Bardeh
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Posts posted by Bardeh
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Savannakhet is a quiet little town without much going on, but it's very laid back and I really do like the food there. The easy 1-year Non-O visas are the reason I go, but if you do go for a Visa, there are worse places to spend a couple of days. Avalon Residence is a little way out of town but is clean, cheap, and has very decent wifi.
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You've spent 1300 of the past 1500 days in Australia. Obviously they don't think you're a genuine tourist. Frustrating, yes, but I can see where they're coming from. Isn't there a more permanent visa you could apply for, as you obviously spend so much time in the country?
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Just a quick update - she got the Visa. :)
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22 hours ago, Tee2008 said:
I would be interested to learn the outcome of this. I'm dealing with something very similar at the moment, and there should be an appeal hearing in the UK next month.
I will let you know. I'm getting more and more nervous that she'll be denied and our family will be split up, but for now all we can do is hope and wait.
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Thanks Bob, that's basically what we thought, and I'm glad she decided to tell the truth. It will be extremely unfortunate if she's denied the visa because they think she'll overstay - she's already facing a period of at least months apart from us while I get the necessary stuff together for her settlement visa, and if she can't come with us now it'll be that much longer. Fingers crossed!
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My wife has just had a phone call regarding her UK visit visa application. This is the second one, and the first one she got fine without any hitches.
However, they asked a different question this time, and I'm wondering if circumstances are going to make things more difficult.
We have a 5 year old son, and would both like him to start school in the UK - so, for him and me, this will be a permanent move back. The plan is for her to come with us for a few months, then return here until I have enough tax returns to prove income to start the settlement visa process.
The interviewer asked her about our son, and whether or not we planned for him to start school in England - she told him that yes, in the future we would like him to study there. Now I'm wondering if telling the truth was a good idea because they may think she'll overstay if she has to leave him behind. But, by the same token, lying about it may have put a spanner in the works for any future settlement visa application.
I'm mostly just posting to see if anyone else has been in a similar situation and how it panned out for you. The uncertainty is horrible, and we won't know the decision for another couple of weeks...
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7 hours ago, MaeJoMTB said:
You don't understand Thai society, not all Thai girls are sluts, not all Thai girls want to be sluts.
Simply having a boyfriend is considered being a slut? I feel sorry for your daughter.
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3 hours ago, Happy Grumpy said:To be honest I think the joke is on the guys living here long term on an endless stream of Tourist Visas and new passports and Red Stamps and Tourist Visas, while convincing themselves that it's the 'Correct System' to live here on.
Well if they're allowed to get new visas, allowed to enter and stay on those visas, what's incorrect about it? Thailand could quite easily implement a 'two tourist visas per year' rule, or something along those lines, but they don't. So, the only logical conclusion is that it's perfectly 'correct' to stay in Thailand using their tourist visa system. I'm not sure how or why anyone would come to any other conclusion.
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I just take a flight to Don Muang, another flight to Nakhon Phanom and use Air Asia's Fly and Ride service which takes me right to Ploy Palace hotel in Mukdahan. Stay there a night, then a night in Savannakhet, another night in Ploy, first flight back to to Don Muang the morning after that. I could probably get it done quicker and cheaper if I could be bothered to take buses, but I hate buses and would rather spend a leisurely few days than save a day and a few baht and have to deal with bus journeys.
I'm currently back in Ploy Palace having successfully gotten my third Non-O based on marriage. The process was as easy and stress-free as ever. It'll be a sad day when/if they ever get rid of this visa, because while this part of the world isn't exactly the most exciting, it's a breath of fresh air to get a visa without stress, long queues, all that crap. It's like a little mini-break.
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I'm here in Savannakhet now on my 3rd trip getting this visa. Still as easy as anything - marriage certificate, copy of that, signed copies of wife's ID card and tabien Baan, copy of your passport photo page, two photos. As long as you have the marriage cert and wife's documents copies, no need to stress if you've forgotten anything else as the little shop opposite the consulate can do photos and copies.
I turned up around 9.30 and there wasn't anybody else at the consulate at all. Savannakhet itself is still very sleepy and quite boring, but the wifi in Avalon Hotel is fast and the beer Lao is cheap :)
The baguettes they make here are also to die for, they are amazing! All of the cafes and restaurants are happy to take Thai baht (notes) but you'll get some change in kip.
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28 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:
Disappointing, especially as it is unanimous. Whether the criticisms levelled by the Court will result in changes is probably unlikely now that TM is PM.
Exactly. Skimming through the document shows that the court has plenty of criticisms of the existing legislation, but leaves it up to the government to make changes. With Brexit and everything else surrounding immigration right now, I don't think appetite is going to be high for anything to change at all. Very disappointing.
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Just now, Basil B said:
Verdict announced ...."Unlawful"
That's not what I'm reading. See my link above, and also here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/02/22/supreme-court-ruling-due-challenge-foreign-spouse-income-limit2/
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Here's the link to the Supreme Court website for the case: https://www.supremecourt.uk/cases/uksc-2015-0011.html
Says judgement is due to be handed down today. Fingers crossed for a relaxing of the requirements.
Edit: The rules aren't being relaxed: https://www.theguardian.com/law/2017/feb/22/supreme-court-backs-minimum-income-rule-for-non-european-spouses
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Yes, you can leave and re-enter as often as you like. Every time you re-enter you get a fresh 90 day stamp. This is how you squeeze 15 months out of the visa - exit and re-enter Thailand on the last valid day, and you'll get another 90 day stamp.
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Hotels are cheap, but generally quite basic. You can get a clean room with aircon for around 600 baht a night. I went to the Avalon residence last time I was in Savannakhet, which had friendly staff, a little bar attached, and clean but bare rooms. It's only a 5 minute walk from the consulate. Food is similarly priced to Thailand if you want to eat local, although there are some decent coffee shops in town that serve more expensive dishes.
From Chiang Rai I fly to BKK and then to Nakhon Phanom where you get a 45 minute minibus to Mukdahan. You could save a few baht by taking a bus from Bangkok, but I would rather spend a bit more and not have to deal with that. These flights are around 1300-1500 each. The visa cost is 5000. I would say that, all-in, I generally spend around 15000 baht including visa fee. That's perfectly acceptable to me for a hassle-free visa experience.
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10 minutes ago, calbear09 said:
To the OP - do you have to do this every 90 days? Even if married to a Thai national, you have to do this every 90 days? (Just trying to get an idea of how everything works).
No, you do it once every 15 months. Once you have the visa, you will need to exit and re-enter Thailand every 90 days, though.
I have done the same trip twice now, and it's painless and easy as long as you have the right documents. Savannakhet is a very sleepy little town with not much to do, but for one night every year or so it's fine.
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3 hours ago, sceadugenga said:Picked up some fantastic mushrooms from the Royal Project store yesterday.
Cooked with butter and bacon and served with toast they are hard to beat, great flavour.
I love the Royal Project store and have no idea how they can sell everything so cheap. Not that I'm complaining of course, but how do they do it?! When they had some (sadly run out now) you could get 3-5 avocados there for the price of a single one in Tops.
Edit for my own good thing:
We went up to Doi Mae Salong for the weekend, and wow it's beautiful up there!
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OP. I wouldn't worry. I very much doubt that any food really goes to waste. Most of it will get slopped into a big bin, and then a guy will come round to collect it for pig food. I assume a small fee is paid for the food. Win win for everyone! The restaurant makes a little extra money on leftover food, the pig man gets cheap food for his animals, and the pigs get to enjoy some tasty restaurant cuisine. I know this was certainly the case in a school I used to work at - all leftovers were scraped into a plastic bucket and a guy would come round with his samlor every afternoon and collect it for his pigs.
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No smoked duck breasts or pork fillet this evening when I checked. They did have some pheasant (or partridge maybe?) that I may try in the future.
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The Royal Project store has a some tasty items, smoked duck breast and smoked pork fillet (described as smoked pork chop).
Vacuum sealed for your convenience, useful deli goods with numerous culinary uses.
I'll have to check out those duck breasts - is the Royal Project Store the one on the bottom floor of Central near the food court?
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How fussy are they at both the Laos border for the entrance visa and at the Thai consulate about the sizes of the photos? I have three photos, but they're a little big. I've never had trouble using them for extensions at the Chiang Rai consulate, so I figure I should be fine.
If they are the correct size (4 x 6 cm) for Thai immigration (their are no Thai consulates within the country) they are to big for both application forms.
The Lao visa form shows a 3 X 4 cm photo. Laos visa on arrival Savannakhet.pdf
The Thai visa form requires two 3.5 X 4.5 photos.
You could try snipping the photos you have down to fit. It might be best to get some 3.5 X 4.5 cm photos that would both application forms though.
Thanks Joe, I'll get some new ones taken. And yeah, I mean immigration, not the consulate, whoops!
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How fussy are they at both the Laos border for the entrance visa and at the Thai consulate about the sizes of the photos? I have three photos, but they're a little big. I've never had trouble using them for extensions at the Chiang Rai consulate, so I figure I should be fine.
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Take your marriage certificate, passport, your wife's ID, and tabien baan along to Chiang Rai immigration along with 1900 baht and you'll get a 60 day extension. Should only take 20 minutes or so depending on which time of day you go.
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I like the blue, either grilled on toast or in an omelet.
Yup, I bought half a little wheel of that. Only something like 160 baht, and as you said, delicious in an omelette.
Mukdahan or Savannakhet to BKK
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NokAir and Air Asia both do a Fly and Ride service from Nakhon Phanom to Don Muang. Picks you up at the riverfront or Ploy Palace Hotel.