Michael Hare

I am glad I am not living in Bangkok. No fingerprints were necessary in Ubon. Only needed 2 photographs, but I had another one taken by their camera to put into their computer files. I doubt if I will ever need another book, because it took nearly 20 years to fill up the blue book and in 20 years time I will be in mid 90s!

Yesterday at 9:30 am I applied for a new TM17 certificate of residence (white book) at Ubon Ratchathani Immigration. Submitted all my documents and photos. I was rung up by Immigration at 1 pm today to say that everything was completed and to come in and collect the new book. I was impressed. Very quick service. I was expecting at least 2-3 days. The new white book on the front cover states it is a Duplicate of Certificate of Residence.

Only one police precint in Ubon city. I am in the same police precint. I have a feeling that only the police precint in Ubon city handles PR for the whole Ubon province. My new address is not written in the red book. The police said this is not necessary. I got my new tabien baan within days of moving into my new house. Also the pink ID card.

Agreed. "do not know if one is still required to remove oneself from the old tabien baan and take the removal document to the new district office. I think I had to about twenty years ago when I moved, but I'm not sure. The procedure may have changed, too" Yes, one has to still do this. I sold my house in 2014 and moved into a new house on the same road a month later. The old tabien baan stayed with the new owner. It belongs to the house. There is no need to notify the local police station of your move and new address unless one moves out of the province. I was told this in person yesterday at my local police station. This morning I went to the Immigration office in Ubon Ratchathani to get a new TM 17 certificate of residence booklet. The blue one has finally filled up after 20 years. I left all my documents with them, paid 1,902 baht and they will ring me in 2-3 days time to come in and get the new white book.

From reading many posts here I started getting a bit worried about my change of address here in Ubon Ratchathani. I sold my house in Ubon city seven years ago and moved into a new house a few hundred metres up the same road. I notified the police at the station where I report every five years, but they never wrote the new address from my new house registration in the red book. I just popped along to ask if the new address should be written in the red book. No, they said. Only if one moves to a new province is the change-of-address written into the book.

My blue book (TM17) is nearly filled up. Only half a clean page left. I will pop along to Ubon Ratchathani Immigration sometime this year and see what they want me to do. Always takes a little bit of time as they never seem to know what to do. I think they only have a few people with PR in their area.

Exactly. Never get asked for it at the policestation and never at immigration. But I do show the blue house registration book when renewing my five year driver's licence. The guys there never seem to understand about PR.

If you fail to renew your PR once every five years in the red book, you will no longer have PR.

That may be because you and your kids had a Thai nationality first and the second nationality came later. My son got his Thai nationality when he was about 2 or 3 years old.

Thank you for this information. I have PR and so my ID number is 8. My son has dual nationality so his ID number is 5. My wife is 3 and her two daughters are 1. Most of my staff are 3, except for two, who are 5, because their parents did not notify the authorities in time.

When I have purchased vehicles I only needed my PR book. That was before I got my pink card. A passport was not needed. I have never got a residence certificate for anything.

If there is a Thai Watsadu near you then ask them. https://www.central.co.th/en/euroe-green-euroe-lawn-mower-elm-1500-size-1500-w-mkp0325318

Yes, I have PR. My serial number starts with 8, which shows I have PR, but the average official in Thailand wouldn't know that. Most expats who are on a long-term visa have an ID starting with 6. I don't know what the ID number starting with 7 indicates. Must be something to do with your type of visa.

My bank accounts were all opened years ago with my passport. I got my pink ID card in 2010 and the SCB changed my four bank accounts across to my ID card. So easy now not having to carry my passport around. I use the iD for registering into hotels and on domestic flights. However, this year for the first time, I encountered a problem with one airline who wanted identification in English as my air ticket was issued in English. I showed them my driver's licence and that was accepted.

For expats who have PR (like myself) it starts with 8. For others on visas it starts with 6.

Valid for life if over the age of 65.

Interesting about Purachai Piumsomboon. He got PR in NZ just before he became Interior Minister. Bought a house and raised his family in Christchurch. The children have done well. The daughter Tip Piumsomboon is in finance https://www.nzherald.co.nz/business/blackbird-ventures-principal-tip-piumsomboon-quits-to-pursue-bitcoin-opportunities/NRAGA33T7VHCMQUHOOYNBY7NV4/ The son Toddy, is well known in Bangkok circles. https://www.facebook.com/tod.piumsomboon/ NZ gave them a good educatiion. I expected more from Purachai when he was in government.

I got my PR in 2004. Straight forward process. Took 2 years and 8 months from start to finish. I was just a lecturer at the university in Ubon Ratchathani. Four trips down to Bangkok (Soi Suan Plu) and that was it. Did everything myself.

That is correct. Take your Blue House registration blue and your PR booklets to the local Amphur. The red-bown book is most important. Take your passport just in case, but usually that is not necessary. You should be able to get your pink ID card on the spot.

My passport is absolutely clean. I got my new ten year passport in January 2020, and haven't travelled since due to covid. Normally I would have a non-quota immigrant visa in it (I call it it a reentry permit). When renewing my driver's licence every 5 years, I don't use my passport.

When renewing my work permit, my passport can not be used as there is no visa permit in it. Because I own a company all the accounts have to be shown. Actually it is a real hazzle and I get our accountant to handle it. The accountant asks for my PR book (the old red book) , house registration and ID card. The amount of papers I have sign is incredible. Fortunately, I only need to get the work permit every two years.

In 1999, my wife and I purchased 800 sq m of bare land in Ubon Ratchathani city to build our new house. The land department at first refused to allow my wife to purchase, because she was married to a foreigner, even though she was a Thai national. She passed over the details of the new law recently passed by the Chuan government, which allowed Thai ladies married to foreigners to purchase up to 1 rai, but only for residential purchases. As for myself, despite being a permanent resident for over 20 years, I still can not buy even one sq m in the Kingdom.

Try contacting retired General Pichet. He has an organic fertiliser business not far from Na Yia. https://www.bangkokpost.com/life/social-and-lifestyle/292928/from-battlefield-to-field-of-dreams?fbclid=IwAR05jbuFBCggX3mw8SzCBnwfubttZe4P9WlKbIIzvOfFhLL1BDkRocuMkj4

My pink card has exactly the same writing in number 3. In February, when I flew on Air Asia from Bangkok to Koh Samui, the Air Asia check in people refused to accept it. The big boss read the back of the card and got a bit stroppy saying I was not allowed out of the province. I pointed out that I had PR but he refused to listen. My wife was with me and she didn't want to make a fuss so I just handed over my driver's licence. This was the first time in 12 years of using this ID card on domestic flights that I have had a problem.

I flew in May down to Krabi. Ubon to BKK on Thai Smile. No problem with the ID card. Bangkok to Krabi on Air Asia. They wouldn't accept the iD card. I had to show them my driver's licence. At the hotel the ID card was fine because it is in Thai with one's address clearly written on the front. On Friday I am flying up to Chiang Rai from Ubon. Ubon to Bangkok on Nok Air and Bangkok to Chiang Rai on Lion. I have never flown on Lion before. I have a feeling that they will not accept the ID card. Nok Air does.