Thailand's foreign retirees see their good life slip away

[micmichd]

10 hours ago, sotonowl said:

If he had any money he wouldn't be living in the bargain basement.

There's middle-class foreign retirees here, too. 

[Max69xl]

11 minutes ago, micmichd said:

There's middle-class foreign retirees here, too. 

Middle-class doesn't by default mean poor. 

[BritManToo]

On 3/8/2020 at 4:25 AM, Number 6 said:

Men are much more saavy about marrying prostitutes and especially bringing them to home countries.

Younger men are much more savvy than to get married.

Doesn't matter what woman you marry the 'with all my worldly goods I thee endow' vow is the knockout punch.

 

Back to the OP, my life is so much better in Thailand that the lonely bedsit in Bolton I was expecting.

In fact, I don't believe I know any guys living in the UK (younger or older) that are better off (lifestyle wise than me).

Some have bigger houses and more money but they're either single and lonely, or married with an old woman they no longer fancy.

 

I've got a nice house, a younger woman in my bed, children running around, warm weather, and enough spare cash for beer. Not so bad for someone over 60 years old .................. living the life dudes, living the life.

Edited March 9, 2020 by BritManToo

[Isaanbiker]

On 3/5/2020 at 3:58 PM, Assurancetourix said:

Not only british ; every people from " EU-27  " have lost more than 30% since about 10 years .

Even Norvegian people lost much and yet they don't have euro currency 

But that's not all. The teaching salaries didn't go up in the last 15 years.

 

Twenty thousand baht back in 2005 could buy you much more than 35,000 baht do now.

 

 Unfortunately, did something happen that many Thai people dislike foreigners.

 

Some of them have done crimes, overstays, drug deals, bag snatchers, beggars, working on fake degrees, visas, and/or working on fake, or without work permits, and other things that make all of us look bad.

 

But when we look at all the Thais who went to Korea, most of them working in the horizontal business, all of them got an amnesty.

 

We get punished with always changing laws and regulations, and it's easy to understand that the strong baht is creating enormous problems for many of us.

 

But without all the foreign investment, this country wouldn't be as it is. Many of us are married to Thai women, and a lot of us also help the extended families.

 

 My post is not a Thai bashing one. It's just what I've experienced and how I see it.

 

Many of us, who were planning to die here are not able to continue living here, which should/could be handled differently.

 

 Thais who marry a European will soon have a passport of this country, and they receive as much money in the form of social help, etc. as the natives of this place.

 

Unfortunately, are many of us too old to start a new life in a country that is so different as it was when we left it.

 

 There's a real war going on, and people receive money when they report a foreigner on overstay, or if they don't like his long nose.

 

When Immigration put a pig's face on an overstayer, it became clear to me how disliked we seem to be.  

 

My last visit to Immigration wasn't as the ones before. Through my own mistake, I was one day too late to do the TM 47 for Aliens.

 

I thought that a warning would be it, but when they started getting louder and telling me "song pann", I knew that there's no way not to pay.

 

 Please, no comments on why I'm not leaving Thailand.

 

I've spent my life savings, I'm married to a great woman, and I love our son a lot. Enough reasons to stay, right?

 

 Many friends and relatives back home passed away, times have changed, and I have to admit that I couldn't start at zero now.

 

Here, I've got my bike, my truck, a lovely house we rented and some good friends, Thai and foreigners.

 

I can't just take my family back to Europe because I'd need a job with an excellent salary to be able to do so.

 

Nope, this country is not the one I once fell in love with, and it's far from the former "Land of Smiles."

 

I know that it's not only me, but many others are also currently somehow struggling. Be it financially, or problems in their relationship.

 

A nightmare to sit on a plane to Europe without even having an address there. 

 

The address in my passport is a city in lower northeast of Thailand, so I'm out and have to get into the system first.

 

I have contributed to society, paid a lot of taxes, bought countless items from a pick up to furniture, and I always spend each baht of my salary.

 

I'm not starving, and I have enough money to buy food and something to drink. That's not what bugs me.

What somehow annoys me is how some locals see foreigners in THEIR country.

I know that we are only guests here, and I live a life without interfering in other people's' lives.

I don't want to pay twice as much for an item and hope that there'll soon be light at the end of the tunnel.

Sorry for the long rant. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

Edited March 9, 2020 by Isaanbiker
Why don't you go back home? " Because I'm at home now."

[ThaiBunny]

6 minutes ago, Isaanbiker said:

Sorry for the long rant. 

Actually, change a few words here and there and it could be about how refugees are ruining some European country or other. Migrants are often despised by their host country; farangs in Thailand are seen no differently by the Thai population at large

[Assurancetourix]

@issanbiker,

We are not the same age; you are younger than me who have been retired for almost 15 years.
But I recognize myself in almost 100% of what you just wrote.
My address on my passport is, as for you, a city in the northeast of Thailand.
In France I have two sons who are married and have children and who have absolutely no place to welcome me if I had to return to this country.
Fortunately I have a very good friend who will welcome me at his place if need be.
Like you, I had planned to die here but I don't know if it will be like this.
And then the health system of Thailand is very far from being as good as in France.
In private hospitals, certainly but at an exorbitant cost , but not at all in public hospitals.
Three days ago I had to go to the emergency room at the public hospital in Sawang Daen Din because I had a huge headache and still want to sleep.
Blood test and 30 seconds of consultation with a "doctor" who prescribed me some pills;
I'm going to go online to see what poisons he ordered me to swallow.
One big and bad  surprise, one of them is forbidden to be given to patients over 60 years old across Europe.

I'm 71 old .
but not here ...

[Isaan sailor]

22 minutes ago, ThaiBunny said:

Actually, change a few words here and there and it could be about how refugees are ruining some European country or other. Migrants are often despised by their host country; farangs in Thailand are seen no differently by the Thai population at large

Ah, at least one difference. We spent millions of Baht here every year.  Illegal aliens on our home countries come in broke, and spend very little, except for the freebies the government gives them.

[mok199]

LOST...land of smile Thailand...

[Number 6]

10 hours ago, Isaanbiker said:

teaching salaries didn't go up in the last 15 years.

I've changed schools five times and tripled my salary in six years. End of year six hoping for 1500-3000k baht raise and or bonus. If you're hanging out at the same school hoping for whatever that's obviously not happening. But schools will pay for quality teachers.

[Number 6]

10 hours ago, Isaanbiker said:

There's a real war going on, and people receive money when they report a foreigner on overstay, or if they don't like his long nose.

You need to relocate

[thaigrifter]

On 3/5/2020 at 9:18 PM, Lacessit said:

I'd like to see some proof the agents are still in business. The agent I used to deal with in Chiang Mai says his business is about 35% down, and AFAIK he only dealt with legitimate visas and extensions.

On the other hand, I know several people who shifted to Cambodia because they could no longer game the system with the connivance of an agent.

I live in a small town in the north of Thailand where there are only a handfull of Farrangs, but I know 3 of them that still use an Agent in Pattaya for their visas. It will never stop because too many people in the immigration offices are making money from it.

[BritManToo]

On 3/5/2020 at 9:18 PM, Lacessit said:

I'd like to see some proof the agents are still in business. The agent I used to deal with in Chiang Mai says his business is about 35% down, and AFAIK he only dealt with legitimate visas and extensions.

On the other hand, I know several people who shifted to Cambodia because they could no longer game the system with the connivance of an agent.

You've answered your own question .... the agent you used didn't provide the required services (or didn't have the right  connections). Walk over the road from immigration near CM airport, there's a guy there that can provide any service you like.

[marquis22]

On 3/5/2020 at 4:22 PM, aussienam said:

Yep, as well as Australia.  We have lost 25% since it was 25 Baht to 1 AUD, and we were always the 'poor cousins' of Europe and the USA.  Us Aussies have always been looked down on as the Cheap Charlies and now we are even cheaper!

How about also the 33% lose since it was 30 Baht to the $AUD 9 years ago. :-(

[Aussie53]

On 3/5/2020 at 10:36 PM, ozz1 said:

Us Aussies  on the pension have seen our income loose 30 percent on exchange rates but I've been here for long enough to realize you can get by just I don't go out as much as I'm married to a thai and she works she doesn't get much but we are happy and get by try living back in Australia on the pension then you will see how good you have it here with all it's faults it's still a great place to live that's my opinion anyway

hey Ozz, im new here and about to take the step of living in Thailand.. with a thai wife eventually. Can you give me a heads up on the pension from Aus and how it works and calculated in thailand.  What you need to report etc,,  Cheers 

[whiteman]

I did not think you could keep the gov pension if you left the country Like nz. 6 months out and it is gone

[micmichd]

11 minutes ago, whiteman said:

1. I did not think you could keep the gov pension if you left the country Like nz. 6 months out and it is gone

Is that taxpayers' money in NZ? 

Or just part of your salary taken away and stashed in a workers' pensions funds?

 

[xylophone]

1 hour ago, whiteman said:

I did not think you could keep the gov pension if you left the country Like nz. 6 months out and it is gone

Not sure that I understand your post, because I left NZ in 2006/7 and informed them that I was living in Thailand, and I receive a pension related to the time I'd actually spent in NZ, this because I had spent about half my life in the UK as well, so I got some from them into the bargain.

 

So I get approximately half a pension from NZ and half a pension from the UK, with neither being indexed linked, but I had budgeted for that anyway.

[RJRS1301]

3 hours ago, whiteman said:

I did not think you could keep the gov pension if you left the country Like nz. 6 months out and it is gone

IS this an aged pension you are referring to?

The aged pension is portable, you loose things such as pharmacy allowance, energy suppliment.

Centrelink will know that you have left the country, the day you leave.

Marriage can affect you payments, depending on income of partner.

 

[BigStar]

On 3/9/2020 at 12:02 PM, Isaanbiker said:

 Unfortunately, did something happen that many Thai people dislike foreigners.

 

Some of them have done crimes, overstays, drug deals, bag snatchers, beggars, working on fake degrees, visas, and/or working on fake, or without work permits, and other things that make all of us look bad.

No reason to assume that many Thai people dislike foreigners. The Thai gov't is being a bit more careful now about whom they let in. Chances are that overstayers may be more likely to commit other crimes so it makes perfect sense to go after them and it's much easier to do nowadays.

 

Quote

But when we look at all the Thais who went to Korea, most of them working in the horizontal business, all of them got an amnesty.

Irrelevant and a different issue. The usual "whataboutism." Thai immigration policies are quite reasonable, objectively speaking. Note how difficult it is for a Thai to get a proper visa to the USA.

 

Quote

But without all the foreign investment, this country wouldn't be as it is. Many of us are married to Thai women, and a lot of us also help the extended families.

 

 My post is not a Thai bashing one. It's just what I've experienced and how I see it.

 

Many of us, who were planning to die here are not able to continue living here, which should/could be handled differently.

 

. . .

 

 There's a real war going on, and people receive money when they report a foreigner on overstay, or if they don't like his long nose.

 

When Immigration put a pig's face on an overstayer, it became clear to me how disliked we seem to be.  

 

. . .

 

Nope, this country is not the one I once fell in love with, and it's far from the former "Land of Smiles."

. . .

What somehow annoys me is how some locals see foreigners in THEIR country.

I know that we are only guests here, and I live a life without interfering in other people's' lives.

I don't want to pay twice as much for an item and hope that there'll soon be light at the end of the tunnel.

 

The big foreign investment comes in from company investments, in either existing or new, not that pittance from expats supporting Thai wives. Delusion of farang grandeur.

 

What you're experience now is subjective. Maybe been reading the forum too much and got infected by the brain-eating space monkeys, as shown by this nonsense that undermines whatever credibility your post had: or if they don't like his long nose. You have no example of any such racist overstay reporting, just made it up. In fact, where was anyone arrested for being on overstay who wasn't on overstay?

 

There is no cure for the space monkeys except to leave, unfortunately. But it really helped one of our members whose brain was all eat up with 'em. Happy as a clam now. 

 

Things could be handled differently, certainly worse, but this ain't bad. I never have problems, really. That's cause I stay totally legal. I don't find it difficult. You do, so pay the piper. You have no reason to expect to be exempt from the laws.

 

I never feel locals regard me in any negative light and my interactions with them are almost always pleasant w/ the exceptions of some gruff sorts now and then. I don't think you actually have any evidence that any locals are feeling or saying anything bad about you that you don't deserve. Could be the odd one but hey--look at all that Thai bashing we have here and racism in your own country.

 

If you don't want to pay twice as much for item, don't pay it. It's just business. If a Thai thinks he can get more from another Thai he'll certainly do it. Thais are victims of scams constantly.

 

Probably need to stop whining and just get on with it. Read up on the 'net about how to stop complaining; it's not good your health.

Edited March 10, 2020 by BigStar

[rabang]

19 minutes ago, BigStar said:

 

 

Irrelevant and a different issue. The usual "whataboutism." Thai immigration policies are quite reasonable, objectively speaking. Note how difficult it is for a Thai to get a proper visa to the USA.

 

 

Many Thais end up working illegally in different countries. Relatively few westerners do it in Thailand. Comparing Thailand to developed countries is an apples to oranges thing and IMO it is better to make comparisons between countries of similar conditions. But I do agree that their policies are relatively relaxed in the big picture although there are better places as well.

[Lacessit]

12 hours ago, BritManToo said:

You've answered your own question .... the agent you used didn't provide the required services (or didn't have the right  connections). Walk over the road from immigration near CM airport, there's a guy there that can provide any service you like.

Fair enough, I wouldn't know about the "services" because I've always done my visas and extensions legally. Perhaps the people I know that have moved to Cambodia couldn't even afford that.

Out of pure nosiness, how much is the guy charging? PM me if you don't want to publish here.

 

[Max69xl]

21 minutes ago, Lacessit said:

Fair enough, I wouldn't know about the "services" because I've always done my visas and extensions legally. Perhaps the people I know that have moved to Cambodia couldn't even afford that.

Out of pure nosiness, how much is the guy charging? PM me if you don't want to publish here.

 

The cost when an agent is needed depends on which requirement you don't meet. It can cost from 5k to 25k. 

[rumak]

On 3/5/2020 at 7:24 PM, OneMoreFarang said:

I think the biggest difference is 500B vs 3000B.

 

I am happy in Thailand but if I wouldn't be here already then I don't think I would select Thailand as the paradise to live in (like it was 20 years ago).

Life is change.    You and I are now 20 years older .  All in all , for me it has been a pretty good choice as infrastructure and medical still make it easy ( and even immig...... 800k in bank ).

Where in the world would be better ?   The bad things here are IMO probably worse in the other

countries that would be an option.   Many tv members complain,  but only a few have come back to tell us that Phillipines or Laos are soooo much better.   Returning to US  would be the last thing in the world i would do !   If I was Aussie or a European than I could see some reason to search for my final resting place,  but I do not have that choice. 

No way to know 20 years ago that the North of Thailand would be a polluted area (along with many neighboring countries).   I am old,  but looks like I will move (at least part of year) to the South for fresher air.  I still find it pretty easy to get along , actually easier since my testosterone is lower,  and my language much better.    

The saying "if i knew then what i know now"  is a funny one.  Still when I look at how most Americans live I feel very fortunate to have made the decision to live  imo   a much less stressful and more interesting life,   here in Thailand.   Only thing i would have done different is put all my savings in Apple stock 10 years ago  ????

 

[BigStar]

1 hour ago, rabang said:

Many Thais end up working illegally in different countries. Relatively few westerners do it in Thailand. Comparing Thailand to developed countries is an apples to oranges thing and IMO it is better to make comparisons between countries of similar conditions. But I do agree that their policies are relatively relaxed in the big picture although there are better places as well.

Agreed, not really comparable at all. Rich countries often turn a blind eye to workers from a poor country who fill need for low-level labor for which it's hard to find a local willing to do for relatively low wages. Businesses support the practice and lean on the politicians.

 

In the reverse case, to make it short, all poor countries don't much like the idea of rich foreigners (r coming from a rich country where they can work, if they want to) coming over and just trying to live off the poor country. So the restrictions are always greater and often proof needed of investment and of helping the natives. Foreigners on overstay or living in the country long w/ no proof of outside support are legitimately suspect of getting money from illegal activity.

 

The official TVF Poster position is of course that any Westerner should be able to come over and do whatever he wants as long as the Red Bull heir is free.;)

 

Many of the overstay cases have some other crime or obnoxiousness that goes along with the overstay.

[BigStar]

52 minutes ago, rumak said:

 Many tv members complain,  but only a few have come back to tell us that Phillipines or Laos are soooo much better. 

Very true. One of our most tireless researchers for alternative destinations, seemingly so eager to leave, is . . . still here, won't leave. ???? Many who've left have come back. Those who haven't returned went home for financial reasons or schooling for the kids. The very few who really did leave purely out of discontent for, say, the paradise of Cambodia, where they're loved just for being themselves, stay on the forum to bash Thailand. Why? Sour grapes.

[Nyezhov]

On 3/9/2020 at 11:17 AM, BritManToo said:

I've got a nice house, a younger woman in my bed, children running around, warm weather, and enough spare cash for beer. Not so bad for someone over 60 years old .................. living the life dudes, living the life.

Post of the Year.

 

And me too: Here in Siem Reap (as in Bangkok when I stay there) I got a nice house, good food, lots of fun, bedwarmer rentals, cheap weed, Man U is on a 10 match streak, its warm, I hang out with some other old Americans and smoke, I take naps, I take pictures, I too am living the life dudes, living the life.

 

Three cheers for us Happy Guys! 

[Pattaya Spotter]

On 3/5/2020 at 4:09 PM, NCC1701A said:

Hi!

You too?

[rascalman]

Thai immigration had made IT difficult to live here! Why would they keep cutting their own throats? Really smart?

[kevvy]

I am OK now, decided to sell my home here in Chiang RAI 7 months ago, not you normal Thai home , it is a quality luxury  home .Last week had customers come and put on a large deposit , and at the same time wanted to buy my car as well . Plans are happening now for my wife and I .Did not think it would sell so quick as it is a "farang style home "10 years is enough being here time to go home when the flights start and borders open .Tired of all the B/S in this country

Edited September 7, 2020 by kevvy

[Prairieboy]

On 3/5/2020 at 3:58 PM, Assurancetourix said:

Not only british ; every people from " EU-27  " have lost more than 30% since about 10 years .

Even Norvegian people lost much and yet they don't have euro currency 

The Canadian dollar has also lost 30%+