EricTh Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 10 hours ago, BarnicaleBob said: . The immigration officer was not too pleased when the westerner could not understand him when he spoke to him in Thai. Considering that General Big Joke, who is known for loving to arrest illegal westerners just took over Immigration, I would be very careful about this. To be fair to that applicant, Thai language courses in Thailand are just too formal and too basic. They don't really teach everyday Thai that real Thai uses at an intermediate level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jackdd Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 3 hours ago, Vacuum said: Wouldn't these "digital nomads" be better off doing whatever they're doing, in their home countries? Wouldn't you be better off doing whatever you are doing, in your home country? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricTh Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 9 hours ago, ZeVonderBearz said: What's the correct visa for a digital nomad? Digital nomads are not supposed to work at all whether it is teaching English online or selling retirement videos/books like this guy. It's just that immigration is not savvy enough to arrest him yet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steve187 Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 7 hours ago, Suradit69 said: Wait for it. Someone will suggest the Thai Elite for a mere baht 500,000. the elite visa for a mere baht 500,000, is the correct visa to get, but would still need to keep under the radar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4MyEgo Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 One a clear day and on a not so clear day. If you don't like breathing in smoke, you may wish to look elsewhere, just saying, I hear the smoke is pretty bad in Chiang Mai as opposed to other parts of Thailand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moontang Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 A high percentage of DM are simply involved in someone's pipe dream pyramid scheme, where the big money is in selling the dream to others. That's why they tend to fall on the social totem pole, usually somewhere in between lady boy and missionary.... Too had for the 2% or so, who are technically knowledgeable. Tell me you've got an Amazon store and I will laugh in your face. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaibeachlovers Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 On 2/28/2019 at 11:37 AM, ZeVonderBearz said: Don't worry about having non immigrant visas like some will suggest nor work permit. You'll not be able to get these working as a digital nomad. So if you're long term going to stay you'll have to get an education visa through a Thai language school or a self defense class which are run by the military. Don't worry, you'll barely have to attend and both of these avenues are setup to earn those who run the course cash and as a way to get long stay visas for people such as yourself. Looking at upsards of 30k a year for this visa. Some have found such advice to be erroneous as they are denied an extension on their Ed visa because they are unable to actually speak Thai at the level they should for the amount of time "learning". May have been true in the past, but times change. As for the OP, nothing beats staying in an hotel and looking around for oneself before making any decisions. Particularly if one has never been to C M before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john ianson Posted February 28, 2019 Share Posted February 28, 2019 15 hours ago, lipflipper said: A digital nomad???? Where do these GenXers/Millenials come up with these terms?? IMO there are way too many of this type here in Chiang Mai already. I wish they would all pack up and move to Goa. Sent from my CMR-AL19 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app Can someone please explain what is a "digital nomad " ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackheart1916 Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 You might want to have a look at the new Cybersecurity Act, as well as your visa options mate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackheart1916 Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 31 minutes ago, john ianson said: Can someone please explain what is a "digital nomad " ? Um, someone who works in an IT/internet field with their work done online , and therefore is not tied down to a single geographical location would be my guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedomnow Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 16 hours ago, lipflipper said: A digital nomad???? Where do these GenXers/Millenials come up with these terms?? IMO there are way too many of this type here in Chiang Mai already. I wish they would all pack up and move to Goa. Sent from my CMR-AL19 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app One nomad made the place (overly)popular years ago through his blog... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedomnow Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 ...there are places just as good or better and easier to stay than CM. I really doubt the figures thrown around on how many nomads are in CM..probably 1/10 of what they quote...many tag CM as their operating location and they are probably still in their hometown. There are simply not enough co-working spaces and the cafes are not spilling them out the doors...so "thousands" must be working out apts/houses...nor is immigration at airport overflowing with under 50s proportional to retirees...I just think the numbers of DNs are hyped 100%. If I were the OP, I'd head to Vietnam...Saigon or any of the beach towns...more of a buzz to them for younger guys....it's more free-wheeling and cheaper like Thailand was before...there are also cheaper 1-year stay options and easier to stay longer than 3 years+ there in Viet Nam than 3 years+ here at this specific point in time with the new hardline chief of immigration Thailand has right now... OP should know they are tying up all the long-stay under 50 options to stay here to basically guide them towards the exit lounge of airport or Elite Visa...get Elite and no questions asked about how you can support yourself in the country (baffling hypocrisy, pay up and wink wink ???? no problems coming in)....of course at 22, unless you have cracked your niche 500,000 Baht would be a large hump to get over. My money is also on immi doing a raid on coworking spaces again with BJ doing photo ops, and this time deporting some of them for simple 'working'. It happened before (the raid) but no-one got deported as they were found not to be working with Thais in any way....recent online teacher got deported but it was not known if he was on over-stay but he feely admitted he was working/teaching online to immi. officials and to his neighbours...this came up on TV in the last few weeks. OP, if you are still coming here your best to get an SETV in your country or METV if you can meet the requirements to see if you like the place first. Get medical insurance...don't show up as a GoFundMe case with 1 million baht of medical fees round your neck from a scooter crash or adventure sports accident. As another member stated...try 6 months CM and 6 months Vietnam to see where you like. (God, I sound like your dad after all that). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DLock Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 You can pretty much ignore all these Crusty posts - these guys hate their life in Thailand and have no money, so seeing a 21yo come to Thailand on no work permit, and enjoying life gets them all riled up....especially when you can up an leave anytime you want...and they can't. As long as you stay legal you can do all the digital nomading you like - what you do in you room or a coffee shop, no one cares. Just don't spray paint a wall, drink beer on the wall and keep your visa correct at all times. You will do just fine. Have fun kid... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skallywag Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 I used to drive a 56 Chevy Nomad...analog gauges - not digital. Glad you youngsters are living the dream! 555 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JulieM Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 The only question that the OP asked is what neighborhood would be best for a 22-year-old. Nimmanhaemin and Santitham have been suggested. Personally, if I were 22 I think I'd go with Santitham. There may be other areas that are also appropriate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genmai Posted March 1, 2019 Share Posted March 1, 2019 15 hours ago, DLock said: You can pretty much ignore all these Crusty posts - these guys hate their life in Thailand and have no money, so seeing a 21yo come to Thailand on no work permit, and enjoying life gets them all riled up....especially when you can up an leave anytime you want...and they can't. As long as you stay legal you can do all the digital nomading you like - what you do in you room or a coffee shop, no one cares. Just don't spray paint a wall, drink beer on the wall and keep your visa correct at all times. You will do just fine. Have fun kid... Sorry, I have to disagree with you here because these crusties have a point. I'm in my 20s and have enough money to live comfortably, but if I had known just a fraction of what I know now about living in Thailand I would never have moved here. CM in particular is exceptionally bad value for money and I'm currently working towards liquidating my investments and cutting as many losses as I can to get out this year. I'm sorry to say this but CM simply is not an amiable place to be in for any length of time, especially not for a young single guy. At least in Pattaya he would have the option of getting tanked and his berries dingledangled by men in skirts. Up here he can enjoy what exactly? Northern food and a view of the mountains when they're not obscured by smoke? The food is laced with toxins, the driving is insane, the public transport is nonexistent, the locals are so farang-fatigued they don't even wanna look at you and would rather learn Chinese than English at this point, police exist only to extort money from you, the expat community is either old farts on a bar stool or new wave East-Asian hippies, the entertainment is grabby old hookers (and one great jazz bar) and everything closes at 12 by which point you're sitting on the concrete bench with a crap overpriced Thai beer by a filthy stagnant waterway counting rats and wondering how the hell you got here? No thank you. That's not even mentioning the biggest elephant in the room which is air quality, which for half of the year is mildly dirty and for the other half downright dangerous. If you think the government has any ambition of improving that particular situation you should consider that they (or somebody) arranged for 42 air monitoring stations across Chiang Mai to go out like clockwork just before the song and dance that is the supposed "Burning Ban", presumably to cook the data and keep people like yourself from making informed decisions. OP, your best options in Asia are Vietnam & Taiwan. Forget this place, it's a bad joke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chingmai331 Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 Taiwan OK, but i think visa holders must leave island every 90 days. Then return for 90 more days, etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genmai Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 6 hours ago, chingmai331 said: Taiwan OK, but i think visa holders must leave island every 90 days. Then return for 90 more days, etc. You're talking about visa exempt landing stamp, yes it's 90 days then come and go as often as you please, no one gets up your ass about it like they do in Thailand. 2 hours and you're in Hong Kong, can do some shopping, ride a ferry, eat dumplings and then fly back in time for dinner. If you want to be on the safe side leave for a week. I don't know why more people aren't considering Taiwan now that it's clear this place has been going down the crapper for years. As for proper working visas for digital nomads - that option is largely nonexistent in most Asian countries, and in any case it's completely irrelevant and unnecessary. There is literally no way for any official to prove that what you're doing on your computer at a coffee shop is actually paid work and not just browsing Facebook. Even in a corrupt country like this where undercover police extort money from foreign restaurant owners for catching them performing forbidden manual labour (carrying crates of potatoes in their own damn kitchen) for an official to prove you're working here remotely from your laptop is an impossible task. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
isaanjohnno Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 On 2/28/2019 at 10:09 AM, BarnicaleBob said: I don't think it is a good idea to promote ways to break the law in Thailand. The possibility of being arrested for misusing the education system to circumvent the law is low but it does exist. I saw a westerner at Thai immigration to renew their Thai language education via once. The immigration officer was not too pleased when the westerner could not understand him when he spoke to him in Thai. Considering that General Big Joke, who is known for loving to arrest illegal westerners just took over Immigration, I would be very careful about this. Sage advise and well worth listening to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genmai Posted March 2, 2019 Share Posted March 2, 2019 7 minutes ago, isaanjohnno said: Sage advise and well worth listening to. Tell that to the language schools here who intentionally break the laws and drag unsuspecting foreigners into their illegal mess. My first year here I took courses from a language school - a 1 year ED visa course that was openly advertised as online learning via Skype. The teachers were unqualified and the lessons didn't happen most days because their internet connection was complete rubbish. Somedays I simply chatted with my teacher on Skype chat because they couldn't even get the video to work. Every time I complained about this it was "lorng duu, lorng duu, maybe tomorrow better". I went from learning numbers the first week to learning "ASEAN integration phrases" like "international agricultural cooperation" and "national security" the next week, I kid you not. Every few weeks the text material changed completely, as if it was a case of "This book isn't working, lets try this YouTube video. Oh maybe this is better, let's try this poem. Oh this week let's do ManiiManaa." After three months it was time for my first visa extension and the school staff came with me to immigration (this was back when you had to bring a chair from home at 4AM and sit in the parking lot). They told me "Immigration no undastaen Sakaip. If dey ask yoo yoo no say Sakaip lesson, you say go to class." Additionally they informed me that if immigration does a random check at their school to check student attendance I need to "come quick and show face". Later on I received the remainder of my timetable and I noticed a discrepancy - the course was for 1 year but the final lesson was at the 6 month mark. When I confronted them about this it turned out that the deal apparently was for 1 year ED visa but only 6 months of lessons. Of course - "if immigration ask yoo, yoo say I learn 1 year satudyy every day". But in reality they would only teach me for half the time. If I wanted more lessons past the 6 months I could come to an "agreement" with my teacher. After 6 months I had completed about a dozen tests to gauge my progress. I aced them all (always over 95% correct although this was obviously fake data as I had made mistakes on purpose to check this). In reality I couldn't even order food at restaurant. These were all faked for immigration to think I was making great progress. Even my Thai girlfriend thought this was total horsecrap. The school in question is a well established institution that still operates today and still offers the same online courses. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crossy Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 A couple of off-topic posts have been removed. I note our OP hasn't returned to respond to any questions despite being logged on to the forum, @andehpandeh how about coming back and expanding on your plans? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
beautifulthailand99 Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 On 3/1/2019 at 8:48 AM, DLock said: You can pretty much ignore all these Crusty posts - these guys hate their life in Thailand and have no money, so seeing a 21yo come to Thailand on no work permit, and enjoying life gets them all riled up....especially when you can up an leave anytime you want...and they can't. As long as you stay legal you can do all the digital nomading you like - what you do in you room or a coffee shop, no one cares. Just don't spray paint a wall, drink beer on the wall and keep your visa correct at all times. You will do just fine. Have fun kid... Just be careful not to get one of the local ladies pregnant and you'll be fine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyJ Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 On 3/1/2019 at 10:08 AM, Genmai said: ...the entertainment is grabby old hookers (and one great jazz bar)... What is the name of the great jazz bar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzannegoh Posted March 3, 2019 Share Posted March 3, 2019 Hello, My friend and I are moving to Chiang Mai as we have heard it is a good place for digital freelancers to live and I'm curious to hear your opinions on what neighborhood we should be looking at? We want to be in a suburban area as we'd like to have some quiet when working, but still have access to the social part of Chiang Mai. We hope to spend under 10k baht per month on rent. Thanks for readingWhat sounds more romantic to you, to move to a developing country in your 20's and to live on subsistence wages until you die, or to put your skills to work somewhere where "crushing it" doesn't mean living on $500/month, to build a nest egg, and then retir eto Thailand when you're about 50. If it's the former, then move to Chiang Mai immediately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thaibeachlovers Posted March 4, 2019 Share Posted March 4, 2019 On 3/2/2019 at 7:08 AM, Genmai said: dSorry, I have to disagree with you here because these crusties have a point. I'm in my 20s and have enough money to live comfortably, but if I had known just a fraction of what I know now about living in Thailand I would never have moved here. CM in particular is exceptionally bad value for money and I'm currently working towards liquidating my investments and cutting as many losses as I can to get out this year. I'm sorry to say this but CM simply is not an amiable place to be in for any length of time, especially not for a young single guy. At least in Pattaya he would have the option of getting tanked and his berries dingledangled by men in skirts. Up here he can enjoy what exactly? Northern food and a view of the mountains when they're not obscured by smoke? The food is laced with toxins, the driving is insane, the public transport is nonexistent, the locals are so farang-fatigued they don't even wanna look at you and would rather learn Chinese than English at this point, police exist only to extort money from you, the expat community is either old farts on a bar stool or new wave East-Asian hippies, the entertainment is grabby old hookers (and one great jazz bar) and everything closes at 12 by which point you're sitting on the concrete bench with a crap overpriced Thai beer by a filthy stagnant waterway counting rats and wondering how the hell you got here? No thank you. That's not even mentioning the biggest elephant in the room which is air quality, which for half of the year is mildly dirty and for the other half downright dangerous. If you think the government has any ambition of improving that particular situation you should consider that they (or somebody) arranged for 42 air monitoring stations across Chiang Mai to go out like clockwork just before the song and dance that is the supposed "Burning Ban", presumably to cook the data and keep people like yourself from making informed decisions. OP, your best options in Asia are Vietnam & Taiwan. Forget this place, it's a bad joke. Sorry to say, I agree with you. Thailand is completely different from when I first came and it was very easy to stay long time- back to back visa exempt indefinitely no problem. As for C M, if I were a young fella, nothing would have persuaded me to stay there. The night life sucks bigly, as you point out, so why on earth would a young lusty guy even think of staying in C M? However, for an old fella not interested in bargirls any more, it's quite cheap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Weird Posted March 4, 2019 Share Posted March 4, 2019 On 2/28/2019 at 5:37 AM, ZeVonderBearz said: Don't worry about having non immigrant visas like some will suggest nor work permit. You'll not be able to get these working as a digital nomad. So if you're long term going to stay you'll have to get an education visa through a Thai language school or a self defense class which are run by the military. Don't worry, you'll barely have to attend and both of these avenues are setup to earn those who run the course cash and as a way to get long stay visas for people such as yourself. Looking at upsards of 30k a year for this visa. Do not pay any attention to that completely misleading post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Throatwobbler Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 On 3/3/2019 at 12:47 PM, suzannegoh said: What sounds more romantic to you, to move to a developing country in your 20's and to live on subsistence wages until you die, or to put your skills to work somewhere where "crushing it" doesn't mean living on $500/month, to build a nest egg, and then retir eto Thailand when you're about 50. If it's the former, then move to Chiang Mai immediately. Personally I think going and seeing new parts of the world when you're young is much more appealing than waiting until you are old and stale which is what most people on TV seem to have done. If you are young there is a possibility that you will enjoy life rather than being a miserable old fart. Also if he is a true digital nomad with proper skills it does not mean that he will be getting the standard wages here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
suzannegoh Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 Personally I think going and seeing new parts of the world when you're young is much more appealing than waiting until you are old and stale which is what most people on TV seem to have done. If you are young there is a possibility that you will enjoy life rather than being a miserable old fart. Also if he is a true digital nomad with proper skills it does not mean that he will be getting the standard wages here.Fair point, but working in the West and traveling are not mutually exclusive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sharktooth Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 4 hours ago, Throatwobbler said: Personally I think going and seeing new parts of the world when you're young is much more appealing than waiting until you are old and stale which is what most people on TV seem to have done. If you are young there is a possibility that you will enjoy life rather than being a miserable old fart. Also if he is a true digital nomad with proper skills it does not mean that he will be getting the standard wages here. When I was young I was constantly skint. Traveling abroad wasnt an option. Work and work. The bank of mummy and daddy didn’t exist. Eventually uni, still skint. Good job and moved on, packed that industry, done hee haw for a while then went offshore. Long hard slog. Now I can do what I want. And I’m not 22 anymore. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
A1Str8 Posted March 6, 2019 Share Posted March 6, 2019 You dont need a work permit. And to answer your Q, the best areas to stay are kinda off the table if u want to spend less than 10k per month. Check out greenhillplace, smith residence, noble place, airport greenery, there are so many. Just google cm apartment under 10k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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