Four Hour Wait As Suan Phlu

[samran]

FYI.

Took us 4 hours yesterday to waiting in line to see someone yesterday to get my wifes non-immgrant O visa extended for another 12 months. Got the queue ticket at 10am and didn't get to see someone until 2pm, afterwhich processing took about 45mins. Last year we were there less than an hour all up.

The lady serving us was however friendly and professional. We were caught out at not having photo's of where we lived as we didn't need them last year (but could bring them down at a later point), and was she terribly apologetic for the wait for me and my wife who were there with our 20 month old.

She complained to us that the new head of the immigraiton police had gone OTT in enforcing rules which created paperwork but not much else. The photo's were to show we lived where we said we lived, and we needed to show a map of the place, which I quickly scribbled on a piece of paper. All of which needed to be put in an ever expanding folder which no-one ever looks at. As if the fact that my daughter and our two previous extentions weren't enough for them to believe our relationship is genuine enough. Of course, they needed all the same bits of paper for this years file, even though they already have them on record.

We weren't the only family sitting there waiting, and I heard one bloke go a bit ballistic after all said and done that he had to queue up for the right just to stay with his family.

Sadly, she seems to be right. Getting to work at 3.30pm, and getting to a client meeting extremely late, I decided to walk home from the meeting on Petchaburi Rd, via Soi 3 and Nana, passing numerous (presumably illegal) central asian prossies on their way to work.

Stopped at a totally legit, but slighly overpriced barber shop at the top of soi 8 for a hair cut where I witnessed a fat tourist try and pick up a girl who worked there, wanting to take her back to his hotel.

Quality tourists indeed.

Thai immigration at work: doing their best, but being led by incompetents in this case. Immigration should take some lessons from the Ministry of Foreign affairs, who can issue passports with hardly any paperwork needed whatsoever.

Anyway, so thats my gripe for this year. You may see a slightly sarcastic letter to the head of immigration in the BKK post in the next few days.

[sbk]

I did my extension in Samui last November and no photos were required. Neither was a map. Of course, I had to go back a month later to pick up the extension but that's par for the course out in the boonies.

When did this new Immigration head take over?

[samran]

I did my extension in Samui last November and no photos were required. Neither was a map. Of course, I had to go back a month later to pick up the extension but that's par for the course out in the boonies.

When did this new Immigration head take over?

dunno, but will look into it. She said a new bloke came in an decided to add in a bunch of new requirements. It may be that he is just the head of Suan Phlu. As others have noted, rules differ from place to place.

More of annoyance than anything, as last year, the requirements were for an ID card, tabein baan, marriage cert, my childs BC and that was about it. No skin off my teeth per se, but these little extra's add up to longer waits for everyone, and more work for the immigration ladies (which most of them are).

[dr_Pat_Pong]

I did my extension in Samui last November and no photos were required. Neither was a map. Of course, I had to go back a month later to pick up the extension but that's par for the course out in the boonies.

When did this new Immigration head take over?

dunno, but will look into it. She said a new bloke came in an decided to add in a bunch of new requirements. It may be that he is just the head of Suan Phlu. As others have noted, rules differ from place to place.

More of annoyance than anything, as last year, the requirements were for an ID card, tabein baan, marriage cert, my childs BC and that was about it. No skin off my teeth per se, but these little extra's add up to longer waits for everyone, and more work for the immigration ladies (which most of them are).

It is a breeze to make 'er indoors a dual citizen ... that is for a Thai husband with a farang wife

[Maestro]

…When did this new Immigration head take over?

I believe it was at the end of September, when promotions and transfers in government offices usually take place.

The change related to the chief of Suan Phlu immigration office (local responsibility), not the Immigration Commissioner (national responsibility)

--

Maestro

[dr_Pat_Pong]

…When did this new Immigration head take over?

I believe it was at the end of September, when promotions and transfers in government offices usually take place.

The change related to the chief of Suan Phlu immigration office (local responsibility), not the Immigration Commissioner (national responsibility)

--

Maestro

October. The new broom sweeps clean ( fortunately, only for awhile )

[samran]

I did my extension in Samui last November and no photos were required. Neither was a map. Of course, I had to go back a month later to pick up the extension but that's par for the course out in the boonies.

When did this new Immigration head take over?

dunno, but will look into it. She said a new bloke came in an decided to add in a bunch of new requirements. It may be that he is just the head of Suan Phlu. As others have noted, rules differ from place to place.

More of annoyance than anything, as last year, the requirements were for an ID card, tabein baan, marriage cert, my childs BC and that was about it. No skin off my teeth per se, but these little extra's add up to longer waits for everyone, and more work for the immigration ladies (which most of them are).

It is a breeze to make 'er indoors a dual citizen ... that is for a Thai husband with a farang wife

Am sorting the paperwork as we speak Doc, but the paperwork is rather extensive and takes time. Lets see if the new the new interior minister decides to approve any. TRT approved few if any citizenship applications if I recall correctly, so PPP may be the same.

It took a miliary government to get rid of the backlog.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

…When did this new Immigration head take over?

I believe it was at the end of September, when promotions and transfers in government offices usually take place.

The change related to the chief of Suan Phlu immigration office (local responsibility), not the Immigration Commissioner (national responsibility)

--

Maestro

[lopburi3]

POLICE RESHUFFLE

Immigration chief dispute splits Police Commission

MANOP THIP-OSOD

The Police Commission cannot agree on the fate of the immigration police chief, who was abruptly transferred last year, and as a consequence the police reshuffle list is now likely to be left to the next government.

((continued))

http://www.bangkokpost.com/News/10Jan2008_news11.php

[Maestro]

I got it wrong then, it is the Commissioner whose transfer was being talked about, after all. From the web site of the Immigration Bureau:

Commissioner, Immigration Bureau

Police Lt. Gen. Boonraung Ponpanich

Interesting to see the forces at work when a high-level officer resists a transfer.

Wait a minute! On October 19, 2007 that very same web page showed Police Lt. Gen. Suwat Tumrongsriskul in the position of "Commissioner, Immigration Bureau" and when querying it I received confirmation that on that date he was still in that position. This would mean that Police Lt. Gen. Boonruang Ponpanich took over from him, I guess, some time after that date. And then Gen. Boonruanng was also transferred, and is now back again?

The chief of the Suan Plu immigration office is obviously a different person, whose name I cannot find on the Internet.

--

Maestro

[Deksan]

...Took us 4 hours yesterday to waiting in line

The most annoying thing to me is that at that place there seems to have some ppl who dont need queue paper. Same person come over over and over with another foreigner and sit at some officier desk and handover the passport... This happens the whole day and is really annoying when the queue number doesnt move for 40 mn

Sometimes they want picture of your living place, sometimes they want your wedding picture, some years they dont want anything. It has alaways been random to me...

Well gluck if u go there, take a book / game / computer to pass the time

[samran]

...Took us 4 hours yesterday to waiting in line

The most annoying thing to me is that at that place there seems to have some ppl who dont need queue paper. Same person come over over and over with another foreigner and sit at some officier desk and handover the passport... This happens the whole day and is really annoying when the queue number doesnt move for 40 mn

Sometimes they want picture of your living place, sometimes they want your wedding picture, some years they dont want anything. It has alaways been random to me...

Well gluck if u go there, take a book / game / computer to pass the time

I thought that too. Except what you are probably witnessing are people who are in the queue, but are coming back cause they are told to.

For instance, once we got to the desk, we were told, "oh, there are these extra things to do, and you didn't get a photo copy of this, this and that", so we went back to our seats, filled things in, and the wandered back, where service was resumed. In the meantime, the immigration lady had called the next person, so we had to butt in (which is allowed).