On 1/15/2026 at 7:28 AM, redwood1 said:

I have been demanding that Thailand give me free housing, free health care, and free money every month, as all the immigrant freeloaders get in the USA, the EU, and the UK.....

So far I have not got a single baht out of the Thai government....

Expats in Thailand in Thailand need to unite and demand they give us free stuff.......lol

There's more to it. Notably, the Philippines is not on the list, and Filipino immigrants outnumber Thai immigrants by a significant degree, and are more likely to rely on the social welfare system.

The Philippines is not on the list because there are 9 US military bases on the islands, and they have significant importance to security in the region.

Thai immigrant spouses are heavily on welfare with extremely low on education and are unable to find any job. The US should stop all "marriage visas" where the immigrant spouse has little chance of finding any meaningful job and will most probably apply for welfare.

On 1/19/2026 at 6:58 PM, JensenZ said:

There's more to it. Notably, the Philippines is not on the list, and Filipino immigrants outnumber Thai immigrants by a significant degree, and are more likely to rely on the social welfare system.

It has nothing to do with military bases. China, India, and Vietnam are not on the on the list. Thai immigrant spouses are heavily on welfare with extremely low on education and are unable to find any job. The US should stop all "marriage visas" where the immigrant spouse has little chance of finding any meaningful job and will most probably apply for welfare.

On 1/17/2026 at 12:08 PM, FritsSikkink said:

You are making numbers up, just like Trump:

"USA Welfare Costs

The total government spending on welfare across federal, state, and local levels reached approximately $1.5 trillion in 2025. This includes Medicaid, which accounted for $742 billion, and other welfare programs totaling $757 billion."

Welfare Statistics in US 2025 | Key Facts - The World Data

You’ve quoted me without including any quote. WTAF is your point champ?

2 hours ago, sandrew33 said:

You’ve quoted me without including any quote. WTAF is your point champ?

Glitch in the software

On 1/15/2026 at 6:08 PM, Sheryl said:

This is true, but I think we can anticipate greater than before scrutiny of tourist visa applications, especially by people with family in the US, due to suspicion that they may actually be looking to immigrate and applying as tourist instead now that immigration channel is suspended.

I have a very close friend interviewing on the 21st for tourist visa to visit her son and grandchildren in the US. Genuine, not looking to immigrate, but I fear her chances have just taken a nosedive. ☹️

Update:

First of all this was a Cambodian woman applying in Phnom Penh. But worth noting in case Embassy in Thailand doing the same.

Immediately on arrival she was told flatly that no tourist visas are being issued at this time. Only student visas and what sounds like short term businpess visas.

They refused to even look at the documentatpion brought and asked no questions related to her application.

It was suggestd she reapply in the future but no indication of when. The idea was probably once there is either guidance received on thev"extra scrutiny" to be applied for tourist visas, or if Cambodia gets dropped from the list after the supposed review to be done. (I don't think this list of 75 countries is based on any sort of data). No way to know if or when either might happen. But probably no time soon.

Visa fee forfeited of course (despie no real application review or interview) and would entail a new visa fee to reaaply so hardly worth doing in the present context.

If only they had notified applicants that tourist visa processing was on hold. We could have rescheduled the interview for a latrer time in hopes of not wasting the fee.

I would recommend anyone who is a national of one of the listed countries not to bothet applying for a tourist visa until such a time as there are reliable reports of any being issued or the listing changes.

My friend's application was submitted before the new policy was announced but earliest interview date was after. Bad luck leading to a waste of time anf money.