36 minutes ago, Hummin said:

Uruguay also makes me curious, because it seems to offer a good balance of freedom, political stability, safety, temperate climate, and a long coastline, without many of the natural disasters that affect other parts of the continent.

Over 1/3 of people in Uruguay have Italian ancestry.

So probably similar customs to Italians, people use a lot of hand gestures, and no shortage of italian food.

2 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Over 1/3 of people in Uruguay have Italian ancestry.

So probably similar customs to Italians, people use a lot of hand gestures, and no shortage of italian food.

So that's why they look different

11 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Over 1/3 of people in Uruguay have Italian ancestry.

So probably similar customs to Italians, people use a lot of hand gestures, and no shortage of italian food.

As a European, it would be more natural for me to move to Portugal if I ever left Thailand or Norway with my Thai wife. As a Norwegian, I can move around the EEA without too much hassle over visas, and healthcare is generally much easier to arrange. I guess Americans also have better options in some South American countries, but not the same freedom of movement that we have within the EEA.

Still, Thailand does not come out too badly for us, but I am are dependent on a wife who puts my interests first and not last as we are invested in land and have projects going on.

19 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Over 1/3 of people in Uruguay have Italian ancestry.

So probably similar customs to Italians, people use a lot of hand gestures, and no shortage of italian food.

Similar to Argentina which is a country that I love but not qualified for their visa now,

You can be sure to get both great steaks and pasta there.

The way they speak Spanish sounds like Italian, which is delightful.

For those that qualify and can live with the endless roller coaster that is the Argentine economy, Argentina is much more affordable than Uruguay especially if you pick a city outside of Buenos Aires.

Edited Sunday at 08:34 AM3 days by Jingthing

7 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Similar to Argentina which is a country that I love but not qualified for their visa now,

You can be sure to get both great steaks and pasta there.

The way they speak Spanish sounds like Italian, which is delightful.

For those that qualify and can live with the endless roller coaster that is the Argentine economy, Argentina is much more affordable than Uruguay especially if you pick a city outside of Buenos Aires.

Go eat steak and pasta in Pattaya. You will be doing these topics in 5 years and won't go. You remind me of Fred.

In case anyone is interested (not me) Paraguay is in the process of making the path to permanent residence much harder. That's always the trend internationally.

What that means practically is if you have a Plan A country in mind and you're qualified now, go for it sooner than later, as later you may not even be qualified.

Edited Sunday at 08:40 AM3 days by Jingthing

Portugal.

Easy D7 visa.

Low cost of living.

Peaceful weather.

Beautiful.

European standards.

Easy to find or avoid expats.

1 minute ago, sidjameson said:

Portugal.

Easy D7 visa.

Low cost of living.

Peaceful weather.

Beautiful.

European standards.

Easy to find or avoid expats.

Not at all low in Porto and Lisbon.

Hellishly long often over a year immigration processing times messing up expats access to thinks like national health care, etc.

The advantageous taxation scheme for expats was SCRAPPED.

It is now a HIGH TAXATION country for retired expats.

Skip it.

BTW, I do think Portugal is a great country and I love the, food but ...

Maybe look at Albania instead. It's in a much earlier stage of being "ruined" by an expat influx. Give it ten years for that.

Edited Sunday at 08:55 AM3 days by Jingthing

33 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Not at all low in Porto and Lisbon.

Hellishly long often over a year immigration processing times messing up expats access to thinks like national health care, etc.

The advantageous taxation scheme for expats was SCRAPPED.

It is now a HIGH TAXATION country for retired expats.

Skip it.

BTW, I do think Portugal is a great country and I love the, food but ...

Maybe look at Albania instead. It's in a much earlier stage of being "ruined" by an expat influx. Give it ten years for that.

Albania may be promising and also a beautiful country, but it is still in the middle of a politically challenging region.

A friend of mine moved to the Czech Republic and loves it, but I’m not sure it’s as straightforward for non-EU citizens.

Czechia ranks very high globally: the 2025 Global Peace Index places it around 11th of 163, among the safest countries in the world.

As a non-Thai, you can apply for a retirement visa for Mexico from Thailand. If approved, you have six months to enter Mexico to keep the visa valid.

That's similarly convenient as Chile and I'm sure a lot more people are interested in Mexico than Chile.

This guy is pushing Uruguay.

Citizenship takes 3-5 years?

But you don't need to be present the entire year.

And he says Latin America has the equivalent of EU Shengen, so the Paraguay passport gives you rights in neighboring countries ... Chile, ...

Edited Monday at 12:58 PM2 days by save the frogs

27 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

This guy is pushing Uruguay.

Citizenship takes 3-5 years?

But you don't need to be present the entire year.

And he says Latin America has the equivalent of EU Shengen, so the Paraguay passport gives you rights in neighboring countries ... Chile, ...

27 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

This guy is pushing Uruguay.

Citizenship takes 3-5 years?

But you don't need to be present the entire year.

And he says Latin America has the equivalent of EU Shengen, so the Paraguay passport gives you rights in neighboring countries ... Chile, ...

27 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

This guy is pushing Uruguay.

Citizenship takes 3-5 years?

But you don't need to be present the entire year.

And he says Latin America has the equivalent of EU Shengen, so the Paraguay passport gives you rights in neighboring countries ... Chile, ...

Again you need to invest 100K USD.

6 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Again you need to invest 100K USD.

Are you sure?

A quick AI search brings up this:

It only has 3.4 million people.

And residency is FAST.

Edited Monday at 01:33 PM2 days by save the frogs

2 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Are you sure?

A quick AI search brings up this:

It only has 3.4 million people.

Yes.

www.brighttax.com/blog/retire-in-uruguay/

• Retirement Visa: Requires $1,500/month in passive income and a $100,000 investment in real estate or securities held for 10 years.

BTW, Ecuador has a pure investment visa option which goes up annually. Currently about 46K USD mostly used to buy real estate as the bank CD option pays very low interest. You can actually buy a small unit in Cuenca for about that. Much more affordable than Uruguay.

Edited Monday at 01:35 PM2 days by Jingthing

4 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yes.

www.brighttax.com/blog/retire-in-uruguay/

• Retirement Visa: Requires $1,500/month in passive income and a $100,000 investment in real estate or securities held for 10 years.

I just double checked with AI.

No mention of 100K.

Your link doesn't look like an official govt website.

Maybe best to double check there.

3 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

I just double checked with AI.

No mention of 100K.

Your link doesn't look like an official govt website.

Maybe best to double check there.

3 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

I just double checked with AI.

No mention of 100K.

Your link doesn't look like an official govt website.

Maybe best to double check there.

3 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

I just double checked with AI.

No mention of 100K.

Your link doesn't look like an official govt website.

Maybe best to double check there.

Again, I'm sure.

I've seen this on several credible sources.

But a lot of people don't know about it because it is a little bit unusual but not unheard of for a retirement visa.

Since you like AI so much!

does uruguay require 100,000 investment for their retirement visa?

Yes, Uruguay requires a $100,000 investment in real estate or securities held for 10 years as part of the retirement visa application process. Additionally, applicants must demonstrate a minimum passive income of $1,500 per month.

Edited Monday at 01:42 PM2 days by Jingthing

3 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Again, I'm sure.

I've seen this on several credible sources.

But a lot of people don't know about it because it is a little bit unusual but not unheard of for a retirement visa.

100K is usually for citizenship by investment programs.

So seems highly unlikely.

Another visa site that does not mention 100K.

You may be confusing it with another country.

https://visadb.io/visa/temporary-stay/Anywhere/Uruguay/61c206561feb2eb87adf09e1

1500/month

thats it.

5 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

100K is usually for citizenship by investment programs.

So seems highly unlikely.

Another visa site that does not mention 100K.

You may be confusing it with another country.

https://visadb.io/visa/temporary-stay/Anywhere/Uruguay/61c206561feb2eb87adf09e1

1500/month

thats it.

5 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

100K is usually for citizenship by investment programs.

So seems highly unlikely.

Another visa site that does not mention 100K.

You may be confusing it with another country.

https://visadb.io/visa/temporary-stay/Anywhere/Uruguay/61c206561feb2eb87adf09e1

1500/month

thats it.

5 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

100K is usually for citizenship by investment programs.

So seems highly unlikely.

Another visa site that does not mention 100K.

You may be confusing it with another country.

https://visadb.io/visa/temporary-stay/Anywhere/Uruguay/61c206561feb2eb87adf09e1

1500/month

thats it.

YOU ARE WRONG.

Thanks to you I looked further into this and got the REASON there is so much MISINFORMATION out there which you insist on repeating.

The 100K USD investment requirement for the retirement visa was added in 2025!

So RECENT.

Edited Monday at 01:53 PM2 days by Jingthing

5 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

YOU ARE WRONG.

Don't forget to check if the leader there is fascist before you up sticks.

1 minute ago, save the frogs said:

Don't forget to check if the leader there is fascist before you up sticks.

You're such a troll.

BTW, I'm not interested in Uruguay because it's too expensive AND also the 100K investment requirement.

9 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

You're such a troll.

BTW, I'm not interested in Uruguay because it's too expensive AND also the 100K investment requirement.

If the pension requirement is 1500, that must be enough to cover living expenses, give or take.

How much is that in Baht? I doubt Thailand is any cheaper, and minus healthcare expenses there once you have residency.

To be honest, sounds like you are reticent to move out of Thailand, for whatever reasons. Maybe you've been here too long.

You can try contacting the consulate in Bangkok to verify the 100K requirement and if you can start the process from here.

1. Phone: (+66) 2319 7132 or (+66) 2319 7133

2. Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

13 hours ago, Jingthing said:

You're such a troll.

BTW, I'm not interested in Uruguay because it's too expensive AND also the 100K investment requirement.

This video explains it at 9 minutes of the video.

100 K investment is for tax residency. I'm not even sure how that works. I believe it's a way rich folks use to save taxes. With the tax residency, you don't need to physically live in Uruguay.

But if you live there, the 100K is not needed.

Don't beat yourself up. Broken clocks are wrong 2 times a day.

On 7/5/2026 at 6:38 PM, Jingthing said:

In case anyone is interested (not me) Paraguay is in the process of making the path to permanent residence much harder. That's always the trend internationally.

What that means practically is if you have a Plan A country in mind and you're qualified now, go for it sooner than later, as later you may not even be qualified.

Just go to Cambodia. $300. Right next door. Visit Thailand every 2 months.

24 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

If the pension requirement is 1500, that must be enough to cover living expenses, give or take.

How much is that in Baht? I doubt Thailand is any cheaper, and minus healthcare expenses there once you have residency.

To be honest, sounds like you are reticent to move out of Thailand, for whatever reasons. Maybe you've been here too long.

You can try contacting the consulate in Bangkok to verify the 100K requirement and if you can start the process from here.

1. Phone: (+66) 2319 7132 or (+66) 2319 7133

2. Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

24 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

If the pension requirement is 1500, that must be enough to cover living expenses, give or take.

How much is that in Baht? I doubt Thailand is any cheaper, and minus healthcare expenses there once you have residency.

To be honest, sounds like you are reticent to move out of Thailand, for whatever reasons. Maybe you've been here too long.

You can try contacting the consulate in Bangkok to verify the 100K requirement and if you can start the process from here.

1. Phone: (+66) 2319 7132 or (+66) 2319 7133

2. Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

2 hours ago, save the frogs said:

This video explains it at 9 minutes of the video.

100 K investment is for tax residency. I'm not even sure how that works. I believe it's a way rich folks use to save taxes. With the tax residency, you don't need to physically live in Uruguay.

But if you live there, the 100K is not needed.

Don't beat yourself up. Broken clocks are wrong 2 times a day.

My response.

You are still WRONG.

You're not actually interested in this visa stuff -- you just want to play obnoxious weak gotcha games.

Points:

The video is not about the retirement visa.

It appears though I'm not 100 percent sure that the video was made BEFORE they added the 100K USD investment requirement to the retirement visa which happened in 2025.

The video talks about how great the tax situation is there for expats.

Another hint the video PREDATES when they made the taxation scheme less friendly for expats.

Again, a 100K USD investment (usually real estate) is required for the retirement visa there.

It is true you can enter and live there for a long time starting when you begin your application process. That's very nice of them.

HOWEVER, to actually finalize the process of your retirement visa application you'll need to have made that 100K USD investment.

Also to add the income levels of visas quite often have very little to do with actual cost of living.

It costs more than 1500 to live decently in Uruguay.

Similar to the 1000 dollar requirement in Panama when it costs much more than that to live in popular expat areas.

NEVER assume the income requirements indicates cost of living!

100K is not nearly enough to buy anything at all decent in the areas most expats want to live.

Edited Tuesday at 06:24 AM1 day by Jingthing

I will add a touch of diplomacy.

I actually care about the truth about these options rather than trying to win any sophomoric pissing contests.

So I will say this.

I'm sure Uruguay is a great choice for many people.

IF you're seriously interested in Uruguay I suggest consulting a Uruguayan immigration attorney and not relying on any websites or forum banter.

Uruguay is a case where there is a level of complexity and ambiguity especially with rather recent big changes including about taxation, that this advice makes sense.

Some countries you need a lawyer.

Others you don't.

Cheers.

Edited Tuesday at 07:21 AM1 day by Jingthing

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

Again, a 100K USD investment (usually real estate) is required for the retirement visa there.

You keep bringing up the retirement visa. I asked AI if you even NEED a retirement visa for Uruguay, and apparently you don't. It's not like Thailand. People are applying for residency there.

Regarding livings costs, you are probably right. But is Thailand really that cheap?

Anyway, I will not continue arguing on here. Obviously, if anyone wants to move there, they should get their advice from legal experts, not AN.

Edited Tuesday at 07:35 AM1 day by save the frogs

4 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

You keep bringing up the retirement visa. I asked AI if you even NEED a retirement visa for Uruguay, and apparently you don't.

GeographicReference

Anyway, I will not continue arguing on here. Obviously, if anyone wants to move there, they should get their advice from legal experts, not AN.

Yes it's a permanent residence you're going after.

But you need to qualify for that residency.

There are different classifications.

For retirement (pensionado/jubilado) you need the 1500 a month and also the 100K USD investment.

As I said there is a complexity there.

CONSULT A LAWYER.

17 hours ago, save the frogs said:

If the pension requirement is 1500, that must be enough to cover living expenses, give or take.

How much is that in Baht? I doubt Thailand is any cheaper, and minus healthcare expenses there once you have residency.

To be honest, sounds like you are reticent to move out of Thailand, for whatever reasons. Maybe you've been here too long.

You can try contacting the consulate in Bangkok to verify the 100K requirement and if you can start the process from here.

1. Phone: (+66) 2319 7132 or (+66) 2319 7133

2. Email: [email protected] / [email protected]

I have posted many times including on this topic that I don't want to leave Thailamd.

Thus the topic is about Plan B if for whatever reason staying in Thailand becomes unfeasible. (Use your imagination about that.)

I had flirted with one Plan A option namely Chile. That would mean moving somewhere without first needing to leave Thailand. But my focus remains that I want to stay in Thailand if at all possible.

As far as costs:

AI summary but you will find similar on ANY cost comparisn website.

Of course it's much better to compare a specific place in one country to a specific place in another.

Thailand is approximately 33.4% cheaper than Uruguay overall. This includes lower costs for housing, food, transportation, and entertainment in Thailand compared to Uruguay.

Edited Tuesday at 07:55 AM1 day by Jingthing

18 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Thailand is approximately 33.4% cheaper than Uruguay overall. This includes lower costs for housing, food, transportation, and entertainment in Thailand compared to Uruguay.

Only if you're single, maybe.

It doesnt factor in dating costs.

Some guys are supporting Isaan girls and their extended families in Thailand.

Not sure what the dating scene is like there and if women are more self-sufficient.

2 minutes ago, save the frogs said:

Only if you're single, maybe.

It doesnt factor in dating costs.

Some guys are supporting Isaan girls and their extended families in Thailand.

TravelGuides & Travelogues

Not sure what the dating scene is like there and if women are more self-sufficient.

I would say they are.

Hadn't realized you were seeing Thailand through that kind of lens.

Up to you, sir.