Promula

^ It was a good idea for them to offer the auto 30 November extension to previous amnesty letter users. Now they'll get a comfortable spread of extension applications from non-letter users this month and letter users next month. 

2 minutes ago, tubby johnson said:

1200 views of people discovering that you chickened out of dealing with a tattooed skinhead, and that you turned up here instead to rant and posture like a tough guy. 

And how many views are you expecting of your sneery waste of time post?

3 minutes ago, JusticeGB said:

 I complained to the manager and he told me it was none of my business. 

the locals don't cope with complaints too well.....

33 minutes ago, audaciousnomad said:

I hope that is all we need. 3950/60-days works out to 1950 per month, about the cost of the typical 30-day extension application 

Actually the 3900 baht is a little naughty because they've halved their workload by changing from 30 day to 60 day extensions but still get the same fee income.

I don't think any foreigner will complain though, as they'll be quite happy about making half the number of IO trips.

20 minutes ago, audaciousnomad said:

I hope that is all we need. 3950/60-days works out to 1950 per month, about the cost of the typical 30-day extension application which usually can only be done once and then we had to exit. Since these are 'unusual' times, hopefully we can just continue to extend using this new visa without exiting. I know that would be asking a lot...but one can hope! ???? 

I think that's the intention. Everyone wins. I still think they might try to tighten the screws by adding a means test though so it's not abused by people working illegally to fund their stay. That's always an immigration priority.

8 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

 Oh, they also said it's best to apply for it very early as everyone currently here is going to move onto this visa. I'm going to go soon - unless they give me back my 30 days!

Probably better to go before late October, but go too soon i.e. in the first half of this month, and won't you waste your current stamp duration if the new 60 day stamp begins immediately?

4 minutes ago, JoseThailand said:

They were okay to uphold it until Nov 30, before they decided to apply the old "no more than 90 days" rule.

Those people are on a covid extension and aren't standard tourists like the OP is now considered to be. Using the form he has should give him the same status as them but until the end of December not November.

7 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

 

They said it would be better to apply for the new visa, rather than apply for another embassy letter. I think they told me that you get the full 2 months straight away, you don't have to wait 15 days.

Are you sure it's a new visa an not a 60 day extension of your current entry?

4 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

If you're on an embassy letter, then your not on amnesty right? The only one's who are on amnesty are the ones who didn't go to their IO and get a visa prior to the 26th

I think they're on whatever it is you'll be applying for soon. It's all rather confusing.

4 minutes ago, JoseThailand said:

But since the government granted a retrospective amnesty until Oct 31, they should honor all extensions made before Sep 26 and uphold them until Nov 30. Because people paid money and used extensions, which proved to be unnecessary.

Seems they don't agree with you.

4 minutes ago, JoseThailand said:

That doesn't make any sense. Amnesty is for all, not only for those who applied with embassy letters. Otherwise, he is not entitled even to the Oct 31 amnesty.

Why doesn't it make sense? The amnesty letters were to extend amnesty.

He arrived in Thailand in Feb or whether it was on a 60 day TV, he went onto amnesty in April or whether it was which meant he didn't need to leave the country or use his 30 day extension. Now he's used it he's no longer on amnesty as he's on a TV extension. 

6 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

That would make sense... if they were allowing regular tourists again. The only tourists allowed right now are the STV ones i think?

They're the only ones allowed in, but you're already here. Perhaps they made an error in extending your 60 day TV for 30 days or maybe they've just decided to re-allow such applications as another method of removing people on amnesty.

It will be very interesting to see how your 60 day covid extension application goes (presumably its 3900 baht fee is 2x the usual 1900 baht fee for 30 days plus a bit of inflation). Lots of people will be following in your footsteps later this year.

Possibly because you took yourself off of the amnesty? You're a regular tourist again, not someone who can't leave.

Thanks. Is it actually written anywhere by immigration that "Once you have obtained a three month non-imm visa it can only be extended for the reason it was initially granted, and then after that further extensions can be for different reasons"?

This may be a stupid question, but I'm trying to understand the rationale behind having many different types of non-imm visa and limiting the reason for only the first extension.

Why not just have a standard "non-imm" visa that can be applied for under a number of valid reasons, and later extended for any of those reasons?

Quote

ireland too cold in the winter,greece starting to get and bit colder and se asia too damned hot..

Take a look at Madeira. It's subtropical so never gets cold like Mediterranean places such as Greece or as hot as the tropics.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Madeira#Climate

Or Malaysia's Cameron Highlands and its tropical highlands climate.

4 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

It seems they may be applying different rules for those that applied for a 30 day extension of their original tourist visa entry.

Others that used a embassy letter have gotten the stamp to November 30th.

I presume that the former are now off the amnesty, while the latter are still on it? 

 voided the extension that they just gave me, and told me tourists can't stay here longer than 90 days.

That suggests so. 

Seems that he'll be able to stay until the end of December with this, for 3900 baht?

32 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

Unless he has O-A or O-X visa

If he/she has that, he/she won't need an STV.  The point is that other visas have either a savings or income means test. This one seems to be based only on savings.

24 minutes ago, stretch5163 said:

Not being funny but why even bother posting your orignal post no 1 really gives a flying tuck....or do you just like to whine and get yourself heard ? Serious waste of time and space.

Yep, you're not being funny, but 1200 views and 67 replies means you're being unintelligent. 

On 9/30/2020 at 5:45 PM, jacob29 said:

The goal would be a practical level of enforcement. They can't practically deport people. They absolutely can fine them, with minimal hassles.

Not if they're next to no money, such as a digi nomad with no savings and living on a few hundred baht per day earned online. 

^ Yep, that's what the pages are there for. 

2 hours ago, glegolo said:

Also as has been noted elsewhere it seems there is a bank-balance requirement for STV.

It will be interesting to see the reaction to this. How will a retiree living on a generous pension who takes a three month holiday to Thailand every winter but lacks a large bank balance pass this requirement?

18 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

I bet you wouldn't.

Thanks for your fascinating and insightful contribution to the topic.

2 hours ago, Lacessit said:

Most tourists and even some long-termers have no idea of the poverty in which rural Thais lived then. Even now, the average monthly wage is 2500 baht/month. There is still a considerable barter economy in my GF's village. Pensioners that are not government employed get 600 baht/month when they turn 60. 800 baht/month if they get to 80.

My GF has told me about going to school as a child. She would walk 4 km to the school, every day. Barefoot, the family could not afford shoes. Her father worked in the rice fields all his life, walked to work as the family could not afford a bicycle.

Her mother would give her 50 satang occasionally, to spend on herself. Her mother got the money by selling frogs at a local weekly market, the frogs came from the septic tank outfall at their house. Electricity was connected to the house 15 years ago.

Everything is relative. They didn't see themselves in poverty at the time any more than you do now. It was just normal life for them, and they probably felt more comfortable and fortunate than Thais that lived a generation before them. 

Perhaps 50 years from now people will be able to travel across the planet for free in an instant and never have to work, and will sneer at your level of poverty at having spent time having to work to pay for such things as slow expensive intercontinental flights. 

1 hour ago, johnray said:

Tourism has totally transformed Thailand from a swamp to a major business, education and tourism hub.

 

If they lose tourists they can kiss their ass goodbye.

Singapore developed those things decades before Thailand and before it had mass tourism. Thailand would have done the sand.