JimGant

Two months ago you could find that option on the Embassy/Consulate websites. And being able to pay for the new passport with a bank draft made sense, since you had to go to the bank anyway to get the 100 baht bank draft for the return postage. Might as well get another bank draft while you're there. But, I can't find that option anymore. Maybe because they had to update their site too often with the new baht equivalent rate.... Anyway, pay.gov is easy to navigate, so no big deal. But you do need a printer, so if all your computing these days is on your mobile, maybe a bigger deal for some.

Why all the whiners and negativity on this forum? If things are so bad, what are you doing here? Oh, yeah, you left your former home because -- you thought you were being mistreated, in some form or fashion. And the grass is always greener. Well, Thailand is a great place to live. The folks are pleasant and fun to be around. The weather, being warm, suits my arthritis. Things are much cheaper than in the States, tho' that wasn't a necessary selling point. And I've everything here that I need -- health care, internet, movie channels, US sports, ad infinitum. Why would I ever want to move back to Wash DC, where you can't walk the streets after dark, and where there's bleak winters and local income taxes. And insurrectionists in the streets. No, I'll take Thailand, hands down. I just can't believe the preponderance of posters on this forum are so "glass three quarters empty" on Thailand...... I hope it's because the positive folks don't want to waste their day pushing aside whiners' complaints. Oh, three hours a year at Imm, plus 5 minutes on the computer every 90 days. Beats getting mugged in DC.

Yeah, speed bumps ahead. But, overall, Thailand looks solid and ready to move forward. Read the following from the World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/thailand/overview Nice, balanced reporting, and just updated last month. Overall, a thumbs up for Thailand. Don't know why folks on this forum can't do more research, instead of relying on your uneducation and gut feelings. Oh, Nigel the newbie -- welcome to the forum. Appreciate your valid insights. Don't let the unwashed here get you down.

Give us your interpretation. I need a good laugh.

I'm sure he meant .5% (one/half percent), since he could just stick it in a plain vanilla Bangkok Bank savings account and get .25% (one/quarter percent). .05% is .0005, or one/twentieth percent. Not realistic, although I guess it wasn't too long ago you had to pay some banks interest to hold your funds, as the rate of return was negative. Those days are gone, with the arrival of inflation.

Yeah, never thought of that. Someone could steal my password and log in to my 90 day account, and do my 90 day report for me. Horrors.

That's way too much, if your financials are in order and the agent is merely a facilitator. In CM, the current agent fee for hand holding, and maybe queue jumping, is 3000 baht agent fee (Best Friends agency). I'd pay more for never having to go to Imm, but that service is not an option, as long as I'm ambulatory.

Of course. The Chinese are businessmen -- the Jews of the Orient. So why would they give money away, when they can get the same results with an interest-bearing loan vs. a giveaway. Certainly, the US Treasury would look a lot sounder with drawers full of IOU's, and not empty drawers once housing giveaways....

Another program launched without adequate adult supervision. It really sounds like the smart thing to do is to do your normal annual extension, and hope that a year later LTR will be tried and true.

Churchill never experienced Trump. When uneducated and/or easily-swayed folks have the vote, well, democracy doesn't work as intended. Thus, the best form of government: A benevolent dictatorship, where the leader is smart, educated, fair-minded, and with high ideals. Hard to find? You bet. But, Lee Kuan Yew comes as close as you can find. Actually, the fair-minded folks dub Singapore as a "managed democracy." (So too Malaysia.) But just try and hold a political rally against the PAP -- you'll be carted away faster than same type rally in Thailand. Malaysia's even harder on such rallies. So, maybe Thailand as a managed democracy is what it's all about here in SE Asia. Now, if Thailand could just find its Lee Kuan Yew..... Oh, and if you ask the Singaporean in the street (unless he has long hair and chews gum) if he's unhappy that he can't demonstrate in the streets against his government? You'll get the same shrug that you'll get in the streets of Beijing -- who needs to demonstrate, as our leaders have made our lives much better over the last few decades. (Probably the same answer in the streets of Hanoi or Saigon.) So, what's so great about a Western style democracy in Asia? Oh, yeah -- the uneducated and/or easily swayed get to vote. And, like with a box of chocolates, well, you know the rest of Forest Gump's retort.

Sir Tim Clark would be a nice choice. His track record reminds me of Juan Trippe......

Are you typing the password in yourself -- or relying on the saved password that most browsers (or at least Firefox) automatically fills in for you? Sure a lot easier with the latter method, as that cryptic password is prone for screwups.

Any idea what "non-Thai social welfare" refers to in para 6.2, above?

Yes, doing a little background research before you spout off erroneous information on a forum -- would be a nice touch. And much more helpful to the poor soul looking for solid advice.

Wrong. The legal document can be the English version, with a copy needed in Thai to process thru the Thai court system. A Google search will make this clear. OP, you're good to go. Don't know what your assets are, but maybe, even if bank accounts, will not have to go thru probate thus no need to get an up-front Thai translation. Even if you had a single Will, written in the UK, that says something like, I leave all my worldwide assets to blah blah -- it, as a foreign Will, would be acceptable in Thailand:

Ah, justice. Nice to have a good news story on this forum.

Of course they are. Why do some Imm offices require copies of your bankbook for the past 12 months? And others require a bank printout of your account's past 12 month history? Both methods for the same reason: To see if you adhered to the Police Order requirement to keep 800k in the account for 3 months after extension renewal; to never have gone below the 400k requirement; and finally to see that you've now had 800k back in the account two months prior to your current renewal application. Sorry if this makes ditching your agent and going straight -- so difficult.

Kinda hard to prove you had 800k in the bank for three months past last year's extension renewal date -- and then never went below 400k for the rest of the year -- IF you used an agent to dodge this requirement. So, I'd say ditching your agent, and going straight -- could prove problematic.

....'cause they don't have secret handshakes and brown paper bag agreements with other Imm offices.

I doubt anyone could have done a better job, given the circumstances, primarily Covid. Easy to say someone could have done a better job -- but talk is cheap. Somkid's resume is fascinating. He was a co-founder, with Thaksin, of TRT -- then used his economic position and smarts to reverse the debacle of the 1998 economic collapse. Then he became part of the junta -- obviously hired for his knowledge and capabilities, and not political affiliation. And this guy is no slouch, having a PhD from the Kellogg School of Management from Northwestern University, Chicago -- a five star pedigree. No, I think someone of his capabilities, including the capability to have fans from the many aspects of Thai politics -- would be a win win for the next Thai government (and nice that he's not a soldier). And having someone with the wisdom of 69 years (which, by the way, ain't old, says this 77 oldster) gives me more confidence than I would have in an idealistic youngster.

Could you just renew your old 40/400 policy to a 3.5M/60K policy, i.e., you didn't need to fill out a new application form, since this really is a new policy vs a renewal?

Sure gives you a leg up those living in Chiang Rai or Udorn. What a pain to have to waste a couple of days to go to that traffic jam..... Eventually, maybe the Imm offices will be read in on the LTR visa issuing process, as they were supposed to have been, according to the original LTR advertisement: And what about replacing your current permission (extension) of stay with a new one-year LTR permission of stay? Is this part of the Visa issuing process at BoI; or can you do it at your local Imm office (doubtful, as they've yet to be read in on LTR visas, at least the podunk Imm offices). Or do you have to exit and re-enter Thailand to get that permission stamp, akin to what you have to do for an Elite visa?

Now what?

Yeah, but it says "it should arrive in seconds." Are they worried about nano second rate changes? Doubtful. So why the warning for an instantaneous transfer -- unless they realize their advertised arrival time may be bogus..... If it does arrive in seconds, and since ACH pulls are batch, sounds like they're giving you a loan for low amounts, like this $1000 transfer; but if you send more than $2600, it will now arrive tomorrow. Send $50000, it will arrive in a week. Thus, yeah, warnings in these scenarios for Bank Debit (ACH) are warranted. [Note: What Wise once called "Bank Debit (ACH)' are now called "Connected bank account (ACH)." Maybe because Wise can return money to your bank account, which would be a push Bank Credit, not a Bank Debit......(?).]

Sounds like Jomtien Imm officers have discretion to issue you an irritant order, if they're not happy with your nose piercing or forehead tattoo, or whatever....