chanwit

“I had the bank book and a bank statement showing the balance, a whole 645 baht.”

I can top that. I knew things were not going to go well on my renewal day. I couldn’t even get in the queue until I drove back to a nearby bank and got the same printed bank statement transactions and account letter with balance. The. Immigration recommended a nearby Bangkok bank. I was fearing that the bank wouldn’t understand my needs but this bank has had many request this year.

I think the bank only printed 6 months of transactions. 

When I finally got my turn with my queue number the non English speaking IO pointed to my bank book and I figured out that she was not happy that my last bank book machine tally was 1 day old.

No leniency for me. I lost that day but I Will Return.

1 minute ago, onera1961 said:

500 fine for 3-month extension is cheap. Why did't you take that offer? 

45,000 Thai baht (500 per day times 90 days) 

5 hours ago, jacko45k said:

Sorry to say you have made a lot of mistakes here and Nonthaburi were within their rights to say no. You also left things very late. I believe I have heard that Nonthaburi are hard to please. In the past perhaps you had an Embassy letter?

You could come back on a Visa Waiver or Tourist Visa, and convert the entry to that of a non-Imm-O. 

How many months of transfers are they willing to accept to qualify?

 

 

Yes, the letter from my embassy has been the way it was done on my previous 9 renewals. I was blindsided that I couldn’t deposit money in my Thai bank account through the ATM or counter deposit. I was wrong to think that they just wanted to see the money in account.

5 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

OP, could you explain the 500baht option. Seems simple solution. BTW are you the only person using ATM to bring funds into los. Probably the most expensive way to transfer money. Not having a go just suggesting you check out other options.

 

I guess the ATM way was the way it all began but I’m enlightened now. I once had the manager at my bank transfer a large sum from US but it was such an ordeal that didn’t think that was an option for smaller amounts to satisfy the 65,000 Thai baht monthly.

What are the other ways?

4 hours ago, FredGallaher said:

The B500 seem very reasonable. Much cheaper that getting a new visa. BTW make sure you funds arrive coded as a foreign transfer. In the past people just did an ATM withdrawal but immigration wants documentation

To clear what they said was 500 Thai baht per day for 3 months.

Plus overextending visa would be criminal wouldn’t it?  Ut that’s what they gave me as an option. The 3 months would be used to do the money transfers the way the new rules demand.

Thinking I had all the bases covered I go to Nonthaburi Immigration 4 days early (due September 4).

Everything that worked before isn’t working now.

My bank books weren’t good enough so they sent me to my bank to get a letter that I had an account and 6 mos of transactions.

Finally got in the Queue and my number called and presented my documents to the officer.

I have been using the 65000 Thai Baht system for the past 9 years and transferring the money from US bank to a Thai bank using ATMs.

I kept all the receipts but was told today that the transfers must be transacted from my US bank to my Thai bank directly. There has to be an official paper trail that the International money transfer was executed bank to bank.

They would not accept all my ATM receipts.

This is a hard lesson learned and a word of warning.

My visa expires in 5 days. What are my options?

They offered going to Laos and start over with a NO 90 day visa and come back in 2 or 3 mos and ask for extension.

They also offered (I declined) paying 500 baht fine for 3 months while I transfer documented money the new correct way.

Can I get an NO 90 day visa in some other country like Vietnam.?

I’m all ears.

ChanwitUSA

 

3 hours ago, fondue zoo said:

Do they get to keep those t-shirts?

What do they have printed on them?

I Told People Stock was Good When It Was Bad And All I Got Was This Lousy T-Shirt

 

- I know very little about the stock market.

ผู้ต้อง pûu-dtɔ̂ng the first 4 consonants have the meaning accused or prisoner. 

Odd not to see any concrete barriers between pillars and the highway.

On 4/22/2017 at 9:02 AM, Dante99 said:

Many of those cards have fees so rather than reading through the details on 12+ cards I asked.  David said he had a card with no fees which is of interest.

I have a Capital One rewards card and the usual 3% Thai Baht to USD currency transaction fee is 0% with Capital One.

 
I assume the account can be closed and funds used ..

The banks told me I can cancel the credit card and retrieve the security deposit anytime.


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

Good for you if you were able to get the bank to understand that you want a prepaid credit card. I've found there are many advantages to having a prepaid credit card in Thai Baht. I could tell they don't get that question from Thais. I went to several banks and each required different amounts of minimum deposit guarantees. From what I gathered with lots of misunderstanding is that the deposit is frozen and to use the card for credit you have to deposit more money and recharge as you use the card. So the argument could be that if you could get the bank to give you a letter of deposit it might work but you also might be the first to ever try this.


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

I went in to the Nonthaburi Immigration office today to extend my Thai visa for retirement. This was my 4th consecutive extension application. I presented all the usual and necessary documents. The officer tried to trip me up with a new requirement to have proof of where I lived. It sounded like the requirement of hotels and rented apartments to notify the government of foreign residents. I had never been asked this before. I had been warned by others so I took along a copy of my Yellow house residence book and he looked surprised. He showed the boss my document and that seem to pacify them but I'm still confused as to what it was all about. Another foreigner ahead of me had the same problem but they said forget it but bring evidence next year. My officer asked me why I didn't bring my home owner wife to fill out some paper work that I was living in our (her) home. Is this a pending crack down for proof of residence?

F.Y.I. Bangkok Bank legally charges 20% interest on their credit cards.

The odds are greater that interest rates will go up. If the markets really went after the baht, then interest rates would have to rise. As to whether they will or not..... I would be more concerned if I thought there was likely to be mayhem in the markets for the credit agreement to be withdrawn, so therefore inclined to march down to the bank tomorrow and close on the deal on the table.

Trying to do due diligence, I'm tending to agree with your 'interest rates will go up' and that we should close the deal quickly. Before the coup, the banks said to meet at the Land Office next Friday so we will see if that still happens. Anyway, I'll stop worrying and be happy.

My Thai wife is in the process of refinancing her home in Bangkok but hasn't closed yet.

She is refinancing from Siam bank to the Government Bank.

I'm thinking that interest rates may drop with the Thai baht but I don't know anything about banking.

I'm thinking that maybe she should wait and see.

What do you think?

My neighbors tried hanging owls, birds, ribbons, wind chimes with some success. I bought a few battery operated motion sensors that make sharp bird chirps (also available with ding-dong and sawadee sounds but not recommended). You've probably heard door entry sounds aat 7-11. I double-sided taped them to areas on the balcony where the most poop was. The big birds (pigeons and doves) don't like the noise and it was an instant success. The doves are smart and they learn to find other places to roost and cuddle with their mate so I had to move them around. For the most part it was a success. I don't see as much poop anymore. Side affect: these little boxes (selling for about ฿100 and hard to find) are sensitive to bright flashes and sound off in a lightening storm. Good Luck.

I found another thread about the driving issue with varied opinions.

The credit card is another major issue. I have a debit card(VISA) but when I left most rental car companies didn't accept debit cards....FYI, Thai electron VISA cards aren't accepted for online purchases either.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/671969-american-with-expired-us-drivers-license-but-have-thai-dl/

Maybe this is good news for you. When I arrived in Texas I had an expired version of a Visa credit card. Nationwide would not accept that.

I had a Bank of America Debit card. They accepted that if I had a foreign driver's license.I have a Thai driver's license.

That was their policy. I don't know if it's good with all rental companies.

I guess I had enough money in the account for them to block my monthly rental.

I picked up my car and was a happy camper.

You will probably have to give a contact address and maybe a phone number.

That's my story. p.s. I came back to Thailand as fast as I could; still better here with caution and having some street smarts doesn't hurt.

"We have done everything, even the interview and all."

I post with knowledge learned while helping my son immigrate his Thai wife to the US.

In his case he frequently visited his Thai wife for 2 years in Thailand but he always returned to the US after a short stay.

You said "We have done everything, even the interview and all."

Does that mean that she walked away with an Immigrant visa to enter the US (Valid to use for 6 mos.)

or did she walk away with a 'application does not comply' document.

If so, this document has boxes that are checked for the reason the visa was refused.

One box if checked asks for missing petitioner (you) information like tax returns from previous year and copy of passport.

I know friends that don't file tax returns because of no or little income but that could be a problem here if that box was checked.

My son had offered his tax return but by the time of the interview the date was stale (not current year) and had to send it again.

This is also a problem with petitioners that file late returns or their current year cannot be accepted waiting for T.I.Ns.

My 2009 tax return was not IRS accepted for 1 year waiting to receive the TIN for my wife. (IRS will hold the return pending a TIN or SSN)

In summary, does your Thai wife have the visa in her Thai passport (good for 6 month) or does she have the rejection letter, or what else?

....the basis for another vaccine scam........try colloidal silver....

....the basis for another vaccine scam........try colloidal silver....

Next up, here come the network marketing (MLM) companies claiming their product will cure this illness (or help symptoms) or maybe this is even the source of the illness alert.

Good move.

Good move.

I've witnessed this too. The group is usually 5 or 6 young adults and one teacher getting hands on English. I can see how this can get out of hand with copy cat teachers. In the US Starbucks manages 2 hour, 1 coffee customers by keeping the room temperature at a chilling level; you have to keep drinking coffee to stay warm.

Tried it at my office computer and same thing, can not connect except through VPN. Went through the signup process and after finishing got this message.

"We are sorry but this service is not available to you. Please contact Social Security and speak with a representative."

Not sure what this is about since I'm using a US VPN or perhaps they detect a VPN and don't allow signups through it.

Tried it at my office computer and same thing, can not connect except through VPN. Went through the signup process and after finishing got this message.

"We are sorry but this service is not available to you. Please contact Social Security and speak with a representative."

Not sure what this is about since I'm using a US VPN or perhaps they detect a VPN and don't allow signups through it.

On the comment about login detection of VPN or proxy, secure systems can detect unusual logins. I have to use my Ultrasurf VPN to get to the SSA web site as well as other web sites. A word of caution, you need to be aware that leaving VPNs turned on may cause induced blindside headaches when accessing other accounts such as bank and credit card accounts. One one occasion, after accessing the SSA site, I exited the VPN the wrong way and it was still active. I then needed to access my US bank account for an inquiry which worked without problem. The next day I could get to the online bank account but I could not login. Then I get phone calls to my US contact number telling me to contact the banks fraud department. The bank had detected what they called a login unlike my usual login and it was flagged as a hack attempt. The phone call cleared things up and we both deduced that the unusual but successful login using a proxy caused the system to lock the account. Having cleared this up the bank contact said it is OK to use identity protection and even recommended but the first time you might receive a blind side punch to the head.

My wife called DSDW. She explained our situation, the person on the phone said we could apply (19 forms) and specify our preferences for age, gender, and special needs or not, and that they estimate it would take about 1 year to match us with a child. My wife indicated that she was thai and I was american. She didnt specifically discuss the implications of nationality, but they asked what our nationalities were, so I guess it is faster if one person is Thai, since a wait time of 3 years has been estimated in this thread for pure expat couples. Interesting question was raised above about the legal implications of a purely Thai adoption, Mario2008 mentioned that a purely thai adoption might not be recognized in the US. I will consult an attorney about that. As long as there dont appear to be issues getting the adoption recognized in the US, then I think we will go in to DSDW and fill out the application. Thanks for any advice and I'll post any info I get after investigating.

Also if anyone has actually done this and has any experience or advice to share, I'd be interested in hearing it.

My wife called DSDW. She explained our situation, the person on the phone said we could apply (19 forms) and specify our preferences for age, gender, and special needs or not, and that they estimate it would take about 1 year to match us with a child. My wife indicated that she was thai and I was american. She didnt specifically discuss the implications of nationality, but they asked what our nationalities were, so I guess it is faster if one person is Thai, since a wait time of 3 years has been estimated in this thread for pure expat couples. Interesting question was raised above about the legal implications of a purely Thai adoption, Mario2008 mentioned that a purely thai adoption might not be recognized in the US. I will consult an attorney about that. As long as there dont appear to be issues getting the adoption recognized in the US, then I think we will go in to DSDW and fill out the application. Thanks for any advice and I'll post any info I get after investigating.

Also if anyone has actually done this and has any experience or advice to share, I'd be interested in hearing it.

I am an American with Thai wife and her Thai daughter. I have just completed the entire process of adoption of my step daughter. It took a little over 2 years. The process for our situation could have been less than a year but Thai new events slowed the process:

1. The election of a new PM meant that we could not meet with the final board member approval until those political positions were designated by the new government. That must have been a 4 month delay.

2. A new adoption requirement needing a back ground check by the International Police (Interpol). This was in addition to the Bangkok police finger printing and background check and the letter required from my home country FBI background check. This letter from the FBI stated that I had no arrest record.

3. The floods cause a few months delay.

4. Our assigned social worker took a new upward mobile job with the government and we lost priority in our case because she had to juggle the 2 jobs. The DSDW does not assign a new case worker if the original social worker has already done the home visit and has been closely attached to the case. We didn't know this until I tried to reach her office and ask for her.

I found that the secret to getting attention is to get their Fax number and send it to the case worker's attention. This way other people in the office can read your concerned message as they pass the fax along to to the case worker. The case worker is still required to report in to clear their cases on a part time basis.

The day we went to the DSDW for the Board Approval there were other 2 other couples from Canada. One couple said that it had took over 6 years for the adoption but they were not living in Thailand and did not already have an adoption candidate. They went through an agent in Canada.

I have been at the DSDW and talked to walk in foreigners inquiring about adoptions and they were told that the quotas had been filled for the year and they were turned away.

Now having said all this I have a question of what to do next with the US Embassy, I've read that an adoption needs to be registered with the embassy. there is no immediate requirement for an immigration visa and then there are these treaties that Thailand is not a member of and different forms for that (I-600, I-600A, and I-130). I feel that it is necessary to inform the Embassy for the child's welfare but where to go?

Has anyone had their ATM money transfer from an American bank blocked because of the recent FATF Feb 2012 blacklisting of Thailand as a

I stayed in a beach resort in Bang Saphan for a few weeks during the past flood and drove to the beaches in Thap Sakae which were real nice,white, and clean.

There are many resorts facing the beaches and the ones I checked on were well kept and the restaurants along the beach had great food.

I didn't see much security as I was scouting for future resort references.

The place I was staying at in Bang Saphan was more like a Russian Gulag and had seen better days. If anything were going to happen bad you would have thought it would be there.

Hard to believe these things can happen. It's even more hard to believe how quickly the criminals are caught, confess and reenact the crime scene. How can you protect/defend yourself from these senseless crimes.

Peace to the victims and family.