Robin

I was under the impression that smoking 'indoors' ( aircon premises,) was illegal in Thailand. Like so many rules, widely ignored. A ew bar owners in Nana once tried to ban smoking in their bars, but this was ignored, by staff as well as customers so now smoking is the norm again and non-smokers have to suffer. Just think of the revenue missed by RTP by not raiding every bar/club once a week.

Vehicle manufacturers must make special models for Thailand with inferior brakes.

Primary tourist destination?? It will need a railway (been coming for years) and some hotels first. Health hub. Phayao hospital is busy already, serving locals.

Bleach? Avoid the stronger versions of Vixol, as it can attack the grouting cement.

It is not only Thailand. Builder friend in UK described Ready-mix delivery drivers as the biggest bunch of crooks he knew. I noticed that on a local building site, concrete deliveries were poured into 1 cu.m. bucket and this was craned to the pouring site. Also, the 'mix' of each batch was checked before any was poured. The driver must have already sold the concrete he is skimming off, as it will not keep long in his truck

For once, I agree with Anutin. Thailand does not want this type of person. Send him back to his home country.

What can be called "Cat Flu" is a common name for Feline Immunovirus, which is an infectious viral disease among cats (and dogs). It is generally fatal and highly infectious. it is spread by the saliva or faeces of an infected animal, and since, in a warm country like Thailand, the virus can survive outside the animals body, it can spread quickly through a population. There is no cure for the disease. It can be prevented by annual vaccinations, given by your vet, which are virtually 100% effective. It is common in Thailand because many owners do not have their pets vaccinated. In say UK or US most pets are vaccinated annually, so there is no population of vulnerable animals to keep the disease alive. Vaccine takes 1 week to become effective, so it is too late to do once the disease strikes. Search the net for more information, or see your local vet for which vaccinations your pet will need., starting at 3 months.

After living in Thailand for many years, I get the impression that few governments dare to implement any unpopular policies, even if they have a mandate to do so. Since many (most) Thais do no pay any tax at the present, it would not be popular to make the pay, even a small sum. Not difficult to make a start. Walk through any village or town and ask at every business or shop. If they do not have any accounts or have not filed these, hit them with an estimated tax. demand. if this is paid, double it for the next year, and so on for every year. Once RD hits on the sum actually being earned, accounts will soon be produced. Oh the screams of protest! Would any government dare to continue?

If you keep a cat, or any other animal, you are taking on the responsibility for its care. Take it to the vet as possible and try to help the poor animal.. My experience of Thai vets is that they do not overcharge farangs, but care for the animal. Why do you think that 1000B will be the vet's fee. A small sum to keep n animal alive. Pay up you miserable cheapskate.

My experience with Nat West has been that they are paranoid about scams and seem capable of recognizing other UK high street banks as being genuine. Very insular attitude. HSBC are better and acknowledge that there are other banks in the world.

When the subject was brought up at the beginning of the year, I asked, through khun wife, who was paying tax, or had to file a tax return. Answer was that nobody local did. Wife, who runs a beauty shop, said that if RD wants a tax return, they come visiting and asking for it. if they do not, then nobody is bothered about tax returns. It seems that billions of Baht in potential revenue is lost this way. Imagine the screams of protest if Thais were asked to pay tax on their income. No government would have the courage to implement such a policy.

My retirement plan is t sell my property in UK and liv here on the proceeds. Will the money from property sale be classified as 'income'? The property is owned outright and been paid for years ago. Not subject to UK CGT. All seems a very grey area. How will RD know what is going on? Say I visit UK once a year and bring back £5k in cash. the change to ThB at one of the money changers, not a bank. Who will know what is going on?

What can you expect in a country where you can pass your "driving test" without driving on a public road, or knowing how to change gear?

Toyota Vios?

Thanks very much, such valuable information. At las I can see a way clear to continue my life in LOS. I wonder how many potential retirees have been put off by this nonsense. Taksin had his faults, but at least he understood some economics and gave us the Retirement visas and other benefits.

How do you ever get to the end of this thread? Nothing but endless adverts after the first page. Whgat I hav read so far answers many questions, but not all, and I would like to follow it to the end. I would pay for a AN now option without aadverts

Will there be any difference between income and savings transferred from home country (UK in my case.) Should I sell any property in UK and move he money to Thailand, will this still be classified as 'income'? I imagine that a number of potential retirees will be thinking of selling their property in UK. Is property considered as savings, even if bought from income with a mortgage?

I too worried about his, so apart from my 800K Retirement visa, wife and I keep money in a separate joint account, which will give her some money after I die. I have made a will in UK and sate that all my Thai possessions go to wife, but only after probate. Wife tells me that when her mother died, she and siblings go access to mother's bank account by simply takin deaath cert to the bank. ( Hearsay only ) Basically, everything we own in Thailand is in wife's name, so should not be a problem

I am a retiree from UK, lived in Thailand with wife for some years on Retirement visa, all very happy with life until this came along. I do not like uncertainty. As a precaution, before 1/1//2024, I transferred US$50,000to my Thil bank account, with no problems, so with wife's income from rice fields and beauty shop, we can go on living in Thailand. My questions are for the future; I have property in UK, now rented out, and income kept in UK (taxes paid) My intention ha always been to sell this property and live out my life on the capital, perhaps transferred to Thailand. Will money from sale of UK property owned before 2023 be considered income? Like most property in UK, there could be a sizeable capital gain on the sale. Saving? Income? How will this be decided? If all the proceeds of the sales are kept in a Asset management Account, does it become savings or income? Say the money was kept in UK bank offering me a credit card, and I spend in Thailand mainly on this card. is that expenditure taxable income or not? Do I need a reliable Thai Tax Consultant to give me these answers? Can someone on AN suggest such a person? I have never had any contact with Thai RD or been given a Tax umber and I was hoping to keep it that way. Wife has income from growing Rice but has never files a tax return. This whole idea of Sreettha's appears to be a good way of getting Retirees out of Thailand, and possibly counterproductive,

Why always the fuss about "low income earners" Smoking is not compulsory, so raise the tax, double it or more and improve their health. Also save the passive smokers by enforcing to non-smoking rules

My mother, partially disabled and in wheel-chair most of the time, really enjoyed her Adriatic cruise with my father. No mobility problems and attentive crew, she could stay onboard at port calls while dad went ashore. Travelling without having to change hotel every day.. I would say you have to be a sociable person to enjoy a cruise.

Sleeping pills can be difficult to get in Thailand, as too often used in robberies on long distance busses. I got some from my UK DR who described it as 'exactly the right way to use sleeping tablets. Trouble is, they can leave you drowsy for 1-2 days after.

I have spent 20+years living and working onboard Marine survey ships. 4-8 wek4 to 8 weeks trips at sea can be like know what long trips at sea are like. Even with a job to do, it is difficult life. I would never think of going on a cruise unless I had my own cabin. You will need your own space. Sharing with strangers, or even friends is hard.. Only use for a cruise ship I can see, is as a floating hotel with a port call and shore trips every day and ravel at night

Sounds typical of Thailand and Thai taxi drivers

3 per cabin. Hope you are all good friends. if you have no experience of long sea journeys, think carefully. What do you do for long days at sea? Eat, sleep, drink.... Always with the same group. No chance to get away or see anything new, except Computer screens. Remember the old song? "What did we see? We saw the see!