bkkguy1970 Posted May 11, 2012 Share Posted May 11, 2012 Monday 7 May was a public holiday, Wednesday 9 May was a government holiday so I knew Tuesday 8 May would be busy but it was the most convenient day I was going to get to Immigration to do my retirement extension, 90 day reporting and get a re-entry permit I got there at 1:15 PM and there where 150 people ahead of me in the extension queue and with only a few counters open the queue was moving very slowly so after a while I went downstairs for a coffee and snack. When I came back up I got a queue ticket for 90 day reporting, 100 people ahead of me but the queue was moving quickly so by 3:30 PM I was done there and got a queue ticket for the re-entry permit, 120 people ahead of me in the queue - obviously I can't do this before the I get the extension so I am hoping this queue is not moving too fast! by 4:15 PM I was getting worried as I was not even close to the front of either queue and the office officially closes at 4:30 PM - but the officer at the queue ticket counter assured me all open tickets would be processed at 5:15 PM I finally got my extension and by 6:30 PM I finally got to the head of the re-entry queue and at 6:45 PM as I was leaving the office most areas were in darkness but there were still some staff in some areas who would not leave till the last person was processed While I have no sympathy at all for the department with it's arcane and often undocumented procedures - half of the paperwork I had prepared was just ignored - and it's inability to maintain adequate staffing levels, at the airport or at the regional offices, I do have some sympathy for the frontline staff who have to cope with this! bkkguy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 Flame removed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wozzit Posted May 12, 2012 Share Posted May 12, 2012 WIth the Immigration staff having 2 days out of 5 off, it's not surprising they had to work pretty hard for the rest of this week - 40% harder, I assume, if the workload was similar to other weeks. I, too, dislike all the paperwork required for visa extensions and the dreaded 90-day reporting (when will they permit this by computer, I wonder?). In choosing to go on Tuesday, maybe bkkguy1970 might have been served more quickly with an earlier arrival. When I first arrived in Thailand, a friend always advised me not to go to Immigration on a Monday, a Friday or the days before or after a public holiday. Usually I am there 8:30 on a Tuesday or Thursday and am out in well under an hour. It means an early start with the new offices on the outskirts of Bangkok, but it's worth it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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