Passport held by shady agent for 8 months - please help

[Liverpool Lou]

1 hour ago, The Hammer2021 said:

French man called Roddy only a forum member for 19 hours...

"Rodyy", not Roddy...but what's the relevance of an anonymous forum name, anyway?   I'd bet that your name isn't "The Hammer2021", mine sure isn't "Liverpool Lou". 

 

Maybe he, like 99.9% of people in Thailand had no interest in, no reason to be a member of or just wasn't aware of the existence of this hallowed forum until his problem arose.    And what if his OP is BS, it sure wouldn't be the first!

[Liverpool Lou]

7 minutes ago, LoeiI said:

I would love to ask him but he's been absolutely and totally  Absent for over 10 hours

You could PM him.

 

"...he's been absolutely and totally  Absent for over 10 hours".

Have you been monitoring him constantly for the past 10 hours?  Maybe he's been back reading the replies but, even if he hasn't, what does it matter, there's no minimum number of times an OP has to comment, is there?

[BritTim]

4 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

He can only be on overstay as his "visa" expired in August.

I do not see how you can make that assumption. He handed the passport to the agent presumably last June (the agent reportedly was handed it eight months ago). The intention was for the agent to arrange an extension of his permission to stay. The passport was subsequently mislaid, but we have no clue whether that occurred before, or after, a further one-year extension of stay was obtained. It is possible that the OP's permission to stay is now August 2022. We just do not know. In my opinion, the number one priority is to answer that question. I believe pressure must be put on the agent to find out his status as quickly as possible. If he is on overstay, the situation is much more urgent than if he is legally in Thailand, but has a mislaid passport to deal with.

Edited January 8, 2022 by BritTim

[BritTim]

4 hours ago, darrendsd said:

And the OP can follow the legal proceedings while locked up in the IDC

It is the threat of legal proceedings (and the subsequent publicity) that is important. In all likelihood, you would not go through with the threat, but can the agent take that chance?

 

If the agent does not know when the passport was mislaid, the OP will need to find out his immigration status through other means. There are people who, for a fee, can consult the immigration records. If he is on overstay, the OP will most likely have to apply for an emergency travel document and leave (accepting the one-year ban). However, there is a decent chance that his situation is not quite that dire.

Edited January 8, 2022 by BritTim

[clivebaxter]

7 hours ago, Nickelbeer said:

Agent bashers are just jealous because they decided to stand on western principle and refused to do things the "Thai way".  Immigration makes this possible by being completely duplicitous about the process. I just consider myself "grandfathered", since my income requirements were perfectly fine when I first moved here. An IO officer even told me that they didn't care WHERE my money was, as long as it was the required amount. Now, as then, my income is STILL above the requirements.  Now, I learn that they are considering upping the required income. My agent says not to worry. Judging by the welcome she got at Immigration during my last two extensions, I would trust her without reservation.  She also provides me with my condo rental.  The asinine "buying privilege" argument is just a way for some to feel superior. 

I don't see anyone jealous of having an agent lose your passport, or of people getting extensions from a province they do not live, in or paying about 8x the legit charge for getting one and being tied to an agent for other services as you bypassed your actual office where you live. Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.

[The Hammer2021]

10 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

I don't see anyone jealous of having an agent lose your passport, or of people getting extensions from a province they do not live, in or paying about 8x the legit charge for getting one and being tied to an agent for other services as you bypassed your actual office where you live. Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.

You appear  not to understand  what services  agents provide  or how they do it.

 

'Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.' is an absurd thing to suggest..

 

Edited January 8, 2022 by The Hammer2021

[daveAustin]

2 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

You could PM him.

 

"...he's been absolutely and totally  Absent for over 10 hours".

Have you been monitoring him constantly for the past 10 hours?  Maybe he's been back reading the replies but, even if he hasn't, what does it matter, there's no minimum number of times an OP has to comment, is there?

Big of a trollish red flag though bruv; newbie posting contentious, barely believable topic (then disappears) guaranteed to attract many replies and get folk riled up. It happens, particularly through those with lots of niks. Not saying it is in this case, but…

[SiSePuede419]

So basically a agent is a short term Loan shark a doo doo doo Doo ????

 

[LoeiI]

26 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

I don't see anyone jealous of having an agent lose your passport, or of people getting extensions from a province they do not live, in or paying about 8x the legit charge for getting one and being tied to an agent for other services as you bypassed your actual office where you live. Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.

Selling my soul to the devil ???? Jeezus I'm off to find a church cant go to bed with all that hanging over me, please say a prayer for me Clive it seems i'm gonna need all the help i can get ????⛪???????? 

[Smithson]

53 minutes ago, clivebaxter said:

I don't see anyone jealous of having an agent lose your passport, or of people getting extensions from a province they do not live, in or paying about 8x the legit charge for getting one and being tied to an agent for other services as you bypassed your actual office where you live. Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.

Some use agents because they are short of time. Same in other countries.

[bobandyson]

On 1/7/2022 at 8:18 PM, clivebaxter said:

'Grace'? Sounds like they lost it to be honest

Could be. I asked that agency for a quote for a marriage ext. but was told their IO contacts had been 'rotated'. That was early November '21. I enquired again late December and was told to contact again in the new year.

 

Possible the OP's passport got caught up in the middle of the application process during the IO re-shuffle and is now in limbo somewhere?   

Edited January 8, 2022 by bobandyson

[clivebaxter]

8 hours ago, Smithson said:

Some use agents because they are short of time. Same in other countries.

Took me 20 minutes to get last years extension, how short of time can people be to pay way over the odds for a dodgy one?

[clivebaxter]

9 hours ago, The Hammer2021 said:

You appear  not to understand  what services  agents provide  or how they do it.

 

'Seems like selling your soul to the devil to me.' is an absurd thing to suggest..

 

If you are using an agent to obtain an extension when you do not have the funds in the bank it is often from a province you do not live in, clearly illegal. Then you are stuck with an agent as going back to your real office is going to raise problems, you can fill out a TM30 and lie about just moving but what if they ask what your previous address was in the province you never actually lived in, can of worms. Try going into your real office and do a 90 day report, a reentry permit or a legal extension and see what happens!

[Smithson]

1 hour ago, clivebaxter said:

Took me 20 minutes to get last years extension, how short of time can people be to pay way over the odds for a dodgy one?

Some people have jobs

[IvorBiggun2]

28 minutes ago, Smithson said:

Some people have jobs

Take a days holiday. Or lose an hour unpaid. The people I know who use agents do it cuz of lack of finances. Never met anyone that use an agent for any other reason.

[The Fugitive]

29 minutes ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

Take a days holiday. Or lose an hour unpaid. The people I know who use agents do it cuz of lack of finances. Never met anyone that use an agent for any other reason.

The lady Visa Agent I deal with tells me the majority of her client’s come from U.K. Many, as you rightly say, receive State Pension only, having no available savings. She has English people bringing her correspondence they have received from U.K. and ask her to read and explain it to them because they have literacy problems. She can assist in obtaining Visa’s in other Countries plus the usual translation, legal advice, house purchase, travel agency and taxi booking services. Very useful person to know!

[IvorBiggun2]

In Buriram the Agent for visas is the Immigration Office themselves. I believe, to obtain a Retirement Extension, they charge 20,000 Baht. No receipt. All the people in Buriram, that I know that do it under the table, use Pattaya Soi Post Office agent costing 13,000 ish Baht. They can even do their 90 day report at Buriram. So that's a bonus.

Me, I do everything legit. Having children I don't want to run the risk of doing anything that will compromise my living in Thailand.

[BritTim]

3 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

Took me 20 minutes to get last years extension, how short of time can people be to pay way over the odds for a dodgy one?

I am taking no position on whether it makes sense for those who qualify for an extension should, nevertheless, use an agent. What I will say is that the time you can expect to spend at many offices when not using an agent will be considerably longer than 20 minutes Indeed, you will often be required to return the next business day for your passport. If the journey time is an hour in each direction between your home and Immigration (as it is for many) this can be a real pain. (Not really a factor in normal times) with the risk of Covid infection, if an agent can get you in and out of Immigration within a few minutes, and ensure a single visit, this could, for some, justify the cost.

[IvorBiggun2]

3 minutes ago, BritTim said:

if an agent can get you in and out of Immigration within a few minutes, and ensure a single visit, this could, for some, justify the cost.

How can an agent get you in and out of an IO in minutes when you don't go with the agent? 

[thaibeachlovers]

On 1/8/2022 at 1:58 PM, Tracyb said:

EIGHT MONTHS!?  Really?

Who goes on for eight months without a passport?

Best of luck, pal!

Apparently the OP has never been to hospital, or checked into a reputable hotel in 8 months!

Anyway, what about 90 days reports?

[BritManToo]

3 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Apparently the OP has never been to hospital, or checked into a reputable hotel in 8 months!

Anyway, what about 90 days reports?

Or used a bank, or been vaccinated!

Seems unlikely.

Edited January 9, 2022 by BritManToo

[DrJack54]

2 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Apparently the OP has never been to hospital, or checked into a reputable hotel in 8 months!

Anyway, what about 90 days reports?

It's a troll thread. 

 

[BritTim]

5 minutes ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

How can an agent get you in and out of an IO in minutes when you don't go with the agent? 

You either use an agent who, as part of the service, transports you to and from Immigration (especially useful with immigration offices where it is difficult to park); or you have an appointment to meet the agent at the immigration office as a designated time. In either case, a good agent should have arranged VIP queuing (something that will infuriate many here who refuse to "waste money" on agents).

 

EDIT: Although many agents will process an extension without you attending Immigration, in most cases, part of the regulations is that you attend immigration yourself, even when using an agent to assist. Be aware that, if you do not do so, you may end up quite surprised at where the agent actually processed your extension.

Edited January 9, 2022 by BritTim

[IvorBiggun2]

2 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Anyway, what about 90 days reports?

Not defending the OP but you can do a years 90 day reports online without your passport or visiting a IO.

[ignis]

59 minutes ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

Take a days holiday. Or lose an hour unpaid. The people I know who use agents do it cuz of lack of finances. Never met anyone that use an agent for any other reason.

The people I know [live way out of a Town] who use agents are old or disabled ...... what is involved ? go to copy shop. go to Bank. go to Immigration office. in a wheelchair with no transport is not easy. much easier for a Agent to come to house and pick up passport and do everything + every 90 days get sent the new report....   

[IvorBiggun2]

3 minutes ago, ignis said:

The people I know [live way out of a Town] who use agents are old or disabled ...... what is involved ? go to copy shop. go to Bank. go to Immigration office. in a wheelchair

If incapacitated you get a doctors cert. Your wife can then do it for you. And visa agents coming to your house??? That's a new one for me.

[BritTim]

1 minute ago, IvorBiggun2 said:

If incapacitated you get a doctors cert. Your wife can then do it for you. And visa agents coming to your house??? That's a new one for me.

Some will find it cheaper to use a regular agent rather then marry someone just to have a live in agent. Agents who do house visits most definitely do exist. Sometimes, they will charge extra, sometimes not.

[Whale]

3 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

clearly illegal

I am not so sure its illegal Clive as Senior Imm officials have the right to grant exceptions on a case by case basis as I understand it.

[BritTim]

2 minutes ago, Whale said:

I am not so sure its illegal Clive as Senior Imm officials have the right to grant exceptions on a case by case basis as I understand it.

Correct, depending on their seniority and the nature of the exception. In particular, those who do the sign off on retirement extensions at most immigration offices are sufficiently senior that they are empowered to waive funds seasoning requirements. They are supposed only to do so under exceptional circumstances, but what "exceptional" means is in the eye of the beholder.

[IvorBiggun2]

3 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

Try going into your real office and do a 90 day report, a reentry permit or a legal extension and see what happens!

Buriram Immigration office will do your 90 day report even if you are using an agent in Pattaya.