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Are you changing to marriage visa now?


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Just now, Pib said:

Yeap...the new carpet bombing rules are creating a lot of collateral damage...some innocent good guys are getting blown-up (unable to meet extension renewal requirements) because they were not given enough advance warning time to reach the bomb shelter...develop an alternate battle plan.  

A few embassies took direct hits and waved the white flag.  Others carry on with income affidavits same as before and it's all good with TI. 

 

Don't know whether to laugh or cry.  ????

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5 minutes ago, Pib said:

And no one can convince me the embassies still providing the income letters do any real income verification.

Real income verification is a relative concept. 

 

I assume if Immigration is pleased with it, it is all what matters. 

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5 minutes ago, Pib said:

I would cry.   The UK/US/AU/DK embassies bugged-out and pretty much left their wounded citizens on the battlefield.   And no one can convince me the embassies still providing the income letters do any real income verification.

May have mentioned elsewhere before, chatted with a Canadian guy on Facebook.  He got a fresh income affidavit from his Embassy.   Appointment.  Show pension doc printed off the internet.  Letter issued.  In and out, 20 minutes, same as before.  Said TI accepted it no questions.  Funny old world. 

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16 minutes ago, 55Jay said:

May have mentioned elsewhere before, chatted with a Canadian guy on Facebook.  He got a fresh income affidavit from his Embassy.   Appointment.  Show pension doc printed off the internet.  Letter issued.  In and out, 20 minutes, same as before.  Said TI accepted it no questions.  Funny old world. 

"....printed off the internet."   Wonder if he first made some modification to the printout to meet the 65K requirement before showing it to his embassy.  In today's world of computers and software it so easy to make from scratch or modify docs to make them say what your want...especially if you know that no real verification will be done by the embassy...the embassy just takes your word for it...that the docs you show them are legit/unmodified.    No, I'm not saying he did this....I'm sure the great majority are honest....but it's the minority that causes the carpet bombing....causes the rest of us to scramble for cover.

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35 minutes ago, Golden Triangle said:

I really do hate the 'I'm OK Jack' Brigade, every time I see one I just wish that their next experience at an immigration office is as unpleasant experience as can possibly be, but then they wouldn't report that would they as their worlds are complete and untroubled.

 

I'm not usually a vindictive person but these people P**s me off royally.

There is some of the "I'm OK Jack" Brigade on this topic, one in particular.

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18 minutes ago, possum1931 said:

I used to really like your posts and even followed them and making a point of reading them especially, now that goes right out the window, imagine coming out with that nonsensical "Nothing hard about that" statement.

There is plenty hard about that for some expats who have set their roots here without expecting, to jump through all these new hoops.

"It's their country, it's their rules."  We all know that, but surely the Thai government have a moral duty to treat expats fairly after so many of them came over here for a peaceful retirement, buying houses, contributing to the Thai economy, and helping to take Thai families out of poverty. 

I'm not disputing anything you have said, and I've lost 2 acquaintance who had to leave over this nonsense. It has affected a lot of good people. But I'm also a "realist" who looks at things the way they are, not the way we would like them to be. And as sad as it may be, what I said stands true. 

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4 minutes ago, Just1Voice said:

I'm not disputing anything you have said, and I've lost 2 acquaintance who had to leave over this nonsense. It has affected a lot of good people. But I'm also a "realist" who looks at things the way they are, not the way we would like them to be. And as sad as it may be, what I said stands true. 

The statement "nothing hard about that" in your post sounds very much like an opinion. It seems to me like you are saying "it's OK to give expats more hoops to jump through, if they don't like it they can leave", without any thought for the expats themselves.

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4 hours ago, Just1Voice said:

I don't mean to sound obnoxious, but the bottom line is: It's their country, it's their rules. You either comply, or you leave. Nothing hard about that.

But what you don't realise is that YOU do sound obnoxious, for about 6 years I have self funded and self completed my retirement extension, then maybe 18 months ago they started to turn the screws, extra check of this, extra check of that, this paperwork is no good, etc etc.

 

Literally pushing the honest retiree down the path of the agent, so that they get their backhanders, why are you so blind ? why can't you see this ?, it may not have impacted you yet but experience tells me that it will in the not too distant future. So enjoy your gloating for now, and please, when you get kicked back for some flimsy excuse, please have the balls to report it here, promise we won't gloat at your misfortune. ???? 

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5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

 

For the 800k method there has been a substantial change to the rules. in the past you were allowed to spend the money to live on. Now you are not. Very, very big change.

It is a big change, but you can still spend 400K and it only really affects when you bring in your living expenses. If you spend the 800K it needs replacing at sometime.

 

5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

And for the 65K/month there have also been meaningful changes. In the past one only had to have 65k/month gross income, and were free to bring in as much as needed when needed into Thailand through any transfer mechanism that suited you - ATM, Currency transfer services etc. Now you must bring in 65k or more every single month in a manner that generates the required bank codes.  For many people to be able to bring in 65K a month means having to have more than 65k/month gross income due to deductions for insurance, tax etc. for example, Americans often have Medicare premium deducted from their SS before it is paid...in which case they would have ot have an income of over 69K/month to meet the new requirement of bringing 65K into the country. 

It has always been net income. The embassy letters just created a loophole for people on the margin to exploit.

 

5 hours ago, Sheryl said:

And the 800K method clearly has been changed such that the actual required income now is at least 50% higher.

It's not that bad. You have always needed 800K plus whatever you spend during the year. You can still bring in the living expanses as and when you want.

 

If transferring sufficient living expenses for the year on day one you now need to transfer an additional three months living expenses. Someone that spends 66.7K pm (800K annually) would only need to bring in an extra 200K on day one to cover their expenses for the year (works out at an extra 21%). Someone spending 40K pm needs to bring in an extra 120K (14%).

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Some of you are taking what I said TOTALLY wrong. I am NOT unsympathetic to the plight of some (many) with the rule changes. As I stated, I've lost 2 acquaintances who had to pack it in and go home because of this. I also know they could change the rules again tomorrow in a way that might force me to do the same.

 

But no matter how you look at it, or how you feel about it, the bottom line is that we are basically “guests” here, regardless of how long we've been here, or what family ties we may have established. We have NO, ZERO. ZIP say so on how they choose to run their country, or what rules they may enforce, or come up with. And that is the bottom line. I don't like it any more than anyone else, but we can't do a damn thing about it, other than to comply as best as we can.

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On 4/20/2019 at 1:01 PM, ratcatcher said:

The only problem is that you have to be married and in a genuine relationship. A situation that doesn't appeal to everyone. A little bit more trouble in some provinces and a nightmare in others.

Good advice by ratcatcher.  

Additionally, if the marriage fails, which they do = NO marriage visa.  Make sure you have alternate plans.  As well, make sure you are VERY faithful to one woman - HER.  If not, you will see what a jealous Thai woman can do to a man.  If you survive, next you will be dealing with immigration.  Not sure which is worse.  To each his own.  Good luck whatever you choose. 

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34 minutes ago, elviajero said:

It is a big change, but you can still spend 400K and it only really affects when you bring in your living expenses. If you spend the 800K it needs replacing at sometime.

 

It has always been net income. The embassy letters just created a loophole for people on the margin to exploit.

 

It's not that bad. You have always needed 800K plus whatever you spend during the year. You can still bring in the living expanses as and when you want.

 

If transferring sufficient living expenses for the year on day one you now need to transfer an additional three months living expenses. Someone that spends 66.7K pm (800K annually) would only need to bring in an extra 200K on day one to cover their expenses for the year (works out at an extra 21%). Someone spending 40K pm needs to bring in an extra 120K (14%).

Think that you're missing the point.   Given that the majority of the retirement option applicants are indeed retired, and many under that category have limited resources, though adequately sustainable under the previous criteria.   There are also those who's Thai lifestyle requirements are substantially less than 65k a month and have no need of such sums and the associated transfer costs as an additional burden.

 

I would also question your 'net income' comment.    Having done mostly income letter criteria (though occasionally banked money) extensions for the past 11 years, never have I seen a 'net income' definition, and as such it wasn't an Embassy 'loophole'.   My own pension providers send me annual increase letters that are gross amounts, copies of which were supplied for my Embassy letters.   Net amounts of pensions can only be calculated though documents such as the P60 (issued annually by the UK tax authorities) as an example, with these bearing no relevance to Thai Immigration.

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36 minutes ago, scottiejohn said:

What GBP crash 3 yrs ago?

The GBP crash due to Brexit.

 

From January to June 2016 I was getting a forex rate of around 50 thb.

In July the rate dropped to 45 thb and around 43 in December 2016

In 2017 it varied between 42.11 to a high of 44.26

In 2018 it varied between 41.64 and 43.87

In 2019 it varied between 40.18 and 42.06.

 

That puts me at about 61,500 to 63,xxx a month which disqualifies me from the retirement extension.

 

These are the actual forex rates I got at the bank.

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Marriage seems to be a rather drastic step to obtain some financial relief. In the case of Australian pensioners, nonsensical because they would lose about 10,000 baht/month of their pension due to Centrelink rules about single vs. couples pension. That's assuming they report their changed status.

I've been married once. I was stupid; however, not stupid enough to repeat. My Thai GF and I get along just fine without a piece of paper.

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54 minutes ago, pagallim said:

I would also question your 'net income' comment.    Having done mostly income letter criteria (though occasionally banked money) extensions for the past 11 years, never have I seen a 'net income' definition, and as such it wasn't an Embassy 'loophole'.   My own pension providers send me annual increase letters that are gross amounts, copies of which were supplied for my Embassy letters.   Net amounts of pensions can only be calculated though documents such as the P60 (issued annually by the UK tax authorities) as an example, with these bearing no relevance to Thai Immigration.

The criteria is to have a monthly income of at least 65K, not 65K less tax. A fact born out now by having to transfer at least 65K every month and not your 65K income less tax.

 

It is not stated as net income anywhere in the rules, but it’s implied.

 

As embassy letters did not have to specify net or gross income someone with a gross income of 65K could claim that as their income. That is a loophole.

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