acepredator

4 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Which is strange as 90 day report has zero to do with obtaining extension. 

It's just another pointless and meaningless hoop that Chiang Mai Immigration requires us to jump through every year. It provides them with job security and a reason to hassle us if we don't have the copy along with the other required documents. 

6 hours ago, carbon007 said:

Only thing different this year September was that they also wanted copy of 90 days paper.

Thanks very much for your response. In actuality, I've had to provide a copy of my current 90 day report (the paper that's stapled in the back of the passport) every year since I've had the retirement visa.

8 hours ago, kiaora1968 said:

I extended my permission of stay 3 weeks ago. Painless process. First, on the parking lot, in front of the main car entrance, they'll check your temperature, give you a little sticker that you'll stick to your clothes, and give you a waiting number. With that number, you'll go under the temporary tent, on the left of the parking, and sit while waiting to be called. Your documents will be checked there. There can be a long wait. For my extension, I had to wait about one hour as there was only one person on duty. Once checked and validated, you'll get a big cardboard number and you can enter the main building. Report to the information counters, submit your documents once again, and you'll get another queuing number. That's it. Same documents as before. 

Thanks very much for your highly informative reply. That answers my question completely.

22 minutes ago, Lite Beer said:

To be clear you are applying for a 12 month extension of your permission to stay.

No reason why it should not be the same as last year.

Yes, that is what I'm applying for. I hope and expect that it will be the same, but after 17 years of dealing with Chiang Mai Immigration, I have learned that expectations can prove to be very much mistaken.

On 10/29/2021 at 8:52 PM, cardinalblue said:

1. Rose’s roadhouse 2. Dukes 3. Blank

Agreed that Rose's Roadhouse is the best, but at a location difficult to get to. Fortunately, the owner, Patrick Magreevy, just opened a new location. It is at what was the Corner Bistro off Huay Kaew Road, across the street from Kad Suan Kaew shopping center. You can call the new restaurant at 080-021-5363 to get directions. It has the same menu featuring the same outstanding food as Rose's Roadhouse.

I will be extending my Non-Immigrant-O (Retirement) visa later this month. Can anyone who has done their extension recently here in Chiang Mai please let me and any other interested individuals know if there have been any changes to the process since late last year? There were very few people at the Immigration office last November, so I was in and out in a short period of time. I suspect that there may be more people visiting Immigration this year as the country is much more open to foreigners now than it was then. Thanks in advance for any information that any readers can provide. 

16 hours ago, LomSak27 said:

Small package, USPS, mailed April 28 from Steilacoom WA. I received here in Chiang Mai, yesterday May 12. However due to semi lockdown, concierge working half shifts, it could have been in, for as long as 5 days, sitting in her room.
 
Still happy it arrived, customs did not hold and extort. It's all good. 

Thanks for your reply. Thirteen days for a package to be in your hands does seem unusually long in my experience. These days, of course, it could be the new normal. At least you got the package. I assume you have a good relationship with your concierge.

Lately I've had a terrible personal problem with the concierge of my building. I'm afraid she may have told the delivery person that I moved out, causing the package to be returned. An extremely valuable lesson to learn is never <deleted> off your concierge, for if you do you may never see a piece of mail again.

4 hours ago, CharlieH said:

I would say rejected as the place was shutdown due to Covid for cleansing.

That's certainly possible, but it seems much more reasonable to me to just hold the mail until the cleansing process was completed and then send the mail on its way. Why send it all the way back to its country of origin? It's not as if the mail could be a vector of COVID.

12 hours ago, mtls2005 said:

 

So you're saying the letter made it from Mayberry to San Francisco, then back to Mayberry? Without ever leaving the U.S.?

 

When was this, and if you can be precise all the better.

 

I received a standard air-mail letter ($1.20) from the U.S., east coast, this week. It took ~ 16 days.

 

 

 

 

According to the tracking on the USPS website, the envelope cleared customs in San Francisco on 04 May at 16:51. On 10 May at 10:29 it was on its way back to the sender. I'm assuming that between the 4th and the 10th it arrived in Thailand, was rejected as being undeliverable, and was sent back to my sister. 

57 minutes ago, CharlieH said:

International mail "office of exchange" at Swampy was closed for a number of days (5? ) due to a Covid issue. The mail service resumed last Thursday.

 

Thanks for your reply. I would think that any mail received during the limited number of days the office was closed would just be held somewhere pending delivery here in Thailand. I can't imagine why the mail would be returned to the people who sent it. 

My sister in America recently tried to send an envelope to me in Chiang Mai. The address she used was the same address I've had for the past ten years. Until now, there's never been a problem receiving mail from her. This time, however, the USPS returned the envelope from San Francisco, saying it could not be delivered as addressed. Is mail not being accepted in Thailand due to the recent lockdown? Has anyone else had a similar problem? Thanks in advance for any information that you can provide.

9 hours ago, PatOngo said:

So, after all the drama, how is the wife doing??? Ordinary journalism!

According to the nightly news, the wife was dead at the scene. Her final mistake in life was to marry an overly-suspicious, violent, yaba-smoking lunatic. Let's hope that she possesses better judgement in the next life.

Pib,

Thanks very much for the tremendous amount of information and insight you provided in response to my post. As I mentioned previously, there's nothing like the voice of experience. In this case, even more helpful in that your experience was so recent. You obviously did a great deal of research before selecting the lenses that would be best for you. It seems that your research paid off in the degree of satisfaction that you've obtained after your surgery. Armed with the extensive knowledge I acquired from your replies, I will discuss the matter with my eye surgeon when I visit him again next month. Thanks again for taking the time to provide highly informative responses, and best of luck in the future with your new lenses.

23 hours ago, Rhacsyn said:

Hi

 

I had intraocular lens replacement ten years ago. I did not have cataracts but both near and far sight had become poor with age. I was using numerous pairs of glasses for various activities and it was quite frustrating. I considered laser treatment but was convinced by my hospital that as i had poor near and far sight, both could not be fixed by laser and my best option was lens replacement. I was 51 years old at the time and as cataract surgery was / is far more  common than laser, I followed my ophthalmologists advice.

 

The operation was painless and less than six minutes per eye (operated on one week apart). I had multi focal lenses installed (again following the advice of global specialists) and my life was transformed. I am now 61 years old, and apart from a small occasional shadow effect, still have perfect vision. All of the above, including the selection of multi focal lenses, was done at the recommendation of Moorfields eye hospital in UK. Yes I am now in Thailand but have a close friend who recently did same in Bangkok eye hospital, again without complaint and 100% success.

 

Our incredulous brains, even older slowing ones (!), simply choose which part of the multi focal lens to use. The lenses themselves are the same so I am not sure, other than cost, why one would not follow the multi focal lens route.

According to my ophthalmologist, there can be an issue with excessive glare and a halo effect with the multi-focal lens. This could make driving at night even more perilous than usual. Also, some patients still need reading glasses, even with the multi-focal lenses. Fortunately for you and your friend that wasn't the case. I would be extremely disappointed if I paid the extra cost of the multi-focal lenses and still needed reading glasses. Thanks very much for taking the time to reply to my post.

10 hours ago, Sheryl said:

As Lopburi3 mentioned, an alternative to the multi-focal lens approach is to go for monovision. this means inserting the standard mono-vision lens but leaving one eye a bit myopic.  To do this it is necessary to operate on the 2 eyes separately and leave enough time in between for the first eye to stabilize.

 

I have monovision after LASIK done more than 2o years ago - one eye is 20/20 (and has trouble reading up close) and the other eye is around 20/40 and reads up close fine, so I am still (knock on wood) able to avoid reading glasses.

Very intriguing concept to have different capabilities in different eyes. Avoiding the need to use any kind of glasses is really the ideal situation for me. I will talk to the eye surgeon when I see him next month. Thanks very much for your reply.

12 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

Why do you need the cataracts removed?   If they are not causing issues you can normally wait until they do so.  Or were you having issues and that the reason for checkup?

 

Monovision is cheaper and less chance of issues and some people use reading in one eye and distance in the other to avoid need for glasses.  But reading glasses are inexpensive (cheap) and available everywhere and at your age not unusual to need. 

 

Surgery is easy and fast but should be done a month or so apart to rule out any issues.  I chose monovision and believe it was right decision (but was about 8 years older than you).   

Yes, I was having issues, which precipitated the eye exam. It had become impossible for my vision to be corrected with glasses, so I thought there must have been something more serious involved. I was surprised by the cataract diagnosis, but I have read that exposure to the strong tropical sun of Thailand can accelerate the development of cataracts. 

Very interesting idea to have one lens for distant vision and one for reading. I will talk to the doctor about it when I see him again next month. Thanks very much for your reply.

Hello. A recent thorough eye examination revealed that I have cataracts, at the relatively young age of 63. The doctor offered me the choice of two replacement lenses: mono-focal or multi-focal. The mono-focal are much simpler and cheaper, but would require using reading glasses. The multi-focal might also require reading or other glasses, but possibly not. The doctor informed me that there are potential complications with the multi-focal and strongly advised me to go with the mono-focal. I'm wondering if any readers have had cataract surgery and which lenses they chose and why. Also, what are your experiences since the surgery with the lenses you selected? This is a difficult decision due to the fact that I'll be stuck with the lenses I pick for the remainder of my life. I'm scheduled for surgery this June at Maharaj Hospital (a.k.a. Suan Dok) in Chiang Mai. Any information and insights provided by the voices of experience will be greatly appreciated as I struggle with this dilemma. 

If you have a more complex return, with investment or rental income or capital gains, you can't use the free tax services provided by the IRS. After checking various options, I used TurboTax Premier this year. It was relatively easy and straightforward to use and did all the complicated math for me. At a cost of only $70, plus an optional $50 extra for enhanced security services, I highly recommend it. Also, you can file using a U.S. address, even if you live in Thailand. It asks if you live abroad, and you click on "Yes." It then informs you that you have to fill out an FBAR form based on your overseas residence, but you don't have to provide your Thai address. It's that simple. 

5 hours ago, JimGant said:

Not for CM -- that report covers the snapshot timeframe they're curious about (i.e., money movements right after last renewal, interim movements, and balance two months before latest renewal application).

That puts my mind completely at ease. I assumed that 10 days prior to my appointment wouldn't be a problem, but I posted the question just to be sure. Very happy to hear from someone who is extremely knowledgeable about the issue at hand. Thanks very much for taking the time to reply. 

13 hours ago, OJAS said:

 

CM have previous form as regards making life difficult for retirees at annual extension of stay time, of course. Were you one of those who used to have to queue up from the small hours each year in order to stand any chance of getting your application approved the same day, on the grounds that you weren't prepared to avail yourself of agency services for grease-palming purposes?

Yes, I was. I was on my motorbike by 05:00 a.m. for the ride to the old office at the airport, and then later to Promenada. For a time they had the reservation system, where I would log on exactly 100 days before the date I wanted to renew my visa. There were only eight slots available, so I would log on at 12:01 a.m. to get one of them, which I did every year the system was available. Alas, that system ended, and then it was back to the chilly early morning ride on the motorbike.

This year I was able to send a message through the Immigration website requesting an appointment, which was granted. My appointment is for tomorrow morning, so this week I've been getting everything in order. Hopefully, all will go smoothly.

In my 25 years living in South Korea and Thailand I have found that if you just follow the rules as established by Immigration you won't have a problem. In those 25 years, I have never been denied a visa. Follow the rules and it will work out every time, without the need to pay a visa agent.

2 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Very disappointing. Perhaps CM is hoping to win the "most unreasonable imm offices 2020".

 

Yes, they are certainly in the top tier of contenders. Mercifully, the visa renewal is only once a year. To their credit, however, the 90 day report couldn't be easier. They've streamlined it so that you are literally in and out of the office in a matter of minutes. They even feature a drive-through window now.

2 minutes ago, Mayhem11 said:

I am going to CM immigration to extend/renew Non O visa, and my agent required me to obtain bank statement and letter.

There is the answer then. It seems that it is, indeed, a new requirement by CM Immigration, who just want to make our lives in the Rose of the North a little bit more complicated and difficult than they already are. Thanks very much for the information.

Just now, DrJack54 said:

Fair enough. Hopefully someone with first hand experience will be along to advise you about CM.

I note that reports of CM being difficult with 60 day extensions currently and not providing affidavit option. I realize unrelated but would not surprise me if CM are pulling this stunt regarding bank statements which clearly are not necessary.

Yes, it seems likely. I have seen the same reports. To be safe, I went ahead and got the yearly statement, at a cost of only 200 baht at Bangkok Bank. My statement is dated 10 days before my immigration appointment, so my concern was that it might be too early, but as it is a yearly statement, probably not.

3 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Well first up it's important to indicate which imm office that you deal with.

I deal with CW and for money in the bank method all you need is bank letter, updated bankbook and CW likes to see activity on the day. (small deposit) and photocopies of bankbook for last 12 months. 

I realize Ubonjoe above has mentioned some random offices requiring bank statements.

I would like to see list. Thinking they would be few and far between. 

As I stated in my original post, I am dealing with the Chiang Mai immigration office. Last year I had to do everything that you mentioned, except the small account activity on the day of my visit. I only updated the bank book at an ATM on the way to the office, and there was no problem. Again, I thought that Immigration was becoming more bothersome than last year, so that's the reason for the new requirement of a yearly statement, even for the 800k method.