Na Fan

We've tried them. The stuff they delivered is filthy:

Hello

We've been struggling to find a water delivery service (for corporate or private) that delivers still and sparkling water in glass bottles.

Can anyone recommend one, please?

Chonburi province (or I suppose Bangkok may also deliver here).

Fan

How do you go about finding a RELIABLE housekeeper?

We've been through over a dozen. They either don't know how to clean (or pretend not to, to just get paid doing nothing), don't show up at all even on the first day, or randomly don't show up because it happens to rain that day, or they suddenly decide working in the market is better, etc etc etc. Think of a random reason why  - we've heard it.

It's becoming utterly annoying and frustrating.

We offered 500THB / cleaning day, which usually comes down to about 3-4 hours or work, twice per week. There isn't that much, as the wife is doing stuff too, and so am I. But we need someone to close the gaps when the kids keep us busy. Wife thinks that's more than fair - and I tend to agree with her?

Any recommendations?

2 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

If married to a Thai having PR is not required.

Yeah, thanks!

24 minutes ago, Na Fan said:

How do you "bypass PR"?

There seems to be much better information on that part out there, than on visas.

Still, takes YEARS to do that.

1 hour ago, sometimewoodworker said:

If as you say, you are working then since you have been working for 10 years and in Thailand that long then get citizenship (you bypass PR and it’s much less costly) assuming your income is high enough,  then there will be no conditions on working and your contact with immigration stops permanently.

 

none of the visas are relevant unless you leave Thailand.

 

if you leave Thailand then your shot at citizenship is gone for 3 years

 

 

How do you "bypass PR"?

6 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

It rather speaks to the difficulty of understanding rules and regulations. Bureaucracy is seldom concerned with simple English and since English is a foreign language here it’s not surprising that rules aren’t so easy to understand.

 

You don’t say where you are. You don’t say your intentions in Thailand. 
 

So until those points are clear it’s difficult to give advice for your circumstances.

 

all that is clear is:

you have worked in Thailand for 10 years

you are married to a Thai national (assumed)

you have Thai national children (assumed)

 

All of the above is correct, yes!

I'm just looking to stay here with my family (in Chonburi) and without the constant hassle of spending what amounts to close to 2 weeks full-time per year to run around like crazy collecting documents, taking photos, etc etc, if I can avoid that. (Yes I am aware of PR and the cost turns me off).

18 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

That is for a single or multiple entry non-o visa that allows a 90 days stay in the country when using it for entry.

It is not a one year extension of stay that allows you to stay in the country without leaving.

Even though that's exactly what it says there?

<<

2. O Spouse Visa Conditions

- The O Spouse is valid for a single entry 90 days or multiple entries 1 year from the date of issuance.
- The extension of stay is at the discretion of the Immigration Officer. >>

5 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

You seem to be confused.
An extension for marriage’s financial requirements can be be supported by

1) a bank deposit,

2) income from overseas,

3) income from Thailand.

 

Each one requires proof. The simplest one is a bank deposit, followed by overseas income and, most paperwork, income from Thailand.

 

You can get a work permit so working legally with that extension..

 

Visas are rather different & in the vast majority of cases are not issued in Thailand. After entry you are able to get a work permit if the visa was for a Thai wife or Thai children.

To clarify there is no income condition attached to the extension. Income is one way of qualifying.

 

easiest is park 400k in a bank 2 months before renewal.

 

personally I have 400k in a reasonably OK interest bearing account all year.

Yes I am confused. And that's after being here for 10 years and doing yearly extensions. Says something about the processes here, I suppose.

What if we don't do marriage but just to support the dependents (kids)? I don't see any financial requirements here: https://sydney.thaiembassy.org/en/publicservice/non-immigrant-visa-type-o

4 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Did you actually read my post? Immigration is concerned with making sure that your reason for your visa is  legitimate or the income if generated in Thailand is legitimate.

 

have a working extension, and they are going to be checking, use income from Thailand for a marriage extension, and they are going to be checking.

 

don’t have a working extension, don’t use income generated in Thailand for an extension and immigration doesn’t care about your work permit.

 

Do note it is the immigration department not the labour department. There are quite a few people who will try to get away with fake jobs or fake income to evade immigration department rules, they are the ones whose actions make your life difficult.

 

Thanks for the response!

So what you're saying is essentially that everything will still be the same if you have a non-O with an income condition attached, and the same circus will still be in play.

So what's the easiest way then? Non-O for dependents (wife and I have 2 kids here) according to here sounds hassle-free:  https://sydney.thaiembassy.org/en/publicservice/non-immigrant-visa-type-o ? Is that less of a hassle and still allows you to get a work permit?

On 3/29/2022 at 8:11 PM, sometimewoodworker said:

Requirements for Work permits are the responsibility of Ministry of Labour or Department of Employment outside Bangkok. Immigration has no interest in them or responsibility for them in general other than you have a genuine one if checked, they have even less interest if your visa or extension is not for the purpose of work.

 

if you are on a marriage extension or visa and you want to work then to work legally you need a work permit, the only interest that immigration has is if you are using the income method from working in Thailand then you must have a work permit.

So how come, that in the last 10 years the ministry of labor has shown no interest whatsoever, but immigration persisted every year with photo shoots, visits, and piles and piles of paper validating my work situation over and over and over again? What you're saying doesn't match reality for me. It has always been the immigration office that validated the work situation.

That's my main question, if this stupid charade and theater is finally going away when you're on a non-O.

1 minute ago, ubonjoe said:

That is general term and it means the non Thai spouse which would be you. You Thai wife does not need to show any income.

When applying for the extension based upon marriage unless using your income from working to meet the 40k bhat income you do not not need to show anything related to the company or even your work permit.

Interesting. First hit on google apparently got it the wrong way round:

https://visaguide.world/asia/thailand-visa/non-immigrant/marriage/

I quote: "Proof of your Thai spouse’s financial status."

But appreciate the clarification!

Anything on the rest of it all? So who checks the work permit requirements then, if immigration doesn't ?

This is mostly about process. There's a few things that are unclear to me that I hope to get a better understanding of.

I've been here on a non-B for 10 years now, with the regular silliness that is the yearly extensions, photo shoots and more photo shoots and piles and more piles of paper that nobody cares about.

So far, the process has always been to renew the work permit, that happened a few weeks before the extension and was quick and painless, and then afterwards do the visa with all the copious amounts of work that entails.

Now, if we change to a non-O based on marriage, I can see a few things:

- You will only need 2 Thai staff instead of 4 to sponsor your work permit. BUT:

- Since the visa is NOT business related, who then checks that? So far, the labor department never has. It has always been immigration when doing the non-B extension, coming for the yearly visit.

- Are the 2 processes then completely detached from each other?

- I will naturally have to keep working since I am the only earner of the household, and thus will require a work permit to continue staying here.

- The non-O marriage visa requirements state that the SPOUSE must have 40k per month in income or 400k in the bank. My wife has neither, she is a stay-at-home mom and the savings she has access to, are in a shared account. That seems unreasonable to me. What's with that? Is it impossible to get a non-o marriage visa and be the sole earner? Or is this just another means to get some tea money to "bend the rules"?

- Anything else you can tell me about the switch? We're in Chonburi, in case that matters.

Any feedback is appreciated!

Fan

On 3/11/2022 at 7:23 AM, redwood1 said:

By the limited number of posts here...

 

It looks like to me almost no one here orders food with apps and the few who do must always get food not worth recommending...

 

Or maybe very few here have smartphones...Maybe most people on Thai visa phones look like this....

 

 

 

Yes I am surprised nobody gives a damn. Or maybe people always cook at home? We just don't have the time and energy for that.

28 minutes ago, dj230 said:

Can't say these are great places by any means, usually all delivery food is subpar as it isn't fresh like when you eat at a restaurant, I've just been eating meals at "the coffee club" and "eat am are" recently, fairly healthy. Bonchon seems to have the better fried chicken vs other chains. 

 

 

 

Right, eating food fresh out of the pan is obviously better than delivery - but that's beside the point of this post ????

My passport is due to expire in October and my visa end of March.

Now I was told that they will only give me a visa until October - not for a full year like normal if I renew with a passport that is about to expire later this year.

I have previously transferred a visa from one passport to another - why would this now suddenly be a problem?

Very confused here.

19 hours ago, THEN said:

Hi 

 

Recommend you to try Nang Ram beach just south of Sattahip Port.

They charge 20thb entry for farang. Water is ususally super clear and safe.

Also a lot of fish + corals to enjoy if you like to snorkel.

 

Monitor weather forecasts and pick your days based on wind speed and direction.

We've driven all around Sattahip and there was Navy personnel everywhere and they said that everything was locked down. The tiny open beach we did find had very dirty water (ugly thick foam all around). I'll look for Nang Ram beach, thank you!

18 hours ago, Kinnock said:

Just spent a few days on Chao Rao beach, Chantaburi - totally flat sea, very clean, powdery sand, does not get deep unless you swim out a long way. 

 

May be a bit far for a quick family swim, but I thought it was very child friendly.

That's exactly the kind of thing I'm looking for. Don't mind at all if it's a bit out of the way.

The beaches around Pattaya, Jomtien, Na Jomtien, Bang Saray, if they happen to not be polluted that day, always have very rough sea. Way too rough for our 3 yr old to have a comfy little splash.

Is there any place around here that has decent beach waters?

It's been a while since I've been over to Ko Si Chang, and right now I think Koh Larn should also not be flooded by Chinese?

Any recommendations for clean and calm waters?

Fan

15 hours ago, Bruno123 said:

Of course the costs will be considerably below the prices in Bangkok.

I can hand on heart state that I don't think I could have picked a better person. First class in every respect.

 

If you were thinking about full mouth dentures anchored by titanium implants; that could get expensive; though still relatively inexpensive.

 

 

If I can afford it, yes.

What's your definition of "expensive; though relatively inexpensive" ?

1 hour ago, Bruno123 said:

https://dentalhospitalthailand.com/about-dental-hospital-bangkok/sleep-dentistry/

 

was the first thing that popped up on Google.

 

I had a similar issue. Wanted things tided up, but had horrible experiences with dentists when younger.

Did extensive research and ended up using a hospital in Sri Racha. I think the extra cost was 10k to 15k at the time. They asked me to count to ten and I don't remember anything until after I woke up.

Very happy with the service provider. Though the dental surgeon involved has since moved to private practice.

So you'd need to follow up with the hospital and/or surgeon if you were interested.

 

I still use the same dental surgeon. In fact I fly to Thailand especially for that purpose. No need for general after the first experience; as of course it's mostly to do with anxiety. Once I realised the pain was actually minimal or non-existent, I just decided to relax and allow them to get on with it. 

With the right dental surgeon, everything is relatively painless and comfortable.

 

In fact she did a filling almost without telling me. I had no idea that it was already done when she finished.

Contrast that with the horrible experience of what seemed like Black & Decker drills being used on your teeth as a child ????

The dentist in my country could not even get the seating position right. Useless.

 

So glad I walked out and made the decision to have the work done in Thailand. Saved a chunk of cash that way too.

 

Thank you - that's very helpful. Particularly the rough idea of the additional cost of anesthesia.

Do you recall the name of the hospital in Sri Racha?

2 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

I wasn't sure what you meant by central Thailand.

 

If Bangkok, you might try Mission, St Louis, the various Phyathais (1,2 or 3) or Bangkok Christian. All likely to cost less rhan Bunrungrad.

 

Ypur problem will be getting information without first going there and being seen by a dentist.

 

Do you really require full anesthesia or would IV sedation suffice?

Yeah Bangkok, Chonburi.

Thanks those are new to me.

I have no experience with IV sedation, but from what I've read your sensors are still active and your whitness what's happening. Not an option.

I'm trying to avoid wasting time to drive around for hours for an appointment only for them to tell me "we can't help you" or quoting a price that's 10x what I can afford to pay.

I think any professional hospital would be able to make a quote, given an xray and the simple instructions to remove all existing bridges and remaining teeth and make dentures under full anesthesia?

1 minute ago, yang123 said:

OP:

Bangkok Hospital (BH) in Chiang Mai provides treatment under general anaesthetic or IV sedation. I guess the same options might be available at whichever BH is nearest to you.

Good luck and please post here if you find the treatment you're after. 

Yes BH are in the list of those I contacted, thanks.

1 minute ago, phetphet said:

You might find it easier to find a dentist that will give a sedative and local instead of general anaesthetic. Have you thought of that as an alternative?

Obviously. Perhaps a million times in the nightmares I have from the trauma I went through as a child due to some sick f*** that called himself a dentist.

Not happening.