inquisitive

 
Just more inane Thai-bashing.
 
In Thailand the equivalent is known as a Notarial Services Attorney.  They are Thai lawyers who've undergone and passed a professional training course before being registered by the Lawyers Council of Thailand.
 
Thai-notarised documents are widely accepted across the globe.

I've had to notarize lots of papers from the US over the years, and I've never been told that a Thai notary is acceptable. It's fifty bucks a pop at the embassy, so I keep hoping. Your best bet is to ask an appropriate authority in the country in which it has to be official. Whenever I dealt with the courts or immigration, I was told it must be a US notary.

This is my "I have a friend story". 
 
I know a Thai lady ...
 
They simply got married in the US... Did the marriage visa while here. She did the interview and was never asked about her tourist visa or overstay. No issues at all ...

Just wondering, what state did your friend's lady apply for her new visa? I understand that can make a difference.

Here's a follow-up : I called the 24 hour information hotline and was told that I could do the 90 day report to Burirum by mail. The fellow didn't sound super- confident, though, so I had someone else call again the next day. She got a different person and they confirmed that it could be done by mail and gave the address. Today I called the Burirum office directly and they said the report could definately NOT be sent to Burirum by mail. All reports would be handled in person only (and they don't use an appointment system at that office). Thanks to all who answered.

The extranet for Immigration has been down for a while with no reason to believe it will be functioning when I need to submit my next 90 day report. I'm living upcountry these days and it would require a few hours for me to drive back and forth to my (not so) local Burirum immigration office to make this report in person. I sure do wish that I had the option of using the mail instead. Unfortunately, I somehow remember that 90 day reporting by mail used to be only available in Bangkok. Does anyone know if it is now possible to report by mail in Burirum?

Thanks.

There's a good chance that you'll never be asked, but the authorities are supposed to do so. This is to prevent either parent from stealing the child from the other parent. BTW you run this risk even on the way out of the US. Conceivably it is possible that the child would be stuck in the USA while you sort this out.

I believe there is a weakness in the system in that the letter from his mom does not need to be notarized. Without notarization and an accompanying birth certificate, how can the authorities be sure that the child's real mother actually gave permission? They certainly aren't going to phone her from the airport! (That wouldn't work anyway. How could they know who is really on the other end of the line?)

An American friend of mine has a GF with a 10 yr b1/b2 visa (tourist /business) for the usa. They have already taken several 5-6 month trips to the usa. He'd like to get married in the usa, but would also like to propose in his old home town, not in Thailand.

Should he travel to the usa on the existing visa and get married once there (assuming she agrees) or must he either get a fiance visa or even get married in Thailand and change his visa over here? Besides ruining his practiced proposal, it would delay the event for many months or even a year or two.

The immigration rules state that if she KNOWS she'll get married on any given trip, then she isn't arriving for the purposes of tourism. I know from someone else in the village that US immigration gets all bent up over this. The poor girl from the village had quit her job and sold her car in preparation for a move.

When that poor hapless girl arrived she proudly told the immigration officer of her plans ... and was sent back to thailand on the next plane!

In my friend's case, the Thai lady believes she's just going for a visit. (If my friend has misread her feelings, that might even be all that happens. Who knows?)

So what do you think they should do?

Thanks.

Once all the papers have been submitted for citizenship on the basis of marriage to a Thai and support of (one's own) Thai children, what is the expected waiting time before approval? Is it reasonable to spend part of that time out of the country, or would that harm your chances of approval?

Thanks.

Thanks for the quick reply. I'm wondering whether the new retirement visa would be considered a renewal (in which case the 800k needs to age 90 days), or whether it would be considered a first-time issuance (which only needs 60 days). I fear that this might be one of those areas where the interpretation depends on the immigration officer on duty that day. Anyone know?

I'm finishing up a year with a work permit and B visa. I want to convert my visa back into a retirement visa like I had for many years before I accepted my job. Can I do this in Phuket without leaving the country? Are there any requirements that are different as compared with changing a tourist visa into a retirement visa for the first time?

Thanks.

It wasn't described as a fee. The person soliciting the gift wasn't even the person to whom the envelope would be handed. They merely said that because mine was a special situation, and also because I lived out of town, etc. they could arrange special handling of my case as a courtesy. They "encouraged" me to bring a gift for the official that would handle my case. I was told that if I brought such a gift in the morning, they it would insure my receiving my papers the same day. They were quite pleasant about the whole thing and very matter-of-fact.

I was reminded of when my father was robbed at gunpoint in Chicago many years ago. The robber apologized and explained that he had no choice since he had to buy drugs. He even gave my father cab fare to his hotel. It was all very civil and nice.

I respect your point of view, but it was not the last hurdle that got me. Rather, it was the fact that once I got PR, I actually would become less free than I am now unless I remained a captive and never left the Kingdom. And then there is the point that there really is no guarantee that anyone really has their PR "for life". As much as I love this country and its people, there is a great sense of entitlement and arrogance among those who have bought their positions. Just look at the amphur leaders I contacted. They honestly felt that even after I paid the Ministry 200,000 baht and had the personal approval of the Minister, he could still squeeze the Farang for an envelope! You really have to be in awe of the chutzpah. Basically the people who run things believe that the rules don't mean anything. So then how could anyone have faith in any of their promises? Lord Chamberlain once felt sure that Hitler's signed promises also had value, but eventually learned that he needed to observe the bigger picture and not give too much credence to government promises and official documents. For me, it appears that I would be giving up a level of freedom for an illusion of stability and acceptance. I felt that I would actually be worse off than if I stayed as n outsider. In some ways it is like the decision to own or rent one's home. Neither side can be sure in advance whether they made the right choice. I thank you once again for your sincere help.

Since making the appointment at the ministry, they called me twice to be sure I was coming and to remind me to bring the w 197,000 baht.

I've also learned that once I have the PR, whenever I want to leave the country I need to travel to an immigration office on a day and time they have normal hours, and pay them 5 times the amount of money that I normally pay with either a work visa or a retirement visa. This can't be done at the airport.

So once they've prodded and tested me and my contacts, once they've gotten personal recommendations from extremely high-level government officials, and after being interviewed on tape before a panel of experts to be absolutely sure I am the kind of person who would bring benefit to Thailand, then they want nearly 200,000 baht in cash, plus more under the table both on a federal and local level, and they want to make it more difficulty for me to travel than if I were a football hooligan on a expat tour.

I really feel bad to say that they have convinced me to pass on their kind invitation. I will remain here on my 2 year work visa, and when I retire again I'll go back to 1 year retirement visas. I respect the opinions of those who see this differently and I think you made some very good points. As you can see by the narrative, I decided to get the PR, but then the policies and attitudes that surrounded it made me feel I would be more of a captive than guest.

Thanks again for all the great input.

I thank all of you for your great advice. Since I last reported, I made an appointment with the ministry. They said they were booked about a month ahead, so the appointment is next week. I was told that once I handed over my 197,000 baht fee, the business in the ministry would take 2 days. Because of this and that, however, they would be sure to get me finished in a single day. They also made it clear that they expected a gratuity for the expedited service. (They were quite gentle and polite about it. In fact they said it didn't even need to be very much money at all. Quite fascinating conversation all in all)

Then I have to pick up other documents and bring them to the amphur where I would be registered.

I called that office and was told that I would need an appointment and I would be tested, interviewed, etc. . I had to bring my local poo yai and a neighbor. If I passed, the process would take about a week.

I'm really grateful for all the good observations and advice I've been receiving. Thank you all. I'm particularly moved by the observation that life is unpredictable and we'd best grab whatever opportunities we can whenever they appear. Opposing this sound advice in this particular instance is the fact that life IS unpredictable, and anyone holding permanent residency losses it forever if he doesn't return to the Kingdom at least once every 365 days. So once the PR holder returns to his homeland, he has to return here like clockwork come sickness, health, accidents, and surprises, or else the whole concept falls apart. Unless he keeps up his "reverse border runs" forever, he really doesn't have the reassurance that he can always return. That's the single largest point against spending so much for the PR so far as I'm concerned.

I'm still on the fence about all this, though all your good advice has inched me a little closer to springing for the huge cost even if my employer doesn't see any benefit to stepping up to the plate. Thank you again.

I have been waiting since 2009 to get my approval for permanent residency. It finally arrived today but my circumstances have changed in the last six years, and now the PR status isn't really of so much benefit to me anymore. The bottom line is that I'd take it if it was free but now I can't see spending the full snd huge cost to get it.

OTOH, I was wondering if there might be a some reason why my employer might think it was of benefit to him. Perhaps his tax situation would change, or whatever.

My plan is to tell him of the situation and say I'd go through the last checklist of hoops I need to jump through if he wanted to foot the bill. Does anyone know any reason why an employer might consider such an offer? I'd want to point it out to him if there was one.

Thanks for your feedback, and congratulations to all the others that waited so many years and finally have met with success. I know that PR is a fantastic thing under the right circumstances. It's just that the inordinate delay has caused various changes in my life and it's just not worth any more investment for me. I wish there was some way I could pass my letter on to someone who could benefit more.

Any ideas or even half ideas are welcome.

Once you receive approval, how long is it good for? In other words, how long do you have to accept the invitation before it expires?

Interesting comment, RT255. Totally ignorant of course. Whether the people that you refer to are lazy or not would entirety depend on things that you know nothing about. Let's just say that you were referring to the nanny in your comment. How would you know if she was lazy? If you meant the employer, again I would ask how you'd know. For instance, maybe the employer is wheelchair bound from an accident that occurred during the night shift of his second job while he was working on his online degree during his one break that night. Would you describe him as lazy?

Your comment should embarrass you. Unless, of course, you are brain damaged or have some similar affliction. I wish you the best of luck with your condition, but ask you to please participate in some other activity instead of annoying people here. Thanks, buddy.

Wow. Thank you all for the great information.

Hi Mac. Thanks for your help. My guess is that I might do both. I'm thinking that we'll first go back for an extended vacation to take our time and look around. Then if we find a place we'd like to call home, we'd come back to Thailand for another 6 months or so and prepare for the big move.

I'm asking this way in advance since I think that I may need to lay lots of groundwork for US Immigration before actually applying. I'm American with a Thai wife and 3 luk kreung children ages 3-6. The kids all have American passports but my wife does not. She is still running on a 10 year multiple entry visa for the US. My wife and son have all been over to the US a couple of times together with no problems.

In another year or two we'll want to go back again, this time adding my two daughters to the crew. I'd really like to bring the nanny along as well (for obvious reasons) but I don't know how successful we'll be regarding a visa for the live-in nanny.

The nanny has been with us for 3 years now, and she receives a monthly cash salary. She'd be delighted to make the trip without pay just as part of our family (ie. not as a worker, but I'm sure that immigration would not see it that way at all.

So my question is what type of visa should we have the nanny apply for, and what kind of documentation would she need?

I am wondering if we should start to pay her "on the books " starting now. I'm also wondering whether there is a critical age for the children where nannies are more easily accepted.

Does anyone have any advice or experience with this?

Hmm.

I think that I read some time back that Thailand has something like 3,000 generals and with around 233,000 soldiers, while the USA has about 3,400 generals covering 1,500,000 soldiers. On the other hand, maybe my memory is playing tricks on me. Does anyone know what the real numbers are (even approximately)? I need this information for a report I'm making, so even a hint as to where I could find the information myself would be a help. I tried doing a search in TV but couldn't locate the original posting.

Does anyone know about how long the whole process is taking these days to get citizenship based on marriage to a Thai wife once all other requirements have been met?

I was once told that for someone contemplating getting a work permit, a long-stay visa based on being the supporting parent of a Thai child was better than a retirement visa. The idea was that if you lose your job and you have the family visa, your original visa is still good. The retirement visa on the other hand, would have been given up when you got the visa for work, so in that case you would have to start over. Does anyone know if this is true, and whether there are any other considerations to be taken into account?