unbiasbob

Here we go again these laws were know last year and as 40.000 baht a month would not give you much of life in Good old England you can live a good life here it is apity they do not have laws like this in england then maybe all the deadbeats and rubbish would not get in and live of the british taxpayer at least we all know the ruleshere like it or not and a good bit of advice I recieved was to get a retirement visa so you are not depended on your wife as we all know there are pently of of women out here who shall we say mai poot jing speaking from experince so she is history can still stay here in my own right Hope not to upset people but a farang married here has in my humble opinion more to worry from their wifes than the Thai immigration

Phil

Amen dude. there is a facsination with marriage to thais here on the board. face it there are plenty of us who "just say no"

I've got to tell you that I used to drink 6 beers a day in my home country and now drink zero beers per day in thailand. Why? The taste of beer in this country is nasty in my opinion. I won't drink a thai brewed beer. This country needs to get with the program and allow imports to be sold at a reasonable price. 180 baht for a Guiness and 110 for a Bud does not cut it. Go to most any country and get a beer variety. Go to thailand and get same old 10 thai brands. Scuse me I gotta get sick now

Some of the banks just don't want farlong accounts because of the extra paperwork the government imposes on such accounts.

Kasikorn and Bangkok Banks are two that don't seem to mind and the essential ingredient is somekind of a permanent address.  They readily accept the accounts.

Siam Commercial Bank too

Don't bother with Siam Bank. They refused to open account for me w/o working papers. Don't waste your time with them

hey pal, not everyone having a problem is sloppy and rude. that is a ludicrous thing to assume

Paradise in Phuket? Let's not lose ourselves here. Denmark might be the pits but that does not make Phuket paradise

I refuse to carry it over some hype posted on this board. The chances of getting hit are minimal. gimme a break

well it would appear that BKK Bank is the exception. Seems like every other bank throws you and your cash out before you can sit down at a desk. I would like to point out something here as a response to many posts i have read on the matter. It is about being polite in Thailand and that persons who run into problems must not be polite or are back packer scum. I'm referring to immigration mainly. I feel that those people do get harrassed and rightfully so. However there are those of us who are nice and clean cut as can be and are running into all kinds of hassles trying to remain here on tourist visas. I'll see what happens in 10 days

interesting toufon. you got your double tourist but something is telling you that the party is getting close to the end. I will report here after my penang visit in 10 days. thanks

Hey Lop, how exactly do you know this? I and no doubt Robert have attempted to do so and have been turned away. So if you opened your acct 6 or more months ago, you do not know

Robert, thank you. I finally have someone to back me up on the "cannot open bank account w/o work permit" deal. I ran in to the same problem (catch 22) and after declaring it on this and other sites, it was shot down by many stating that it was not necessary to have the permit in order to open the bank acct. It is just one more nightmare about trying to get a legit long term visa and this nightmare is huge. It is truly amazing how money in a thai bank is required prior to getting visa when you cannot open an acct. No doubt that some time back (not long ago), one could open an acct w/o getting turned away for not having a work permit. Now one gets tossed w/o the precious document that cannot be obtained w/o the non imm b visa. I give up. It aint worth the hassle

Dr, this is what everyone says. As I said, they are in DENIAL. This is happening NOW! These people are living in the past and have no present day experience. I don't care what people envision. This is what is happening. I can see this first hand. You wouldnt know as you are not in the situation. I am. I know. I see the crap unfolding. So tell all to deal with it as I have to. All farangs living on tourist visas will be told to leave the country unless they get a 1 yr non imm visa. I can assure you. A mass exodus will be happening soon enough. All of you so lucky to fall into a visa category will be left here amongst yourselves, thais and normal tourists. The rest of us are forced to leave for 6 months

You can't live in Thailand without 3 million baht deposited in a govt bank (tied up for 3 years) if you don't run out and marry a Thai or work here if you are under 50. I've got the 3 million but it is not worth uprooting and sticking over here. It is my investment capital for non thai assets. Thailand does not allow for persons in my situation to reside here.

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Sorry folks but this will not only be a Mae Sai thing. I have heard and seen for myself that immigration is clamping down on people living in Thailand for extended periods on tourist visas. I was told as was another farang that we need to get proper visas. This was at PP thai embassy. The word is that 6 consec. months will be max. I am preparing to depart Thailand when the ultimatum comes. There are no non imm visas that fit my situation being unmarried. under 50 and not working. They don't want me here even though I have a lot more cash than the retirement requirements. It's not worth it anymore. I'm tired of the aggravation. I'll find another country. What they are doing when you get a tourist visa (60 days) is running your passport thru computer and printing out your exits and entries. If you have been living in thailand making tourist visa runs, you are told to get proper visa. If you do not, you will be warned and told you cannot do this. So for so many farangs who have been doing this and are in denial that this is changing, they will find out soon enough as I have. The visa run party is over REGARDLESS of border crossing!!! It sucks but has to be dealt with. I'm out of here after I get screwed around for the final time in Penang in 2 weeks. I will report what takes place and I know it won't be good. I'm glad I did not sever ties with my home country. ###### I've only lived in thailand a year and a half.

You are pretty cheap I'd say. 1900 baht for a year and 200k in a bank? that's nothing. gimme a break

thanks for the responses of the young and unmarried. in reading this board you'd think everyone needs to be married to a Thai. What about those of us that just say no?

I'm wondering about all you guys who use these Penang visa services. Do you have to give them all of your financial documentatiion as well as cash and passport?

I have overstayed 5 months and planning to go home to Finland next week.In what kind of problem am i? Can i just go to the airport and pay the fine before leaving or is there a chance i will be jailed.And if they allow me to leave will i be put on the black list(i have overstayed shortly 2 times before).

I overstayed 51 days late last year. I get harassed at every border and have had hassles getting a 60 day tourist visa and again getting my extension for 30 days at imm. clearly they do not like overstay

I am under 50 -no marriage - not working.

I have one-year Non-im "o" issued in Brisbane. Given to me on the basis of 2 million baht in a thai bank and my plans to buy a condo. Issued in less an 10 minutes

thanks for sharing your under 50 not married non imm visa situation. Which bank did you use for your acct?

Also how long does it take to get the visa? A non imm 1 year multiple entry? Anyone fly to penang? How much?

It's an ideal situation for me. Tired of working and have no intention of marrying the girl that lives with me. It's the simple life. Only hassle is the visa

it was a bit confusing and not confirmed by anything I can find on the net. I am not married and 42 y/o but I need to get a 1 year visa here. Also I do not work. They told me at Imm that my only option was to deposit 3 million baht in a thai government bank and that's it. What was confusing was I went for a 30 day extension on a 60 day tourist visa the same day. my 60 day expires sat. The guy in the office was telling me that I could come down and change the visa at BKK imm. before 60 day expired but not after even though I got a 30 day extension. What's this all about? I told him I needed some time to set up the acct and couldn't get documention for a few weeks. Then he tells me I have to go outside the country to get visa. any thoughts?

I am 42 living in thailand on tourist visas the past year

I was told by an embassy official that by providing financial documentation that this is possible. Anyone have info on this??