Life & Living in Thailand

[JustSumGai]

(PigDogg @ Mar. 21 2008,04:30) I suppose most of you living in farangland are addicted to cars.   But in places such as New York and Bangkok you really don't need a car so one of the biggest expenses can be eliminated.

I have a 76 Chevy van, 350 v8. Ten miles per gallon. Needless to say I don't use it anymore than I have to. I was overjoyed NOT to have to mess with maintainence, gas, insurance, parking and the general hassle it would be to drive in Bkk. Very happy with the busses. When I lived in San Francisco I would take any old bus and then a transfer (cost a big 25 cents then) just to tour the city and see things. I expect I'd do a lot of this in Bkk also. It was soooooo nice to NOT have a car. And fun when we had to throw in with a relative to get somewhere in their car. Tho the New Years trip to Pitchit was like something out of a movie. Four adults and a child in the cab of a mini pickup and two more adults and two kids in the back with the bed filled with boxes of religious stuff like buddha's n such. Five hours on bad roads with me smushed up against the dash, small backpack in between my legs. Man what a hoot thinkin back on it Everytime we'd hit a good bump I'd turn around to see if one of the ppl in back had gone airborne or not. NOT being in control of everything can be fun. Plus the locals KNOW the driving style needed.

[rossco]

Pensions. UK only - applies to pensions "earnt" in UK by persons no longer resident/taxpayers in Euroland.

If you live in Thailand (or outside the EEC) there is a great opportunity to consolidate your UK Pensions and enjoy 100% freedom of choice.

Under fairly recent legislation you can consolidate your UK pensions into an Offshore fund - it is called a QROPS (Recognised Overseas Pension Scheme).

Here is how it works.

Many of us have worked for more than one employer, over our working life, and have been enrolled in one or more Occupational Retirement schemes with our employers.

Depending on the scheme your pension will naturally "mature" at 60 or 65. These pension funds enable the member to take their pension in some percentage of cash and the balance as an Annuity.

An annuity is a one off investment where you surrender your fund in return for an annual income. If married you may elect to have a widow's pension paid to your wife.

An annuity terminates when the member, and their spouse, dies. There is no capital nor income paid to the members estate.

As a non EEC taxpayer you may now consolidate all these occupational pensions. The monies are held in the ROPS for a period of 5 years and the fund may be invested as you wish - from deposit to high risk equity. You may not withdraw from the fund until maturity.

Upon maturity ALL of the fund is yours; to do with as you wish. You can invest the fund as you wish and utilise the fund as you wish.

The important benefits are:
* The fund is yours and forms part of your estate - your heirs can inherit - with an annuity they cannot
* Investments are ALL tax exempt

To achieve the above you must use a Financial advisor and give them power of attorney to transfer all your occupational schemes to the ROPS.

UK Old Age Pension. (Worth 85 UKP per week - about 5500 Baht a week)
You can ask Newcastle for a forecast of your current entitlement. You can elect to "contribute" annual payments (Voluntary Class 2 Contributions) to "top up" your entitlement if you are short of the 100%.

I know of 2 guys who recently did this. One in the US - he had not worked in Europe for 20 plus years but now receives about 50% of the State pension.

Another has opted to top up his UK pension at 120 UKP per annum - again he has not worked in the UK for over 20 years.

It may seem a daunting exercise but the benefits are huge and protects your future.

Oh, if you return to Euroland, after the 5 years, there is no impact as you have "opted out". The only tax implication would be that, if you are now resident in Euroland, you will pay income tax on any income from your fund.

If you would like any more info you can PM me.

[1hotholder]

great information pertaining to cars, taxes and health. Can you marry your LB?

[Stogie]

(1hotholder @ Mar. 10 2009,20:14) Can you marry your LB?

There are two weddings in Thailand and many people do both on the same day but most have a traditional wedding first then do the paperwork later...

You CAN have a traditional wedding with a ladyboy.

[rxpharm]

what Stogie is saying is that same sex marriages (getting married with an lb falls in that category), are not legally recognized in Thailand. However, having the traditional "temple ceremony" or a more a western style wedding reception/party is possible.

[swaraj]

Hope this is in the right place:
One for the ex-pats. When i'm on the road i dont usually think about it, but when i pitch the tent for a month or three i start to miss things: B.B.C. radio, 2&4, a newspaper that takes all day Sunday to get through, and jigsaw's. What, if anything, do you guys miss ?. And a happy Songkran to all.

[Stogie]

I don't miss anything from the UK but I sure do miss Jimmy Dean sausage from the USA!

[f0xxee]

Agreed!

1. Sunday newspapers.
2. Endless Rugby league in season.
3. Pulling on warm clothes.
4. Meat pies in winter

Hmmmm. Looks like I miss winter after 3 years without.....

[swaraj]

Ah Stogie, at last, i've always wondered what they did with his remains

[natabroad65]

The Sunday papers thing has been solved with home internet and I can while away the afternoon flipping between the Sunday Times and Sunday Telegraph sites with the cat sat on my lap and a bottle of Merlot nearby.

I do miss Melton Mowbray pork pies though and a pint of handpulled Robinson's Best Bitter would go down well too.

[bigmick22]

the ritual of reading the Sunday newspaper just isn't the same online

nothing like unfolding it across the table in your kitchen or local cafe and digging in for the afternoon

I suggest we ban board member natabroad65 for suggesting otherwise

[manarak]

"I do miss Melton Mowbray pork pies though and a pint of handpulled Robinson's Best Bitter would go down well too."

I don't know if this was intentional on your part, but here ya go:

You can enjoy something else to pork in Thailand, and another liquid gets handpulled before it goes down...



you are welcome

[swaraj]

The thought of looking at a newspaper on a screen is obscene, mind you i am the worlds last remaining luddite, i could add to that but nobody will believe me.

Bring back vinyl

[vogelx8]

Is there any downside to renting outside of the big cities? How available are traditional teak houses to rent in more rural areas? Even if LB trade is not so prevalent, the slow paced life great food and easy BKK access when LB-withdrawal sets in must be nice. All my travels through the country side make me believe these are the regions to fully enjoy Thailand as a resident.

[stonefre]

(Stogie @ Apr. 14 2009,16:30) I don't miss anything from the UK but I sure do miss Jimmy Dean sausage from the USA!

I remember the first time I ordered a breakfast of sausage and eggs in BKK. I got eggs and what looked like 2 american hot dog weiners.