Thai Govt Consider Visa Fee Waiver To Help Rebuild Tourism

[unanimosity]

Then they all chip in and buy more pumps?

They will focus on the domestic market.

People spending the last of their savings and then borrowing to repair their homes and businesses after the 5,000 baht Gov. assistance is finished on day 1, will really have the ready cash to jet off to the other parts of Thailand next year...

Not only that; for a ministry of tourism to be involved in domestic tourism is like marketing to your kids to be sure and shop in the family store. Zero positive gain for the country, only redistribution of existing resources. This is why it raises a red flag because there are so many opportunities for abuse in using public sector funds to promote private sector tourism interests, e.g., which private sector is willing to cough up the most kickback? Thailand sure as heck doesn't benefit from marketing tourism to Thai people, but you can be sure somebody benefits from it.

[rogerdee123]

Malaysia:

- 90 days visa when entering, you just get out the country for 3 days and come back for 90 days.

- possible to get a 10 years resident permit easily (New rules for attracting professionals with high expertise)

- possible to buy one house in you name with loans from local banks

- population speaking english at 98%

So, more and more people are retiring in Malaysia under a scheme named "Malaysia second Home" and all those people with income above average spend their money locally....

For Tourism Thailand, ..... look what are doing your neighbours.

[bigbamboo]

Also would be a good idea to get rid of the racket of charging Bht150 for using a foreign ATM card

I agree. That's a killer particularly with the poor exchange rate as I can only withdraw the equivalent of 300 UKP per day. And now banks in the UK have put up their charges for using cards in foreign atms.

I get round it by sending a large sum to a "friendly" bank account in Thailand by SWIFT bank transfer. A one off 25 UKP fee for however much I want to send and the exchange rate is a lot better too. All done on the internet too boot.

That's the way do it! Only 17 UKP and up to ten thousand pounds each time. And as you say the rate is better than you'll get anywhere else, close to spot. Plus if you're clued up or you like to gamble (!) you have a chance to send it at the optimum price.

[hellodolly]

<br />

<br /><br />Don't know what backward country you live in but I am sure they are not as easy to get into as Thailand for a holiday. The very fact you have been doing it off and on for eight years shows how easy it is.<br /><br />Thailand is looking to attract tourists not expats it has lot's of them already. You really should read the post before you kick your mindless bashing in to gear.<br /><br />Most expats have a full brain and have other types of visa's You on the other hand<br />

<br /><br />Give your brain a rest,pal.<br /><br />I left when they changed the visa rules years ago.<br /><br />I already listed the countries and if you can put your computer in to gear you can actually read the costs and visa fees I provide you.<br /><br />Thailand has the Russian Mafia now.<br /><br />I have plenty of friends in Thailand that keep me informed as to what is and is not happening.<br />

<br /><br /><br />

You listed a bunch of countries you have been in. I don't know if your prices are rite but I do know there is a bribe to be paid in Indionisa. Don't think what you call friends are really that more than likely bar stool buddies. If it was as bad as you say it is why would they stay here,.

As I said before read the article be fore you put your mouth in gear it is about tourists not a bunch of sex starved beer guzzling expats.

You never did say what country is home to you from your attitude I would think you have either been run out of a lot of countries or woke up one morning and found out they were not your country.

[diggledunc]

Also would be a good idea to get rid of the racket of charging Bht150 for using a foreign ATM card

I agree. That's a killer particularly with the poor exchange rate as I can only withdraw the equivalent of 300 UKP per day. And now banks in the UK have put up their charges for using cards in foreign atms.

I get round it by sending a large sum to a "friendly" bank account in Thailand by SWIFT bank transfer. A one off 25 UKP fee for however much I want to send and the exchange rate is a lot better too. All done on the internet too boot.

[diggledunc]

galoubet I use one of the foreign exchange companies in UK, They have a hidden charge of £20 so if I send £1,000 to them they actually exchange £980 but even after that I still get a better exchange rate than I used to do from the banks and on top of that the UK bank charged £25, BKK bank charged as well. I pay now 200B to BKK for receipt in the account. Makes a big difference if you do monthly transfers. And very easy to set up on;line. Maybe this is what you were referring to.

Using UK cards in ATMs is I think a mugs game, charges both sides and an even worse exchange rate and that's before you take into account all the charges.

[chooka]

I never paid fopr a visa on arrival, so what is the difference??

A Tourist visa allows you to stay 60 days. Some counties do not get 30 days on arrival...

30 days.Leave.

14 days.Leave.

Fly in every month? 30 days.

Most expats with half a brain don't wish to make an expensive journey to Burma,Malaysia or Cambodia once a month for a

30 day visa-every thirty days.

I believe a border run only gives you 14 days now.

[Jingthing]

For most nationals using this board, its 30 days entering by air, 15 days entering by land border.

[endure]

I never paid fopr a visa on arrival, so what is the difference??

A Tourist visa allows you to stay 60 days. Some counties do not get 30 days on arrival...

30 days.Leave.

14 days.Leave.

Fly in every month? 30 days.

Most expats with half a brain don't wish to make an expensive journey to Burma,Malaysia or Cambodia once a month for a

30 day visa-every thirty days.

Most TOURISTS only come for 2 or 3 weeks anyway.

[Jingthing]

endure, most maybe, but many making long haul trips from Europe, the Americas, etc. are going for mini sabbaticals.

[endure]

Also would be a good idea to get rid of the racket of charging Bht150 for using a foreign ATM card

I agree. That's a killer particularly with the poor exchange rate as I can only withdraw the equivalent of 300 UKP per day. And now banks in the UK have put up their charges for using cards in foreign atms.

I get round it by sending a large sum to a "friendly" bank account in Thailand by SWIFT bank transfer. A one off 25 UKP fee for however much I want to send and the exchange rate is a lot better too. All done on the internet too boot.

Metrobank dont charge for foreign withdrawls (£300 a day ) their SWIFT rate is £17.50. I believe halifax rate for SWIFT is £9.50. Every little hepls,

Get yourself a Halifax Clarity credit card and make sure you transfer money into the account from your bank 2-3 days after you draw. 3 weeks worth of holiday draws last year cost me £1.23 in Halifax interest.

[galoubet]

galoubet I use one of the foreign exchange companies in UK, They have a hidden charge of £20 so if I send £1,000 to them they actually exchange £980 but even after that I still get a better exchange rate than I used to do from the banks and on top of that the UK bank charged £25, BKK bank charged as well. I pay now 200B to BKK for receipt in the account. Makes a big difference if you do monthly transfers. And very easy to set up on;line. Maybe this is what you were referring to.

Using UK cards in ATMs is I think a mugs game, charges both sides and an even worse exchange rate and that's before you take into account all the charges.

Hi. The advantage of the SWIFT system to me is I can send the money direct from my own bank, online, from wherever I am in the world. No third parties involved. There's a one off £25 fee (was only £20 till a few months ago). AFAIAA my SCB bank in Bangkok does not charge for receiving the money. The exchange rate I get is close to the commercial rate for wire transfers but the rate drops quite a bit if I send just £500 rather than £2500.

Taking £2500 out of an atm in Thailand would cost me £88 (9 x withdrawals @ 150B/£3 each = £27; 2% UK charge = £50; 9 x £1 UK atm fee = £9).

But I often have to send smaller amounts like £400 when I am based in the UK which is not so cost effective. But if I sent a large amount it would be quickly spent by the Thai recipient so I would be no better off. I despair how Thais never seem to manage money. If they see it they spend it. Putting money aside for a "rainy day" never enters their heads.

[surangw]

the fee is more of an annoyance than a financial problem.

[schvonsky1]

The only way tourism will come back is if the government lowers the baht like the dollar, euro and pound did the last 2 years.. A retour flight from Europe cost already 40,000 baht and then getting 40-41 baht for 1 euro makes the holiday to expensive, same for dollar and pound.

Totally correct thailand not a cheap place think it is about time they got the baht sorted out maybe it needs for a whole lot of falangs and the other tourists who come here for the **** to try somewhere else for a change

[schvonsky1]

I never paid fopr a visa on arrival, so what is the difference??

A Tourist visa allows you to stay 60 days. Some counties do not get 30 days on arrival...

30 days.Leave.

14 days.Leave.

Fly in every month? 30 days.

Most expats with half a brain don't wish to make an expensive journey to Burma,Malaysia or Cambodia once a month for a

30 day visa-every thirty days.

Most TOURISTS only come for 2 or 3 weeks anyway.

They do now lol as its too bloody exspensive

[letitbe]

really stupid idea they should increase fees and stop free visas for 30 day or overland 15 day its not going to deter tourists to pay say 30us$ for 30 day and say same for 15 day visa runners and for rif raf well Thailand can do without them IMO I would also make a special tax for long stay forang linked to length of vis say 30,000 baht for 1 year increasing to say 500,000 baht for a 10 year visa. Most forang here have a very high income compared with thais so should pay their share. They could even say visa fee gives free entry to all national parks and pass over income they receive by entry fee. Those who cant pay say 30,000 baht for privilege of living here each year should not be here and no decent tourist will be deterred by having to pay 1500 baht for a vis on entry. Making it free is silly and wont encourage anymore to come. They can make exceptions for asians but us forang should be paying a lot more after all less than 100 baht a day for Thailand experience or to live here is hardly a lot and if its to much for some forang well let them go to other aisan countries which most charge for a visa

[asuwin]

if you apply now you can get a 60 day visa free if you apply for a 12 month visa , you DO NOT HAVE TO LEAVE THE COUNTRY EVERY 90 DAYS, you just report to the police station every 90 days , saves having to spend money on a journey you do not want to do and spend 14 days out of Thailand, i wish some of you people would get your facts straight before posting on this site, and yes you can extend a 60 day visa to 90 days for 1900 bath at the amphur of the city you are in

[letitbe]

The only way tourism will come back is if the government lowers the baht like the dollar, euro and pound did the last 2 years.. A retour flight from Europe cost already 40,000 baht and then getting 40-41 baht for 1 euro makes the holiday to expensive, same for dollar and pound.

Also would be a good idea to get rid of the racket of charging Bht150 for using a foreign ATM card

id increase that as well to 300 baht bloody tight fisted lot moaning about 3 gbp If you dont like it and live here just transfer via TT transfer a decent amount to live for say 6 months. If you dont have that you should not be here

[letitbe]

Sure free tourist visa .... but the non immi O visa will rise in price AGAIN !!!!

Of course the non immi o's don't bring in the big money!

I just want to take my big money out!

I hope the baht stays firm , so that I can get my money back home and put it in gold.

why not just put it in gold here its about best place in world to buy gold and buy/sell spread is about 0.3% unlike in europe where you normally pay 6-10% over spot

[letitbe]

Thailand does itself no favor by demanding a visa at all. I can imagine that the Thai government wants a visa when visitors of poorer countries show up. Demanding a visa from visitors from most developed countries is contra productive, the only reason the Thai government demands visas is because Thailand is a de facto police state in which each and every visitor must be registered, photographed and can possible be followed.

Another absurd rule is that foreigners cannot buy any land, that is not really beneficial to the economy either. The Royalists are probably afraid that Thai-land is stolen. Those elitist own of course plenty of land abroad, but that is an entirely different story. Maybe in a few years when the old guard is sleeping forever, Thailand can be modernized and dragged out of the dark ages.

as a forang with a thai family i hope they never change the law regarding land ownership since it would simply open floodgates and make land property totally unaffordable by any but most rich thais. Here due to these great laws even very poor people usually in countryside own their own land and house even if its a shack. Please save Thailand from fate of Spain and rest. I own some condos my wife and children own land and houses and some condos and im 100% happy with it. I also hope one day the Thai government will stop all this illegal ownership by companies set up purely to try and get around law and that all people whove bought that way are forced to sell the land to Thais. I would however tihnk it a good idea for forang to legally be allowed a lifetime lease or say 50 years instead of current 30 years on land.

[sydneyjed]

Ca'nt understand how some of you couldn't just enrol for thai langauge course/school...Two things it'll do is obviously help you understand the culture that bit better and keep others out of the bars too early in the day and give a sense of purpose...Education visa would certainly help some of you guys..beats me how many do the visa run like that..it would do my head in!!

[bigbamboo]

really stupid idea they should increase fees and stop free visas for 30 day or overland 15 day its not going to deter tourists to pay say 30us$ for 30 day and say same for 15 day visa runners and for rif raf well Thailand can do without them IMO I would also make a special tax for long stay forang linked to length of vis say 30,000 baht for 1 year increasing to say 500,000 baht for a 10 year visa. Most forang here have a very high income compared with thais so should pay their share. They could even say visa fee gives free entry to all national parks and pass over income they receive by entry fee. Those who cant pay say 30,000 baht for privilege of living here each year should not be here and no decent tourist will be deterred by having to pay 1500 baht for a vis on entry. Making it free is silly and wont encourage anymore to come. They can make exceptions for asians but us forang should be paying a lot more after all less than 100 baht a day for Thailand experience or to live here is hardly a lot and if its to much for some forang well let them go to other aisan countries which most charge for a visa

I agree free visas are little more than a worthless gimmick and that the point is being missed here. It's the public perception of Thailand that will influence tourists to come here. I think your foreigner tax idea is also the wrong way to go. Thailand may have it's charms but it is hardly the most ex pat friendly country in Asia as it is.

[osiboy]

Thai Airlines announces that under it's new promotion, it will reduce it's Bangkok - Samui route from 6,360 bt., to 2,930 baht. Well, this is going from the aeronautical stratosphere, to somewhere closer to reality. Was ANYONE buying those $6,360 baht tickets? And we thought Bangkok Air was unreasonable. Well, the AOT had better do something. The high season is approaching, and the work to be done to rehabilitate Thailand's reputation at this point, is Herculean, to say the least. First the coup, then the disastrous coup administration, the the administration of the yellow shirts (does anyone remember Samak?), then the Pattaya riots at the international meetings of heads of state, then the airport takeover by the yellow bellies, then the international outcry and subsequent BBC airings of the documentaries about the jet ski scam operators, and the King Power scam, then the red shirt demonstrations, that shut down the capital for 7 weeks, and now the floods. What else can happen to Thailand? Is there anyone competent enough in the AOT to do what needs to be done to revive the tourist sector? Free visas is the least they can do. What about arresting people like the director of the Samui Immigration office, for his constant request for bribes? What about ousting the Samui mayor, for his tremendous level of incompetence, that is driving tourists away by the thousands. There is so much to be done. Where to start?

you forgot the exchange rates and the atm charges,.............. get your act together thailand or you will freefall all the way down ............FAST !

[TinoThailand]

The only way tourism will come back is if the government lowers the baht like the dollar, euro and pound did the last 2 years.. A retour flight from Europe cost already 40,000 baht and then getting 40-41 baht for 1 euro makes the holiday to expensive, same for dollar and pound.

Also would be a good idea to get rid of the racket of charging Bht150 for using a foreign ATM card

Aeon is free, no 150Baht on top of the costs back in your county and is the only one... im sure more told this already by now...

[TinoThailand]

Ca'nt understand how some of you couldn't just enrol for thai langauge course/school...Two things it'll do is obviously help you understand the culture that bit better and keep others out of the bars too early in the day and give a sense of purpose...Education visa would certainly help some of you guys..beats me how many do the visa run like that..it would do my head in!!

I did a year of study Thai the first year for me in Thailand but the system is so old fasion and full of thing you don't want to learn. Like: there are 2 pencils on the wall? Seriously? 25.000+ Baht? I can say wall in thai, let's start a chat with a nice girl in the club -.- fapanang dohhhh... Thai not even say this, they are lazy and say only panang.

Also BKK imigration can be worse then a sabaai trip to Laos hahaha

Now i try highspeedThai and it's working better for me. Culture i learn from thai friends and not in some school. Spend less time with your "own" people in bars is a good advise for some.

Some live in CR or Udon and bike to the border for a 15 day stamp for a while and then you can get 6 months in Laos (double entry with double extension) and it's not so bad.

after some years it get's boring that you "have" to leave maybe.

:jap:

[galoubet]

id increase that as well to 300 baht bloody tight fisted lot moaning about 3 gbp If you dont like it and live here just transfer via TT transfer a decent amount to live for say 6 months. If you dont have that you should not be here

Many Thais (and maybe some ex-pats too) are still under the misconception that all farangs are rolling rich. That's not my experience. Lots of farangs retire in Thailand because they get a better standard of living on their meagre pensions than they would back home. They can't just transfer large sums which they haven't got to tide them over for 6 months or so. Maybe, like me, they like to spend the cold winters back home somewhere warm and sunny.

Charging large sums to withdraw cash from an atm (irrespective of the actual amount drawn) does nothing to help the Thai economy or the Thai people. It just puts money into the pockets of bankers and we all know what a lovely bunch of unselfish fellows they are. This 150 baht (or 300 as you seem to prefer) charge is money that will not be spent in the Thai economy and for farangs living on the edge who often have young Thai families to support it can mean a lot.

Thai governments have encouraged farangs to come (and to live) and spend their dollars, pounds and euros for good reason. It seems a shame that banks are restricting this flow of cash by their own greed. 150 (or 300) baht may not sound a lot but it's clearly a good earner or the banks wouldn't impose it.

[galoubet]

Another absurd rule is that foreigners cannot buy any land, that is not really beneficial to the economy either. The Royalists are probably afraid that Thai-land is stolen. Those elitist own of course plenty of land abroad, but that is an entirely different story. Maybe in a few years when the old guard is sleeping forever, Thailand can be modernized and dragged out of the dark ages.

It's a difficult one to call. I've bought a couple of houses in Thailand although legally I don't own them. And I haven't spent more money than I can afford to lose. So for me it's money written off. My most recent purchase was a small house in Kanchanaburi that had been for sale (or rent) for years without success till I came along. So I've helped a Thai family with their cash flow and they can now invest in their business. Thai banks rarely (if ever) lend money to buy anything other than brand new properties which leaves many Thais stuck where they bought the house and can only move if they rent out their house and rent another where they want to go. Farangs are used to buying older properties (my home in the UK was built in 1877) and their cash would stimulate the Thai housing market and the wider economy no end.

But I do see a down side with Thais being priced out of the housing altogether. Definitely a difficult call.

Incidentally there are many other "developed" countries that restrict foreign land purchases. I was in Denmark last summer. Beach houses (not beach huts!) are strictly for Danes only.

[localsocalman]

I never paid fopr a visa on arrival, so what is the difference??

A Tourist visa allows you to stay 60 days. Some counties do not get 30 days on arrival...

30 days.Leave.

14 days.Leave.

Fly in every month? 30 days.

Most expats with half a brain don't wish to make an expensive journey to Burma,Malaysia or Cambodia once a month for a

30 day visa-every thirty days.

Tourist visas are for tourists, at least that's why they call them a tourist visa... As an expat I have a non immigrant visa and I don't ever do a visa run... I just get a one year extension every year.

There are varous NON-Immigrant visas ---- which do you have and how do you get the 1 year extension? I'm here on a muli-entry NON-Immigrant O for visiting family. My wife is Thai.

[localsocalman]

The Gov's concern is the TOURIST $$$'s --- it makes great sense to encourage the 60 day tourist visa and waive the fee. Or extend the 30 day visa on arrival to 60 days to encourage the tourist to see the north and the south and spend those tourist $$$'s

[jackr]

Free waiver matters not one wit since most tourist dollars come from the 30-dayers. If you want an incentive, you lower a strong baht, which will also make Thailand more industrially competitive post-flood. Though I'm sure we'd all like to see the Phuket tuk-tuk mafia, dodgy jet-ski operators, airport taxi touts, scammers and bent cops eviscerated, most people back in the world don't really know these things like we do and come anyway.