janetplanet

Yes, you get the one year extension just when your visa is about to expire. Then, you will only need to make 90 day reports to your nearest Immigration (reporting your address) and will no longer have to leave the country. You will have to renew your visa every year, submitting the same documentation over and over and over again tho

Make sure your daughter enters Thailand on her Thai passport tho, will save you any hassle further on down the road (ie exit Canada with Canadian passport, enter Thailand with Thai passport).

So even with the O visa and the work permit go and get an extension after 3 months? Thanks for your patience. I have mommy brain and a mute husband. Maybe my situation with the border trying to get money off me because of our daughter was just a miscommunication:) Did I mention my husband is a mute? A mute by choice. The other comment about luk krueng kids getting so much attention is interesting... . I definately don't want her to grow up thinking she is something better than other kids. Her uncle already told me that she isn't very beautiful because her skin is yellow and not white so we are on the road to modesty already....

Sbk, does my husband have to 'start paying' income tax in order for me to get my O visa extension after 3 months? Is that a one time payment? or beginning to pay on a regular basis?

Yes, you get the one year extension just when your visa is about to expire. Then, you will only need to make 90 day reports to your nearest Immigration (reporting your address) and will no longer have to leave the country. You will have to renew your visa every year, submitting the same documentation over and over and over again tho

Make sure your daughter enters Thailand on her Thai passport tho, will save you any hassle further on down the road (ie exit Canada with Canadian passport, enter Thailand with Thai passport).

So even with the O visa and the work permit go and get an extension after 3 months? Thanks for your patience. I have mommy brain and a mute husband. Maybe my situation with the border trying to get money off me because of our daughter was just a miscommunication:) Did I mention my husband is a mute? A mute by choice. The other comment about luk krueng kids getting so much attention is interesting... . I definately don't want her to grow up thinking she is something better than other kids. Her uncle already told me that she isn't very beautiful because her skin is yellow and not white so we are on the road to modesty already....

Have some chickens around your house. They eat all small insects, centipedes, scorpions.

Try to get an elevated bed with 4 legs. Apply some wood vinegar (condensate by product from charcoal process) on those legs.

This is all good advice. Do you know what the wood vinegar is called in Thai??Actually I don't feel that I have a problem with most things in farm life. I wouldn't have married my husband if I didn't enjoy living that I kind of life. BUT that f...ing centipede!! OH MY GOD!! It was inches from my baby's head!! I need to find some major preventative measures or I will die from an ulcer. Even snakes and scorpions in the garden are managable for me because at least I can spot them 'sometimes' but anything coming in the bed at night...lord... .

After you arrive in Thailand, wait until the 3 months are nearly up (no point in going before) and go to the Immigration office outside Nathon, with the above documentation and apply for a one year extension based on marriage to a Thai husband. Your husband must pay personal income tax at the amphur in order for you to obtain this extension. Also, he must go to Samui with you when you make your application as he is applying for you to stay in Thailand.

Was the Immigration officer aware that your daughter had a Thai passport? Did you show the passport first? I wouldn't read too much into the whole discrimination thing solely because you are a woman. More likely, its because you are a foreigner.

Sbk, you seem to know your stuff. If I am #1. Issued an O Visa in Canada, #2 Am issued a work permit in Thailand, #3 Do I still need to visit an Immigration office after 3 months (Samui or Suratthani or Phuket) to get an extension?

Yes, the officer new my daughter had a Thai passport it was right in her hand. She had seen me 100x's doing border runs, before pregnancy, during pregancy and then that day with baby. She was pregnant herself! It was so odd...she said 'ohhh her father is Thai???' as if she didn't know...I really wanted to strangle her..is it because our baby looks sooo falang? Was she jealous that our baby has dual citizenship?

Allow a couple of took gaes and some jing joks in the house. Keep the bedroom sealed as well as you can. Good screens on the windows and a well fitting door will keep the creepy crawlers out of the bedroom. We keep the bedroom door closed as much as possible. My wife used to catch and throw out the took gaes out but finally decided that a couple of them were better than the creepy crawlers.

Thanks Meandwi and Gary! Hey Meandwi we are neighbours!! My husband's farm is very near Ao Luk, down the road in Bang Sawan that is great! The problem in my my husband's family's 'terrible' home is no screens on the windows and we were sleeping on the floor on a mattress at the time that centipede got in. There was a mosquito net but it still managed to get in and it was really frightening...I really freaked out because it was so near our baby and we ended up leaving the next morning and I'm not going back until things get better organized. I can't handle the stress. My Thai family thinks I worry too much but heck, I'm not used to creatures in my bed or in the shower like they are.

Meandwi, when do you get back??

I have had 2 daughters who both slept in the arrangement you describe (mattress on the floor, mosquito net, open windows). We have had a lot of nights trying to find the mosquito that got inside the net, and jinjok, ants (big ones!), centipedes etc have got in at various points. We don't stay on the farm all the time but usually about 2 months of the year, rest of the time in BKK.

You need to start getting used to it, otherwise you will find it hard to live in the country in Thailand. I know a lot of farang who don't eat the same food as the thais, have their own plate (rather than shared), worry about the fact the food has been left unrefrigerated all day. There are so many things that take a bit of getting used to, but the chances are that everything will be ok.

I understand when you have a very small baby that these bugs scare you, but it's what the thais have lived with for centuries. In the west we have got to the point where things are sanitised so much that resistance to minor bacteria is low.

I would agree with Gary, that you should have a few resident tukgaes, make sure your mosquito net is good and then go through a routine every morning and night to clear out the bed and reset the mosquito net.

Now the kids are a bit bigger I worry about the scorpions I have found in the garden, and the snakes that I see around all the time, the packs of dogs roaming loose and up in the hills, the moo-ba and even elephants!

Then again, in the west I would be worried equally about other things...

Hi, this is great...honestly...thank goodness i found this Forum! I guess I wasn't being diligent enough about checking the mosquito netting before we went to bed at night. One of the problems is that the lighting is so bad in the house so I am doing it by flashlight. Second, there are no screens on the windows and the house is flat on the ground. The night the centipede got in it was raining a lot so the chances of something coming were greater. I've learned my lesson. I'm not worried about food and I love spicy so that is not a problem. Nursing my baby with all the mosquitos was stressful that I didn't like. The stray dogs that sometimes wandered in the house where she was sleeping was scary. The scorpions that crawl in and the tarantulas aren't funny.... . Of course I have to get used to it but I think there are preventative measures such as an elevated house with screens i.e. better save money and start building... .When the house is flat on the ground it is a free for all. Of course there are worries in the west but they don't seem to be 'safety issues' so much. I seem to sleep better at night in my parent's house in Canada. Nothing crawling around here but I would sure love to have a good curry:))

The others are right, just ask for a O visa based on marriage, the work permit is dealt with inside thailand & as lite beer & sbk say, if you lose your job, having an O visa based on marriage will mean you aren't forced to exit the country on the same day you lose your job.

As to the consulates & emabassies, well TiT, they are following an archaic & confused system, that one person knows the right way & the person sitting 2 desks away doesn't is basically a lack of training & a very mixed up & cofused set of "rules" that can & are often, interpreted in different ways.

As lite beer & bina said, drop your expectations, be sure in what you want, smile & keep your opinions of how they are messing up to yourself, if you don't you will get no where & end up frustrated to boot. If you plan on being around for the long haul then this will make your life a lot happier

Thanks Forum!!! You are a great help and have given me some peace of mind. I will walk into the Thai Embassy in Canada with a smile this week and ask for a Type O Visa. I have my marriage certificate, I have a photocopy of my husband's registration 'blue book'?, and I found a photocopy of his passport:)!! So, then I will head to Thailand in a month from now, I have a job offer, I meet them then they arrange a work permit and that is that?

I am so relieved...I was a complete and utter idiot last year...pregnant, unmarried and in Thailand on a Tourist Visa...we went through so much heartache and border runs....with a new baby...oh god...I want to forget...did I mention the long-tail breaking down in the middle of the ocean in Ranong while my husband was waiting on the other side with our newborn..? and I was nursing...! Let's hope things will only get better.

Allow a couple of took gaes and some jing joks in the house. Keep the bedroom sealed as well as you can. Good screens on the windows and a well fitting door will keep the creepy crawlers out of the bedroom. We keep the bedroom door closed as much as possible. My wife used to catch and throw out the took gaes out but finally decided that a couple of them were better than the creepy crawlers.

Thanks Meandwi and Gary! Hey Meandwi we are neighbours!! My husband's farm is very near Ao Luk, down the road in Bang Sawan that is great! The problem in my my husband's family's 'terrible' home is no screens on the windows and we were sleeping on the floor on a mattress at the time that centipede got in. There was a mosquito net but it still managed to get in and it was really frightening...I really freaked out because it was so near our baby and we ended up leaving the next morning and I'm not going back until things get better organized. I can't handle the stress. My Thai family thinks I worry too much but heck, I'm not used to creatures in my bed or in the shower like they are.

Meandwi, when do you get back??

So basically you are telling me that if I am married to a Thai and am going back to Thailand to work it is preferable for me to get an O Visa than a B Visa? What is the difference if i will be issued a Work Permit shortly after arriving?

janet, why do u expect anyone in an immigration office to actually explain anything to you?? i am doing the visa thing for my thai husband here and believe me, no one tells me anything. ever. that is why there are forums. to spread the word. and every person has to invent the wheel. thais i think are not to used to dealing with farang ladies and thai men. even their wording in their english language site for marrying thais is written as for thai woman marrying foreign males. there is nothing there about foreing female and thai male for visa/money info.

they often dont know. so u have to do all the research. come prepared. smile. be pleasant. have all the documents, plus extras that u might need. it seems that tabian baan and amphur tax payment slips are requirements or could be requirements.

if u cant deal with this sort of paperwork style, how are u going to work there? thais in general are bad at beuracracy, and also seem to make up the rules according to if they are having a 'bad hair day' or not; and how they interpret the rule, etc.

if u are planning to teach, u'd better go to the teaching threads also if u havent already, to see all the stories.

and if u expect your husband to help u with paperwork, well, i wish u luck, if he is anything like mine or some othe the other women's husbands, they are useless with officialdom. and if he's a country boy like mine, then beyond useless.

i wish u luck,

bina

israel

Well thanks Bina you are certainly forthright in your opinions. I have been living and working in Asia for the past 5 years so I have plenty of experience with bureaucracy but I have NEVER dealt with the complete retardation, rudeness, corrupt, lazy, and ill informed attitudes that I have been dealing with in Thailand in any other Asian country that I have lived in and there have been at least 3 others! Why do I expect to get answers from Immigration and/or Thai Embassies abroad?? Because that is what they are being PAID TO DO!! I really love the way Thai's proudly wear their ironed yellow shirts and show such homage to the King yet have absolutely no idea what they are talking about as such in their positions. I don't believe that Thai's are any less intelligent than any other people so IT MUST be some sort of 'power trip' or something along those lines. Perhaps it is a language barrier? Perhaps, they feel that falang should feel obligated to them?

Good luck to me and good luck to us all!

Hi Forum,

I'm a newbie here but happily surprised to see this Farming in Thailand Forum! I have spent the past year living on my husband's farm near Krabi. I gave birth at a rural hospital and have been raising our daughter on the farm. They grow rubber and palm oil. There is no bank in his town, no internet cafes, no falang except me. Sometimes I love it, sometimes I hate it! I love the fact that we live off the land, we eat fresh food, the air is so clean, the people are pure and simple. I hate the fact that I have no friends there because my Thai is pathetic and no one speaks english. Also, I want to know how people protect themselves from all the creepy critters that are everywhere. I'm in Canada now visiting the family but the last time I was on the farm it was awful, horrible terrible night when a centipede crawled into our bed and was inches from my baby and I had to kill it with my hands! So painful and so much drama in the middle of the night!! How do I prevent this from happening again?

Maestro,

I contacted the Thai Embassy in Ottawa and told them I'm married to a Thai and they said to get a Non-Immig. B Visa, also when I was in Bkk 6 months ago and my husband, my daughter and me went to Sathorn and were directed to the second floor, gave the officer our marriage certificate, they issued me a Non-Imm. B Visa.... . I'm sorry but i don't understand all of this...???

I'm in Canada at the moment and don't have a copy of my husband's passport. Have some copies of his ID card or something like that....will that do? Still doesn't explain to me why no one told me to do this at Sathorn or Thai Embassy in Ottawa??

Maestro,

I contacted the Thai Embassy in Ottawa and told them I'm married to a Thai and they said to get a Non-Immig. B Visa, also when I was in Bkk 6 months ago and my husband, my daughter and me went to Sathorn and were directed to the second floor, gave the officer our marriage certificate, they issued me a Non-Imm. B Visa.... . I'm sorry but i don't understand all of this...???

^^ Simple they will find any excuse to get money out of foreigners.

Maybe the situation is exacerbated here because our daughter looks 95% Falang and 5% something not sure...my Thai husband doesn't look very Thai either if that makes any sense. Sometimes people think he's Indian or South American so when we all go out together we kind of stop traffic... . I think I'll buy a t-shirt that says 'take a picture'.

Hi I'm new to this Forum and completely out to lunch on this visa issue... . I'm married to Thai man and have one child. Spent the last 1 1/2 years doing the Visa Run thing, while pregnant and then with a young baby...total nightmare...need I say more? Now I'm back in Canada for a visit and setting up a job in Thailand before heading back. When I go to the Thai Embassy here am I getting a Non-Imm. B Visa or an O Visa?? Why did no one at the Borders or Sathorn Bangkok ever tell me to get an O Visa when I was in Thailand?? They issued me a Non-Imm. B Visa.

Please explain Forum.

thanks

I have more questions, please help me. If I am in Canada now and doing my Visa stuff at the Thai Embassy here and then going to Thailand to start working as a teacher is it better to get an O Visa or a B Visa? My husband isn't here with me so maybe I'm missing some of the paperwork? Why did no one tell me this before when I went to Immigration at Sathon??

thanks

Hi I'm new to this Forum and completely out to lunch on this visa issue... . I'm married to Thai man and have one child. Spent the last 1 1/2 years doing the Visa Run thing, while pregnant and then with a young baby...total nightmare...need I say more? Now I'm back in Canada for a visit and setting up a job in Thailand before heading back. When I go to the Thai Embassy here am I getting a Non-Imm. B Visa or an O Visa?? Why did no one at the Borders or Sathorn Bangkok ever tell me to get an O Visa when I was in Thailand?? They issued me a Non-Imm. B Visa.

Please explain Forum.

thanks

In fact, life is generally easier than that of a western man with a Thai wife (from my personal observations) as the visa requirements are much easier.

Yes. The discrimination usually works the other way. For Ladies it is much easier to get annual visa extensions and permanent residence than it is for us men.

Thanks for moving me to the correct Forum. I'll reply to some of the comments here anyways. First thing is that I'm not in Thailand at the moment. I had no idea about a Non-Immigrant O Visa?? When I went to the Immigration office they issued me a Non-Imm. B Visa when I presented our marriage certificate. Then now,I'm in Canada for a visit and am going to the Thai Embassy before I head back and plan on working back in Thailand should I be getting a O Visa or a B Visa? The reason I started this thread is mainly due to the discrimination I have encountered surrounding my daughter. If Thai Citizens don't have to pay to cross into the border into Burma why was the Border official demanding that my daughter pay simply because her mother was a falang? My daughter has a Thai passport.

Hi Forum and lovely Koh Phangananers...,

I am experiencing this wierd discrimination being married to a Thai man and having a child. First example, going to do a Visa Run to Ranong to the Casino island accompanied by my husband and child. The Thai visa officer demands that my daughter pay the same 'fee' as me even though she is holding a Thai passport. Reason given: you are her mother and you aren't Thai. So I hand her over to my husband and they said 'ohhhh...her father is Thai??' oh brother... . Then 'we will give her special' she doesn't have to pay. F-off!! My daughter is Thai! Do they do this to Falang men with children with Thai women?? Second example: I have a job offer in Surat, as soon as they find out I'm married and have a child, the job offer is rejected. Oh great... .

What am I dealing with here?? Is this what I'm facing for the rest of my life if we stay in Thailand??

Thoughts??