Thailand Elite Card To Be Relaunched In June

[rotary]

It will be as popular as it has ever been

[timewilltell]

Is this some sort of sick joke? I thought foreigners can't buy proprty in Thailand save the odd condo? So these super rich people are going to come to Thailad to buy a scabby condo are they? I don't think the 'elite' will e interested in that even if it comes with a 1million baht fast track through swampy! And if the elite want to buy a property that would match their income they will be into the thorny issue of what the Thai law really s on leases, business property ownership and he rest of it. Who is going to pay 2 million for a few rounds of golf?

They will dispose of the cards - by giving them to VIP's for free for. Hey sure as heck ain't going. To sell any. To link it to a property developer when you can't even buy property here is sending entirely the wrong message. Scam is what this is!

[schondie]

What a deal!

Where do I sign up? Maybe I've been out in the sun too long without drinking any water.

But then again, there's plenty of well-off Chinese and Russians that never heard of the Elite Card the first time around. Phuket and Pattaya could see an influx of Chinese and Russians waving there Elite Cards around as if it's something worth being jealous of.

I imagine the long term expats would use a term that rhymes with "Merchant banker".

[Rice60640]

If the elite can afford such prices, they can afford to stay at those luxurious hotels, spas and golf courses. The only advantage I see is the 5-year visa but then what happens after the five years? Don't think it is a good deal.

[IAMSOBAD]

Immigration will destroy it by their third world approach to enforcement. I know its offered by TAT but RTP at Immigration will make their own rules attached.

I couldn't even transfer visa stamps from an old USA passport to a newly issued one ...even with the US EMBASSY letter.

Immigration said you must go back to Chonburi to do it...even though I have lived in BKK and done two 90 day reports at CHAENGWATTANA. Imagine some HISO paying huge money and getting jerked around by morons who refuse to offer any easy solutions and can only add to the TRAFFIC...POLUTION AND ACCIDENT problems by making people travel all over the country for a simple stamp. Totally nonefficient government.

[TheGhostWithin]

The press release to this shows just how little the Thai administration understands what foreigners want from Thailand and how to attract quality people to generate recurring income for the country.

I do not care about golf courses, I can go to those in France, Italy, and the US. I can even go to them in China and Korea.

I do not care about spas, they have those at Khao San Road for the low end, and the sky is the limit for prices and quality of service globally. This is not a unique product to Thailand.

I hate airports, the less time I spend in them the better for me, the better for my health (the food is not the best and it does little for my happiness).

]Visas in Thailand are relatively easy to obtain, you are asking someone with money to spend 66,666 USD (at 30 per USD) for the above and rights to a visa of which I get a 5 year initial visa, plus a 1 year stay visa on all subsequent arrivals? But I still have to go in and out, even though I am spending the devils sum above?

I realise that I may not be the target of the Elite Card (I still have some insurance to sell in the US, some stores to extort in Russia, or some bribes to take from my province in my role as governor in China), but for people with this kind of money they are not interested in this kind of rubbish, on a long stay they are interested in access rights to land, business and being able to tap into local markets. They also do not want to be having to going in and "reporting" to a grumpy immigration official looking for a bribe in order to make things less difficult than they will make it for you if you do not bribe them..

On a short stay, these people want a chauffeured escort to a prepaid hotel and to be separated from the corruption, filth and risks they perceive to be associated from everyday Thai life. They want a trouble free trip and expect to be treated like an invited guest to the country with assistance at the highest level on any signs of a problem.

Edited May 31, 2013 by TheGhostWithin

[Chicken George]

Words fail me

[Just1Voice]

Wasn't this card Thaksin's baby? Does this mean his return is imminent?

Yes and, Who knows?

[TheGhostWithin]

What a deal!

Where do I sign up? Maybe I've been out in the sun too long without drinking any water.

But then again, there's plenty of well-off Chinese and Russians that never heard of the Elite Card the first time around. Phuket and Pattaya could see an influx of Chinese and Russians waving there Elite Cards around as if it's something worth being jealous of.

I imagine the long term expats would use a term that rhymes with "Merchant banker".

Yes, riding the "elite bus" wearing sparkling gold shirts with sparkling red wigs and waving Chinese flags whilst walking down walking street as a side tour towards the Hilton in anticipation of their "elite" high quality sun bathe on the world famous Pattaya beach eating world famous Pattaya beach Pad Thai with their "elite Ya Ba rocks".

Would you pay an extra $5 for your Big Mac if McDonalds promised you a free Big Mac when you returned tomorrow, with a small print saying "benefits of this voucher may be cancelled without notice at any time without financial compensation or forewarning"?

[IAMSOBAD]

Does it come with a LIFETIME CALIFORNIA WOW MEMBERSHIP at all closed gyms and a FREE JETSKI rental at a beach polluted with pee and pooooooop?

[bri1guy]

^{This card for Bussiness ececutives only.. waste of normal people time reading about this.. I care more about a GoGo Vip card!!}

[Mudcrab]

So this news will close all the treads with 90 days non-im visas and edu-visas etc. – just become an elite member

maybe that's the plan. Lets face it 70 000 dollars isn't a huge amount of money to be able to buy into a country legally.

[TheGhostWithin]

So this news will close all the treads with 90 days non-im visas and edu-visas etc. – just become an elite member

maybe that's the plan. Lets face it 70 000 dollars isn't a huge amount of money to be able to buy into a country legally.

But you are not buying into a country - you are still a visitor, you still cannot own land any more than any other foreigner, you cannot vote, and you are still just as open to manipulation by a corrupt system than anyone else. There really is little differentiation of an Elite card holder from anyone else from what I can see that is being offered for the sum total of 66,666USD entry fee and 666.66USD annual fee.

The devil is in the numbers.

[Mudcrab]

So this news will close all the treads with 90 days non-im visas and edu-visas etc. – just become an elite member

maybe that's the plan. Lets face it 70 000 dollars isn't a huge amount of money to be able to buy into a country legally.

But you are not buying into a country - you are still a visitor, you still cannot own land any more than any other foreigner, you cannot vote, and you are still just as open to manipulation by a corrupt system than anyone else. There really is little differentiation of an Elite card holder from anyone else from what I can see that is being offered for the sum total of 66,666USD entry fee and 666.66USD annual fee.

The devil is in the numbers.

ok I understand

I thought there was more to it

[Briggsy]

Yet again, yet another story, TV posters take the story at face value and completely miss the point.

Thai Elite Card has from the beginning been a superb sleight of hand, transferring wealth from the public purse to various politicians, their proxies, their relatives and close civil servant flunkies who were awarded positions within the agency set up to administer the scheme.

It takes a few million in one-time revenue, probably spends all of that paying green fees and spa costs and then hoovers up billions of baht from the govt. in admin costs, salaries and expenses.

[Mudcrab]

Yet again, yet another story, TV posters take the story at face value and completely miss the point.

Thai Elite Card has from the beginning been a superb sleight of hand, transferring wealth from the public purse to various politicians, their proxies, their relatives and close civil servant flunkies who were awarded positions within the agency set up to administer the scheme.

It takes a few million in one-time revenue, probably spends all of that paying green fees and spa costs and then hoovers up billions of baht from the govt. in admin costs, salaries and expenses.

and your proof of this?...only asking....

[Briggsy]

Yet again, yet another story, TV posters take the story at face value and completely miss the point.

Thai Elite Card has from the beginning been a superb sleight of hand, transferring wealth from the public purse to various politicians, their proxies, their relatives and close civil servant flunkies who were awarded positions within the agency set up to administer the scheme.

It takes a few million in one-time revenue, probably spends all of that paying green fees and spa costs and then hoovers up billions of baht from the govt. in admin costs, salaries and expenses.

and your proof of this?...only asking....

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/464060-thailand-elite-card-closes-down-to-the-tunes-of-25-billion-baht/

[belg]

who do they think they are ? 2.000.000 upfront + 20.000 per year?

i guess that is to support the falling piramide scam

[WhizBang]

At double the price of the original, I would expect this to be half as popular as the original. Or maybe less so, given the 20 year limit, annual fee and no ability to buy/own land.

The only good thing I can see is the 5 year visa and one year stamp, but $70K is one hell of a price to pay for that. I can do 20 years of visa runs for under 200K baht.

Way to go TAT. You have another winner on your hands.

[JustinCredible]

Wasn't this card Thaksin's baby? Does this mean his return is imminent?

Could be - if he buys the card..........

[technologybytes]

I seem to recall that a lot of the fuss last time was that people bought the card and were subsequently refused a visa. It seems that there are (or were) a lot of conditions attached to the 5 year visa beyond merely buying into the scheme.

I can just imagine the consulate/embassy saying "Sorry Mr, you not understand" when applying for the visa.

[F4UCorsair]

Why 9,999,999? 8 is the lucky number for Chinese, so 8,888,888 would be more likely to attract Chinese customers I would have thought.

Wrong pricing.

If you charge the Chinese 9,999,999 thb, they will buy it faster than 2,000,000 thb.

[ratcatcher]

"They took all my money and made off with it."

[Kerryd]

I didn't realize that tourism numbers in Thailand had fallen to such low levels that an additional 1.300 people would equal "helping TAT raise the level of visitor arrivals to new heights."

Seriously.The people with that kind of money to throw away are already flying business/first class (and getting fast-tracked on arrival/departure much as I do every trip). Maybe they aren't all getting chauffeured limos from the airport to their hotel, but I'm sure the regular taxis are not that uncomfortable for those poor unfortunates that have to use them.

And if those "well-to-dos" do like golf, they are probably already willing to pay hefty fees to play where they want, when they want, as often as they want. An average of 2 games per month free ? Certainly not worth the price of the card.

5 year multi-entry visa with 1 year stay privilege ? So, kind of like the 1 year visa I have now that only requires me to report my address once every 90 days to my local immigration office (for considerably less money), or is it the kind where every 90 days you have to make a border run and then 60 days later get a 30 day extension ?

Again, hardly worth the cost.

About the only people I could see that would find this useful are business people being sent to Thailand for the long-term, with the card fees being paid for (and written off) by the business.

Whatever the target demographic is, 1,300 cards is not going to "raise visitor arrivals to new heights" and while this latest scheme will no doubt make the previous one look like gold, I'm sure some people (read: Directors/Managers) will be making substantial salaries and bonuses for awhile (until the cash runs out, again and the scheme has to be rescued, again).

[Gerald14]

Where can I join the queue ?? There must be a mad rush, I need at least two of them

[soi41]

I seem to recall that a lot of the fuss last time was that people bought the card and were subsequently refused a visa. It seems that there are (or were) a lot of conditions attached to the 5 year visa beyond merely buying into the scheme.

I can just imagine the consulate/embassy saying "Sorry Mr, you not understand" when applying for the visa.

Your recalling "a lot of fuss" is simply not correct! No additional conditions whatsoever. The 5 year visas are issued by immigration in Thailand and not by any consulate/embassy abroad.

I know this is a "hate the rich" thread, but at least get your facts straight!

[technologybytes]

I seem to recall that a lot of the fuss last time was that people bought the card and were subsequently refused a visa. It seems that there are (or were) a lot of conditions attached to the 5 year visa beyond merely buying into the scheme.

I can just imagine the consulate/embassy saying "Sorry Mr, you not understand" when applying for the visa.

Your recalling "a lot of fuss" is simply not correct! No additional conditions whatsoever. The 5 year visas are issued by immigration in Thailand and not by any consulate/embassy abroad.

I know this is a "hate the rich" thread, but at least get your facts straight!

However, I do recall reading on this very forum from people who bought the card and were then unable to get the visas as promised.

[Animal68]

Wrong pricing.

If you charge the Chinese 9,999,999 thb, they will buy it faster than 2,000,000 thb.

If you price it at 28,888,888 and offer an escort program with it you will certainly get some Chinese to buy it then. (I think they will most likely be governement officials who will also want their escapes filmed for private use and not public viewing.)

[EmptyMind]

I can't recall anyone having problems with the visa. I think you misheard the bar talk. It was a simple process of going to immigration within Thailand with your card, the visa sticker was placed in the passport and job done.

[technologybytes]

I can't recall anyone having problems with the visa. I think you misheard the bar talk. It was a simple process of going to immigration within Thailand with your card, the visa sticker was placed in the passport and job done.

I'm not saying its a fact, I'm saying that I do recall reading from people on this forum WHO HAD ACTUALLY BOUGHT THE CARD and subsequently been unable to renew the 5 year visa.

I was not aware that immigration in Thailand were in a position to issue any visa except tourist visa on arrival for qualifying countries (Not UK/Germany/USA/ etc) . I thought they only issued extensions to existing visas. Has ANYONE here ever been issued a visa in Thailand ? except of course the limited visa on arrival.

Edited May 31, 2013 by technologybytes