New retirement extension rules forces expat, 90, to leave Thailand

[thequietman]

11 minutes ago, Spidey said:

So clearly he's been telling porkies when obtaining his affidavit.

NO, the affidavit covers money kept outside Thailand as well.

[ginjag]

50 minutes ago, SheungWan said:

If it is a trap, it is one of their own making. So all those years they spent basing their 'retirement' on what? monthly visa runs? As for the word 'plight', they rode the tiger and now some of them may be getting thrown off. So if the figures do not add up, then leave. That has always been the deal, family in situ or no.

I see you are a loving person not seeing the whole picture like so many clevers on here, IT is their fault,  seems you did not read and understood how the vast changes have been made.  it is easy for you bashers to come on and say this,   get a life.

[Spidey]

2 minutes ago, thequietman said:

NO, the affidavit covers money kept outside Thailand as well.

The affidavit covers income from outside Thailand. He has declared that he has at least 65k baht income, per month, from a foreign country. What's to stop him bringing that income to Thailand every month?

[marcusarelus]

11 minutes ago, garyk said:

No not all, only you and a few others... haha

I have only seen some crocodile tear people and some non crocodile tear people.  What are we to do?  Fund the folks who don't have the money to stay? 

 

I'm sorry for the way things are in Thailand, I'm sorry things ain't what they used to be.

 

I'm sorry if I took some things for granted, But more than anything else, I'm sorry for myself. 

 

John Denver

 

[CMNightRider]

17 hours ago, Caine said:

Who gives a toss, should never have burnt their bridges in the first place

I wonder how you would feel if this 90 year man was your father or some other relative of yours.  Why be so callous and hateful?  Leave that to Thai Immigration. ????

[robertson468]

I'm sorry, but it begs the question, "how was this Gentleman getting his Visas previously?"

[Peterw42]

35 minutes ago, SheungWan said:

State Pension in UK irrespective of personal savings.

Wow, I find that surprising. So even millionaires get the full pension, irrespective of savings, income, assets ?

[CMNightRider]

16 minutes ago, Spidey said:

If he were British, he would receive all the assistance that he needed. Sheltered accommodation, regular visits from carers, state pension plus allowances, free healthcare, free TV licence, meals on wheels, regular trips to a day centre, even a Christmas bonus. The life of Riley.

That sounds like what the Democrats in the US wants to give the illegals sneaking into the US ????

[Spidey]

Just now, CMNightRider said:

That sounds like what the Democrats in the US wants to give the illegals sneaking into the US ????

It's not far off what illegals get in the UK now. It's because we care about others not just ourselves. Something that the US used to be renowned for, not so much now.

[InsertNameHere]

22 hours ago, Pattaya46 said:

The "90yo expat who has to leave" is from USA

Until now he was using his embassy income letter (affidavit).

He doesn't want keep money in Thailand

and says that monthly transfer is too much hassle for a 90yo

(How I know? he contacted me)

At 90 why we would he care about keeping money here? Money does not go with any of us once we are gone. These ways of thinking are exactly why majority of the world has issues. He is more concerned with (being a hassle) for him then to retire as so stated. 

[JackThompson]

On 2/6/2019 at 8:52 AM, Pattaya46 said:

so why exactly can't he stay anymore after these rather small changes in rules ?

Being forced to import all of the 65K is not small.

Being disallowed from accessing your money for most/all of the year is not small.

These changes are very, very significant, and not even a single-year of notice was given from one's next extension - showing a complete lack of respect for the lives involved.  This is why so many are reporting the harm done all over this forum and social-media. 

 

Even more are saying they will leave before getting knifed in the back with whatever next short/no warning changes might come in the future, as they get older and less able to react/adapt.

[SheungWan]

47 minutes ago, SheungWan said:

State Pension in UK irrespective of personal savings.

 

32 minutes ago, Spidey said:

For what it'[s worth.

Its def worth having. Not sure what point you wish to make here.

[Russell17au]

This is a load of crap headline because Don is NOT being forced out of Thailand. Don has told his friends that he has the money to cover the income method but he does not want to transfer it to a Thai bank account each month because it is too much of a hassle for him, so he has made the choice that he will not transfer the money and instead he will leave Thailand. That is his choice the same as everyone has that choice, if you chose not to transfer the money that is up to you. Don't blame Thailand it is their rules.

[SheungWan]

14 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

Wow, I find that surprising. So even millionaires get the full pension, irrespective of savings, income, assets ?

Yes. And untaxed at source.

[SheungWan]

8 minutes ago, InsertNameHere said:

At 90 why we would he care about keeping money here? Money does not go with any of us once we are gone. These ways of thinking are exactly why majority of the world has issues. He is more concerned with (being a hassle) for him then to retire as so stated. 

You should know by now the level of sheer bloody-mindedness of some expats in Thailand. Would willingly shoot themselves in the foot rather than touch their savings.

[Russell17au]

4 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

Being forced to import all of the 65K is not small.

Being disallowed from accessing your money for most/all of the year is not small.

These changes are very, very significant, and not even a single-year of notice was given from one's next extension - showing a complete lack of respect for the lives involved.  This is why so many are reporting the harm done all over this forum and social-media. 

 

Even more are saying they will leave before getting knifed in the back with whatever next short/no warning changes might come in the future, as they get older and less able to react/adapt.

But, of course Jack our own embassies gave us a years warning that they were going to shaft us, so our own countries showed us the complete lack of respect that I believe that we all should have been given because of the years that we supported our own greedy politicians. I will give Thailand credit for trying to do something to save the situation because our own countries could not give a s**t about us or they would have found a way to continue with the letters of income. Government pensions can verified if they wanted to.

[Dave67]

I don't know of any other counties where a person married to a citizen of that county has to get a Visa every year

 

My wife can get a settlement Visa and work in the UK which is more than likely as I will be working in the UK.

 

We  will always be a Farangs here and nothing else

[Spidey]

8 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

Being forced to import all of the 65K is not small.

Being disallowed from accessing your money for most/all of the year is not small.

These changes are very, very significant, and not even a single-year of notice was given from one's next extension - showing a complete lack of respect for the lives involved.  This is why so many are reporting the harm done all over this forum and social-media. 

 

Even more are saying they will leave before getting knifed in the back with whatever next short/no warning changes might come in the future, as they get older and less able to react/adapt.

If he used the 65k baht/month route, he would not be disallowed from using the money in any way. If he lives permanently in Thailand, what's the problem with bringing over 65k every month?

 

What difference did being given short notice make? Anyone who turned up wanting to use the 800k method and being unaware of the changes, would have seasoned their account for 3 months previously, instead of the now mandatory 2 months. No problem getting their extension.

[Rugon]

1 hour ago, dontoearth said:

I would not spend a lifetime in a country that did not allow permanent residency and better rights than what ex-pat's are willing to put up with here.  

Retiring here is not spending a lifetime here, more like 1/10 of a lifetime, as these days most people can't get a pension until 65-70 and live an average of a couple or 5 years after that.

 

I can get permanent residency here and citizenship, not exactly hard to do.

[Spidey]

5 minutes ago, Rugon said:

Retiring here is not spending a lifetime here, more like 1/10 of a lifetime, as these days most people can't get a pension until 65-70 and live an average of a couple or 5 years after that.

 

I can get permanent residency here and citizenship, not exactly hard to do.

Impossible to do for most of us.

 

I got my company pension at 55. Common for Europeans.

Edited February 7, 2019 by Spidey

[jonesthepost]

1 hour ago, SheungWan said:

Buy a ticket.

You will grow old wait to you are in your 80's 

[JackThompson]

1 hour ago, Russell17au said:

This is a load of crap headline because Don is NOT being forced out of Thailand.

More accurate to say, Don is leaving Thailand because the rules changed for how he is permitted to stay.  He was never required to import 65K/mo, until now.  The rules for him are not the same as what was offered when he retired here - and no "grandfathering" exists to allow him to continue.  Even w/o his embassy-letter, he could have been allowed to show his pension-statements (and at 90 yo, he clearly gets those).

 

57 minutes ago, Russell17au said:

But, of course Jack our own embassies gave us a years warning that they were going to shaft us

They bear part of the responsibility, absolutely.  I wish we had a full-transcript of the conversations that led to this. 

 

I suspect our state-depts think we are "more useful" to them in the PI - but if history is an indicator, we (Americans) will have to wait 40 years or so for current policy to be declassified (if ever) - unless Assange gets the docs sooner, and unless they don't stick him in Guantanamo, first.

Edited February 7, 2019 by JackThompson

[bbi1]

On 2/6/2019 at 8:42 AM, Briggsy said:

Absolute maudlin rubbish.

It sure is absolutely rubbish that TV is posting "news" based on some random unknown poster posting a comment on The Nation site claiming to be 90 years old farang and needing to leave Thailand. It could in fact be a Thai teenage girl aged 13 who posted it, and TV is claiming it as "news"vlol.

[Spidey]

5 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

More accurate to say, Don is leaving Thailand because the rules changed for how he is permitted to stay. 

Even more accurate to say that he is being forced out because he can no longer lie through his false teeth about his income.

[JackThompson]

5 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Even more accurate to say that he is being forced out because he can no longer lie through his false teeth about his income.

We don't know that. 

[stanleycoin]

1 hour ago, robertson468 said:

I'm sorry, but it begs the question, "how was this Gentleman getting his Visas previously?"

Maybe from an honest Immigration officer. 

[Russell17au]

2 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Even more accurate to say that he is being forced out because he can no longer lie through his false teeth about his income.

There is no need to attack people with unfounded remarks like that.

There are many expats that have claimed correct income on their letters but will now prefer to leave Thailand than to transfer the required money into a Thai bank account. These people are making their own decision on their own lives, if they do not want to transfer the money to Thailand then that is their choice, Thailand is not forcing them to transfer the money it is only saying if you want to stay in Thailand and use the income system then you must transfer to a Thai bank account because of your own embassy not supplying you with a verified income letter.

I believe that these letters were being abused by many expats and giving false information.  

[Spidey]

7 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

We don't know that. 

We know that he made a statutory declaration to the US Embassy every year saying that he had an income of 65k baht. Now that the stat. dec. is no longer available, he's being forced to leave. If he had had a monthly income exceeding 65k baht he would have been able to transfer it to Thailand every month. As he's unable to do that we can only assume that he hasn't got an income exceeding 65k baht. Ergo. He's lying through his false teeth.

[dontoearth]

1 hour ago, Rugon said:

Retiring here is not spending a lifetime here, more like 1/10 of a lifetime, as these days most people can't get a pension until 65-70 and live an average of a couple or 5 years after that.

 

I can get permanent residency here and citizenship, not exactly hard to do.

    Don't know of a soul that ever did it.   What is your nationality now?

[dcnx]

On 2/6/2019 at 8:58 AM, stanleycoin said:

Feel the love, and respect. 

we've had your money,  now get out  

The true face of Thailand, in it's full glory. 

Money number one. 

 

 

It has always been MONEY #1 and it always will be. The people who have problems here either forget this or think that it somehow doesn’t apply to them because they’ve spent a long time here, married, employed, retired, or whatever it is they are doing.

 

This is Rule #1. Ignore it at your own peril.