Latest Immigration requirements for pensioners will force some to leave

[Daveyh]

The latest requirements by Thai Immigration, which will come into effect when all "Income Letters" from various embassies cease must surely affect many of us that have retired here & lived here for years ........... some expats in their late 70 & 80yrs will find this a bitter pill to swallow. Again, we see these embassies here in Thailand not protecting or even thinking about the consequences of their actions, especially the British & American Embassies, who should be doing their utmost to protect us. The well being & quality of life of their compatriots is paramount, but is simply not even considered & gone are the days when these embassies had any "clout" with their host nation. It's evident that no further dialogue is forthcoming  & these embassies have left their "expats" hanging out to dry by allowing individuals to fend for themselves.

 

I expect some TV members will just "glibly" say "suck it up" etc. without the slightest consideration for those living on pensions, but not everyone is fortunate enough to have 800,000 Thai baht that they can leave languishing in a bank account here untouched for three months or more. You can blame these so called "Visa Agents" that still exist here for the latest rule changes due to all the scams & illegal methods that they've adopted over the years to obtain visas., especially the idiots that advertise on Facebook that you don't need to comply with Immigration rules! These are the people that need deporting not the genuine article living here on a pension. Now, the only people that will suffer the consequences are those that genuinely have enough pension each month to qualify for visas to retire here legally, but due to this recent change will be forced to leave when their visa expires. Most came when they were 60 'ish & now are well into their late 70's & 80"s ........ the rate of exchange was 74 baht/£ when they arrived, so they've taken some hard knocks along the way. This change will be dramatic for them, especially as they've stayed within the law for years & now find themselves alone, without help & stranded. It's appalling that these embassies are allowing this change to happen as they must realize the dire consequences of their actions to the less fortunate in their twilight years. This is a change that no one even considered & I put this firmly in our embassies "court" ............. they have let us down badly.

 

Sadly, I can foresee many expats leaving here now as some will not want to have 800,000 Thai Baht languishing in an account here earning very little interest or are pensioners that do not have this to qualify for a Retirement Visa. Of those that do leave I expect them to move elsewhere in the region, especially Philippines for Brits as they have a reciprocal agreement with the UK regarding pensions etc, whereas here in Thailand they don't, it's not index linked ........ another £40+ per week (£160/mth) since their pensions were frozen here in 2003 would be most welcome for those able to move on there. No one I'm sure wishes to move back to the dampness, cold, miserable existence of Blighty ........ plus fish & chips in newspaper. I wish everyone well & good luck to those that find themselves in this appalling situation ........ blame your "limp wristed" governments for this. I suspect there are a lot of ex servicemen here affected by this .................. hence, this latest "balls up" by these spineless individuals representing our countries will come as no surprise.

 

 

[Rimmer]

This topic is being discussed in many places already one is HERE  Please post your comments on one already running, thank you.

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