@Greg *******

Could I have the link for the seminar too please, if it pops up again?

@Andi **********

Happy to help where I can! 🙏🏼

@Greg *******

That would make much more sense! I'd have gone for the LTR if it weren't for time constraints and waiting for the BOI approval. The truth is the DTV overall is still less hassle if one travels regularly. But the whole making payments thing can be a small mare at times.

@Greg *******

I hope you've given them hell for it.

Anonymous participant 414 Or they can just allow payment providers to actually provide a usable service, like other countries (even Malaysia and Laos) do.

@Greg *******

Yeah, I get that. Not disagreeing with you. 😉

Anonymous participant 897 So you have some better insider insight as to the intentions of the Thai government? 6 months is hardly the same as an METV. And judgy much? Some people just want an extended timeout or cultural experience and have the means to do so. Most visas don't have a path to residency or citizenship. Just because circumstances don't apply to you or you don't agree with them, doesn't mean people don't have perfectly valid reasons for their stays. Constructive conversation... 🙄

Anonymous participant 897 Why not? And why stop there? By what standard do you formulate this blanket opinion? There are plenty of things people can argue shouldn't be allowed. But if the primary purpose of a longer tourist visa is to encourage people to stay, work remotely, and spend more, even invest and in theory be subject to taxation, there ought to be reliable methods to accomplish these objectives - direct transfers into, and payments from, payment providers, for example. The reality is that the Thai banking and payments systems and regulations have not caught up with modern standards, so these latest hiccups are a knee-jerk reaction for failure to implement proper AML measures.

Anonymous participant 897 Because large transfers don't always go smoothly. I had my son's school threatening to not hold his place, because their bank rejected my transfer. Just because it doesn't fit your circumstances, doesn't mean there aren't many reasons why a local account is more convenient for some people. (I've also heard of tax complications if money is directly transferred to other people, or jointly-owned companies, from abroad.)

@Andi **********

I agree. The publication quoted incorrectly stated that the "wrong type of visa" is a "KYC 'violation'" - it's not. (I work in KYC.) KYC is an identity verification process for anti-money laundering measures, so I can see how that could be misread.