Immigration On the Prowl for Villa Renters

davita

Markit wroteBecause at the ripe old age of 73 and after living it large here in Candi Dasa for the last 27 years he's convinced that it's getting so bad here for Bule that he doesn't want to waste his money for the 5 year Kitas as he probably won't be staying that long.

At my ripe old age of nearly 78 I would agree with your friend, but for a different reason. Firstly, there is no 5 year Kitas...you mean a Kitap....and why pay for 5 years ahead when there is NO REFUND if one expires half-way through....:icon_e_surprised:

tintin

Sorry, wrong button "clicked."

tintin

Markit wroteTo explain it seems hard but I'll try: The most important thing that originally attracted me to SE Asia was that it seemed where ever you went there was this all-pervading feeling of benevolent chaos. Be it in the markets or the government buildings the police stations and pretty much everywhere else. Life was fun and not taken terribly seriously. Chaos still is everywhere but it's not so much fun anymore and seems to have a direction that I don't much like - maybe that's only me?

[COLOR=#333333]Absolutely, it's not you, the BENEVOLENT chaos is gone, never to return.[/COLOR]

Smoke

[USER=11670]@davita[/USER] look at Cayman islands or turks and cacos maybe

spicyayam

Interesting site which compares various data between countries: https://www.numbeo.com

Smoke

never looked at long term stay at either . Malaysia is way less expensive to be allowed to live there perminently.. real estate similar to RI but more expensive land may be able to be purchased by non locals.When my friend and I purchased a 2 bedroom apartment in Penang last year we still had to use "nominee" for it . Malaysia does give its people a great incentive and rate on their first real estate purchase.

Smoke

[USER=11670]@davita[/USER] does this help http://internationalliving.com/2015/01/the-best-places-to-retire-2015/

davita

Well searched smoke...I was almost going to subscribe again when I noted they [B]send[/B] the magazine and I just wanted the information that your post has provided. Many thanks...you've saved me US$49. I'm going to print the info and take my time to read. I already note that Panama is 2nd and Malaysia 4th on the list and Indonesia/Bali doesnt appear. Sorry to my pals in the pub...this afternoon/evening I'll be reading about my [B]new[/B] retirement venue and see if there are people in pubs there that will be more attentive to my soapbox diatribe...:lemo:

davita

I would suggest that most of us 'adventurers' that have ended up in Bali are debating from the same page. Bali is no longer 'the magical place' that I first visited, but then, where is? I'm on another forum where we discuss the pros/cons of life in Panama where I'm told US citizens are leaving because they can no longer shield their tax obligation to the IRS. Maybe now a good place to re-visit. Costa Rica was a favourite for Canadians but...boring! Cuba is being re-vitalised due to the thawing of relationship with Obama...maybe worth a look? I've already posted about Penang but forgot to mention the Iskander developments in Johor...but been told it will take years for the place to be finished. Many parts of USA are OK like Florida/Hawaii.... but expensive. I lived in Scottsdale AZ for a number of years and loved the winter but summer in the desert like Arizona or Palm Springs...forget-it! Southern Spain used to be a haven for Europeans but I'm told crime is nasty and even Greece/Portugal, with austerity programs, is problematic for taxes etc. So...does anyone have any ideas where an exit from Bali will introduce a 'new paradise'?

davita

Smoke wrote@davita look at Cayman islands or turks and cacos maybe

Thanks for the advice smoke but I checked and the only way to stay in Cayman Islands is with a work permit and Turks and Caicos require the following.... [I]Persons wishing to retire or live here long term might consider obtaining a Permanent Residence Certificate. A PRC grants the holder permission to reside here for their lifetime. Making an investment in real estate or a business in which you are not working, may qualify for a PRC. The minimum investment required is $500,000.00 on Providenciales and $125,000.00 on our other islands.[/I] That's a bit pricey and compares unfavorably with MM2H which can be assumed with a foreign pension plan or, if over 50, a simple MM2H lien on a fixed deposit in a Malaysian bank of MYR 150,000, with interest accumulating to the holder......which I have.

davita

Co-incidentally I just received the following 'teaser' from a magazine I used to subscribe when I lived in the USA/Canada. [I]Dear International Living Reader, The near-perfect weather, the healthy lifestyle, the low cost of living, and the natural beauty… those things have lived up to our expectations," reports one of many pleased retirees in the country that wins our 2015 Global Retirement Index.... So this number 1 pick has a lot to recommend it, no question… yet it's just one of the 25 top retirement havens ranked in our 2015 Global Retirement Index, our 24th annual Index. [/I] It is a hard-copy magazine delivered.....so no point to subscribe as I now live in Indonesia. If any member still receives this Global Retirement info it would be greatly appreciated if some of the relevant content was copied here.

davita

[USER=1522]@ronb[/USER]...good point. Our agent is the sponsor of our retirement Kitas and he ordered us to refer all issues with immigration to him....no matter what! We wanted to make a sign giving our villa a name but he advised that would only bring suspicion that we were professionally renting out our villa. We often have friends stay in our place when we are back in Jakarta...they are doing us a favor as it provides security and our maid and driver earn extra from them. I'm afraid this could could be assumed by Immigration to be something like Markit's friend is accused of.

ronb

Markit wroteMy friend is almost 70 and retired to a peaceful and healthy Bali - ha, ha. I had advised him to admit to nothing and go down fighting but after a long weekend of unknowing fear about the coming interview and being subject to 2 hours sitting in front of empty prison cells with his wailing and crying wife by his side I fear that his psychological state was prone to "getting it all off his chest" and over with in the hope of saving his house. How many of us (that have led a jail-free life) would have reacted differently? Apart from the above has anyone also considered how easy it would be to make someones life hell by paying a few hundred to get a bogus website built and then pointed it out to immigration? Adding more icing to the cake, immi are also hanging out on social media sites where apparently people discuss availability and pricing for their villa rentals - a copy of these conversations will also be made available after jail-cell sitting. Watch this space...

This thread is already lively and heading who knows where, but I have some questions from your original story. So, your friend is on a retirement KITAS and used and agent to get it? I take it that immigration approached your friend directly, not via the agent? Did you friend consult with the agent before attending the meeting? Was the interrogation conducted by Immigration people, or police? I'm just trying to build up the picture of what was happening. Thanks.

Markit

ronb wroteThis thread is already lively and heading who knows where, but I have some questions from your original story. So, your friend is on a retirement KITAS and used and agent to get it? [COLOR=#ff0000]Yes, Bali IDE[/COLOR] I take it that immigration approached your friend directly, not via the agent? [COLOR=#ff0000]I'm not sure but I know that the agents representative was present to "help" translate at the interview. [/COLOR] Did you friend consult with the agent before attending the meeting? [COLOR=#ff0000]Don't think much consultation went on as friend is a bit know-it-all (surprise!) and tends to drink his pension, ignore well-meaning advise and misunderstand spoken English. [/COLOR] Was the interrogation conducted by Immigration people, or police? [COLOR=#ff0000][B]One[/B] immi agent in a larger room with other people and Bali IDE rep. I'm told all the other people were just normal traffic and staff - interview conducted in large public area. [/COLOR] I'm just trying to build up the picture of what was happening. Thanks.

Friend has finally seen the light and gotten the assistance of a lawyer I found for him. Since I have (luckily) no personal experience of this situation and found the lawyer on the advise of someone that had similar immi problems sorted by this brief. Watch this space all you Expats in Bali-lali land that might need same. I'm hoping that immigration are following this thread and perhaps thinking "Do I really want to piss off the richest group of people on this island?" and that the richest group of people on this island finally start to understand that we either start working together or hang alone.

tintin

@davita does this help The Best Places to Retire 2015

Why isn't South Yemen on that list?:icon_e_surprised:

Smoke

tintin wroteWhy isn't South Yemen on that list?:icon_e_surprised:

Maybe it was 26th ? :icon_idea::icon_idea:

spicyayam

[QUOTE][COLOR=#FF0000][I]Don't think much consultation went on as friend is a bit know-it-all (surprise!) and tends to drink his pension, ignore well-meaning advise and misunderstand spoken English. [/I][/COLOR][/QUOTE] Well that might explain a few things. On one hand I wonder if immigration is acting over the top and on the other are they blatantly trying skirt around the laws here. It is not like you would go to any country around the world and open some kind of accommodation business without getting the appropriate licences. BTW, I know a good lawyer :icon_eek:

davita

tintin wroteWhy isn't South Yemen on that list?:icon_e_surprised:

I read somewhere that Yemen is on a list.....something to do with the location for the resumption of nuclear weapons testing...:ghost:

Markit

Adam in my experience of Bali/Life/Humans people with your attitude are per-programed to fail here. Watch [U]that[/U] space! Would you with the really short attention spans kindly start your own thread on retirement places?

Adam

Markit wroteAdam in my experience of Bali/Life/Humans people with your attitude are per-programed to fail here. Watch [U]that[/U] space!

Whatever. It's called reality and if you can't grasp it that's your problem. If I was having the internal crisis that you seem to be having and with the money you've obviously sunk into the place I'd be wondering just how great my retirement decisions were. I don't believe you take anything more to Bali than what you can afford to lose. A place in the tropics with many positives it is, yes, but it is far, far from paradise or perfection like many foolishly believe.

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