Disability

[jamden]

Is a disability taken into account for visa problems, overstay, deportation etc?

[colinneil]

jamden are you joking?

Immigration do not care if you are disabled.

Now before the usual crowd start having a go at me, i am speaking from my own experiences with immigration.

[Gonzo the Face]

Strange that this should pop up just now.  I find myself in the same position.  Was mentally composing my thoughts for a call to my attorney.  I have been wheelchair bound for a number of years, as some of you know.  But I recently had the misfortune of having a leg amputated.   Each year I usually go to KL to get another Non Imm B Visa.  I go by myself and with the assistance of air staff, have no difficulty with the transportation portion and the hotel staff are just great and do help with the KL land portion of the journey.  But now the new obstacle.  With a missing leg, it is really dicey getting in and out of the wheelchair as well as balance and other difficulties keep popping up.  Dr. sez that it will take some months before I would be able to get an artificial leg.  All this gives me some pause and a bit of fear in going on a journey like this.  I will follow this thread to see if any other program or alternative is reported. 

[Lizard2010]

I think this would be a exercise for the consular corp to talk to immigration about this help for disabled people

As there getting more and more people who need help

 

[noise]

I was talking with a visa agent this week about a bedridden stroke victim and how to renew his retirement visa and the agent said a representative could do it with a doctor's report.   If you can gather the necessary income documents, it can be done.  Without them, there is the possibility of a short term (I think they said 3 months) medical visa waiting for the patient's recovery.   Lack of real details here but the bottom line is it can be done.   As Gonzo was thinking, it may make things easier to use a lawyer or, like a lot of people do already, use an agent.  

 

[mogoso]

I think if your 75 or disabled you might be able to get your needed visa stuff done on the second floor. But I'm not disabled or 75 yet so I've not tried.

 

[Suradit69]

3 hours ago, mogoso said:

I think if your 75 or disabled you might be able to get your needed visa stuff done on the second floor. But I'm not disabled or 75 yet so I've not tried.

 

Maybe you can expand on what " visa stuff" and which "second floor" you're referring to.

[ubonjoe]

Two off topic inflammatory posts have been removed.

[PoorSucker]

My 80 year old friend does 3 months medical extensions. 

[ubonjoe]

On 10/16/2018 at 7:38 AM, jamden said:

Is a disability taken into account for visa problems, overstay, deportation etc?

If unable to travel to immigration you will need proof of it from a doctor and then you designat somebody to do and extension for you.

A overstay has be avoided since when on one it cannot be cleared. No deportation unless you go on an overstay.

Immigration will issue extensions for up to 90 days at a time with proof from a doctor you are unable to travel.

[NoshowJones]

On 10/16/2018 at 7:41 AM, colinneil said:

jamden are you joking?

Immigration do not care if you are disabled.

Now before the usual crowd start having a go at me, i am speaking from my own experiences with immigration.

I don't know how these people manage to sleep at night Colin.

[connda]

3 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

If unable to travel to immigration you will need proof of it from a doctor and then you designat somebody to do and extension for you.

A overstay has be avoided since when on one it cannot be cleared. No deportation unless you go on an overstay.

Immigration will issue extensions for up to 90 days at a time with proof from a doctor you are unable to travel.

Ubonjoe.  Do you know if a someone with a Thai power of attorney can process an extension for an expat who is so disabled that they are hospital bound and unable to communicate or sign their names, such as someone who has had a stroke? 

[JackThompson]

On 10/16/2018 at 7:38 AM, jamden said:

Is a disability taken into account for visa problems, overstay, deportation etc?

 

On 10/16/2018 at 7:41 AM, colinneil said:

jamden are you joking?

Immigration do not care if you are disabled.

Now before the usual crowd start having a go at me, i am speaking from my own experiences with immigration.

Yes and No.  At an office or checkpoint, I have seen immigration-staff be very gracious to those with mobility issues.  Most rank-and-file are decent people. 

But, if you go into overstay, I have read several reports of "no exceptions" to the rules on fines, etc.

[ubonjoe]

3 minutes ago, connda said:

Ubonjoe.  Do you know if a someone with a Thai power of attorney can process an extension for an expat who is so disabled that they are hospital bound and unable to communicate or sign their names, such as someone who has had a stroke? 

A power of attorney is not normally need for somebody to do it. Just written authorization for somebody to do it with proof a person is unable to travel to immigration.

[Lacessit]

On 10/16/2018 at 7:41 AM, colinneil said:

jamden are you joking?

Immigration do not care if you are disabled.

Now before the usual crowd start having a go at me, i am speaking from my own experiences with immigration.

Perhaps if you gave more detail of your experiences? Where?

Chiang Mai Immigration probably has the worst reputation among expats. However, when I've been there, people in wheelchairs seem to be treated respectfully.

[quandow]

I have a friend who got into an accident and broke his back. He was supposed to do a border run within the following week. He even had his doctor write a letter how he wasn't supposed to MOVE, let alone do a bumpy van ride for several hours. Immigration gave him a one week extension. He went through absolute HELL one week later having to do the border run. Immigration has no sympathy.

[Paul Laycock1]

I am disabled after two strokes and a hip replacement operation.

A letter from your doctor along with a photograph in your bed or even hospital bed should help with your predicament.

I do the 90 day runs with the help of my sister in law, same for shopping and anywhere else I need to go.

 

My next trip into the unknown will be to renew my passport in Bangkok, before anyone suggests it I’m not going to use a. Agent.

 

Good luck.

[noise]

The stroke victim I mentioned is right handed and paralyzed on the right side.  His left hand is too shaky to write with but was able to make his thumb print on two POAs.  One was written in Thai and English and witnessed.  We have yet to need it in Thailand, but expect to soon at the bank.  The second POA had his thumb print and was notarized by the U.S. Consulate as directed by his U.S. bank before they would allow his brother in the U.S. to act on his behalf.   

 

Immigration may have different criteria than financial institutions do.

[micmichd]

On 10/17/2018 at 7:55 AM, noise said:

I was talking with a visa agent this week about a bedridden stroke victim and how to renew his retirement visa and the agent said a representative could do it with a doctor's report.   If you can gather the necessary income documents, it can be done.  Without them, there is the possibility of a short term (I think they said 3 months) medical visa waiting for the patient's recovery.   Lack of real details here but the bottom line is it can be done.   As Gonzo was thinking, it may make things easier to use a lawyer or, like a lot of people do already, use an agent.  

 

If you want to avoid problems in advance, you should think about a written advance health care directive. 

You can write down the name of anyone you trust there and also write down what rights she/he should have. Including access to your bank account, including the right to go to immigration for you,  the right to testify your're still alive, including the right to hire a visa agent or a lawyer. You might need a translation of the document into Thai. 

 

[JackThompson]

12 hours ago, quandow said:

I have a friend who got into an accident and broke his back. He was supposed to do a border run within the following week. He even had his doctor write a letter how he wasn't supposed to MOVE, let alone do a bumpy van ride for several hours. Immigration gave him a one week extension. He went through absolute HELL one week later having to do the border run. Immigration has no sympathy.

Anyone can get 7-days - injured or not.  It's what they give you when they deny your extension.  This is disturbing, since he actively sought the extension before going into overstay, and had a doc's letter.  What office was this?

 

What exactly is required for an application for an extension for medical-reasons?  Does senior hospital-staff need to sign off?  Is this another case where one has to get an agent involved (read "agent fee") to get service?

[NancyL]

Chiang Mai Immigration is indeed very sympathetic to people in wheelchairs and will even simply issue a fine if someone is on two or three days of overstay due to their illness or incapacity.  However, they cannot correct a longer overstay, even if the person has all the necessary documents to request a medical extensions.  Chiang Mai has their own special form that they want the doctor to sign that specifically says the applicant will be unable to travel for XX days into the future, with 90 days being the maximum.  They also want the standard medical certificate from the hospital with the doctor's signature and the hospital's stamp.  Plus a photo of the person in the hospital bed, looking grim, surrounded by nurses (it's difficult to keep them from smiling for a photo).  If the person isn't in the hospital, he should be taken to immigration, but can wait in the vehicle and the Imm. officer will come out to see him.