Nong Khai Non-o Extension

[vahack]

1. married my Thai wife last November 2007 in L.A., stopped by the Thai Embassy in DC for a 3-month non-O visa, and we moved to Roi Et in January 2008.

2. followed the advice i found here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=157288

and got the marriage affidavit notarized by the US Embassy.

affidavit here:

http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/root/pdfs/marriageaffidavit.pdf

one note about that, if you've been divorced, you will need to fill out a 2nd affidavit at the embassy stating the divorce date, whether you have kids, etc. that form isn't posted on the embassy website, so ask for it. that was $20 or $30 US per document.

3. went to Language Lovers' Translation Centre down the block from the US Embassy at 93/1 Diethelm Tower B, 1st Floor, Wireless Road, Bangkok, and they translated the notarized affidavits, shuttled them to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and overnighted the documents to me within a week. i think that cost Bt2,000.

4. took the stamped docs to my local government office and registered our marriage. there we got a Thai marriage certificate and my wife changed her name. they also updated her family's house record book. make sure you bring copies of the stamped affidavits, yours and hers passports, the family house book, and anything else you can think of because they will want copies of everything. our govt office didn't have a copy machine, so that meant many runs to the local copy store.

5. went to Nong Khai, stopped by a visa shop and got 2 passport photos, and then went to Nong Khai immigration. there the immigration officer said we were missing a document - income verification. i expected a problem with income, since there are at least 10 different answers to the income question here on the Thai Visa forum. the US Embassy and MFA websites all have outdated answers too. so, read the next part.

6. the new visa laws DO require monthly income, NOT savings stored in a bank. i'm not a retired guy (age 35) so my wife and i need to show bt40,000 income per month. this can be done with a Thai bank passbook if you have more than 3 months of history with bt40k going into the account, or the easier way, getting the embassy to notarize a letter stating your income.

i made a pdf of that letter here:

http://www.pksadmin.com/downloads/USEmbass...meStatement.pdf

7. went back to Bangkok, took the letter to the US Embassy and got it notarized.

8. went back to Nong Khai immigration and my visa was extended for a year.

one final note about the US Embassy American Services office. as of March 2008 you need an appointment for non-emergency services. this is a good thing, since it otherwise took up to 3 hours to get service. get an appointment here:

https://evisaforms.state.gov/acs/default.as...K&appcode=1

good luck!

Edited March 30, 2008 by vahack

[lopburi3]

Did you marry in LA as stated in your post? If you did you were not eligible to marry under Thai law (item 2 of sworn document). A US marriage is a legal marriage worldwide. All you needed to do was present that paperwork.

Thanks for the report and warning on new ACSU procedures - as they seem to have forgotten to notify registered members of this rather major change.

[lopburi3]

American Embassy ACSU

As a matter of fact they seem to be trying to hide the appointment system from view. I only found a link on one page in extremely small font.

New Appointment System for ACS Services Begins in March

In order to serve you better, beginning this month, the American Citizen Services section introduce an appointment system for all non-emergency services to include notarials, passport services, and Consular Reports of Birth Abroad. We will continue to provide emergency services on an as needed basis. Appointments can be made online at: https://evisaforms.state.gov/acs/default.as...K&appcode=1 This link can also be accessed by going to our website at: http://bangkok.usembassy.gov/service.html. We will not be able to book appointments over the phone.

The purpose of the appointment system is to cut wait times for services and allow us to provide you with better service as demand for our services continues to grow. As we transition to the new appointment system, we will continue to accept walk-ins, but will give priority to those who made appointments online. Thank you for your understanding as we work to provide you with a higher standard of service.