paddlinsteve

From what I saw on the TV news last night, they were screws, not nails.

To bring closure to this particular thread, I got my driving licence today at the DLT on Tiwanon Road in Nonthaburi after working on it for quite a while. The first hurdle, a few weeks ago, was to get the certificate of residency from the IO. That was done in a few minutes and I was charged 1,000 baht. A few days later I went to a local clinic and the doctor, from viewing me from across the lobby, signed off on the form, charging me 80 baht.

The next obstacle was whether they would recognize my existing licence, which is from Saudi Arabia. The important information -- name of holder, number of licence, and expiration date -- were given in both Arabic and English on the card. However, because there was some other Arabic writing on it, the DLT told me to go to the Saudi Embassy to get it translated (not saying whether into English or Thai).

So I went to the Saudi Embassy in Sathorn and made my enquiry. I had anticipated being asked to go to a translation service in Ploenchit, followed by getting it stamped by the MFA. However, they gave me the phone number of a place called the Sheikhul Islam Centre, which is rather inconveniently located in Nong Chok, 54km from my home in Nonthaburi. It was a five-hour trip there and back, and for the translation I forked over 700 baht.

Then it was back to the embassy where I was told to go to a certain unmarked office 14 floors below. I found it and the guys there asked for the paperwork. They took it upstairs and brought it back with a stamp and charged me 500 baht for their trouble.

I went to the DLT on Friday, with my Thai wife, only to be told that they needed to study my existing licence and get approval to honour it from a higher up. I was to come back today, Monday, and watch the training video at 1:00 p.m.

I dutifully went again today and watched the video -- it was simply a methodical trawl through the Thai driving law of 2522, with such dubious information as the load limits for a pickup truck.

Then it was time for what they call physical testing. The 40 people who had watched the video were taken together into the testing room and given four tests each: (1) color blindness test, (2) peripheral vision test, (3) depth perception test, and (4) reaction test.

Thereafter it went very fast: pay 305 baht, have a photo taken, pick up the two-year temporary licence. The time required from start to finish of the process was about three weeks and the total cost was 2,585 baht, not counting quite a lot spent on fuel and food.

I downloaded, printed and carefully filled in the residence application and trotted off to Nonthaburi IO this morning. They recognized the form, asked for the usual lineup of copies (passport photo page, non-imm visa, TM.6 departure card), two photos, and 1000 baht in cash. Ten minutes later I was walking out with a document, bearing my photo and impressively stamped, addressed to the DLT introducing me as a regular guy who should be allowed to apply for a DL.

I was pleasantly surprised to find out that, in Nonthaburi at least, there's no delay of three weeks or more and no police home visit required.

Thanks again for the valuable help!

Well, I brought all of those documents to the boys at the IO last week and they stapled the bottom of the TM.30 into the passport as well as the departure card, just as they used to do at the airport.

I tried downloading the Certificate of Residence Application (TM.18) from the templates list, but instead of that form it links to the following form, Substitute of Residence Certificate Application (TM.20). So your form saved me a lot of bother. Thanks again.

Many thanks for the form! I suppose the IO have enough documentation in their system for me. Or is there anything in particular I should have to hand if they ask for it to support this form?

Are you suggesting that the wording is significant? Do you know what that is in Thai so I can have my wife ask them?

Thanks.

I moved to Thailand just a month ago and have been easing myself into the documentation traffic flow. I've got a DL in my sights, but there's already been a hiccough or two. One of the requirements for a license is having one's address certified. DLT's checklist gives three choices for doing this: embassy letter, Immigration Office letter, or Work Permit. I don't have a job so the last one is out. I don't want to be gouged by my embassy, so the logical choice is asking Immigration. I did that earlier this week when I submitted my TM.30, only to be told they didn't issue any address certification (this was in Nonthaburi IO).

Does DLT accept the Yellow Tabien Baan for this purpose? Anyway, I thought I'd give that a try. But at my local Amphoe, the list of required documentation I was given included a birth certificate that needs to be translated into Thai and certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I would have to spend quite a lot of money for a replacement birth certificate and my use for one, at age 69, is pretty limited except for getting a DL.

Anyone see a solution here?

The wife and I spent a week or so in the Honey around seven years ago. They wouldn't serve her breakfast. They said breakfast was for guests only. After we checked out, we agreed never to stay there again.

I'm not surprised it's closing down. Once they started building Terminal 21 down on the corner, that area wasn't going to be Honey-type territory again.

Yesterday I went to the Thai embassy nearby and applied for a single-entry Non-O visa. This morning my passport was returned to me with the appropriate visa stamped In it.

However, I was surprised to see this written in the Remarks section: "Extension of stay not permitted." My interpretation of this remark is that they are reminding the visa holder that the visa will "die" in three months. It will then be time to apply for a year's extension on the basis of marriage to a Thai national.

Am I interpreting this comment correctly?

edwardflory, I'll take your advice on board. One of the main problems with a retirement extension is that I wouldn't be able to get a work permit. It also would tie up more money than the marriage extension. I'll have to trust my wife when she assures me she won't boot me out of the house!

Your clarification concerning the Kor Ror 2 is noted. Thanks.

IMA_FARANG's statement has puzzled me: "With a Single entry visa you get a 90 day stay.....after that it ends.

You will then need to lrave Thailand and get another visa to return

Don't forget a single entry means a single exit to go with that single entry."

27 minutes ago, Lite Beer said:

Here is a rough guide to apply for a 12 month extension based on having a Thai Wife.

Apply anytime during the last 30 days of your stay.

 

(1) The alien has obtained a temporary visa (NON-IM)

 

(6) In case of marriage with a Thai lady, the husband who is an alien must have an average annual income of not less than 40,000 baht per month or a money deposit in a local Thai bank of not less than 400,000 baht for the past 2 months for expenses within a year.

 

Letter from your Thai Bank showing balance and up to date bank book.

OR.

If income from outside Thailand: Letter from your Embassy showing income. Now may also need proof of income as back up.

If Income from Thailand: Statements showing Income Tax receipts.

Marriage Certificate. (Kor Ror 3)

Marriage Registry entry. (Kor Ror 2)

Wife's Tabbien Baan and ID Card.

Your Passport.

Copies of everything.

Photos of you and your Wife in and around the house.

A map showing the way to your house.

Passport size photos and 1,900 Baht fee.

Take your Wife to be interviewed.

One or two witnesses may be required.

You will be given a 30 day under consideration stamp.

Go back in a month and get the remainder.

 

My wife and I's marriage was registered in Amphoe Dusit in 2007. Do these marriage documents need to be updated? Or can I simply present them just as they were issued back then?

Emm . . . what did you mean by the last statement; 'Go back in a month and get the remainder'? Will they keep my passport while the extension application is under consideration?

Many thanks to all for helping me picture this situation. I'll follow this path: get a single-entry Type O and then apply for permission to stay from Nonthaburi Immigration (which I've already visited) with a multiple re-entry permit added on.

Getting the visa should be quite simple. I live in a tiny country. The embassy is 10 minutes drive in one direction and the airport is 15 drive in the other, so it should be a doddle. Thai embassy staff have assured me they'll have the visa ready the morning after I apply. They've checked my documents and said I'm ready to roll.

I've left it to the last minute because I've been working for 11 years in a different country to where I live, having to commute back and forth every day. Thus, my passport has never been free.

While I appreciate all the suggestions, explanations, and advice I've received here, it certainly would be great if someone could draw up a flowchart that would display the algorithmic path for getting to where you want to be vis-à-vis the authorities and their regulations.

So if I take up the embassy's offer of a multiple-entry visa at the equivalent of 6,000 baht, would I be able to go out of the country and come back any time I wished during the year? On the other hand, if I travelled abroad just once a year, the single-entry visa would be cheaper.

I'm not grasping the advantage of either of these options and can't identify which one best suits the life I'll be leading after arrival.

I don't see the extension process as being intrusive and would prefer to do that than have to go out and come back every 90 days. Nonthaburi is quite distant from any border crossing. I tried the closest crossing at Three Pagoda Pass a few years ago, but the police told me to turn around and go back to Kanchanaburi.

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Lite Beer -- thanks for your reply, but I still wonder if the single-entry visa will allow us to leave the country. And will I need to get a re-entry permit?

On the 6th I'll arrive in Thailand to start what I hope will be a long association between the country, its people, and me. First, I have a decision to make and I'd like some advice. Before I leave where I am now, I'll go to my local Thai embassy and apply for a non-immigrant visa.

I've been married to a native Bangkokian for nine years and have decided to go for the visa based on marriage. I've spoken to the people at the embassy and they said I'd need to choose between a single-entry visa and a multiple. I've read on TV of the advantages of a multiple visa. However, I think we'll be pretty much sticking to life in Nonthaburi. Maybe we'll make one trip a year to, for example, Cambodia or Laos. I don't see how a multiple would be worth the extra cost. Would the single-entry visa give us opportunities for the occasional trip abroad?

Another question: on arrival in LOS I'll need to complete a TM 6 arrival card. Should I enter the complete address of our baan in Nonthaburi on that form? On past visits, I've just entered the name of a random BKK hotel.

8 hours ago, The Dark Lord said:

. . . whilst not the same it reminds me of Saudi Arabia where the authorities take your passport no discussion and if you want to go out of the country you have to apply for an exit /re entry visa without which you will stand no chance of leaving. I am sure members can understand the relief when you finally get the "exit only" stamp there.

DL, your post struck a chord with me. I left KSA on final exit visa via the Causeway yesterday afternoon. It wasn't very dramatic; the Saudi passport guy just stamped my passport and handed it back to me. I had to force him to take my iqama.

Anyway, that chapter of my life is over. In a few days I'll fly from Bahrain to BKK to begin the next phase. If anything, the visa and extension game looks even more confusing and hard to follow in LOS than it was in KSA. On the other hand, with annual visa costs in Saudi going up to the equivalent of 25,000 baht for the coming year, it's going to be a lot cheaper for me in Thailand.

Yes, there's an obstacle for Saudis who'd like to visit Thailand. It's called a travel ban. There were some unpleasant incidents involving nationals of both nations some years back that resulted in a cutting of relations. Actually both countries would like to normalize relations, but some folks can be so stubborn. Saudis with influence back home can visit safely; others face having their passport confiscated for five years upon their return to KSA.

I don't enjoy shopping at Terminal 21, but the eats are superior -- both in quality and price. Incidentally, T21 opened in early October last year. If the story is true that the food prices will go up after their first anniversary, we have just a couple of months left to pig out.

From a still dry part of Bangkok, khet Dusit:

Walking along PhiChai rd. over khlong SamSen (still low level, flow a bit faster than normal maybe), turn into Sukhothai rd. till SamSen rd. turn right. Over khlong SamSen again (at this point a meter or two higher things wouldn't flood, but a bit further inside maybe). Sukhothai Palace looked as normal, no flood defences to be seen, also not through the slightly opened gates. Shops on the river site of SamSen seem to have much less private, hastily build floodwall than on the other site. Quality of walls varying from solid, meter high to nothing at all. This being Thailand I may be excused to wonder how the backside looks.

Turning into NaknonChaisri rd. towards Payap pier along the river. Close to the river the first wet spots, water pumped from soi SiKhan (?) into the drains. Approach to the pier is higher, pier itself slightly flooded and floating part way up.

Back along NakhonChaisri past SamSen rd. Life as normal. Lots of people walking, sitting along the road eating (about 6PM). Also as usual in my one hour walk I don't think I've seen another farang.

Back home, now wet feet to cool them and a beer

Many thanks, rubl, for the account of your walk. Just before reading it I was on the phone to my wife who's cooling her heels in Pattaya. She's from Soi Si Kham off Nakhon Chaisri and is keen to relocate there to spend time with her family.

She evacuated herself from our housing estate in Phra Rama V in Nonthaburi 2 weeks ago and is very "bon" (i.e. bored). Her family is encouraging her to return saying that there's no water in their soi, so off she'll trot in another day or two. She thinks that the water has somehow been held back as a result of the palace being just around the corner. Surprising to hear that no flood defences have been erected there.

Anyway, thanks for the confirmation that Talat Sriyan is a dry area. I'm in Bahrain so hardly in a position to check the conditions there for myself. I've learnt over the years to take her family's observations of situations with a grain of salt or two, so the account from an independent set of eyes is very welcome.

I've had a more disastrous encounter with a Krung Thai ATM this week that cost me dearly.

As some of you may know, relations haven't been smooth for the past 20 years between Thailand and Saudi Arabia, the country where I work. As a result the exchange rate for any conversion between the baht and the Saudi riyal is pretty miserable.

What the credit card companies and most banks normally do is to first convert from one of these currencies to USD and from thence to the local currency. That way no one gets hurt.

However, the Krung Thai ATM that I used this week for the first time had a confusing question when I tried to take out 10,000 baht. I was asked whether I wanted to follow the Mastercard currency exchange system. I declined because I was using an ATM card from the Saudi British bank so the question seemed irrelevant.

The next day when I checked my online account with my home bank I was astounded to see that the equivalent of 12,500 baht had been taken from my balance. I had lost 2,500 baht (25%) due to the transaction being calculated according to the miserable direct baht-riyal rate rather than the favourable credit card rate.

I'm sure not many of you would be in any danger of falling into this trap. However, if you know anyone coming to Thailand who has a Saudi riyal-denominated account he should avoid the Krung Thai ATMs at all costs!

1st concert: Peter, Paul and Mary (Asbury Park, NJ) in 1963.

Memorable ones: Cat Mother & the All-Night Newsboys, Grateful Dead, John Lee Hooker (separate shows, Eugene, OR) in 1971; BB King, 10 Years After, Rod Stewart (separate shows, Berlin) in 1972; Cream (NYC) in 1968; Grateful Dead and Steely Dan (separate shows in Denver) in 1991 and 1994, respectively; Ian Dury & the Blockheads (North London) in 1981; Quicksilver Messenger Service (The Ark, Sausalito, CA) in 1968; Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix, Blind Faith, Rolling Stones (separate shows, Philly) in 1969; Steppenwolf, James Cotton, Deep Purple, Vanilla Fudge (separate concerts, NYC) in 1969; Eric Burdon (San Francisco) in 1968; Youngbloods and Pacific Gas & Electric (LA) in 1968.

As a vegetarian (of 21 years' standing), I'm not at all bothered by meat gristle or shrimp tails. However, I do wish they'd start using a vegetarian alternative to fish sauce and oyster sauce. I'm not too keen on aji na moto either.

There's one other thing. Today my wife was frying chillis and filled the flat with really toxic fumes causing us both to nearly collapse in a coughing fit. Is there another way to prepare chillis that's slightly less toxic, I wonder?