mahjongguy

Ok, that wasn't the clearest way I could have written it. By "same as a passport" I meant that getting the card is the same process as renewing your passport: you hold on to the existing passport until the new one arrives. I had my passport renewed at the BKK embassy 4 years ago. It was a simple process and I got the new one quicker than if I were in the States. I was also happy that they sent the 48-page version. Again, I agree with GB that there's no need here for the card; I only disagree with "ripoff". It's gotta be sent from Atlanta, it's only $20, and it's totally optional. The ripoff is paying $35 for witnessing a document; if you need two copies it's $70.

Same as a passport: go back and pick it up in 2 weeks or so. I agree that it is not particularly useful for an American visiting or living in Thailand. I just said it looked cool and maybe next time I'm in The City I'll apply for one. I've spent $20 on worse things.

Because it was 5:08pm. So now I just checked with them and was told that the process is similar to getting a passport renewed: you appear in person, fill out the form, pay the fee, and walk out with your current passport still in hand. As discussed, the passport card is of minimal value to an American living in Thailand, of less value than a photocopy of the essential pages of your passport, and of less value than a recent Thai driver's license with your address on the back. Still, it's kinda cool and if it's ever reasonably convenient for me I will get one.

On to practical matters: is it possible to obtain the passport card while overseas? My reading of the State Dept. website says no, because you must mail in your passport in order to get the card.

The title of this thread is incorrect. The baht was not downgraded. The rating of Thai government bonds was lowered by S&P and Fitch but this only effects the attractiveness of those bonds. Notes & reminders: - Thai banks were not updating their exchange rates because they were closed for the holiday. - The rate listed on a site like Oanda will always be higher that the bank rate, because it is the market rate, the average of buy and sell, and only applies to offshore currency swapping anyway. What matters to you is the Thai bank telex (buy) rate. - The Thai government has very limited tools for manipulating exchange rates. If they feel that the baht is too strong they can lower interest rates. Or they can buy a bunch of USD and other currencies. But every action has side-affects that may cause problems of their own. - When the baht gets expensive, as it has against the pound, it's painful and makes us want to blame someone, but the plain truth is that it's a marketplace. If people would rather hold Bulgarian leva than pound sterling then that's the way it will be. For a while. Until the next cycle comes round.

The penalty for failing to report that 0.50% earned interest on your 1040 is peanuts, no more than the cost of an evening's entertainment. It's a common oversight and it's no big deal, especially since the IRS is unlikely to bother. On the other hand, the penalty for failing to submit the banking form by June 30th is staggering. A huge fine and the possibility of a few years in Leavenworth. I hope that helps you make up your mind. The IRS is not looking to snag 20% of that $80 interest you earned. They are actively seeking money in offshore accounts that is involved in money laundering, drugs, and terrorism, or just large amounts earning peculiar gains.

Unfortunately, there is no reason to think that the granting of visas is being relaxed. The requirement that applicants must "prove the impossible" is explicitly stated in US immigration law. The truth is that it has always been possible to get your Thai b/f or g/f a tourist visa as long as you presented a credible case that they wouldn't overstay. I was able to get one for my b/f two years ago. It takes some preparation and there's no guarantee but the odds aren't all that bad. The best tip I've uncovered: the applicant will be asked "where did you meet?". The answer needs to be something like "through mutual friends at a birthday party", "at a stamp collector's convention", etc. There must not be any hint that the applicant had any involvement with the commercial sex biz. This is because prostitution is illegal in most of the U.S. so that person would be considered a criminal. With one possible exception it does not seem that there is an anti-gay bias among the staff at the Bangkok Embassy. One very femme Thai guy I know said in the interview that he need the visa because "he's my husband and I go where he goes". Visa granted. As for the pending legislation, it is aimed at those couples who are not married. That includes a lot of gays of course but it is not specifically a gay bill. And it it's about getting that person a green card so that they can live and work in the States. It's not at all clear that this legislation will improve the odds of getting a tourist visa. Note: the OP says his b/f got a 10-year multiple-entry visa. That used to be the standard before 9/11 but it's a lot more rare now. My b/f only got what he asked for, which was a single-entry visa valid for 1 year, allowing a 6 month stay.

Just to address the Subject line, no, foreign police cannot arrest anyone here. Despite the wording of the article, you can be assured that there was at least one Thai officer present to slap on the cuffs.

I'm not very rich at all. Wish I were. But surely most of us have some liquid assets somewhere? Even retirees who get by mostly on their public or private pensions have some small bit of cash and time deposits. It's more a question of where it's kept. I realize that the current savings rate for baht at Thai banks is only 0.50%, and foreign currency deposits are down to 1%, but rates are low everywhere. Wells Fargo savings accounts now pay only 0.30%. So, whereas in the past many were loath to keep money here and miss out on a couple of hundred dollars in (taxable) annual interest, that side of the argument has diminished. By using the example of emergency medical care I was making the case for having baht at hand in a Thai bank. Call me nuts but I don't like being half a world away from my money. And it sure let me sleep better last November when it seemed the US banking system might have to go offline for a while. The majority of us have to have about $11,000 or $22,000 for 3 months out of the year anyway; I'm just saying why not keep a minimum of $10,000 throughout the year? Getting back to the Treasury form for US citizens, any American who gets extensions based on the 400k or 800k baht method has thus exceeded the threshold and must submit the form by June 30th.

I said " Americans overseas should be aware that they are required to file a form (TD F 90-22.1) with the US Treasury no later than June 30th of every year listing any and all overseas accounts.". 2lz2p said "I don't believe this is totally correct. The Instructions for completing the form state that the form must be filed if you have any financial interest, signature authority, or control over such account if the aggregate value of these financial accounts exceed $10,000 at any time during the calendar year. So long as your Thai bank account plus any other foreign accounts you may have does not exceed US $10,000 at any one time during the calendar year, no report is required -- of course, for those USA citizens that use the 800k Baht in the bank to qualify for the retirement extension, would meet the requirements to file the report. " Yes, it's $10,000 or more total. I didn't think to mention it because I can't imagine living here (with or without using the 800k method) and not keeping at least $10,000 in a Thai bank. It wouldn't make sense. Just as one example, if you have an accident and need emergency surgery, you might think it's okay because you have insurance, but unless the hospital has a direct-pay relationship with your insurer you will need to pay up front. How quickly can you, while in an emergency situation, arrange a wire transfer? How much per day can you pull with your foreign ATM card? This happened to a friend here (who has a good US insurer) and Bangkok Pattaya insisted on 200,000 baht up front. Being late on a Saturday, it was tricky enough for him to arrange just getting the cash from his Thai accounts. If all his money was overseas it would have been impossible.

- US Social Security is only paid through direct deposit. They stopped sending out checks a few years ago. - Most retirees living here keep at least one bank account in their home country. All things considered, I would recommend that monthly retirement payments (government or otherwise) be directed to your home country bank. Bringing money over 2 to 4 times a year via wire transfer is the best overall method of staying funded here (and of meeting the 3 month seasoning rule that applies to many of us). My US bank allows me to make a 45 second phone call to an automated system that will send dollars to a pre-designated Thai account for US$25. Other banks allow this via their online banking. - Americans overseas should be aware that they are required to file a form (TD F 90-22.1) with the US Treasury no later than June 30th of every year listing any and all overseas accounts.

Hello. My name is J.R. and I'm a coffee addict. And a coffee snob, to be honest. I used to live in San Francisco and I still get teary-eyed when I think about the Guatemalan at Peet's Coffee. Try the BonCafe Mocha at Villa or Friendship.

It is possible that there is one (female) interviewer who is prejudiced. I wouldn't know. In general I don't think being gay is an issue but I agree that the relationship must at least appear to be "real". When my b/f went in for his interview he was only asked one question: "how & where did you meet?". The answer he had prepared was "through mutual friends, at a birthday party". This happened to be reasonably close to the truth. The interviewer then said "enjoy your holiday in the U.S.". I know a couple here who failed to get a visa the first time. A year later they tried again. The Thai simply said "he's my husband and where he goes, I go". Visa granted. It's an awful process to go through but it's all based the percentage of overstays from the applicant's country, and it's just a fact that too many Thai (and many others) overstay their time in the U.S. As for the immigration bill that has been floated, yes we should all express our support for it, but that bill is aimed at granting marriage-like green card status for same-sex partners. There's no certainty that it will make it easier to get tourist visas.

As you suspected, the flyover connects to an express route to the motorway out by the Regents School. That route is nearly finished. It is only the one property on the east side of Sukhumvit that is holding up the project. Presumably, someone is holding out for top dollar, but I think someday soon that small cluster of shophouses will disappear overnight. This express connection will be welcome but it doesn't seem to me that it will cut too many minutes from the drive. So many other more worthwhile road projects. As for Pattaya Beach Road, there's no way to gain 18m of width. On one side there's a sidewalk that's barely a meter; on the other side the water itself is barely 18m away. And it's nuts to think that they could demolish 3 kilometers of shophouses. The solution will have to be a mix of things, none of which will line the pockets of developers. Get the songteows under control, never ever let the gardeners or the trash guys block the beach-side lanes, open up a soi in each direction somewhere around soi 13 for quicker access to / escape from the Beach Road.

No, it's not per province, just a few regions in total, but there's no map on Kbank's website. For sure though, Bangkok, Issan, Chonburi, Chiang Mai, and Phuket are each in their own regions.

Under Thai law all banks are regional. This structure is very outdated and no longer appropriate. In credit to Kbank, they only charge 10 baht for out-of-region withdrawals and have no charges for passbook updates.

This is the opposite side of Day/Night. [corrected] Come out the back door of Tukcom, turn left a few meters, turn right and walk one block, turn left into that soi. Number One Bar is the last shophouse on the right. Seeing it again today, I think it is the new-ish signboards out front that engendered this thread, but I now suspect that they are a fresh attempt to sell the club. Just guessing, though; it's all in Thai.

I saw the place yesterday afternoon. It's on the same short soi as Royal House, across the soi and down by the end. I noticed it, and wondered if it was still in business. There are a number of failed bars in Day/Night but this one looked different (no For Sale sign, no crap piled on the porch, etc.).

I have lived here for a few years. Had one very major surgery and lots of lesser stuff. My answer is unequivocal: getting the medical care here, and recovering here, is the only way to go. But these treatments were elective and this is a good time to point out that major medical care here requires payment in advance regardless of your insurance coverage. Bangkok Pattaya does its best to work with you but if you fall out of your zimmer and break your hip they will ask for 200,000 to 300,000 baht up front. I keep that much in the bank, of course, but on weekends I can only pull 50,000 a day from the ATM. Just mentioning.

Kasikornbank updates thrice daily. For an ATM withdrawal, the "Telex Transfer" rate should be your guideline. If your overall cost, including any and all fees paid to the originating bank and/or the ATM-providing bank, is no more than 1% then you are getting a reasonable result. http://www.kasikornbank.com/portal/site/KB...00056f8f30aRCRD

Since November, it's 60 days for the first extension and 90 days for subsequent extensions.

Can they? Of course they can. Very likely your country is empowered to do the same, but it would probably choose to handle such a situation differently. Making a person stateless would just cause diplomatic problems for countries friendly to The Kingdom. If Thailand were to take the next step and invalidate Thaksin's individual passport, there is the likelihood that the next time he arrives at some foreign airport that he will be refused entry and quickly deported to Thailand. Very few of the powers-that-be would want that to happen. Reducing him to the status of commoner and ensuring that he does not receive special privileges is enough for now. p.s. Thaksin is sure to be holding passports from other countries. Cambodia is likely. p.p.s. Yes it was galling to see him and his wife waltz in and out of the consulate in Hong Kong to file divorce papers. In a better world the officials there would have refused to provide him with consular services, but surely they can't be blamed for not detaining him. The consulate may be a sovereign slice of Thailand but they have no power to handcuff someone and drag them off to the airport. Thailand would have to request extradition, and it's not likely that the crime of which he was convicted would qualify for that nor that Beijing would be inclined to comply.

There seems to be a general feeling that the value of the baht compared to other currencies has a lot to with current events, that political turmoil is a big factor. That's just not the case. It's money, so it's much more about interest rates and trade imbalances and such. The recent climb of the USD vs. THB had little to do with a "weak baht". It was about a flight to quality strengthening the dollar. Now, yesterday's unavoidable cut in US interest rates has turned the dollar around, falling somewhat against the baht and most other currencies. Gaze into the future and place your bets as you will, but predicting currency rates has few rewards. Yes, in a few months Thailand will be cutting interest rates further and exports will be a fraction of normal. Will that mean a cheap baht for you? That will depend entirely on the strength of your home country's currency. Relative to the baht, it might be better or it might be worse.

It's not useful to discuss actual prices unless you are familiar with the full range of products here. There are biofuel blends at good prices but they may or may not be compatible with one's vehicle. Anyway, the answer is yes, prices have fallen dramatically. The ordinary 91 that I use went up to 40 baht per liter and is now back to 24.

Sorry, I don't know. You would need to query the banks involved. Just as a benchmark, it is fairly standard for the initiating bank to charge at least $25 (or as much as $40) and the responding bank around $15. In this case, Bangkok Bank would be initiating the inbound transfer. - When Kasikornbank receives a transfer originated from my US account, they seem to waive the 500 baht incoming fee when the amount is in the order of US$20,000 but I haven't asked them for the details on that. It is also possible that I am given a marginally better exchange rate for an amount in that range. It can be difficult to determine because rates are set several times a day. - A total cost of $40 for a transfer of $20,000 is only one-fifth of a percent, and the exchange rate given is highly competitive. - Just as a reminder, bringing money into Thailand is one thing, trading in currencies online is another. Sites like XE.COM should not be used to determine the current cost of baht. They provide Buy and Sell prices (or their average, called the "market rate") for offshore trading of baht. Thai banks, on the other hand, sell you baht at a rate that is based on the hour's government rate. Early this year, when the offshore market price fell to 30 baht the local banks were still giving better than 31.5 on incoming conversions, as the government was attempting to keep the baht from getting too strong.