AEC is loosening up immigration in this region

While we can all agree with John Arnone that Thailand has nothing to learn from the US electoral circus, his remarks about Thai immigration are somewhat odd. In reality, farang don’t need an income at all to qualify for a one-year visa. Bt800,000 in a Thai bank for retirement, or even Bt400,000 for a married man’s visa, is the rule and no income required. Even those modest cash sums can be “borrowed” if you know the ins and outs. Anyone checking at state hospitals in Thailand will soon discover that there are lots of impecunious farang on beds unable to pay their medical bills.
John also seems to be unaware that the advent of the Asean Economic Community has already loosened up Thai immigration policies by introducing, for example, visa-free travel for Asean nationals and the opening up of some professions to non-Thai nationals. In fact, the future of Thailand does not lie in building walls “a la Trump” but in playing a key role in the 10 member free-trade zone, one of the world’s largest markets, which will lead eventually to free movement of Asean nationals across their borders for both work and leisure.
Barry Kenyon