calbts2

3 minutes ago, HarrySeaman said:

Not a medical certificate but you do need insurance.

 

If you are unable to get medical insurance for a reasonable cost talk to the immigration services company next to the Jomtiem office that takes photos for your visa renewal and all the photo copying and they will take care of everything for a reasonable price.

WRONG!! A Non-O does NOT require insurance. A NON O-A does.

2 hours ago, The Barmbeker said:

Yeah...so nice, with the millions of jobless from the tourist sector!

But as long as you are alright, everything is hunky dory!

No, I was specifically referring to the zero baht Chinese tour bus groups that have diminished the quality of life for everyone else wherever they have invaded during the last 5-6

years or so. Case in point - I moved to Ratchada in 2008 and lived there up until 2 years ago. Before 2016 or so - the train night market was a pleasure to go to. Then it got placed onto the Chinese tour group itinerary and the whole area including the once peaceful Thailand Cultural Center MRT station became a nightly mob scene.

9 minutes ago, Fex Bluse said:

 In 5 years, there won't be many Chinese who can afford to travel. 

 

Amen

That would be a dream come true. I am so enjoying the peace now that all of those exhaust spewing buses and annoying flag toting tour groups have vanished.

It kind of feels like 1990s again.

Wow that has to be the most effective way yet to discourage any tourists to come to your country. Require a $3000 deposit and having to pay for quarantine through no fault or control of your own if someone else on your flight was infected.

I don't even think rich fools would go for this one.

I have been using Schwab for many years here. Today May 1st 30000 baht would have cost $929.07.  The reimburse all Thai ripoff ATM fees. 

You can see the daily rates here :

https://usa.visa.com/support/consumer/travel-support/exchange-rate-calculator.html

If the rate goes down suddenly, you can quickly get to an ATM and take advantage of the previous day's higher rate.

The best option of course is exchanging $100 bills at the main Super Rich location Rajdamri 1. Next best is Schwab. 

You will not get the true XE rate in Thailand. 

Thailand is closing down now. Foreigners that leave now will have a very difficult if not impossible time to get back in.

Hopefully Thai Immigration will learn a lesson or 2 from the Philippines Immigration Dept. ...but I doubt it????

If this happens, border runners wont be able to run anywhere. Only options will be fly back to their home country (if they can) or forced overstay, unless the govt gives them continual emergency extensions.

It all makes sense now. This must be the same bureaucratic tool that thought up the recently implemented O-A Retirement Visa Health Insurance Scam Program!! He wants all westerners out of Thailand either by forcing them to buy worthless insurance policies or now by not wearing worthless virus protecting masks.

Ridiculous - They got rid of Double entry tourist visas in 2015 when they brought in the METV. Now they want to bring them back? Are they admitting it was a mistake to get rid of them in the first place?

Wow so in one day the Non O-A goes from being the best retirement stay option since no money required in Thai bank - to the worst - being forced to buy one of the ripoff insurance policies at http://longstay.tgia.org/ and paying for overpriced outpatient coverage. Watch this visa become extremely unpopular now as very few will buy any of these 

horrible policies. I was planning on switching from my Non-O extension to a Non O-A next year but now that is a no go. Looks like I will be forced to keep the 800k in the bank here if I want to stay.

And if they make this insurance compulsory for extensions - I am outta here. Enough is enough.

All of these drastic and ridiculous changes with retirement extensions, elimination of the affidavits by embassies, and now this TM 30 situation make the O-A visa all the more attractive. At this stage, flying back to the USA to obtain one seems worth it.

Unless of course they decide to make changes with that visa such as required health insurance.

Yeah well I am specifically referring to flying into DM internationally and dealing with the immigration upon entry which has become just a horrible experience. Nobody in those lines was having a fun time last nite. Such a contrast from how it used to be. I even remember way back when DM was the main airport pre 2006. The officers were very easygoing and there was never any rudeness and sniping upon entry. Thailand really was a Land of Smiles.

My only real issue flying out of DM these days is finding your way through the hoardes of Chinese that have taken over that airport. My advice - avoid flying into DM internationally at all costs. That entry point has become a complete nightmare. The immigration staff there is rude, inefficient, and incompetent. I arrived on a flight last night before midnight and did not get out of there until 1:30am!! This had nothing really to do with the Chinese tour group crowds that compromise the vast majority as they now have their own dedicated lanes. Standing there in one of the "other foreigners" long lines that inefficiently gets merged from 3 lines into one as I watch just about everyone taking minimum 3-4 minutes each at the desk. Often I see people get spoken to rudely about something incorrect on their form or needing to show paperwork proof of accommodation / finances. I saw a few (mostly younger) people get grilled and then escorted to the back office where I would assume they will be questioned more and possibly denied entry. Then of course right in the middle of this, one of the officers decides to take her break and closes down a lane. This adds another 30 minutes to my wait. Now I was not really fearful of anything as I have a non-o extension with re-entry but I would definitely have been nervous if I was coming in on back to back TV or VE. I remember the good old days (pre-2015) when this airport was actually pretty easy and carefree to enter - not so anymore. I really wish they would create dedicated lanes for re-entry permit holders like Japan does. Hopefully things will change with this election but in the meantime I would advise NOT flying into DM if it can at all be avoided.

2 hours ago, cleverman said:

Complete and utter rubbish. I've relied on military pension embassy letter. Call me a liar ,fraudster to my face instead of hiding behind your keyboard. 

I concur. I was using the letter when I was on a marraige extention and now was using for my retirement ext.. I never once lied on what I stated on the affidavit and had backup proof if asked. This decision to stop affifavits affects me negatively since now I got to bring over 800000 and keep it in an account sometime next year when I would rather keep that money in my home country.  I would guess there are many more honest expats now in my same situation. Kinda like throwin out the baby with the bathwater.