And I even forgot to talk about the Covid vaccine fiasco!

Why are you asking a question if you already figured it all out after 2 months? Be more humble in your approach and you will get more sympathy. I hate when newb complain that the "regulars" are too mean toward them when the newbs are annoyingly playing the "known it all" game.

The fact is that the Thai locals have suffered a lot economically during Covid with very little help from their government. The fact is that the Thai government was overthrown via a coup d'état in 2014 and a lot happened since.

The fact is that Laos economy is completely dead, with a dead currency, and no infrastructure. The fact is that Myanmar is having its version of a Civil War atm.

The fact is that Covid is underreported not only in Thailand but in a lot of countries that are not "first world". For example, here in Isan (North-East Thailand), locals are not going to the hospital if they suspect they have Covid. They can't afford unexpected medical bills that could happen. This is why you see Covid numbers even lower in Cambodia and almost inexistent in Laos (a country that doesn't have hospitals that can deal with Covid patients).

The fact is that the administrative process to get into Thailand is overly complicated atm. A country like Thailand should be able to deal with the afflux of people wanting to come in better.

The fact is that Thailand, like many countries, is "reactionary", they wait for the Covid numbers to either go "up" or "down" to make changes. They don't proactively make decisions and stick with it. If these month numbers are lower they re-open this and this province, if next month it gets higher they close the same province. We have seen a lot of flip-flopping in the last 2 years, a lot of inconsistency, and a lot of last-minute decisions. There are a lot of things that you don't know, and you should be more humble in your approach instead of trying to lecture some of us who have been here for many many years.

@Gordon ******

Bobby Howard is correct. It's 500b per day overstay and you will not get in trouble for overstaying a few days. Whoever is saying that it will prevent you from re-entering Thailand or going to a neighboring country is not speaking from experience.

Most of these will rebrand as "restaurants", already happening everywhere.

3.5k is "agent price", so either you are in the system for having use an agent before or this immigration work closely with agent.

If you have used an agent for any extension in the past they will try to charge you 3.5k baht since this is "agent price" and you are in the system. If you haven't, it can simply be that the Krabi office is notorious for working with agencies and will try to take their tea money anyways.

If you are only leaving because you "have to" rather than "want to", then just use an agent to stay for now and get Elite Visa next year.

@Michael *******

Nobody is promoting agent in this comment section. We're simply trying to help OP figure out the email he got. If anything, you brought the story in a snarky way knowing fair well the sensational aspect of the article. A story that could easily be misinterpreted by people with very little experience. Also, you are old enough to not need an agent, so obv your snobbism toward agents and people who use them is understandable. Let me remind you that the group was created by Garrett. I've been here since Day 1. The reason why he created the group was because the bigger group was run by dictatorial admin with no care for freedom of speech. This group is a safe space for alternative solutions and discussions that don't get censored or closed comments. Promotions of agents have never been allowed, rightfully so. Nothing said here promotes such agent, as mentioned at the beginning of my post. The "if you don't like it here... blabla", is typical, but not impressive. There is no need for doubling down on the snarkiness. You are just an admin, nothing else, not above nor below anyone else.

@Michael *******

Your OP was not necessary. They are world-class and we both know how stupid this story was. Grace is the most honest Thai agent ive ever spoken to.

I don't know if this particular email is a scam or not, but Thai Visa Centre do contact people this way. So could be them or could be a scam copycat. The only way to know is to contact them on their official FB or Line and ask them directly. Having said that, Thai Visa Centre are very reputable and do deliver everything that they promise. They are probably the most legit visa agent in Thailand.