thaiowl

I applied for Permanent Residence in December 2007 and am still waiting for my approval letter. i have passed all the requirements and my application is waiting to be signed at the Interior Ministry. Same goes for 2006 applicants. The required documents take 3 months or so to get but I think you can apply this month and then submit the missing documents at a later date.

There is an interview in Thai but it's not difficult: Where do you live? Where do you work? etc, etc. You are not required to read and write Thai.

See the pinned topic for a full rundown on how to get PR.

Since applying for PR in December 2007, I have bought a condo in Hua Hin whilst keeping my primary property in Nonthaburi. I would like to get put on the tabien baan of my Hua Hin condo when my PR comes through. Will I have any problems registering with Hua Hin police and putting my name on the tabien baan of my Hua Hin property even though my original PR application was from my Nonthaburi address?

You can get on a tabien baan anywhere you like where you are either the owner of a condo or where the owner of your house or apartment is willing to sign the paperwork for you be on the tabien baan. One thing I am not sure about is whether you have to apply for a work permit in the location of your tabien baan or where you work but there is now a work permit office in Hua Hin anyway. Similarly, you can register for an alien book in the local police station of wherever you are on a tabien baan and will have go there for the endorsements which are only every five years. Remember that you need to get your Residence Certificate from Immigration within 30 days' of PR approval under the Immigration Act and that Immigration will probably need to reconfirm evidence of your address for this. Immigration will then send your details to the police station that covers this address to issue your Alien Book which also has to be done without delay. So you will end doing all of this twice, if you haven't already got a yellow tabien baan in Hua Hin when you PR comes through.

If you intend to apply for citizenship in future, bear in mind that having a Hua Hin tabien baan would involve applying to the Special Branch provincial HQ in Prachuab Khiri Khan. Some provincial Special Branch offices can't be bothered with this process and just refuse, pretending that it is not their responsibility. I would think Nonthaburi would be a better bet for this, as they have quite a few applications and should understand how it works. Bangkok is best as they have a Special Branch department, dedicated purely to nationality applications.

Personally I would get the tabien baan in Nonthaburi in your situation, if possible, as you may never know what unanticipated event will have you scuttling off on a paper trail to Hua Hin or Prachuab at short notice, unless of course you plan to make Hua Hin your primary residence in the near future. There is no need to wait, as you can get a yellow tabien baan before you get PR, if you haven't already done so.

For Brits District Offices no longer issue tabien baans with the nationality of "Angrit", as in the past. They now have computer code for each country and nationality and have finally caught up with the news of the union of English and Scottish crowns. I think Immigration, the police and the Labour Ministry are still lingering in the 17th century and may record the nationality of Brits as "Angrit", much to the disgust of Scots, Welsh and Northern Irish, unless asked to do otherwise. This can cause problems if you are "Angrit" in your other Thai documents and you might be forced to go around changing them one by one so as to have the same nationality in all. So for any Brits in this situation I would advise them to ask Immigration to inscribe their nationality as British in their Residence Book on day one and the police will take it from there for the Alien Book. Changing it later takes months and many visits and phone calls to Immigration and the police station which both seem to suffer from amnesia when dealing with such enquiries. It is also advisable to bring documentary evidence of your parents' nationality when applying for your blue tabien baan. There is a space for this information and the district office will enter "nationality unspecified" if no evidence is provided and that can cause you to be looked on potentially stateless at some time in the future, as happened to me. The evidence required is a declaration made at your consulate of your parents' details and that they are or were British citizens by either birth (in the UK), descent (from a British citizen) or naturalization. Consulates will ask for documentary evidence but the British will probably take your word for it, if you haven't got any and don't look obviously like a sex tourist or have too many hideous tatoos etc. Then this document needs to be translated by a certified translator and taken to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to have pretty coloured stamps plastered on it to notarise the vice-consul's signature and certify the translation as correct which doesn't necessarily mean that it is free of glaring errors.

Thanks for your detailed reply. Work permit depends on where you work and my registered office is at my residence in Nonthaburi so I presume I’ll be OK on the work permit front.

When I bought the condo, I was given a blue tabien baan by the sellers so I presume I just ask the District Office in Hua Hin to put my name on that tabien baan.

I don’t intend to apply for citizenship.

I would prefer to be put on the tabien baan of my Nonthaburi residence but my wife doesn’t want any foreign names attracting attention. She didn’t even put our kids (Thai/UK citizens) on it because they have my surname.

I think I’ll try to stay with “Angrit” as my nationality. I will also get my parents’ nationality confirmed by the British Embassy and translated and then notarized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Since applying for PR in December 2007, I have bought a condo in Hua Hin whilst keeping my primary property in Nonthaburi. I would like to get put on the tabien baan of my Hua Hin condo when my PR comes through. Will I have any problems registering with Hua Hin police and putting my name on the tabien baan of my Hua Hin property even though my original PR application was from my Nonthaburi address?

I haven't received anything either. I wonder whether your friend had any high level contacts in the MoI?

Best of luck to all those waiting!

Don't think he has any high level contacts. That's why he was surprised.

An American friend of mine, who applied for PR in either 2006 or 2007, received a registered letter last week informing him that his PR had been approved and he now needs to provide Immigration with photos, house registration, passport and fee. He said this came out of the blue. Is there light at the end of the tunnel? I applied in 2007 and haven't received anything.

Does anyone know of any more recent approvals?

Hmmm...April fool?

I went for my 6-month extension last week and queried when I would get PR. The officer laughed and said she didn't know but she looked up my application in the big ledger and said my application has passed all the requirements and was waiting for signature. In the ledger, there are various stamps in the last column of my application, presumably for various requirements.

I am buying a condo unit in Hua Hin which needs renovating. Can anyone recommend a local company they have used? Does anyone have any views on a local company called "The Cabinet"?

48V bulb and flasher are available from http://www.senyu.biz/electricscootersparts%20.htm.

The bulb I want is halfway down the page - "Big light Bulb 48V/10W/2 contacts". The flasher is further up the page - "Flasher 48V"

I removed the flasher and it said "48V" on it so I presume the lights are 48V.

Ooops...you are correct. We couldn't take the battery compartment out because we didn't have a key. Once the locksmith did his job we opened up the compartment and there were indeed four 12V batteries wired in series. My wife found a supplier in Petkasem 19 and the bike works fine. However, I still need a 48V flasher and a 48V headlight bulb...any ideas?

My wife was recently given an electric motorcycle which is powered by a 48v battery. Does anyone know where I can buy a replacement battery plus a few 48v spares (headlight bulb and indicator flasher)? We live in Nonthaburi.

Yesterday, I renewed my 5-year licence (which had expired in July!) at the traffic place in Tivanon Road, Nonthaburi. All they wanted was copies of my passport and work permit (no medical certificate was required) and my expired licence. I had to sit through 45 mins of a video and then take the colour blind and reflex tests. After that, I went downstairs and they issued me with a very trendy licence with digital photo, holograms etc.

The whole process took about an hour, most of which was the 45 minute video.

Booked return to Manchester for 2-17 April for Bt24,445. Last year I paid about Bt44,000 with EVA (economy) and BMI. The Lufthansa 747 fleet does not have individual TVs in economy class, which is a bit of a bummer, but for less than Bt25,000 I can't really complain.

I just looked back and noticed that is what I said before.

Courtesy of Isaan lawyers website here is copy that document. http://www.isaanlawyers.com/images/letter%...onfirmation.jpg

I think going to land office and submitting it would satisfy the land department if it ever came up as a problem.

Thanks for the form. I notice that the form should be completed before the land is purchased. My wife bought her land in 1996 so we would be a bit late with the submission! But as you say, it would probably satisfy the Land Dept. However, I suspect my wife will still be unwilling to put me on her tabien baan. A friend of hers has agreed to put me on her tabien baan instead but I am afraid this could also lead to problems because my PR application was made under my home address and not the address of her friend. Do you think I can be put on her friend's tabien baan without any adverse repercussions?

I am not sure nominee is the correct word. You went around the law that was in effect at the time she bought the property. I have no idea what the legal ramifications of that is. It might be a simple matter of going to the land department and telling them about your marriage and filing the document that is now required when a woman married to a farang now has to file with the registration.

There is no connection that I know of between the Department of Provincial Administration (DOPA) and the land department. DOPA are the ones that do the house book and etc. The land department are the ones that handle property registrations so AFAIK I know you should not have a problem.

You dd not answer my question about showing your marriage on the PR application.

I have shown our marriage on the PR application because the application was on the basis of "Supporting a Thai wife and children".

I take your point about no connection between the DOPA and the Land Department. However, when the land is sold, I presume the Land Department would see my name on the tabien baan and then may start asking questions.

Assuming my pending PR application is eventually approved, one of the next steps will be to add my name to the tabien baan of our house which, of course, is in my wife's name. Is there any risk about adding my name to the tabien baan? Could my wife be construed to be a nominee for me, which could cause problems with the land department (we marrried outside Thailand; my wife does not have my surname; the house was bought after we married)?

No problem. Assuming that your wife is Thai, she has the right to own land even if she is married to a foreigner.

But would she be considered a nominee if I am added to the tabien baan?

Probably not. It would be no different than adding a family member or even a friend to the house book unless there is some documentation presented that shows that you are married.

I would worry more about a penalty for her not informing the government about her marriage than the land ownership factor. I suspect that there is some law that says that it is a requirement.

I cannot understand why anybody would want to hide the fact that they are married. The law concerning land ownership was changed in 1998. Before that date there might of been a reason but of course that had risks.

We were married in 1991 and bought our house in 1996. To avoid problems, my wife didn't want a farang surname on the tabien baan. Even my kids aren't on it...they're on their grandmother's.

Believe the question becomes when did this buying of land occur? If done recently and she hid her marriage status it could come back to bite I suspect as legal transfer can only be made with foreign husband signing paperwork that he understands it is not joint marriage property and she affirms the mony used was hers alone. It appears no such paperwork is on file so if done recently it might be a problem.

Land was bought in 1996...we got married in 1991. No paper work on file re. not joint marriage property and affirmation of source of funds.

Probably not. It would be no different than adding a family member or even a friend to the house book unless there is some documentation presented that shows that you are married.

I would worry more about a penalty for her not informing the government about her marriage than the land ownership factor. I suspect that there is some law that says that it is a requirement.

I cannot understand why anybody would want to hide the fact that they are married. The law concerning land ownership was changed in 1998. Before that date there might of been a reason but of course that had risks.

When adding the name to the tabien baan, you have to say what relationship you are to the owner of the house so I would tell them authorities that the owner of the house is my wife.

Assuming my pending PR application is eventually approved, one of the next steps will be to add my name to the tabien baan of our house which, of course, is in my wife's name. Is there any risk about adding my name to the tabien baan? Could my wife be construed to be a nominee for me, which could cause problems with the land department (we marrried outside Thailand; my wife does not have my surname; the house was bought after we married)?

If anyone spots a 5-month 2nd hand Acer Aspire One netbook for sale in Panthip, can they PM me.

Sorry to hear your story, but there must be hundreds of second hand notebooks inc Acer in Panthip. Be interested if it is covered by insurance for such, as alluded to in previous post, as surely the premiums must be high in such economic times?

It is insured by Acer via Bangkok Insurance. I'll let you know if I get paid out. There can't be too many second hand netbooks (5 months old) in Panthip.

Thx for the report

How were they able to steal the laptop? Did you leave it unattended and for how long?

I shall be even more vigilant now. I mean my laptop is always with me - hard to steal that way...

I met a friend and put my bag on the chair next to me. I went for a cup of coffee an asked my friend if he wanted one. He didn't reply. While I was being served, my friend decided he wanted a coffee and (rather naively) left my bag unattended. When we prepared to leave the coffee shop, we found my bag had been replaced with a similar one. A review of the securitiy cameras didn't reveal anything because only one of two exits was monitored by cameras.

Before my bag was stolen, I noticed a group of 6 or 7 people outside, having a chat and looking at a laptop. I suspect I was their "mark".

The policeman who attended the scene said it could be a Vietnamese or Filippino gang...can't be locals of course!

Thus is the first time anything like this has happened to me in my 20 years in the country.

My son's Acer laptop was stolen at gunpoint last year.

Fortunately, he was not hurt AND

Acer provides insurance at no charge to all Acer laptops with warranty.

It took us 6 months to collect from Acer Insurance but we got

a check for 30,000B after showing the police reports two different

times.

You should be covered.

I contacted Acer and they confirmed my net book is insured through Bangkok Insurance. I have sent off the various documents (including the police report). Let's see if they pay out.

My Acer Netbook and wallet were stolen from Au Bon Pain in All Seasons Place last Thursday. This appeared to be the work of a gang because while I was in Lumpini police station, a woman came in to report her laptop had been stolen from Starbucks Central Chidlom.

My wallet (minus cash but credit/ATM cards in tact) was subsequently found on Petchburi Road so I uspect the thieves were going to sell the laptops at Panthip. If anyone spots a 5-month 2nd hand Acer Aspire One netbook for sale in Panthip, can they PM me.