Jingthing Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 to be quite honest i believe this approach would have guaranteed he never saw his passport again. You might well be right. That would have been my dilemma too on the day the passport went missing. Push for elevating it in the office or listen to the man behind the desk in front and just go home. In this case, not making a big thing about it clearly paid off. But what IF the passport was really missing or if elevating it might have made it more likely to find the thing? Not the easiest call in general for all cases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jbrain Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 So if I clearly understand post #9 and #19 , then the officer in question knew last evening already that someone would find and return the passport the next day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SurfRider Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 .Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me, but since the passport was lost anyway, he would have been justified in doing anything reasonable to try to retrieve it when the loss occurred.Technically, he's in violation of immigration law if he's in Thailand without a valid passport. He could have been jailed if he had encountered some altercation with the police and not been able to produce a passport. Since he arrived at Immigration with his passport and was certain that it had disappeared somewhere inside the Imm. office, he had an obligation to do whatever was necessary to attempt to locate it. If it were me, I would have exhausted every attempt to retrieve it before leaving the Imm. office.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 . Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me, but since the passport was lost anyway, he would have been justified in doing anything reasonable to try to retrieve it when the loss occurred. Technically, he's in violation of immigration law if he's in Thailand without a valid passport. He could have been jailed if he had encountered some altercation with the police and not been able to produce a passport. Since he arrived at Immigration with his passport and was certain that it had disappeared somewhere inside the Imm. office, he had an obligation to do whatever was necessary to attempt to locate it. If it were me, I would have exhausted every attempt to retrieve it before leaving the Imm. office. . That's exactly how I feel but sometimes doing the logical thing isn't the best thing. Oh well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dork Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 . Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me, but since the passport was lost anyway, he would have been justified in doing anything reasonable to try to retrieve it when the loss occurred. Technically, he's in violation of immigration law if he's in Thailand without a valid passport. He could have been jailed if he had encountered some altercation with the police and not been able to produce a passport. Since he arrived at Immigration with his passport and was certain that it had disappeared somewhere inside the Imm. office, he had an obligation to do whatever was necessary to attempt to locate it. If it were me, I would have exhausted every attempt to retrieve it before leaving the Imm. office. . Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
arthurwait Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 (edited) By the way anyone know if there still is an Immigration Office in Sri Racha or if it has ben merged with Pattaya/Chonburi? Plahgat Yes it's still there , blooming busy though. Expect loads of queue jumpers with piles of Cambodian passports. Edited March 6, 2013 by arthurwait Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SurfRider Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 . "Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" If you're going to waste your time commenting, why don't you post something that makes some sense? . . . . 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fakename Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 You were just lucky that "someone" found your passport, that "you" had lost. At least it wasnt old sourpuss's fault, never seen anyone smile so much! I think he would be more suited as an undertaker, so he wouldnt have to waste his charm on the living. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plahgat Posted March 6, 2013 Author Share Posted March 6, 2013 So if I clearly understand post #9 and #19 , then the officer in question knew last evening already that someone would find and return the passport the next day Yes! He even knew that the visa was going to be expired on the 13th of March! How would he know that without even have seen my passport!? He was not only rude at me, he was doing the same to anyone who asked him about advice, and acted like he hated farangs! He has obviously been doing this kind of job way too long and it has gone to his mind. Plahgat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tropo Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 The lesson being that a lost passport is not a nightmare....it's an inconvenience. Don't let a "nightmare" stop you thinking clearly. The fact was that if you gave the guy the passport it very it very likely indeed hasn't fallen into the hands of an applicant, it's probably behind the desk somewhere. Of course he reacted strongly, he panicked too, it's his job and promotion/demotion. The ultimate lesson being stay calm and read a book. LOL... at you for thinking that losing a passport is only an inconvenience. I would consider it to be a nightmare too. It's easy to sit in your room and type this stuff, but I'd bet you'd be less than calm if it happened to you. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tropo Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 (edited) You were just lucky that "someone" found your passport, that "you" had lost. At least it wasnt old sourpuss's fault, never seen anyone smile so much! I think he would be more suited as an undertaker, so he wouldnt have to waste his charm on the living. Maybe he's not much into old Farang, but I guarantee a cute young Thai guy could extract a smile from him. I've seen him flirting with young Thai males on a number of occasions - in fact it was my wife who drew my attention to this as she is very observant. Edited March 6, 2013 by tropo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
I Like Thai Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 I'm curious as to who advised you to go to Immigration a week in advance of your expiry date ? Any time I have gone there, I go on the day it before it expires. A friend went once about a week early and was told to return just before the expiry date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zodiac Posted March 6, 2013 Share Posted March 6, 2013 (edited) SurfRider writes: ."Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me" -I agree with you. My impression is the whole story is false/fake. Edited March 6, 2013 by Zodiac Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plahgat Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 SurfRider writes: ."Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me" -I agree with you. My impression is the whole story is false/fake. It's definitely not a false story!!! The guy who helped me has a respected visa/lawfirm business in Pattaya since 13 years, and is a member like myself on another Pattaya Forum. I never met him in real life, only on the Internet. He deals with the Immigration Office on a daily basis and hence know this officer who gave me some hard time. It was only a struck of luck or coinsidence that he saw my posting and decided to help me! As a matter of fact I'm off to his office in a few minutes, because he has offered to get the extension for me, so I don't have to go back and go through it all again at the Immigration Office myself! I could name him and his business, but I'm not sure about the rules on here regarding mentioning other forums!? He might even be a member on here. Plahgat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaidDown Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 I'm curious as to who advised you to go to Immigration a week in advance of your expiry date ? Any time I have gone there, I go on the day it before it expires. A friend went once about a week early and was told to return just before the expiry date. One of the places he could have received such advice is Thaivisa. Many many instances of posts (from accepted experts in the field) suggesting going in the last 30 days before expiry date as you do not lose any time. This is the accepted norm at immigration offices ( of course there are 'local rules' at some places). Going the day before or even the expiry day could cause problems if some rule has changed and additional paperwork is now required. This is especially true for marriage extensions. I usually go about a week before just in case. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
plahgat Posted March 7, 2013 Author Share Posted March 7, 2013 I'm curious as to who advised you to go to Immigration a week in advance of your expiry date ? Any time I have gone there, I go on the day it before it expires. A friend went once about a week early and was told to return just before the expiry date. Sorry but I can't remember, but saw somebody mention it on some Forum. Although I do believe it is not true though, but you can probably wait until the last day if you want to or are forced to. I would never dare to wait until the expiry date to extend my visa, so many things could happen, like you got sick or had an accident or whatever preventing you to go there, and then you would have problems with overstay and so on... Usually I will extend my visa a full month before expiry date, to have it done well in advance to get peace in mind and don't have to think about it. This year for several reasons because of sickness and other mishaps and problems I waited much longer. They do turn away people from the Immigration Office at the moment though and ask them to come back later, because it's simply jampacked and they can't cope with the crowds! The Chomthien Immigration Office is way too small and understaffed, and can't handle the invasion of tourists and expats that has increased immensely during last couple of years! Plahgat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tywais Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 One time, due to circumstances, I came in the day of expiration (CM imm) and was chided for it by the officer. Was told next time to come a week in advance. Waiting until the last day or a day before expiration is a bit dangerous as I have had instances where the university had the wrong document or missing document and may take a day or two to get it as appropriate high level signatures have to be placed on them. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
doggie888888 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 To be honest, the earlier post about the officer being aggressive and arrogant was telltale. I'm happy the officer finally gave it back. Plaghat, are you usually displaying submission when dealing with Thai authorities? He might have wanted to display his power to you. This is so funny, reminds me of the dog world where the top dog usually wants to mount the other ones to show authority. Maybe the officer just wanted to mount the OP. or sniff his ass. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 I'm curious as to who advised you to go to Immigration a week in advance of your expiry date ? Any time I have gone there, I go on the day it before it expires. A friend went once about a week early and was told to return just before the expiry date. I am not sure about tourist extensions but for retirement extensions, one MONTH early is accepted and actually ENCOURAGED. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dork Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 . "Did you get up on the wrong side of the bed this morning?" If you're going to waste your time commenting, why don't you post something that makes some sense? . . . . Because I was trying to ask in a light-hearted way why you would bother writing such a mean post in response to an obviously genuine account that already had a happy outcome. On top of that, none of your points make sense. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overherebc Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 SurfRider writes: ."Assuming this is a factual account of what really happened - what are the chances that the same incident happening to ANY random farang would be resolved by a chance meeting with a friend of the Imm. agent in an Internet chat forum??? Sounds a bit suspicious to me" -I agree with you. My impression is the whole story is false/fake. It's definitely not a false story!!! The guy who helped me has a respected visa/lawfirm business in Pattaya since 13 years, and is a member like myself on another Pattaya Forum. I never met him in real life, only on the Internet. He deals with the Immigration Office on a daily basis and hence know this officer who gave me some hard time. It was only a struck of luck or coinsidence that he saw my posting and decided to help me! As a matter of fact I'm off to his office in a few minutes, because he has offered to get the extension for me, so I don't have to go back and go through it all again at the Immigration Office myself! I could name him and his business, but I'm not sure about the rules on here regarding mentioning other forums!? He might even be a member on here. Plahgat Maptaphut office is supposed to be not too busy nowadays. Maybe try there if you don't fancy going back to Jomtien. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheeryble Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 I will probably never know what really happend to my passport in there, only one man knows that and I'm sure he will never tell the truth! Plahgat You've got a lot of nerve accusing him considering your story changed to being "pretty sure" you handed your passport to him! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jingthing Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Congratulations again on getting your passport back. The OP doesn't deserve any more grief over this. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ThaidDown Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Maptaphut office is supposed to be not too busy nowadays. Maybe try there if you don't fancy going back to Jomtien. You should go to the Immigration Office covering the area you live in. If you have a Rayong address then Maptaphut will be your office, Pattaya address then Jomtiem. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SurfRider Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 ."It's definitely not a false story!!! ... The guy who helped me has a respected visa/lawfirm business in Pattaya since 13 years, and is a member like myself on another Pattaya Forum"If you want to remove any doubt, why not post his original response to you on the "other" forum, as well as his business name. If he's in the Visa assistance business, I'm sure he wouldn't object to the publicity and you'd be doing a service to the members of this forum.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 There should not be quotes/links to other forums period. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overherebc Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 Maptaphut office is supposed to be not too busy nowadays. Maybe try there if you don't fancy going back to Jomtien. You should go to the Immigration Office covering the area you live in. If you have a Rayong address then Maptaphut will be your office, Pattaya address then Jomtiem. If you are getting an extension of stay on O retirement I agree. But, if I was on a tourist visa and was travelling around Thailand you would expect me to go back to Bangkok where I arrived every time I wanted to extend my tourist visa ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lopburi3 Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 A tourist visa you would extend where you are. Any office should be able to extend but they may want to see some evidence of your staying in there area on that day. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
overherebc Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 A tourist visa you would extend where you are. Any office should be able to extend but they may want to see some evidence of your staying in there area on that day. All you have to do is give them the address of the hotel you are staying at, with a copy of a bill, if you are a genuine tourist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maestro Posted March 7, 2013 Share Posted March 7, 2013 I'm curious as to who advised you to go to Immigration a week in advance of your expiry date ? Any time I have gone there, I go on the day it before it expires. A friend went once about a week early and was told to return just before the expiry date. He went one week and one month before the expiration of his permission to stay, which is on 13 March 2013. ...He even knew that the visa was going to be expired on the 13th of March!... 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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