly a trillion dollars annually. No need for DOGE trump change -- just pack up and leave European defense to the Europeans -- NATO certainly doesn't provide any defense to the US.

I always had mixed feeling about the obvious lesbians I encountered in the military. They, with their androgynous features, short hair, gruff demeanor -- were a real detriment to the military image. And "don't ask, don't tell" was a joke regarding them -- you certainly didn't have to ask. But, hey, maybe as desert fighters they might excel -- at least during certain times during the month, when they retain water.

Or, it's about personal experience. Living in Wash DC for many years, I learned what areas of town I should not walk in at night. Or, even in daylight, when to cross the street to avoid a group of hip hop Black teenagers.

Right. World class architectural structures. Unmatched symphonic orchestras. World renown scientific discoveries. Literature masterpieces. On and on. But, the white man kept them down, and thus unable to develop their fantastic natural ability to contribute to civilization. So sad. But at least the white man prevented them from eating each other.

That's the finest advice I've ever heard iterated on this forum.

The rules do say that, if you can get a tax refund from the foreign govt, you're not eligible for a tax credit on your US tax return. But to get a Thai tax refund, you need to have a TIN. And we've seen enough examples on this forum that getting a TIN can be difficult. So if there's a chance you'll only be able to get a TIN by paying ExpatTax 7500bt -- which would be three times my Thai tax and thus not a realistic option -- I'd say you'd be on solid ground with the IRS in saying, "there wasn't a reasonable way to get a tax refund." Sure, you could waste a day and an inch of shoe leather finally finding the TRD office that would issue you a TIN. But I wouldn't call that "reasonable."