I'd just like to say in defense of this post which has caught quite a bit of flack, that if you happen to be on a marriage visa and cannot readily qualify for an alternative either because of your age or finances, there is some truth in what he is saying. As far as his comments being indicative of a rocky marriage, if you have registered real estate property in the wife's name that creates a moral hazard for kicking you out of the country should a motive arise down the road for her to want to do this (infidelity, opportunity for financial windfall, dissatisfaction with the marriage). That reality puts many more seemingly rock solid marriages into the "rocky marriage" category than many might realize. As far as "tying up 800K" for a full year, the marriage visa requires 400K, so you are only "tying up" an additional 400K. Also, if you happen to be using an agent in order to circumvent the banking requirement, the agent's fees need to be deducted from the savings you claim to be realizing by not having to keep the 800K on deposit. If you claim that you're earning 4% on 800,000 by investing it overseas in bonds, as opposed to 1% here in Thailand, you might be earning an extra 24,000 baht ($750) by keeping the money overseas, but if the agent is costing you $15K+ your net earnings on that 800K overseas is now reduced to 9K, hardly a bumper return. Plus, on the presumption that you maintain minimal funds in Thailand, you have a considerable currency risk exposure where you to have to transfer a large sum from overseas unexpectedly. And that currency risk, with ever ballooning sovereign debt in Western countries, is on the rise.
