BritTim

Ah, yes, adapting that highly flexible word "of" to be a verb used as an alternative for the verb "to have". I am sure you already know this, but could have is often abbreviated to could've in spoken speech, particularly by those using certain dialects. Often, the pronunciation is almost identical to "could of".

The reason most often is just that the person is suffering from a low grade depression, has no easy way of staying legal, and just procrastinates into a situation that gradually worsens. It can be difficult for those who have not experienced it to comprehend the behaviour of those suffering mild mental illness, but it is not that rare.

I could believe it under only one scenario. If there was a stop on them leaving the country, such as being wanted for a criminal offence, It is conceivable that you might be able to buy your way onto the plane. The only problem with that theory is that I think the bribe would need to be significantly higher.

My condolences on your loss. You can get an extension based on being the father of a Thai child. Assuming you were officially married to the mother at the time of your child's birth, there should be no real problem with this.

The location of that office was relatively convenient. That said, it was not a good place to have to go if suffering from claustrophobia. There was no way to expand at that site, and more space was desperately needed. Really, though, I do wish they could have found somewhere nearer Bangkok than Nakhorn Nowhere for the new office.

I do not recommend you place any reliance on my gut opinion. For what it is worth, I believe the Thai manufactured AstraZeneca will be acceptable unless (and I would not discount the possibility) there is bad publicity around the Thailand manufacturing plant, suggesting inadequate QA.

Generally, a two dose course of AstraZeneca uses the rather long gap of 12 weeks between doses. It is known that a shorter gap, down to about four weeks is almost as good. AstraZeneca as a third dose, especially a relatively short time after the second dose, is less tested. However, there would be a higher risk of side effects than with the regular two-dose regime. Most likely, this will be nothing worse than flu-like symptoms for a few days, but rarely worse side effects occur (such as blood clotting) that can be very dangerous unless you receive prompt expert medical treatment.

At the current time, if you are willing to submit to the strict 15-night mandatory quarantine (ASQ) vaccination is not required. In my view, though, it is only a matter of time before Covid vaccination will become one of the requirements for entry into Thailand (as yellow fever vaccination already is for entry from infected areas). Some less restricted ways of returning to Thailand (into so called "sandboxes") already require full vaccination with an approved Covid vaccine.

As many have posted already, the only safe way is at airport immigration on the day you are flying out of Thailand.

I think it likely to be true in practice, though there have periodically been statements to the effect that you need to have been in a country for 14 days in order for a COE to be valid at the time of your departure. This is supposed to deal with a potential loophole that allows people to travel from a country with a very high rate of Covid to an intermediate safer country, and then leave immediately for Thailand. I have not heard of this being enforced.

I will be very surprised if immigration will stamp her in on any passport other that that on her COE. Anyway, let us know how it goes.

Depending on the seniority of the officials available, they may be able to grant the 60-day extension directly, or may need to take the extension request under consideration. What you experienced is the latter, and is not unusual.

Recognise that the COE can take anything up to two weeks to get, even with the right paperwork. You will only need Covid insurance until the January expiry of your current permission to stay. There will be no need for ongoing insurance. It is very likely that there will be changes for the better in the next month or two. It is dangerous to make assumptions about what they might consist of. If you are not fully vaccinated, the loosening of restrictions might not apply to you.

Based on your description, I do not think the issue was just that he was entering at a US citizen even though a dual national. It appears he was doing an in/out border run using his US passport, and doing so through one of the Bangkok airports. In recent years, immigration officials at the Bangkok airports have taken a dim view of those using border runs as a way of staying in Thailand "without the right visa". Entering using the US passport initially was not ideal, but should have been allowed. Once staying for long periods in Thailand, he should have used the one-year extension "as a returning Thai citizen" as I suggested earlier.

A Thai passport (expired or otherwise) or a Thai ID card (expired or otherwise) is sufficient.

In the past, that was the right option. Right now, it does not work. You cannot apply for a COE using a UK passport and fail to use that passport to enter Thailand. You cannot apply for a COE using an expired passport. Of course, it is true that a Thai should enter Thailand as a Thai in normal times. That said, I would be interested in more details of your Thai acquaintance (assuming the incident occurred after 2008 when the latest nationality act took effect). Any attempt to prevent entering on the US passport, or refusal of an extension of stay, would have been improper.

Entering on a UK passport is no issue. Once here on, say, a visa exempt entry, it is possible to apply for a one-year extension as a "returning Thai citizen". Be aware that some Thai officials take a dim view of dual citizenship (and may even claim, erroneously, that she is no longer Thai). Thus, do not volunteer this information except when necessary.

Feel free to name the bank. any businesses offering good service deserve that kind of recognition.

At most offices, if you are not staying in a hotel, you will need proof of the TM30. You can either bring the affidavit form with you, or fill it in when at immigration.

Expect the immigration officials at your local office to know absolutely nothing about the application for a Certificate of Entry (COE). Possibly, they will confidently answer your questions, but it is not part of their job to issue COEs, and they are completely unqualified to advise you about them. For goodness sake, do not make any decisions based on whatever they say. If it were me, I would not even ask them.

Your point of view is perfectly valid, but let me put forward one point which is almost always ignored ... Especially a 20-year Elite membership has one very valuable characteristic. It is almost certain that the Thai authorities will honour the visa aspects of the Thailand Elite program, whatever else happens. That means no nasty surprises going forward. When in Thailand on an extension of stay based on retirement, that is not true. The conditions for granting fresh one-year extensions can change at little notice. It is true that currently there is no health insurance requirement. How sure are you that this will remain true even two or three years from now? For those using the income method of financial proof, how confident are you that the authorities will not turn around and eliminate that option, or require you to pay tax on what you transfer in as proof? Will the amount of 800,000 baht in the bank be sufficient a few years from now? Could many times that be mandated? If unacceptable conditions are introduced, will you be willing to subject yourself to the agent system, and are you confident this will remain a safe way of circumventing the requirements? How big a problem would it be if you concluded that your only reasonable option was to leave Thailand? As I started with writing, your position is valid. I would argue that, while valid, it involves risk. A Thailand Elite membership is not stupid. It could be regarded as sensible, depending on your assessment of the situation and the priority you put on certainty.

The cost difference is inconsequential if looking at the total costs you will encounter in returning to Thailand. If not planning to return visa exempt, the Non O accompanying your Thai spouse seems ideal for reasons explained by @ubonjoe. The tourist visa has marginal advantages over visa exempt (when planning to stay longer than 75 days) but none over a Non O. The tourist visa will, ultimately, almost certainly not even save you any money.

Presumably, you mean that your permission to stay was expiring, and you could not, or did not want to, meet the requirements for a regular extension of stay. Thus, you were left with the options of leaving Thailand or requesting a Covid extension, which luckily you were able to get.

At the current time, anyone entering Thailand needs a COE (Certificate of entry). Whether this will still be the case in January and, if so, the conditions that would apply at the time to acquire the COE is a complete unknown. At this point. It is not even totally sure what the requirements will be two weeks from now.

Good luck! Technically, according to the law as written, the responsible official has the discretion to refuse any extension at any time for any reason, and does not need to justify the decision. In your case, the refusal will be abuse of discretion but, if the official's superior does not overrule, there is no standard way of appealing the decision. You might argue that the official is revoking your right to be in Thailand. That is appealable, and a good lawyer should know (1) how the process works; and (2) whether trying to use it in this way has any chance of success. I hope I never end up in a conflict with the wrong Thai as you have done.