KamnanT

I don't know which bank's online banking you are trying to use, but Bangkok Bank's online banking requires you set up the payee's account details first, verified by one-time passwords sent to your mobile phone. After the payee is set up, you can create a transfer transaction.

Assuming that you can collect all of the required documentation and get an appointment at VFS, this page gives you some indication of how long it currently takes to process a Settlement Visa application. As of today, 22% of applications are processed within 15 days, 89% within 40 days and 100% within 60 days, so if your goal is to travel at the end of August, that's not an unreasonable expectation if you provide a complete application and satisfy the ECO of the bona fides of your relationship. Your wife also will need to show that she is free of tuberculosis and has passed an approved English language test that certifies her ability to speak and understand English at the A1 level.

And don't, of course, forget the fee of THB 82,600 for the visas (THB 41,300 for each applicant). There will be further charges for status changes once in the UK (e.g. conversion to ILR).

Yes, you will need a visa and you will need to obtain it in advance of travel. You can apply at the Consular Section of the Chinese Embassy in Bangkok: note that this is not in the same building as the Embassy itself - the Consular section is in a building on the southwest corner of Ratchadapisek Road and Ratchadapisek Soi 3. You can download application forms from this site - as you are applying outside your country of citizenship, you will need to complete both Form A and Form B. I have a vague recollection of US citizens having to complete 2 copies of each form, but that may be outdated information.

There are at least three options available for processing speed: from memory, the "standard" application, which is the least expensive, takes 5-7 working days. The fastest (and most expensive) "rush" option gets a visa in your hands the next business day.

If your stay is going to be 90 days or less, then the Tourist Visa is your best (and simplest) option. A single entry Tourist Visa will normally be valid for entry into Thailand up to 3 months from the date of issue, so you can apply up to 3 months in advance of your planned arrival date. On arrival, you will be granted an initial period of stay of 60 days. Before that expires, you must visit any Immigration Office in Thailand and apply for your 30 day extension (TM.7 application form, 2 photos, 1,900 baht and photocopies of passport photo page and your TM.6 departure card). The 30 day extension is dated from the end of your initial 60 day period, so no need to wait until the last minute to apply for it.

Perhaps one or more of the ex-ECOs on the forum could provide more specific guidance, but it appears the key criteria is past travel to the UK that complied with visa conditions. With your wife's history, I would have thought she could easily obtain a 2 or 5 year UK visitor visa. Assuming, of course, that you're willing to stump up the rather substantial application fees (THB 13,500 for 2 years and THB 24,800 for 5 years). The 10 year VV is the most cost-effective on a "per year" basis, a bargain at THB 35,800, but as with any visa application, if you apply and are rejected or if they issue you with a visa valid for a shorter term than you applied for, there is no refund of the difference. So in theory, you could hand over THB 35,800 and end up with a standard 6 month visitor visa.

But remember, this is NOT about money, it's about safeguarding the UK's borders from radicals, militants and those who would become a burden on the UK taxpayer.

Your friend should extend this week in Bangkok as it will be very crowded in Pattaya next week. The time starts from end of current stay so he does not lose any days doing early.

Remembering, of course, that Immigration Bureau offices will be closed for the Songkran holidays on both Friday, April 13th and Monday, April 16th.

Lots of forum threads on this topic. Try this one.

Landlords are notoriously reluctant to add tenants (Thai or foreign) to the tabien baan, particularly if they are being less than completely forthright with the Revenue Department over the amount of rental income received. A rental contract in your name should be sufficient at most Immigration offices.

I had a look at one of these machines at Suvarnabhumi on Tuesday morning while queueing at inbound immigration. It appears from the posted Thai language instructions that it will require the user to insert their passport for scanning, insert their boarding pass for scanning and then insert their TM.6 Arrival card for scanning. Only the newer version of the TM.6 with barcode will be accepted. I'm not generally a pessimist, but I must say I predict chaos and long delays in these automated queues when they are opened. Processing each passenger will take at least twice as long as at a manned booth:

1. Which way do I insert my passport again? I can't get my passport out of it's "Hello Kitty" themed passport cover and it won't fit in the slot.

2. Boarding pass? Was that the bit of paper I threw away as soon as I got on the plane?

3. My TM.6 arrival card is still stapled in my passport, so please excuse me while I take 15 minutes to remove the staple.

4. Whoops. Tore my TM.6 while removing the staple.

5. What's a barcode?

They will need 3 staff members on each queue helping passengers get through the automated gates.

On a more optimistic note, after 2 to 3 years, the 10% of the Thai travelling public that travels frequently will have figured it out and will glide smoothly through the process. The remaining 90% of first-time travel travellers will continue to need a manned booth.

Oops......sorry......she did in fact have the 8503 "no stay" condition attached.

Not only that, but my wife spoke to the lady who gave her the visa, who told her that in Bangkok they never give Tourist Visas longer than 3 months. This is different from what I have heard on this forum. It doesn't sound good though. We don't want to be separated for the 10 months that it takes for the Migration Visa to be issued, and the Immigration Department here in Oz told me that a Tourist Visa is our only avenue to be together in Australia. What do they expect her to do ? Return to Thailand every 3 months, when they will then condescend (or not) to issue her with another ?? Bureaucracy like this is so insulting to people !

It belittles them and throws a spanner into the workings of their (often already difficult) personal lives in a seemingly random and petty manner.

Old Croc has it right. The immigration system is designed to facilitate migration that is beneficial to Australia. No one's saying this isn't true in the case of your wife, but the system is set up to determine her suitability as a migrant before she takes up residence in Australia. Yes, there remain avenues whereby people already in Australia can change status without departing the country but this is intended to be the rare exception rather than the normal course of events. And yes, processing times for migrant visas have gotten longer but 10 months is still not that long (try getting permission for the wife of a U.S. citizen to migrate permanently to the U.S.). If you believe additional staffing is required at the Bangkok Embassy to speed up applications, then write to your MP and complain. But as the aim for more than a decade has been to make the Australian immigration system self-funding, don't be surprised if the cost of your wife's application goes from $2,000 to $4,000 in order to pay for the additional staff.

Cash for day labourers, transient workers, bank transfer for everyone else. Never heard of any Thai or foreign company in Thailand paying by cheque. Most Thais have never seen one and they certainly wouldn't like the idea of waiting one to three days for their cheque to clear.

She should make a point of informing the MoFA when she applies for her new passport that she has valid visas in her old passport. They will affix a stamp on inside front cover saying, basically, that "This passport has been cancelled and replaced by passport no. A123456 but all visas contained herein remain valid in accordance with the rules and regulations of the issuing country." Or words to that effect. The U.S. doesn't mind as long as she brings both old and new passports when arriving in the U.S. I don't believe there is a process for moving an existing U.S. tourist visa to a new passport - the only way to accomplish this is to apply again. Definitely not worth the hassle and expense.

I would suggest a Schengen itinerary that indicates the majority of her time will be spent in France. You can then apply for a Schengen visa via France rather than via Switzerland. The Swiss are one of the more difficult Schengen zone countries to get a visa from.

Once she has her visa she is, of course, free to change her itinerary and travel within the Schengen zone as desired.

ABTC holders entering Thailand are granted permission to stay for 90 days (not 60) and this is not extendable unless the applicant qualifies under some other criteria (e.g. visiting Thai spouse or child).

Is it just me or is the subtitle of this thread a bit suggestive?

AOT and the Immigration Bureau are suggesting that the increase in passenger numbers was sudden and unexpected, but aren't airlines required to apply for landing slots at Suvarnabhumi? It's not like they can just say, "We're going to add an extra daily flight to Bangkok starting tomorrow." AOT must have a pretty good idea how many aircraft and of which type will be arriving tomorrow, next week and next month. Did they not bother telling the Immigration Bureau? Or, more likely, did the managers at the Bureau simply choose to ignore the information provided?

Applicants for PR are automatically issued 6 month (in some cases 1 year?) extensions of stay free of charge while their applications are under consideration. There is no need to go on visa runs.

If anything, the article states that there was an increase in the number of long-term visas granted in the 12 months to June 2011 compared to the same period a year earlier (593,000 vs. 582,000), so I can't see how it supports the OP's contention that visas are being denied for statistical purposes. It also deals exclusively with long-term visas (immigrants) and not with temporary (visitor) visas.

Why don't you save money and hassel by using the Thai people that are already here? There are loads.

Or unemployed Belgians, perhaps? Apparently the unemployment rate is above 7%.

I am guessing from the gist of your original post that part of your motivation to become a "non-resident of Australia" is to escape from Australian income taxation. At those rates, I can't blame you. Becoming a tax resident of Thailand is relatively straightforward --- simply be physically present in Thailand for more than 180 days in a calendar year. Becoming a non-resident of Australia for tax purposes is slightly more complex --- not surprisingly, the ATO is reluctant to let a good taxpayer go. They can use a number of tests to determine if you are still tax-resident in Australia, including physical presence but also ongoing ties (property, immediate family, bank accounts, credit cards, other financial interests). Sever as many of these financial relationships as you can and spend as little time in Australia as possible.

Note that even if you become non-resident for tax purposes in Australia, you must still pay tax on Australia source income (e.g. rental income).

I have to back up majority of opinions above - I know more than a couple of bright, well-educated guys (they are all guys, no surprises there) who have fallen for the Thailand story, thrown away perfectly decent career options in the "real" world and moved to Thailand with the expectation that well-paid, stimulating employment opportunities are readily available in their chosen field. For the vast majority, this simply isn't the case and particularly for someone straight out of school.

Entry-level positions at established Thai companies are highly competitive and more often than not the selected candidate is not only well-qualified but also "well-connected" inside the hiring firm. If you haven't attended high school and university in Thailand (or amongst Thais overseas), you are unlikely to have the network required to secure one of these roles. Foreign firms may have a more egalitarian recruitment process but you will still be competing with 100 local applicants who excelled at school, are native Thai speakers and whose salary expectations are half of yours.

The advice above is good - start your career in the US and get some experience (and money) under your belt.

Thailand is also on the list of countries Lloyds TSB won't send a debit card to by regular post. They use a courier and charge GBP 30 to send to a Thai address. But, given the high percentage of overseas items that get lost by Thailand Post, I can't say I blame them.

You say he has an EU passport - depending which EU country that is, he is probably eligible for the Visa Waiver Program. No visa required, but he does need to register for ESTA (Electronic System for Travel Authorization). Do this online at the Customs & Border Patrol official site - watch out for the hundreds of scam sites that try to get you to pay extra for an ESTA application: they add absolutely no value. The official site is at http://esta.cbp.dhs.gov/esta. Used to be free but now there is a fee - I believe it's about $20 - so your friend will need a credit card to obtain his ESTA online. Once obtained, an ESTA is valid for 2 years unless passport details change.

I also read somewhere that her rights to land etc are revoked once she marries a non national (is this true?)

No

Care to elaborate a bit please ?

She does not lose land ownership rights by marrying a non-Thai. Any land owned in her name before the marriage will be considered an asset that she bought into the marriage and therefore hers and hers alone in the case of marriage breakdown. If she acquires land after your marriage, you will be required to sign a statement acknowledging that the land is hers and hers alone and that you have no claim to it as a marital asset upon dissolution of marriage.

You do not acquire land ownership rights by virtue of marrying a Thai national. If you are planning to acquire land in her name but are concerned about its disposition should you split, then you might want to consider a usufruct- a binding legal mechanism whereby you acquire rights to occupy and enjoy the benefit of the land for the term of your natural life.

She may enter Australia multiple times during the validity of the visa ("not to arrive after" date) and she may remain up to 3 months on each entry, provided she leaves before the "permitted to remain until" date. However, if she has multiple long stays separated by only short periods outside Australia, she can expect that she will be questioned by immigration as to the actual nature of her visit, specifically that she is a genuine tourist and not intending to reside in Australia.

If her visa does not include the "8503 - No further stay" restriction, then she may apply in Australia to extend any entry beyond 3 months. Of course, she will need to provide justification and assure the immigration authorities that her stay is solely for tourism. If her visa does include an 8503 restriction, then she is not permitted to extend except in very limited circumstances.