Long-term foreigners - Staying or Leaving?

[MrPatrickThai]

4 minutes ago, Kenchamp said:

Many of us with retirement extensions are actually here because we are married with kids and have used the retirement  route to stay because it was always easier and were encouraged to do so by immigration.

I think for most I've met, that should read, "many retired guys come to Thailand because of the young desperate women" and get hooked in by one with stepkids.

They blow all their savings on the woman and her family, who won't ever contemplate selling her gold or father's pickup truck to help their loved husband get a visa easily.

[KiChakayan]

41 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

It's a points system for ALL drivers in Thailand regardless of nationality, just like many, many more civilized and developed countries have been doing for ages. Probably yours included.

You are such a dreamer, or plain biased, man.

It will be a system for "all drivers in Thailand" applied discriminatorily to foreigners. 

[sqwakvfr]

When my current Ext of Stay expires I will be leaving.  I was at Changi Airport a little while ago and I saw there were two flights to Hanoi and both looked to be full.  I guess Vietnam is becoming the go to destination?  I might have to take a trip to Hanoi soon.  

[bokningar]

Like others have stated the 24 H TM 30 form might be what will make me spend next winter somewhere ells. 

I never stayed the whole year in Thailand and I get my long stay visa in my home country.  So for me the medical certificate is the hardest part for my visa. Most MD’s look at me as I’m joking when I bring the form printed from the Thai Embassy. Elephantiasis, far gone syphilis and so on.

 

The fact that 90 day report isn’t enough and it seems like they enjoy forcing us to spend more and more time at immigration is a bit too much-

 

Can’t say I’m happy about traffic, farang prices, and a lot of other stuff that often complained about here on TVF.

But I like Thailand and you learn to live with it and I have many good friend’s here.

But the TM 30 might be the straw that broke the camels back for me.

I have a long stay visa so I can stay one more winter here on it if I want to.  But I’m free, no house or dependent here in Thailand so I will see how things are when it is time to leave for the winter again this year.

 

Edited February 25, 2019 by bokningar
Wrong spelling

[lamyai3]

2 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

When my current Ext of Stay expires I will be leaving.  I was at Changi Airport a little while ago and I saw there were two flights to Hanoi and both looked to be full.  I guess Vietnam is becoming the go to destination?  I might have to take a trip to Hanoi soon.  

Should ease off after today, they were probably flying jn for the Trump-Kim summit. 

[mikebell]

2 hours ago, Puchaiyank said:

Have you considered returning to your home country?

There's always one who resorts to this line of Thai defence.

  Most people leave their home country because they don't like the weather; the Government; taxation.  They may be seeking a new environment; a last adventure before the slow slide to the grave.

Thailand was it for me - I moved to be near my son; the UKP was riding high.  I could afford to live well here.

Since then I have fallen foul of Thai police corruption; the company house scam; my pension is halved; even the weather has changed - making the air unbreathable.  So yes I am looking at alternatives where the natives are friendly; where my presence is valued.  Vietnam banks are paying over 7% interest + they have made me feel welcome on my four visits.

[Liverpudlian]

3 hours ago, Puchaiyank said:

If Thailand is a retirement joke destination...what countries merit serious consideration?  

For me Bali at worst Portugal.

[MichaelJohn]

Maybe there should be an option to vote for "changing to marriage visa". I think a lot of us, who are married, chose to go down the retirement route for ease; this may now change and we opt for the marriage route with less onerous financial obligations?

[DrJack54]

7 minutes ago, mikebell said:

There's always one who resorts to this line of Thai defence.

  Most people leave their home country because they don't like the weather; the Government; taxation.  They may be seeking a new environment; a last adventure before the slow slide to the grave.

Thailand was it for me - I moved to be near my son; the UKP was riding high.  I could afford to live well here.

Since then I have fallen foul of Thai police corruption; the company house scam; my pension is halved; even the weather has changed - making the air unbreathable.  So yes I am looking at alternatives where the natives are friendly; where my presence is valued.  Vietnam banks are paying over 7% interest + they have made me feel welcome on my four visits.

Say what!!...7%. Which bank? I will move 30k usd tomorrow.

BTW there is no retirement visa to Vietnam. 

[MrPatrickThai]

12 minutes ago, mikebell said:

So yes I am looking at alternatives where the natives are friendly

Typical colonial attitude. 

[brokenbone]

1 hour ago, NanLaew said:

And they are?...

any country with a positive temperature and permanent residency/citizenship ? but extra conditions may apply individually, like short walking distances, or prostitutes as per your preferences.

i'll miss 7/11 & resturants at every corner, hoping i will find

equivalent wherever i move,  and i dread relocation

due to the pain it inflict, but i sure dont want to end up negotiating my stay, every year for the rest of my life.

[Liverpudlian]

5 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Say what!!...7%. Which bank? I will move 30k usd tomorrow.

BTW there is no retirement visa to Vietnam. 

Me tooooooooo !!!

[JackThompson]

2 hours ago, dcnx said:

From a survival standpoint, it doesn’t make sense anymore. I don’t want to be 75 and have them pull the rug from underneath me over a new visa policy

This is the main problem.  Everyone here on less than PR/Citizenship needs to have contingency plans actively maintained for at least one other country in the region, and preferably another somewhere else, also. 

 

I am familiar with Cambodia, and still have friends in Latin America - could move to Cambodia with a couple days notice, but Latin America would take more planning/time, due to needing to sell and re-buy things there.

 

2 hours ago, brokenbone said:

i'd like to move to a place with permanent residency,

or citizenship

Easiest in Latin America - many choices.

 

2 hours ago, Puchaiyank said:

Have you considered returning to your home country?

Yes - it's on my list just above Saudi Arabia and North Korea.

[Liverpudlian]

2 minutes ago, MrPatrickThai said:

Typical colonial attitude. 

Pray why do otherwise ?

[jacko45k]

9 minutes ago, MichaelJohn said:

Maybe there should be an option to vote for "changing to marriage visa". I think a lot of us, who are married, chose to go down the retirement route for ease; this may now change and we opt for the marriage route with less onerous financial obligations?

Yes, it's all a scam to get us guys who have dodged the sinsot and responsibility for the partner's debts! 

Edited February 25, 2019 by jacko45k

[Liverpudlian]

3 minutes ago, brokenbone said:

any country with a positive temperature and permanent residency/citizenship ? but extra conditions may apply individually, like short walking distances, or prostitutes as per your preferences.

i'll miss 7/11 & resturants at every corner, hoping i will find

equivalent wherever i move,  and i dread relocation

due to the pain it inflict, but i sure dont want to end up negotiating my stay, every year for the rest of my life.

Go on a cooking course and rid yourself of 7/11 snorts.

[humbug]

2 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Isn't that a good thing to have?

please when you are free pop down to the private hospitals in bangkok or around this land eg bumrumgrad, samitev and bangkok hospitals etc and see the thousands of foreigners daily paying large amounts of bills for a variety of services. 

[JackThompson]

2 hours ago, Neeranam said:

Maybe the Thai government are tired of subsidizing foreigners' medical bills.

Do you have any figures/stats on how much of this occurs?  A comparison to VAT taxes paid by expats would be instructive.

 

You cannot get anything done here at any hospital w/o paying, other than perhaps arriving unconscious and being stabilized.  Those who use govt-hospitals pay far more than locals, so it is we who subsidize them - not the other way around.  This also needs to be factored-in to any analysis of "subsidizing foreigners medical-bills."

 

2 hours ago, Sticky Wicket said:

Immigration seem to enjoy making people sweat, and take immense pleasure from finding a piece of documentation with a tiny error.

If you are trying to do it in-person and honestly, there doesn't need to be an "error" to have problems at many offices.  The point of all the hoop-jumping / undocumented-requirements / odd "interpretations" is to create problems for honest applicants, since dishonest ones will just use immigration's agent-partners.

[Neeranam]

13 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Say what!!...7%. Which bank? I will move 30k usd tomorrow.

BTW there is no retirement visa to Vietnam. 

TMB SET 50 Dividend pay me more than that in Thailand.

[Liverpudlian]

Off topic, i,m the first to actualy "Rate" this topic for which it deserves a full house.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Liverpudlian

[humbug]

1 hour ago, neeray said:

Let's wait and see if Richard Tater actually gets his wishes. Things are heating up now. Anything is possible. While many foreigners think the outcome of the election is inevitable, I do not see it as a foregone conclusion.

A "sea change" in Thai politics could drastically alter and smooth out the current wrinkles.

 

Let's wait for the "fat lady .........."

i know what you are saying but posts detailing the nationalist way of the last 5 years against most foreigners can only help open the eyes of those foreigners. that still think its about good guys in bad guys out. I dread to think what will happen over the next 5 years even though there is a strong undercurrent building which could change the whole situation. But that could take years as well. If it takes a shorter time to change then it would be hugely positive 

[Gecko123]

 

 

37 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

When my current Ext of Stay expires I will be leaving.  I was at Changi Airport a little while ago and I saw there were two flights to Hanoi and both looked to be full.  I guess Vietnam is becoming the go to destination?  I might have to take a trip to Hanoi soon.  

Just FYI, because airlines have reduced the number of flights and have greater flexibility regarding the size of the plane, most flights these days are pretty full. Wouldn't read too much into how full a flight was.

Edited February 25, 2019 by Gecko123

[Neeranam]

3 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

Those who use govt-hospitals pay far more than locals, so it is we who subsidize them - not the other way around.

Not true. I pay nothing as I'm in the social security scheme. Some Thais are, some not, just like some aliens are and some not.

[humbug]

5 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

Do you have any figures/stats on how much of this occurs?  A comparison to VAT taxes paid by expats would be instructive.

 

You cannot get anything done here at any hospital w/o paying, other than perhaps arriving unconscious and being stabilized.  Those who use govt-hospitals pay far more than locals, so it is we who subsidize them - not the other way around.  This also needs to be factored-in to any analysis of "subsidizing foreigners medical-bills."

 

If you are trying to do it in-person and honestly, there doesn't need to be an "error" to have problems at many offices.  The point of all the hoop-jumping / undocumented-requirements / odd "interpretations" is to create problems for honest applicants, since dishonest ones will just use immigration's agent-partners.

exactly if those agreeing with this nationalist crime mob lying about foreigners with no health care, just have to pop into the many private hospitals around this land including bumrumgrad, samitev and bangkok hospitals and see the thousands of foreigners daily paying large amounts of bills for a variety of services

[JackThompson]

52 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

I'd say Hawaii and Thailand are similar in many ways. There is no such thing as 3 rd world countries these days.

Developing countries.

$1 million invested in a foreign company is very different to 800,000 baht sitting in a bank account.

You are comparing 2 very different types of stay.  It's about $325K USD for an investment-based visa in Thailand - so a 3:1 ratio - and you are not restricted to living in Hawaii.

 

BTW, if you want to live in the USA, just enter as a tourist, move to a sanctuary state/jurisdiction, and never leave.  You can get a DL, job, etc, all w/o being legal.  In fact, employers prefer illegals - and if you commit a felony, tell the judge you are afraid of being deported, and they will knock it down to a misdemeanor.  Repeat DUI offender?  No problem if you are an illegal - but hell the 1st time if a citizen.  You will have significant privilege over actual citizens or legal-residents there. 

Edited February 25, 2019 by JackThompson

[humbug]

6 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

TMB SET 50 Dividend pay me more than that in Thailand.

you can also get 5-6% neto after the 10% income tax deducted at source from the quarterly dividends on many thai property funds listed on the set.

[Neeranam]

15 minutes ago, humbug said:

please when you are free pop down to the private hospitals in bangkok or around this land eg bumrumgrad, samitev and bangkok hospitals etc and see the thousands of foreigners daily paying large amounts of bills for a variety of services. 

Why? I've been to all of them and one of my daughters was born in bamrungrad.

[Neeranam]

5 minutes ago, humbug said:

you can also get 5-6% neto after the 10% income tax deducted at source from the quarterly dividends on many thai property funds listed on the set.

I got 18% recently.

[NanLaew]

1 hour ago, lamyai3 said:

That's what you got from my post? 

Yes, that's what I got from your post that clearly suggested to me that you consider the new points system is only going to be applied to foreign drivers in Thailand. But I am open for correction if that was not what you meant to say.

 

55 minutes ago, KiChakayan said:

You are such a dreamer, or plain biased, man.

It will be a system for "all drivers in Thailand" applied discriminatorily to foreigners. 

No dreams no bias. Just a pragmatism tainted by over 40 years of watching how the local's paint dries over here. I can see where that could be construed by some with lower mileage as being an apologist, virtue signalling and such. But personally, I don't think they hate us as much as some would think.

Edited February 25, 2019 by NanLaew

[brokenbone]

23 minutes ago, Liverpudlian said:

Go on a cooking course and rid yourself of 7/11 snorts.

even if i could buy necessary ingredients here,

i still prefer eating at resturants 99 out of 100 times