# Newbie thinking of moving to Thailand



## vadababy

Hi Everyone
Ok apologies as i'm sure you get this all the time.
We're seriously considering moving to Thailand but I have no idea where to start, on getting info on how to go about it. I've been googling for info but all I seem to get are old threads which i'm not sure are relevant anymore?
We've visitied Thailand before, staying in Bangkok a few days & then on to Koh Lanta. We're returning next year to stay on Koh Yao.

There's me, Hubby & our daughter, aged 2 & also our pets.
I 've seen the list of restricted occupations & i'm just wondering what kind of work we could do?? As both of our professions are in the restricted category.
I had thought I could TEFL but apparently now you need a degree for this? As for hubs he's a Roofer back here in the UK & it's all he's ever done, so any suggestions on the types of work available to Foreigners would be much appreciated.
We want to live somewhere near the coast but also somewhere we can work & that has a good school.
We don't want to be near party scenes, we just wait to live a peaceful relaxed lifestyle. Nothing Lavish but not too basic either.
Also any suggestions on the amount of income required would be appreciated too.
For accommodation do people tend to rent then go on to buy once they have secured employment?
i'm really sorry for all these questions but I really am just starting off at looking into this.
Thanks in advance for any help given


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## stednick

Vadababy: I'll start - you will not want to hear what I'll say which is basically forget about it.

Read through this forum, the questions you ask are answered many times. 

The problem you face is getting legal permission to stay in Thailand. Come and visit, enjoy the tropical paradise, have a grand old time, and leave you money behind when you go home. Talk Thailand up and send your friends for their vacation(s). Its very easy to get a tourist visa for a short vacation.

Now, to get permission to stay in Thailand for a long period is a different story. You can go to school, education visa, retire on a retirement visa (no work allowed) or you can work, business visa. Unless you are independently wealthy you will need to earn a living. So, you either have a highly specialized skill set in short supply that is needed in Thailand, or, you teach English (not a lucrative profession). Of course, exceptions to the rules do exist, but so do lottery winners. 

I won't offer any hope of you succeeding in your plan. 

Again, read through this forum. The information you read may seem dated but is pretty much true. Thailand does not seem to change much, at least when it comes to foreigners who desire to come to Thailand and live, expecting to compete will the local Thai workforce, who speak fluent Thai and work very, very long hours for minimal pay. 

Good luck in your investigation, but be very careful in your decision making.


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## Moolor

Totally agree with stednick. Without being independently wealthy or having an anchor here, Thailand makes staying long term almost impossible. 

If you still want to live a peacefully relaxed life in the area, check out Cambodia. Fewer restrictions and lots of places to settle down and live a relaxed life.


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## Mweiga

You're setting yourself a tough objective , all the more so with a 2 year old and pets into the bargain.

As a practical suggestion , and assuming you can leave your pets with someone in UK , you could come out on a longish term fact finding mission on a tourist visa. (Two month , which can be got at the Thai embassy in UK , and which can be extended by a month in Thailand , giving you three months - and which is also available as a double entry thereby doubling visa times).

You'd be able to assess whether your Thailand living plan is feasible with first hand experience getting to know the country and talking to people , both expats and Thais. As Stednick rightly points out unless you have private means , or can live on the over 50 non-immigrant retirement visa , or are willing to try the very poorly paid English teaching route , you have little or no chance of legal employment.


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## vadababy

Thank you for your replies.
We were also considering the possibility of setting up a business, would that be classed as an anchor & a reason to stay?
I don't want to have a lucrtive job, don't want to be making lots of money, just an ample amount to get by on & pay the bills.
Because of work commitments in the UK it would be impossible for us to come & stay for 3 months, and I couldn't leave my pets for that long.


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## stednick

vadababy: Sorry - more of the same - forget about it.

In theory "yes", owning a business in Thailand will grant you permission to stay in Thailand.

On the practical side, you will lose all your money. You (as others before you) are exploring the possibility of operating a successful business in an impoverished third world country, albeit one of the Asian tigers. Do you have the very deep pockets required to sustain the business venture until profitability is achieved? Do you have significant international business experience in a foreign country where you do not speak the language nor understand the business culture? Can you wade through the legal criteria, licensing issues, taxation requirements, employment issues, human resources, pay, benefits, etc. The list goes on and on. 

What product or service can you provide that is in short supply in Thailand?

Many, many, many, have traveled down this path to the inevitable end of running out of money fairly quickly. But, as I said in my earlier post, there are lottery winners.


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## vadababy

So if all my ideas are fruitless how does one manage to become a permanent resident in Thailand then? 
It's obviously possible, but how?


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## Moolor

Essentially the two most common scenarios are to marry a Thai spouse or retire (over 50 years old and 800K Thai baht in a Thai bank. You cant work while on a "retirement" visa). There are also a smaller segment of expats who live here to work for a foreign company, the company usually moves them here.

It's possible you could scrape by on an English teachers salary, but it would be tight. What I would be concerned with more is your child's education. You would want your child to attend a good international school, which is something that would not be affordable on an English teachers salary.

Bringing pets here is not a problem, I brought two cats. As long as you follow the import guidelines, you should have no problem bringing them in. Make sure to do your research on getting them back to your home country first before you decide to bring them here or leave them in your home country.

If you are interested in setting up a company do a Google search for "setting-up-thai-private-company-limited" and have a read through the top hit. Sorry, can't post a link to another forum.

Lastly, Always have an exit plan. Things can go belly up here fast, be prepared.


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## Moolor

Oh... Almost forgot. Becoming a permanent resident can take years of living here before your even considered, and years more waiting to be approved. Most expats live here year to your on Non Immigrant "O" or "B" visas.


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## vadababy

ok thanks for this.
Neither of those scenarios are going to apply to us as we are a married working age couple.
I 'll have a look at that link, thank you for the info


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## thaicanuck

I recently retired to Chiangmai with my wife. I have to agree with the others on this post. I have a decent pension and some savings so I was able to easily obtain a retirement visa. But I am not allowed to work. I know there are retirees that do under the table but I really don't want to take that chance. If you are looking for a warm, inexpensive place to live where you are still allowed to work or operate a business, there are better options than Thailand, especially some of the Central American countries. We have been living and working in China for the last six years so it was easier to stay in Asia for now.


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## vadababy

ok thank you for your replies.
I'm still looking into it though, nothing ventured nothing gained & all that. Who knows? maybe I could be one of the lucky ones!


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## BlackRain79

vadababy said:


> Hi Everyone
> Ok apologies as i'm sure you get this all the time.
> We're seriously considering moving to Thailand but I have no idea where to start, on getting info on how to go about it. I've been googling for info but all I seem to get are old threads which i'm not sure are relevant anymore?
> We've visitied Thailand before, staying in Bangkok a few days & then on to Koh Lanta. We're returning next year to stay on Koh Yao.
> 
> There's me, Hubby & our daughter, aged 2 & also our pets.
> I 've seen the list of restricted occupations & i'm just wondering what kind of work we could do?? As both of our professions are in the restricted category.
> I had thought I could TEFL but apparently now you need a degree for this? As for hubs he's a Roofer back here in the UK & it's all he's ever done, so any suggestions on the types of work available to Foreigners would be much appreciated.
> We want to live somewhere near the coast but also somewhere we can work & that has a good school.
> We don't want to be near party scenes, we just wait to live a peaceful relaxed lifestyle. Nothing Lavish but not too basic either.
> Also any suggestions on the amount of income required would be appreciated too.
> For accommodation do people tend to rent then go on to buy once they have secured employment?
> i'm really sorry for all these questions but I really am just starting off at looking into this.
> Thanks in advance for any help given


I think first off you just need to see everywhere in this country for yourself before deciding because only you and your family really know what is best for you. But for someone looking for a quiet, laid back life I don't see how you could go wrong with Chiang Mai. If having a beach is a dealbreaker then I would try some quiet mostly Thai beach towns like Cha Am. Although employment opportunities are going to be harder in a smaller town like that.


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## vadababy

Thanks for the suggestions.
Ideally we'd like to be close to a beach area, will look into Cha Am.

Always open to new suggestions too, so i'd be keen to hear about these central American places you think may suit us

many thanks


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## visual effects editor

The bottom line is, you can't work any job that a Thai can do. So bartender, waitress, receptionist, taxi driver, manual labor, cook, anything like that is out. And there is no way around it. You will be turned in to immigration by the Thai person working next to you if you don't have a work permit. 

Some people with very specialized skills like oil rig worker or computer software code writing are in demand. It must be a skill a common Thai cannot do. 

You can live on 60,000 baht per month with a child, home schooled. No car. Two scooters. This would be very basic living. No bars, a few beers and little western food. You would not be able to save for the future. 

How would your kids go back to the west? It would be hard. If they can learn to speak Chinese then they would be better prepared for employment. 

You may look into both of you trying to get a English teaching job. That would cover your expenses. 

Starting a business is difficult. Unless you are a American, you have to have Thai partners. They own 51%, you own 49%. Four Thai citizens must be employed for every non Thai person at your business. 
This is the simple explanation, there is much more to it. 

As a owner, you cannot work at your own business without a work permit. Many people will tell you there are ways around all of this. But the idea you are going to just come over and start a little taco stand or sandwich place or any business is not going to happen without all sort of legal hoops to jump through. 

Look into import/export. Ebay home business. Some sort of internet business. Anything you can do at home over the internet without anyone knowing. Accounting? Data input? 

I will not talk about police corruption. It is a factor in most businesses. 

Have you thought about health insurance? You can get it in Thailand but I can't speak to the cost of a family of three. 

Maybe you can redesign yourself while still in the UK for a job in Thailand. 

It is hot and humid here all the time, driving is EXTREMELY dangerous. Their are no western style safety regulations for transportation. You can't drink the water. There were 12 train derailments in the past month. There is no flood control. No animal rights and don't let the female Prime Minster fool you, woman's rights are at about 1970.  You can never own land, ever. 

One more thing to think about and sorry if this does not sound PC, but I am assuming your husband is Caucasian? I am a white guy. I am 58 years old and I will tell you about 10 times a DAY beautiful Thai women in their twenties throw themselves at me. 24/7 365 days a year. Waitress, hotel maid, massage girl, mall sales girl, bank tellers, everywhere. I go into real nightclubs (not go go bars) and get handed phone numbers. Mothers my age literally push their 20 something daughters at me. 

It does not matter what your husband looks like, how fat, bald or his age. No matter how much your husband loves you, very man has his breaking point. So I would think long and hard before you let your husband around beautiful Thai women. The closer you get to the beach the crazier it gets. 

Sorry to be so negative, but there is a big difference between a vacation in Thailand and trying to live or work here. 

Look into Cambodia... much cheaper, super easy immigration, you can start your own business without so much red tape and the woman are not so crazed to grab " farang man" 

Good luck and follow your dream, but research everything and assume nothing.


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## knapdale

Hi Newbie , I am from Scotland and have been in construction all my life so I know what your husband does , no chance of doing that here i'm afraid I finished up my last contract in Singapore back in April and have stopped looking for a new one I had been dabbling in the online Biz for a few years and found a program that really works so now have a completely portable business I can take anywhere in the world ,i have been coming here for 13 years and have now been staying in Chiangmai for 3 years I call it home now , my friend and I recently set up amazingexpatlife as a free help site for budding expats take a look I think it can help you.


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## yozzi

One more thing to think about and sorry if this does not sound PC, but I am assuming your husband is Caucasian? I am a white guy. I am 58 years old and I will tell you about 10 times a DAY beautiful Thai women in their twenties throw themselves at me. 24/7 365 days a year. Waitress, hotel maid, massage girl, mall sales girl, bank tellers, everywhere. I go into real nightclubs (not go go bars) and get handed phone numbers. Mothers my age literally push their 20 something daughters at me. 

It does not matter what your husband looks like, how fat, bald or his age. No matter how much your husband loves you, very man has his breaking point. So I would think long and hard before you let your husband around beautiful Thai women. The closer you get to the beach the crazier it gets. 

*I've been reading these threads with interest as I live in Cape Town, South Africa and am looking to spend about 3-4 months overseas during the SA winter starting in 2014 with a view to possibly retiring permanently in somewhere like Thailand as I've heard so much about it and although I've never been there I plan to visit shortly. 

Hi Visual Effects Editor - are you serious in your comment above about women? Is it like this all over Thailand or in certain parts? Where are you based? *


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## halftime

vadababy said:


> So if all my ideas are fruitless how does one manage to become a permanent resident in Thailand then?
> It's obviously possible, but how?


If one were to have a job (in the U.K) that pays 1-2 months living expense(in Thailand) for 1-2 days work the possibilities are endless.

Of course living expenses are high in the U.K,for example if I needed a new roof it would cost me the equivalent of 1-2 months of total living expense (for Thailand) for work that only takes a day or two.


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## Song_Si

for information on Thai Permanent residency - click *here*
It is a slow process - 8 years and more


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## freedomfighter

The above comments were all valid advice. Unless you are independently wealthy you will have a rough time living here. If you do manage to open a business, there is a lot of red tape and also many ways to lose your money. Thais are friendly but you will soon learn not to trust any except for a select few. My best advice is to come on holiday and then get a better idea of what you might be up against. I have seen countless young people come here and have to go home broke and disallusioned. Sorry I do not have more positive news for you...


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