husky

One other thing, my emails are being ignored, first one sent on the 31st of March, it came back and said you must have 'NIV Inquiry' in the subject so I resent it immediately (as instructed), there has been no response. Also sent another one first thing this morning, will update if I get any response back.

I went through exactly the same situation. EXACTLY. After I called a few folks at the embassy, twice I got someone who simply did not know and gave stock answers like "we are very busy this time of year...." or, "keep trying, new slots will open up...", etc. I tried telling them that nothing was availble for the next 15 years and the unlikelihood and ridiculously high probability of that NOT being the reason but......Bottom line, there are many slots available! The system you are trying on has a problem, you have to keep talking to someone who won't give you the stock replies. The schedule will be repaired once your complaint makes it high enough and you get hold of sympathetic embassy personnel. THERE ARE SLOTS AVAILABLE. PLENTY! Call the embassy. Once somebody gets the message enough, they will contact their internal IT personnel and the magically the site will be repaired.

I checked today the availability in Chiang Mai and that calendar is normal, ie there are a few appointments days available within the two month time frame as you would expect. We don't live near Chiang Mai so we can't go there I don't think, however, it does show that my browser and the way I am accessing the system is totally normal and the problem is with the calendar at the Bangkok embassy. I found the phone line not helpful but am encourage that you got someone there who would help I haven't had any success in that regard.

Call the Live Call Center Service: 001-800-13-202-2457, follow the promps, enter your pin and you'll eventually get a live person who will then give you an appointment time

Write to your US congressman/woman or senator. USCIS has a special congressional liaison unit that expedites things miraculously if they receive even a phone call from a US rep.We have done this many times and it works always.

I will try this.

Have been checking continuously and have not yet seen an available appointment at any time.

Right now it's extremely tough to get an appointment, I've been trying. When there to register my son's birth a few days ago the officer doing out interview said the high demand is the result of a work exchange program the US has pushed at Thai universities and they're swamped taking around 150 appointments per day.

Husky it just occurred to me that when we were trying to access the I-130 application online (which is why we ended up having to download and print a generic one) the site would not work with Google Chrome browser which another guy in line at the Embassy suggested was the problem

It allowed us to buy an on-line PIN to fill out the application, upload a picture (to required specifications), enter many pages of personal information and then in fact complete the DS-160 form on-line. The very last part of the process is scheduling the interview. This is a completely separate web site. Prior to starting to enter data you must have a number for a completed DS-160. After that you must again enter several pages of information prior to getting the appointment. Once you fill in all of data the very last step is to 'pick and appointment' from a calendar. Everything up to this point works fine, it is only when you get to the calendar that all dates show as 'no appointments available' or 'non-working days'.

After trying this several times called the call center but found I could not use my on-line PIN code, so I bought another code for $20. The operator said 'OH yes, everything is working fine, the only problem is there are no appointments'. I asked if she could make me an appointment. 'No, we use the same calendar screen where you are seeing there are no appointments available'.

It really sounds just like a skit off Saturday Night Live, but it is no longer April 1st and I don't think it is my browser although I have tried several just in case.

A possible solution is to call and get more info at one of these numbers that I see on the USA web site.

Visa Information and Appointment Website:

http://thailand.

us-visaservices.com

Live Call Center Service: 001-800-13-202-2457

To talk with someone at the live call center you need a PIN which cost $20. You can't use the same PIN which you purchased to do the on-line application. When you get through to someone they know nothing, only to tell you to keep trying the on-line system for an appointment.

We are having the same problem getting an appointment. Hopefully there will be someone with a solution out there.

I am now having this problem trying to schedule a Non Immigrant visa for my wife for a short trip to the US. The calendar only goes out two months and there are never any appointments available. Purchased a PIN on-line and then another one to call the call center. The only advice there is to keep trying. Here is the site for the appointments: NIV appt site. Is anyone successfully getting appointments now?

(Also sent in an email, no response). This seems really hokey... Advice appreciated!

Me and my Thai wife were married many years ago in Singapore and have registered at the Ampur office as living together as husband/wife หนังสือรับรองถานะครอบครัว and have lived in Thailand for many years. We were planning on going for a 2 week trip to the US (I am American) and I was just wondering as a part of the Visa application process would the US Embassy require the marriage to be registered at the embassy? I found this link here US embassy marriage procedure which describes the process, will the Visa application get hung up if this hasn't been done or is it unrelated?

In all political arenas the leaders of various parties often fall foul of either their own mis-guided actions (or criminality!) or are discredited by the opposition. What happens then is, they step down amid much publicity, disappear into the background whilst others repeatedly re-affirm the party line and the party re-groups and carries on.

It is like Parking the Car on a Motorcycle Taxi Rank - There are no signs telling us not to, we just use our common sense really and not park there to avoid this type of trouble

Of course this does not justify violence and the driver should be dealt with legally.

Back to my original question, I am still a bit confused on what 'registration' means. Does registration mean registering the marriage in Thailand or registering it at the US Embassy somehow?

If the US citizen lives here is it then easier for the wife to get a tourist visa?

Thanks.....

This is very good information. I thought if the marriage was registered, there was then a problem with getting a tourist visa as they would then try to make some other type of visa. The birth certificate is Thai/American and the child has a US passport......

Let me just make sure I understand this. If the marriage is 'registered' in Thailand then the Thai wife can get a tourist visa, correct?

Here is the situation. My Thai wife (unregistered) would like to make a trip to the USA to visit. We have a child together who shares my (farang) last name who is a US/Thai citizen.

What would be the easiest way for her to make a 2 week trip to the USA? Would she be able to get a tourist visa, or would they make it more difficult since we share a child, ie. would they try to get her to get a finance visa?

What is the best way to proceed?

Sounds like he is belittling the cash handouts the government has been making, claiming that under him you won't need to be lining up with your beggars bowl. I guess it could be called a slip up as it has been misinterpreted. Even with the limited context given, it does not seem to be about paying protesters.

From listing to the tape of Taksin, he says 'you don't need to get in line to get 500 baht' could be interpreted multiple ways, as pointed out above. But then obviously someone says something to him and he tries to cover it up even though it could be interpreted multiple ways (maybe just keeping his mouth shut would have been better).

he hesitates and then says, brothers...... brothers who ever received 500 baht this was sent from the democracy so you can eat..... in the era of Thai Rak Thai. In the era when I was the prime minister.

Seems like he is really bubbled it in this clip......

Does anyone have an idea of how to 'greenly' dispose of a cathode tube computer monitor (older large style)? Will the city pick it up if left near the trash and dispose of it properly?

What's the definition of "where they live"?

How would this apply to someone just traveling around Thailand?

That's also the thing that strikes me. The world is becoming more mobile, people move around and travel all of the time. Seems very inflexible.

I am about to get all the documents ready to go to Pattaya immigration for yearly extension of stay for Thai wife non O visa.

I have the document from immigration 'Documents Required in case of Thai wife' and have been doing this yearly for a while - mostly want to make sure I don't get hit with any unexpected rule changes.

Here is what I am not clear on from ready the document. It doesn't say anything about 400k or 800k in a bank account, but has income requirements of 40,000 per month (must show position + salary) or a pension from overseas (40k per month). There are only two categories: one for working under work permit and the other for pension.

Prior to this an adequate balance in bank + verification letter from bank was sufficient. Has that changed?

I disagree, Husky. Changing visa requirements on long-term tourists has such a tiny impact on the Thai economy that it wouldn't even register on even the most sensitive economic indicator. As I've said elsewhere in this thread, this is just Thailand exerting a little control over their immigration policies in order to generate the appearance that Thailand isn't quite the "wild west country" that people believe it is... partially because of (what used to be) their laissez-faire visa requirements.

Well like I said: I was spending 100% of the millions of baht I earned every year (including all the tax money I got back from the IRS) in Thailand. Now I'm not. If that is what makes the Thai government happy, more power to them.

Checked out a few of them. I like the Pratunam center guy, cheapest and most flexible. I've dealt with MBE before and they have a lot of hidden fees.

There is a one-man-band guy in Pratunam Centre. 5 minutes walk from Chitlom station. If you are interested, I can post his details next time I am over there..

I think I can find this. Is the Pratunam Center across from the Pratunam market and on the same side of the street as Pantip Plaza? I will check this out and compare it to the MBE clones as Saladaeeng

Why not open box at Thai Post office. I did and only required passport and current address in Bangkok. Cost is less than 200 baht a year.

If you want Mail Box Etc. I think one is located at On Nut BTS just inside the door of Lotus on the same level as BTS platform. I've seen others but do not remember where.

I would like to open a postal box at a postal service company -- like mail boxes etc. in Bangkok. Does anyone have any recommendations for one that is fairly close to the BTS and has reasonable yearly rental fees?

Thanks!

Had mine out at the same hospital including CT Scan but it's been a couple of years. It was gangreaus (infected) so I had to stay an extra night and it raised the cost some. The total was 70,000 and insurance paid it all (except for a massage gal that came in to give me a health massage).

As a side note, since the new construction at Bangkok Pattaya hospital I've noticed that the costs have nearly doubled. May be related to your experience.

I've been using the MCI operator number of 001-999-1-2001 to make collect calls overseas on a regular basis for years. The service has worked perfectly up until earlier this year. Now the 001-999-1-2001 doesn't seem reach an operator, gets a quick beep beep beep as if the network is unavailable, but consistantly doesn't work.

What other ways are there of making collect calls here from a mobile?

thanks.....