rwilem

Yes, it opened sometime last November, I think. At least from December it was in regular service.

This thread has some informative responses about this dilemma. It started a few years back but has some relatively recent comments.

Yes, it seems beyond the model name, there are 'model-offshoot identifiers' (letters, numbers) that ID a particular phone model. Some of the specs vary from the offshoots by the regions and countries the phone is marketed for. As you describe it must be a factor in how updates are managed as well. Perhaps not a fix for Samsung phones, I don't know, but I read about owners of a Xiaomi phone model (Mi 10T lite) receiving updates after getting into the settings and changing 'phone region', or something to that effect. (Not location.)

Well, that phone is available in the market here. I imagine it's a European-specific offshoot of that model, with some different frequency bands. That's the only thing I can think of that makes it non-certified for here. But who knows? I think I'll drop the thought of buying a phone from Amazon. Too much risk of having a hassle. A earlier post suggested getting in touch with Amazon and have them compel UPS to get the phone shipped back. If that would work, maybe that's the easiest out in this case. Good luck.

Just wondering, I would assume the phone you ordered here is a model not marketed or available for purchase in Thailand? Been looking myself--just yesterday even--at some Moto phones on Amazon that are not sold here. The listings show an 'import duties deposit' in addition to the product price. That implies there should be no problem buying the phone and having it shipped, that everything will be OK. But not so it seems. Kind of a drag, for sure, with a phone stuck in 'customs limbo'. If you don't mind my asking, which Samsung model did you order from Amazon?

Certainly not automated in my case. Submitted to CW last Monday afternoon, waited it out and it was approved today, this Monday afternoon. Noted that approval time was just two minutes shy of matching the submitted time from a week ago. Seven days. Just seems to be no rhyme or reason to it.

It can be done at the time of your next extension. You can also go in and have it done before then, either are OK.

Looks like you're in luck, the info is above, you can apply at the embassy. In person. That old passport is gonna come in handy!

I think what you are asking will the new passport and date of issue be closed to the old expiration date?. Not quite....I understand that the new 'issued on' date will not have any connection to the current one's expiration date. Just investigating the time frame of a renewal application and the new 'issued on' date that goes in the passport, and how best to proceed to possibly affect that. I'll be applying for a new one well in advance, just the timing of my annual extension's 'stay until date' and passport's expiration are coming into play next time around.

Good info. I wasn't looking all that closely about the several exceptions to renewal-by-mail, those categories not allowed to. I did see a sentence, highlighted I believe, that in some case the passport could only be acquired in the U.S. But good that the fella above will be able to get it here.

Yep, that seems to the pattern. The 'issued on' date correlates more with the time the package is received by the embassy than the time it's returned to sender. Next Gen style passport, you say. What's next gen about it? Just wonder about that.

Extension date, 'permitted to stay' date, is always Jan. 25. Current passport expires Nov. 13, 2025. Next year's extension, if done on current passport, would change the 'permitted to stay date' to match that passport's expiry date. If I want to just keep the same Jan. 25 'permitted to stay' date, then I will need a new passport, and most likely would apply for the renewal sometime in mid- October, give it a buffer so that I've got the new one by December. Even if I do the renewal later, (November, early December) that's still about a year ahead of the current one's expiration. The issue becomes what's the priority, sticking with a tried-and-true extension time frame, which I'm comfortable with, or getting max use of the current passport? The idea of targeting the new passport's 'issued on' date, a ballpark estimate for that, just doing a challenge, I guess See if I can affect that so that it's close to what I've got now. Since I'm gonna get one anyways. Just keep things close to the same, if possible

Look, on the website you're asked a few questions to determine whether one is eligible to renew by mail. If you're 15 years or more outside of a renewal, as is in your case, you are not able to continue with a renewal by mail. What happens? I don't know, didn't pursue it much but it seemed to suggest that in such a case one would be limited to getting a new passport only in the U.S. BUT, take a look, and ask them about it, there is a contact form at that juncture.

Start all over again, from the beginning.