BeerAttractedPerson

At Samut Prakan immigration you can't get anything done without the TM30.

Yes you can open a bank account. Elite staff can assist with it as well they advertise. Yes, you can stay 5 years without leaving. But you must renew extension of stay once a year.

Howdy, personally I'm doing 1y extensions, but if you are registered to a hotel etc in Samut Prakan you can do a monthly tourist extension at that office. Best to go Tuesday to Thursday, almost no people in line.

[email protected] The official email as mentioned in a few replies above. They usually respond within half an hour 24/7

I've heard rumours that a 20y will cost 5mill after 15th Sept. Move quick while u can

I've been going to Samut Prakan immigration for about 4 years now, never had any issue there, whether extension of stay, tm30 or 90day report. Always in and out very fast and no fuss.

I always show up in person at Samut Prakan immigration. Not because I can't do online, but there's a food stall downstairs that has the best chicken noodle soup in the country. Show up at 1pm after the break, have delicious gwe diow, go up 1.30pm and there's nobody in the line.

Get the Elite Visa. Plenty of perks and you don't have to rely on a Thai wife

Samut Prakan immigration always asking for TM30. Be it extension of stay, 90 day report, new passport etc etc. They do allow possessor to make TM30 if u got owner ID, copy of house book and rental agreement.

Theoretically Thailand don't recognise dual citizenship. At some stage your kid might be asked to chose nationality, theoretically

Make sure you have a big wad of cash on you (50k) or so, and a ticket showing outbound within a month. If questioned, say u just like to have fun and Thailand is great for that. If you can't show a.big wad of cash ur chances diminish drastically

When I had to extend my PE from 5y to 20y in November 2021 at Chaeng Wattana I also needed to have my prints scanned

@vibration., I did exactly same. First thinking I had to start over and pay 1 mill. Wrote Elite when my 5y one was getting close to expiry. They told me same, upgrade to 20 years and pay the difference of 500k ( meaning 15 years for 500k) brilliant

True Jay, gotta weigh it up against the headaches of doing runs/extensions. I used to do that for years back in the days. Always wondering if this time would be when they denied me entry. No more of that <deleted>

I've said it before and I'll say it again, ( maybe I'm just an idiot), get the Elite Visa, 10 or 20 years. You will never be hassled again. You will be treated like royalty whenever ur at immigration or at an airport.....

The check they do is only any offences made in Thailand or if you're on a red noticed wanted list. They have no means to check your record in Croatia nor can they ask your embassy. Also, you only pay after being cleared anyways.

Unless you are Chinese you have nothing to worry about. They only do checks within the Thai computer system. Its done by Thai police and they only check for offences committed in Thailand.

I kinda like this temporary Samut Prakan immigration office. Downstairs they serve the best gwe diow soup ever. There's also a ton of copy/print shops there. Never much queue either

Most likely you need a copy of the house book too and ID copy of the apartment owner. ( At least at Samut Prakan immigration where I did a TM30 as possessor of the house I'm renting) Contract Owners ID card copy House book copy ( property deed)

Some years ago I was on the back of a motosai headed home to Ratchada. On the small dark sois connecting soi 19 behind T21 to asoke main road, 2 cops pulled us over. It was late at night. First they padded me down, looked in my wallet, pockets etc, found nothing. Then asked for my passport. I only had a paper copy with the main page and entry stamp. They looked and told me my papers were fake. I said no they are not. They told my motosai driver to go away and I was alone with them. They kept saying my documents were fake and I'm in trouble. I assured them I just flew in from Singapore the week before and all legit. This all happened in a dark soi with them shining their flashlight in my face. Finally I had to call a cop I knew and he spoke to them. They told me to f..k off and lots of cursing in thai. Not a nice experience....

Jose, I know ur joking but it really depends on your perspective and wallet.

Get the Elite visa. Pick up from the plane in them golf carts, fast track Elite counter and then out in the back seat of a decent BMW 730.

Elite visa is the best man. Never have to worry about being rejected, BMW limo service, free lounge access, fast track immigration counter etc etc. 20years for 1mill is a bargain if u ask me. Lots of other perks as well. They sort bank account and drivers licence too if needed. ( And no I don't work for them, I'm just very happy with it) I used to do border hops all the time back in the days. No more of that.

I got an account as a tourist some years back at Kasikorn on the corner of sukhumvit 33 no issues. Also got at Siam Commercial at Times Square branch, although that has closed and moved to Terminal 21 (asoke)

The more posts I read in this forum about the hoops people go through to stay in Thailand, the more satisfied I also am getting the 20y Elite. A bargain if you ask me.