Pattaya Immigration Has Moved Or Not?

[rbrb]

I happened to read on the Pattaya forum that it is being claimed the immigration office has moved from Pattaya to Jontium within the last few days.

This will affect literally thousands of people including tourists, long stayers etc and for Renewal of Visa plus 90 day address notification and so on.

But assuming what the posting says is correct what has "Thai Visa" done to announce this news and tell us where the new Pattaya Immigration office is, working hours etc???

I looked on the Thai Visa sites. I can see nothing.

Whilst I have nothing but admiration for the excellent web site, surely something must be awry if this important news on a site titled "Thai Visa" does nothing to relay this important information.

Please can we have clarification based on actual fact and not hearsay and kindly understand I am trying to be helpful.

thank you Thai Visa.

[Joey Boy]

if your in pattaya as you say u are, why not go and have a look?

Edited December 7, 2005 by Joey Boy

[Noel]

I happened to read on the Pattaya forum that it is being claimed the immigration office has moved from Pattaya to Jontium within the last few days.

This will affect literally thousands of people including tourists, long stayers etc and for Renewal of Visa plus 90 day address notification and so on.

But assuming what the posting says is correct what has "Thai Visa" done to announce this news and tell us where the new Pattaya Immigration office is, working hours  etc???

I looked on the Thai Visa sites. I can see nothing.

Whilst I have nothing but admiration for the excellent  web site, surely something must be awry if this important news on a site titled "Thai Visa" does nothing to relay this important information.

Please can we have clarification based on actual fact and not hearsay and kindly understand I am trying to be helpful.

thank you Thai Visa.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I will be going there this afternoon so will see for myself.

Will post details later.

[Neeranam]

This site actually is not run by the Thai immigration or Tourism Autority of Thailand! These thousands of people not working surely have plenty of time to go from Pattaya to Jomtien. How far is it?

[rbrb]

To Neeranam,

No one is suggesting that this site is run by Thai Immigration.

With respect if u run a site called "Thai Visa" and espose to provide information on Visa and related matters, you would at least expect to get a news report that one of the main immigration offices has moved its location if indeed that is the case.

If it is not the case them apoligies to Thai Visa.

To,

Joey Boy,

Right I will go and have a look if I do not get a satisfactory answer on here.

Implicit in your posting is for example the suggestion that if the International Airport in Bangkok moves location we should all go to the old airport to check when it will move rather than rely on people in the travel business to tell us.

Thank you Noel for your sensible posting.

All I am asking is confirmation by yes or no that the immigration officce in Pattaya has moved.

If so, the exact address and new location and opening hours.

thank you.

[Axel]

Try this one, December 2, 05:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=52725&hl

[rbrb]

Thank you Axel.

It was the Pattaya posting which you refer to that led me to raise my question.

The Pattaya posting is from someone called eyebee with a cartoon character as his motif who claims to have seen a note outside the immigration office saying they are moving.

Can anyone seriously regard that as a reliable source of news???!!!!

Dear oh dear....is it me...or what?

[Noel]

I went to the new Immigration Office on Soi 5 in Jomtien today.

Coming from Jomtien Beach Road, the two storey building is situated all the way along on the right, some 200 yards from the end of the Soi.

It has a reasonably sized courtyard for parking, but predictably the majority of space is taken up by staff vehicles. The raised flagpole stuck in the middle makes it interesting for manoeuvring around the haphazardly parked vehicles, but parking is currently not an issue as there is plenty of space to park in Soi 5.

On the left as you enter the compound, there is a row of one storey shops. The first one takes up two units and is a café: one of the units is decked out with tables and chairs, the other used as a kitchen.

At the end of the row and nearest the entrance is a unit that provides copying and photo services.

You can only get a minimum of two photos made at a cost of 100 Baht for the pair. I jokingly but negatively commented to the hard-faced woman who clearly manages the place on the price, to which her reply was that they now had ‘digital’ and ‘same-same before anyway’. Photocopies are 3 baht per page.

The units in between are in the process of being outfitted for whatever.

The opening hours of the Immigration Office are the same as in Soi 8, i.e. from 8.30am to 4.30 pm.

I asked the officer ‘interviewing’ me as to whether 90 Day reporting could be done on-line. Her reply was: “I hope so.” I tried to get more of a definitive answer from her, but she would say no more on the subject probably because saying ‘I don’t know’ seldom comes easily to Thai in authority.

Given that my visa extension was at her mercy, I chose not to push it and took it to mean ‘presently not the case’.

According to Khun Somsak, the portly affected officer who normally wears white and is in charge of Retirement Extensions (I could not help but spot the calendar on his desk with the December ‘model’ being a posing bloke dressed in a feathered white tutu of sorts), it seems that on Wednesdays all the staff participate in some sort of athletic pursuit. That explained the fact that everyone was wearing matching track suits and me calling him by his name without him wearing a name badge was not the reason for him sweating.

When I asked ‘Khun Pu’ (her spelling) if she enjoyed keeping fit, her scowl suggested that this was a compulsory activity.

For those planning to get to the office by Bahtbus, motocy taxi etc or using their own transport from the Pattaya direction, the optimum access would be the first Soi on the left as you make the sharp right-hand turn at the Hanuman statue down to the beach on Thappraya Road. The Immigration Office is probably about a five minute walk from the main road.

Soi 5 is the first Soi on the right past the Area Revenue building.

[Maestro]

a reliable source of news???!!!!

For this type of news, a reliable source should be the website of the Immigration Bureau, but does it have this information, i.e. the addresses of all immigration offices in the country?

[Maestro]

According to Khun Somsak, the portly affected officer…

I am not quite sure what you mean by “affected” but if you mean what I think you mean, for all I know this could be the reason why the OP could hardly wait to learn the exact new address of the office.

[rbrb]

Congratulations Noel!

Many thanks for the excellent posting with photos and giving us a reliable confirmation that the Pattaya Immigration has indeed moved to a new location.

Your report is factual and detailed and I am sure will not only be "news" to many people but will save a lot of us having to make unnecessary trips to the old office.

May Noel have a healthy and happy Xmas and New Year!

[Gary A]

I received my latest retirement visa November 15th. I asked the immigration officer when they were moving. He grinned and said "PROBABLY in January. Not sure"!