rwilem

Thank you for your reply. I've seen your thread and posts on VOIP on the forum. You have an abundance of knowledge and expertise in VOIP technology, you are the go-to guy on VOIP in this forum. Even if some of the info is going over my head, I'm still learning a lot from your contributions. I had not really known anything about SIP until a few weeks ago. Yet, it's been around for a long time already. And seems to have a lot of potential to be the answer here, for being able to make the calls to numbers in the U.S., and at a good rate. That said, the tech seems to be more oriented toward heavier duty, for businesses and calling from computers. I'm strictly mobile, not making calls from a computer but from a mobile phone. But it is good to see some niche for mobile calling in the SIP eco-system. Anyway, the bank transfer mode of payment you mentioned here isn't an attractive option, for me at least. I'd just prefer to use a credit card. I assume there are going to be some SIP providers (or clients, is that the term?) who accept payment on a U.S. credit card. I have downloaded the Linphone app, and a couple other 'work with SIP' apps, but haven't proceeded with any of them yet. Callcentric is another outfit, and I saw that customers can 'rent' a phone number, which comes at a cost of about $3/month. OK, something to consider. If you want a number, which I really don't need. I made some of my last Skype calls yesterday. I told one customer service rep at some point during the call that I was calling on Skype, from here. She was surprised. I asked her what was showing up on her end as to where the incoming call was from. I did not hear a clear reply, and it wasn't that important anyway, as we just carried on with the business at hand. Oh yes, the scammers are out in force. Skype worked like a charm. There were even many months when I didn't make any calls, but it was worth it to have the subscription and keep it because when you did need it, it was there and was reliable. That's what I'd really like to replicate.

I have read through the posts in the other threads. And I agree, those three are among ones that look promising. Have you used any of the three? Off the top Viber seems like the one that might correspond best with what I had with Skype.

Seems to be several. Some of the friends already have a Voice account, so they're not able to make a second one, as their mobile number, which is needed to receive the code for creating the account, is already tied to a Voice account. Google limits Voice to a single account per mobile number. ("Got an extra Sim card laying around?" Haha. Wouldn't make a difference anyway. Everyone's on a 'plan' with their phone locked to a provider.) There might also be an issue of where the google account which is going to be used was created. That seems to have caused an issue, of whether a google account--not the Voice account--was created here or created in the U.S. Haven't solved that yet. Then some, especially iphone users there (and of my friends there almost no one uses an Android phone, they all use iphones) are hesitant about the whole process of making a Google account, downloading the Voice app, and making the Voice account, in whatever order the accounts are made, then receiving the code...lot of people, my friends, older folks, are just not versed in this stuff. (And my older friends in U.S. are all on 'unlimited talk and text' plans these days anyway, so the idea of the need for other calling apps doesn't really register. Even when you try to explain it.) I'll add, some people in the U.S. are just very hesitant about their numbers being used for things. I know that they have been dealing with spam calls over the years, and really have an aversion to the spam-o-sphere. Folks are just plain tired of all the spam and want to mitigate it. Understandable. Not easy to overcome concerns (unfounded or not) their number being used in this manner might result in them being vulnerable to spam calls, or worse, or a security risk. I don't know. But it's been tough to get Voice going. Not giving up yet, though.

Skype's imminent shutdown has spurred users to scramble to find alternatives, and soon. There've been many suggestions and recommendations about what to replace it with, in these forums and comments, articles elsewhere. But many services/apps are not really appropriate, not quite geared for what my Skype replacement needs are. I've had a Skype subscription, without a 'Skype number', for years. It allowed unlimited dial-out calls to the U.S., to landlines and mobile numbers, auto-billed at $2.99 a month. Good deal, good service. I used Skype just about exclusively for these dial-out calls via the app on the phone. I don't use it on the computer. That is all I want to replace. Whatsapp, Line, Facetime, Messenger, etc., no, they don't do it. So many of the suggestions to replace Skype focus on other things. And many are geared more toward business, or promote themselves as such. I am searching only for a replacement that'll allow phone calls to U.S. landline numbers--necessary for calls to financial institutions and service companies, government offices and businesses--and mobile numbers. Don't need video calling, don't need texting, don't need other international calling (only calls to the U.S.), don't need to receive calls (so no need to have a 'my number'), don't need it to receive codes. I get it that many Skype customers who have accounts that provided them with a phone number are now in a quandary. They want to keep the phone number, understandably so, and get the number ported to a different service. I don't need to, though. Many articles what to replace Skype with tend to feature how the replacements work using desktop, rather than mobile. It's a bit bewildering trying to sort through the seemingly hundreds of options that exist. Google voice would be great, but I've not been able to successfully create an account (yet), even working together with a friend in the U.S. TextNow and TextFree (both which give users a U.S. number, by the way) are also difficult to get set up. Again, working with a friend in the U.S., but have not gotten it going. And if they are able to determine your location/device outside the U.S., or VPN use, the account gets zapped. (I may not be tech-savvy enough on these matters.) The same applies for a number of other U.S. call oriented apps, such as TextMe and Talkatone. In the past few weeks I have learned about SIP for the first time. Maybe that's the answer, but I still need to learn more about it. 'Softphones' in association with a SIP account seems a possibility. I see reports of scam operations out there, though, every time I look into a provider. It's quite a wild, wild west out in the VOIP world. If anyone knows of a basic, no-frills service/app, able to facilitate calls to U.S. landline/mobile numbers, at low rates, something that would be competitive to a soon-to-be-defunct Skype 'U.S. subscription', please feel free to share. If you've got the tip on how to get some of the above-mentioned apps set up for working here, that is good too.

On the money, it's a good idea to have it, for the just-in-case scenario. The cash doesn't have to be in baht, it can be an equivalent amount in a foreign currency. If you've got them, seven $100 bills beats twenty 1000 baht notes for ease of carry.

That's a drag. I'm assuming we're talking about CW. Even when things are running smoothly there it can take 3, 4, maybe 5 business days. Even though once in a while you get a day or two-day turnaround from submitting to APPROVED. They did announce the system was going to be down for a few hours, in the very early AM one day last week. ('Maintenance' was given for the reason.) You haven't gotten a rejection yet, so that's looking at bright side, if you can call it that. Those tend to come back sooner rather than later. Some people suggest giving them a call, and perhaps at smaller Immigration offices that works. Don't know if it would be effective at CW, but maybe it's worth a try. I've never given them a call, so can't advise there. As long as you submitted no more than a couple weeks from the due date, just hang on. Maybe by tomorrow late afternoon you can get the all-clear.

U.S. passports, 10 years from the date of issue. Concept for us of getting 'extra time' for an early renewal doesn't come into play. Again, for folks living overseas maybe it's better to think about passports being good for 9 years plus change. That takes into account a few issues. The '6 months validity' for international travel, and the time frames these days for hoops-jumping renewals. And for those living here and are inclined to remain on their annual 'extension schedule', thus getting the full year, a new passport ahead of going into year 10 on the current is a good idea. (But you could also plan the renewal to change the date of your annual extension, if you find doing that to be advantageous.)

Don't worry about that, about how they count to the 90th day. Sometimes the count is off a day or two from what you think it should be. It doesn't matter. The only thing you concern yourself with is the next due date. At CW, for online reporting they normally start the 90 day count from the date submitted of an APPROVED report. So you submitted the report today. Did you receive an email (check the spam folder, too), or were informed at the site that your submitted report was successfully received? If so, good. Wait it out. Nothing will happen (or at least normally not) over the weekend at CW. You can check status at the site. Rejections tend to come back faster than approvals. If rejected, you might, or might not, be told in a note what was wrong. If rejected, submit another report. (And if rejected again, do another. I've been APPROVED on a third try that was submitted even after the due date! That's why you make the appointment to go out there in person--with the hope you won't need it--for 4, 5 days, 6 days is the limit, after your due date.) If/when approved, note the next due date, and proceed as described earlier.

Thanks. So there's really nothing to stop a person, say here in Thailand, from travel to one of the countries in the region. Or actually to anywhere except back to the UK. Maybe an EU country might not be a good idea. But overseas travel really couldn't be restricted while one is waiting for the new passport.

Man, seems like you and some others have really been put through the wringer with these passport renewals. With extra layers of outsourcing and bureaucracy the chances for a cluster arising goes up. What you quoted above, I don't get. So does your HMPO put out notice to all governments that they've made a new passport for a UK national (which is not yet in the person's possession) and they are 'cancelling' the valid status of the one that person is currently in possession of? Thus the 'you won't be able to travel' using the one the person possesses. And throw in the lengthy times for many of these renewals--someone's posted waiting ten weeks--that is a tough restriction. Seems it'd just be better to cancel the validity of he current one, cancel the passport, when one is able to take personal possession of the new one. OR, is that how it happens anyway, and they just giving you a line of BS about not traveling?

You submitted earlier than allowed. April 4 or 5 would have been the best time to submit the online report in this case. Log in to the system, cancel the pending submission and make a new submission today, which is the 4th, so you are submitting at the most ideal time. If you want to make an appointment in case your report, the one you make today, gets rejected you can make an appointment for any date that is up to 6 days past April 18. In your case here any day of Monday-Thursday, April 21-24 will be OK. Furthermore, monitor the status of the report you submit today. If it ends up getting rejected, submit another one again. And again, if necessary, up until the 18th. If you ultimately are approved, then you can go back into the appointment system and cancel the 90-day appointment you made. NOTE: If the report you submit today ends up getting approved, the next due date will be 90 days from today, from the 4th. Mark the new due date and next time submit an online report two calendar weeks prior to it. In effect, start thinking of it as a '75 day report'.

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Good experience. And great service from your embassy, to have a regular passport ready at the same time as the emergency one. Out of the U.S., UK and Australia, it appears AUS currently has the smoothest renewal process in place for those getting new passports in Thailand.

What happened? Were you not able to board the flight? Or realized on your own before it got to that point of the planned trip? But for sure, got to have six months validity left. Actually, best to have a good cushion of more than six months validity left. Thinking....what if a guy had say, 7 months validity on the passport, and traveled somewhere and stayed for six weeks. And then was going to travel onward to another country. (And not talking about an 'annual extensions w/re-entry permit' or 'valid visa' person returning to Thailand.) What would, or might happen in such a case? Could be a cluster?

Probably a good idea for those living here longer-term and getting yearly extensions to plan for their passport renewals sometime during year 9. From the halfway point to near the end of year 9 of it's validity, perhaps. Thinking 'the passport's good for 10 years' (and/or trying to 'milk it' for that time) can backfire. Plus, you've got the '6 months validity remaining on the passport' issue for most international travel. I renewed mine about a year-and-a-half prior to it's expiration date, as I wanted the new one well ahead of the next extension, as not to disrupt the long-held timing of the annual extension. If you want to get a new time frame for your extension--and some might want to do that--then you can plan the timing of a passport renewal vis a vis a future new extension time frame. And to play it safe, you wouldn't want to have a passport with less than six months validity, anyway. (If you're positive you will not travel internationally--unless it's to the home country--then you would not need to consider that.) The days of being able to turn up at the embassy in person with your passport, give a completed form and photo and rather easily get a renewal, are just about gone. Got to be proactive and get with the 'new program' even if it's got some complications.

Understand, thanks. If he had said 6, 7, or 8 years ago I'd have thought nothing of it. But that '5 years', it made me wonder.

This page on passport renewals for British people residing in Thailand was updated last week. Is the info accurate? It's not an 'official' source, but may have something helpful. https://mybritishpassport.com/british-passport-renewals-from-bangkok/ Is my understanding correct, that VFS is a private enterprise and that the UK and some other embassies 'outsource' the passport renewals of their nationals residing here? Or at least some of that process? Why would they do that? Seems to be a critical issue and as such one that embassy personnel would want to be in control of, and monitor themselves. And when the renewal still has to be processed 'back home', an extra layer of potential miscommunication and misunderstanding is added to the task.

Are British passports valid for only five years? That's kind of implied there. If so, that's a real pain for Brits living overseas

Victor Davis Hanson is a distinguished fellow of the Martin and Illie Anderson Senior Fellow at Stanford University’s Hoover Institution. He is an American military historian, columnist, a former classics professor, and scholar of ancient warfare. He has been a visiting professor at Hillsdale College since 2004, and is the 2023 Giles O'Malley Distinguished Visiting Professor at the School of Public Policy, Pepperdine University. Hanson was awarded the National Humanities Medal in 2007 by President George W. Bush, and the Bradley Prize in 2008. Hanson is also a farmer (growing almonds on a family farm in Selma, California) and a critic of social trends related to farming and agrarianism. He is the author of the just released New York Times best seller, The End of Everything: How Wars Descend into Annihilation, published by Basic Books on May 7, 2024, as well as the recent The Second World Wars: How the First Global Conflict Was Fought and Won,and The Dying Citizen. He's worth reading and listening to. "We maintain a strict policy of accepting links or content only from mainstream and recognised media sources to ensure that information posted by members is both verifiable and trustworthy. We strive to remain impartial, prioritising content that meets these standards and removing content that, in our opinion, does not.” The censorship by this forum to disallow discussion of an article posted earlier and authored by a figure as prominent and reputable as Victor Davis Hanson is abhorrent. No matter how it's dressed up. 'In your opinion'. What is that backed up with?

At CW they stop issuing queue tickets at 3:30, at least that was the cutoff time as of two years ago. I've used the appointment system for everything the last few years, so a confirm is in order for that. I've been able to get queue tickets just before 3:30 and get my business done. They even had a sign I recall, something to the effect of 'no tickets after 3:30'. If you get a queue ticket you will get your task taken care of, and things tend to move quicker as the hour gets later.

Respectfully, just because something is spelled out on the immigration website does not mean it is followed by every immigration office. As far as making an online 90-day report up until the last day, that has become obsolete in Bangkok. CW has reverted to the previous time frame for submitting, 15-7 days before the due date. So it's probably good for those submitting online 90-day reports at CW to regard it as a '75-day report'. (Which I've noted in previous posts on the subject.) Best to submit it two calendar weeks ahead of its due date, which gives an opportunity for a 2nd submission (even 3rd) in case of a rejection, within the time frame. And the approved report has a 'next due date' set 90 days from the date you submitted--which is how CW handles it. You want to do the next one the first day you can. Thus, the '75-day report'. This is for CW.

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You have not been approved yet? If you submitted on Monday the 10th, there's a high possibility that was one day early. Might be best to log In to the system, go to 'check status', and cancel that submission and immediately submit another one. You are still within the window to submit online, 15-to-7 days before the due date, if that limitation does apply to your locale. And if not, then you have plenty of time after a new submission. As far as I'm aware, I've never heard of anyone being informed that they submitted earlier than allowed. So maybe best to be proactive, do a cancel-and-resubmit.

Yes, should not be any problem with that. Proceed doing it online, with the new 'permitted to stay until date' from your recent extension.