GuestHouse

While I pay NI Contributions, even when overseas, I have no real expectation that the UK State Pension will be worth anything by the time I get to claim (Remember this is now moving to age 68).

I honestly believe that the State Pension will be allowed to devalue (by means of below real inflation increases) while means tested add ons to the pension are increased.

This reduces overall costs of pensions to the exchequer, while providing for people who have no savings or wealth of their own.

I certainly do not see an overstreached welfare system continuing to provide welfare to people who may have hundreds of thousands of pounds tied up in property and perhaps private pensions too.

So my plans are to provide for myself, and if I get a state pension on top I'll be very pleased, but I'm not holding my breath for it.

I also fully expect the UK government to move the goal posts on when we can collect our private pensions, the basis of this being that they need to keep those of us who are working at the grind stone. Millions on welfare depend on us. Allowing us to retire early and drop out of contributing to the exchequer makes poor ecconomic sense when you've a welfare industry to support.

Glum views I know, but I can't see good arguments why I'm wrong on this.

UK health care is provided on the basis of 'Residence' but above that on the basis of 'Need'.

If your fiancee has a settlement visa, then she is fully entitled to medical cover. If she has only a visitor visa then she should carry insurance.

I would recommend a UK insurance company over a Thai insurance company, on the basis of ratio between fee paid and cover provided.

However, be assured, that the UK NHS will never deny real medical need, if anyone is in the UK and needs emergency medical treatment it will be provided on the basis of 'Need'.

God Bless the NHS and all who work in the NHS (Excluding the overpaid managers).

Mr Sondhi faces a possible charge of lese majeste

That which is beyond reproach needs no protection against reproach under the law.

This law is only ever used to supress free speach and protect political leaders.

The regulations are currently under review, the suggestion is that pensions will be based on 25 years of full payment and residence in the UK. The reason for the review is because women who chose when they were younger to pay reduced NI Contributions (Married Women's Contributions) are now complaining that they are not getting full pensions.

Meanwhile the outragous denial of pension increases for pensioners living overseas in all but a few countries remains.

You and your wife are treated seperately in terms of determining entitlement to a UK state pension.

The entilement is based upon National Insurance Payments, the rules are pretty complex, but if your wife has never paid UK NI she is not entitled to a pension in her own right.

She would however, be entitled to a widow's pension when you die, but I believe there are age restrictions and also that pension would be fixed at the date your your death with no increases on account of your wife being overseas.

A point to note here.

A lot of Thais who move to the UK with their British Husbands take up work in Thai restaurants and very often forgoe paying NI Contributions, favouring the cash in hand. This is extremely short sighted as it denies them their right to a pensionin later years.

why not train a local or even an expat who really wants to stay in thailand to your job it must be cheaper in the long run with such a huge pay difference

What a great idea - Now the reality.

What happens is, just like your guy on holiday, a number of assigned expats arrive in Thailand with the express instruction of training locals to eventually replace them.

For what ever reason (but almost always the usual reasons) the assigned expat decides he likes it in Thailand and that training a local to replace him is not a good idea. They then set about undermining the local staff as a means of justifying their own assignment in Thailand. ( I have witnessed this many many times).

It is for this reason that most international companies limit assigments to a fixed period.

As for training a farang in Thailand - Training Thais is far more logical.

Firstly training Thais may be part of the company's BOI approval, it may be part of the conditions of the expat assignee's conditions of visa/work permit.

Secondly. The company is certainly paying a premium for expat visas and work permits, so why employ a local foreigner when a Thai can do the job (usually better)

Thirdly. The local Farang is far more likely to set about protecting his possition, rather than getting on with the job.

if you are a professional from you home country and are employed by the embassy from overseas you get a huge pay packet of 200k plus

But yet the equally qualified person who applied for the job inside Thailand while they where on holiday etc get 40k to do the same job

The reason is simple.

The professional is assigned from overseas and has a value to the company, he is probably willing to work anywhere in the world and he may be receiving a ‘soft assignment’ as a reward for having worked in some other less desirable location.

Moreover, he is very likely to up and go if the deal is not right.

Whereas, your guy on holiday is willing to take any work that will extend his time in Thailand – His primary concern is location, and not career of salary.

But don’t feel hard done by. My boss asked me to take a cut in assignment conditions in exchange for extending my time in Thailand.

I called head office and asked to be assigned elsewhere. I’m extremely happy to be elsewhere for more money.

It’s call Market Value and Self Worth.

I find it very unfair that the monthly income should be dependent on whether you have been employed inside or outside Thailand.

Life is unfair.

Why would people lie their behind off in what is, after all, an anonymous poll?

For the same reason they lie the rest of the time.

As for the Bh200K per month, that is a little less than half the full expat deal internationals offer their assigness from overseas.

But I still doubt the survey.. As StoreKeeper says, self reporting is the most unreliable way to perform a survey.

Going by the results of this poll most people are in the 200,000 bht per month bracket so just guesing its what kind of money you are generating out side of land of smiles

As I said above, this is another one of those 'Large Pinch of Salt Polls".

Thailand attracts "Walter Mitties" like flies to a jam pot.

I figure this is another one of those 'Large Pinch of Salt Polls".

Things are improving.

A guy once stepped on Duangchalerm's foot in a BKK Nightclub and wound up getting shot for the indiscretion.

Bangkok University is a Private University - It does not have a good academic reputation and as a general rule qualifications from Private Universities in Thailand are considered second rate.

My employers do not accept graduates from Bangkok University and I know this to be true of many of our Thai client companies.

The calculation of when the exchange rate becomes a problem is simple and based on the Retirement Income Rules:

For an applicant who is over 50 years old, proof of a sum of 800,000 baht in a Thai bank OR an income of not less than 65,000 baht per month must be presented - OR a combination of balance in the bank and a monthly income. Example: 400,000 Baht in the bank and 32,500 Baht coming in every month.

Just work out when the exchange rate makes meeting the requirement impossible.

So in the example given. If you have 400K in a Thai bank and you are bringing in Bht32,500 a month - At today’s rates that is an offshore income of $835 (₤GBP477)

If your Pension/Fixed offshore income is $1000/month (₤575/month) Then if the Bht strengthens beyond 32.5/$ (56.5/₤) you fall below the minumum income requirements.

This is why I make retirement plans based on living in Farangland at Farangland prices – At least that way I figure a strengthening of the Bht lowers my standard of living, it does not place my retirement and residence at risk.

One Rai is 1600 square meters.

40x40 meters (80X20 ) etc

As for the investment potential you must also consider the risks.

What risk is money invested in land in Thailand at? How you hold the land is a huge factor, and don't miss the risks that go with all ownership routes.

The general rule applies.

Do not invest money in Thailand that you cannot afford to loose.

As for returns on investments in the UK, the current best investments are ISA's, they are tax free and have varying levels of security (all more secure than owning land in Thailand).

Don't know where 8% inflation has suddenly come from. The last number was 5.6%, down from the previous month's 5.9%. Indeed, strip out energy, and your core rate is only 2.7%. The energy component will gradually come off the headline number as the fuel hikes roll off the Y/Y number.

The last time Thailand saw 8% inflation was 8/98.

The figure comes from an article in the Financial Times about a month and a half back (they were examining the financial trends in Asia and in particular inflation - The crux of the article was that inflation is bein under reported).

As for the contribution of engery costs - My guess is foreigner expast in Thailand spend a great deal more on energy than Thais do - if so, the contribution of energy costs to inflation (for foreigners) would be higher.

Foreigner spending patterns are different from those of Thais, so again, reporting Thai inflation rates (based on Thai staples) is not necessaraly a useful figure.

The point I am making is that if an expat is living in Thailand on fixed income from abroad and has a low budget, then his/her standard of living is at considerable risk due to Thai inflation.

My personal April's Fools Day project is to get as many girls as possible to email/SMS any overseas boyfriends/sponsors to tell them that they're pregant.

So Chan, if any of my X's call with news of being pregnant, I'll put it down to you.

Inflation is the enemy.

At current rates of inflation an expat on a fixed income from overseas will see their Bht value halve over the next 9 years.

If you are bringing in currency to buy 100,000 a month, that 100K is going to be worth 50K in under ten years time.

If you are at the 100K level you might get by, but a pensioner brining in 50K or less is going to find themselves struggling.

No worries - it will go back up. Normally down in high season and comes back up during low season.

The point is - This is the low season and the Bht is rising - So yes, people on a fixed income from overseas (Pensions/Rental Income from overseas) are seeing a reducition in their Thai incomes.

Add to that Thailand's inflation rate (circa 8%) and if you are living in Thailand on a low imported income or are planning to move to Thailand on a low imported income, the prospects are a rapidly declining standard of living.

All of a sudden (Three years back) dozens of Thais I know started talking about Rubber Trees. I know a few that have gone ahead and planted while others are saving money to do so.

I know one English Guy who has sunk his life's savings into buying land and planting rubber trees in Isaan.

It all has the sound of 'Gold Fever' to me.

I can quite honestly say my wife and I do not argue on cultural/national/religious issues. Rather, these are great excuses to say 'OK we don't understand, now let's discuss'.

We know Thai/Farang couples who have real steamers, wife packing her bags, refusing to speak to each other for days on end. But I think that is the exception rather than the norm.

Is it not true that Thaksin will alow farang to buy property here?

You are talking about the Mr. Thaksin who runs the 'Thai Rak Thai' political party are you?

The one who has used 'Nationalism' to manipulate the Thais in order to gain and maintain political party?

Or is there another Mr. Thaksin running a 'Thai Rak Farang' party, hurtling to political annialation for supporting what Thais regard as 'Selling the Country'.

A word of advice on relaxing foreign ownership laws, quit dreaming, it aint going to happen.

My money is on tightenning of the laws, and possibly moves to tax those non trading front companies that many foreigners are using to get around the law.

'

A very good post on an extremely important issue.

I do know exactly how my children use the internet, because I was warned of the risks by my brother who is an Inf Tech Systems Manager for a group of schools in the UK that share an Intranet.

The first warning he gives is 'If your children have internet access in their bedrooms, you are allowing anyone to have access into your child's bedroom and life'.

All members of our family have taken his warnings and have our computers set up in our living rooms. I look to one side of the TV and I have a direct view of the computer screen.

My children share a laptop and that is loaded with website recording software. I have the passwords to everyone's email/web accounts. And I do monitor what my children's internet usage.

I also joined my children's school parent/teacher group that discussed internet usage and took part in writing the school procedures as well as selecting monitor software for the school.

I've had near raging arguments with other parents regarding this issue. People telling my wife and I we are being intrusive of our children's rights.

Well I have absolutely no problem distinguishing between my children's rights to privacy and their rights to safety. It's an issue we discuss in our household and one that we constantly work at.

Again, thanks for a great heads-up post.

I depends what water you are going to use and of course cost.

The SS tanks come with a 5 year guarantee, of course they may last longer but you have to be careful if you are using water from a well that may contain salt - This will greatly reduce the tank life. I know, SS is supposed to be rust proof... The problem is the grade of SS and the welded joints or SS/Brass/Carbon Steel connections. SS Tanks do suffer corrosion will even low salinity.

There are range of High Density Poly Tanks, that have a 25 year guarantee and are suitable for placing above or below ground (The are not damaged by UV in Sunlight). These are great if you are handling ground water.

I really do not like the concrete tanks, cheap yes, but they soon start leaching water and get moldy.

Oh and check the outlet hole size, If it is too small it will limit your water flow. 1.5" is about the minimum I would use on a house installation.

The Scent of Green Papaya.

Perhaps the difference is a lost card, and one that when reported stolen was clearly being used.