My wife, Vietnamese, and I, American, have O-A visas that expire on 2 Sept. We have been in Korea for five months, and because of financial investing, we cannot leave Korea prior to August 25. This means we will only have five working days to renew. (This will be our second renewal.)

Even with our monumental efforts, my wife was given her O-A by Chiang Mai Immigration only after she used up her visa runs to KL. We had to submit, among other things, a copy of our year-long lease, a map of how to get to our townhouse, and a photo of us standing in front of the place. These were also required for our first renewal.

We have had the Chiang Mai experience, and now we want to hit Phangan for a while, and then move on when the mood hits.

What are the chances we will be able to check into a cheap BKK hotel on Sun 26 August, hit the bank for a letter and the US embassy for notarizing my retirement payment, and then have BKK Immigration’s stamp in our passports by the afternoon of Friday 31 August?

I guess we would provide BKK Immigration with a map to our cheap hotel. Is this satisfactory?

Would they for any reason send us to Chiang Mai Immigration?

If we had a month, we could probably muddle through, but we have five days, which means no mistakes.

Thanks, aeolion

As long as you can explain you are no longer living in Chiang Mai but in Bangkok they are likely to approve. The rule is you must use the office for the location you live.

And the cheap hotel as our BKK address? Will that fly? Without a year's lease?

And the cheap hotel as our BKK address? Will that fly? Without a year's lease?

In 6 years of retirement we have never ever been asked to provide a house lease, photographs and I just completed my renewal last month I live on Koh Samui

And the cheap hotel as our BKK address? Will that fly? Without a year's lease?

In 6 years of retirement we have never ever been asked to provide a house lease, photographs and I just completed my renewal last month I live on Koh Samui

That is reassuring. We have long suspected that Chiang Mai's stringency derives from my wife's Vietnamese nationality.Yeah, her little green passport with the gold star on the first page is of marginal value as a travel document.

Perhaps our unblemished record in Thailand will buy her a little respect. And perhaps BKK Immigration is more open. At least we hope.

Your wife probably does not have a retirement extension of stay she has an extension based upon your retirement extension (it is not an OA visa).

One of the requirements for this type of extension is as follows.

(3) In the case of a spouse, the

marital relationship shall be de

jure (legitimate) and de facto;

This is the reason for the photos. Showing the lease may be Chiang Mai's way of getting proof of residence.

Your hotel receipt may work in Bangkok.

Edited August 10, 201213 yr by ubonjoe