Immigration backtracks on mandatory COVID-19  testing for visa/extension of stay renewals

 

REUTERS FILE PHOTO for reference only

 

Foreigners in Thailand will not be required to undergo a COVID-19 test in order to renew their extensions of stay, an immigration spokesperson clarified on Tuesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202255-flip-flop-immigration-backtracks-on-mandatory-covid-19 -testing-for-visaextension-of-stay-renewals/

 

'I gave up a long time ago': Australian stranded for nearly a year in Thailand

By Rachael Dexter

 

Justin Peck will have been in Thailand for one year on January 24.

 

An Australian man who has been stranded in Thailand for 10 months claims he has been abandoned by the federal government after it cancelled his ticket on a flight home this week and cut him off from further financial support.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202297-i-gave-up-a-long-time-ago-australian-stranded-for-nearly-a-year-in-thailand/

Outbreak easing, strict controls might lift next month, says PM

By The Nation

 

 

Thailand’s Covid-19 outbreak is easing as new infections fall in controlled areas, PM Prayut Chan-o-cha said on Tuesday. Speaking after the weekly videoconference Cabinet meeting, Prayut said a decision on whether to ease tight restrictions would be made according to an evaluation at the end of this month.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202313-outbreak-easing-strict-controls-might-lift-next-month-says-pm/

Cash handouts, co-payment scheme to boost Thai GDP by 1%: Minister

By The Nation

 

Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith

 

The government's “RaoChana” (WeWin) cash handout scheme and the first two phases of the “Khon La Khrueng” (Let's Go Halves) co-payment scheme are expected to boost Thai GDP by 1 per cent, said Finance Minister Arkhom Termpittayapaisith.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202358-cash-handouts-co-payment-scheme-to-boost-thai-gdp-by-1-minister/

 

Krabi airport upgrade ‘50% complete’

By The Nation

 

FILE PHOTO

 

The Bt3.7-billion upgrade of Krabi airport is 50 per cent complete, according to airport authorities.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202359-krabi-airport-upgrade-‘50-complete’/

 

Public Health Ministry clarifies after AstraZeneca vaccine accusations

By The Nation

 

 

The Public Health Ministry on Tuesday clarified about the cooperation between AstraZeneca and Siam Bioscience, confirming that the company had been chosen for its potential to transfer technology.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202362-public-health-ministry-clarifies-after-astrazeneca-vaccine-accusations/

 

Panel comes up with plan to conserve old cities in three provinces

By The Nation

 

 

The Rattanakosin and Old Cities Conservation and Development Committee has approved guidelines to preserve and develop old cities in three provinces, namely Uthai Thani, Trang and Chachoengsao.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202363-panel-comes-up-with-plan-to-conserve-old-cities-in-three-provinces/

 

Ratchanok gains sweet revenge over arch-rival Nehwal

By THE NATION

 

Ratchanok Intanon

 

Thai badminton ace Ratchanok Intanon and mixed doubles specialists Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai drew cheers around the country as they surged into the second round of the $1-million Toyota Thailand Open II in Muang Thong Thani on Tuesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202366-ratchanok-gains-sweet-revenge-over-arch-rival-nehwal/

 

Sai Praneeth out of Thailand Open due to COVID-19 positive test

 

FILE PHOTO: Badminton - Yonex All England Open Badminton Championships - Barclaycard Arena, Birmingham - 10/3/16 India's B Sai Praneeth lies on the court during the round of 16 Action Images via Reuters / Andrew Boyers

 

(Reuters) - Indian shuttler B. Sai Praneeth has been withdrawn from the Thailand Open after testing positive for COVID-19, the Badminton World Federation (BWF) said on Tuesday.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202367-sai-praneeth-out-of thailand open-due-to-covid-19-positive-test/

 

Steel sales to get boost from govt regulation to use local products

By The Nation

 

 

Steel consumption is expected to grow by 5-8 per cent, the Iron and Steel Industry Club of the Federation of Thai Industries (FTI) predicted.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202369-steel-sales-to-get-boost-from-thai-govt-regulation-to-use-local-products/

 

UPDATE:

 

Cabinet approves Bt217bn cash handout scheme

By The Nation

 

 

The Cabinet on Tuesday approved the “RaoChana” (We Win) cash handouts scheme to mitigate the impact of the new Covid-19 outbreak.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202358-cash-handouts-co-payment-scheme-to-boost-thai-gdp-by-1-minister/?do=findComment&comment=16181934

 

Analysis - Trump's legacy: A more divided America, a more unsettled world

By Matt Spetalnick, Andrea Shalal, Jeff Mason and Steve Holland

 

FILE PHOTO: President Donald Trump holds up a Bible as he stands in front of St. John's Episcopal Church across from the White House after walking there for a photo opportunity during ongoing protests over racial inequality in Washington, June 1, 2020. REUTERS/Tom Brenner/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - When President Donald Trump delivered his inaugural speech on Jan. 20, 2017, he promised an end to “American carnage,” a bleak and dysfunctional nation he had insisted that he alone could fix.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202371-analysis- trumps-legacy-a-more-divided-america-a-more-unsettled-world/

 

Bells and candlelight to honor 400,000 COVID-19 dead on eve of Trump's White House departure

By Susan Heavey and Gabriella Borter

 

FILE PHOTO: An El Paso County Sheriff's Officer tries to block photographs from being taken as bodies are moved to refrigerated trailers, deployed during a surge of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) deaths, outside the County of El Paso Medical Examiner's Office in El Paso, Texas, U.S. November 16, 2020. REUTERS/Ivan Pierre Aguirre

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - From the Lincoln Memorial to the Empire State building, landmarks across the United States will be illuminated on Tuesday evening as part of a ceremony led by President-elect Joe Biden to honor the 400,000 Americans who have died from COVID-19.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202372-bells-and-candlelight-to-honor-400000-covid-19-dead-on-eve-of-trumps-white-house-departure/

 

Biden to block Trump's plan to lift COVID-19 European travel restrictions

By David Shepardson

 

FILE PHOTO: A man opens the door of a testing center, as tighter rules for international travellers start, at Heathrow Airport, amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, London, Britain, January 18, 2021. REUTERS/Henry Nicholls/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Joe Biden plans to quickly extend travel restrictions barring travel by most people who have recently been in much of Europe and Brazil soon after President Donald Trump lifted those requirements effective Jan. 26, a spokeswoman for Biden said.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202374-biden to-block-trumps-plan-to-lift-covid-19-european travel restrictions/

 

An emotional Biden bids farewell to Delaware on his way to White House

By Trevor Hunnicutt

 

U.S. President-elect Joe Biden cries during an event at Major Joseph R. "Beau" Biden III National Guard/Reserve Center at New Castle County Airport in New Castle, Delaware, U.S. January 19, 2021. REUTERS/Tom Brenner

 

NEW CASTLE, Del. (Reuters) - U.S. President-elect Joe Biden became emotional during a brief farewell ceremony in Delaware on Tuesday before heading to Washington for his inauguration, choking back tears as he reflected on his long journey to the White House and remembered his son.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202375-an-emotional-biden-bids-farewell-to-delaware-on-his-way-to-white-house/

 

Germany warns of border closures amid fear of COVID-19 mutations

 

FILE PHOTO: Police officers stand in front of the upper house of the German parliament Bundesrat, during a protest against the government's coronavirus disease (COVID-19) restrictions in Berlin, November, 18, 2020. REUTERS/Fabrizio Bensch/File Photo

 

BERLIN (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel warned that Germany may need to consider border crossing curbs if other European countries do not act to halt the spread of the coronavirus, particularly its new, more transmissible variants.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202376-germany-warns-of-border-closures-amid-fear-of-covid-19-mutations/

 

Democrats to take working control of U.S. Senate Wednesday when three sworn in

By Susan Cornwell

 

FILE PHOTO: Democratic U.S. Senate candidates Rev. Raphael Warnock and Jon Ossoff are seen in a combination of file photographs as they campaign on election day in Georgia's U.S. Senate runoff election, in Marietta and Atlanta, Georgia, U.S., January 5, 2021. REUTERS/Mike Segar, Brian Snyder/File Photo

 

(Reuters) - Three new Democratic U.S. senators, including the winners of a pair of Georgia races and the successor to Vice President-elect Kamala Harris, are set to be sworn in on Wednesday, a source familiar with the planning said, giving the party a working majority in the chamber.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202377-democrats-to-take-working-control-of-us-senate-wednesday-when-three-sworn-in/

 

Prosecutors say Oath Keepers militia members conspired in U.S. Capitol siege

By Sarah N. Lynch

 

FILE PHOTO: Pro-Trump protesters storm into the Capitol, January 6. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File Photo

 

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Prosecutors on Tuesday said three people affiliated with a far-right militia group conspired to breach the U.S. Capitol, the first time they have directly accused people of organizing the violent Jan. 6 uprising that left five people dead.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202379-prosecutors-say-oath-keepers-militia-members-conspired-in-us-capitol-siege/

 

Woods has back surgery, will miss Torrey Pines and Riviera

 

FILE PHOTO: Oct 24, 2020; Thousand Oaks, California, USA; Tiger Woods hits a fairway shot on the 18th hole during the third round of the Zozo Championship golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports

 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Tiger Woods on Tuesday said he underwent a procedure to remove a pressurized disc fragment that was pinching a nerve in his back and will not compete at this month's Farmers Insurance Open at Torrey Pines or at next month's Genesis Invitational at Riviera.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202380-woods-has-back-surgery-will-miss-torrey-pines-and-riviera/

 

Netizens complain after Let’s Go Halves registration is full in 10 minutes

By THE NATION

 

 

The registration under the third phase of the government’s “Kon La Khreung” (Let’s Go Halves) co-payment shopping scheme started at 6pm on Wednesday, with the quota of 1.34 million users filled in a mere 10 minutes, leading to complaints.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202390-netizens-complain-after-let’s-go-halves-registration-is-full-in-10-minutes/

 

Chiang Mai: Restrictions eased on drinking in restaurants

 

Picture: Prachachat

 

An order signed by the Chiang Mai governor yesterday eased restrictions on the drinking of alcohol in risky places. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202392-chiang-mai-restrictions eased-on-drinking-in-restaurants/

 

Bangkok: Restrictions on fitness centers/traditional massage set to be eased

 

File photo for reference only
 

A decision will be made tomorrow on easing restrictions under Orders 15/16 related to the Covid pandemic in Bangkok.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202393-bangkok-restrictions-on-fitness-centerstraditional-massage-set-to-be-eased/

 

Armed thief makes off with 119 gold necklaces from Nakhon Ratchasima gold shop

By THE NATION

 

 

A gun-wielding robber strode into a Tesco Lotus gold shop in Nakhon Ratchasima’s Noan Thai district on Tuesday, yelled at staff to lie down on the floor, vaulted over display cabinets and snapped up 119 gold necklaces worth more than Bt1.9 million in a matter of minutes before disappearing on a motorcycle.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202395-armed-thief-makes-off-with-119-gold-necklaces-from-nakhon-ratchasima-gold-shop/

 

Seacon Square organises event to promote ‘Let’s Go Halves’ scheme

By THE NATION

 

 

Seacon Square and Seacon Bangkhae shopping malls have organised an event to promote the third phase of the government’s “Kon La Khreung” (Let’s Go Halves) co-payment shopping scheme, said Jaran Phuphat, the malls’ deputy director of marketing communication and organisational relationship.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202404-seacon-square-organises-event-to-promote-‘let’s-go-halves’-scheme/

 

Appeal to find missing Phuket man, 43, last seen heading to cockfight

By Eakkapop Thongtub

 

Mr Naruenat has not been seen snice heading to a cockfight in Kathu on Dec 20. Image: PR Phuket

 

PHUKET: Officials at the Damrongdhama Center of Phuket (Phuket Provincial Ombudsman’s Office) have posted an appeal in the hope of locating a 43-year-old Phuket man who has been missing for more than a month.

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202414-appeal-to-find-missing-phuket-man-43-last-seen-heading-to-cockfight/

 

Nigerian on overstay arrested for bank fraud

 

Picture: Komchadluek

 

A report from Komchadluek about the activities of Thai immigration said they were keeping Thailand safe from law breaking Thais and foreigners on the orders of PM Prayut Chan-ocha, DPM Prawit Wongsuwon and RTP chief Gen Suwat Chaengyodsuk. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202412-nigerian-on-overstay-arrested-for-bank-fraud/

 

Chinese man arrested after 300 million baht's worth of fake designer sunglasses seized in Thonburi

 

Picture: DSI

 

A DSI raid on two locations in Thonburi on Tuesday netted fake designer sunglasses worth 300 million baht. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202402-chinese-man-arrested-after-300-million-bahts-worth-of-fake-designer-sunglasses-seized-in-thonburi/

 

Son murders his mother and cuts her tongue out - Bangkok police shoot him dead

 

Picture: Sanook

 

Bang Sao Thong police in the Taling Chan area of Bangkok were called along with fire services after a man went crazy at a house on Soi Bang Phrom, attacked his mother, then set fire to the property. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202409-son-murders-his-mother-and-cuts-her-tongue-out-bangkok-police-shoot-him-dead/

 

418 slot machines seized in Khon Kaen linked to gambling dens in Eastern Seaboard

 

Picture: Naew Na

 

Police in Khon Kaen in Thailand north east armed with a search warrant raided a warehouse in the Non Sawan housing estate in Muang district. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202416-418-slot-machines-seized-in-khon-kaen-linked-to-gambling-dens-in-eastern-seaboard/

 

Thailand’s Tourism Industry And Coronavirus 2021

 

The industry needs a way out of quarantine for visitors, testing and vaccination maybe the answer. Also the industry is crying out for financial help to survive along with unity and leadership

 

By Andrew J Wood

 

Thailand’s iconic tuk-tuk in the deserted streets of Bangkok

 

BANGKOK: Thailand’s Food and Drug Administration is expected to approve the Oxford-AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine this week for emergency use in the country. 

 

Full story: https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1202417-thailand’s-tourism-industry-and-coronavirus-2021/