Is this just ChatGPT with a wrapper?

No. A generic chatbot answers from training data and happily invents a visa rule. Thaissistant checks a knowledge base we maintain before it speaks, shows you which entries grounded the answer, and hands anything live to the Tour Tiger team. Anyone can rent the model we use. Nobody can rent the corpus — or a licensed operator in Maenam who picks up the booking.

How is the information verified?

Every law-and-life entry is researched from a strict source ladder: the Royal Gazette and the statutes first, then the government bodies that enforce them, then official translations — reputable secondary sources only ever as labelled support, and forums never. Each entry names its legal basis, links its sources, and carries the date we last verified the facts. Anything that moves faster than we can verify — office-level fees, officer discretion — is marked 'verify live' instead of stated as fact. The methodology page spells out the whole discipline.

Is this legal advice?

No — and we're careful about the difference. Thaissistant explains what the law says and how processes work in general, with citations you can check. It doesn't advise on your specific case, predict outcomes, or replace a lawyer. For a decision that matters, the entry's sources tell you exactly which authority to confirm with.

Can it actually book things?

Today it takes your request and hands it to a real person at Tour Tiger — often Alexander himself, on WhatsApp or the phone — who checks availability and confirms with you directly. Payments, PromptPay, and calendar booking are planned for Phase 3. The principle holds throughout: automate the conversation, not the transaction, until we can do the transaction properly.

Can it read a Thai document for me?

Yes — paste the text of a letter, a form, a lease, or a fine, and it translates and explains what it means in plain words. Two honest caveats: the translation is unofficial (only the Thai text has legal force), and if the document is high-stakes, it will tell you to confirm with the authority or a professional rather than pretending a chat is enough.

Alexander Wich — founder, and the person who answers the WhatsApp. He built Thaissistant himself, with Claude Code, on top of the business he already runs: Tour Tiger (Thailand) Co., Ltd., TAT Licence 44/00524, a registered Thai tour operator in Maenam, Koh Samui. When the assistant hands you to a human, that human is usually Alexander or someone on his team. Feel free to test that.

What does it cost to use?

For you, asking Thaissistant is free — and so is the knowledge library. For us, a conversation runs about $0.01, the whole 6-month validation budget is under $2,000, and monthly running cost sits at $50-225. Breakeven is one or two extra bookings a month.

Why did this start on Koh Samui?

Because we wanted to be genuinely excellent somewhere before being vaguely useful everywhere. Samui gave us a licensed operator, real products, and real customers asking real questions — the loop that proved the engine. The life-and-law library is that same engine pointed at the questions every foreigner in Thailand has, not just the ones on holiday.

What happens to my data and my question?

If it's a genuine booking or service request, it becomes a lead the Tour Tiger team follows up on — that's the point. We're not in the business of reselling your inbox. Anything specific, write to hello@thaissistant.com.

Which Thai visas actually require health insurance, and how much

Facts verified · 2026-07-11

The insurance requirement is category-specific, not general — the forum claim that 'all long-stay visas now need insurance' is wrong in both directions. The Non-Immigrant O-A (one-year retirement) carries the heaviest rule: since 1 October 2021 (Cabinet resolution of 15 June 2021), applicants must hold health insurance covering the whole stay with a sum insured of at least USD 100,000 (3 million baht); Thai or foreign policies are accepted, but a foreign policy needs the certified Foreign Insurance Certificate. This replaced the 2019 regime (Royal Thai Police Order No. 548/2562) of 40,000 baht outpatient / 400,000 baht inpatient Thai-company cover bought via longstay.tgia.org. Applicants over 70 who are refused cover can substitute a denial letter plus evidence of assets, deposits or coverage totalling at least 3 million baht.

The LTR visa is softer: BOI qualifications require health insurance of at least USD 50,000, or Thai social security coverage, or a USD 100,000 bank deposit held 12 months (USD 25,000 per dependent). The DTV is the surprise for many: the MFA's own document checklist — passport, photo, application, proof of six months' residence arrangements, a bank statement ending at no less than 500,000 baht, plus workcation or soft-power evidence — contains no health insurance item at all. Given USD 100k+ hospital bills are entirely possible privately, treating insurance as optional because your visa doesn't demand it is the expensive mistake.

Legal basis

Immigration Act B.E. 2522 (1979); Royal Thai Police Order No. 548/2562 (2019) and Cabinet resolutions of 2 Apr 2019 and 15 Jun 2021 (O-A insurance criteria)

⚠ Verify live

Embassy-specific checklists (and e-visa portal requirements) vary and change; confirm the current list on thaievisa.go.th or the issuing embassy shortly before applying.

o-a visaltr visadtvhealth insuranceretirement visavisa requirements

General information, not legal advice. Laws and practice change; for a decision that matters, confirm with the authority named in the sources or a licensed professional.