Permanent Residency -- Whoa! I Got Tested In Spoken And Written Thai!

[CDB]

I figure that the weaknesses in my application are:

* No degree, but I'll show trancripts that I attended University of London for a few years. I'm suppose this shows some kind of level of education.

* Not a lot of cash in the bank. I do own a condo worth 4-5 million but not much in the way of cash

* I am not paying huge amounts of tax. I'm paying more then twice the min. 50 K but not all that much more than the recommended 80 K

So I am hoping to redress that with

* membership of international organization where I am affialiated as an expert in my field along with lots of PH.Ds. NOt much proof apart from a website which I'll have translated.

* I am a member of many chambers of commerce, but importantly a founding director of one of the smaller chambers here. Hopefully a letter from the president of the chamber to that effect can compensate a bit for lack of degree in the prestige game

* Charitable activities are mentioned somewhere. I was on a socal club commitee that raised a lot of money for orphans over the years (fairly pathetic I know, but sudden last minute donations are not accepted as genuine charity)

* I'll ask "prestigious" people to give me references.

Who knows if this will help. But from what others tell me, it might do, so it's worth a try...

[danone]

junpin' in late. a point ignored in here: if you show decent honest respect for thailand and its culture you will be fine. if you're making up things, they'll find out. be who you are, don't fake anything. but figures are important (tax). and if you're a journalist, present them some images showing you with prominent people. guess you got that. the whole application process is tiresome, but no magic. with a non-decent position you could pay a lawyer to get PR. I wouldn't feel good about it. its the corruption that destroys so much around here. so: when you go for the interview, be a good thai. they'll appreciate it.

Edited February 10, 2006 by danone

[Cassandra]

junpin' in late. a point ignored in here: if you show decent honest respect for thailand and its culture you will be fine. if you're making up things, they'll find out. be who you are, don't fake anything. but figures are important (tax). and if you're a journalist, present them some images showing you with prominent people. guess you got that. the whole application process is tiresome, but no magic. with a non-decent position you could pay a lawyer to get PR. I wouldn't feel good about it. its the corruption that destroys so much around here. so: when you go for the interview, be a good thai. they'll appreciate it.

A confusing post and one suspects a confused thought process at work.Certainly be honest.The more relevant point is that it makes excellent sense to retain a reputable Thai lawyer when applying for PR.It can be done without if you have excellent Thai language skills.For most however it makes sense and carries no connotation with corruption at all.I obtained PR several years ago and it was all remarkably painless.In reference to an earlier question it does no harm to have letters of support from senior Thais but not essential.Top rank civil servants and similar pooyai types better than businessmen however senior.

The advice about being "a good Thai" is comically inappropriate.Suan Plu are looking for suitable foreigners, the more respectable the better -not pseudo Thais.

[danone]

well cassandra - it worked for me that way. got PR without any hassles, without lawyer, with just the proper papers and attitude.

be a good thai means: pen riep roi.

but guess you dont get that.

you needed a lawyer to do the thinking and behaving for you.

little surprise my post was confusing for you.

Edited February 10, 2006 by danone

[lopburi3]

Please keep it on topic and try to avoid flames. There are always more than one side to these subjects. What works for one may not work so well for another. Thanks.

2) Posting another members personal details, photos or web site details is forbidden and will result in being banned. Excessive, aggressive posts against other members, moderators and admin; or flaming will not be tolerated. 'Flaming' is best defined as posting or responding to a message in a way clearly intended to incite useless arguments, rants, and/or for launching personal attacks, insulting, being hateful, useless criticism, name calling, swearing and other bad behavior or comments meant to incite anger.

[skippybangkok]

Been this week and my observations are that the immigration department will accord you the respect in accordance to the value you contribute to the country ( be it taxable income, volunteer work, expert knowledge or what ever ).

I got my staff to prepare the application ( she is very switched on ), and even at the first submission, it was clear that they were pleased with the quality documentation. This weeks interview was very smooth and cordial.

In my case the documentation was comprehensive and complete, and I think it made a very good impression , so there were very little questions, and the few I had, were quite easy to answer. Subsequently, I had to "intro" a video with my name and nationality / place of work and then ( on tape ) complete about 10 questions in written Thai which I had to read out loud infront of a camera and answer ( he said I got 10 out of 10, but I am not sure I really got it or he was just being nice to me ). Apart from the reading skills, the questions are simple, and easy to answer for anyone who has been here for a few months, let alone the requisite few years. It clear the main objective is to see how good your thai skills are.

If you have proper credentials and are peceived to be adding value to the country, there is little to worry about and generally its a pleasant experience.

Best wishes to the people in brown there, who as always, have been very nice to me since the first day I landed in this lovely place.

[camerata]

I figure that the weaknesses in my application are:

* No degree, but I'll show trancripts that I attended University of London for a few years. I'm suppose this shows some kind of level of education.

I dusted off my old TEFL diploma and provided copies of certificates I received after attending various training courses on good corporate governance, etc. It doesn't hurt to give them a lot of paperwork. They'll just set it aside if they don't need it.

* Not a lot of cash in the bank. I do own a condo worth 4-5 million but not much in the way of cash

* I am not paying huge amounts of tax. I'm paying more then twice the min. 50 K but not all that much more than the recommended 80 K

I also didn't have much cash in the bank and don't have a big salary. I think evidence of condo ownership would be great. After all, they want to be sure you can take care of yourself well into the future. I provided evidence of my provident fund (unfortunately no pension) entitlement, share certificates, share warrants and other non-cash assets.

[Cassandra]

well cassandra - it worked for me that way. got PR without any hassles, without lawyer, with just the proper papers and attitude.

be a good thai means: pen riep roi.

but guess you dont get that.

you needed a lawyer to do the thinking and behaving for you.

little surprise my post was confusing for you.

Though sorely provoked (be a good thai means :pen riep roi etc),I am going to heed Lopburi's advice and avoid responding in kind to silliness.Nevertheless for the benefit of others considering applying for PR the benefit of a lawyer is to save time and trouble, particularly on the rather impressive weight of paperwork required.A decent lawyer will also be able to brief you on the politics of the application process, which has been quite complicated in recent years.As an individual you still have to present yourself,chat to the officials, pass the Thai test and meet all other criteria.It helps if your command of Thai is satisfactory.And its just worth remembering Immigration cannot approve PR, only recommend.Approval is the preogative of the Ministry of Interior.

[camerata]

you needed a lawyer to do the thinking and behaving for you.

Having help from a legal firm with experience in the process isn't necessarily a bad thing. For example, in my case my employer considered my PR to be a personal matter, and didn't care about it at all. As I anticipated, I got all kinds of incorrect and incomplete documents from HR because they couldn't be bothered to check anything. So while I speak Thai just fine and don't need any advice on how to behave, I really did need someone smart to make sure the documentation was all correct.

The legal staff also did a lot of last-minute running around for me when it turned out some extra documents had to be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the last minute. I submitted the application on December 29th and I couldn't have made it on time without help.

Those who work for multinationals or own their own company probably wouldn't have this problem, but if you are the only farang in a Thai company it's a different matter altogether.

Incidentally, I've never seen an account on ThaiVisa of what happens after you get PR and have to register with the local police station. Anyone got any stories to tell? Is it possible to get a 5-year stamp right away? A friend who got his PR many years ago told me he had to cough up a bottle of Johnny Walker before Thong Lor police would do anything, but when he subsequently moved to another suburb he had no problems at all.

[Bobcat]

Is it possible to get a 5-year stamp right away?

Yes. The boys in brown at Thong Lor were very accommodating.

Edited February 10, 2006 by Bobcat

[camerata]

Is it possible to get a 5-year stamp right away?

Yes. The boys in brown at Thong Lor were very accommodating.

With or without the booze?

[Cassandra]

you needed a lawyer to do the thinking and behaving for you.

Having help from a legal firm with experience in the process isn't necessarily a bad thing. For example, in my case my employer considered my PR to be a personal matter, and didn't care about it at all. As I anticipated, I got all kinds of incorrect and incomplete documents from HR because they couldn't be bothered to check anything. So while I speak Thai just fine and don't need any advice on how to behave, I really did need someone smart to make sure the documentation was all correct.

The legal staff also did a lot of last-minute running around for me when it turned out some extra documents had to be certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs at the last minute. I submitted the application on December 29th and I couldn't have made it on time without help.

Those who work for multinationals or own their own company probably wouldn't have this problem, but if you are the only farang in a Thai company it's a different matter altogether.

Incidentally, I've never seen an account on ThaiVisa of what happens after you get PR and have to register with the local police station. Anyone got any stories to tell? Is it possible to get a 5-year stamp right away? A friend who got his PR many years ago told me he had to cough up a bottle of Johnny Walker before Thong Lor police would do anything, but when he subsequently moved to another suburb he had no problems at all.

Camerata,

Registration with the local police station was absolutely no problem.The nice old cop there painstakingly inscribed my red book and in beautiful handwriting too.Didn't ask or expect anything either though I subsequently sent my driver with a reasonable tip (Bt 1000 as I recall).Where I did have a minor problem was registration of my name on the tabien baan, and a somewhat crusty official at the local government office was a little unhelpful.But it was sorted out quite quickly and it's likely this was the first time he had encountered a farang making such a request.He didn't get a tip! In summary once you have your approval the follow up is very straight forward.

[camerata]

Perhaps I should have the work photo taken sitting inside the media agency that sponsors my visa. I almost never actually go there, but I just thought of it since they do have a nice-looking placard out front, and it's a fairly impressive, stand-alone two-storey building.

Sounds like a good idea, especially since Immigration pretty much considers your sponsor to be your employer anyway.