Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 re: Consular Outreach visits only once a year from 2018 Since many of us will be forced to travel to Bangkok to get an income verification letter issued less than six month from the date of our extension renewals, I would suggest that we send emails to the Citizens Consular Services, politely requesting that they reconsider and plan on two visits a year six months apart or negotiate with Thai immigrations so that Jomtien will accept verification letters older than six months. I renew in December so if they visit in June, I may manage to get by, but for anyone who renews between January and May/June, it looks like you'll need to travel to Bangkok to get the verification letter. Since many of those requiring the letter are retirees who may find travel difficult, this does seem an unfair burden imposed on those who happen to need to renew during the first six months of each year (and also means the one visit per year will be more of an overcrowded circus than it's been when they visited more often). American Citizens Service email: [email protected] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
realenglish1 Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 Pattaya is not that far Get on a bus and go the the Embassy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smotherb Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 39 minutes ago, realenglish1 said: Pattaya is not that far Get on a bus and go the the Embassy Exactly, and to ask only that Jomtien immigration allow older than six-month letters is self-centered at best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chicowoodduck Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 Just use the BKK trip as an excuse to get away from Pattaya for a bit....the change of view will do you a service.....????? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sawadeeken Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 2 hours ago, smotherb said: 3 hours ago, realenglish1 said: Pattaya is not that far Get on a bus and go the the Embassy Exactly, and to ask only that Jomtien immigration allow older than six-month letters is self-centered at best. 1 hour ago, chicowoodduck said: Just use the BKK trip as an excuse to get away from Pattaya for a bit....the change of view will do you a service.....????? These seem like some personal opinions and are 'great' if it works for you........... If you re-read the 'quote from the OP that I will copy and paste below you will see one good reason for 'our' Embassy to continue the service they have given up to now......... 6 hours ago, Suradit69 said: Since many of those requiring the letter are retirees who may find travel difficult, this does seem an unfair burden imposed on those who happen to need to renew during the first six months of each year (and also means the one visit per year will be more of an overcrowded circus than it's been when they visited more often). There are a number of Ex-pats that are in Wheelchairs, bedridden, etc....... I can go, You can go, but have a thought for them........ and even though I can go, I prefer Pattaya and I feel they can a bit of the Taxes I contributed to give a little back to me...... I'm not asking a free-ride at Tax-payer's expense..... I've paid a helluva lot of Taxes and still do......... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smotherb Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 8 minutes ago, sawadeeken said: These seem like some personal opinions and are 'great' if it works for you........... If you re-read the 'quote from the OP that I will copy and paste below you will see one good reason for 'our' Embassy to continue the service they have given up to now......... There are a number of Ex-pats that are in Wheelchairs, bedridden, etc....... I can go, You can go, but have a thought for them........ and even though I can go, I prefer Pattaya and I feel they can a bit of the Taxes I contributed to give a little back to me...... I'm not asking a free-ride at Tax-payer's expense..... I've paid a helluva lot of Taxes and still do......... If you pay so much in taxes, then taking a taxi to the embassy should not be a such a problem--and you should be able to do that even if travel is difficult for you; or do you live where the outreach is held? My major issue was the inclusion of only Jomtien. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Author Share Posted November 3, 2017 3 hours ago, smotherb said: Exactly, and to ask only that Jomtien immigration allow older than six-month letters is self-centered at best. Since it was only the Pattaya outreach program that has been cut to one outreach visit per year, the issue seems specific to those who use Pattaya immigrations. If they come each year in June, as advertised, it won't present a problem for me at all. I just thought it was especially unfair for those whose renewals occur more than six months from the June outreach visit. So rather than being self-centered, it was an expression of concern for people other than myself. Probably an alien concept to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smotherb Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 Just now, Suradit69 said: Since it was only the Pattaya outreach program that has been cut to one outreach visit per year, the issue seems specific to those who use Pattaya immigrations. If they come each year in June, as advertised, it won't present a problem for me at all. I just thought it was especially unfair for those whose renewals occur more than six months from the June outreach visit. So rather than being self-centered, it was an expression of concern for people other than myself. Probably an alien concept to you. But, only people in Jomtien it seems. The embassy is reducing all outreach programs as I understand it and those of you in Pattaya are closer than most of us elsewhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Author Share Posted November 3, 2017 13 minutes ago, sawadeeken said: These seem like some personal opinions and are 'great' if it works for you........... If you re-read the 'quote from the OP that I will copy and paste below you will see one good reason for 'our' Embassy to continue the service they have given up to now......... There are a number of Ex-pats that are in Wheelchairs, bedridden, etc....... I can go, You can go, but have a thought for them........ and even though I can go, I prefer Pattaya and I feel they can a bit of the Taxes I contributed to give a little back to me...... I'm not asking a free-ride at Tax-payer's expense..... I've paid a helluva lot of Taxes and still do......... Yes, I am quite able to make the trip to Bangkok and might even enjoy the excuse for a trip out of town, although it may not be necessary in my case. At those outreach visits I have attended, there have been a fair number of people in wheelchairs or needing assistance getting around. I mentioned Jomtien because the change only affects the Pattaya visits. I should have said those immigrations offices in this region since some of the people affected may use offices further afield than Jomtien. Saying "Jomtien" was unintentionally too restrictive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Author Share Posted November 3, 2017 6 minutes ago, smotherb said: The embassy is reducing all outreach programs as I understand it Haven't seen any notice of other reductions. If that's true, then the letters sent to the embassy should include those locations as well. I posted this in the Pattaya forum with the expectation that people in the Pattaya area would be inconvenienced by the change announced for us. I don't think anything I said prevented anyone else from writing to the embassy about any inconvenience they may experience. If anything, the more people who complain about the changes, the better for us all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Author Share Posted November 3, 2017 4 hours ago, realenglish1 said: Pattaya is not that far Get on a bus and go the the Embassy As I stated, traveling to Bangkok wouldn't be a problem for me ( it definitely would not be on a bus) and it probably won't be necessary for me anyway. The income verification letters seem to be primarily for retirees and, for a significant number of them, traveling by bus and then getting around in Bangkok may be difficult. Sorry that I bothered to express concern for them. The embassy's comments about limited resources and money seems a little lame since all the people who travel to various cities doing consular outreach are on salary anyway, several of them spend their time during the visit standing about doing nothing and one way or the other they'll end up processing the same number of people whether in Pattaya or in Bangkok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Suradit69 Posted November 3, 2017 Author Share Posted November 3, 2017 42 minutes ago, smotherb said: But, only people in Jomtien it seems. I was suggesting that people write to the embassy. If you choose to write, surely you can cobble together an email to them without feeling compelled to use the exact words I used in the O/P. If you use a different office in the region or elsewhere in the country and are affected by the change or know of someone who is, knock yourself out crafting your comments in a more global fashion. Or write a letter to your Congressman, the president or even the UN to share with them whatever is on your mind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mansell Posted November 3, 2017 Share Posted November 3, 2017 Anybody know if they come to Korat at all? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
longball53098 Posted November 4, 2017 Share Posted November 4, 2017 It would seem that two Outreach visits to Pattaya would cover anyone for the income letter. One time in June does not cover the 6 month expiration date. The ACS folks need to re-think this decision as a lot of folks travel further than just Pattaya. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chingching Posted November 4, 2017 Share Posted November 4, 2017 4 hours ago, longball53098 said: It would seem that two Outreach visits to Pattaya would cover anyone for the income letter. One time in June does not cover the 6 month expiration date. The ACS folks need to re-think this decision as a lot of folks travel further than just Pattaya. This is the OP's point, the date of June is arbitrary and favors anyone renewing June to December, while incurring an expense on anyone renewing January to June. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
craigt3365 Posted November 4, 2017 Share Posted November 4, 2017 17 hours ago, sawadeeken said: These seem like some personal opinions and are 'great' if it works for you........... If you re-read the 'quote from the OP that I will copy and paste below you will see one good reason for 'our' Embassy to continue the service they have given up to now......... There are a number of Ex-pats that are in Wheelchairs, bedridden, etc....... I can go, You can go, but have a thought for them........ and even though I can go, I prefer Pattaya and I feel they can a bit of the Taxes I contributed to give a little back to me...... I'm not asking a free-ride at Tax-payer's expense..... I've paid a helluva lot of Taxes and still do......... My last trip to Bangkok for this, I caught a ride back with a guy in a wheel chair. He hires a car for the day to take him up and back. Easy trip. If bedridden, doesn't matter where you have to go. My mother is bedridden. I had to go the 800k in the bank route. She's not been to the US embassy nor immigration in years. Easy. Otherwise, it's a relatively easy trip to Bangkok and with their new appointment system, easy to get things setup. A pain yes, but it's not that bad. For a relatively small amount of money, Jomtien immigration will take care of everything for you. I'm a cheap charlie and do it myself. LOL Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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