Nong Khai Again - Retirement Visa Obtained (just)

[lungbing]

First the good news.

1. By the skin of my teeth I walked out of Nong Khai Immigration Office with a new one-year extension to my non-immigrant

'O' retirement visa.

2. A medical certificate was not required.

3. A map showing where I live was not required.

4. Only one copy of each document from the following list was required. (this year)

required were:-

a. a completed TM7 form with a photo glued (not stapled) in the appropriate place on the back of the form.

b. a copy of each used page of my passport plus the original.

c. a copy of each page of my bankbook plus the original. I gave them copies of the whole book, pages used or not.

d. the original letter from my bank confirming a credit of more than 800,000 baht and that the money had come from abroad

and that it had been there for three months. (more on that and the problems it caused later)

e. a copy of my wife's ID card

f. a copy of my wife's tabien baan.

g. a copy of my bank statements for the past year.

Originals of the tabien baan and ID card were checked against the copies and returned.

First the officer asked for the copy of my passport and literally snatched it out of my hand when offered to him. A good start. Then he checked my passport against the copy and ticked various entries on the copy. Then he checked the bank book against the letter from the bank and there was a problem. I had gone to my bank on Wednesday of this week, the 26th, and they had made the book up to date. But the last transaction on the account was last week, on Thursday 20th Sept. So that was the last date showing in the book with the final balance of more than 800,000 baht. But the letter from the bank was dated 26th showing exactly the same balance. He gave me the bank book back and told me to go to the branch of my bank in Nong Khai, get the book brought up to date and return. So we drove into town, went to the bank and to get a transaction date of today on it I payed in a couple of thousand baht. The bank wouldn't give me a letter but did give me the last page of the statement for my account. So back to immigration. He looked at it and said the amount isn't the same now. I said the amount on the statement is the same as the amount in the book and both have today's date. He grudgingly accepted it and signed everything and took 1,900 baht off me and gave me a receipt.

Then he spoke to my wife and later she told me he had asked how long we have been married (6 years) and how many children we have (2). This is really nothing to do with a retirement visa, was he just checking up on us?

He then asked us for our home and mobile phone numbers and sent us to a senior female officer, a captain, and my wife explained the problem with the bank letter. She ummed and ahhed look at me and said Ok. No smile though. She countersigned it all and back to the first man to give in the copies of paperwork and he gave me back my passport.

Then the next (minor) problem. My 90 day reporting was due two weeks ago and I had duly sent off the form and promptly received back the receipt giving the next reporting date of 25th of October which is the actual date of my visa expiry each year. ie my 90 days was only about 35 days. I asked for a new 90 day form as from today and he said 'No' in quite a nasty tone. "You come back next month". I asked if I could sent it in by post. He said 'No, you come yourself' and woman officer next to him who obviously understood the question I asked in English replied "mai dai" (cannot) I looked at her and said 'Pardon?' and she said 'mai dai' and looked away. She wouldn't answer in English yet she's on the front desk. Maybe we'll all have to learn Thai as the next requirement to obtain a visa.

It's a two and a half hour drive from Khon Kaen to Nong Khai and now it looks like everybody has to do it every 90 days to be in and out in ten minutes. What a waste. But I thought the law said you could post it in? Anybody know?

So, to summarise the main point. Make sure your bank book is up-to-date and the date of the last transaction showing the final amount is also the date on the letter from the bank and that the final amount in the book is the same as in the letter. And that the minimum of 800,000 baht has been there for 90 days. In fact he counted three months, not ninety days ie July, August September (in Thai) .

What a performance. My wife was very upset at the treatment but we are in their hands and I wouldn't want to be the one to complain and then be messed about every year thereafter. Never mind, we live and learn. I have made notes and I'll be better prepared next year. But of course by then all the rules will have changed anyway.

We had lunch at a restaurant by the river looking over to Laos and upstream to the Thai-Laos Friendship bridge. But we couldn't see the bridge because the rain was coming down by the bucketfull. Afterwards our waiter took an large umbrella from out of a table and covered us to the car. Good lad. We'll go back there.

Then to Tassadet market. It's been covered in so you can walk round without getting your head wet. But they forgot the drains so half the market was flooded higher than my shoes from the rain so we left early. It didn't seem so cheap as before, it seems to have tried to go upmarket (!) But there were very very few customers there, and a lot more beggars, amputees and lottery salesmen than I remember from last year. In fact today beggars outnumbered customers.

By now it's 2pm and finally we went to The Danish Bakery cafe for a coffee. Not recommended unless you are a loud drunken German or the very loud wife of a drunken German. All that's wrong with the farang here. Dirty singlet, short shorts and flip-flops, loud and drunk at 2pm. (Pompous little a55hole aren't I?) But it spoilt it for us and we drank up and left.

On the way home there was two police check points between Nong Khai and Udon Thani but we were warned by oncoming motorists flashing their headlights and we slowed down appropriately and were waved through.

Ho hum, another day in Thailand.

[JetsetBkk]

Oh dear, what a miserable day! You have my sympathies.

Thanks for this:

Make sure your bank book is up-to-date and the date of the last transaction showing the final amount is also the date on the letter from the bank and that the final amount in the book is the same as in the letter.

I'll make a note of it for my turn next year.

[lungbing]

Miserable indeed. Except for the redeeming factor of walking away with the visa safely in my passport.

[mackayae]

Sorry you had such a rough day. I have been using the same office for the past ten years. Unfortunately they have a bad reputation. Some farangs go to Pattaya or Bangkok Immigration just to avoid them. Sometimes I have been treated well, other times not so good; I guess it is human nature. However, I do dread going up there every year, not knowing what to expect.

[Krub]

Am I glad I live in South Isaan and using Kap Cheong or Phu Sing Immigration offices where you are greeted with a smile and a cup of coffee most of the time. Hope it stays that way....You are right it is the uncertainty of the thing which is annoying not the actual preparation of the paperwork itself.

Exchange of recent experinece makes life much more predictable

Thanks for posting

[tomallison]

Has anyone anywhere been asked to show a map for the extension? I recently extended up country and a map was never mentioned.

[dsfbrit]

She wouldn't answer in English yet she's on the front desk. Maybe we'll all have to learn Thai as the next requirement to obtain a visa.

Useful post and a rotten day all round, however I got a bit miffed with your above comment - never mind immigration - you should learn Thai because you live in Thailand.

I suspect Immigration get quite fed up with Farang, not you I am sure, who just stroll in wearing less than appropriate clothing and a less than appropriate attitude, and expect everyone there to understand what they are saying when they speak English.

Certainly in the 5 years I have been renewing my extension based on marriage, I have never had any major problems and I believe this is in part due to the fact that I talk to the people in Thai. Even when my Thai was very poor when I first started learning, I still felt it was appreciated. So why not give it a go - pick up some Thai language learning books - and next year you may find things go a little smoother. Mind you, then again they may not!! good luck TIT

Edited September 30, 2007 by dsfbrit

[Martin]

It is worthwhile to try to think of putting yourself in the position of the 'front desk' police officers at Nong Khai.

It is not a job in which I could last a week.

I was helped to see this some years ago by a very formidable lady desk officer (I won't mention a name, but many 'old hands' will remember her!) and her superior officer, who were at Aek Udon Hospital on the first time that the Nong Khai office tried extending their service to Udon two days a week. It happened that my wife and I were the last applicants of the day and there was an hour to go before they 'shut up the shop'.

So we had a long chat and they told us of all the trials and tribulations of their job. Although their afternoon was very relaxed that day, they had had one hel_l of a morning (which apparently often happens). They told us how relentless the pressure can be in a morning, with no time to relax after having been 'wound up' by some applicant who (possibly quite inadvertently because he doesn't understand the culture/ lacks understanding of what is required/ has little grasp of English etc) and the next such applicant.

They were under pressure to get everything exactly right, as they were but the recipient of the application and Bangkok could (and most definitely did) give them a load of real hassle if given the slightest chance.

That feeling of being 'ground between the upper and nether millstone' is, of course, the classic recipe for producing stress.

One thing that we farangs tend to overlook is the sneering treatment of all who are seen to be people of Isaan by those who feel themselves to be superior because they are people of Bangkok.

To me, brought up to believe in man's equality to man (though there is a lot of insidious snobbishness not far below the surface in many of the English) this is one of the irksome things of Thailand.

Something that they were too polite to mention, but I guess must be there, will be the contrast between the lush financial situation of the applicants and their own pressures to manage to get by (probably raising a family) on a mere fraction of what they see coming into the farangs' accounts every month.

Since then, I have been very conscious of how much stress there is 'in the air' whilst I wait my turn at Nong Khai.

There is no magic answer, but I think it is wise to do what one can to create an impression of not being a cultural ignoramus. I now take some care to dress appropriately, and say "Sawadee", even though my accent is atrocious.

And hope for the best.

[tracer]

She wouldn't answer in English yet she's on the front desk. Maybe we'll all have to learn Thai as the next requirement to obtain a visa.

Useful post and a rotten day all round, however I got a bit miffed with your above comment - never mind immigration - you should learn Thai because you live in Thailand.

=====

I speak when I want to and in many cases its much more fun NOT to speak as you wouldnt have a clue what marketsales ladies talk to their friends about. ...

======

I suspect Immigration get quite fed up with Farang, not you I am sure, who just stroll in wearing less than appropriate clothing and a less than appropriate attitude, and expect everyone there to understand what they are saying when they speak English.

Certainly in the 5 years I have been renewing my extension based on marriage, I have never had any major problems and I believe this is in part due to the fact that I talk to the people in Thai. Even when my Thai was very poor when I first started learning, I still felt it was appreciated. So why not give it a go - pick up some Thai language learning books - and next year you may find things go a little smoother. Mind you, then again they may not!! good luck TIT

most embassies have the rule: speak English. There is a misunderstanding Thai fault, you speak Thai, your fault...

Go other office next year if this one is a pain. Friend had marriage visum for 5 years, this year no way, retirement. They wantted to know what he married here and asked her if he had anough money... THEN they send him on to a katoi for the final decission...

[kangeroo]

Hello .

i think it would be better just to fly home and do the visa ,go and take care of a few tings and fly back .