Huckfi

3 hours ago, bbko said:

I thought the same thing, but why would the US Embassy say "you can request civil registration documents (such as the birth and marriage certificate) in English at any local district office (Thai Amphur)"  (dated Sept 2021) if it didn't have some truth behind it?

 

All my wife's visa documents are already translated to English and stamped by the MFA, this post is to help others in the future.  If the Amphurs have the ability to translate official documents into English, the MFA's business will be cut drastically.

You don't need an MFA stamp for US immigration purposes. If this post is to help others, at least get the details correct. 

On 2/22/2022 at 1:44 PM, PhuketAmerican said:

Thank you everyone I will check into getting the MFA stamp at Bangkok, sounds very complicated I will have to send someone from Phuket I hope there is an agent I can pay because we are both in USA and I have to give it to the office in Chicago before May 4th. I can't believe there's no one reading this site has done it in the last year or so.

You do not need an MFA stamp or anything done in Thailand for this process. A certified translation can be done at any translation company in the US. "Certified" simply means that the person translating the document says they are competent in both languages and that they certify the translation as true. They will place a stamp on each translated document with their certification and signature as well as include a translation certificate. This is all relatively inexpensive and if there isn't any companies near you to do this, there are plenty online.

Edit: If you or her are fluent in both languages, you can even do the translation yourself and certify it!

Hi there,  just stumbled upon this thread! We went through the process and were approved in December, would be more than happy to help out or answer any questions. Our timeline was as follows:

I-130 Sent: 2/16/21

I-130 NOA1: 2/16/21

I-130 Approved: 6/2/21

NVC Received: 6/7/21

Submitted NVC Documents: 7/1/21

NVC Documentarily Qualified: 9/9/21

Interview Notification: 11/10/21

Interview Date: 12/1/21

Visa Received: 12/2/21

USCIS was processed at the Nebraska Service Center. The timeline far exceeded our expectations and we were one of the lucky ones I guess. No hiccups and we filed everything ourselves. Keeping you in our thoughts and hoping for a prompt finish!

Edit: Rereading your post, have you been documentarily qualified from NVC? If so, what was the date?

On 9/3/2020 at 9:52 AM, Bangkok Barry said:

It wasn't irrelevant at all. You later revealed the reason you went for the extension, so you had good reason for getting it. But don't say his comment was irrelevant, as most people do not need to go the extension route yet, and in view of the PMs remarks about continuing to keep foreigners out it is increasingly likely that the amnesty for long-term visa holders will continue and an extension will not be needed for a while.

I mean, it was a completely irrelevant reply regarding my post. Yeah, it won't matter for most others hoping for further amnesty with no other extension means, but I stated my reason for getting it in the bottom of my original post. Also, it was a tasteless comment and your defense is bizarre with the speculation of further amnesty being the basis...

On 9/2/2020 at 4:12 PM, Peter Denis said:

@Huckfi

Thanks for the report, and glad to see that MTT provided your 60-day extension of stay starting from 27 Sept (til 25 Nov).  And that they not used the 'day of application' (reason some applicants are waiting for the final days of the Amnesty to apply).

 

So your next step will be opening a Bank Account, as you need a personal thai bank-account (not a joint one with your wife) to provide evidence of your financials when applying for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of marriage.

You need to apply for that Visa with at least 15 days (some offices even require 23 days) left on your permission to stay, so in your case Wednesday 11 November (or 3 Nov) being the dead-line for application.  But obviously it is recommended to do the application a few days earlier in case your application is not complete so that you still have time to get hold of any missing documents IO might require. 

 

There are several options to meet the financial requirements for that 90-day Non Imm O Visa application for reason of marriage.

> The 'cheapest' being the Embassy issued income-letter stating that your have monthly foreign income of at least +40K.  However, when being a citizen of US, UK or Australia your Embassy does not issue those income letters anymore. 

But if you are from another nationality, you can use that income letter and normally it will be accepted without any further questions asked.  Sometimes the immigration officer handling your application might ask you to provide evidence of the SOURCE of that income (which is basically the same evidence you showed the Embassy staff on which basis they issued the income letter).

> The 'easiest' method (if you are not eligible for the Embassy issued income letter) is the 400K funds-in-bank method.  You would need to provide evidence that the funds have been seasoned for two months on your personal thai bank-account, at the moment of application.  No need to prove their foreign origins or the source of those funds.  So your bank pass-book  (updated on date of application) would already provide evidence of the above.

Note: You would need to keep the 400K on your thai bank-account also during the under consideration period, but you are free to use the funds as you please once you got the 1-year permission to stay stamp in your passport.  And you would only need to top up again to 400K two months before the day of application for your next 1-year extension of stay.

> The 'difficult' method being the 40K monthly income transfer method.  Only if you are not able to keep 400K on your personal thai bank-account for 2 months + the 3-4 weeks till you receive the 1-year permission to stay stamp, would I recommend that method.

PM me if your finances do not allow you to use the 400K method, and that you are considering that 40K monthly income transfer method.  There are many caveats and hoops connected with using that method, so don't want to go in detail when you are not considering it.

 

Hey there Peter! Sorry I wasn't able to reply earlier but wanted to give my huge thanks for this perfectly detailed and helpful post, thank you. I have since been able to open both a joint account as well as an account for me for the purpose of the 400k method and I'll be sure to update when we head in for the next step! ????

2 minutes ago, greggraham said:

Was your +30 extension the regular one or the embassy letter one? Just wondering it it makes a difference. 
 

glad it went well! 

It was a regular one. And thank you!

28 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Here in Thai and English by clicking number 24. https://www.immigration.go.th/?p=14695

Thank you!

My wife doesn't believe that there is such a thing as a 60 extension to stay based on marriage and I am failing to find any reputable sources in Thai, anyone able to help out? Also, should we head to Chaengwattana or the new Muang Thong Thani building? Thanks!

Just to clear things up-I went to https://th.usembassy.gov/u-s-citizen-services/covid-19-information/, followed the link to the forms.office.com survey, filled it out, and received a letter shortly after.

On 7/3/2020 at 3:21 PM, greggraham said:

My local immigration sadly said "No". Because I had the COVID extension (using the embassy letter), I cannot get the 60 days for visiting spouse. 

Which office did you go to? 

2 hours ago, jimn said:

Good luck. Just checking, I assume you are legally married and registered at the Amphur? Village marriage ceremonies do not count.

Yes, thanks for checking! Luckily the US Embassy opened for a week to do notaries a bit back and as I was checking everyday, we were able to get an appointment. A mild pain to get everything in line and registered, but done and out of the way! 

20 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

They will do the 60 day extension after a 30 day tourist visa entry extension.

Perfect, thank you! I'll be getting money in the bank and head down this route, will be sure to report back through the process.

20 minutes ago, anchadian said:

If you are married to a Thai you'll be able to get a non-immigrant O visa and still study the Thai language.  You wont need an ED visa.

 

This is exactly what I did when I studied Thai although I was on a retirement extension.

 

Others will explain more.

 

 

Thank you. Was mostly looking at the education visa as it would allow me to stay for an extended duration until the borders reopen or more options become available. But that information is useful as well.

21 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

If the amnesty is not extended you could apply for a 60 day extension to visit your wife on or before July 31st.

If you could put 400k baht into a Thai bank or have proof of 40k baht income you could possibley apply for a 90 day non immigrant visa entry (category O) visa while on the 60 day extension. And then during the last 30 days of the 90 entry apply for a one year extension of stay based upon marriage to a Thai. The 400k baht would have to be in a Thai bank for 2 monts.

Another option would be to go out for a multiple entry non-o visa based upon marriage after the borders crossings open.

Thank you very much for the help Ubonjoe, that looks like a very straight forward route to go. Just to verify, I can still apply for the 60 extension to visit my wife even though I extended my tourist visa before getting wind of the amnesty?

Good Afternoon!

Long time lurker, first time poster. Firstly, I just want to say thank you to so many for the great information and discussion on this site. The number of times I've needed help with visa issues, travel, or news, this site has had the answers for me.

I'm an American citizen and have been in Thailand living with my Thai wife since October, and not looking forward or wanting to return to the US anytime soon. I know I may not have many options, if any, and I know there is much speculation about future, but hopefully some of you may have some ideas or advice.

Information rundown:

Entered Thailand on tourist visa: Nov 22, extended to Feb

Holiday in Laos, entered Thailand with tourist visa: Feb 26, extended to May 25

Married in May

Now on amnesty

I know that due to the amnesty things are hazy and I'm technically on overstay, but is it possible to get a further 60 day extension to stay with my wife now that we are married?

Another option we are weighing is getting an ed visa down in Samui. After receiving a tip, we contacted a school down there and after reviewing my passport they say it is possible without leaving the country. It will cost 14,900 for the online classes and 20,000 baht to be paid to immigration at time of applying for the visa, giving me a 9 month stay. This seems like an expensive and stressful option that we need to decide on asap as the process takes time, but it is an option.

And lastly, is there anything an agent would be able to help with in our case? This is where we have no knowledge of how things work and what it would cost.

My wife just got off the phone with Changwatta immigration and of course they were less than helpful, seemingly reciting replies. They told us they had no advice and to be patient as immigration officials had their first meeting today to decide the plan going forward, and that a second amnesty extension may be possible.

Thank you in advance for any help and I wish you all the best ????