@Ned ******

The gent appears quite angry. I’m always surprised by the number of people who confuse their guesthouse for a home, getting angry every time a fellow traveler rings the bell on the desk.

@Daniel ********

I was only using unsold condos as a metric. There are also hundreds of thousands of vacant condo units that have gone unrented for years. And I very much believe the structure of Thailand’s economy, and how the DTV is being used as a stopgap, is very much relevant to the discussion.

@Daniel ********

For starters, Bangkok alone has 210,000 unsold condo units which Thais cannot buy to begin with because of extremely high household debt (nearly 91% of GDP), coupled with extremely strict lending criteria from banks. Talks of a property bubble have been going on in Thailand for years. The fact that people are so debt-saddled has had serious effects on other things like vehicle sales.

There are real structural issues with Thailand’s economy. But you’re not going to learn what they are by listening to a guy walk around with a camera and extrapolate about how a few months old visa made his Pad Thai more expensive.

No, but “content” creators who don’t learn very much about the places they live but say a lot regardless just might.

@Samantha *********

An immigration officer will always check your visa stamps and actual visa, its protocol. The convenience we get from applying online is slightly offset from not having a physical stamp in our passport. c’est la vie, Etc…

@Samantha *********

I’m starting to guess people have very different expectations than me, but an immigration officer asking to see your actual visa seems completely reasonable.

I don’t really think those are irrelevant questions for an immigration officer to ask. I’d assume that someone living itterantly rather than residing in, and applying from their own country, would naturally raise more questions. Hey, he let you in, so ไม่เป็นไร

Graham Lynch Yes, but as of now, to my understanding, there is no limit on the number of times you can re-enter Thailand during the 5-year period. So as long as you leave every 180 days, you essentially can stay in Thailand for 5 years, with a few border runs thrown in.

I previously had a non-immigration visa switched from an expiring passport to a new passport.

Here was the process: I went to the U.S. embassy in Bangkok and applied for a new passport. When I collected my new passport, I requested they not cancel my old passport until I could switch out the visa.

I then went to immigration, in my case Chomchuri square. They moved the visa from my old passport to my new passport. I then returned to the U.S. embassy, who canceled my old passport.

I do not believe showing both passports is enough. Your passport number must match the number on the visa. A valid visa in an expired passport is not valid. Likewise, a visa in your name under a different passport number is likewise not valid.

Honestly speaking, individuals with very high net worth, some of whom are foreigners living in Thailand, would not have the lion’s share of their assets in a savings account.

I understand your caution, but it’s really nothing to worry about.

A Thai embassy worker in your country, almost assuredly of a middle or higher class background, is not going to concoct a conspiracy to milk a visa applicant of his savings.