I have bitkub, haven't heard about them closing to foreigners

They are closed for new signups from foreigners.

Having issues to log in and play normally on both Chico and ******* since today, I have 3BB and this never happened before.

I had some problem with wifi the last couple days (small disconnects which is normal) and saw a 3BB truck outside yesterday fixing something so I'm thinking they might have changed some stuff to block these sites but maybe I'm way off.

Anyone experiencing something similar?

Also have 3BB, getting this error.

Yup, same one for me, must be some new restriction they imposed on gambling/poker sites, surprised is only BOL and KK so far

i remember when china blocked pokerstars but the block was only effective during logins and software updates so you can to turn on a vpn during those brief moments but then pokerstars would lose their shat over vpn usage and you'd need to talk to them and explain it and show you were only vpning during that extremely small window

Anyone that is settled here that plays poker worried about the new tax laws starting next year?

Paying tax for doing an illegal activity in Thailand? Doesn't sound like a strategy for success. Even if it was legal, I don't see how they could track your profits.

Wouldn't be able to say its from Poker obv. New rules say any money brought into Thailand will be taxed if you have stayed more than 180 days that year. So if you are putting money into a Thai bank at some point you could be flagged.

I am talking more about those of us who are settled here, have families, have property etc.

I know this is Thailand and they probably won't be very efficient in catching people, but bank records stay around for ever and if you get flagged in the future it could cause some big problems.

There are no guarantees for anything in life, but it would seem unlikely that they will go after foreigners depositing their meager moneys in Thai accounts. Reportedly the main target of this whole operation is "big Thais" using corporate triangle constructs with foreign corps to evade taxes in TH.
Scaring away the tourists/pensioners/whatever other foreigner would seem unlikely but then again it's the TH govt, so you never know. If I'd be you I certainly wouldn't keep the majority of my wealth tied up in Thai properties or a Thai company or something, that would be a recipe for disaster. You can do that with amounts you could stand to lose in the worst case. No party lasts forever, maybe at some point it's time to leave...

Pretty much spot on assessment. Maybe they try to make you tax if you have substancial wealth in Thailand, otherwise a nothing burger. Also the whole tax thing doesn't apply to a lot of people if they pay tax in their home country.

Yea, after 8+ years living here when my student visa runs out in April I'll be moving away. It's been a nice ride and I will come back in the future for sure but Thailand as my main residence it's probably over.

As much as I liked some aspects of thai culture in the past (thai people are super chill and respectful especially up here in the North) some of the not so good aspects are slowly getting to me. I also hate the fact that they won't open up completely to you (in all this time living here I think I can say I have 1 or 2 thai friends vs dozens of farang friends).

Having to do visas and worry at immigration everytime I fly in after living so long also annoys the **** out of me. I don't expect them to give me citizenship, I'm not thai and won't ever be, but after living so long, respecting the culture and speaking the language I'd love to have it a tiiiiny bit easier, albeit I know that's hard to implement legally.

All that + the instability and back and forth ruling of the government (ie wanting to go back with the cannabis legalization) makes it for me to want to leave after so long.

It all comes down to not becoming that grumpy old farang talking **** about newcomers and locals, and I feel that I'm slowly getting there with each elephant pants begpacker I see on the streets or whenever I go to buy something to the store and the thai employee that still wears a mask takes 20 seconds to notice me standing in front of the cashier cuz he's playing with his phone or watching tiktok or whatever.

I already know there's no place to live like Thailand (especially Chiang Mai) where everything is easy, convenient and cheap but with good quality unlike some other countries in the region, so I still recommend everyone to come and do it at least for a while, but for long term residence I personally want something closer to me culturally.

Making the right move imo. That sounds very similar to my thoughts when I left China.

Damn, Rama throwing in the towel...

That makes it sound like I was in a battle or in some kind of struggle and it was actually quite the opposite, so far it's been a great life I had here in Thailand pretty stress free for the most part.

I think what happened is a change in my values and what I care about the most, perhaps that change happens just with age or it was an evolutive process I went through by living here so long.

Before I valued the most just living a low budget easy existence even if that meant being 17k KM away from home and in a country that functions with a different set of values and a very different culture than mine. Now I care more about being closer to my people and living in a country where stuff might be not so easy or convenient but at least is culturally closer to me.

All of my friends here tell me I'm nuts and I'll be back in CNX after 6 months or so lol like I said I'll keep coming back to Thailand but for short stints of 6-9 months or so, but right now I really really really wanna be closer to my friends and family back home.
For a long time when I was in LatAm I felt I was missing on so much stuff happening here but now it's the other way around where I KNOW I'm missing on a bunch of **** back home especially as family members and friends get older and go through nice stages of life like getting married, having kids, etc.

Gg rama.

I understand the feeling Rama, ten and a half years living here and I consider moving home all the time. I spend far more money in Bangkok than I did in Vegas and I get fed up with the small Thai day to day BS. But I have a large group of good friends here so I'll probably continue to stick it out.

does chiang mai deserve it's reputation as a pedophile haven? ie guys into ladyboys go to pattaya, guys into boys go to chiang mai

First time I hear about this lol if I had to guess I'd say Isaan seems more like the place for all that given is a very rural, poor area where families might sell out their kids just cuz they're desperate.

TBH I always found CNX girlie and p4p scene pretty dull compared to pretty much any other city in Thailand I been to. Northern Thailand is cool for doing all the cultural stuff (temples, elephants, trekking, etc) or living a chill life, whereas BKK/South is where you go for p4p and go-go bars. After going to Nana or Cowboy even once you'll want to kill yourself when you drive down Loi Kroh, it seems so sad and depressing.

I even think government tries to make that division by enforcing stricter rules about closure times up here so people that are into partying go elsewhere and northern Thai remains like the cultural, family friendly destination. I heard many theories as of why bars shut down at midnight here (they did even before covid) and some say it was after a crash that killed a few youngsters DUI a few years ago (which makes no sense as that probably happens everywhere), others think it's because the North is predominantly red shirt so is a way for BKK to punish political rivals up here and others believe is lobbying and pressure from business operators in BKK/Phuket that want to remain exclusive when it comes to partying and cut any possible competition up here.

Gonna do a few months in BKK from Feb-Apr before leaving so if anyone is down there by then shoot me a PM to get dinner, beer and/or a few LDs.

I'd like to say that's Cambo but I'm sure at least a proportionate amount of that goes on in Thailand.

One thing that has annoyed me even before I could drive is what's up with Asia and their back in to park? Is that a Euro thing also? I get that it's quite luxurious to just drive out from your parking space but nose first seems so much more optimal as backing out is quicker than navigating a reverse park.
More from the annals of Thai visa to come.

people in the foreign service get safety training before going abroad and part of that is "always back in to a parking spot so in the event of an emergency where you need to run to your car and escape, you can just floor it from the start"

no idea if that's why asians do it though

I guess yes, you won't get your driving license (it would depend where but I guess in most of Europe) if you are unable to do that.
This is just an assumption, but it may have to do with the size of the parking spots. In the US a parking spot is usually big enough for a pickup truck and their son, whereas in many Euro/Asia cities parking spots can be tiny, so you have to be more flexible or you will never get your vehicle parked. Also city layouts that are far from a perfect square and whatnot demand that. But just a guess...

sup fellas

anybody got any info on the internet down in Krabi?

last time I visited (2019) it was terrible, but I got a damn sweet deal on a seaside house rental so tempted to try again.

i remember when i was in koh lanta a lot of the beachside bungalows which advertised wifi infact didn't have good wifi coverage