tvh13 Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 I went to Phuket Immigration today in order to get a residence receipt stating that I had submitted proof of residence. I need this as an adjunct to my ED visa in order to purchase and register a motorbike. It took only minutes to get and everyone was very friendly. I have only been twice but both times they have been very efficient. Once the paperwork was finished the Immigration officer asked me for 300 bhat. I gave him the money and then remembered that a friend had told me they paid only 100 bhat. I asked the officer in a tone of curiosity and with a smile why it was 300 bhat? My friend had paid 100 bhat, but he had a work permit. I asked if it was because of my ED visa? He just said "ok", still smiling, and gave me 200 bhat back. I asked him where I should go for my Thai license. He gave me information and I left. All very friendly and non confrontational. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Guess you didn't get a receipt, I wonder why. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lite Beer Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Yep. It should be free . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thailoneus Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 All my experiences with Phuket immigration and the "motor vehicle bureau" have been just great. I have no issue in a few hundred Baht changing hands for the services if I am happy with the outcomes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Companero Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 It was and it is free. Without any charge. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bastogne Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 It was and it is free. Without any charge. In Chiang-Mai, eight years ago, it was free but not available for tourist visa. Two years later it was 100 baht and went to 300 baht delivered for all kind of visas. It became free again but it was available only for people allowed to stay more than 90 days in the country, thus not for one year visa multiple entries. Later, they close the small building where this was delivered and so no certificate of residence. We had to ask this document from our ambassy. It was said that next month it would be available at the new counter. After a few "next month" it was available at the new counter. I don't know if they give it for all kind of visas. The cost is 500 baht and doens't seem to be negociable. Other provinces, other customs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tvh13 Posted February 23, 2010 Author Share Posted February 23, 2010 Cost in America for any thing like this would be more than $3 that's for sure and the time it would take where I live would be much greater too. Definitely not complaining just letting other know so that maybe they can get for 100. rather than 300 baht. It was a pleasant experience and I happy to have it done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulbrun Posted February 23, 2010 Share Posted February 23, 2010 Interesting..? The exact same thing happened to me yesterday. When I was told the fee was 300 baht, I commented that this was 3 times what I paid last year. He said nothing. And then my 10 year old son, who was with me, asked very directly why I had to pay this 300 baht..? I explained to him that it was for 'administration' purposes, and he said he would do it for me next time, and only charge me 100 baht..! The guy laughed and looked a bit embarrassed, and asked him how old he was, which school he went to etc. I got no receipt, of course. As another poster mentioned, it used to be free, then went to 100 baht for a long time, but I always got a receipt. Now it's 300 baht and it goes into theit 'slush' fund..? I guess it's inevitable, and something we just have to learn to live with..? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodcourt49 Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 All my experiences with Phuket immigration and the "motor vehicle bureau" have been just great. I have no issue in a few hundred Baht changing hands for the services if I am happy with the outcomes. I don't get it..why should you pay for a service when you do not have to..doesn't it then set a precedent and makes it more difficult for us all, when we really want to stamp out inducements etc...just my thoughts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TaoNow Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 rodcourt49: You ask a reasonable question. I think the sentiment among many long-term residents of Thailand is that you have to pick your battles carefully when fighting graft here. You might want to read the thread by "tonguethaied" a few months back about his adventure with a corrupt official in one of the northern Thai immigration offices. In the case of the variable charges for a residence certificate, I think it is up to Immigration headquarters to issue a list of fees and free services and require all immigration offices to post them in Thai and English. Until then, pick your battles carefully. tn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 There is an official list of fees and it is posted at immigration offices. You can also find it on the immigration website. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rodcourt49 Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 All my experiences with Phuket immigration and the "motor vehicle bureau" have been just great. I have no issue in a few hundred Baht changing hands for the services if I am happy with the outcomes. I don't get it..why should you pay for a service when you do not have to..doesn't it then set a precedent and makes it more difficult for us all, when we really want to stamp out inducements etc...just my thoughts! I fully realise the way it is here and in most Asian countries to grease the palms to expedite the process..I've been here for 7 years and to date have not had to do such things..nor will I..so you see it can be done by us all if we take a stand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Atmos Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 I like the staff at PI - never been a problem, the volunteer staff have been great to deal with, esp when i took a rather confused elderly neighbour there to get a retirement visa, extremely helpful and polite. I don't mind the odd 300 baht here and there - what is it - the price of a couple of coffees in your home country? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toffeeman Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 My experiences with Phuket Immigration have been good too. The volunteer guys on the door have been very helpful. I have had to go twice to get proof of address. First time for my car and they charged me 300B and then I had to go again as my 3 months had finished by 1 week when I purchased a motorbike. This time I was charged 200B. Both times he asked what it was for and I said a car and the 2nd time I said bike. Maybe they charge differently for each item though of course the process is exactly the same. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mizzi39 Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 (edited) Sorry for being off topic, but here is one for you. A few years back I was at immigration in Bangkok getting an extension on my visa. The IO opened my passport and my departure slip was missing. i have no clue what happened to it, but to make a long story short it was lost. Mai bpen rai. She told me to go next store to the immigration police and explain to them what happened. I don't know what happened, because i don't remember losing it in the first place. We walk over to the immigration police station where we were met by a nice police officer who immediately offered my wife and I a seat. i went on to tell him that I don't know what happened to the departure slip. he said 'no problem" (in broken English) We will just record that it is lost and issue you a new one. As he is handing me the new slip he leans over and says "do you have 100 baht? i would like to buy a bottle of whiskey after work" Needless to say my wife gave him a look of disgust knowing that there is no fee and thinking that I was getting fleeced for 100 baht. I handed over the 100 baht without a second thought. I guess that i appreciated his honesty (he wanted to buy a bottle of whiskey) and i new that I was getting no extension without the departure slip. My wife went on and on about how he was not supposed to ask me for money (i new this) and i should have never given him any. I told her that i did not feel like i got "ripped off",but it was more of a trade off. Edited February 24, 2010 by mizzi39 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PoorSucker Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 Some immigrations used to refuse a certificate and told them to apply at their embassy. The embassy will charge you much more. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
makavelithedon Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 (edited) Picking your battles are wise words indeed. The old 'it should be free bit' is all well and good but as usual, not very realistic. Where would you be if the guy dealing with it gets upset and refuses? Can you imagine the hassles you'd have then all for the sake of 1-300 poxy baht? No thank you. Edited February 24, 2010 by makavelithedon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtk Posted February 24, 2010 Share Posted February 24, 2010 I've always had good service at PI too. If someone would ask for 300 baht (like i was once) there I would pay it every time. It's much better to keep them happy this way and not take a stand for such a small thing. if you start arguing about 300 baht and making their lifes more difficult they can start making our lifes more difficult too. but that's just my opinion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Somrak Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 (edited) wtk: ... If someone would ask for 300 baht (like i was once) there I would pay it every time. It's much better to keep them happy this way and not take a stand for such a small thing. if you start arguing about 300 baht and making their lifes more difficult they can start making our lifes more difficult too. Nobody will make your life difficult, if you ask for a receipt! If you pay so easy, they will only think that you are a little bit ding dong, and will start to take money from you everytime. As told before, this paper for the "motor vehicle bureau" is free. If they ask for "teamoney", allways ask them, with a smile in the face, for a receipt. Then they are happy to do there work for free! Edited February 25, 2010 by Somrak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LivinLOS Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Got a proof of address from them late last year free... Tho I wouldnt go fighting it if he wanted 100 baht to remain easy to deal with.. Phuket immi are great, all problems are solveable (saleable).. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ScubaBuddha Posted February 25, 2010 Share Posted February 25, 2010 Yep. It should be free . True. Last time I needed one I asked how much, he said "Up to you." lol So I left without giving him anything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dezeure Posted February 26, 2010 Share Posted February 26, 2010 Yep. It should be free . True. Last time I needed one I asked how much, he said "Up to you." lol So I left without giving him anything. Jeez people, I can't believe you are complaining about 300 Baht. They are helping us in a quick and fair way, and that is worth a little tea money. Its thanks to all these Kee Niew foreigners that the rest gets to suffer and have bad experiences... Or would you rather have it be like Bangkok, where you don't need to pay ANYTHING but trust me you will spend ALL day there waiting for your bloody documents... No Thanks to that. My time is worth way more than some pathetic 300 Baht... and that was my 50 cents.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted February 26, 2010 Share Posted February 26, 2010 You can also say that it is thanks to people willing to give a bribe the situation where you have to pay tea money exists and continues to exists. That you have to wait long time in Bangkok has nothing to do with paying tea money or not, just with how busy it is there and how many officers are available. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phuketrichard Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Yep. It should be free . I have ALWAYS paid 100 baht and never got a recipt BUT did get the paper stamped that I gave to the DMV saying i am a resident which they keep. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
parallaxtech Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 You can also say that it is thanks to people willing to give a bribe the situation where you have to pay tea money exists and continues to exists. That you have to wait long time in Bangkok has nothing to do with paying tea money or not, just with how busy it is there and how many officers are available. I second Mario. Three hundred will become three thousand if stupid farangs continue to pay bribes. Each year KS Immigration tries to get 3-4K extra from me on a retirement visa. I just smile and say,"No problem, where is the receipt.? Do you ever see Thais paying bribes for standard services? If you've done something wrong like a traffic violation, I might understand it, but paying a bribe for a public service makes it difficult for the rest of us. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tombkk Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Some immigrations used to refuse a certificate and told them to apply at their embassy.The embassy will charge you much more. I went to the new immigration office in Bangkok in December for this doc. They said they cannot issue it, because I never made a 90-day report, so they don't have proof of my address (I am out of the country about once a month on business). So I had to go to the embasst and pay about THB 1,000. With receipt... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hunglikea Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 (edited) Jeez people, I can't believe you are complaining about 300 Baht. They are helping us in a quick and fair way, and that is worth a little tea money. Its thanks to all these Kee Niew foreigners that the rest gets to suffer and have bad experiences...Or would you rather have it be like Bangkok, where you don't need to pay ANYTHING but trust me you will spend ALL day there waiting for your bloody documents... No Thanks to that. My time is worth way more than some pathetic 300 Baht... and that was my 50 cents.... So it's partially due to you that we are expected to pay this 'tea money'. If more people said no, or ask for a receipt, it might stop them. Edited February 28, 2010 by hunglikea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YanTree Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 lol @ your story LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL @ finding out it is free and reading your story again. Wonder why he was still smiling when he gave you 200 baht back... ahahahhahahahahah Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YanTree Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 (edited) Jeez people, I can't believe you are complaining about 300 Baht. They are helping us in a quick and fair way, and that is worth a little tea money. Its thanks to all these Kee Niew foreigners that the rest gets to suffer and have bad experiences...Or would you rather have it be like Bangkok, where you don't need to pay ANYTHING but trust me you will spend ALL day there waiting for your bloody documents... No Thanks to that. My time is worth way more than some pathetic 300 Baht... and that was my 50 cents.... So it's partially due to you that we are expected to pay this 'tea money'. If more people said no, or ask for a receipt, it might stop them. If more people said no and asked for receipts they would 'press harder' to make money - and cops would be sticking all kinds of people in jail to put fear back into us. I quite like the system the way it is, at least where petty crimes and matters are concerned - I guess it probably sucks if you don't have any money. A guy I know was busted with a bag of cocaine in Bangkok and got out of it with a 20,000 baht bribe. According to Thai law he should probably be doing a long stretch in prison right now - as it stands he never even saw a police station over the matter - much less had to deal with court, a criminal record etc etc - and he gets to stay in Thailand. Yay corruption. And if you don't think there is all kinds of tea money greasing your ED visa, you are very naive. From the accreditation process to the issuances of Visa's to the extensions and all the way through the process you can be sure there are Thai people with their hands out - and Farang school owners happily filling them with 1,000 baht notes. Edited February 28, 2010 by YanTree Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merijn Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 All my experiences with Phuket immigration and the "motor vehicle bureau" have been just great. I have no issue in a few hundred Baht changing hands for the services if I am happy with the outcomes. I don't get it..why should you pay for a service when you do not have to..doesn't it then set a precedent and makes it more difficult for us all, when we really want to stamp out inducements etc...just my thoughts! Yes it should be free and yes they ask now for 300 Baht. But on the other hand if you insist that they have to do it for free they can insist that you have all the required paperwork. Officially you need for a proof of residence : 1 Copy of rental agreement. 2 Signed Copy of ID card of the landlord 3 The residence certificate what you have to fill in has to be signed by the landlord. or : 1 Copy of rental agreement 2 Signed statement of company with company stamp. ( if house is rented from a company ) 3 The residence certificate what you have to fill in has to be signed by the company with company stamp. or : 1 Copy and original blue book of the house 2 Signed Copy of ID card of the houseowner 3 The residence certificate what you have to fill in has to be signed by the houseowner. OR You pay 300 baht and get the residence certificate even when you don't have all the papers. believe me it is very annoying when you are at the immigration office and you have to go back home and try to find the landlord for his signature or ID card. Like many times they can make it easy or difficult for the customers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
.png.3b3332cc2256ad0edbc2fe9404feeef0.png)
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now