Extension of Stay - Marriage: Report Udon Thani immigration Office 25 April 2019

[sometimewoodworker]

Current extension is until May 15th 2019

 

In and out this morning in about 40 minutes.(April 25th in at about 9:30) 

 

Comment from the lady at counter 3 that mine was the first application she had processed that had nothing missing or out of date, specially the photo with the house number and up to date Kor Ror2 (apart from the Acknowledgment of penalties for Overstay" and "Acknowledgement of terms and conditions " form because the 1 I submitted had last years wording and this year it has changed a little.) so she seemed to be in a good mood. 

 

She was sending a lot of people away to come back the next day with the correct papers.

 

 

Summary

 

I asked if the ฿1,900 amount showing on the handout was current while handling over my 2 sets of documents and was told yes it is.

 

Appointment on May 29 to produce another bank letter and statement showing the 400k is still there, politely asked why? Politely told "if you don't do it no extension" 

 

Under consideration stamp until June 14 

 

Warned that the 400,000 had to stay in the account for 90 days after the extension is granted.

 

Was asked for ฿2,000 fee, she then remembered she had confirmed ฿1,900 so she quickly said that because we didn't need copies made it was ฿1,900 

 

This could mean keeping the 400k in the bank for around 7 months, no problem for me as I'm not going to use the money anyway. Also no point in fighting and trying to convince them that it is not the way the rules are worded as it makes no problems for me, for this extension.

 

I don't know when the "3 months after" starts, if it runs from the start date of the extension or the date the extension is granted (this is about a month later) I will ask about this on my May 29th visit.

 

PS she did change my age on the forms as she thought that because I was born in an even numbered year that my age should not be an even number ( she didn't bother to calculate that because today is before my birthday this year that I am currently an even number of years old ) again not worth saying anything as she was proceeding through the paperwork smoothly.

Edited April 25, 2019 by sometimewoodworker
Extra information

[4evermaat]

 

24 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Appointment on May 29 to produce another bank letter and statement showing the 400k is still there, politely asked why? Politely told "if you don't do it no extension" 

 

Under consideration stamp until June 14 

Could you have made the appointment earlier or later than 29 May?

 

23 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Warned that the 400,000 had to stay in the account for 90 days after the extension is granted.

22 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

I don't know when the "3 months after" starts, if it runs from the start date of the extension or the date the extension is granted (this is about a month later) I will ask about this on my May 29th visit.

 

How will immigration check actually this?    Especially if you mail in the 90 day report or do it online, how will they check if money is there?

 

I assume this remains to be seen.  Perhaps another thread at that time to confirm.

[ubonjoe]

Perhaps somebody needs to remind her there is no requirement for the 400k baht to remain in the bank for any amount of time after the extension application is done. But some offices are now wanting it to stay in the account during the under consideration period.

Maybe she got confused as to to what extension you were applying for.

The police order for money in the bank was only for clause 2.22 of the existing police order which is for retirement. Marriage is clause 2.18.

[SEtonal]

1 hour ago, sometimewoodworker said:

This could mean keeping the 400k in the bank for around 7 months, no problem for me as I'm not going to use the money anyway.

It was reported last month that there were going to be changes to business visas and extensions of stay based on having a Thai child or being married to a Thai.  Perhaps Udon Thani is getting an early start.

 

https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1092023-big-joke-promises-easier-faster-and-more-watertight-immigration-rules/

 

Edit: corrected to "married to a Thai"

Edited April 25, 2019 by SEtonal

[sometimewoodworker]

13 minutes ago, 4evermaat said:

41 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Appointment on May 29 to produce another bank letter and statement showing the 400k is still there, politely asked why? Politely told "if you don't do it no extension" 

 

Under consideration stamp until June 14 

Could you have made the appointment earlier or later than 29 May?

I did not make the appointment it was given to me via SWMBO 

 

I had  no reason to request a different day.

 

15 minutes ago, 4evermaat said:

43 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

I don't know when the "3 months after" starts, if it runs from the start date of the extension or the date the extension is granted (this is about a month later) I will ask about this on my May 29th visit.

 

How will immigration check actually this?    Especially if you mail in the 90 day report or do it online, how will they check if money is there?

I assume that I will have to submit another bank letter and statement.

 

The dates are totally independent of (and I think unrelated to) the 90 day report.

 

18 minutes ago, 4evermaat said:

I assume this remains to be seen.  Perhaps another thread at that time to confirm.

I will update this thread, probably on or about the 29th of May or after June 14th

[ubonjoe]

Did you skip over my post. There is no 3 month requirement for an extension based upon marriage. It is only for retirement extensions.

 

23 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Perhaps somebody needs to remind her there is no requirement for the 400k baht to remain in the bank for any amount of time after the extension application is done. But some offices are now wanting it to stay in the account during the under consideration period.

 

[sometimewoodworker]

16 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Perhaps somebody needs to remind her there is no requirement for the 400k baht to remain in the bank for any amount of time after the extension application is done. But some offices are now wanting it to stay in the account during the under consideration period.

Maybe she got confused as to to what extension you were applying for.

The police order for money in the bank was only for clause 2.22 of the existing police order which is for retirement. Marriage is clause 2.18.

There was absolutely no confusion about the extension I was applying for, most of this was addressed to SWMBO in Thai, I did ask a couple of questions to clarify exactly what was needed.

 

My speculation is that Udon office has decided that all extensions must have the "3 months after granting" requirements.

 

In the same way that they have instituted a second proof of funds in place during the under consideration period.

 

I was totally aware of the fact that the 3 months after was not in the amendment and only applied to retirement extensions but as the officer was in such a pleasant mood and it makes virtually no difference to my finances, I didn't feel inclined to argue the point.

 

I make periodic visits to Udon anyway so will work it into my schedule.

[ubonjoe]

3 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

My speculation is that Udon office has decided that all extensions must have the "3 months after granting" requirements.

They cannot really do that. That is entirely different than asking for more documents than are really needed.

Things like the 3 months after can cause serious problems for people that are not aware of such a local requirement. 

[geoffbezoz]

25 minutes ago, SEtonal said:

It was reported last month that there were going to be changes to business visas and extensions of stay based on having a Thai child or being married to a child.  Perhaps Udon Thani is getting an early start.

 

https://forum.thaivisa.com/topic/1092023-big-joke-promises-easier-faster-and-more-watertight-immigration-rules/

 

Are you sure of that you posted ? I thought being married to a child would disqualify you ? ????

[SEtonal]

2 minutes ago, geoffbezoz said:

Are you sure of that you posted ? I thought being married to a child would disqualify you ? ????

Thanks.  Correction made.

[sometimewoodworker]

Again total speculation.

 

I know of at least one agent in Udon Thani who will process an extension application with no money in the bank and no income. It is certainly possible that there are people in a less comfortable financial position than I am who will find the conditions difficult or impossible. These people may now be forced to pay considerably more than the ฿1,900 + ฿200 + ฿200 + ฿200 that the current requirements cost.

 

The Udon officers may be able to begin swimming in tea????????

[JackThompson]

I am not surprised at all that they are enforcing non-existent rules.  You had literally everything the needed from the start - the easiest possible application for the IOs.

 

Even forcing you to keep the money in the bank until the application is processed is against the rules.  The rules require "2 months seasoning" - not "2 months plus until we feel like getting around to issuing the extension" (which sometimes takes 2 months after applying).  

 

Hopefully the "3 months more," beyond even that, is something they will back off on.  Please let us know if they continue pushing that non-rule on you, when you get your extension-stamp.

[JackThompson]

6 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

I know of at least one agent in Udon Thani who will process an extension application with no money in the bank and no income.

As in my experience (at 2 offices), I needed an agent or brown envelope to get a legit application processed. 

 

Looks like Udon is targeting anyone for agent-extortion who is supporting a Thai family, and can't leave 400K just sitting there for 6+ months - 2 mo before application + 1 month (or 2) to process the application + 3 months additional.

Edited April 25, 2019 by JackThompson

[sometimewoodworker]

9 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

16 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

My speculation is that Udon office has decided that all extensions must have the "3 months after granting" requirements.

They cannot really do that. That is entirely different than asking for more documents than are really needed.

Things like the 3 months after can cause serious problems for people that are not aware of such a local requirement. 

Well the case is that they are doing it for marriage extensions, possibley others but I only have first hand information about the marriage extension in Udon Thani.

 

They are making the requirement absolutely clear at the time that you apply. So that you are made aware of the requirement.

 

Now if anyone wants to go into the Udon Thani Office and challenge them on this point I will be interested to hear how successful they are.

[geoffbezoz]

5 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

Well the case is that they are doing it for marriage extensions, possibley others but I only have first hand information about the marriage extension in Udon Thani.

 

They are making the requirement absolutely clear at the time that you apply. So that you are made aware of the requirement.

 

Now if anyone wants to go into the Udon Thani Office and challenge them on this point I will be interested to hear how successful they are.

But if you are applying for an extension based on the income method, that is a different ball game.

[sometimewoodworker]

31 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

I am not surprised at all that they are enforcing non-existent rules.  You had literally everything the needed from the start - the easiest possible application for the IOs.

 

Even forcing you to keep the money in the bank until the application is processed is against the rules.  The rules require "2 months seasoning" - not "2 months plus until we feel like getting around to issuing the extension" (which sometimes takes 2 months after applying).  

 

Hopefully the "3 months more," beyond even that, is something they will back off on.  Please let us know if they continue pushing that non-rule on you, when you get your extension-stamp.

I certainly will post an update as and when I hear more.

 

Depending on exactly how I feel when my extension is granted I may decide to politely ask and require them to show me in the rules the requirement to show money 3 months after under clause 2.18. I know that both the Thai and English versions of the rules are posted here and if I'm feeling up to it I will print out those and ask to see if they have anything different.

 

If I do anything like that I will certainly update this thread.

 

The immagration rules are not the easiest reading and quite possibly the Boss may not have understood them completely himself so has passed on a garbled version to his young ladies and gentlemen(virtually all the staff are under 40 most under 30). They may understand them but must do as they are told. The Office is busy as the system required the full attention of an officer for the full 40 minutes I was in the office just for my paperwork so I can easily see that quick reading of the new rules could be thought to apply across the board.

 

That is the most generous interpretation.

 

Or the more nefarious reasons could be true. 

 

Edited April 25, 2019 by sometimewoodworker

[sometimewoodworker]

10 minutes ago, geoffbezoz said:

But if you are applying for an extension based on the income method, that is a different ball game.

Sure it is. However I did not apply under that method, so can make no comment or report on the requirements.

 

my post it either first hand information or clearly marked as speculation. Even then it ONLY applies to the Udon Thani office.

[userabcd]

I thought an update of the bank book would suffice showing the 400000 is still in the account but immigration wants another bank letter. Nice of them to be so generous with our money paying the bank everytime to produce a bank letter.

[Scott424]

Maybe I am reading the op incorrectly but if you have to return to show that the 400,000 is still in the bank on May 29 that’s long before a three month post extension seasoning period ends.  Maybe it’s to make sure you still have the money before they give you the approved extension since you are currently in the “under consideration” period.

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, Scott424 said:

Maybe I am reading the op incorrectly but if you have to return to show that the 400,000 is still in the bank on May 29 that’s long before a three month post extension seasoning period ends.  Maybe it’s to make sure you still have the money before they give you the approved extension since you are currently in the “under consideration” period.

If you would like to read my post again, in Udon Thani you are required to prove money in the bank 3 times

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, userabcd said:

I thought an update of the bank book would suffice showing the 400000 is still in the account but immigration wants another bank letter. Nice of them to be so generous with our money paying the bank everytime to produce a bank letter.

They not only want the bank letter but also a bank statement so ฿200 

[Scott424]

1 hour ago, sometimewoodworker said:

If you would like to read my post again, in Udon Thani you are required to prove money in the bank 3 times

My apologies, I missed the key sentence about that.

[ukrules]

8 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Maybe she got confused as to to what extension you were applying for.

The police order for money in the bank was only for clause 2.22 of the existing police order which is for retirement. Marriage is clause 2.18.

This is known as mission creep, first it applies to one thing, then before you know it everyone is being screwed over for no real reason other than 'this is the rulez' even though they're not.

 

Edited April 25, 2019 by ukrules

[SEtonal]

This man was told by Chachoengsao Immigration Office that he must keep 400k in the bank three months after receiving a marriage extension.  The video is long but he summarizes from the 19 minute mark, including the part where the Immigration Officer got snippy with his wife. He had a Bangkok lawyer friend check to see if the requirement was correct.

 

https://youtu.be/MtcjsvTBNZg?t=1140

[Deerculler]

She changed your age. I hope that does not give you a problem in the future.


Sent from my iPhone using Thaivisa Connect

[Dmitry2222]

On 4/25/2019 at 4:45 PM, SEtonal said:

It was reported last month that there were going to be changes to business visas and extensions of stay based on having a Thai child or being married to a Thai.  Perhaps Udon Thani is getting an early start.

Previously was declared that updates will be anounced 22 april. And trere are not any news more about it. Looks like updates gone with BJ.

[SEtonal]

7 minutes ago, Dmitry2222 said:

Previously was declared that updates will be anounced 22 april. And trere are not any news more about it. Looks like updates gone with BJ.

There is important information about updates in the video I just linked that is attributed to a Bangkok lawyer.  

[ubonjoe]

5 minutes ago, SEtonal said:

There is important information about updates in the video I just linked that is attributed to a Bangkok lawyer.  

I listened to that part of video and am bit sceptical about the info provided. I think it may be confusing the two extensions.

That big of a change would require another change to the police order and that has not happened.

They have started wanting the 400k baht to remain in the bank during the under consideration period for an extension based upon marriage.

 

[ukrules]

Sounds like they're using unpublished internal memos directly from the ministry.

 

As they're not published they're a secret until they hit you with the new requirement.

 

Sounds like a very deliberate act to get rid of some foreigners by someone who hates foreigners.

[riclag]

5 hours ago, SEtonal said:

This man was told by Chachoengsao Immigration Office that he must keep 400k in the bank three months after receiving a marriage extension.  The video is long but he summarizes from the 19 minute mark, including the part where the Immigration Officer got snippy with his wife. He had a Bangkok lawyer friend check to see if the requirement was correct.

 

https://youtu.be/MtcjsvTBNZg?t=1140

Well there you have it! 400k 2 months prior and 90 days after for a Marriage visa extension 

Edited May 6, 2019 by riclag