danstarr

The METV is only available to Laos nationals in Vientiane, right? So, can you only apply for it in your home country?

Although there is work you can do in Thailand which doesn't require one, getting a degree would be a wise step: either knuckling down to get one at home or maybe doing one out here or via distance learning. Might be an idea to do some psychometric tests first to discover the types of career to which you are most naturally attributed, then you'd be better informed as to which course of study to take.

Does anyone know if it is straightforward to change the date of my Sombat Tours bus ticket from Bangkok to Chiang Mai? Would I need to go to Morchit or can they do it over the phone?

In my haste to get out of there, I didn't take a copy but basically they want dates of when study started and ended, which was a headache for me because I'm still at uni and I just want to change my visa-type.

This is basically what they wanted:

Needs to be on headed paper from your school, stamped and signed.

The biggest issue they had with my letter was this: they wouldn't accept it because it said something like "... would like to terminate his Ed Visa from today's date" (the date was at the top of the page as normal) but they wanted the date as part of a sentence in the main body of the letter.

Same thing happened to me a couple of weeks back. Needed to apply for a non-O in Vientiane but got to passport control at Nong Khai who sent me back to their immigration office to cancel my Ed Visa ( I am a degree student but want to do an internship).

Got there just before 8am but didn't get out of there until they closed just after 4pm. Wasted a whole day while they kept rejecting letters from my college requesting the cancellation of my ED Visa. They did this four times before they were satisfied with the wording of my cancellation letter and even threw the penultimate one back at me. It was, at times, intimidating but I was polite and spoke clearly in Thai and English throughout but it made no difference and I can't fathom why a simple request had to be so difficult.

Although I had to wait for my college to respond to each rejected cancellation letter, it lost me a complete day and they kept me hanging on needlessly. It was unnecessarily stressful and I was glad to eventually make it over the border at about 6pm.

Different factors influence where one might go for help: finances, location etc; when you're sick, you will do anything to get well again.

I'm certainly no expert but there are risks involved in drug treatment and many factors can contribute to the risk, not just the treatment method itself. Ibogaine studies in New Zealand by Dr. Geoff Noller predict that mortalities from Ibogaine could merely be proportionate to that of methadone. In some countries, it's banned and in others it is 'non-approved but prescribable' (Otago Daily Times, Nov 2014).

So, as studies continue, I guess it is a case of making ones own choice as to whether this would be a viable option and if so, where one would undergo it.

This is a tragedy and as previously stated, you have to feel for the guy who merely wanted to get his life together.

Sincere condolences to his family and fiancée.

Another outstanding endorsement for medical tourism for Thailand.

This was not medical tourism. To quote Andrew Drummond:

"they have no premises, no medical qualifications, and employ no staff, medical or otherwise"

"Their only item of medical equipment is a heart rate monitor"

Exactly. I must admit watching them use the heart rate monitor looked impressive in the video but goodness knows what they'd do in an emergency; at least in a Thai clinic, they try to look the part, even if sometimes they don't really know what they're doing.

Nevertheless, the treatment itself so far claims to have a high success rate, in the short-term anyway.

However, if I were ever in the unfortunate position to need to undergo such a controversial treatment, supervision by some properly trained clinicians wouldn't go amiss.

If I'd never been to Thailand and you told me your story, A5, I'd have been mortified. Even living here, still, that's one effed up thing to do. You have to think then, that Buddhist funerals full of respectful people are, essentially, complete frauds.

"Mortified?!"

What about the bloke inside the truck? He's mortified.

Thanks for all the input.

I'm not expecting there to be any shortcuts but with regard to the school, as I'd probably have to do the legwork myself, I do want to be forearmed with all the information I might need if this is going to be possible.

Once again, much appreciated.

When the school approached me last year about the prospect of employing me part-time, they actually looked into getting me a WP but for reasons unclear, told me that they were unable to - it's a small, private school (homeschool?) so I don't know if this had anything to do with the MoE.

Should this plan actually get going, my initial visa application would be done via the farming foundation so I guess I'd have to secure my Non-O or Non-B & WP through them and then find out if it's feasible for the school to take me on as well. However, I think I'd need to get the list from immigration (as Mario suggests) myself and then tell them what they need to do, step-by-step.

I'd love to find a way forward for this. As usual, thanks for the very helpful advice.

OK. I remember from before that I had to do my extension of stay every 90 days (1900 baht) so if I would have to follow the rules for being a teacher, what would I need to do? (I'm beginning to think that this idea is a non-starter!)

Ok thank you very much. Just want to try to get it right.

Responses much appreciated.

If you can get the 2nd employer added to the work permit your current visa/extension would not matter.

The problem will be the work permit. Adding a paid job to an unpaid volunteer work permit will be the problem.

So essentially, in order for the second job to be added to the WP, the first job / role would need to be a paid position, right?

The first employer would agree to the school being added to the WP so I don't think that there would be a problem there.

Technically-speaking though, I thought that in order to teach, a Non-B visa would be required. (I'm not married and have no kids).

Can anyone clarify this?

I have previously worked as a volunteer at a sustainable farming project for which I had a Non-O and a WP. There may be an opportunity to serve at the project again only this time with more focus on teaching English to local staff so that they can then provide training to others.

Furthermore, there is a non-formal private school in the area that would be interested in taking me on part-time to teach English. I have CELTA and UK teaching experience and am currently studying for a degree but am not currently able to work.

Here are my questions:

1. For both roles, can this be done on a Non-O or do I need to request a Non-B visa?

2. Can I add a non-formal school to an existing WP supplied whilst on a Non-O?

Any advice gratefully received.

Well-done to the op for being up-front about this - far too many don't reach out when crisis strikes,

Sounds like he recognizes that professional help is required but it should be added that there are people in the community up here who can lend an ear and give support and who may be helpful as part of an all-round care package.

IMO we all have a responsibility to look out for one other, especially whilst we are so far away from the familiar support networks of home.

If you have the time, do it. You might end up wanting / needing similar certification in future and as this is a Cambridge certificate, I'd go for it (if the CELTA hasn't killed you already!).

I did my CELTA in the UK and personally-speaking, found it very challenging but nonetheless very worthwhile and rewarding. It is intense and I found that for the four weeks I was on the course, most of my spare time was taken up doing the assignments and lesson plans. Some drop out because it is a demanding course. Listen to what your instructor requires of you, implement the feedback from your observed teaching practice and you will be fine.

Is it financially worth buying a well-maintained 'grey' SR and going through the rigmarole of the emission tests etc; to make it legal rather than shelling out 200k plus for a new one?

In a nutshell

No, the days of 2nd hand imports seem to be long gone.

That's what I thought but getting hold of an SR with its import taxes paid and then going through the process to register it properly / emissions tested etc; to get a legal Green Book has got to be more financially viable than shelling out for a new one, surely?

Is it financially worth buying a well-maintained 'grey' SR and going through the rigmarole of the emission tests etc; to make it legal rather than shelling out 200k plus for a new one?

Thank you very much!

Dear all,

Does anyone know how I can pay a shortfall in my NI contributions whilst I'm here in Thailand? I've looked on the Direct.gov website but can't seem to find out how to actually pay.

I did a pensions forecast a couple of years ago and it's this period I need to make up because I know there's a time limit on it.

Does anybody have any recent experience of this or know of a way of contacting them directly?

My neighbour thinks his Yahoo Mail account may have been compromised. We've tried changing the password and going through the security questions but he doesn't remember the answer to the second question and is hence still locked out of his account.

We've tried Yahoo Customer Care on Facebook and have found Customer Care email addresses but there has been no response in nearly a week now.

What can he do? Does anyone have a phone number we can call, ideally Thailand or maybe the UK whereby we he get this sorted?

Dan

Really? That is great news.. thanks for the update!

Starting this year, SORNs don't need to be renewed each year. You can check the SORN status of your vehicle online at DVLC.