Thai visa help retire and work too.

[mrvietnam2001]

caughtintheact, well said.

And also remember that some of these "elites" in the thai government were "trained" and educated in the US. So the "thai cleverness" you mentioned is partially the result of learning the American Way, and applying the Asian art of chuck and jive.

However, to those not there yet, make your deal BEFORE you go. Remember this is a third world country and and you and a valuable assett that they want and at this point really need. Quite the make believe nice nice when applying for or making your move. This is business and you better treat it that way, because  that's how they treat it.

I've seen a lot of foreigners start with that infantile "I just want to live like the thai's" crap and get eaten alive. Ditto on the in caughtintheacts description of the middle age businessman making a move and getting it socked to him.

Be aggressive, be specific about what you want, and if they don't agree then be prepared to walk. My experience was they will stop you and give you what you want before you turn to the door. That's MY experience.

A lot of foreigners go and whine and snivel and "take it". Why? Don't take it. Give it instead. This is Asia. They don't play the same games as where y'all are from and you better know it before you lose what you have. YOu have the dollar in your pocket and you want something for what you're willing to "pay" and you should get it. Or pass.

My mistake was while I turned my focus toward the Viets  ( infinitely easier) and the Thai's ( I got what I asked for) my American counterparts were sucking me dry. I failed to watch my back. Bear that in mind as well.

It can be done.

Regards

Mr Vietnam

[DaveYo]

Hi Mr Vietnam, just read your post.  Interesting, and true to the point.  However there are limitations as given from the others advising me and one has to be careful.  Yes one can go there with the attitude that I have the bucks and yes one can sort of  make your demands or points known and hopefully get what the person is wanting business wise, but again these same people know that we got some money, and they also know they have some power over us to make us squirm a bit and make us sweat too, and they know they have regulations to back themselves up.  So if they let us get what we want, we should consider ourselves lucky, and of course this comes with a price tag along with the deal.  They do not have to let us bring in our things, so to get them to look the other way, one has to hope for the best and that they do the paper work the right way etc.  I am certain as to the business aspect, true they look at it like a business, but one has to consider what price is it going to be worth to us for us to achieve our own personal goals.  Take for example our own vehicles, they will hit us from either 100 to 300 percent of its value, now how to get them to look the other way? See my point!  This is big bucks to them in Asia that tax.  As to other personal effects that is a different story, they might look the other way and again they might not.  Bottom line is we ourselves have to have the proper paperwork done ahead of time, then we must have the right connections having the brokers etc, to represent us and speak on our behalf, and the rest is pure business and luck.  If we do get the clearance to bring it into their country then all worked out well for both sides.  If not, then we got a major headache on our hands.  So I think what the others said here in this forum, they pretty much know what they mean because they sure have heard it lots of times before and of course their wealth of knowledge and experience certainly goes a long way.  That is why I value their answers a lot, because they mean well for many of us newbies.  So what you said too I will also keep in mind.  Thanks for your interesting intriquing message.   Take care  Dave   :blues:

[mrvietnam2001]

Dave, the more they think you NEED it the more they will extort from you. It's really as simple as that.

And you don't GO THERE and try to make your deal. Youo do that ahead of time and if it's not to your liking you pick a place that is.

Kiss no governments ass. They may have you hoodwinked into thinking they've got the best game in town and maybe they do. But there's a lot of different towns.

Regards

Mr Vietnam