gilligan

Thanks. This post was from 2023, lol. FYI, it all worked out. The stress is that "it depends on the agent" scares me. I was told that a) it is a problem, b) it isn't a problem and c) I need to have copies of my Thai tax returns, to prove I paid taxes. When I got there, it wasn't an issue at all, The agent gave me back my Thai tax copies, lol

Hey @SJJ23 Great post. I can give you my opinion, which may or may not apply to you, so... (lol). A few things to consider about moving to Thailand. Teaching: I really recommend that you take a teaching certification course. My belief is that while there are schools that may hire you without a certification, these are probably not the schools you'd want to work for. I've had friends who had many problems in these schools. The problems centered around the visa paperwork. A good school will take care of your paperwork for you. They'll bring you to immigration and help you through the process. Another issue is with your salary. Some schools (or agencies) will deduct "taxes" but won't remit the taxes to the government. Also better schools will prepare your annual Thai tax return. Finances: I'm a very conservative person. Like you, I didn't want to start using my financial capital while working in Thailand. I highly recommend you have a "safety net" of available cash for emergencies. How much to keep, depends on you. Living a "quiet" life in Bangkok, you don't need that much money. For me, for the first few years, I was pretty frugal. I ate a lot of Thai food, avoided "downtown" nightlife (maybe 1 or 2x per month, we'd go party). So my teaching was able to cover my living expenses. Don't worry so much about when the school semester begins. There's usually a lot of teacher turnover throughout the year. You need to be a bit lucky. The school (the better ones) will usually comment about your lack of teaching experience. And to be honest, my CELTA didn't really prepare me for teaching high school students. I got my CELTA, mainly as a confidence booster. I think it may have helped me though, in getting a job. Be very careful if you use "agencies" that will place you in a school. I've heard stories where the school pays you "x" but the agency keeps a part of it for their fee. For me, moving here has been one of the best decisions of my life. After my first visit to Thailand, I had a "strong feeling" that this was the place for me. What I thought was, I know way too many people, who are older and talk about what they should have done in their past. I didn't want that regret. I told myself, if it works out, great, if not, I'll just move back. It's been a while since I've moved here but I will never forget my anxiety deciding to do so. No joke, for about 2 years, I couldn't believe that I actually made the move. I wish you all the best on your decision. If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask.

Just an update and some info. I just tried to do my 90 day report online. I've done it several times in the past with no issues. This time, however, I was getting a message "invalid email/password". It looks like I was able to resolve this issue by resetting my password. I think I clicked "forgot password" and then I was prompted to enter a new password. So, just an FYI

I honestly haven't been to Koh Larn in a long time. When I did go, all I did was go to the beach. I imagine you can rent a scooter and go around the island. It was just a nice beach away from Pattaya. It's so close that if you don't like it, you can return to Pattaya.

Hey Britmantoo, Would you mind giving a brief summary of your monthly expenses? Are you in Pattaya? I'm averaging the same as you but I'm curious in what areas we differ?

Once again, I just did my 90 day report online, so far no problem, lol. I have a question. I have a friend who never does his 90 day reports and just pays the penalty when renewing (extending his visa). I'm wondering with the recent stricter immigration enforcement on many things, if anyone also doesn't do their 90 day reports and have had any issues? For me, I wouldn't even give them a reason to reject my application.

I've been rediscovering some music my my younger days. The Allman Brothers Band: Whipping Post, SoulShine, It's Not my Cross to Bear, Stormy Monday (too many to mention) The Band especially The Last Waltz Pink Floyd Pulse Concert CCR Then just random songs, ELO Telephone Line, Moody Blues Nights in White Satin Even started re listening to KC and The Sunshine Band, The Eagles The list is endless!!!

A few islands that I enjoyed are: Railay Beach (not exactly an island though). One of the most beatiful islands that I've been to. I liked Koh Samed. Good fun along the beach. I loved Koh Chang. A bigger island which was fun to rent a scooter and explore. When I used to visit Pattaya, I would grab a ferry to Koh Larn for the day. Then come back and party in Pattaya. These are just some ideas. They may not be for you but you have to decide for yourself. Honestly though, when I used to visit Thailand, everything was better than being back home in the cold lol. Enjoy!!!

Just an update. I'm a very negative person by nature, so I assumed by all (5) of the documentation requests by the insurance company to the hospital, I wasn't going to be covered. It turns out that they will cover 100% of the costs. I will have to pay the difference between the multifocal and monofocal lenses, which I think is very fair. The hospital as well, wanted to (in my opinion) take advantage of the insurance and wanted me to spend 2 days in the hospital. The insurance would only cover 1 day. I decided I don't want to get my surgery on subsequent days and have decided to wait 2 or 3 weeks between surgeries, so that's not an issue. So, in the end, the amount that the insurance will cover is slightly more than 1 year's premium. I'd rather I'd had to pay the full premium and not need cataracts surgery but since I need it, it's a bonus.

That was my main concern as well 😞

Funny, my brother just told me the same thing. I just found out that my insurance is considering not covering this since they say I had the cataracts before I signed the contract. If that turns out to be the case, then I'll probably not buy insurance next year. I got it in case of a major illness. I was always concerned that they would try not covering something based on a "pre-existing" condition. I understand that if I had gone to a doctor before getting insurance and hid it but this is pretty upsetting, to say the least.

Thanks for your advice. I think I'll wait a bit before I do my 2nd eye. Hope for the best, plan for the worst lol

Yes I think they will be multi focal lenses. The doctor said there were 2 choices, 1 would have less glare. I don't drive in Thailand (Bangkok) but I may be moving to Pattaya so I'll think about getting a scooter if I do. What's your opinion on getting my 2nd eye done the next day? Thanks for the information!

To be fair, the doctor was very nice and polite. She was trained at UCLA and had no attitude. The hospital staff were great and I didn't wait too long. I'm just surprised at the difference in price. The lenses I chose were a premium lens to help correct my vision (which has always been horrible) and to correct for an astigmatism. I waiting to see what my insurance will pay. Can I ask you how long did you wait before correcting your 2nd eye? They want me to do my 2nd eye the next day but I think I'd rather wait 2 weeks before doing it.

I'm not a doctor and I know the price varies depending on the lens and other things but... I was quoted 5x that price. The surgeons fee alone was 70,000 thai baht!!!