Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing the "Big Joke" yet again. He has definitely been on the lips of many the last couple of weeks, made a lot of statements throughout the press which we have talked about quite frequently on this channel here recently. I have even had some comments saying that I am sort of "beating a dead horse" in continuing to talk about that stuff. Again I state what I have stated before, I think it is important when somebody like that says these things to get that information out there. Also, there is a lot of nuance that is going on with regard to Visa issues generally, sort of Immigration Policy, and I think it is worth noting the nuance because it is important. 

But I thought of making this video specifically as it pertains to work authorization. I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from Khao Sod English, that is khaosodenglish.com, the article is titled: Police to eliminate all gangs in Pattaya after German murder. Again, as we have noted in other videos, the thrust of this article goes one way and then we see sort of things in there that are sort of pertinent to this channel and that is what I found here. Quoting directly, and I urge those who are watching this video, go read that article in detail, a lot of good information in there over at khaisodenglish.com. Quoting directly: "Following the case of Hans Peter Ralter Mack, a German businessman who was kidnapped, murdered, and dismembered in Nong Prue District, Chonburi Province, Pol. Gen. Surachate Hakpal, Deputy Commissioner of Police," (who is often times referred to as Big Joke), quoting further: "said on July 14th that he directed the police to wipe out foreign criminal gangs in Pattaya." Quoting further: "He ordered that information be gathered about all gangs in the Pattaya area and living in Nong Prue, Chonburi Province, and monitored foreigners who came to live in Thailand without a job, riding a Harley Davidson, posing in gang tattoos, and on a Retirement Visa. Immigration Officers should revoke their visas and return them via Immigration processes." So again, I don't know exactly how you discern these things. Since when did riding a motorcycle in and of itself sort of designate one as sort of undesirable or something? It doesn't make a lot of sense to me. A lot of folks down in the Pattaya area and quite honestly in the foreign Western community these days have tattoos, so again I don't know where that really gets you.

But that said, I did think it was interesting that concentration was being placed on folks who came to Thailand without a job. That seemed to be something that was of importance and I don't know exactly what that means but it's important to note it. As we noted in other videos, especially with the change in the way digital economics works and these types of things, we are seeing more and more people who are coming to Thailand and presuming they can do various things even without work authorization and that in and of itself is something you need to be careful with because as I have discussed in many other videos on this channel, work authorization is required in Thailand if foreign nationals wish to work. Now I have seen it said in comment sections and things, this ongoing refrain, I may do a video specifically on this, about it is all about foreigners taking jobs from Thais. No, that's not the criteria; that is not what they are looking for in terms of work authorization; it's purely about work authorization. The same can be said for example about the US Immigration system. Folks that want to work in the United States, need work authorization. This is true for virtually any country I'm aware of that if you want to come to that country and work, you have to seek some form of work authorization to do that because you a-re not a local national, you don't have the inherent right to work. So that is something to keep in mind with regard to working generally.

I think part of this line, if you kind of read the subtext of what he has been saying, Immigration enforcement is important. Part of that is Labour Department, part of that is Labour Law enforcement and this whole thing about people coming to Thailand without a job, that could be, I think, some tip of the hand if you will to the possibility as I have discussed in many other videos, that enforcement measures are going to become more stringent as it pertains to work authorization because as noted, the mention of coming to Thailand without a job, that may mean that they are saying, "well then what are they doing? engaging in criminal activity?" - that is one side of the analysis. Another side of the analysis is engaging in criminal activity insofar as somebody is coming here to work without proper authorization. And as we discussed in other videos and videos I am making contemporaneously with this one, Thailand has gotten increasingly diligent about going after foreign nationals who work illegally in the Kingdom. So for those who are out there who are possibly looking to coming to Thailand to work, it is a very good idea to contact a legal professional, gain some insight and guidance into that. If you're truly coming to Thailand to retire however, I would very much hope and I am going to do another opinion video on this kind of explaining, look Thailand is not going to go after retirees; they are not going to try to force all retirees out or have a crackdown on retirees, that is not what I see coming at all. If anything, I see a moderate change in terms of the financial requirements associated with Retirement Visas, and as a result of those changes, we could see folks getting grandfathered in as we have seen in the past. We could also see a situation wherein they change the Retirement Visa scheme somewhat but again I don't think it is with the idea of kicking people out of the country. It is more coming from a place of, "hey, we haven't really had a major change in the laws and regulations associated with Retirement Visas in quite some time, it is time for an update." 

So again, the thing to take away from this video, if you are looking to come to Thailand to work, you need to look at getting work authorization. If you are looking to come to Thailand to retire, no big deal, that's fine; Retirement Visa authorization can be granted. We assist a number of folks in our office with retirement status. Again for those who feel a little overwhelmed by all of this, it might not be a terrible idea, contact a legal professional, gain some insight and guidance into how best to proceed.