JimGant

Citibank on-line wire transfer appears to be pretty slick. The following website provides some more info.

Citibank Wire Transfer Info

Mr Suriya also said the authorities would ensure that Suvarnabhumi airport would be a mafia-free zone and those mafia figures or gangs who planned to move their base from Don Muang airport to the new airport would face a severe crackdown. He said he has instructed Gen Chainant not to allow the presence of any mafia people or gangs at the new airport.

3. She said that I could get a 30 day stamp at the border and I could get it changed into a Non-Immigrant Visa in Bangkok if there were at least 21 days left on it (and I had all the proper paperwork). So no need to fly to Penang or home for those of us who can get the required documents.

(from the first post in this thread)

Not really wanting to stir up more dust -- but I'm surprised this statement hasn't been challenged (?). However, it wouldn't surprise me if the nice lady at Immigration wasn't confused, since it seems possible Immigration gets "Visa on Arrival" confused with the '30-day no-visa-required stamp' (officially, "tourist visa exemption") that the US, Britain, and 39 other countries are allowed. Maybe there's something mistranslated when Thai regulations are translated into English..........

Anyway, the point is, 30-day stamps have *never* qualified to be upgraded to real visas within Thailand itself. Only recently, tourist visas with "21 days left, plus proper paperwork" could be upgraded in-county to Non Immigation O visas for the purpose of obtaining a retirement extension stamp.

But, who knows. Maybe there's movement afoot to allow obtaining proper visas from 30-day stamps -- as long as you don't have an earring in your nose, of course.

This is so incredibly nonsensical -- it must be true.

Embassy letter verifying your address

Jay,

Are you sure a 'certificate of residency' is needed? (I assume this is what you meant in the quote.....)

If so, this could prove interesting, at least in CM, where it was recently posted that to get a Certificate of Residency (at least from Immigration, which is *free* vice from Embassy), you need to already be on a one-year extension. Chicken-and-egg thingy, at least for the first-time application for extension of stay.

so I will get a 90 day and deal with the O and O-A when I get to Bkk.

No, you will get a tourist visa, which will get you a 60-day (not 90-day) stamp upon arrival in Thailand. So, based on the 21-days-remaining rule Lop mentioned, you'll need to get cracking by day 39 in Thailand, not day 69. And the term "O-A" evaporates once you leave the States, tho' the end result will be the same, i.e., permitted to stay for one year from date of entry into Thailand.

If that picture was taken in Thailand, it's an even chance it's water buffalo. (And if it were the 1960's, a 100% chance.)

But, it tastes ok; a little chewy however. The wife still asks in restaurants advertising 'beef' whether or not it really is buffalo. Surprising the number of honest answers.

Kobe Buffalo anyone??

Thanx for the replies.

When we had a red plate we were told not to travel from Greater Bangkok and not to use the vehicle during the hours of darkness.

I heard too about the 'no night driving,' but thought that it was so stupid as to not be true (maybe a 'new' driver should be restricted to daylight, but a 'new' car..........??!! Ridiculous, so probably true). And if true, and with the insurance invalidity question, guess I'd better look into it.

Anyone have anything definitive on this?

Finalizing buying a new car, but am confused about 'temporary' license plates.

I was told I could either get 'red plates' while waiting for my permanent plates; or just drive without any plates while waiting (dealer says this option is good for 60 days). With the latter, I would be prevented (legally, anyway) from driving out of my Province for overnight stays -- so says the dealer.

Since I don't plan to leave the Province, and think the added annoyance of obtaining interim red plates isn't worth the bother, what am I missing here? Is the dealer correct? Is there some other advantage I'm missing?

(wife says red plates are just typical Thai bragging: "I've got a new car. La dee la dee da.")

what's the difference between Business Class and First Class?

Usually, 45 degrees vs. horizontal.

Yes. I am OK to get on the plane.

Is this in response to brit's advice to have an exit ticket from Thailand? If so, as he says, you may NOT be ok, as without a visa the airlines are supposed to ensure you've already booked your exit from Thailand.

Not always enforced, however. But be prepared to buy an exit ticket when you check in.

Upon further thinking..........

The problem arises when the agent, unfamiliar with the situation, finds out in discussion that, yes, you have a second, foreign passport and that's how you last left Thailand. Of course, you don't have your foreign passport in your hand. But when the agent asks to see it, you've no alternative but to drag it out of your bag (or lie). And the easiest solution for the muddled agent then becomes to stamp you in on your foreign passport, regardless of your protestations.

Now, I'll be travelling with the wife when she next enters Thailand. If she gives me her US passport, she can truthfully tell the agent she no longer has her US passport. Then, the agent has two choices: stamp her in on her Thai passport; or call for a pooyai. Either way, things should resolve in her favor.

Of course, I'll be hanging around the podium to see how all this pans out (so, it's best I go ahead of her thru the immigration podium). And if we get to the pooyai stage -- and showing the US passport becomes necessary for some reason, it can be done without trapping the wife in a lie about not having it. (Lying to pooyais can be counterproductive )

But, if she were travelling alone... I would probably advise her to 'lie' if the agent asked to see it. She could somewhat truthfully say, "I saw no reason to bring it along, since as a Thai citizen my Thai passport is all I need." (At which point the sharp agent would ask 'why, then, no US exit stamp in Thai PP?' But, this whole thing is going on because the agent is NOT sharp.)

Anyway, the agent still has no foreign passport to stamp, so it becomes pooyai time. And the bottom line would seem to be: never ever let the agent see your foreign passport. He/she then has to honor your Thai passport -- or call a pooyai. Win/win (unless the pooyai's a jerk).

Good thread.

The wife finally got tired of paying for an annual extension stamp; thus, she now has a brand new Thai passport obtained in Bangkok. So, in a few months, she too will have the joy of trying to enter Thailand with a virgin Thai passport -- and no TM-6 attached -- and no old Thai passport to show previous exit.

Does anyone have a feel for whether of not using the "Thai only" (or whatever it's called) checkpoint would be advantageous? Probably no difference, as all workers probably rotate thru every and all positions. But maybe this position is more desirable - and if positions are bid on, may go to more senior (and presumably more knowledgeable) Immigration officers. Or, maybe this is where they put the language/mentally challenged folks..........

Or it may be smarter to use the "Thai only" line since using your Thai passport in a foreign line would kinda stick out........

Any thoughts?

My Thai wife of 30 years has never changed any of her Thai paperwork to indicate 'married, ' which in most cases would involve checking the "mrs" and not the "miss" box, as "ms" apparently is not an option in Thailand (she kept her maiden name, so she's still legally who she says she is, if you don't count the prefix). Besides not wanting to bother with paperwork, she is also under the opinion that being a "mrs" in Thailand means your husband is required to get involved in situations where it is not really necessary, but only a nuisance. (I have no examples of this, however.) So, even when the opportunity avails itself, like during passport renewal, she still checks the "miss" box.

I don't know whether there might be any legal snags for masquerading as single. Buying land might be one, where you're required to reveal being married to a foreigner. But the law also says if you bought land and lied about your marital status, this is easily remedied at the Land Office, if you care to fess up. So, I really doubt there are any (serious) ramifications of playing 'single.'

There might be a situation where indicating "single" could be counterproductive, e.g., hospital visatation rights being allowed for only spouse and family (don't know Thailand's rule on this). It might not be too efficient trying to prove marriage with my US marriage certificate, which I've never had translated into Thai......

Bank Account

If you are working or living in Thailand or just moving here, we can help to set up a new bank account for you quickly and easily. With a long-term visa and a work permit or a Certificate of Residence, you can apply for access to our additional banking services like phone banking and internet banking

Directly off the Bangkok Banks' website. It sure seems to say that opening an account doesn't require anything, especially a work permit. Only if you want additional banking services do you need a non-imm visa and either a WP or certificate of residence.

Don't imagine waiving that in front of a manager would do any good.......

opened account in bangkok bank chiang mai no proplem however if you want internet banking you need special account

You can open an internet banking account with just a savings account. According to their website, you need a non-imm visa plus either a work permit or certificate of residence. I don't know how strict they are about this, as we opened our internet account in the wife's name.

Kinda slick, as we have individual and joint savings accounts, and these are all linked together via the internet account. And besides transfering funds on-line between these accounts, you can also designate other accounts (like your maid's or landlord's) to receive transfers. Came in handy when payday came -- and we were abroad.

Application link for BB Internet Banking

I believe most Consulates in the US do not require a ticket if you have a US passport. Or would accept your itinerary rather than a return ticket.

?

True, no return ticket needed to get any kind of Thai visa. And then, once you have a Thai visa, no airline will want to see your "out of Thailand" ticket.

But, as I understand it, the OP's dilemna is: No return ticket, plus no visa.

And yes, ANA just might deny boarding without either a visa or an "out of Thailand" ticket. Why? Because they're a code-share with United Airlines. And I know first-hand that United -- on occasions -- will ask to see your 'out of Thailand' ticket if they can't find a visa in your passport. (In our case, my dual-citizen wife just showed her Thai passport, which temporarily threw the agent, but which finally surficed as a visa equivalent.)

However there is a fine for not following Land Department rules!

No doubt. But we sure don't lose any sleep over anything coming of this.

Somewhat relatedly, I bet a lot of land was bought fraudently before the law was changed about being married to a foreigner -- many no doubt using their Thai maiden names to disguise their new foreign surnames (assuming they never changed their names on their Thai ID cards, which many didn't). But I would think this situation would never come to the attention of the Land Office, or ever be of any real concern to them, particularly with the subsequent law change.

But, out of curiosity, could the chanote remain indefinitely in the maiden name -- or does Thai law require it to eventually be changed to one's legal (married) name?

Here's another thought though...why should the husband need to sign any flipping form? What's it got to do with him anyway?? Another insult to Thai women who only begrugingly were recently allowed to own property if married to a foreigner

My Thai wife, of nearly 30 years, bought our property 6 years ago. She kept her Thai name when we married, so when she bought the property, she thought nothing of not mentioning her marriage status, particularly to a farang. I think we knew the law had changed, but we both knew being Thai and married was an added hassle for a Thai female.

The actual money for the land was from stocks held as "joint tenants, with right of survivorship." Wouldn't that be fun to see a Thai court sort out who's money really bought the land. (Do Thais really have a notion, with married couples, about 'his' money and 'her money?) But the bottom line is really: I can't own land, she can, so why the phuck should anyone, particularly the Land Office, need a statement about whose money it is -- the land AIN'T mine; CAN'T be mine. Period.

I really would have liked to have signed a form saying: "All the money used for this land purchase was mine. It now belongs to the previous land owner. You're welcome." Because if push came to shove with the wife, what are the only two possible outcomes: 1. The court says the land belongs entirely to my wife; or 2. the court says the land is wholly/partially mine, so you have to sell it and divvy up the proceeds. In both cases, I still don't/can't own the land; so why again does the Land Office need a statement saying it's her money buying the land, as there is no danger of a farang owning Thai soil thru any community property court case.

As someone else said, you could land in jail by essentially lying on the Land Registry declaration that she bought with all her own money.

BS. Somebody who writes Thai laws must have lived in a US community property State -- probably California -- and thought it would sound sophisticated to have such an exclusion. In fact, as explained above, it has no practical effect.

Interestingly, since I signed NO statement as to whose money the land was bought with, I've got more solid ground to stand on should laws change and community property rights become arguable. Meanwhile, there's a piece of paper in our file cabinet, signed by me, that says it was her money that bought the land. Post dated to the purchase date. You never know.........

We then had the same thing happen to one of our clients in Houston and then also in New York. When we e-mal The embassy/Consulate. They responded it was from instructions In Thailand, not to issue "O" visas for retirement anymore. All Thai embassies/Consulates got this letter.

Hmmm. "Retirement" per se has never been a valid reason for issuing a Non Imm O, at least according to Thai Embassy/Consulate websites -- and from what a clerk at the Thai Embassy in DC told me. And, accordingly, I've never heard of, nor seen anything on this forum, showing anyone getting anything other than an O-A visa from the Thai Embassy or official (MFA) Consulate (which doesn't mean it hasn't happened).

But honorary consulates (at least Yankee ones) have historically been pretty casual in their strictness. In fact, earnie's posting on page one of this thread shows that, at least up to the beginning of the year, Denver allowed retirement as a valid reason for an 'O' visa. Actually, the reason was more akin to something like investigating retirement opportunities, not just plain retirement -- so maybe Denver was using some wiggle room, if indeed they'd already been instructed not to allow "retirement" per se as a valid reason.

Maybe this will all pass. Or maybe you'll have to use another reason for visiting Thailand. At one time, "studying religion" would get you an "O" at a Texas honorary consulate. Now, if the consulates get instructions about "studying religion" as a no no, then we'll know who the guest readers are on this forum (as if there was any doubt).

Or just call an honorary consulate and ask them what you can do to get a Non Imm O. You might just be surprised.

I called them about the possibility of losing my card while abroad and they suggested that I open another Flexaccount .....you would think they would make it easier though, and just give you a spare card to carry just in case

Yeah, I see what you mean. And don't forget to write your pin on the card, so the bloke who finds it doesn't have to experiment too much....

My credit card has a 0 balance at the end of every month. I withdraw 1,000 USD and pay the card through my online bank account the same day.

0 fees and 0 interest.......believe it or not.

John,

If you pay off your balance the same day, I can see why you might not pay interest. And it's nice that Capital One has no cash advance fee (but, as Lop says, unusual).

But.........

If my credit card balance is paided in full before 28 or 30 days (I forgot which) there is no interest charge, and Capital One's does not charge a cash withdrawal fee. If you take funds via cash, the interest is the same as if you make a purchase.

Try not paying off your cash advance for '28 or 30 days' and I'll bet you pay big time. Unlike a purchase, which has a 'float' on Capital One's payment to the merchant (plus a nice fee), cash advances are cash payments upfront, with no float (and in your case, no fee). No bank can afford to give the 'float' advantage from himself to the customer (unless, maybe, he has a promotion going.....). That's why they'd love for you to use those blank checks they forward with the monthly statement -- as they generate instant interest.

The following is kinda interesting........

Avoiding Cash Advance Charges

Whenever you get a cash advance on a credit card, the bank starts charging you interest immediately, not after the end of the billing cycle's month as they do with purchases. That means if you take out $200 on the first day of a two-week trip, for two weeks the credit card issuer will be charging you the highest possible interest rate (not that introductory 9.67%, but the industry ceiling 19% or more), compounded daily, and will continue to do so until you pay your entire credit card bill all the way down. They often tack on a one-time fee as well.

You may be able to avoid this, however, by being a bit sneaky: they can only charge you interest if you're carrying a balance. The trick is to make sure you never carry a balance on the card by overpaying your bill (by however much you expect to withdraw in cash advances, plus purchases) the month before you leave. It's silly, but it usually works.

Capital One (depending on the issuing bank) seems to be one of the few credit cards these days that only charges 1% for international transactions (I just dropped MBNA 'cause they went to 3%). But if you find Capital One going to 3% (which I assume would attach to cash advances as well as purchases), you might be better off using your bank ATM, even at $5 a pop, if their international exchange fee remains in the 1% arena.

Just out of curiosity, what kind of exchange rate did you get with your last cash advance (and on what date)?

They now are allowing a 30 day transit stamp to be converted to a non immigrant visa inside Thailand. As long as 21 days remain on the stamp.

Sunbelt,

I'm taking you literally when you say 30 day "transit stamp," i.e., you don't mean the '30-day entry stamp, no visa required,' but mean getting a 'transit visa?' Big difference.

From the Thai Embassy website, US:

Transit visa................... US $20.00 per entry. Purpose of visit: TRANSIT (require copy airline ticket or itenery), SPORTS or CREW (require business letter and invitation from Thailand)

(Maximum stay 30 days, extension of stay may be applied in Thailand.)

Why go to all the trouble to get a 'transit visa' when for $5 dollars more, you can get a 'tourist visa,' which is good for 60 days and also can be converted to an 'O' for retirement extension purposes?

Better yet -- as has been harped on for years on this forum -- use an honorary consulate to get your Non Imm O visa. They're a lot more service oriented than the Thai Embassy or MFA consulates; and have the added benefit of being staffed by locals, so, for one thing, there's no language barrier.

Phone numbers and addresses for all these honorary consulates can be found on the Web. In my experience, I've used email and the phone to clarify matters with my favorite honorary, and they've been extremely helpful and prompt in getting my Non Imm O (I gave up on the Thai Embassy, even tho I live in DC and have a Thai wife -- too many hoops that changed from year to year). Now, the last time I did this was 10-months ago, so maybe the honoraries have gotten some new guidance on issuing Non Imm visas........ But a phone call would quickly clarify.

One other advantage of a Non Imm O is no need to have an airline reservation 'out' of Thailand, which could be troublesome if you're coming here open ended to retire. United Airlines, for one, periodically enforces this rule -- usually when there's a new agent that has to get on the computer to check the regulation when you have no visa -- and the reg is quite definitive about having an 'out' ticket from Thailand.

socket sets, Crescent wrenches, Channel locks, Vice grips and open ended wrenches

Adjustabe tools, yes. But remember, this place is metric.

On the other side of the coin.........

The noodle venders, usually pushing their carts against traffic, and the bicycle sahmlars, usually with toothless old men driving, and an old lady in the back (this, at least, in Chiang Mai).

I always smile at these scenes, not just at folks trying to make a satang -- and with a smile on their (toothless) face to boot. But at the picture of a sahmlar going about his busines -- in LOS ANGELES!!!

After 5 million horns, with requisite teeth-gnashing, the sahmlar driver would be run over. However, he wouldn't feel a thing -- having died from multiple gunshot wounds earlier applied.

Traffic's unique here -- but it has its gentler moments.