Kellynch

As the OP I'm very grateful for all your help - I'm now 'Wised-up'

At immigration I usually show my Thai drivers licence as proof of where I live. This has always been fine.

How does one get a yellow book?

You need to go to your local Amphur office, where Thais get their Blue House Registration Books, as you probably guessed. Take your passport with copies of relevant things like personal details and visa. You'll need to get a letter from Immigration to prove you're here on a long term basis(which they count as a year); you won't get one on a Tourist Visa. Also, proof of residence at the relevant address eg rental agreement.

Because the law specifically states that you have to report every 90 days.

(Only since a few years can you be on a yellow household book).

Thanks for that, much appreciated.

I know that those with Permanent Residence don't have to submit 90 Day Reports and I'm guessing that this is in the law as well.

I don't want to debate the whys and wherefores of Thai law; I'm guessing it can open a can of worms, but presumably, given the right circumstances, the law could be changed.

This is a genuine, non-gripe enquiry; so please don't flame me or give sarcastic 'Just do it and stop complaining' answers. I'm just trying to understand the hows and whys of what we do as foreigners. I'm more than happy to be wised-up constructively.

I'm of the belief that we send 90 Day Reports so that the authorities know where all foreigners are, presumably if there are emergencies and probably for stats. Given that they can keep tabs on Thai citizens from the blue books; why do they still need a 90 Day Report if you have a Yellow House Book?

I feel the same and I think the Bangkok Post agree with you as the article still isn't available.

I saw it too this morning. I use the legit app and sent a message to AVG along with a link. They said that it was malicious and pushed into the system up the chain to arrange for it to be removed from Google Play. I also made a comment on the Bangkokpost page and the page has been unavailable since. The main thing for me was that they didn't show the app icons to compare, so that people could tell if they had the dodgy ones or not.

I got to Immigration at about 11am and they told me to come back after 1:30pm as it was so close to lunch. They told me it doesn't take very long, so I think if you go early enough they will do it quite quickly. We told them we weren't in a hurry and asked them if 3pm or later was alright and they were happy with that. We went back around 4pm and it was all good.

Just an update. Much appreciation for all your help and advice.

I got a message back from the British Consulate in Chiang Mai to say that I didn't need a validity letter, as my old passport had run out of pages. However, they do issue a letter if passports are lost or stolen.

I went to CM Immigration today and all went very well. There was no mention of any validity letter. As a precaution I gave them a copy of every single page in the old passport along with Arrival card and 90 Day Report - It might have been overkill, but beats waiting in the photocopy queue outside. They accepted it and didn't say anything and I didn't get handed anything back. As someone kindly mentioned, I had to fill out a form.

I went back in the afternoon and they put stamps in for the present and previous visas (Tourist and Non Imm 'O') that I had prior to getting my Marriage Visa, showing my last entry into Thailand. Also a reference to the old passport.

Despite everything the staff have to put up with, they were very good to me and I think that they probably have higher stress levels than we do. A pleasant and rewarding trip to Immigration - All's right with the world.

I've lived in Lampang City for over 5 years and can't remember any experiences like you mention. Apart from 'My Signifcant Other' being a local girl, I find it a very pleasant place to live; the locals like to practise their English. As a Farang I do get a few stares from embarrassed kids, but it's usually because they don't meet that many of us. I love it for being off the beaten track and we don't have a Skid Row that caters for Farangs or Tourists. We do have a street of bars on the Southern side of the river and I'm more than happy to drink and mix with the locals. I've spent quite some time in Chiang Rai and Hua Hin, and I can't give specific examples, I just didn't feel that welcome - Sam's Cat Bar on Jetyod Road in Chiang Rai being the exception.

You definitely have a point. People post their thoughts and experiences obviously looking for feedback. After all, most of us don't learn all the lessons of life from personal experience; we hear about others and take note. I've seen some of the presumably 'Old Timers' really slag-off and belittle people and I can only think for their own amusement. These type of people give the impression that they never got caught out before or have never lost their rag in any situation. Even if people seem to have been caught out by a native girl scam or lost their rag for example; surely they can get constructive feedback or criticism in a helpful way eg it was probably a better idea not to lose it and perhaps calm down a bit, it's the way of things here.

Love the idea; my Thai is basic at the moment but I'll contribute when I can.

I just got my new passport a couple of weeks ago. The 4 to 6 weeks is their general guideline. I got mine in 3.5 weeks. They do say that from May onwards it can take longer than usual because of the rush for those looking to go on Summer holidays; so 6 weeks is usually the longest when it's busy.

I just got my new UK passport within the last couple of weeks.

You read it correct, you send a copy of your passport and not the passport itself. The Passport office realise that the Thai authorities require us to have it with us.

Everything I wrote was in English and no problems.

With photos, you'll see the links others have kindly pasted. Yes, they do stipulate cream or grey.

In terms of sending the documents; I sent them by EMS(the usual registered delivery at the Thai Post Office) I got charged about 400 Baht and it sounded about right as someone else on another post quoted 500 Baht. I checked my Credit Card account online a couple of days later and the payment had been taken. Your new passport will be sent by DHL. Mine ended up at Nim See Seng, the main local delivery company and I had to go and show ID and sign for it.

I was told it would take about 4 to 6 weeks but it came in 3.5 weeks. I've looked at the IPS site (I think they call it the Identity and Passport Service nowadays). They do say that from about late May onwards it gets really busy, with people renewing for the Summer holidays.

I hope this helps.

For the record - it's my extension that needs to be transferred/moved or whatever to my new passport, which itself had run out of pages. Old passport due to expire Jul 14 and my visa extension ends in Nov 13.

Many thanks. Did you have to get a letter from the British Consulate?

I've just got my new UK passport and wondering what the paperwork or procedure is? I've been a good boy and searched in this section as well as the CM Immigration website. Both only have references to a lost passport, including the 54 FAQs on the CMI website. Duty rumour tells me that I need to get a validity letter from the British Consulate.

I'd appreciate hearing from anyone that's been in the same situation fairly recently.

I just got my new passport yesterday. The UK government are slowly changing it so that it will all be centralised in the UK, but we have to send to Hong Kong at the moment. It's right that you send a photocopy of your existing passport and not the passport itself. I got my new passport in about 3.5 weeks, which was pleasantly surprising.