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 Discussion on question by Jesse Nickl…

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jarnbjo
Jun 13 11:38
@JesseNickles My close vote had absolutely nothing to do with your karma. I have upvoted several of your recent questions and answers, since you address an important subject: how to avoid visa scammers and that problem is not at all restricted to Thailand. In this question however, you not contributing with anything new, which has not yet been covered in a duplicate question.
jarnbjo
Jun 13 11:38
Sorry, but I don't see the point in basically repeating your own self-answered questions.
 

 Discussion on question by Newbyte: Do…

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jarnbjo
May 5 21:27
@MarkJohnson If you try to book a room on booking.com, it clearly states that breakfast is included in the price. Not just, that breakfast is available.
 

 Discussion on answer by Johnnyjanko: …

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jarnbjo
Nov 22, 2024 21:47
@quarague Cashback is in most German shops only available if you pay with a German bank card (girocard/EC-Karte) and not if you pay with an international debit or credit card from e.g. VISA or Mastercard.
jarnbjo
Nov 22, 2024 21:47
@guest12356 Merchants accepting girocard will most likely have a girocard logo displayed to show that, so it is quite useful to know what the payment network is actually called. It is almost 20 years ago that the network was rebranded from EC to girocard, so old EC-card acceptance logos are very rare. And although you are right, that Germans still often talk about 'EC-Karten', they often use it as a synonym for any bank card, not just girocards. Debit cards from VISA and Mastercard are also often called EC-Karte, although the payment networks are not in any way related.
jarnbjo
Nov 22, 2024 21:47
@JackAidley I am honestly not sure if there are regional differences within Germany, but here in Munich, although it surely improved during covid, there are still plenty of places not accepting cards at all, or also quite comminly, only for payments above a certain threshold, often 10 or 15€. Cheaper restaurants, fast food joints or kiosks are typical locations where card payments are not possible, Taxis in Munich are only since 2022 required to accept card payments, but the card reader is often 'broken'. My butcher (and also often other traditional shops) is also not accepting cards.
jarnbjo
Nov 22, 2024 21:47
I live in Germany and it is still not uncommon that shops only accept German bank cards. FWIW, they are now called girocard and not EC-cards anymore. I live in Germany and my bank stopped issuing girocards last year. I now only have VISA and Mastercard and there are several shops and restaurants I regularly visit here in Munich, where I have to pay cash, since international cards are not accepted.
 

 Discussion on question by Kai Burghar…

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jarnbjo
Oct 26, 2024 12:02
@MarkJohnson If the terms and conditions violate other laws, they are void and irrelevant even if you agree to them. There's nothing strange about that. It is not particularly uncommon that vendors and service providers try to evade legal obligations by writing murky t&cs, but if they do, any court will deem that part of the contract void. This is common and very basic legal knowledge.
jarnbjo
Oct 26, 2024 12:02
@Relaxed Sparpreis tickets are available if at least one leg of the trip is on a long distance train, but other legs may be on regional trains and on regional trains, at least where in favour of DB, according to DB's own interpretation issued based on the terms and conditions for regional traffic. I once had a 1st class Sparpreis ticket, where a regional train on one leg in contradiction with the schedule did not have a 1st class carriage. My refund claim was refused, as their t&c for regional traffic actually rules out any refund if you buy a 1st class ticket for a 2nd-class only service.
jarnbjo
Oct 26, 2024 12:02
@MarkJohnson No, this is not just a matter of contract law. DB runs many of their services, e.g. all regional and local trains, based on public contracts. On those services, they are with few exceptions obligated and can not arbitrarily refuse passengers transport. Also for their purely commercial services (most long distance trains), they can of course not violate other laws like data protection or anti-discriminatory laws with their terms and contracts. I am not claiming they do, but both data protection and consumer protection authorities have strongly critized the current practice.
 

 Discussion on answer by gerrit: How t…

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jarnbjo
Oct 26, 2024 12:00
@gerrit Yes, 100% sure. Any change in the original itinerary will void the tie to a specific departure (Zugbindung) and allow you to use the ticket on any other departure.
jarnbjo
Oct 26, 2024 12:00
Not being informed about an earlier departure is not necessarily a great problem. If the departure time changes after you have booked the ticket, the tie to a certain departure is lifted and you can use your ticket on the next or any other departure instead.
 

 Discussion on answer by jcaron: Can a…

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jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@Dr.Snoopy This is not at all a regulatory minefield, but pretty clearly defined exceptions. At least for limited periods, as long as the foreigners keep their residence abroad and are employed abroad, there is actually a quite broad range of 'work', which can be performed in Germany without a work permit. Other EU and Schengen countries have similar exceptions.
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@Dr.Snoopy I can't give you comprehensive legal explanations in the 600 characters limit of a SE comment and I find it unneccessary to be your secretary, but if you for some reason are not able to google stuff yourself, here is a list from the German embassy in London containing all the kinds of labour you can perform in Germany without any kind of work permit. It includes, as I already listed, researchers, journalists, artists, sportsmen and several other categories. uk.diplo.de/uk-en/02/visa/…
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@jcaron What this is about is, that you don't need a national visa or residence permit in all cases to be allowed to work in EU countries (as Dr. Snoopy claimed). Certain kind of work is allowed on a visa free visit or while visiting with a type C visa and for other kind of work, a separate work permit is available, which can be used in combination with a visa free or type C visa visit.
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@Dr.Snoopy 'Take up employment' and 'work' is not necessarily the same. You don't 'take up employment' in the EU if you work for a foreign employer while being in the EU, like e.g. guest researchers, artists or journalists often do. Nevertheless, here is e.g. information about the requirements for agricultural, seasonal workers in Germany. It is explicitely mentioned that workers from Moldova and Georgia can get a work permit while visiting visa free: svlfg.de/auslaendische-saisonarbeitskraefte
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@Dr.Snoopy It is not relevant who is regulating the matter. Your statements 'only (some kind of) national visas and residence permits allow working' and 'if you have workers with only a Schengen visa, they are working illegally' are simply wrong.
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@Dr.Snoopy What you are saying is not exactly correct. Many, if not all Schengen countries allow visa free visitors and short term visa holders to work within certain, restricted areas for specific purposed, e.g. science, culture, media or tourism. It is not uncommon for researchers, artists, journalists or e.g, tour guides to work in the EU or Schengen Area while visiting on a type C visa, without having any additional work permit. Germany will e.g. issue work permits to Moldovan and Georgian citizens on visa-free visists for seasonal agricultural work.
jarnbjo
Oct 20, 2024 06:33
@user1721135 One regular situation used to be type C visas issued to Kosovar citizens. These were regularly issued for 'all states except Spain', as Spain does not recognize Kosovo as an independent country. Since Jan 24, Kosovar citizens can travel visa-free to the Schengen area and Spanish authorities have also changed their policy, now allowing Kosovar citizens to enter Spain with their passport.
 

 Discussion on question by Franck Dern…

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jarnbjo
Sep 28, 2024 04:08
The dish must be directed upwards toward to sky, not sideways toward the horizon. Have you ever been in a commercial plane with large windows in the ceiling? Even if you had, a window is also not a free line of sight and I would expect airplane windows to attenuate the radio signal too much to obtain a connection through them.
jarnbjo
Sep 28, 2024 04:08
With both system requiring a relatively unobstructed line of sight towards the sky, I can't really imagine that you would have any success at all operating the system from within a commercial aircraft.
 

 Discussion on question by Mykola: Smo…

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jarnbjo
Sep 18, 2024 14:06
@Martha Generalizing Europeans is even more naive. Smoking legislation and culture is very different from country to country. There are plenty of European countries where outside smoking, at least in certain areas, is prohibited or not considered socially acceptable.
jarnbjo
Sep 18, 2024 14:06
@WeatherVane I am pretty sure that the 'total ban' for smoking in Greek hotels only apply to indoor areas. Even the document you are linking to specify just a few lines further down, that there are no bans for outdoor areas.
 

 Discussion on answer by Tor-Einar Jar…

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jarnbjo
Jun 13, 2024 14:11
@Ozzy Fremdenpolizeigesetz § 32. (2) - jusline.at/gesetz/fpg/paragraf/32
jarnbjo
Jun 13, 2024 14:11
@Aqualone No, I did not misquote the law and Austrian law is still lenient compared to mqny other countries. It is not too uncommon that in some countries all persons have to carry an id, which for foreigners often mean that they indeed have to carry their passport. I myself live in a country, where my passport is the only form of officially recognized id and even though I am not required here by law to carry it, I usually do, since I occasionally end up in situations, where I do have to show some kind of id, e.g. picking up a parcel.
 

 Discussion on question by Ccass: Can …

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jarnbjo
Mar 23, 2024 14:56
@phoog I am not so sure about that. It surely differs from country to country which requirements must be fulfilled to get a work permit, but I doubt that an EU/EEA country allows anyone to go there visa-free or on a short-term visa to work.
jarnbjo
Mar 23, 2024 14:56
@Ccass Which European country allows you to work there for 90 days without having a work permit? Since Brexit, at least EU/EEA countries do not.
jarnbjo
Mar 23, 2024 14:56
Splitting your contract so that you pretend to do the actual photography for free, but charge for the later editing is such a blatant attempt to circumvent immigration law, that you are not going to get through with that if questioned. In reality, your customer will pay for the 'whole package' as you would have no means to do and charge for the later editing without beforehand actually having performed labour on US soil. Since you in your question seem to treat UK and European soil equally: The same probably applies if you have assignments in Europe outside the UK.
 

 Discussion on question by Jan: Do Ame…

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jarnbjo
Feb 23, 2024 05:29
I have noticed over the past few years, probably since cash usage is declining and it can no longer be taken for granted that most customers carry coins at all, that the use of deposit coins in shopping carts is declining in several European countries as well.
 

 Discussion on question by Arabica: Re…

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jarnbjo
Feb 10, 2024 22:57
What kind of AirBnB rules do you expect to cover your situation? AirBnB is only acting as a broker for you to get in touch with the owner. Details in the rental agreement, which is made between you and the landlord, are not relevant for AirBnB. Unless further details have been agreed upon in advance, you have rented access to the appartment and the landlord has obviously provided you so.
jarnbjo
Feb 10, 2024 22:57
No, we do not agree that the owner should inform that he is only able to provide one set of keys in advance. I consider that perfectly normal. What I am saying is, that if you need more keys, you should have contacted the owner before making a reservation and asked if that is possible. And you have still not explained why you are locking someone into the appartment, which indeed might be dangerous, but still not obviously necessary in your situation.
jarnbjo
Feb 10, 2024 22:57
And it is still not clear why the person staying in the apartment can't keep the key. There is obviously something missing here, which is not obvious. As you describe the situation, it does not make much sense. Even if the person is staying wants to rest and you need a key to close the door, why can't the person staying keep the key and close the door?
jarnbjo
Feb 10, 2024 22:57
If you rent via AirBnB and know you need more keys, you should perhaps have asked the host before making a reservation? I would consider it perfectly normal that the host can only provide one set of keys for the appartment and anything more than that something you should have agreed upon in advance. Even in hotels, I would not take it for granted, that there are more than one key per unit.
 

 Discussion on question by I'm that gu…

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jarnbjo
Feb 8, 2024 05:02
@phoog Then it is a combination of a homeopathic and herbal or supplement remedy. 'Pure' homeopathic remedies have 'active ingredients' which are so dilluted, that they are usually not even present anymore in the tablets. Oscillococcinum, one of the most sold homepathic remedies (allegedly against flu) contains duck offals as the active ingredients at a dillution of 1:1⁴⁰⁰. That means, that there has probably not been a duck molecule in any of the Oscillococcinum tablets sold since the remedy was introduced in 1925. The rest is sugar - sucrose and lactose, sold in Germany for 1000€/kg.
jarnbjo
Feb 8, 2024 05:02
@Willeke Homeopathy has nothing to do with traditional or herbal medicine. It is charlatanery selling sugar and starch pills with alleged health benefits.
 

 Discussion on answer by Tor-Einar Jar…

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jarnbjo
Dec 1, 2023 15:54
@Johnnyjanko Where in the Schengen regulation is this alleged requirement mentioned?
jarnbjo
Dec 1, 2023 13:53
@Johnnyjanko You are also wrong. I am not sure where this often claimed 'fact' comes from, but there is no requirement in the Schengen regulation to carry an id when crossing a border. Such requirements come from national legislation and differs from country to country. There are definitely Schengen borders, which you can cross without even carrying any kind of id. I don't have a full overview, but the borders between Norway, Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Iceland are examples.
jarnbjo
Dec 1, 2023 13:53
@npst The question is about what is necessary to cross the border and I answered, that it is required by German law to carry an id. I don't understand how you are able to interpret my answer in such a way, that you think I've stated that you in Germany in general are required to carry an id.
jarnbjo
Dec 1, 2023 13:53
@npst You are wrong. When crossing the German border (not in general), you are required to carry a recognized id.
 

 Discussion on answer by Tor-Einar Jar…

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jarnbjo
Nov 29, 2023 16:13
@Kvothe Here, a cell phone is interfering with an amplified speaker, so that you can here the interference: youtube.com/watch?v=fh4IR_gPuUE
jarnbjo
Nov 29, 2023 16:13
@Kvothe Knowing how easily cell phones interfere with other devices at home and being an educated electrotechnician, I can't agree with you. The evidence you refuse to acknowledge can be found here. I quote: "... we investigated the possibility that portable electronic devices interfere with a plane’s safety instruments .. . our research has found that these items can interrupt the normal operation of key cockpit instruments, especially GPS receivers" Source: spectrum.ieee.org/unsafe-at-any-airspeed
jarnbjo
Nov 29, 2023 16:13
@Kvothe The negative effect is that your devices can interfere with aircraft electronics and essential systems may fail. If it is of no importance to you that you and the other passengers aboard the plane arrive alive at the intended destination, you may of course ignore such safety restrictions. Luckily for you, airplanes have backups for all essential systems, so even if one system fails, you will survive even if the crew has an increased work load using a fallback system.
 

 Discussion on answer by o.m.: Oversta…

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jarnbjo
Oct 11, 2023 15:09
@Inconspicuousseagull If it was that simple, everyone could simply ignore their visa conditions and claim 'I didn't know that I was only allowed to stay 20 days, although my visa said, that I am allowed to stay 20 days'. That is obviously not the case.
jarnbjo
Oct 11, 2023 15:09
IANAL, but I would assume that to claim negligence, the overstay can not have been intentional, but e.g. have been caused by unforeseen and perhaps also unpreventable circumstances. If you for example is planning to leave on the last day of your allowed stay and your flight is cancelled and you are not able to arrange alternative transport on the same day, your overstay could be deemed negligent.
jarnbjo
Oct 11, 2023 15:09
What Mark Johnson quotes, but doesn't understand, is the significance of the word 'negligently'. An overstay is an administrative offence only if it is commited negligently and I sincerely doubt that 'not bothering to read and understand the visa conditions' is a good enough excuse to get an easier outcome. If you are accused of a criminal act, you will also likely be convicted for one. It might be a good idea to already now get a German immigration lawyer to handle your case instead of awaiting a potential conviction.
jarnbjo
Oct 11, 2023 15:09
It is not unlikely that the overstay will result in an entry ban.
 

 Discussion on question by ChrisW: Lan…

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jarnbjo
Sep 20, 2023 04:22
@badjohn What kind of train? At least on the long distance trains run by the Swiss Federal Railways, the announcements are always done in German, French and Italian, even when the trains operate outside Switzerland, e.g. in Germany.
jarnbjo
Sep 20, 2023 04:22
And if we look at e.g. Switzerland, which is a multilingual country, but with relatively distinct language borders within the country (in a region, usually only one language is spoken), it is also not uncommon that announcements are made at least both in German and French, although a service is operating in a region, where only either German or French is spoken. It is very hard to see anything 'bizarre' in the situation you are describing.
jarnbjo
Sep 20, 2023 04:22
There are of course a whole lot of train companies, which do their announcements in English, although English is not an official language in the operating country.
 

 Discussion on question by robin geage…

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jarnbjo
Jul 31, 2023 16:51
What was the reason for the flight cancellation? How was your itinerary? Do I understand it correctly that you flew from the Czech Republic to Germany (Prauge to Frankfurt or Munich?) and from there left the Schengen area?