Am I allowed to have conversational talks at a local school in Thailand without a work permit if I have a retirement extension and am married to a Thai national?

Rhiannon being appreciative at the end of the day the thaiz being appreciative still doesn't make it legal. :/

😂 nope! We are all responsible for our own decisions. We pick and choose what advice we take and that is the way it should be. Otherwise we would all be the exact same people doing the exact same thing. In this case id say it depends a lot on where you live and your relationship with the community. I've known many people that have volunteered like this over the years and the community has been so appreciative, the police have even encouraged it 😂

Would you pay his fine if he got caught after taking your advice ???

@Liam ****

all it takes is one thai teacher who is jealous of farangs (of which there are many) to go to the authorities and he's toast. you neglected to mention the chance that could happen. your so-called independent thought is flawed.

and i'm not advocating breaking the law by the way (although I don't always carry my passport - shoot me!), i'm saying that a little bit of independent though is necessary and, well, fine

Tony Dadson I'm not saying they are. I'm saying that some of the definitions are very vague that interpretation or 'is there any way I can get caught' comes into the decision making process. Ask yourself honestly, do you take your passport out with you literally every time you go anywhere? If not you're breaking the law. Which leads me to Robert Lagas' point - presumably you break the law by not always taking your passport with you, or getting on a bike without a helmet, or staying in an AirBnB, or whatever. At some point there's a judgment call, and it's not as black and white as you make out

@Liam ****

foreigners are not given the luxury of interpreting Thai laws.

@Liam ****

, what is common sense for you, could be different than mine. Mine is simple, follow the laws, rules and regulation of the country where you're a guest. If not, face the consequences if get caught. And this is the last comment from me on this post about following the law or usage of common sense by not doing it.

Robert Lagas I am giving advice that common sense is needed when deciding how to interpret vague, poorly written and unenforceable laws. For example, the law says that you must carry your passport at all times as a foreigner. If someone asked me "do I need to take my passport with me if I go to my local " I would say "no, don't bother".

@Liam ****

As said the law on working even as volunteer is clear. What ever you think of it and want to follow or not is up to you. But don't give advice to others it should be okay to disregard the laws, it may work out fine for you, but not for others.

Yes, but their laws say you can't have gatherings of more than 5 people (which thus makes parties illegal), or that it's illegal to promote alcohol (thus making illegal for a waiter to recommend which wine goes with the pasta). Sometimes their laws make no sense. The definition of 'volunteering' is so vague that at some point a bit of common sense interpretation is required

well said that man

@Robert ******

No, it was an article in the Phuket gazette that quoted an immigration official, although as you say I am sure it was not during the first couple of days

If you mean this article it is exactly as I stated:

@Robert ******

Read the Phuket gazette, the remarks were published there and were a direct quote from the head of immigration.

@Richard ******

I wasn't here at that time, but now that you mention it, i do recall hearing something about it.

Richard Clark During the Tsunami nobody was asked anything, all to busy to save their own lives. During the first days after I was never asked. Maybe later when foreign aid groups showed up for rebuild etc, work permits where asked.

@Paul ********

Didn't you hear about the stink when rescue volunteers during the Asian Tsunami of 2004 were told they needed a work permit !!

Non O based on marriage is good, this visa allows you to work with a Work Permit.

If one has non immigrant O based on marriage, i guess this is not good enough, it needs to be volunteer specific?

There is even a special Visa for that: Non Immigrant O visa for Volunteer work. As foreigner you need a Work Permit to work paid or unpaid in Thailand. And next to this Work Permit you need a visa that allows you to work.

A work permit to volunteer? Wow 😣