Jingthing Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 (edited) Teaching English? Do you have a college degree? So you have no visa in your passport? Is your air ticket one way, if not, when is the return? Want good info, give good info. I personally know 2 people who recently left Thailand after teaching for 2 years without college degrees. They were saving money and are now traveling. My ticket is one way. I will buy another one-way refundable ticket out of the country on Monday, as cheaply as possible. I have no visa. I am looking for advice on the best way to do this. You can get expert advice on teaching English in the forum for that here. Of course with no degree and/or TEFL certification (costs money to get) the legal opportunities to do that would be limited at best. Just so you are aware it sounds like you are thinking about breaking Thai law. Not saying that is so rare.On the ticket thing, yes that is an option to be able to board. Arrive at the airport with a one way ticket, no visa, and a ticket leaving Thailand within 30 days of arrival. That said, it still wouldn't surprise me if the agents at the airport give you some grief, with a one way ticket and no visa. Not saying you won't be boarded though with that though some kind of visa would be better. Visa wise, there is no visa for illegal teaching. There is a visa for studying something four hours per week. Most people using that scheme study Thai. The school fees cost money though. That is probably your best option to stay the one year. Then there are visa runs. You get 30 days stay on air arrival without a visa. 15 days stay on arrivals by land. There are visa fees for some border run countries. You can apply for tourist visas (60 day stay each entry) in neighboring countries. There are 30 day extensions for those available in Thailand. In my view, the school fee scheme would overall be less hassle and maybe even less expensive than the visa run game. I think for the ED visa (studying) you need to get a single entry O visa first (contact a school ), typically done in Malaysia or Laos. Notice all the travel, visa fees, etc. The money adds up. I think you don't have enough, but good luck. Edited February 18, 2012 by Jingthing Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notmyself Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 What a great idea. The guy has a ticket so he is going to come regardless. With the huge amount of knowledge that TV members have I think he could do it, for a year anyway. I would say keeping a daily log could result in quite an interesting read at the end, maybe even a book. I'm disabled myself and manage to live on 18-20k a month. It's double the amount he has to spend but I live very well though if I dumped some of the extras such as fast internet I could reduce it to maybe 14-15k a month without seriously changing my lifestyle. I agree... After I pay <notorious loan shark bank 1> (credit card 1, credit card 2, credit card 3, <notorious loan shark bank 2> credit card 4, and other assorted obligations in the U.S. that is abt what I have left... In a few years I will be free from that and won't regret it. It it is quite manageable here on that, and I have not exactly been starving as evidenced by the fact I am still fat, and I have my two beers a night (alas Guinness is a rare indulgence). It is very doable... The budget that is required in Thailand to live does not have to be a lot. And Thailand is a wonderful and fantastic place to live No question it's doable but it takes a certain character to achieve it. Not sure Guyz has the knowledge at hand but with advice from members and a bit of fortitude it could be quite some adventure. As I said, I could reduce my monthly outgoings to 14-15k without any serious loss in lifestyle. I live on Samui which is well known for not being cheap, if I lived on the mainland again I could knock perhaps another 3k a month off which would take it down to 11-12k. I could do it but wouldn't want to which I think is what many posters have said. For someone fresh of the boat, 300 US is going to be hard to do at first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cooked Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 get a return ticket to Phnom Penh dated 30 days later (maybe 140 dollars) . You will be in immigration for a long time I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notmyself Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 Teaching English? Do you have a college degree? So you have no visa in your passport? Is your air ticket one way, if not, when is the return? Want good info, give good info. The visa question is somewhat pressing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
notmyself Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 Teaching English? Do you have a college degree? So you have no visa in your passport? Is your air ticket one way, if not, when is the return? Want good info, give good info. I personally know 2 people who recently left Thailand after teaching for 2 years without college degrees. They were saving money and are now traveling. My ticket is one way. I will buy another one-way refundable ticket out of the country on Monday, as cheaply as possible. I have no visa. I am looking for advice on the best way to do this. Lets say you do manage to make into the Kingdom. You are seriously going to have to 'up your game'. The visa issue even when here is going to be a huge problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guyz Posted February 18, 2012 Author Share Posted February 18, 2012 Teaching English? Do you have a college degree? So you have no visa in your passport? Is your air ticket one way, if not, when is the return? Want good info, give good info. I personally know 2 people who recently left Thailand after teaching for 2 years without college degrees. They were saving money and are now traveling. My ticket is one way. I will buy another one-way refundable ticket out of the country on Monday, as cheaply as possible. I have no visa. I am looking for advice on the best way to do this. Lets say you do manage to make into the Kingdom. You are seriously going to have to 'up your game'. The visa issue even when here is going to be a huge problem. I guess I was misinformed. I was told by a guy who goes there regularly to visit a fiance that it isn't a problem just to show up with a passport and no visa at the airport. Anyway, I'm on the road for the day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guyz Posted February 18, 2012 Author Share Posted February 18, 2012 I was also not aware that it was criminal to teach English without TEFL(?). A direct quote would be, "Any native English speaker can get a teaching job in Thailand without to much trouble." The trouble with planning ahead is if your information is bad, your plans are bad . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vpi78 Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 I was also not aware that it was criminal to teach English without TEFL(?). A direct quote would be, "Any native English speaker can get a teaching job in Thailand without to much trouble." The trouble with planning ahead is if your information is bad, your plans are bad . It's not a crime but recently the Thais have been transitioning to requiring teachers be certified via TEFL and/or a degree. The best site to go to for information about teaching in Thailand is Ajarn. Thailand is one of those places where the way things are supposed to work and the way they actually work is often, if not usually, different. There are plenty of teachers still teaching in Thailand, especially in the boonies, with either forged KSR (Khao Sarn Road) certificates or no certificates but they have help and/or have been in the system long enough to know the work arounds. You won't have that knowledge or network, especially at first so you need to either get lucky and make a contact, learn fast, or stay far away from any work for which you are neither qualified nor have a work permit. Whatever you do, take whatever advice you read on this site with a grain or 3 of salt. Some folks on this site have never even been to Thailand and I suspect a large numer, if not most, don't live in Thailand now. But you will come across loads of ex-CIA/Green Beret/Delta Force/Ranger/SAS on this site sharing their experiences .... yeah .... right. Good luck to you and I hope you keep posting about your adventure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Geekfreaklover Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 (edited) My advice: Work. You could probably find a teaching job without qualifications, but the problem would be actually doing the job. If you haven't taught before and can't speak the language it will be a nightmare for the first few months. Asides from what most people think teaching a foreign language well is not easy. Thai culture will baffle you. You have to have energy and be creative, you need to know the basics of Thai to have any respect from the students and the Thai teachers.Unqualified you'll be teaching at government schools unless you score some private work. Listen, dude, if you suffer from headaches being in a class of 50 screaming children isn't going to help your condition. Internet related work such as website design etc. Yes, you could learn, but it takes years before you can realize the dollars. Same goes for SEO, eBay, and other online ventures. Housing. You can get a place for 2k pretty much everywhere excluding the resort islands. Think about that deposit. You have to pay it and you will probably not get it back. That's 6k right there. Don't count on a deposit being returned to buy an airline ticket home. Consider it an expense paid and be happy if it is returned. Food. Eat out at 30 baht street stalls. Cow car moo, cow man gai, noodles. Buy a 600 baht electric pan, a halogen oven is 900 baht. Don't weaken and buy western food - you can't afford it. Visa. Biggest concern. I'm not sure that without one and no return ticket the airline will let you board the flight. If they do and once your 30 days are up start researching on sites like this one. A double entry toursit visa will give you another 5 months. Education visa longer. If you overstay then you are looking at a maximum of 20k baht fine which should only be paid once you are at the airport and before you board the flight. I'm not saying you should overstay. But do understand what the consequences are. Everytime you check into a hotel your passport is checked. Keep it in order. Good luck! GFL. Edited February 18, 2012 by Geekfreaklover Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wayned Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 (edited) If you are really comming and want to stay here for a while without any problems, you should get a tourist visa before you come. Best choice would be triple entry. You can do it by mail through an Honoray consulate. $40 per entry. I would suggest either Portland or Houston. Info on both is attached. You can get almost 270 days out of a triple with two border runs if you use it properly. Good luck! Visa application porcedures, Portland Oregon.doc Visa application procedures , Houston Texas.doc Don't go to Pattaya or Bangkok, you will be quickly caught up in the "lifestyle" and your 300 bucks will be gone before you can blink your eyes! Edited February 18, 2012 by wayned Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgphuket Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I am arriving in Bangkok on Tuesday, the flight is already purchased. Looking for help. Funny that some people say it is possible on $300 a month, and when I double it, some still say it is impossible. I'll be doing it whether people nay-say or not. Hopefully some people will offer some solid advice as to how. Thank you to those who have already given some! You have already been told you cannot do it or that you will be miserable. I understand the wanting to live here; I have been here 2 years and made a wonderful life, but I came with 5k USD and hit the ground running and have worked in a well paid job ever since. I hope you do well here but have a hunch you will be apporaching farangs in bars and coffee shops asking for handouts. Many of us do not help farang who creat their own problems so good luck surviving on your own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cgphuket Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I am arriving in Bangkok on Tuesday, the flight is already purchased. Looking for help. Funny that some people say it is possible on $300 a month, and when I double it, some still say it is impossible. I'll be doing it whether people nay-say or not. Hopefully some people will offer some solid advice as to how. Thank you to those who have already given some! You have already been told you cannot do it or that you will be miserable. I understand the wanting to live here; I have been here 2 years and made a wonderful life, but I came with 5k USD and hit the ground running and have worked in a well paid job ever since. I hope you do well here but have a hunch you will be apporaching farangs in bars and coffee shops asking for handouts. Many of us do not help farang who creat their own problems so good luck surviving on your own. In other words, 99% chance you will crash and burn and be selling BJ's under the bridge or be begging on Sukhamvit. Remember how many people told you not to do this when it all turns to m&^#$ (around 8 hours after landing). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pseudolus Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Visa - get an education visa to learn Thai -22k baht for a year. Job done. Do that on arrival. Get a train ticket / bus out of the country date 30 days. Might not be refundable, but certainly cheaper. Location - head North, north east; stay in temples as much as you can in the proximity of the language school you will be studying in. Typically you can stay in one for a week no problems. You can also find an introduction to Muay Thai boxing this way as well perhaps. Avoid living in big cities like the plague - you will seep money all the time. Do not get a GF; you will be broke in a week. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pseudolus Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I have the feeling he will come, has been told that you can live here for 100 bucks a month by some 'nam vet buddy of his and thinks everyone here is trying to dissuade him so we can keep our dirt cheap paradise to ourselves. His 300 bucks will last him in the region of 4 days I reckon, and then he will be on here asking about how to get a thai credit card or a repatriation flight. Maybe not... u r assuming everyone is the same... Not everyone comes here for the same reasons or with the same needs.... And you are assuming that every male poster fits into the stereotype ingrained in your mind as well. Shock horror! Man living in Thailand is not a whore-mongering alcoholic. So boring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granuaile Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 And you are assuming that every male poster fits into the stereotype ingrained in your mind as well. Shock horror! Man living in Thailand is not a whore-mongering alcoholic. So boring. That is not what I said. I said not everyone is, including perhaps the OP. I never said everyone is. But it is quite feasible to live in Thailand inexpensively if you do not want to live a lifestyle close to what you would have in the west. Coming here with that mindset, I think he could live OK although no frills. Living is not the problem, doing so legally is another matter. The reason it costs many people so much is that they opt to live in the city center, take taxis instead of buses, like western food and western pubs. I think impossible even without adding nightly binge drinking and women. He is already roughing it pretty much in the U.S. - I think if he can do it he can live more comfortably here than he is there on that amount. I would not want to try to live on that but I think I could... maybe it would be good for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expatdreamer Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 $300 USD a month for disability? In Oz, you get close to $700 AUSD a fortnight for disability pension - http://www.centrelink.gov.au/internet/internet.nsf/payments/dsp_rates.htm All I know is I wouldnt want to do it even on the Oz disability pension, good luck to the OP on the much smaller amount. And I can see where all my taxes are going in Oz.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
granuaile Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Good luck to the OP. I will admit I was skeptical at first, but if he is willing to try and is determined maybe that is all he needs - my thinking now is he will never know unless he does make an attempt at least... I hope he can succeed... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Berkshire Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Good luck to the OP. I will admit I was skeptical at first, but if he is willing to try and is determined maybe that is all he needs - my thinking now is he will never know unless he does make an attempt at least... I hope he can succeed... I suspect the OP is on a one-year mission--to find a Thai wife and bring her back to the states. Fair enough. Probably better that he's here on-the-ground, in-country, rather than try to do this online sight-unseen. For this, I've got good news and bad news for the OP. The good news is that he'll find what he's looking for. The bad news? That he'll find what he's looking for. Things are never as they appear to be in the LOS....especially as it pertains to farang/Thai relationships. I too wish the OP good luck in his quest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ajaan Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Definitely not. Unless you grew up in Appalachia and are used to surviving as the worst, lowly condition of the poor in America...you will not survive living on this kind of money in Thailand, especially in a cultural environment where NOBODY (Thais) cares about your disability... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SymS Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 One guy in Chiang Mai lives with 6000 Baht a month, but that's not for everyone. I also suppose it does not include costs related to visas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rotary Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Well I have been in Thailand most of the time since the late 80s. I have lived in Bkk and up country. I know the lay of the land here, speak a reasonable amount of Thai. I would say bare minimum is $700 a month but a good low average to live would be $1000 a month. Any less than $1000 a month better stay in the USA and hope Obama gets reelected to continue socialist style government in the USA to help that $300 a month income. As some others have said we have enough foreign folks living on nothing now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I guess I was misinformed. I was told by a guy who goes there regularly to visit a fiance that it isn't a problem just to show up with a passport and no visa at the airport. Anyway, I'm on the road for the day. The vast majority of Americans flying from the US to Thailand are TOURISTS without a visa in their passport, with ROUNDTRIP tickets where the return date comes back to the US within 30 days. Americans get a 30 day stamp permission to stay on arrival to Thailand (not a visa). The airlines all have boarding rules, they are usually very similar, and they are mostly enforced though not always. They want to make sure you will be allowed in Thailand. If you have ANY visa in your passport, they will board you. Otherwise, if they are enforcing their rules, they want to see an air ticket leaving Thailand within 30 days. Arriving with a one way ticket is a RED FLAG in air travel today. They will almost definitely demand a visa or air ticket out in those cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I was also not aware that it was criminal to teach English without TEFL(?). A direct quote would be, "Any native English speaker can get a teaching job in Thailand without to much trouble." The trouble with planning ahead is if your information is bad, your plans are bad . I am not sure what you are asking here. It may not be "to much trouble" to find illegal English teaching work in Thailand but it is illegal to do such work without a WORK PERMIT. If you are serious about teaching English teaching, there is a specific forum about that on this site. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metisdead Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Some troll posts have been removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anselpixel Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I've been here a little more than two years, and speak some Thai. As an experiment, I decided to use the $500 benchmark last month and lived a simple but comfortable life for 25 days. Then I had to go back to the ATM. End of experiment. I seem to end up spending about $650-750 per month when I'm not keeping up with every baht. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sateev Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 The visa issue is the killer. Even if he has the initial capital to apply for a non-o BEFORE he departs, and pay the school the ~$700 for classes upfront, he will be constrained to living in/around the area where such a school exists, i.e., Pattaya, BKK, Chiang Mai, rather than in a village in the provinces, so rents will be higher. If he can score a triple-entry tourist visa, he still needs to exit Thailand, and, more significantly, enter a bordering country, where he will have to pay a visa fee. Laos/Cambodia are out, leaving Malaysia, if he lived in, say, Hat Yai. I don't know off hand if Malaysia has a visa fee (I seem to remember it doesn't). Even Myanmar wants a nice new $10 bill to let you across. He appears to have savings, however, so if he excludes the incidentals, his MONTHLY budget could be manageable at $300, given his expectations. If it were me, however, I would rent a room in Tijuana, Mexico, eat well and still not too expensive, enjoy parks and libraries, and ride cheap buses to the beach at Playas. Proximity to San Diego and the VA a plus for a veteran. (And don't bother telling me how dangerous it is - unless you hang out in a drug-infested colonia, you only have a low, random chance of ever seeing any drug violence). I actually used to know a couple of guys who did it on that much, maybe five years ago. Just saying... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trainman34014 Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 All this cobblers about having to have a return ticket to get a visa on entry is just that...cobblers ! If you arrive on a one way ticket you will still get a 30 day tourist visa and they won't even ask to see any tickets whatsoever. I know this to be true because I did it several times when I used to come here some years back. If you want to extend you can go to immigration and get longer for 1,900 Baht. After that it's up to you what you want to do and you can buy a ticket to leave the country in any direction you want to. You can then return on a single ticket and start the process all over again. Too many people hand out bum information when they've never actually done things for themselves. Notwithstanding the aforementioned; if the OP wants to come and live here on $300 dollars a month I wish him the very best of luck....he's going to need it ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 Cobblers isn't American speech. Talking here about going to an airport in America with a one way ticket to Thailand and no visa/no air ticket out. That's usually a non-starter. At the airport check in desk; not talking about arrive in Thailand -- totally different things. The last I heard you can get a mere 7 day extension on a 30 day stamp for 1900 baht (that's a large percentage of the OP's monthly budget). You can get 30 day extensions of tourist visas (stretching a 60 day stay to 90). 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DGS1244 Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 When I lived in Kamphang Phet I met some foreigners who lived on less than $300 some months, they had a miserable existance and without 'friends' buying them drinks etc. their life was doing nothing but sit in their cheap rotten rooms. Don't try it, just not worth the hassle. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigJohnnyBKK Posted February 19, 2012 Share Posted February 19, 2012 I think a fair minimum price for food would be closer to 200B per day. Thai people can do cheaper than that because they live in big families or they live with friends or relatives and they cook themselves. If you live alone it's cheaper to buy food in stalls on the street than it is to cook yourself. If you're a farang (and especially and American) your average daily (food) intake will cost more than 120B per day (taking into account bigger people need more food). I am American, and my household spends B120-150 per day on food - my two kids, the full-time live-in maid and her two daughters. Supplemented by B1,200-1,500 for stuff like toiletries & cleaning supplies and the ex-wife's family sends up 10kg of rice whenever someone comes to BKK. We buy from the Klong Toey market, just basic fruit and veg, small daily amounts of eggs/pork/chicken/fish and of course cook at home. Spending on street food is an occasional luxury, and much less healthy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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