Thailand

January 1 – New Year’s Day It is a celebration of the brand new year. All schools, government offices, and banks are closed for business. The commercial establishments will remain open. All airports, land borders, and seaports will remain open. February 10 – Makha Bucha Makha Bucha is one of the 4 most important Theravada Buddhist holidays in Thailand. It is an occasion when Buddhists go to the temple to perform merit-making activities, such as almsgiving, meditation and listening to teachings. Although Makha Bucha is a national holiday, banks and commercial centers are open. No alcohol for sale, from midnight to midnight of the holy day, meaning you cannot buy alcohol from convenient stores and bars. Pubs and bars are closed. April 6 – Chakri Memorial Day It is the founding of the Chakri Dynasty which dates back to more than two centuries when the capital city Bangkok was initially established. The day is celebrated with enormous enthusiasm in the Royal family and all the government offices, banks and schools are declared closed. Other normal business open as usual and are unaffected by the celebrations April 13, 14, 15 – Songkran The Songkran Festival is a time when family and

Can digital nomads work in Thailand without a Thai work permit? In order to work in the Kingdom, a foreigner needs to: be on an appropriate visa, obtain a work permit and pay taxes. But, what is work? A digital nomad working on his laptop in a co-working space, is that considered work? A businessman sitting in his hotel room preparing for a seminar? When does the Work Permit office consider this to be work? This is a hard question to answer with a straightforward yes or no. The most important criteria that the Work Permit Office considers when judging if a foreigner works or not, is: does the foreigner use energy, knowledge or effort to produce something? If the answer is yes, then this could mean work. However, the authorities may not pro-actively investigate or pursue every such case. The Work Permit Office will mostly be concerned with an activity of foreigners when: Thai security is affected in a wide sense the activity of the foreigner takes work from local Thai people Using these criteria, aren’t most Digital Nomads in Thailand effectively working here illegally? Yes, in a strict sense. However, Thai law does not have specific sections that

“Sin Sod”, or Thai dowry, is supposed to be given by the groom to the bride’s family so as to be repaid for the loss of their daughter. This assures the Sin Sod family that the groom is financially able to support and care for their daughter and is expected in the Thai culture. Thai dowry, ‘Sin Sod’ is a long upheld tradition in Thailand and is considered completely likely and very common. The Thai dowry is extremely symbolic, although treated lightly by Westerners. It is important for a Thai family to have an interest in financial security, and it is expected from the groom to prove such a thing before marriage for his family. As a Thai man, you are generally expected to move into, as well as maintain, the in-laws family home. This includes any business or financial problem, as well as taking care of any relatives. This provides a support system and overall closeness in a Thai family. In the case of inheritance, the family’s home and any land are normally passed on to the children who are female, meaning the husband of a daughter would be expected to maintain these benefits. That amount of Thai dowry