Making the move to Thailand need sugestions

[ikory]

Greetings,

We are planning to move the family to Thailand and I am really finding Chiang Mai might be the best place for us. I have wanted to do this for years and now we are finally going to do it. So I am focusing mostly on Chiang Mai but perhaps someone might have other suggestions?

I am 28 years old male, married to my 27 year old wife and we have 2 children ages 4 and 2. We currently have been living in the Virgin Islands on a nice place on the beach. However it is insanely expensive for electricity, water and food. If we want to run the A/C it would cost around 25,000 bahts a month. Without A/C it is costing us around around 9600 bahts in electricity a month. Water averages around 9600 bahts as well a month. Kinda sick of living on the water and a mountain change would be nice.

We own no furniture and everything we have can fit in a few suitcases so moving for us would be very simple.

I am medically retired from the Marines and my income would be about 139,000 bahts a month. I do not really need to see any doctors. I do need some medication which they mail me my medication from the states to where I am now; so I doubt that would be an issue. I have nerve problems especially with my arms, so getting affordable massages sound awesome.

I sold my wife on the idea of Thailand by telling her things like, amazing food(we both love Thai restaurants), we can have a nice home(hopefully with a pool), and she can have a full time maid so she never has to clean. I showed her a few videos of the markets, restaurants, and the mall at Chiang Mai and she is ready to move now.

I am a outgoing person, however my wife is very quiet and shy. We both do not drink, except maybe a wine or beer on a rare occasion, We do enjoy going out for a tasty meals and the movies. Having internet is a must for us, and we really want high speed internet. We really do not care about western food.

My wife has a BS degree and Sociology and I am a few credits away from having a BS degree in Psychology. She wants to try to start an online business, but we are only looking at it as a hobby right now.

The plan is to get a tourist visa at first while we explore the Country. We were both going to take some thai language classes to get an extended stay. I see the Veterans affairs has a list of Thai schools they have approved. So we are hoping the Veterans affairs will pay both me and my wife to take those classes.

We will try to explore the Country for a month at least before deciding where to settle down. However we are really focusing on Chiang mai but any suggestions? I am wondering are their any English speaking schools for the children in Chiang Mai? Home schooling is what we are planning, but nice to have other options.

[habfan]

At your age and marital status (non Thai wife) obtaining a long term visa will be your first hurdle. Taking Thai language lessons will help with a visa for the duration of the schooling but with the end of the course so is the end of the visa. On the plus side your electric and water bill's will be a fraction of what you were paying in the Virgin Islands and your monthly income will afford you a very comfortable life in the Chiang mai area (or anywhere else in Thailand for that matter). Best of luck

[trainman34014]

If you have never even been to Thailand before then you need to visit with your wife before you make any concrete decisions. Thailand does not suit everyone for a variety of reasons but just thinking about your age(s) and your two young children i fear it may not be the best place for you and your family.

First problem; as previously mentioned is going to be Visa's. You can both get a two month tourist visa which can then be extended while you are here for another 30 days at a cost of 1,900 Baht each person. You are too young for a retirement visa and not married to a Thai national, so you cannot get any other type of 1 year visa unless you are going to become students of something or another. A lot of possible hoops to jump through visa wise so better to visit first, as you say, on a tourist visa and weigh up all the pro's and con's. The only acceptable education for your children would be at International schools which are expensive. Many people with children leave the country for this reason alone.

The cost of living here is a lot less than where your are now living but what you will gain in everyday living costs will be eaten up by school fees plus all the usual kids add on's once they are old enough to start school.

Renting a house with pool is possible and you will need to search around the area yourself if you have a rent car; if not then there are many agents who will help you. However; be wary of agents as there are a lot of rip offs and scams here. The further out of town you live the cheaper rents are generally. Internet no problem, connectable just about everywhere now.

We do have an air pollution problem here in the Chiang Mai area in Feb'-Apr' and this may not suit you especially if anyone in the family is subject to any breathing problems. This is very much a regional thing and is worse some years than others depending on how much rain we get early on in the year. I live some 12 klicks out of town and have never in six years experienced the worst of it but certain area's within the City and surrounding countryside seem to report things much worse than i ever see.

I'm sorry if this response seems negative but forewarned is forearmed and it's better to know some of the negatives before you arrive. You can build your own set of positive's once you see it all for yourself.

Whatever you decide to do i wish you and your family the very best of luck.

[Thighlander]

Cambodia might be a good choice due to the easy visa. You will be utterly disgusted, at first, but you can get it figured out in a few weeks. If you don't come to Thailand; you won't have the cravings for dining back in Thailand, which is 20 times better.

Edited September 1, 2013 by Thighlander

[butterisbetter]

First off, I won't say entirely dismiss the negatives that inevitably will be offered by various parties, but keep in mind that Chiang Mai is consistently rated as one of the best places for Westerners to retire to. For better or worse, you can live in as western a way as you want to. It's a very easy place to live in.

As for international schools being expensive, the ones that are accredited by associations such as Cambridge for the UK are currently running from $5000 to $6000 per student per year. Certainly not expensive by western standards. Anyway, since you are planning on home schooling your children, this isn't much of an issue.

And the Thai food here is wonderful. And if you need a fix, western food is available as well at the Rimping supermarkets which put most supermarkets in the USA to shame.

There are also options to do various kinds of volunteer work which might be a good way for you wife to meet people and make friends. Though, she would ultimately have to get a special visa to be allowed to do that kind of activity in a serious ongoing way.

There are developments which offer a communal pool. Renting a house with a private pool would obviously run you a lot more money. There are also some very nice public pools which are inexpensive to use. And because the Thais fear the darkening effects of the sun, during most of the day the pools are nearly deserted. Membership at hotels with use of gym and pool is another option.

One thing to keep in mind is that some areas of Chiang Mai are liable to flooding. There is a map that regularly gets offered which shows how liable a particular place is to be flooded. If I find it, I will PM it to you.

And as noted above, the air can get bad in the latter part of the dry season. It depends on how dry the dry season gets.

Also, you might want to rent a house close to public transportation.

ANd if you ever want to visit Burma, Cambodia, or Laos, Chiang Mai is about as good a jumping-off point as you will find.

Edited September 1, 2013 by butterisbetter

[NancyL]

If the OP is medically retired from the Marines, he may be eligible for Tricare medical coverage if he has a 100% disability. Veterans who have Tricare can go to CM Ram Hospital (considered by many to be the best in CM) for medical treatment and it's direct billed to the VA. That would be a source for meds, too, since it's difficult for an individual to import medications into Thailand. Within the past year, customs has been cracking down and refusing DHL/FedEx/UPS shipments of meds, even meds that are OTC in the U.S.

But, if the OP is eligible to use the APO mail system, then he can have his meds mailed to the U.S. Consulate here, provided the total weight of each shipment is under 1 lb.

There is a VFW post here, but I don't think there are many young members and few with non-Thai wives. Don't know how the OP would fit in socially with them, but they can be a valuable source of information for veterans.

As mentioned, a recon mission for a couple months would be a good way to answer most of the OP's questions.

[northernjohn]

If you are going to home school your children you will do very well here on that income. I think Nancy covered the medical very well. We have lots of good doctors and some excellent hospitals. The suggestions to come for a trial visit is very good. How ever I don't know if that is a financial possibility with two kids. As mentioned we do have a smokey season with March being the worst of it. Of course it begins in Feb. and goes into April. As was mentioned we have several western type super markets that also have Thai products in them And many Thai markets. The electric and water are cheap here I ran my Air Con all one March and the bill was about 8,000 baht. Where I live I do not get the government rate which is cheaper. I run two machines all night as well as having a TV and computer also a full size refrigerator. You mentioned internet yes it is pretty much available any where but the reliability can at times be a problem in some areas.We have just entered the 3G age.

I am sure that you will find Chiang Mai a very comfortable place to live. We have all kinds of sights to see and a variety of special interest clubs from computer to board games and gardening clubs. As for the Kids it would be a great experience for them. Some thing they will have with them all their life. I wish I had been exposed to different life styles when I was young. Just a personal wish.

[BlackArtemis]

I would also agree that you should come a visit for an extended amount of time. I have seen more than a few young foreign couples with kids come here with little to no previous experience. They pack it up within the year because it was just not the place for them. It sounds like you could come here easily on a trial basis if everything is packed up in suit cases.

International school fees vary from school to school and age. From as low as 50,000 a term to a few 100K, this and renting a house can eat up your monthly income. You should also look into the legality of the online business and if permits are needed or not.

[elektrified]

I agree with the others. Your family will have a huge visa problem. School for the (non-Thai) kids...just as the others said... A rental property with a pool would be on the high end of the rental market. Best you check it out first. Honestly if I was 28 years old, I would be bored here. And...Thailand is not for everybody. If you have not spent a lot of time here before, you may be disappointed.

[billaaa777]

Hi,

Quite a few people have mentioned that you will have VISA problems.

It really is not that big of a deal if you know what you are doing.

If you are worried about it, or have not yet figured out how to get around this issue, just PM me and I will explain it to you.

[elektrified]

I ran my Air Con all one March and the bill was about 8,000 baht. Where I live I do not get the government rate which is cheaper. I run two machines all night as well as having a TV and computer also a full size refrigerator.

Better get your meter checked. We ran our A/C (2 - sometimes 3 units) this last hot season for about 18 hours per day, 2 refrigerators, 3 computers, fans, 2 TV's, etc. and our bill has never been over 2,600 Baht in any month over the last 5 years.

[elektrified]

Hi,

Quite a few people have mentioned that you will have VISA problems.

It really is not that big of a deal if you know what you are doing.

If you are worried about it, or have not yet figured out how to get around this issue, just PM me and I will explain it to you.

They are in their 20's and he is not married to a Thai. For how long can they be students? And what about the children?

[BlackArtemis]

Another quick comment and question, feel free not to answer it if it's too personal.

You are on medical leave, can you legally or physically work?

You could always look at a teaching job, get the visa and then you can get visas for your family as they are dependents.

You don't have to teach English either, there are schools that hire activity directors, after school club leaders and all sorts of thing. With a 4 year degree you could for sure get into the ESL market, but even some of the international schools higher people without teaching degrees for those other positions I listed.

[billaaa777]

They are in their 20's and he is not married to a Thai. For how long can they be students? And what about the children?

Who said anything about being students, because I know I didn't.

[kingalfred]

Wow 140k baht a month at 28 from the US gov and they say Vets arent cared for ,now gonna spend it all in a foreign country , hmmmm

[Beetlejuice]

For 139000 baht per month income in Chiang mai, you can live the life of luxury.

But as others have said, the visas for long stay are going to be a problem, wherever you stay in Thailand.

Your wife may not be permitted a work permit for the running of her own business, even if it`s online and she will be required to obtain a work permit for an online business if it is being run in Thailand.

It may be possible to obtain visas for the children if educated at International schools here? This is something you would need to enquire about at the school.

As for yourself, I cannot see any possible ways for you to obtain a visa for long stay in Thailand. Also being married to a non-Thai national, you will not be allowed to own any land or real estate, only a condo, or have any of the utilities, such as electric, water and phone in your names, which means you will have to permanently rent your accommodation.

Sorry to say; but I do not think it is going to be possible for you and your family to stay long term anywhere in Thailand, unless anyone on here knows better?

[BlackArtemis]

I wouldn't say living like a king, but it can go well.

2 kids at a school like CMIS would be 33,000B a month

House with a pool 15,000-35,000 depending on location, size, and furnishings,

Minimum saving of 40,000 a month as to have a nice savings

More savings for college funds etc.

He could probably clear 40,000-60,000 a month after all bills and savings, which is nothing to be upset about. 40.60k to spend on food, entertainment, etc and not have to worry about bills is a nice amount.

[ikory]

Wow thank you all for the very informative post.

I am not allowed to work as I am on SSDI(NOT SSI), 40% retired with the Marines, and 100% with the Veterans affairs.

As we live out of suitcases I think if something does happen in Thailand we can easily move to a different Country. I really hope we can call Thailand are new home, but nothing in life is set in stone.

Nancy my family is covered under Tricare. That is great the hospital takes tricare. I agree I do not think I will like the VFW. I would probably end up telling all those old guys I am special forces (joking).

Yeah I think we will just end up homeschooling the children. However it is very important that the kids interact with other children which I am sure we could find a way for that to happen.

Now you all have me worried about the Visa issue. So if I take a 6 week Thai language course with my wife and as soon as the class ends the visa ends? That would be really sad. I still have about a year and half of education benefits left so I could go to school full time and get paid to do it. That is at least a short fix. I hate condos but if we buy a dirt cheap condo I wonder if we can get a long stay that way.

I like the idea of running to Laos, Burma, or Cambodia for a new visa if that is possible. I am sure it will be amazing experience for the kids to have.

[elektrified]

Now you all have me worried about the Visa issue. So if I take a 6 week Thai language course with my wife and as soon as the class ends the visa ends? That would be really sad. I still have about a year and half of education benefits left so I could go to school full time and get paid to do it. That is at least a short fix. I hate condos but if we buy a dirt cheap condo I wonder if we can get a long stay that way.

I like the idea of running to Laos, Burma, or Cambodia for a new visa if that is possible. I am sure it will be amazing experience for the kids to have.

If you and your wife go to school for a year and a half I would imagine you could get a visa for that time period...but afterwards??? And who would take care of the kids? And what about their visas?

You can not get a long-stay visa just because you buy a condo.

Going to Laos or Cambodia for a new visa means going every 3 months? 6 months? for a tourist visa.

Edited September 1, 2013 by elektrified

[DekDaeng]

Yeah I think we will just end up homeschooling the children. However it is very important that the kids interact with other children which I am sure we could find a way for that to happen.

You could find a local school - let them learn & socialise there (follow the curriculum yourself, somehow) but give them the antidote to the indoctrination at home.

(Would love to hear what is in the indoctrination that induces the xenophobia. - Anybody?)

Edited September 1, 2013 by DekDaeng

[butterisbetter]

I knew someone who studied Thai for 7 years via education visas. . I've lost track of him but for all I know he's studying still. So an education visa shouldn't be a problem. As I noted above, there are also visas available for people who want to do volunteer work.

[ikory]

I knew someone who studied Thai for 7 years via education visas. . I've lost track of him but for all I know he's studying still. So an education visa shouldn't be a problem. As I noted above, there are also visas available for people who want to do volunteer work.

So if I take a Thai Language class can I get dependent visa's for my children and wife? If that will work maybe me and my wife could just take turns going to school learning Thai and getting dependent visas.

The volunteer work is something I would be willing to do however I have nerve issues and doing physical activity probably a bad idea.

Edited September 1, 2013 by ikory

[ikory]

Yeah I think we will just end up homeschooling the children. However it is very important that the kids interact with other children which I am sure we could find a way for that to happen.

You could find a local school - let them learn & socialise there (follow the curriculum yourself, somehow) but give them the antidote to the indoctrination at home.

(Would love to hear what is in the indoctrination that induces the xenophobia. - Anybody?)

As long as the children are friendly I would not be against my child in a Thai school. We would still have to home school him. If he picks up on some of the language that would be a good thing. The other child is only 2 so no worries right now about him.

[hellodolly]

Another quick comment and question, feel free not to answer it if it's too personal.

You are on medical leave, can you legally or physically work?

You could always look at a teaching job, get the visa and then you can get visas for your family as they are dependents.

You don't have to teach English either, there are schools that hire activity directors, after school club leaders and all sorts of thing. With a 4 year degree you could for sure get into the ESL market, but even some of the international schools higher people without teaching degrees for those other positions I listed.

Good plan. I would advise taking the tefl (sorry not sure of the name) course. A friend of mine has a Major in English. she took the course and said it was really hard. It is one thing to know your subject and another to be able to teach it in such a way as to not only impart your information but hold their attention.

I was wondering if there was any particular reason you had settled on Chiang Mai. If there is you might want to mention it as there could be some thing about it you don't realize.

Just remembered you like movies. We have three theaters here with another one opening soon. One of them is almost all Thai movies the other two I would say have more English than Thai. That might not be the fact. the new one to open in the next few months I don't know what they will be. The prices are reasonable. Of the two with English we have now one has 7 screens and the other that has recently opened has 8 problem being so far they are almost showing the same films. Even at that there is always one every week I enjoy. They all have sub titles. The funniest movie I ever saw was a Thai movie. Also the worst one I ever saw was a Thai movie. We saw the previews of an upcoming Thai movie and I told the wife to keep her euyes open for it as it looked pretty good.

Edited September 1, 2013 by hellodolly

[thrilled]

If it was me,I would visit all of Thailand.Issan and down south of Bangkok.Chiang Mai the air can get quite bad. People that have been living there awhile put it out of their minds.The cost of living in ChiangMai is getting near the same prices as Bangkok.A single person living in Bangkok can reach over A million baht A year.So go and check out the country and go from there. Just A suggestion.

[Tywais]

The volunteer work is something I would be willing to do however I have nerve issues and doing physical activity probably a bad idea.

Volunteer work could also nullify your benefits as it would be deemed working. However, below are a few sites regarding volunteers (NGOs) to browse through for perhaps your wife and you if you don't think it will be an issue for you. At least a starting point.

http://burmavolunteers.org/local-partners/

http://www.farangfriendly.com/chiang-mai/charities-ngos

http://thailand4life.net/icare/

[ikory]

Another quick comment and question, feel free not to answer it if it's too personal.

You are on medical leave, can you legally or physically work?

You could always look at a teaching job, get the visa and then you can get visas for your family as they are dependents.

You don't have to teach English either, there are schools that hire activity directors, after school club leaders and all sorts of thing. With a 4 year degree you could for sure get into the ESL market, but even some of the international schools higher people without teaching degrees for those other positions I listed.

Good plan. I would advise taking the tefl (sorry not sure of the name) course. A friend of mine has a Major in English. she took the course and said it was really hard. It is one thing to know your subject and another to be able to teach it in such a way as to not only impart your information but hold their attention.

I was wondering if there was any particular reason you had settled on Chiang Mai. If there is you might want to mention it as there could be some thing about it you don't realize.

I cannot work as I am on SSDI. I would like to tell the wife to get a job in Thailand but she is already a shy person. It is my plan to move to Thailand and she is just along for the ride.

Why Chiang Mai is really sticking out for us. 1. I keep seeing it recommended by other westerners. 2. The food,3. the restaurants,4. the mall,5. all the stores, 6. the winter weather is suppose to be really nice. 7. Affordable massages. 10.Having an affordable maid would be very nice as well.

I have to say the options you have on restaurants looks very impressive. The culture looks very amazing; the monks, the temples, the people etc.

So I think the negatives I am really seeing right now is this visa issue, and the burning season might be bad depending on the year and where we live in Chiang Mai.

[ikory]

If it was me,I would visit all of Thailand.Issan and down south of Bangkok.Chiang Mai the air can get quite bad. People that have been living there awhile put it out of their minds.The cost of living in ChiangMai is getting near the same prices as Bangkok.A single person living in Bangkok can reach over A million baht A year.So go and check out the country and go from there. Just A suggestion.

Yeah would you make suggestions? Phuket looks very expensive. Bangkok looks crowded and not our style. Pattaya looks like my wife would be very unhappy and more humid.

So where else in Thailand with great food options, great internet, affordable prices should we look for?

Right now my focus is Chiang Mai but I want to do some exploring.

Edited September 1, 2013 by ikory

[ikory]

The volunteer work is something I would be willing to do however I have nerve issues and doing physical activity probably a bad idea.

Volunteer work could also nullify your benefits as it would be deemed working. However, below are a few sites regarding volunteers (NGOs) to browse through for perhaps your wife and you if you don't think it will be an issue for you. At least a starting point.

http://burmavolunteers.org/local-partners/

http://www.farangfriendly.com/chiang-mai/charities-ngos

http://thailand4life.net/icare/

Yeah you might be right. I will save these links just incase. Thank you

[ikory]

Okay what I think part of the plan should be is if we like Chiang Mai get a month rental. If we like it after a month get a 6 month rental and go from there.

I just did a quick search and found Chiang Mai Thai language school year long lessons $1000 usd a year(which they said free visa included). Saw they had a 1 day a week option for about 4 hours. I think that might be a very easy option.