Move to Vientiane from Chiang Mai

[portly]

Plan B     ..tired of immo crap     .look for quiet life in retirement.    Vientiane may fit the bill for me.

Can I take my loaded Mitsu Mirage across the border ,intent to live there,  and drive it........insurance and appropiate license and business visa needed,  I surmise , though unclear from relative posts.

For now, I do not meet extension requirements    so off soon to get tourist visa,  gives time to considet and/or organise departure.  Mid year.

This latest stroke just another piss take,    enough

I did read that foreigners are not allowed to buy vehicles in Vientiane.....!   Surely not  ?

Edited February 4, 2019 by portly
Ownership vehicles question

[NCC1701A]

http://www.immigration.gov.la/visas.html

 

[Puchaiyank]

You may find it easier to stay in Chiang Mai than to move to Vientiane.  Do your homework before cutting and running off to Lao.

[dotpoom]

"business visa needed".

  With respect, if you think you might need a business visa, does that mean you are a businessman. If so, are you having problems coming up with the 800,000 Bt to live in Thailand?

Maybe I picked it up wrong, appologies if I have.

[owl sees all]

It might be a good idea for the OPoster to go over for a month.

 

There is a farang community in Vientiane and a tiny bit of night-life. The ladies are nice; but it's difficult. It is more expensive to live in the Laos capital than in Thailand.

 

I've spent a fair bit of time there, and for me, it's OK for a week or so. But I wouldn't want to set roots down in Vientiane. There are other places in Laos worth visiting; but not so many that the average farang would enjoy.

Edited February 5, 2019 by owl sees all

[BritManToo]

Laos is not much fun, why not Cambodia, 1 year retirement VISA is easy for $300.

[Ulic]

I am in Vientiane now on a visa run. I can't really imagine why you would choose here.  I would suggest Vietnam. Check out requirements and your expectations versus reality closely.  You may find that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence syndrome. 

[BKKBike09]

Laos is LH drive, not RH drive. I believe it's okay to temporarily import a RH drive vehicle (ie I've driven a Thai-registered vehicle in and out of Laos a couple of times, but some while back). I'd be 100% sure though that you could not permanently import a RH drive vehicle. Vientiane used to be a great place to live but it's lost much of its charm: terrible traffic jams now, plus over-run with Chinese. And when the high-speed rail from Kunming to Vientiane opens in 2021 (which it currently looks like it will) ...

[sammieuk1]

Good luck doubt you will miss Chiang Mai to much????

[Johnnyngai]

If you were to become seriously ill,

you will find that their medicine is 30 years behind that of any western country.  

[wreckingcountry]

Laos is not much fun, why not Cambodia, 1 year retirement VISA is easy for $300.

Really? Please tell me more


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[moe666]

20 hours ago, Puchaiyank said:

You may find it easier to stay in Chiang Mai than to move to Vientiane.  Do your homework before cutting and running off to Lao.

I have friends who live there and have visited many times, for a short visit it is fun especially when hanging with the locals. But live there full time it is a dump. The people I know have a bit of money and they use medical care in Udon Thani. Laos, welcome to a third world country

Edited February 5, 2019 by moe666

[AAArdvark]

And most people can't even pronounce the name of the country.

[Liverpudlian]

2 hours ago, sammieuk1 said:

Good luck doubt you will miss Chiang Mai to much????

you mean China mai ??   ahhhh soh !

[Lacessit]

27 minutes ago, Liverpudlian said:

you mean China mai ??   ahhhh soh !

ahhh so is Japanese.

[Lacessit]

Food is reasonably decent in Vientiane. I found it quite dull, one week was more than enough. Next to no night iife.

[hugocnx]

5 hours ago, Ulic said:

I am in Vientiane now on a visa run. I can't really imagine why you would choose here.  I would suggest Vietnam. Check out requirements and your expectations versus reality closely.  You may find that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence syndrome. 

I thought it was difficult to obtain long term visa in Vietnam so what about retiring there?

[biggles45]

 Considered the Philippines? You can arrive on a visa free entry, extend the initial 30 days by another for 29 days and keep extending every 60 days up to about 3 years. Many Travel agencies will do this for you for a small fee.

You then leave for a day and return on visa free to start again. There are renewal costs of course but no need to deposit large amounts. i had a couple of US friends who were there almost 3 years after leaving Thailand and they made a good life for themselves. 

[sammieuk1]

1 hour ago, Lacessit said:

ahhh so is Japanese.

Or a scouser apparently????

[quandow]

On 2/3/2019 at 10:26 PM, NCC1701A said:

http://www.immigration.gov.la/visas.html

 

Interesting point - This page: "Now in Lao PDR have 14 types of visas for foreigner" yet they only describe 12. In particular they DON'T describe the #13 permanent visa, the one we are most interested in.

[quandow]

12 hours ago, biggles45 said:

 Considered the Philippines? You can arrive on a visa free entry, extend the initial 30 days by another for 29 days and keep extending every 60 days up to about 3 years. Many Travel agencies will do this for you for a small fee.

You then leave for a day and return on visa free to start again. There are renewal costs of course but no need to deposit large amounts. i had a couple of US friends who were there almost 3 years after leaving Thailand and they made a good life for themselves. 

A more permanent aspect is to put $10k U.S. in a P.I. bank and you are good to go. NO 90 day reporting, NO re-entry permits needed, it's basically like you are a citizen.

[bojo]

10 minutes ago, quandow said:

A more permanent aspect is to put $10k U.S. in a P.I. bank and you are good to go. NO 90 day reporting, NO re-entry permits needed, it's basically like you are a citizen.

Really that easy? Sounds too good to be true. Does that work indefinitely? Come and go as you please etc?

[BritManToo]

5 hours ago, quandow said:

Interesting point - This page: "Now in Lao PDR have 14 types of visas for foreigner" yet they only describe 12. In particular they DON'T describe the #13 permanent visa, the one we are most interested in.

I can't believe anyone is interested in retiring to Laos.

Have you been there?

Probably the dullest and most impoverished country in SEA.

[BritManToo]

18 hours ago, hugocnx said:

I thought it was difficult to obtain long term visa in Vietnam so what about retiring there?

Almost all the Vietnam VISAs are 90 day multi entry, which puts some people off.

If you're married to a local, a five year VISA costs $40.

I met lots of Aussie oil workers there, and a 50yo (broke) Swedish guy teaching English in HCMC.

They all said their VISAs were very easy.

Lots of disinformation about Vietnam, I don't know why, I though it was great, I'm thinking western propaganda against the communist governments, China was nothing like I was led to believe either.

Edited February 6, 2019 by BritManToo

[BritManToo]

5 hours ago, bojo said:

Really that easy? Sounds too good to be true. Does that work indefinitely? Come and go as you please etc?

Even easier as there's no reason to put $10k anywhere. You can just go in and out on 30 day waivers, and drop your passport off at most travel agents for extensions if you can't be bothered leaving.

[NCC1701A]

20 hours ago, Lacessit said:

Food is reasonably decent in Vientiane. I found it quite dull, one week was more than enough. Next to no night iife.

is it worse than Hua Hin?

[BritManToo]

Just now, NCC1701A said:

is it worse than Hua Hin?

More like a rural Issan farm village with secret police, that's the whole of Laos.

[sfokevin]

1 hour ago, BritManToo said:

Almost all the Vietnam VISAs are 90 day multi entry, which puts some people off.

Many of the online visa (E-Visa) sites offer offer one year tourist & business visas that are one year - The business visa does not seem to require you to do any 90 day border runs... Anyone have any experience with these?... can they be ordered online back to back year after year?

 

https://www.vietnam-evisa.org/visa-fee/united-states-of-america.html

[thaiguzzi]

2 hours ago, BritManToo said:

I can't believe anyone is interested in retiring to Laos.

Have you been there?

Probably the dullest and most impoverished country in SEA.

Each to their own.

I love the place. And the people.

It's like Thailand was in the countryside 20-30 years ago.

Vientienne is my favourite city in SE Asia. Better than anything in TH.

Admittedly i have not been to Hanoi nor Saigon, but i will do soon.

Vietnam is at the top of my bucket list of places to visit for a 2-3 week holiday.

The Philippines is not even on my radar.

24 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

More like a rural Issan farm village with secret police, that's the whole of Laos.

Rubbish!

The countryside, especially up North is breathtaking.

Luang Praban is just wonderful.

[SEtonal]

1 hour ago, sfokevin said:

Many of the online visa (E-Visa) sites offer offer one year tourist & business visas that are one year - The business visa does not seem to require you to do any 90 day border runs... Anyone have any experience with these?... can they be ordered online back to back year after year?

 

https://www.vietnam-evisa.org/visa-fee/united-states-of-america.html

I am living in Vietnam on a first-time 1-year multiple entry business visa, but I don't have a business nor do I work.  I chose the business visa because I didn't want to do visa runs every 90 days as required with a tourist visa.  

 

The 1-year tourist visa is only available to citizens of the United States and requires 90-day visa runs. For other nationalities interested in a tourist visa, Vietnam offers 1-month and 3-month tourist visas. If you are living in Ho Chi Minh City/Saigon a visa run by bus to the Cambodian border and back should take a little over half a day.  

 

I am from the United States, and I just noticed that citizens of the UK do not need a tourist or business visa if they stay in Vietnam for less that 15 days.   That option is not available to citizens of the United States, so check carefully based on your nationality.  

 

To renew a business visa, you need to fly back into a designated Vietnam international airport.  From what I have read online, sometimes there is an immigration crackdown and the business visa will not be available when you arrive at the airport, so you will have to get a tourist visa instead.  I believe you will be credited for the business visa if that happens.  

 

The visa company I used was Vietnam-Visa - recommended to me by YouTubers RetirecheapJC and Ninja Teacher.   The charge in May 2018 for a 1-year business visa was $400 USD ($265 USD + $135 USD).  I paid the $265 USD online and $135 USD at the airport to an agency representative who was waiting for m with my name on a sign.  Vietnam-Visa will contact you a few days before your expected arrival, so be sure to immediately let them know that you either still coming as expected or if there are any changes.

 

A letter of invitation from a visa agency is necessary to enter Vietnam and obtain a visa.

 

https://www.vietnam-visa.com/