Probably everyone already knows about the tightening of the rules for entering Thailand. More precisely, these rules have always been (or part of them), just no one followed them. So, border wounds were canceled (you can only get 1 stamp at the airport), and when crossing the border, it is desirable to have 20 thousand baht per person (or 40 thousand per family). They also say that the 90/180 rule will be observed, that is, you can stay in the country only 90 days in six months, but so far there is no real evidence of this. It may well be that they may also be banned from issuing visas in neighboring countries (such rumors also circulate), and entry will be possible only by plane, and not by land. But now you can extend the 30-day stamp for another 30 days in immigration for 1900 baht, and not, as before, for only 7 days.
It is too early to talk about how everything will be (a little later I will correct my articles on visas), but this does not particularly concern well-to-do winterers. Can be done two-time in Moscow or somewhere else, and calmly carry out wintering in Thailand, leaving once for a week to Malaysia or Bali to activate the second krat.
Nevertheless, the question of where else one can go for a long period of six months or more is already arising. Let's talk together, it's very interesting who sees what alternatives for themselves instead of Thailand.
UPDATE. All visa information from discussions has been added to this post for convenience. And read all the pros and cons in the comments below. Remember, these are just the opinions of different people, and your impression of a particular country / city may be completely different..
Where to run from the new rules?
The content of the article
Where to go without much preparation
Thailand was good (and maybe it will still be good in the future) in that one could live there for years, getting one by one a regular tourist visa (one-time or two-time), or even living on a 30-day stamp, riding on border wounds. In addition to Thailand, there are other countries with simplified visa entry.
- Cambodia. Convenient visa regime, you can buy a visa online or on the spot. Moreover, it is easy to buy not only a tourist visa for a short period, but a business visa for a year for 300 bucks. You don't have to do business, it doesn't matter. Business visas are used by everyone who comes here for a long time.
- Vietnam. A visa is made for 1,3,6 months quite inexpensively and very simply via the Internet, and then it is also extended on the spot in a travel agency.
- Philippines. According to the Longsters, you can live to enter on a visa upon arrival and then renew it for up to 36 months without leaving the country. All renewals will be processed at the local immigration office..
- Bali. Visa upon arrival for 1 month, or if in advance then for 2 months. Border wounds are expensive because of flights, so everyone gets a social visa for six months, which can then be extended at local offices. Also, people find loopholes through the purchase of work visas. Everything that is true for Bali in terms of visas is also true for the other islands of Indonesia, there is only one country, only the services of intermediaries are less developed, and somewhere there are none at all.
- Dominican Republic. Visa for 60 days for 25 bucks, you live as long as you like, when you leave a fine - who writes 25 bucks, who - 100. Then the fine does not affect new entries.
- Montenegro. Border wounds once every 30 days, but they are not entirely legal, at any time they can be detained at the border or even completely cover this shop.
- Cyprus. A visa is obtained via the Internet in 1 day, but you can live on it for only 90 days in six months, which does not pull for a long stay. European countries. On a Schengen tourist visa, you can stay here only 90 days every six months.
Where to go through a residence permit
Still, a residence permit is akin to emigration, and not to wintering or traveling, because the cost of obtaining a residence permit alone can be comparable to the cost of wintering in Tai and, in an amicable way, it is not at all an alternative to Thailand. Moreover, a residence permit in many cases may not be granted or extended, suspecting of financial insolvency, unwillingness to conduct a real business, or something else. By the way, in Thailand, you can also get confused with obtaining a work visa and organizing a small business, if you wish. Still, Thailand is a tropics, and those countries where residence permits are usually made have a colder climate..
Asia
- Malaysia. Entry into the country is visa-free for 30 days, but I'm not sure that it will be possible to injure the border many times, especially since it was possible to extend the stamps earlier, but now it seems like it’s gone. As a rule, those who come here for a long time travel on a work visa, on a student visa (150 thousand rubles per year), open an offshore, or use the program «Malaysia - My second home». For the latter, you need to put 300,000 ringit (3 million rubles) into the account, of which 240 thousand can be spent in a year on buying a house, teaching children or medicine.
- Turkey. On a regular tourist visa for a maximum of 90 days every six months, you need a certificate of income of 500 bucks / month. A residence permit can be obtained after buying real estate or opening a real business (short-term residence permit for a period of 1 year, renewed annually) and passing through a number of bureaucratic procedures. There is a tax on real estate. When obtaining a residence permit, you must provide a bank statement at the rate of 300 bucks / month. Long-term residence permit is given after 8 years of residence, subject to a legal source of income. Also, a residence permit, or ikamet, can be obtained for a tourist reason, and not just real estate / marriage / work / study. And for six months. And then extend it for another year. And so on up to 4 times. The only thing you need to spend a lot of money and time on collecting documents. For money for a family (2 adults + 2reb), the cost of ikamet itself turned out to be $ 1000 for half a year. But the next renewal will be about $ 400 at all. And Russians are given out for a year at once. But the costs should also include notarized translations and certification of any certificates, and compulsory local health insurance..
- Israel. I was not interested in a tourist trip, only emigration. If you have Jewish roots (grandparents are enough), you can obtain citizenship automatically upon arrival at the airport. When you move, you will be given an allowance for six months and free language courses will be provided. No need to give up Russian citizenship.
Europe
- Montenegro. There are other ways besides border runs. You can get here by getting a job (fictitiously, it is cheaper than opening a company), and through opening a company. The costs of starting a company are 300 euros, for obtaining a residence permit 150 euros, the capital of the company is minimal, the maintenance of a company of two people is about 270 euros per month (taxes + accountant). The services of an intermediary for opening a company are in addition about 300 euros, but you can do everything yourself.
- Bulgaria. There is a scheme for obtaining a residence permit through the opening of a representative office of a Russian LLC in Bulgaria. That is, an LLC is opened in Russia (free of charge or for 6-9 thousand from intermediaries, then, in the absence of activity and employees, you do not need to pay anything), and a representative office of this LLC is opened in Bulgaria. Opening a turnkey representative office costs 700-1000 euros.
- Slovenia. Schengen. It is also possible to open a company, through an intermediary it costs 4200 euros, share capital + investments in fixed assets of 10,000 or 22,500 euros to choose from. In the first case, the processing time is 8 months, in the second 2 months. The maintenance of the company is 400-500 euros / month and more.
- Latvia. Schengen. It is one of the countries where a residence permit could be obtained for the purchase of an apartment. The minimum cost of housing is 75 thousand euros in the regions and 150 thousand euros in Riga. But the shop was almost closed, raising the entry price and introducing quotas.
- Lithuania. Schengen. It is considered by many to be the country with the simplest and cheapest obtaining a residence permit through the opening of an individual entrepreneur or a company. In the case of an individual entrepreneur, it must be registered for each adult. The cost of opening an individual entrepreneur is about 300 euros, you need to put 3,500 euros on the account (or simply display a translated certificate from your bank), plus you need a lease agreement and essentiallykimas. IP maintenance from 30 euros / month. Rumor has it that the procedures will become more complicated, and the content in the form of 30 euros for zero is not available. It is more expensive to open a company and maintain it, but also cheaper than in other countries.
- Czech Republic. Schengen. It became much more difficult to get through the opening of a company than before. An entrepreneur visa is given with difficulty and only for a real business, that is, in the Czech Republic, it turns out that it is impossible to make a zero company. On Czech forums, people write that if they get long visas, it is not the first time..
- Spain. Schengen. There are various schemes for moving here, but I personally did not see easy ones. One of the options is a study visa, followed by a job search, but there are no guarantees that everything will work out in the end. Or legalization by settlement, when you have to live illegally for 2-3 years. The easiest option is a non-lucrative visa without a work permit. To do this, you need to have real estate (an unofficial requirement) and confirm income from abroad 25 thousand euros per year for 1 person, 32 thousand for 2, and 38 thousand for a family of 3 people.
- Cyprus. I have already written about the tour visa above, but here you can still make a residence permit. You need a long-term contract for renting an apartment (or better your own real estate), put into account 25 thousand euros for a family of 3 people (10 thousand for each adult and 5 thousand for a child), and better more. The rights will not work. Refusals in a residence permit are also not uncommon..
America
- Chile. People come here on a rentier visa or on an entrepreneur's visa. The first option is the simplest, you just need to have income from renting an apartment in Russia, from shares, or something else. Income must be higher than the minimum for each family member, that is, somewhere around $ 500 per person.
- Ecuador. You can get a residence permit on an investment visa by putting $ 25,000 into your account, or buy an apartment, or invest in a business. In three years - citizenship, if a child is born - in two.
- Mexico. Entry for Russians and Ukrainians for six months on an electronic visa, free of charge. According to the official website, you can get an electronic visa as many times as you need. But there is such a moment, a visa can be given not for 180 days, but for a shorter period. According to reviews, they basically give it for half a year. And one more nuance - an electronic visa is given to those who arrive by plane, that is, once every six months you have to fly somewhere.
- Canada. In addition to the tourist visa, there are two popular travel schemes. The first is professional migration. There are official lists of occupations that are required in Canada. If at the moment you have experience in such a profession, then you can submit documents. They make a decision based on the points scored: education, work experience, level of knowledge of English, family composition, etc. On the spot, upon arrival, they do not help in finding a job, in most cases they have to study again. The second scheme, in my opinion, is more convenient - it is a student visa. You come, study (you need to know English or French well), get a diploma and then get a job. While studying, you can also work, but for a small number of hours. The main costs are the cost of training (from 10-15 thousand uy per year) and accommodation, because you won't earn much during your studies.
P.S. The information is given not claiming to be true, but rather for reflection, that is, there may be inaccuracies and errors, since, naturally, I had no experience of living and obtaining a residence permit in each of these countries. Everything is collected from the personal experiences of other people, in particular from comments on this article and feedback from friends. Someday, perhaps we ourselves will get a residence permit in one of the countries, and then we will cover in detail all the issues on the blog from personal experience.
