There is no specific limit on visa exempt entry. They are targeting people living here without a visa, they come for 60 get a 30 day extension, cross the border and reset. If you are a genuine tourist you come & return home and do not do extension's then you are fine, you have nothing to worry about. If not then apply for a visa.

You can do the same day, maybe a cheap flight to Laos but gee i generally at least make a weekend getaway of it. Last Penang, next Hong Kong.

This has happened a bit, the consular officer has looked at what you submitted and decided you do not need a 5 year DTV. based on what you submitted they decided a 6 month multi-entry was sufficient. hard to see the issue though, you've now got 6 months to get everything in order and apply for another visa.

Sounds like your running a cash business, while you may make money they want to see legitimate business income. registration of business, tax returns or submissions to your home tax office for the business. If your business is cash in the hand and your not paying tax or declaring income they are not going to accept it. There's nothing wrong with cash work but when it comes time to prove your income for a loan or a visa or another reason it's not much good.

The first step is document check. An admin clerk checks you have attached the required documents , that they are readable and contain the necessary information. This person has no authority to approve or disapprove your visa they are just checking there is nothing obvious missing. They will request additional documents as required. Once this is done your application with all your documents is assigned to a consular officer, they look at the facts and decide to reject or approve your visa. So pending approval means you have submitted the right documents and your visa is now being considered. Technically while they say pending approval it's really pending a decision which could be approval or refusal.

This is 100% Correct.

I'm on DTV as digital nomad - health insurance was not a visa requirement, however i still recommend having some coverage. You want to at least make sure they have operations in Thailand so insurance/payment can be confirmed quickly so a local provider is probably best. The policies tend to be age based and increase with age if your older.

She will not have any issue entering Thailand on her Australian Passport as an Australian Citizen. She can then sort things out when she gets here. It is possible, albeit unlikely, she could have an issue boarding the plane from Australia. As she is travelling on an Australian passport and as she has no long term visa the airline may ask for proof of onward travel - it does not happen all the time but it can happen. Theoretically coming to Thailand as a tourist you should have either a return ticket or onward travel. A million people will jump, on this and tell you it's never been a problem for them but sometimes it does happen so it is something I would be prepared for.

You won't have any issues, you do not need a Visa and everybody that is not a Thai citizen must complete TDAC everytime they arrive in the country, whether they have a visa or not, so yes you have to do it.

Sure things have gone up a little as they have everywhere and yes the strong Baht means less on conversion so your foreign currency does not go as far however comparatively speaking it is still cheaper than a lot of places. I think the biggest misconception comes from tourists not expats, the idea everything is cheaper in Thailand just is not true although the basic necessities of life certainly are affordable.