rideswings

Thanks Ubonjoe. I will give myself some extra time to get it done before my flight.

I finally got my 90 day report receipt in the mail. They attached a yellow note to the receipt that read, "In the future, please apply 15 days before the due date."

Well, I applied 13 dats before, so I dont know what they mean by that. I thought I could apply up to 15 days before.

In any case, doing it by mail was far easier and cheaper than going all the way out to Chang Wattana.

Hi everyone. I will be leaving Thailand and need to get a reentry stamp at the airport at 4am to keep my retirement extension valid.

I did it last time, and it wasnt a problem, but it was in the afternoon. This time it will be at 4am. Anyone know if they are open at that hour to get a reentry stamp before I leave LOS? Thanks!

You will need to sign up on your states health exchange and/or will need to use the healthcare.gov site if your state does not have one. If you are signing up outside of the open enrollment period you will need show a Qualifying Life Event (QLE) of why you did not sign up during the open enrollment. Since you have been in Thailand and not living in the states, that would be a QLE. The insurance plans are horrible compared to any of the plans I have ever had through an employer, or private insurance before. The only good point is no pre-existing condition exclusion. They are expensive depending on your age and lifestyle (smoking etc). We can only hope many parts of it repealed in the coming year.

I would recommend to STAY AWAY from the state or federally sponsored ACA health care plans... The premiums are astronomical and deductibles so high that you will never benefit if you need treatment...

There are still state-specific 3rd party insurance providers that have policies available which are cheaper and provide better coverage than the ACA... The who, what questions are based on which state you are going to live in... My only other advice is to bend over and grab your ankles, because are not going to like the premiums... My example being myself as I still carry insurance coverage in the US... My premium is $904 per month, just for me and I have zero pre-existing conditions and am in perfect health... There are reports of families of 4 paying in excess of $2400 per month, just for health care coverage... I know you are not going to like this, but it's reality under the Obama regime...

EDIT: Another option is to claim indigence and go on Medicaid... That's how the millions of illegals in the US get treatment...

Yes the premiums are astronomical, almost double what health insurance for me costs here. We will be living in Florida, probably one of the more expensive states for coverage.

Yes your premium of $904 per month is really high, but you probably have good coverage. Some of the lower cost plans I was looking at dropped to about $250 per month, but the deductibles are $12,000 per person for the year per person!

My income places me above the indigent level, so I prob wouldnt qualify for Medicaide, but its a thought... haha

On second thought, you said your thai wife might be in the USA for only one year or so. I am not sure your wife will be required to get insurance. Are you filing a joint income tax return? Is your Thai wife your legally married USA wife? You are not actually required to get insurance, but if you don't, you have to pay a fine, which at the moment is trivial. You might want to consider having her on Thai medical insurance and handle it that way. If something severe happens, fly back to Thailand.

Yes we plan to be in the USA for at least 1 year or more. We plan to file joint taxes in the USA after she gets there and gets an SS number. Our marriage is registered in Thailand.

I see that the penalty for not having insurance is trivial in the USA, certainly cheaper than some of the monthly insurance payments, but the downside is not being covered.

She currently has Thai medical insurance that costs around 3000 baht per quarter. Yes she could fly back to Thailand if something severe happens, but its 24 hours travel on an airplane, so I hope if it was something severe, she would still be able to fly.

Thanks for the info Aaron. Yes I agree the plans are horrible, but I guess its better than nothing in the event of having an uncovered event.

Hopefully some time this year, my Thai wife will be coming with me to the USA for a year or two. I think that the government will require her to have health insurance but Im not sure where to start. Seems we will need to get a joint plan, I dont have insurance there now. I have been living in LOS for a long time.

Has anyone else brought their wife over and what did you do to procure health insurance for her? Based on some of the plans I have been reviewing online, the price for 2 people on a plan appears to be a little less than double for a single person. The plans also seem really expensive and many have high deductibles, or maybe Im just getting sticker shock.

Any suggestions?

Thanks Ubonjoe. I am leaving in 2 weeks and I just dont want to have a problem at the airport upon my departure.

This is what the TM47 said, so thats what I did. In retrospect, I wish I had gone down there.

My 90 day report for retirement extension was due Jan 28 and I sent it in 14 days ago EMS and they received it 13 days ago. I have not heard back from them. Is there a number I can call? It is now 2 days past the 90 days.

Marriage certificate had to be translated or she would not accept my paperwork.

Also make sure to ring the bell only one time then sit down. She yelled at me because I rang it again after she didnt come to the window the first time after I waited 10 minutes.

Thanks again for the info. I have read stories of RFE and/or whole packets being sent back because the petitioner omitted an N/A in one of the questions. I guess going there in person helps cut down the time if anything was omitted or any more information is requested.

1. No appointment was made when filing the I-130.

2. The attached I-130 cover letter lists everything I included when I filed the I-130.

3. A person does not need a sponsor if they have adequate finances.

4. Tuesday Oct 28 – got the official Packet 3 letter from the Consular Section at the US Embassy via mail. (NOA1?)

Wednesday Nov 19 – 9 am - I received an email (NOA2?)from the Immigrant Visa Unit instructing my wife to come in for The interview at 7 am Tuesday Dec 2nd.

Thanks! I forgot to ask if your spouse came with you when you filed the I-130, and what the filing experience was like. Is it similar to getting something done at the embassy, go through security, get a number then wait till called to see a clerk?

Did you actually meet with someone to discuss your petition, and did anyone review your package as you were submitting it for missing/incomplete items? Also, do you know if they accept credit card payments for the $420 usd filing fee?

Im really happy to hear that you got through the process without any RFE requests. I have read so many horror stories about the USCIS losing pictures, certificates, and other delays and then needing replacements.

We went to Bang Rak Khet in BKK and got married and they did not ask to see an original Tabien Ban, we gave them copies only. It might be required but they didnt ask for it. However, if my wife had changed her name or been previously married, they would have asked to see it.

This is a wonderful and very informative post, thanks for taking the time to share your details. Can I ask some questions about the process?

1. Did you make an appt for the uscis when filing the I-130?

2. What documents did you include when filing the I-130? Chat logs, emails, cover page?

3. Does a person need a sponsor if they have adequate US finances, house, retirement savings, etc.

4. Did you get email/mail notices or NOA1 and NOA2?

Thanks again.

Thanks for the info. I applied by EMS mail this time in Bangkok. I hope it all goes smoothly.

Thanks again.

I guess jumping through hoops before you get married is preparing you for marriage

When we got married we had to take original documents and two copies of each of them. We did phone the amphur first to see what was exactly required at that particular office.

Thanks for the info. I will call the Amphur near me and see what they need. Did the Amphur actually ask to see your book or just accept the copies?

Im going to be getting married soon, and want to know if the Amphur will accept a copy of the tabien baan or does it have to be the original? The original might take a while for me to get.

Im from the USA living in BKK, her parents home is in Khon Kaen.

Check out this link. Scroll down to Maxx58 post #8. He says it in a nutshell.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/792442-what-papers-does-a-farang-need-to-marry-in-thailand/?p=8948712

<<<I am an American citizen who married a Thai national last month.

Since I was previously married and divorced in the States I needed a Marriage Affidavit and a Divorce Affidavit. I took both papers to the US Embassy to be notorized at $50 each.

Then I took both papers and my Divorce Decree to be translated into Thai. Even though I had the Divorce Decree translated, it wasn't needed as I was never asked to show it.

Good thing, because the knucklehead who translated the two notorized papers messed up and I had to get them re-translated. There is an excellent translation service at the Foreign Affairs that translated both papers at 300 baht each and took less than an hour.

Took the translated papers to Foreign Affairs, payed the fee (I think it was 1,900 baht), waited a while, and then got the ok to proceed to the Amphur.

Went to the local Amphur near the Foreign Affairs office with my papers, had the wife fill out a paper that was in Thai, got a number and waited a short time before we were called into the office to complete the marriage process. After paying the fee (I can't remember how much), we were legally married in Thailand.

Wife had to show ID Card and House Registration paper. They provided the two witnesses for us, in fact, we didn't even see who they were.

Hope this helps!>>>

Thanks again for all your help.

I have had a retirement extension since July 2014, do you think I would be eligible for DCF? I went back to the states for 2 months during this period, but since July I will have been living in Thailand for 4 consecutive months, in addition to 4 consecutive months on a Non-O before that.

They require 6 month residency to file at the USCIS office in Bangkok, since you got your extension in July you should be fine, shouldn't matter that you weren't for the full time, since you are here on extension.

You will have to be married before you file as they only accept submissions for relatives, they will not accept paperwork for a K1, that has to be filed in the US.

Thanks Aaron. Will the paperwork for DCF be the same as filing for a K3? I have been researching here on on VJ but cant find an answer.

Mac, I dont think she has the resources to qualify for a tourist visa.

I have had a retirement extension since July 2014, do you think I would be eligible for DCF? I went back to the states for 2 months during this period, but since July I will have been living in Thailand for 4 consecutive months, in addition to 4 consecutive months on a Non-O before that.

Thanks Aaron! Great information.