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Opinion Editorial: No, It Isn’t Time to Worry About RETIREMENT VISA Changes….Yet


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20 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Depends what it is. A photo of a roof maybe, a required document, not so sure.

I see what you mean, and  "a required document" that appears on the requirements of the Police Order 654/2564 is probably essential, but you also have regional variations on "required documents" as you probably know - that is one of the main problems, and you often wonder why it is a requirement at all - what purpose does it serve?  

Edited by sambum
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4 hours ago, BusyB said:

I think partly xenophobia in certain quarters, sadly, though LOS is not unique in this respect.

 

And also perhaps envy. Both of our lifestyles and perceived riches. In comparison to them we are fabulously rich, and even most of the less well off among us  'live the dream' most Thais cannot even aspire to. I can remember the darkness and anger that befell the IO's face as she saw my pension statement as I went through the process. It's probably many times her (official) income as an Immi Captain.

 

And how they threw stones in my way and even asked outright for a 5 figure bribe to sort problems they themselves had raised. I skirted round it all and simply did the footwork that was obviously being required, even though it is nowhere stated in the requirements IB itself puts out.

 

If Hakporn is serious that's where he has to start. With his own. Or in my case at least it'll be good guy out, bad guys can stay. I'm neither on the run from my home country, nor am I addicted to sex with barely articulate rice farmers' daughters. I first came here 20 years ago and have been in love with and a friend of the country and some people here since then. 

 

But if he insists, then OK, I have a good life back home as well.

 

Many have nothing at home fmily houses and they are all here!!!!

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Just now, rocketboy2 said:

Bad immigration officers out, Good immigration officers in .

Would be the correct starting point.

Sort it out,  Mr Joke

 

Which is which? Is the bad one, the one who asks for everything to the letter and more or the nice IO who does your agency visa at no inconvenience to you? Confused.

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11 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Difficult for agents to differentiate between Olaf type criminals and retired pensioners.

 

Maybe time to get rid of people with tattoos

So lady retirees can look out as well?

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8 hours ago, Emdog said:

How about a "crackdown" on the criminal agents who are able to make the deposit/income requirement disappear (fraud) and the enabling Thai immigration officers (collusion), and those who finance these crimes and lawlessness, the farangs who pay for the enterprise

I strongly believe this will never happen unless another crime is committed and it is case by case basis. The high officials all know that due no fault of IOs and agents they are not able to earn dollars and they need more compensation in cases where a person wants to avoid the money requirements. They may progressively make it difficult and more expensive, e.g. if an LTR type visa requirement is needed, agent fees may go as high as 100,000K for five year visa. 

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19 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Which is which? Is the bad one, the one who asks for everything to the letter and more or the nice IO who does your agency visa at no inconvenience to you? Confused.

I don't need or use an agent.

is that ok for you.:coffee1:

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15 hours ago, rocketboy2 said:

I don't need or use an agent.

is that ok for you.:coffee1:

Aah OK, got it. You have no need to use an agent. What you meant was:

Was speaking generally, not specific to you.

Edited by metisdead
Trolling video removed.
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59 minutes ago, jwest10 said:

Many have nothing at home fmily houses and they are all here!!!!

Oh believe me I appreciate that some of us will feel the squeeze to the pips and maybe even HAVE to leave if Big Hakparn gets his way. I was just putting my position forward. In reality he'd be foolish to drive any of us out as long as we're law abiding and supportive of our Thai communities.

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Why are you picking on all of the 50 year old plus retiree's because of a couple of rogue motorcycle gangs?  I would guess that 99.9% of the retirement visa holders in Thailand have no affiliation or intentions of ever belonging to a criminal motorcycle gang enterprise!  That's a pretty weak excuse to punish  thousands of law abiding Thai Retirement Visa holders because of the actions of a handful of criminals!  Instead, how about implementing an outright ban on criminal motorcycle gangs within Thailand?  You seem to know who they all are already as many have been recently identified!

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8 hours ago, KannikaP said:

And if your passport shows that you have not been out of Thailand so unable to 'add to' your, hopefully non-existent home country criminal record?

 

People can be convicted in their absence, in which case they would probably be on the run or a fugitive from justice.

 

Exactly the sort of person a criminal record check would be designed to catch.

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2 hours ago, jerrymahoney said:

Yes but also note the word "consecutively" (click on image)

image.png

Yes, that was introduced in about 2002 which meant those continuously on retirement extensions for about 6 years were grandfathered in at the old lump sum of 200k.  You have to keep on getting consecutive extensions to maintain it or you get bumped up to the 800k. 

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2 hours ago, George FmplesdaCosteedback said:

These posts are like Chinese whispers, there really is no point speculating. The truth of the matter is "Joke" isn't very funny and gets moved on when he makes too many waves. Thailand has no logic so it is just a guessing game. It is a balencing act, scare off new retirees and kick out the old ones? What will TAT say? What about all the abandoned families?

How about the RTP does a job on the Biker Gangs and kicks them out? No, that's too much like work so is never going to happen is it.

 

Of course they don't want to kick out the biker gangs that are involved in serious crime like selling property with fraudulent title deeds in Samui, extorting farang businesses, drugs and even murder but those ones cultivate good relationships with local cops and pay them off.

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13 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

Difficult for agents to differentiate between Olaf type criminals and retired pensioners.

 

Maybe time to get rid of people with tattoos

Meaning that I, who have a couple of tattoos - curtesy of my younger days in the Royal Navy, am destined to be liquidated?

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3 hours ago, BE88 said:

Why should it be done every year?

It would be necessary to have it before coming to Thailand, it doesn't seem possible that a normal person after the age of 50 can suddenly become a criminal in Thailand if he has no previous criminal contributions.

 

As I mentioned above, you could be convicted in your absence.

 

Some people are convicted in their absence of serious, historic crimes that they committed many years ago.

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1 hour ago, Dogmatix said:

Yes, that was introduced in about 2002 which meant those continuously on retirement extensions for about 6 years were grandfathered in at the old lump sum of 200k.  You have to keep on getting consecutive extensions to maintain it or you get bumped up to the 800k. 

 

So those guys would be something like a minimum of 77 years old now, with at least 27 consecutive years of extensions in Thailand.

 

I am sure there are some, but there can't be many, and their number will be decreasing every year.

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@Lite Beer Thank you. So the retirees applying under this section would now be a minimum of 80 years old for the 50,000/500,000 route, or 85 years old for the 20,000/200,000 route, with a minimum consecutive stay in Thailand of 25 years.

 

This must be a small subset of retirees.

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9 hours ago, mokwit said:

What kind of check and with who is this? I seem to remember it is for Thailand/Interpol notices not for criminal record from your home country? I don't think they get the non criminal record confirmation from an applicants country.

 

It will be up to us to get hard copy of this, not for the IB to get it.

Hold on, if someone been living here for 5-10 years, then the criminal record will be done in Thailand, they have 2 sections for records, one office for working here, the other office for going overseas or for immigration, even on here marriage visa holders state they had to get a local record check, so it will drpend, where you have been living, which will then be your record check

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My take on this is that it was planned for years, but the virus suspended the plans, until now or the near future, even a new government won't be that new, and will be influenced from the old regime

 

So changing the immigration act, will be for many reasons, not just the over 50 visa, but maybe how extensions are obtained, changing the laws around citizenship to push for more Chinese land and business owners, which would be maybe underneath all the recent 'special' agreements between Thailand and China, and increase requirements for everybody else to deter many more, and keep less of non-Chinese

 

who knows if it will all succeed, but they clearly have been planning, and big joke is just a mouthpiece, and you also never know, if this old regime will lose its way in the next 5-10 years, and the new fairer regime will become the new way of society, who might have much better ideas for immigration, it's a tough one to try and see too much into the future, but nothing wrong in trying to evaluate things 

 

But last weeks comments werent just for the audience of foreigners, it was probably telegraphing to embassies, that even if the excuse of biker gangs is fake and weak, it's still a good enough eccuse to use as a pretext to try and change many things regarding immigration, which would limit any strong reactions from embassies, and yes its clear many embassies don't give a damn, but this regime still will make sure they can deter any reactions

Edited by humbug
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14 hours ago, Gknrd said:

10-1 it will be increased. My guess 2 million, criminal check. The only question is how it will be implemented. Again just a guess, but same as last time .  One year extension on old rules then your next extension will have to comply or out you go. My guess is the agents will have to be pretty well tied into immigration to help, and the fees will double or triple.

Wonder of existing expats will be allowed to keep their present limits grandfathered in, I think they did that with earlier retirees

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6 hours ago, BE88 said:

Why should it be done every year?

It would be necessary to have it before coming to Thailand, it doesn't seem possible that a normal person after the age of 50 can suddenly become a criminal in Thailand if he has no previous criminal contributions.

That was my point, they were not clear about those of us on Non O visas since, forever! who have been in this country a long bloody time.

 

Do we now start all over again from scratch?

 

These are the dangers of some of the daft ideas suggested by some on here.

 

In another post on here I pointed out the problems from retirees and people married to Thais causing problems or making mischief would be minuscule to the RTP.

 

There is much more chance at those coming in on VOA who have decided not to return home then turn to crime here to support themselves living here.

 

In my Pattaya days I used to see a group of young Nigerians over towards the Dark side who had been there a couple of years, this was just one example of Pattaya.

 

They were far too young for retirement visas and they weren't on marriage visas and they were shooting pool every day, so they weren't working and no way were they on holiday that length of time.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by Scouse123
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1 hour ago, blackcab said:

@Lite Beer Thank you. So the retirees applying under this section would now be a minimum of 80 years old for the 50,000/500,000 route, or 85 years old for the 20,000/200,000 route, with a minimum consecutive stay in Thailand of 25 years.

 

This must be a small subset of retirees.

Also have to consider that those 800 K is already a very long time same amount ....

 

while in all those years our pensions are became higher year by year ( at least mine did so) ....so it would not be a surprise if a moderate  augmentation could becoming considered.

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1 hour ago, david555 said:

Also have to consider that those 800 K is already a very long time same amount ....

 

while in all those years our pensions are became higher year by year ( at least mine did so) ....so it would not be a surprise if a moderate  augmentation could becoming considered.

What does it matter how long 800k has been the required amout......800k is already a tidy sum of money....I sure dont see pension raising that much in the last 20 years or incomes unless maybe you work with computers...

 

800k should absolutly not be raised ...

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