Anyone Refused Pr?

[grtaylor]

Not approved yet, still waiting for approval from foreign ministry. Applied in 07. Some have applied in 06 and still have not gotten any reply.

name='THAIJAMES' date='2009-01-10 08:58:17' post='2457678']

Incidentally Thaijames, I'm assuming from your post that your own application was approved.Do you mind adsvising when? I have a mate who was in the same batch as you but hasn't heard anything yet.

I applied in December 2006, had the interview and Thai test (passed with 100%) in March 2007, and am still waiting, and waiting, and waiting . . . . . .

I know two other people in the same situation.

[dbrenn]

Not approved yet, still waiting for approval from foreign ministry. Applied in 07. Some have applied in 06 and still have not gotten any reply.

name='THAIJAMES' date='2009-01-10 08:58:17' post='2457678']

Incidentally Thaijames, I'm assuming from your post that your own application was approved.Do you mind adsvising when? I have a mate who was in the same batch as you but hasn't heard anything yet.

I applied in December 2006, had the interview and Thai test (passed with 100%) in March 2007, and am still waiting, and waiting, and waiting . . . . . .

I know two other people in the same situation.

It's a shame that they keep people waiting so long these days. When I applied for PR back in 1997, the time raken was considerably shorter:

1) Applied in December 1997 (I was one of fewer than 20 UK nationals who had applied, with just a few days remaining to the close)

2) Inteview in March 1998 - no interview really, just fingerprinting, signing forms and small talk

3) Granted in August 1998

When I applied, there was a clear emphasis on a favourable work permit / salary / tax combunation, as there still seems to be. I humoured the official and he took a liking to me, which may have also helped. The thing that stuck in my mind was his blaming of the IMF for the 1997 financial crisis in Thailand, which of course was just patriotic nonsense. I nodded and dutifully told him how astute he was to have concluded the true cause of Thailand's problems. He smiled and said "I'm glad you agree". I later asked him what my chances of success were and he replied "Around 90%". In any complicated dealings with Thai bureaucracy, how much they like you as a person is often a deciding factor.

I've noticed a couple of things from friends of mine that have applied since. Firstly, a couple of my friends were advised not to apply on account of the fact that they only declared the minimum salary of say 60K (for Brits). The officials told them that the immigration commission looks unfavourably on this, so while there seems to be no hard and fast rule, the more you earn over the minimum, the more favourably you are viewed, all other things being equal. Secondly, the process does seem to be taking longer and longer.

Ditto for citizenship - a much more discretionary affair but the weighting is still on income, with how much they like you as a 'package deal' also vitally important. Took 3 years to get mine, which I did myself with no help from a lawyer or anyone influencial. I've heard of others taking anything from 2 years to remaining in limbo for a decade or more.

[Spiny]

Let's assume that you can pass the Thai Language test

For PR and citizenship, it plays a role if you contribute positively to Thai society or not.

Agreed, when I applied for mine, in 2003, as I had no Thai dependants, much emphasis was given to my "portfolio" which, among other things, showed me in photos donating computers to an Isaan school, building a sala at a wat, and providing donations to build dining facilities for up country school.

When I go back to Suan Phlu to get my exit visa I usually go back and chat with the very nice lady officer who dealt with my case

[skippybangkok]

They won't even accept your application if you don't have a strong chance of getting PR. The officers there are too worried about making mistakes and accepting applications from people that do not qualify.

Before they accept you they will scrutinize your paper work to the letter to make sure that it qualifies and that is complete. If it is not, they will not accept your application............(text)

.................................Once they accept your application, I think you have a very good chance of getting PR if they cannot find any subsequent mistakes or problems with your application.

Spot on. Was my experience. On doc submission (my first visit), within about 20 mins he said - "i would get it no problem" ( and qualified it saying providing i submit the missing documents in my pack - which i almost messed up ).

As for the OP who did all the docs him self - hat off to you ! Waow.

Edited January 13, 2009 by skippybangkok