chrisyork

I'm sure you're right!

Better prepared, though..............

3 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Why didn't you have an embassy letter?

I shan't be extending until November, when Embassy letters will already have lapsed and be out of date eligibility.

So this was an enquiry as to exactly what they are looking for under the new system.

Better prepared than having to fly to the UK and start again...............

As an aside to this for UbonJoe and for JackThompson.........

Savanakhet had led me to believe that the whole process could be done on the spot at my local immigration. So I was a bit disappointed with this extended sequence of actions explained more fully at Lopburi. I opined that perhaps it might be better to take another trip out of country and get a straightforward O-A Retirement at Vientiane/Savanakhet. Lopburi were VERY keen for me not to do that but to follow this process through them.

Maybe the mesage is getting through that a lot of farang are spending a lot of money OUTSIDE Thailand at Thailand's behest......

I would add that Lopburi is a positively exemplary office. Well laid out, pleasant officers, never a queue etc etc. Just a pity it's a 120 km drive... Us farang want everything, don't we... :)

Ta muchly, UbonJoe!

Yes. That's exactly how I understood it, ubonjoe. The only bit that surprised me was the "legalisation" requirement for the Embassy Income letter bit......

Am I right that the legalisation service is done here.....???

http://bangkok.immigration.go.th/en/location1.html

You and I both would have supposed so..... Savanakhet instructed me to do it this way and Lopburi thought it routine on Friday....... Strictly speaking, what they say they are doing is converting one type of Visa to another......... And that is apparently OK......

The bit with wider relevance is this requirement to validate the Embassy Income letter. Which is new to me.

I attended my local Immigration Office in Lopburi on Friday 18th. I had, I thought, all documents to allow me to convert a single entry Tourist Visa ex Savanakhet into a one year OA "Retirement" Visa..... The office accepted that my UK Embassy Income letter was OK. But require it to be stamped as valid at ChaingWaettana before accepting it with the application.

That's news to me! Has it happened to anyone else?

The implication is that that would be necessary for all circumstances in which an Embassy Income letter is a required document........

I shall be visiting ChainWaettana tomorrow, then back to Lopburi thereafter....... I will report how I get on......

Thanks UbonJoe.

Worked that one out for myself already.... The question is, how do I track down the schools and courses...??

I have a friend who is a Swedish national aged 25 years. He wants to spend an extended period based on Kanchanaburi. I am in the role of search assistant (!)....

The most promising avenue seems to be to sign him up for a college course that would allow him to get an O - ED category visa (I think that's the right terminology - please correct me if wrong). But I haven't been able to find any listing of suitable courses.

Any clues where to look, please folks.

Thanks for that!

Hi 

I'm a UK citizen with a Thai family and have been living here continuously (bar visa runs) for a bit over three years. My partner is a bloke, so I can't show marriage eveidence. I live with his family - I've been coming to and fro for another 18 years. - and regard them as my own. 

My OA Retirement visa expired at the end of January and I am unable to renew it because the combination of the collapse of the pound and the raising of the income threshold to 65,000THB means I'm below the requirement. All will be well again in July 2018 when my state pension kicks in.

In the meantime I am planning to do runs to Vientiane - the closest to where I live in rural Lopburi - getting a single entry tourist visa (they seem not to be prepared to issue multi entry) and exteding it at the local immigration office in Lopburi to give an effective 90 day between visa runs. I've done two runs so far.

I've heard rumour, but can find no evidence on line, that there is now a limit of two conscutive tourist visas from the same consulate.

That would well and truly screw up my plan.......

Firstly, is it true?

Secondly, any suggestions?

Thanks,
Chris

djvolak especially, thank you all.

I really am with djvolak in saying not to quit. I wasn't brought up a quitter and quitting now is just going to reinforce all the negative worthless thoughts in Amnuay. It will therefore make me really unhappy. So self first - I'm not going to quit here until I've had a really good crack at solutions.

The medical input has been most interesting. It seems to me that it has a place here in giving the addict space to sort out the underlying issues.

Thanks again all

Thannks all

ThePool, you're quite right. I also posted this in the health section, but without the gay reference. It just feels nicer to be able to be totally open here.

Chris

Thanks for that. Yes I'm acutely aware of the potential dangers. We live in a rural community, so money is less easy to source than BKK, but I agree with your concern. I was hoping for some inspiration, but unsurprised by your response.

Chris

It transpires that my boyfriend and partner of 13 years has developed a serious YaBa addiction.

Are any treatment programmes available through the state? With or without a prison sentence? Any available in the voluntary sector, eg through particular temples?

My reading to date suggests that any treatment programme has a limited chance of success. Anybody got any specific knowledge?

Obvious first steps have been taken already, eg cutting off money supply from all potential sources.

Chris

It transpires that my partner has developed a serious YaBa addiction.

Are any treatment programmes available through the state? With or without a prison sentence? Any available in the voluntary sector, eg through particular temples?

My reading to date suggests that any treatment programme has a limited chance of success. Anybody got any specific knowledge?

Obvious first steps have been taken already, eg cutting off money supply from all potential sources.

Chris

The Visa was obtained from the Thai Consul in Cardiff. It's a "retirement" visa, although I was unable to discern any criteria other than they wanted to know my income after tax. Mine actually fell slightly below the alleged threshold, but the Consul didn't seem too concerned by this. They took copies of recent bank statements to verify the income. I rang first and spoke to the Consul in person and this seemed to greatly ease the process.

Chris

I am a UK citizen and have a non immigrant O 12 month multi entry Visa. I'd like to stay as long as possible, so clearly will be doing "visa runs" to renew my entry stamps (3 months at a time). When I get towards the end of the validity of my Visa, will the permitted stay until date extend beyond the Visa date?

In other words, can I do a journey outside of Thailand, return to the Thai border on the last day of validity of my Visa and still get a 3 month entry stamp?

Chris

Thanks for that. Can't beat an unambiguous response!!

Chris

After a certain amount of conflicting info from UK Embassy and Consul sites, I now have a one year multi entry non imm O visa in my UK passport. And to go with it a 90 day stamp on arrival at Suvanubhumi. The conflicting info didn't end at obtaining the Visa, but appeared to give new requirements for renewal of the stamp once in Thailand - I'm here for 6 months.

I've had a good look around in this section and I haven't found what I think I'm looking for, so:

• I used to simply pop up to Nong Khai (we live quite near there) and do a land run across the Friendship bridge into Lao. Will that still produce a 90 day stamp or is now only a 30 day stamp?
• Is it possible to get a new stamp, either 30 day or 90 day, at the immigration office in BKK Satthorn Soi 2?
• If I travel by air out of the country and back again to any airport other than BKK will that provide a 90 day stamp?

Thanks all

Chris York

What I find a little strange is how so many of those you see in "Pride" parades in the US look stereotypically gay, while so many of those in the UK just look perfectly "normal". On the other hand, no-one seemed to notice that Anthony Blunt and Guy Burgess were gay, so who knows ....?

I think that's really quite peceptive. There's clearly a cultural thing at work there in addition to any innate sexuality. A bit like the difference between function and presentation. For me Gaydar is about spotting the function - "can I get sex with this person?" - and is quite different to the next question, which is "do I fancy this person". Intrigueingly, the answer to the second question seems to vary for me according to how horny I'm feeling, whereas the results from the first seem pretty consistant.

As to how to spot a Gay Thai, well the first question still works for me regardless. The cultural clues required to help make the second question work well are undoubtedly very different in Thailand, though. You could characterise the USA stereotype described above as being overt advertising, with the UK version being overt conformity. Thailand strikes me as being completely relaxed, neither advertising nor repressing.

Observations like the pointy shoes discussion earlier, strike me as simply a fashion spreading amongst a group of freinds and followers - I think that's how things get started in the Gay community and are picked up later by the staright?

Chris

Suradit is quite right. I find a more helpful model is of the poor family who suddenly find a wealthy barrister thrust into their midst by marriage. For sure the family will want to test the limits of generosity of the barrister, be they Thai, English or American!

I approve of (almost) anything that allows Thailand to be energy independent! The political consequences of being dependent on Burma for Natural Gas are obvious and very damaging.

But I do wonder what the life span of such a dam on the Mekong would be. The river carries large quantities of silt and there must be a serious risk of the reservoir silting up in pretty short order.

Chris