hybrid

any idea which school ?

depends very much on the breakdown of company shares if you get clamped down on . 39% farang /61% thai is perfectly alright and to my limited knowledge has never been investigated. also i know i heard of the crackdown some time ago. but did anybody have problems with it or was it just another flash in the pan .

hi all what do most expats do with there time & money. i've been thinking of either buying some land up country and growing eucalyptus maybee. or even (as suggested by the dragon) buy a small peice of land and build a factory and sell & make ice. other thoughts have been a bar(lol well this thought went out the window 1st as don't here of many good tales) . a shop selling god knows waht in fact i'm wanting to invest in something so i can do something with my time ! any suggestions or anyone looking for a business partner ?

my 9 year English son who is coming to LOS to live with me (sad i know, no more butterfly!) is meant to be going to Best Burapha from november this year. however i've read alot lately saying many expats are pulling there kids from there as there are acusations that teachers are hitting pupils and the school is doing nothing to stop it, i've been considering Satit Udomseka as i reads they do a 70% english program which as my son does not speak any thai would be good. there website is not yet in english tho any other alterantives would be nice to hear.

i asked moneycorp for a quote sometime ago.. they were only offering 57bht/£ when the rate was 69bht/£ in thailand .. i read this earlier today. do things like this make the baht weaker or stronger against the £ & $ or no difference Thaiiland suffers Bt157 billion deficit in first half of Fiscal 2008 BANGKOK, May 4 (TNA) – The Thai government suffered a deficit of Bt156.87 billion during the first half of the 2008 fiscal year, which began on October 1, up about Bt75.6 billion from the corresponding period of Fiscal 2007,a Finance Ministry spokesman said. Somchai Sajjapong, who advises the Ministry's Fiscal Policy Office, said the government in first half of Fiscal 2008 suffered a deficit of Bt164.04 billion, while the government's local administrative organisation enjoyed a finance surplus of Bt7.17 billion, meaning the government was in deficit of Bt156.87 billion. Meanwhile, the government suffered a budget deficit totaling about Bt159.55 billion during the same period, representing 1.7 per cent of gross domestic product, said Mr. Somchai. Revenue earned by the government during the period totaled Bt657.21 billion, up 7.6 per cent from the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year. Its expenses amounted Bt816.76 billion, an increase of 14.4 per cent from one year ago, Mr. Somchai said. Payment to overseas on project loans and structural adjustment loans during the first half of Fiscal 2008 totaled Bt285 million, down sharply by 56.7 per cent, he said. (TNA)-E111

a very in depth and thought out reply.. many thanks

i havea choice as far as waiting , yes. can just change waht i need on a weekly basis, of course this means can't bank it so there is always a slight risk of theft the concern is of course it will drop even lower !

Hi all .. well i'm on my way back home to LOS after a month in blighty bringing more of my hard earner money with me lol but cannot decide what to do on changing the money. 1 year ago (or less) it was nearly 71/£ .. now its 62£ a lot of money to lose on £50k is it expected to go back up ? or are these bad rates here to stay

loads of plans here as well http://www.estateagentsthailand.com/houseplans.html

hi all. may have to go back to the UK for a month next week and looking for options for my car. i don't really want to leave it in pattaya. anyone know much about long term parking facilities on or off site at Suvarnabhumi airport ? google info seems pretty limited

from what i can there is no treaty . it would be the hague convention that covers it , but thailand is not a signatory

Rolyshark . you seem very sure . are you a lawyer or do you work in childcare ? can you PM me any more info ? if the order cannot be mirrored or registered then i'm happy with that, the issue is if it can be then i need to find a lawyer to do it. if it can't (which is the info i get from you and pattaya lawyers) then i only need to get a letter from a lawyer here in thailand saying it cannot be done. i think at this stage my lawyer is pre-empting the question from the court or the x's lawyers with regards to this/ a snipped from the last email from my UK lawyer where after i tell them it cannot be done. "Still need a letter from the lawyers confirming what orders if any or procedures if any that can protect x-wifes contact by the Thai legal system And this needs to be translated and notarised if in thai"

ah .. someone who appears to know the score. i won't go into great detail . but can;t evict tenants as there on gaurneteed tenancies my case for removal is very strong. now although i've only asked for it for 12/15 months which is the lenth of a class B/ Class O / Class Ed multi entry visa my laywer is content with applying for a permanant removal order so as not to land us back in court in 12/15 months if we decide to stay for good. the issue is not the other orders . but specficly the question of can a UK contact order be mirrored or registered in a thai court.

Hi There. hoping you all can help me as after visiting nearly 10 Thai international law firms in pattaya I'm still no nearer to an answer. I have relocated to pattaya, I live in a lovely 3 bedroomed bungalow with private swimming pool have my own new car. I still own my home in the UK, however its rented out long term giving me a reasonable base income. no car in the UK or anything , sold everything other than the house so if all in LOS fails I still have a roof to go back to if need be , although I'd have to wait for my tenants to leave before I could have my own house to live in. I was married in the UK, but divorced some 4 years ago. I have a 8 (nearly 9) year old son in the UK who WAS living with his mother. His mother has long term psychiatric problems and my son has been removed from her and given to me, however my (elderly) mother in the UK is looking after him at the moment while I sort things out over here in LOS. I have got him into a nice international school over here ready for when he comes. now my dilemma . the UK courts to approve his move to Thailand as a permanent removal from there jurisdiction want to firm up the contact arrangements for him and his mother . these being 4 visits per year, funded 50/50 my myself and his mother for her to come and visit Thailand (wow ! half price holiday for her :) so they wish to make a contact order along with my residence order . sounds easy doesn't it ! LOL now they are going on about either wanting to register or mirror said contact order in the Thai judicial system as of course they are worried as Thailand is not a signatory of the Hague convention regarding children and his mother is worried one he gets here she could never see him again. my problem is I've been to visit 10 Thai international law firms so far this week and had lengthy appointments. the result being in all cases they say a UK contact order cannot be registered or mirrored in Thailand unless there is a half Thai element involved . of course we're all farang ! so is this right or as I suspect the advise I'm had so far is because its just not been done by these companies before . the way my UK lawyer is explaining it is that there half right. the order cannot be registered or mirrored against my will, i.e. if I had abducted him and brought him here the UK contact order does not matter , but beware if I ever go back to the UK as I'd get arrested for child abduction !. so the way it it done is the order is registered or mirrored with all parties approval before the act. so enabling enforcement should I decide to give his mother a 2 finger salute. Now OK . I'd prefer no order, and I'd love to give her a 2 finger salute !. but its not a matter of that . its a matter of its only fair for son & mother to see each other. and she and the court want this order over here to make sure all goes well . and also no order could well mean no permsion to relocate him so my options . get the order. (well, just find out how and tell the UK lawyers team to do it) allow my son to go into care as my mother cannot look after him forever as she's too old ! (not an option really is it !) give up on los, and go back to England , sign on the dole, hope my tenants move out and suffer . or if its right that no order or anything alike can be done, show evidence that it cannot be done and offer surety to the courts in some manner . oh and before I forget my mother in the UK who is looking after my son is also wanting to relocate here ! (not sure if that good for me or not but it will cure here arthritis & rheumatism I'm sure) suggestions on a postcard please or really i just need a good lawyer here in pattaya who knows the law and can give me a letter (will pay !!!) stating yes or no and why & how

according to the mrs. for a thai bike licence you either need to show your UK licence, or take the FULL test.

bank account - no paperwork other than ID (passport) needed . depends on the bank & branch, some ask for a work permit, but it is not required, only passport is needed immigration letter - the form being refered to is a certificate of residence, you have to take proof of residencey, eg rental agreement, tabien bahn, anything really confriming your address in thailand. your passport & valid visa, and 2 photos, to jomtien immigration and a few hundred baht . they give you a letter with your photo on it confirming you are resident until the date on your visa, ie they put the date your visa expires (departure date) not the expiry date of your 12 monht non-o/non-b . this form is for car purchase , opening a bank account, and anything else that needs it . although its not always needed .. you simply go to immigration fill in a very basic form , and call back the next day to collect it. it is not addresed to anyone, it is a statement from immigration merely confirming your TEMPORARY resident status medical checkup letter - a letter from a clinic saying your in good health, available from most clinics for between 100-400 baht. no checkup is normaly done driving licence - 1st issue is 1 year then 5 year on renewal. you need your farang licence , immigration letter(original not copy), medical checkup letter, passport copy with departure card & visa stamp. 1st issue you pay a few hundred baht , they sit you in a chair where you press a pedal on the floor when a red light comes on, to test reaction time. and then a strange test that is meant to be for vision perception. 2 little pegs with red lines on move and you have to press a button when you think they are parralel. 5 year is 500baht and requires same paperwork but no test. car finance .. depends on your visa, and the company doing it. if you are on a full work permit you can have fincance in your own name without a gaurentor, even with toyota finance. on a non-o/non-b you can still get the finance stand alone depending who you use, not as easy tho and bigger deposit is needed .. you are meant to have the immigration letter to buy a car, but only normaly asked for if you are buying from a main dealer , worth noteing toyota finance did not want it from me , it was the sales lady at toyota for there sales paperwork. car purchase. anyone can buy a car. if it is a private sale then you will not normaly be asked for any paperwork. if a dealer as a above they may ask for the residence certificate. driving some say you can drive on your farang licence, some say you cannot. a UK licence is not valid in thailand. not even for 30 days !. it states on the UK licence website which countries require you to get a international licence (available from post offices, rac,aa) thailand is one of them. if you are stopped in pattaya you will most likely be ok, if you are stopped up country they normaly pull a face at a uk one, and try and tell you its no good, although like most things most ppl use there farang licence and nobody really cares. the question would be where would you stand if you had an acident if they plod decided they did not like you. in short .. all the paperwork is dead easy to get. you can even get a thai international licence valid in the UK !!! your not meant to be able to hahah, but you cna get them for a price :) back to my original post. toyota confirmed to me i am the car owner, or rarter they are till its paid for. then it goes into my own name. if i pay the payments they car is mine, if i fail to pay the car falls back to the gaurentor and they are asked to pay, if they don't pay they take the car, and chase me, if they can't get me to pay they chase the gaurentor.

yes .. ts hard for a farang to get stand alone finance .. so they need a working thai person to gaurentee it

of course your not a dumb tourist, you redeemed yourself by useing these forums realy though .. i'm refereing to the people who go on a package deal then do not venture out of there hotels grounds, only go on tour rep organised trips .. and such like. and believe the timeshare tout when he tells you its a good investment to spend £25,000 on 2 weeks of red time timeshare..

Hi all . now its not that i don't trust my fiance , i just like to know 100% what i could be letting myself in for . Buying a new car off toyota, having it on finance, silly not to with 2.8% interest rate as i get more leaving my own cash invested ! 20% deposit. Sister in law be standing gaurantor who owns the car if we all fall out. Myself as the buyer as i'm paying or the sister-in-law to be as gaurantor

From my experiance of the one in phuket . Yes they would give you a prize .. normaly the bottom one worth about 1000-200 baht . frequntly a cheapo DVD player or tickets to something like tiffanys. Yes they would bring you back to town. yes they would give you free SOFT drinks while you were looking . and NO, they would not give you some nice girls to play with and if you hop on the bike.. the girl will take you to the venue (or rape you if your luckey) and take you to the timeshare office where she gets a vouchers and departs leaving you there waiting for a hard sell if you want to be treated extra well, get extra drinks, and annoy them give a false name, and the wrong hotel (preferably one with 2 exits front and back)say your going to buy .. let them ring there bell, negotiate more freebies .. then they will want to take you to your room to get a deposit (your cards etcs, which you left in the room) . tell them you want ot take your freebies to the room now as time is ticking by and you won;t have chance later, also can the driver who takes you to the room to get the cards wait 5 mins while you cange into evening clothing (it will be evening by now as you will of spent the last 8 hours there!!) then,, in the front door and out the back and pat yourself on the back for a job well done.. of course this could be just my criminal mind on the go as i have to much time on my hands talking of criminal minds .. has anyone ever tried stealing a complete ATM machine in patts ? so many of them around on sidewalks i can just picture a pickup and a chain pulling one out of its foundations

I used to go look at them in spain to get the freebies when it was raining . boring video followed by a hard sell where they keep trying to say the only reason you would not buy is if you were poor .. in fact i remember i went and looked at one in phuket about 2 years ago .. raining of course .. but got 2 free tickets to the Phantasea show .. they gave up totaly when i told them i had looked at a house for sale for the same price as there 1 week timeshare. they relie totaly on dumb tourists with more money than sense. the package holiday brigade

Hi all. i need to get my post re-directed from the UK to LOS.. can anyone recomend a PO.box company or somethign similiar please . somewhere reliable .

i'm aware if the Pal difference . philips say either there modern LCD's are multi standard or they can be upgraded via firmware or hardware. . not a huge issue as intended use is with a UK PS3 & a UBC box .. i was dissapointed tho that it seems even UBC box's do not have a scart connection, HD is non-existant in thailand .(UBC only now even demo'ing in BKK) , anyone know what connections are on the back of UBC box's (or philipino dream TV) also emirates UK are now saying different to emirates bkk check in . TV needs to go as cargo, so extra fees etc .. £69 they quote .. which i not that bad really but it all adds up and goes towards replacemnt cost .. so possible 20k baht at customs(or more) , 4000 baht shipping .. + all the hastle . might just lend it to mother instead .. lol

heard something about PSI Dream Tv . meant to be same type of thing as UBC but broadcast from philipines .. anyone know much about it ..

lots of bubble wrap & lightweight hardboard to support & protect it "The duty on finished products is 20% and VAT is 7%.Fair market value is used to value the goods.So if you are importing a TV you will be liable for around 28.4% total taxes. Specifying the fair market value is not something that anyone can guarantee.It is up to negotiation between you and customs" any idea if they use new value or 2nd hand value .. ie. my UK receipt from 10 month ago says £940 .. current cheapest price i can fins is £698,, so would taking a printout that its this price now new help ? or would they just not care ... i guess i need to find the price in thailand really to show them..