brianb1944

Yes that was what I told him, but we were wondering where would they notice? He said he has never been asked for it when leaving the country, nor when the school renews the visa ever 90-days.

Why would he need to report if he is operating on 90 day Ed Visa? Visa renewal does the same job?

Ask for an official receipt.

There is no way that this is legit, they are part of a Government public service; their petrol fee would be paid for through expenses.

No way, is this legit or morally right.

However....

.... saying "No", might put you in a harder position for getting your visa.

Well cheeky, if you ask me.

Give him the money, smile and thank him very much. It may not be legal but it is a fact of life here. You could make a stand, but that will create far more trouble for you than it is worth.

"They are a government-owned entity and extremely serious and efficient."

They are not government owned.

It doesn't matter how you try to spin it, they aren't.

OP, getting an extension of a Non Immigrant O Visa for the purpose of retirement is one of the easier extensions to do.

1900 baht for a 1 year extension at immigration.

Get a Non O multiple entry visa at a consulate before you come here.

That will give you as many entries in as a year as you want - each for 90 days. Enter the country a day or so before the actual visa expires, gives you another 90 days, for almost 15 months total.

Or get the Non Imm O-A Visa mentioned above. If you get a single entry, it will be good for 1 year. No paperwork for the visa extension due here until after the visa - expires. A multiple entry Non O-A will give you unlimited entries during the first year, each time getting 1 year when you re-enter. Re-enter just prior to the actual visa expiring will give you another year, for a total time of almost 2 years. A re-entry permit would be required the second year to maintain your permission to stay date.

Either of these can easily be extended at an immigration office here for 1900 baht.

That along with the other posts should give you enough info to get you started.

About Us

The Thailand Longstay Company registered as the Thailand Longstay Management Co., Ltd was

established in 2001 with the endorsement of the Thai Royal Government to support long stay tourism.

Moreover, the Tourism Authority of Thailand is a major shareholder of the company. As a result, we aim

to provide the best services to retired expatriates to promote the tourism industry of the Kingdom of

Thailand.

Since its establishment, the company has signed many MOU with many government organizations

such as the Immigration Bureau, Tourist Police, and the Airports of Thailand.

Therefore, we specialize in doing a 1-year retirement visa for expatriates and other matters related to

the immigration procedure of Thailand. We offer the most convenient way in gaining a 1-year retirement

visa. Members of the Thailand Longstay do not need to go through the bureaucratic procedure by

themselves because the company will process the entire immigration procedure for our members. This

is the ultimate convenience that we provide.

There are many "Visa Agents" operating in Thailand most of whom I would expect to be efficient. I was put on to one by friends in CM, and will probably never spend frustrating hours in a crowded Immigration Office again. For me,the modest cost is justified by the seamless efficiency with witch my agent deals with my immigration needs, including 90 day reporting.

I felt stigmatised and uncomfortable in Khon Kaen .

In Some ways you are right Goompa-- it is not what one would call a farrang friendly town---not that the people are unfriendly-- but compared to its neighbor Udon Thani ...which of course has a history of farangs station there for many years, even the infamous Air America flying out of there, many of those folks married in the 70s and now have / are returning to Udon many with adult age children , making it an Issan Town with a high level of English and acceptance of farang culture.

** KK is no where near the de-facto capital of the northeast---all the development is going on in Udon Thani, including the new university & the building of the high speed train station to china, U.T also has twice the population of KK.

I wrote "arguably" the de-facto capital, and got an argument immediately! OK - point taken - Udon has a higher population - but population is not everything. And the claim that ALL the development is going on in Udon is unsupported. Perhaps it has the highest farang population, and probably the highest populaton of mia-farang, which might make it the de-facto expat centre of the northeast. And all the newly rich Lao from Vientiane flock there in droves on the weekends to spend their money, owing to it's proximity to the Friendship Bridge. But for the Thais I maintain Khon Kaen has always been more important. Consluates of both Lao PDR and Vietnam are located there. A quick Wikipedia search (for starters) yields the following: "Khon Kaen is a regional center for education, financial institutions, government offices and transportation. The city is also an industrial center, especially for the region's silk trade, as well as an agricultural hub."

I was led to believe that Korat is constantly vying with Chiang Mai as Thailand's 2nd City? Presumably that would make it the de-facto capital of Issan?

Sounds to me like you are looking for an extension on your ?Thai marriage Visa. For all the problems it is causing you would it not be better off to just deposit 400,000 baht in a Thai bank?

Or, go the income route, presumably you can prove income minimum, 40,000 baht per month I think. Any visa agent will convert your 30 day stamp to a single entry non O, without leaving the country.

which in turn can then be extended to multiple entry.

You can arrive late and still get visas processed. Just ask the guy over the road sitting in his little tent. I didn't get there till 12.30 or so, though I had no chance, and he got it all processed for me that day. Never even had to go in the consulate. Have to pay a bit to get the visa staff to work late but they do it. And yeah, it is a genuine visa

I too used the guy in the tent, travelled overnight from CM, arrived at Thai Consul about 7.30am, queue was already forming. Got the tout guy to do it all, didnt wait for Consulate to open, just left it with him. We were booked into Hotel by about 8.15am, and enjoying a hot shower before consul opened.Guy delivered PP with visa to our hotel at lunchtime the next day. Well worth the 1500 baht he charged me.

Sorry to all those affected. I had mine 2 years ago. This repeat in slow motion is not only a frekkin joke, it is an absolute outrage. It is true, you cannot stop the rain, but you can tell the truth to the poor people in advance of them loosing everything. I doubt there will be the coffers to pay out the compensation this time around!

We were inundated in 2011, 2 metres of water that took a week to subside, My wife received 5000 baht compensation for the loss of about 300,000 baht worth of possessions. couldn't qualify for an extra 2000 baht cos we didn't have photos of the damaged property.

Ministry of Interior regulation dated March 23 1999

The procedure for the acquisition of land by Thais having spouses being aliens, either by lawful marriage or unlawful marriage (without proper registration like a common-law marriage) and children of foreigners have been changed to be as follows:

Any Thai having a foreign spouse may purchase or accept land as a gift with no consideration and register the ownership of such land during marriage under the condition that the spouse must jointly provide a written legal confirmation stating that the entire source of funds for such purchase or gift is solely from the Personal Property (such as defined by Thai laws) of such Thai.

Without written confirmation from a foreign spouse, the request for such registration must be referred to the Land Department in order to obtain an approval from the Minister.

So if I give her the money it then becomes her "Personal Property" and then meets the requirement "entire source of funds for such purchase or gift is solely from the Personal Property (such as defined by Thai laws) of such Thai."? Or am I understanding this incorrectly?

That sounds about right, a bit scary having to swear that you didnt put any money up, leaves you without a paddle if things go pear shaped.

Never heard of the guy and I'm an Aussie but then again rugby is only played in two states of Australia being Queensland and New South Wales unlike football which is the major game.

If they find him not much will happen to him, James Hird from the Essendon Football club only got a 12 month suspension from the league for the same thing a slap on the wrist really. Still receiving payments from the club during his suspension.

Why do people refer to "football" as their game. What is football, is it soccer, Aust Rules, or Rugby Union? (seeing it is obviously NOT Rugby League)

If you lived in the UK, it would be soccer.

If you lived in NZ, it would be Rugby Union

If you lived in Melbourne, it would be Australian Rules (commonly called aerial ping pong played by characters in short nickers)

Not even close, NRL is the poor relation of AFL when it comes to Football codes, Union, though possibly not as popular as NRL has a wider representation throughout Australia.

I believe Rugby League is the most common form of "football" in Australia.

However real men play Rugby Union!

If you are that concerned about it, then I am afraid you'll never become a volunteer, because that would require people to do things for you that they hate doing. If you simply take their word for it and do what you love to do, and make them all happy with your productivity, then there will be no problem. (Teaching without a work permit at a government school, or driving a rental vehicle without a license or insurance for example). Be nice and don't get pushy.

Thais usually do not retaliate unless they feel they are being removed from a money making opportunity, or that you are taking away from them something they would rather have themselves; or simply out of spite. If what you are volunteering for is going to help them in something they would not rather do themselves, or that you would raise to a state that they want to kick you out and taker over, and you would be replaced, then there should be no problems throughout and/or up unitl that point.

The agency you would work for will pass the brown envelope when the collectors come by. Everyone knows you are illegally working, but since you make them happy, and the collectors get thier money, then you'll never know.

Like I said, though... do it the legal way and you'll be in queues for the rest of your life, and the Thais will hate you for bringing up subjects they hate simply because doing things legally in Thailand will put you in last place.

Seems like someone has had a rough time, so much vitriol.

I believe that, as a Retirement visa holder, Volunteering is not possible as the retirement visa precludes the issue of a work permit. Would seem to preclude a lot of expats with time on their hands.

if you're stopped by authorities and have overstayed, for example, you will be issued a fine. If you can't pay the fine you will be sent to prison to effectively repay the fine at a rate of 200 baht a day (I believe) until the fine is repaid. So a 10000 baht fine will take 50 days to repay.

After leaving jail, you will be deported. While tickets etc are arranged, you will be held in an Immigration Detention Centre. The main one is at Suan Plu. Thailand does not pay for the deportation costs; that is down to you. In the event that you don't have the funds to pay for repatriation or you cant get someone to help, you are held there indefinitely.

There are numerous examples of people being held for very long times. One Australian chap is currently there and has said he will happily die there; he doesn't want to return to Australia, despite people offering to pay his bills.

I am currently helping a lady in the UK get funds to her brother who overstayed and is being held in the IDC. It's a very grim place.

"if you're stopped by authorities and have overstayed, for example, you will be issued a fine" - well that seems to be not the case in Phuket for example - if you are caught on overstay you will be arrested , fined and deported. That seems to be the current trend right now.

Thats what he said!

i have had the frozen cobba,pollack and the giant sea perch,after thawing you are lucky to get a third of a kilo of flesh and that looks like a dish cloth.anyone knows if they have anything decent on their fresh counter.the pollack was the best but no taste.

leave it on a wire rack over a tray to drain, we leave it in the fridge for a few hours, improves the texture a lot.

And now the Tapioca boys are going to join the party . . . who's next?

Govt started it with the "Rice Pledging" now everyone wants a snout in the trough.

Are there not any "straight" driving schools in Chiang Mai? That actually teach driving and not just take bribes.

The irony is the test is actually incredibly easy so why people feel to need to set up (or attend) a "bribe school" is beyond me. She'd only need a few lessons to be as competent as anyone else on Thai roads, and have the satisfaction of passing the test properly.

Yes, there are good and inexpensive driving schools in CM, my daughter learned to drive a truck with one at a cost of 2000 baht for 10 hours, II made her take 20 hours and can happily sit with her anywhere. My wife learned in an automatic, as that is what we have, 3500 baht for 10 hours, again she had 20 hours and is a competent driver. Niece started with a school, and refused to continue with them after 6 hours. Sent her to the instructor with the truck, and she is also competent.

is corruption awareness being taught in the schools after the parents have paid "tea money" to have their child accepted for enrollment.

this statement should inspire confidence in Thai Airways worldwide, its good to know that the people in charge are on top of things.

From what I've seen, many doctors like to make the problem go away by administering happy pills, of the family benzodiazepam. This includes valium and xanax, and many others. I strongly advise against this route. Long term and/or excessive dosages can lead to very serious addiction, and unimaginable horror when the victim is eventually forced into withdrawal. This may sound overly dramatic, but I have personal experience, and what I say is no exaggeration. It's best to find some natural way to deal with stress. I have several tools I use, including exercise, meditation, yoga, and focusing on my breath. Some of this stuff may sound fruity, but it actually works, and has no real drawbacks, except if one over exercises. In my experience, doctors just want to get the patient out the door with as little fuss as possible, and a prescription is an easy way to do this.

All you need from your doctor is a referral to a psychiatrist as this is their area of expertise.

You travel here once a year right? You're unclear what currency the offshore bank account is held in - I assume Thai baht? All sounds like too much trouble for your annual hols. And believe me, when banks move currencies, there is always a margin made, so I think your friend is probably exaggerating somewhat on the supposed benefits.

Your best bet is open a Thai bank account. Total cost say 500B for the ATM card and a 150 one off admin fee.

TT money to your Thai account at a time and exchange rate that is suitable to you - your domestic bank will have a charge of say $20. Or if you have online banking, you may have a lower fee.

Or, bring cash with you and deposit it to your Thai account.

There is no minimum amount you need to keep in your Thai account, so no need for dead money.

If you only use your bank's ATM's, zero cost. No annual account fees.

Your total annual cost for holidaying in Thailand (after you open your account) can be zero, or $20..........up to you.

I have a Thai account,bring in cash with me 2 or 3 times a year, change it when the rates are most favourable, then pay the bulk into my Thai account. Money is very accessible, and at no cost. (Dont pay overseas money into a bank account, there are much better exchange rates on the street.)

My wife and I both use Naproxen, lots of it, for years. It is available here at almost any pharmacy. However, it's not cheap. Naproxen is the same as ALEVE. We get it from the states as we stock up when we visit or friends come to visit us. Look up Naproxen Sodium at the Walmart website. You can buy a 200 or 220 count (possibly 300 count) for around $12-$14. The brand name ALEVE cost a bit more, but exactly the same ingredients.

I buy Naproxen 500mg tablets in CM, I dont haggle about the listed price which is 50 baht for 10 tablets, 150 baht for a month supply. This is cheaper than a subsidised "age pension script" in Oz. I am happy.

At Jomtien you have to provide an updated KR2 each year until they ask you not to provide one. So 2 years ago and last year I had to provide a new one and last year they said we could use the one from last year for this year as well. Naturally, I don't believe them and as we live just up the road from the Amphur and quite a long way from the Jomtien Immigration, last week my wife and I went and got two updated KR2's just in case.

A simple process, just the original and a single copy of

-my passport

-my wifes ID card

-the house book

-marriage certificate

We had to wait about an hour, but much easier in our case than driving all the way to Jomtien and then the officer deciding we need an updated KR2 after all.

Mind you I arrive at Jomtien with every document I have ever been issued with and have them in my briefcase or in the car just in case, along with wedding photos from our wedding 11 years ago. Yes over the top I know, but I never know just what daft new requirement they will have thought up since the last time we went - and as the renewal is next month, is the reason I am now scouring Thai VIsa for any new rules since last time

You cant find the rules that the Immigration Officers make up as they go along for each individual they see. Chiang Mai ha 2 ppl dealing with marriage, one is lovely, providing you have the required documents, the other is maliciously obstructive, always finding extra ways to harass applicants. My last visit, after sending my wife twice for extra (unneeded) P/C, she knocked back my Income statement because the income was in AUD, which the previous 4 had been with no drama. I have gone back to Non O rather than deal with the woman, and will change to retirement visa where she has no jurisdiction.

This will not be well received in Dubai.

I have a feeling Fabio will go from targeted victim to irresponsible farang is short order.

It seems Fabio,in his zeal to do his job, just was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and a "collateral casualty of war." RIP Fabio.

"We also want to demonstrate our refusal to accept parliamentary dictatorship that puts the benefits of corrupt politicians above the interest of the nation and its people,"

Well, that's a start...actually been able to do anything about it is another thing

The problem is, the trough will always be there, and it is not reasonable to expect new piggys to treat it differently to the old piggys. If nothing else, history has shown us that.