JimGant

High success rate? This is a wonderful urban myth that is regularly recycled by the foreign press. In over 20 years, I can't remember a single case reported locally where the victim had his penis reattached AND regained full use of it for urination and sex.

Actually, the success rate is fairly high when these dickheads have it reattached to their foreheads.

Aw, shoot, whad kinna english you speakin'?

From the subject title, I was expecing an interesting anal sex story.

Duff? That's what Americans fall flat on.

samran is right and it is spelled out directly in the requirements for an O-A visa on the MFA web site:

QUOTE 

Having the nationality of or the residence in the country where his/her application is submitted. 

The LA Consulate, however, marches to its own drummer -- how dare the MFA dictate to them about allowing greencard holders to soil their doorway.

The following from their website:

The applicant must be presently residing in their home country.  (Note: The Royal Thai Consulate General in Los Angeles will only issue the "O-A" Visa to U.S. citizens.  For nationals from other countries they must apply in their home country.);

Why isn't anyone who's dealt with LA surprised?

"Beautiful, young, sexy caddies are not necessary. They might make us lose our focus," he said

BS! The intriguing thing about golf in Thailand is not just having a caddie, but having a cute, flirtasious one. Besides, it's a nice change-of-pace to lose your focus on the links in this way.

I'm sorry for 'Jumbo.' But after spending hours trapped in an aluminum cacoon to get here, being served by 'Jumbo's' eating mates-in-kind, I'm ecstatic to get a golf round in with something that looks female hauling my gear.

(Obviously I don't fly SIA to get here. Also, the wife's a retired stewardess -- and obviously she's not reading this post )

Okay, suppose we both die in a car crash (not unlikely on Phuket!) - then I guess the State where my assets are gets the property.

No, they dish it out according to their law for people dying intestate (i.e., without a will). If you don't have children, don't care that the nephew you've never met is a turd, or that your sister has been off your mailing list for decades, well, press on. Your assets will filter down per state law to at least one person you don't like.

BUT, not everyone needs a will. That's just a money making machine for the lawyers. (Held in less respect than even politicians where I come from!).

You certainly don't need a lawyer. Plenty of online software is available to write your own will. And most states (maybe all, I don't know) only require two witnesses to your signature. And if you don't even have the time to find two witnesses, write your wills in your own handwriting (holographic wills, not requiring witnesses). Heck, you both could do that in five minutes over a beer. And for the relatives you really hate, make sure you leave them each a penny, as they could sue if totally ignored.

As I mentioned earlier, I went to the added bother of having my software-written will notarized. As retired Air Force, this was entirely free by the JAG. Maybe I wouldn't have done it if I had to pay 5 bucks to a civilian notary. Don't know. But as the originator of this thread said, as have a zillion others, a will is a must. Notarized, or not.

Oh, life insurance isn't held in JTWROS. Without a secondary beneficiary, this too goes into limbo if you both check-out together. If your favorite nephew is now your secondary beneficiary, well, you now know to who's benefit you write your will. And it won't add to a lawyer's ill-gotten gains either.

Certainly worth the time to take.

I hae a piece of paper stating that all my pssessions go to my daughter ( half thai/half american) and appointing my sister as legal guardian until she is of age ( she is 10)

and also a loval farang to take crae of until my sis gets over here to ligudate the home/land/car etc)

Is this acceptable here? Can my wife still make any claim?

Richard,

You can certainly disinherit your wife from receiving any of your possessions. But the key word is 'your,' and since it appears you're still married, the dissolution of property issue may still be hanging. I certainly won't pretend to understand Thai Community Property law, so won't even ponder what you two have that could be dissputed here in Thailand. But certainly hope that the 'home/land/car' possession doesn't have your wife's fingerprints anywhere near it.

Whether two wills are needed (US and Thai) certainly hasn't been decided here on this thread. And free legal advice doesn't pay for new yachts, so we shouldn't hold our breath. If I were you, I juess I would find a good lawyer. And maybe getting divorced could solve this -- and other -- problems?

Thanks for the inputs. Will do my best not to breakdown.

I believe the proper method is to have a will in each jurisdiction that you have assets and that they mention each other

I've only had one will in the US -- but owned property in more than one state. I'm pretty sure I wasn't required to have a will for each state -- but I could be wrong. Property not in trust DOES have to go thru probate in each (state) jurisdiction, however. But, again, I believe only one will required.

Internationally, kinda grey to me. Think what we've done, although maybe not to the strict letter of the law, will hold up. Seems to be supported by astral:

A will, once probated in the UK, is acceptable to the authorities here.

This is also true of US wills.

From what I know in USA if my husband left me money or property and I am not an american citizen I have to pay Inheritance Tax more than americans. Can anyone confirm these,please?

If his portion of your joint estate exceeds, $1.5 million (the estate tax exemption as of 2004), then that excess would have to go into a Qualified Domestic Trust (QDOT) to postpone estate taxes. You'll get all the income (subj to income tax) plus any principal warranted via hardship (medical, etc). Then, when you check out, what's left in the QDOT will be subject to the estate tax. As an alien, the QDOT law was implemented to prevent you from taking the money and running. But you're really not paying anymore "inheritance" tax than a citizen -- the unlimited marital deduction for citizen surviving spouses only postpones, not eliminates, estate taxes. The QDOT does the same, although you are restricted to tapping all the principal. (QDOT applies to both resident and nonresident alien spouses.)

In USA if you have more than 2 million usd the lawyer advice you to set up the trust.

Well, for 2004 and 2005, you actually can avoid estate taxes on up to $3 million, assuming your assets can be neatly divided in two (with $1.5M going to each trust). But even if your joint estate is worth only $1.6M, setting up two revocable bypass trusts could save you $48,000, as that $100K over the $1.5M exemption is taxed at 48%. Or don't die until 2006, when the exemption goes to $2M (subject to November elections ).

70 visits to this post and only seven votes

GH,

Possibly because your questions weren't extensive enough. A key question for most of us reading this forum is: do you have a 'farang' will, a Thai will, or both? The subject has come up before, but I don't remember anything conclusive being determined.

It's not just your money and goods in Thailand (They need to be covered in a Thai will)

IMO, having two wills could be tricky, unless they're identical, i.e., one in 'farang,' one in Thai -- with one or the other being stated upfront as a bona fide copy. Tricky because the last standalone will written trumps any earlier wills under most nations' laws. I guess you could have two 'wills,' with each one reflected as a codicil (additional information) to the other. But this seems to muddy things even further.

In our case, the wife's US will is all-inclusive, with separate paragraphs devoted to property in both the US and Thailand. And per the Thailand property, it is written to address uncertainties, like what happens to the land if I can't inherit immediately (as under current Thai law). The Thai translation is in her handwriting, stating it is a translation of her US will, and that any translation uncertainties will defer to her US will. Such holographic 'wills' don't require witnesses under Thai law, but we did so anyway. Of course we could of had a certified translation done in town, but she elected to do the translation herself.

I'm sure Thai lawyers could make a case against this, but probably because of the commission lost. Even our US wills were done using Quicken Lawyer software, as lawyers really aren't needed for simple situations, like ours. We did have our wills notarized, even though under Virginia law only two witnesses are required. Notarization is probably good insurance, particularly here in Thailand. And having said that, we probably should have her handwritten translation notarized as well.

Would be interested to hear how others have handled this.

Recent car trouble, but fortunately I could limp to my mechanic. But what do you do when you're stuck on the side of the road? My AAA number sure doesn't work here -- and I've never ever seen a tow truck. Who do you call? Are there roadside service/towing plans available?

I live in Chiang Mai, if any responses are pertinent to this area.

Have a ten-year old Honda Civic. Several (but not all) folks that should know have said not to use an anti-rust inhibitor (to include antifreeze) in the radiator, but just use potable water. When I used to live in Hawaii (similar climate), I always used a 50/50 mixture of water and antifreeze, as did most others.

So, my radiator is now filled with water from my filtered tap (bottled mineral water not an option). Is this the way to go? Possibly those who told me to use only water know my car sits for several months at a time when I'm back in the States -- but I'm not 100% sure this was in their equation.

Recommendations?

Oh, remember back in the days when you could work on your car yourself (like, in the 60's). One of the gizmos most of us had (Stateside, anyway) was that backflush hose socket in our heater hose: open your heater, screw in your garden hose, warm up the car, and replace the radiator cap with the vent spout. Well, backflushing is a good idea -- but in Thailand, with no heater hose to attach gizmos to, how do you do this? I mean, the car has to be warm (thermostat open) to be effective -- but warming up the car, then popping the lower hose and jamming a garden hose into it doesn't seem too practical. Any Thai gizmos for this?

Oh, if rust inhibitor is recommended, what are the (best) options?

Thanx.

Joni Mitchell

Is she still recording? Or is this ancient stuff? She's my age, so by all rights, she should be dead.

Darn, they missed my soi!

Whatta win win deal. Any way to steer these delicacy collectors my way next time?

Yes, boy boy they do do.

2. The original of our house registration document (Tabien Baan) which was looked at and returned

You say 'our house.' But is your name on the Tabien Baan? (I thought I had read here where you need to be a permanent resident to be on the TB -- and it's no big deal if you're not(?))

1.Our original wedding certificate, which was looked at and returned.

Is this certificate in Thai? If not, is it in English? If not Thai, did you need an official translation?

Thanx.

and to extend it for another 12 months.

Yeah, but this he now doesn't have to do until Sep 24, 2005 -- just a few weeks shy of his 2-year anniversary of his multiple entry O-A. Probably a quirk, since most O-As seem to be single entry. But what a nice -- and interesting -- quirk.

What kind of prices are we looking at here?

As I previously mentioned several months ago, I have an O-A multiple entry visa issued by an honorary consulate in the US on 14 Oct. 2003

Redwood,

Neat! Assuming you mail in your 90 day reports, nearly two years in Thailand without having to visit Immigration. (Although should you want to leave the country, I guess you'd need to visit for a reentry stamp once your visa expires 14 Oct 04.)

The Royal Thai Embassy Washington web site says that a 90 day O visa is available for long stay upon proof of retirement and funds per:

Sounds like maybe you can get an 'O' if you're over 50, can show you're retired, and meet some level of funding. And maybe no medical or police records needed either(?).

Interesting also that there now doesn't seem to be any geographic restriction on applying at an Honorary Consulate. Before this webpage was updated (Apr 2004), there was some kind of restriction (although I don't think it was always enforced). And if anything's been learned on this forum, it's that Honorary is the way to go -- and LA is NOT!

Lop,

I think the LA webpage "Non Immigrant Visas" is pointing to getting an 'O-A' subcategory visa when all requirements are met. Their old webpage used to delineate by subcategory ('B', 'O', 'F' whatever). Now, they just talk about all the different requirements for getting a Non Immigrant Visa, with no mention at all which subcategory will be stamped in your passport. Maybe this is to prevent confusion for newbies. But their cross reference to "retirement visa" does mention the 'O-A' subcategory (as does a separate, but near-identical cross reference at the top of the Non Imm section to "One-year Non Immigrant Visa.") Confusing, but I think getting a Non Immigrant visa for retirement purposes means an 'O-A' stamped in your passport. To get just an 'O" would really be a screw job. (But one that LA's capable of, unfortunately.)

Interesting that Doc thinks you can get an 'O' visa in Singapore by just stating your intentions to retire in Thailand. Can't do this at Thai Embassy - Wash DC. Probably not London, either. Many Honorary Consulates, yes. Interesting.

Just 'cause it's a boring Sunday, let me throw this out.

The official name for the 'O-A' visa is (or used to be) "O-A (Long Stay)." It didn't seem to be limited to retirement purposes. Now, the following quote, seen at many Thai Embassy/Consulate websites:

The Non-Immigrant Visa is usually issued for a period of up to 90 days unless the Consulate receives special instructions from the Immigration Bureau of Thailand

Does this mean that, if I somehow got permission to stay longer than 90 days, my Non Imm visa would be an O-A type? Does this ring any bells with anyone? If so, who and what give permission for 'long stay,' ie, longer than 90 days?

Pro,

My understanding was that O-A are granted overseas and O is granted in Thailand, at least as far as retirment is concerned

Believe this is so, at least based on the following O-A requirement found googling Thai Embassy - Wash DC:

Having the nationality of or the residence in the country (my emphasis) where his/her application is submitted

But the LA Consulate, always ah's, go even further in their requirement for an O-A:

The applicant must be presently residing in their home country.  (Note: The Royal Thai Consulate General in Los Angeles will only issue the "O-A" Visa to U.S. citizens.  For nationals from other countries they must apply in their home country.);

So, LA says US citizens only - legal aliens need not apply, but must go home to their native land to get their O-A. Or just go around LA, and send your application to the Thai Embassy, who last I heard outranked Consulates!

Now, having said all that, LA also says the following:

The holder of any category of visa to the Kingdom of Thailand may apply in Thailand to change to another visa category when you are in Thailand, if you are qualified for that type of visa.  The applicant can apply for changing a visa category at the Immigration Bureau Office in Thailand.

We know this is true when it comes to changing a tourist visa to a Non Immigrant 'O' visa for the purposes of retirement. Does this mean, then, that one can change a tourist visa to Non Immigrant 'O-A' if they meet all the requirements? Probably not, since to be "qualified" you have to apply abroad, at least strictly speaking. Which doesn't mean a whole lot when it comes to Immigration ad hocs.

Lop,

It appears the LA Consulate is just cross referencing the 'O' to the 'O-A' visa when it says, "see also "Retirement Visas." In any event, it all comes down to the same requirements, namely: proof of required finances in US bank (or pension proof), health certificate, police certificate, notarizations, etc. If you're going to go this goat rope in LA, best end up with the O-A, and not just an 'O,' which would require you to go thru most of the same wickets again in Thailand.

even if he has a problem getting an O visa he could get a tourist type which could then be converted.

As you say, if you don't want to get an O-A abroad, going the tourist visa, to Non Imm O, to 'extension of stay based on retirement' is the probable avenue to pursue. This is fairly recent -- and appears to be the 'official' way to get a 'long stay based on retirement' if you don't want the hassle of the O-A.

There are still ways to get a Non Imm O abroad as the first step towards retirement. And this seems to be via Honorary Consulates -- and this is what my friends have done after getting put-off by the LA Consulate. I was just curious, based on astral's observation, whether Singapore is now granting O visas based on retirement desires -- and just what requirements must be shown to get such a visa. If, like LA, the requirements duplicate getting an O-A, why would you not just get the O-A instead of a plain 'O?'

You can certainly get the Non Imm O in Singapore (Single entry) based on your wish to retire

Astral,

Is this just a quirk of Thai Embassy Singapore? I've never seen anything officially published that allows "retirement" as a reason for obtaining a Non Imm O. And I know some have tried (like at the LA Consulate) and have been denied, thus forcing either the O-A application route, or going to Thailand on a tourist visa, then getting the Non Imm O.

Anyway, just wondered if you've seen something official on this -- or Singapore just has a less restrictive policy, like several honorary consulates do?

Thanks, P1P, for the explanation. Wasn't exactly sure what bridge CTG was talking about. Don't do much night crawling, but do eat lunch at Riverside, and shop at Rimping. Didn't realize the Rimping area had Thai entertainment tho'. Guess I should get out more at night.

CTG,

Pantip Plaza have opened a branch which is filling up with stores . Located at the east end of the Night Bazaar on Chang Klan Road.

This is from your posting on Sept 6. I thought maybe they'd moved the Night Bazaar to the Mae Ping Hotel parking lot after I finally found the place south on Chang Klan Road. Very impressive, Panthip.

Now, you say there's great entertainment west of Doi Suthep? Or was that a new computer store?