PadPrikKhing

I just re-entered Thailand from a 2-day trip to Malaysia. It was uneventful; the immigration officer simply stamped me in on a visa-exempt entry. But now I have my landlady urging me to update my TM.30. The thing is, when I study a TM.30, I see that it is a form that is meant to be filled out and submitted by the Thai property owner, not by me as a foreigner. So why would I have to update it? It sounds like the landlord/owner's responsibility. I think I've gotten her to agree that it is she who has to submit it, but she (correctly) points out that one thing the form requires is a TM.6 (arrival card) number, and she says I need to give that to her. The problem with that is, no one ever presented me with a TM.6 anywhere... not on the plane I was on coming back from Malaysia today, or anywhere else. It has never been mentioned. I recall that in the distant past these were handed out on the plane as it approached Thailand to land, but I have not seen that happen at all on my current trip (which started in October last year). I finally gave her a photograph of the Receipt of Notification that I was given on my last trip to Immigration, and she says that this is what they need to update. But I don't think she understands the process any better than I do.

It certainly does for me (though I only vape and don't smoke)... my voice becomes low and husky and almost unrecognizable to me. And I speak more slowly because that coating of resin slows the reaction time of the vocal cords.

This is what I am really wanting, but when I approached two different agents in Chiang Mai now that the time is ripe, I was told by both that there is some kind of crackdown on this deal going on right now. One of them suggested if I just wait a month or so, the tension around this will have eased and I can probably get it again. So I am thinking of getting the 30-day ext, then about 26 days from now go out of the country for a couple days by plane, come back on a plane, then do 45 or maybe 45+30 again, and then during that period do the Non-O thing either the conventional way or the "unconventional way."

Got it, thanks for your help.

Yes, retirement. I don't yet have a Thai bank account, no. That was always described as being something that would be taken care of by whatever agent I got. To be perfectly candid, I had been planning to go with the agent workaround deal where I wouldn't have to actually put the money in the bank. But now that I'm here and asking agents about that, I'm suddenly hearing that there are difficulties in getting that deal, so I will probably have to do it the conventional way. I see you're not mentioning the two months or whatever of "seasoning" the funds had to do before, so I'm guessing that requirement is not there anymore and I merely have to transfer the money...?

Okay yes, that makes sense... because I don't recall having a TM30 on me at the time back then. This time I will have one in my hand. Thanks.

Noted, thanks. Everyone likes a helpful immigration office (as oppsoed to a hostile, unhelpful one! Which I've heard some can be)

Yes, hopefully all they will want is the TM30 which I will have. Would you mind addressing the following? It is really my main concern: I obviously do not not have that 21 days right now. Can I get this 30-day extension on my current stay and then immediately apply for the Non-O, at that point having 30 more days to afford me that 21 days? Or do I need to leave the country again for a short time and then come in and do the visa-exempt entry yet again? My passport is quite clean, it was totally empty and new when I got to Thailand October 4, so it's not like this is my 10th time leaving and coming back in or anything like that. What I would like to do is get this 30-day extension, then before that runs out, just fly to Cambodia for a couple of days and then come back in and do another 45+30, which will give me plenty of time to do the Non-O process. Can I do that?

DrJack54 said: This is tourist type extensions and most tourists would not have a lease. Yes, most wouldn't, but is it risky to admit that my longer-term plan is to get a Non-O and retirement extension, so I'm renting a house in order to save money? Does that set off alarms of some kind? (Not that I've said that to anyone in immigration, but it seems they will know the difference between a house and hotels for sure)

Good point What I recall was that I had to show them a printed-out copy of the rental agreement, but that there was also a requirement for something called "house registration" and/or "copy of owner's ID," but I was renting a condo at the time and something the condo management sent was sufficient to satisfy it, not sure if it was a TM-30 or something else.

DrJack54 or anyone: Does Chiang Mai not require a copy of the rental agreement? You didn't mention that. It was necessary in Jomtien the last time I did this. You also didn't reply regarding the "house registration" thingy... also something I experienced having demanded from me in Jomtien... but maybe I don't recall well and a TM-30 took care of that. It was a whirlwind and I don't remember exactly how that shook out. But now I'm in Chiang Mai and I know different provincial immigration offices can have different policies.

I d I did. I did a border run to Laos at Chiang Khong/Huay Xai on December 16. Okay, that resolves that one since I left Thailand for an hour and came back in on Dec 16, it was not yet 90 days (I arrived in Thailand on October 4). I will actually have a paper copy, so all the better. Thanks. The above all seems easy enough. There is a TM6 stub stapled into my passport It is going to be a retirement based Non-O, but I obviously don't have time this cycle to do that. Right now I'm just getting the 30-day extension so that I can have breathing room and time to get the Non-O. If I have to fly to Cambodia and spend a couple of days to do it all again and get 75 more days, I will. I obviously do not not have that 21 days right now. Can I get this 30-day extension on my current stay and then immediately apply for the Non-O, at that point having 30 more days to afford me that 21 days? Or do I need to leave the country again for a short time and then come in and do the visa-exempt entry yet again? My passport is quite clean, it was totally empty and new when I got to Thailand October 4, so it's not like this is my 10th time leaving and coming back in or anything like that. What I would like to do is get this 30-day extension, then before that runs out, just fly to Cambodia for a couple of days and then come back in and do another 45+30, which will give me plenty of time to do the Non-O process. Can I do that?

I'm concerned because I don't feel like I have a grip on this. My current (visa-exempt entry) stamp expires on January 29th. I'm in Chiang Mai. I have rented a house here. My end goal here is the 1-year retirement extension. I did this (30-day extension) process before in Jomtien (this is my second round of visa exempt/30-day extension; I did a border run before, but this time I hope to get the Non-O before that would be necessary but if I need to do another run to get 75 more days in which to get the Non-O, I will) and there was a document required called "house owner registration" and/or "house owner's ID"... I am not sure my landlady even knows what this is and so I'm worried about getting it from her in time. I plan to go to immigration on Monday. A printed TM-30 will be supplied to me Monday before I enter the immigration office; am I mixed up and that somehow takes care of the "house registration" thing as well? Do I also need a copy of the rental agreement? I seem to recall that from Jomtien also. Possibly complicating matters (?) is that I failed to recognize January 4 as my 90-day mark being in the country and I did not file a TM-90. Is this going to complicate my request for an extension? Should I hurry and do it right now online? Is there a penalty for being late with it? Thank you

I want to use a 500W one to run a Sony stereo receiver that I shipped over here (I know, I know...) that draws 220W max power. I don't want to use a 300W transformer with it, as that's not enough margin for my taste. Also, 500W models are only a couple of hundred baht more than 300W models. So that one would only be in use when I watch TV or a movie and run sound through it. The smaller one I am going to use to just run a small 40W dry herb vaporizer, and it, again, will always be "supervised" when on.

Right, I keep my eye on that too.

Sounds interesting, but I don't think I want to crack open my Sony receiver.

I must be missing something... all I see there is builder/industrial type stuff and technical things. I'm just looking to run my Sony stereo receiver. I think I need something very much like the one in the photo I posted...?

Won't happen, as I live alone and no one will be plugging things in except me. I will also be securing things so that even I can't make that error.

I've been searching for hours on Lazada and Shopee, and it's just frustrating. Many of the ones there are overpriced and/or will take too long to deliver because they're coming from China or whatever. Are there stores in town that sell these of decent quality? I need one that handles 500W of the more heavy duty type that has a metal box construction, and a smaller one that handles only 100W... that one could be one of the little plastic ones, as the use case will be occasional, for a mere 40W device, and I will never leave it running unattended (actually I won't leave any of them, of any wattage, unattended). I also don't want to hoof it all over town looking at places that might or might not carry these (hence my appeal here for personal experience/recommendations). I'm living in in San Sai now, without a car or motorbike, so when I need to make forays into town to get things, I need specific info or I burn a lot of money running around. Thanks in advance.

I just read that, and yes, that would be very inconvenient if they had an issue with it being my last day on my stamp, because I'm hiring a private car at 6000 baht. I contacted the visa run company about this potential issue and they agreed it would be better to go one day before the last day of the stamp, so I'm going tomorrow morning instead. Never a dull moment...

Starting to lose a bit of sleep over this and would very much appreciate a clarification/reassurance. I'm doing a border run to Huay Xai in Laos out of Chiang Mai on December 17. This is also the last day of validity for my current stamp, so I don't want any stumbles that could ruin things. I recently saw a post on Reddit where a member was talking about the TM-30 in the context of his border run. This caused me to worry because in my month and a half in the country so far, I have not seen, been presented with, carried, or otherwise encountered a TM-30. Now I'm a bit worried that the immigration person at the Thai border when I re-enter is going to ask me for one. That won't happen, will it? It doesn't make sense to me that it would, if the TM-30 is about reporting where a foreigner is staying in the country; this will technically be a new entry, so I wouldn't yet have anything to report. I read that they may want to see a hotel reservation in Thailand, and I guess that would be easy enough to get ahead of time. I also read that they might ask to see proof of an onward flight... I already threw $70 down the toilet on a ticket to PP upon coming here due to concern about that, as no one ever asked to see it. Is it something I will need to do again? Thanks for any help.

Indeed, weed does not go so well with the sappy western ballads they're so fond of playing (at least they were in Jomtien - I'm in Chiang Mai now). If I hear "Right Here Waiting" by Richard Marx or "Have I Told You Lately That I Love You" by Rod Stewart one more time, I'm going to have a conniption.

Dart12, thanks. The replacement card came, and happily it works. Meanwhile a family member came through with a sizable loan via Western Union, so that stopped any acute emergency. I do plan to get a Thai bank account at the same time I do my Non-O deal with an agent, which is coming up real soon. I would like to use Kasikorn as I've read that they have the best implementation of anti-fraud technology and the best understanding and use of IT technology of all the Thai banks by far. I don't use an Apple phone or personal computer, so I couldn't do your Apple tips, but thanks for the idea.

I failed to clarify when I posted before that it's a border run to Laos, not Cambodia. Huay Xai, northeast of Chiang Rai.

Thanks for the ideas, everyone. I've decided I'm going to go with the border run transport company I mentioned, either with a group or hiring a private car. I made a reservation for a group run, but might change to a private car run at 3X the price (about 6k) so that I can have some control over bathroom stops, etc.