@Andy ***********

Delusional & honesty are subjective to one’s reality, their cultural & familial upbringing. It sounds like you base your observations & judgments on a worldview that structured who & what you became. You should know by now that no two people’s beliefs or views are the same. To me & most of my farang friends, there is no country on earth that comes close to Thailand. It is absolutely heaven compared to life in the U.S. I would have given up my American citizenship 20 years ago were it not for my pension & related incomes, which I would lose.

@Andy ***********

I swam in a canal in Kamalasai in 2004. It was wonderful. I get it that Thailand is apparently not for you, but that’s okay. Not going to argue, rather than suggest you not let your personal grumpiness dampen the mood of everyone else.

@Andy ***********

I’d rather “stagnate” in heaven than “trample underfoot.”

@Tony *********

Problem is, immigration officers nationwide seem to have wide latitude to not have to fully understand or follow the rules to the letter, though they generally cannot loosen the requirements. Meaning, it’s a safer bet to ensure the funds are transferred in.

And I concur 100% that the first order of business is to open a bank account, though you’ll need a local address to do that. When I opened my first account in 2004, I had a Thai friend accompany me to the bank; we used his address for my account.

@Tim ******

Not for wealthy pensioners but yes for other categories.

@Chris ******

You can use income for follow-on extensions by using certain third-party transfer services, such as Wise, or make monthly transfers from your US bank.

They also say passports & other documents should be submitted on PDF. So, will any PDF work or does it need to be, e.g., Adobe?

@Wayne *******

The main purpose of the tax exclusion used to be to offset foreign living expenses, if I remember correctly. It’s been 20 years since I researched this, so perhaps things have changed. Otherwise, the exclusion should apply across the board.

The above information is for the Wealthy Pensioner option.

@John *******

I take it you’re too young to retire?