Yearly extensions

[hellodolly]

Any one have an idea as to the waiting time for Yearly extensions now if you don't have an appointment. Still get there at 7 in the morning and hope to get a number that you can use before noon?

I see on the 90 day where a fellow and his wife had an appointment and were in and out in one hour and that included the time to get a multi reentry permit. So it would seem the service is a bit more stream lined than last year when I had to wait for over one hour to get my pass port back and i didn't have any multi extension on it or single reentry.

[Mapguy]

Dolly,

Why in the world did you start another thread on this general topic? There are perfectly adequate threads already available. Anyone who pays attention knows that! You want a waiting line question for EVERY station at Chiang Mai Immigration? Why not try the thread on "Visiting Chiang Mai Immigration." Why confuse the issue, friend?! Take a break!!

Edited September 10, 2013 by Mapguy

[worgeordie]

Hi Dolly , You should have made a booking on line,100 days

a head, In another post someone said they got there at 7 and

all the places for that day had gone,apparently from those Visa

help companies,taking all the spots, as well as advance bookers.

Last year I made the advance booking and it was a breeze,it

was for 3.30 and I was able to get the bank details updated

that morning,so everything in order,was processed quickly.

Good Luck, hope you get a place,think the question was in

order ,especially if you can get reply from someone who has

extended their visa in the last week,it would give you some

idea of what you need to do.

regards Worgeordie

[jackr]

Just get there at five or six and hang all day, op. Going by past comments, it'd be right up your street to sit around all day marvelling at the wonderful characters, taking in all that ambience. You could even read a book or two.

All the best.

[mesquite]

Use Assist Thai Visa.

[beau thai]

+1

[fcgprg]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

[Beetlejuice]

No one knows, it`s become like a lottery.

Some times and days Immigration may not be busy and you could be in and out in a jiffy, other times and days it maybe chaos and you could be stuck in there for hours and hours or not even get in at all on the day.

Now there is no guarantees that we will be able to find any free slots on the online booking either.

These days having to visit Immigration either for visa extensions, 90 day reporting or any other business, is really a trip into the unknown.

I make a quote from the Dirty Harry movie, Magnum Force: Do you feel lucky, well do you punk? This answers the question, Any one have an idea as to the waiting time for Yearly extensions now if you don't have an appointment?

[Beetlejuice]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

Are you involved in this racket?

The Immigration department goes down to 2 speeds, dead slow or stop, meaning big bucks for the mystery owners of these agencies, who`s only qualifications is knowing the location of the Immigration building and being in favour with the Immigration officials.

Very nice, real cool for the owners, man.

[hellodolly]

Well the truth of the matter is there are no threads addressing this specific issue. So that is why I specifically asked the question. Get an on line appointment is an ignorant answer there is not nearly enough available for the number of people that Extend the retirement visa yearly. Also if you read all of the threads which I don't you will notice that we still have the ignorant farongs who take up one of those spaces for a 90 day report..

I was really hoping some one would have recent experience with this particular function of the Immigration. Obviously Thai posters do not. They are lucky enough to get an appointment or wealthy enough to pay over 5,000 baht and still not be guaranteed that they won't have to drop in.

Yes I will get there early and I will meet interesting people and I will have my e reader with me. I was just hoping for some real knowledge of the current situation there in regards to one item. I don't even know what all they do there. One day you read they no longer do this then later you read they are doing it again.

[habfan]

Dolly I have been checking the online queue site religiously every morning for the last 3 weeks at around 6:00 am and if you start from 100 days out(the maximum) there's always slots on the list sometimes quite a few to choose from. If you try 99 days or fewer you will be out of luck usually. You can do the extension up to 30 days before the actual expiration day in your passport so just choose your 100 days out within this 30 day window. That will give you 30 chances to book online and believe me you'll get a spot. I would rather waltz in a half hour before my appointment than get there at 6 or 7 am hoping to get a spot that day.

Edited September 11, 2013 by habfan

[Tywais]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

Are you involved in this racket?

The Immigration department goes down to 2 speeds, dead slow or stop, meaning big bucks for the mystery owners of these agencies, who`s only qualifications is knowing the location of the Immigration building and being in favour with the Immigration officials.

Very nice, real cool for the owners, man.

If there are tools available to make it easier for members than why do you feel it necessary to belittle it? Do you have inside information on the agencies qualifications? If not, then perhaps one should not make broad statements such as that (racket). And no, I have no affiliation with any or them.

[Beetlejuice]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

Are you involved in this racket?

The Immigration department goes down to 2 speeds, dead slow or stop, meaning big bucks for the mystery owners of these agencies, who`s only qualifications is knowing the location of the Immigration building and being in favour with the Immigration officials.

Very nice, real cool for the owners, man.

If there are tools available to make it easier for members than why do you feel it necessary to belittle it? Do you have inside information on the agencies qualifications? If not, then perhaps one should not make broad statements such as that (racket). And no, I have no affiliation with any or them.

Unless the situation improves at Immigration in the future, then It seems the agency route is the way this is all heading.

Not belittling, but feel very annoyed that obtaining our visa extensions or getting our 90 day reports when due has become like a lottery system and perhaps soon will have to pay some agency a lot of money to do the job for us or otherwise having to suffer the stress of the present chaotic progress.

There are more and more foreigners hitting Chiang Mai and the Immigration process is going to become more chaotic year by year, and if these agencies are going to be given priority service over the individual visa applicants and with other requirements imposed by Immigration, then eventually there will be no options other than to use the services of the agencies, which is going to mean very high cost increases to obtain our visa extensions each year and of course a very lucrative business for somebody.

Perhaps calling this a racket is an over statement, but I hope you can understand my anger and frustration regarding the whole situation?

I also realize that what transpires in the future, having to use an agency or not, will have to be accepted, whether we like it or not. That`s my 10 cents worth of whinging and will say no more on the subject.

Edited September 11, 2013 by Beetlejuice

[Chiengmaijoe]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

Are you involved in this racket?

The Immigration department goes down to 2 speeds, dead slow or stop, meaning big bucks for the mystery owners of these agencies, who`s only qualifications is knowing the location of the Immigration building and being in favour with the Immigration officials.

Very nice, real cool for the owners, man.

If there are tools available to make it easier for members than why do you feel it necessary to belittle it? Do you have inside information on the agencies qualifications? If not, then perhaps one should not make broad statements such as that (racket). And no, I have no affiliation with any or them.

Unless the situation improves at Immigration in the future, then It seems the agency route is the way this is all heading.

Not belittling, but feel very annoyed that obtaining our visa extensions or getting our 90 day reports when due has become like a lottery system and perhaps soon will have to pay some agency a lot of money to do the job for us or otherwise having to suffer the stress of the present chaotic progress.

There are more and more foreigners hitting Chiang Mai and the Immigration process is going to become more chaotic year by year, and if these agencies are going to be given priority service over the individual visa applicants and with other requirements imposed by Immigration, then eventually there will be no options other than to use the services of the agencies, which is going to mean very high cost increases to obtain our visa extensions each year.

Perhaps calling this a racket is an over statement, but I hope you can understand my anger and frustration regarding the whole situation?

I also realize that what transpires in the future, having to use an agency or not, will have to be accepted, whether we like it or not. That`s my 10 cents worth of whinging and will say no more on the subject.

If you get preferential service by paying extra then I can see why some people use it, but I don't see how it differs to the old under the counter system an I can see why those not willing or used to paying for it don't like it. It doesn't bother me because I've been fortunate enough to get appointments online for the last few years, but it is more likely than not that this service is based on 'contacts' and paying for favours in one way or another. It's not exactly a racket, but to those people stuck at immigration for hours on end the idea that some people are bypassing the system by paying extra to an agent it might look like one. Edited September 11, 2013 by Chiengmaijoe

[hellodolly]

Same, Assist Thai Visa good service for the cost.

Are you involved in this racket?

The Immigration department goes down to 2 speeds, dead slow or stop, meaning big bucks for the mystery owners of these agencies, who`s only qualifications is knowing the location of the Immigration building and being in favour with the Immigration officials.

Very nice, real cool for the owners, man.

If there are tools available to make it easier for members than why do you feel it necessary to belittle it? Do you have inside information on the agencies qualifications? If not, then perhaps one should not make broad statements such as that (racket). And no, I have no affiliation with any or them.

Unless the situation improves at Immigration in the future, then It seems the agency route is the way this is all heading.

Not belittling, but feel very annoyed that obtaining our visa extensions or getting our 90 day reports when due has become like a lottery system and perhaps soon will have to pay some agency a lot of money to do the job for us or otherwise having to suffer the stress of the present chaotic progress.

There are more and more foreigners hitting Chiang Mai and the Immigration process is going to become more chaotic year by year, and if these agencies are going to be given priority service over the individual visa applicants and with other requirements imposed by Immigration, then eventually there will be no options other than to use the services of the agencies, which is going to mean very high cost increases to obtain our visa extensions each year and of course a very lucrative business for somebody.

Perhaps calling this a racket is an over statement, but I hope you can understand my anger and frustration regarding the whole situation?

I also realize that what transpires in the future, having to use an agency or not, will have to be accepted, whether we like it or not. That`s my 10 cents worth of whinging and will say no more on the subject.

You are entirely rite in it becoming more and more a pay extra money to get your 90 day or yearly extension. As you can see this is the 16th post on the topic and no one has the answer. Other than pay more money or get lucky enough to get an online appointment. They do over 40 a day and only have 10 online appointments a day so that is really not the answer. More and more people will start paying the 5,000+ baht fee to extend and that will just leave the people who go in and are not lucky enough to get an online appointment more time to wait. It is not a racket and if it was I would have to say it was more the for hire companies. The immigration officer just sits there for 8 hours a day with out a reword for doing the job. He/She takes them as they come. In 7 years I have never had to pay a bribe. It has always been take what ever time it takes and pay the 1,900 baht fee.

What surprises me and it is a real eye opener to me is the number of replies that have no idea other than pay money or get lucky with the on line appointment. The facts are that their is probably far more that go in and get a number.

I was hoping to hear from some of them as I see by a post on another thread the actual interview time and wait time to get the pass port back is much better than it was last year. Or it was on that particular day. Would have been nice to hear from several who know.

[NancyL]

Dolly, it's not a matter of "getting lucky" with the on-line appointment system, but to follow the procedure outlined in post #11, above, from habfan.

If you're past the 100 day window, then you have two choices -- either go really early or pay a visa agent.

Beetlejuice is right, it IS a crapshoot from one day to the next. I was out there a couple weeks ago at 7 am and everyone who was waiting got their visa extension tickets for before lunch. A friend went the next day at 7 am and was told to come back the following day -- the queue was full for the day's 12-month extensions. If you have to go in person, 6 am is probably a safe bet, but don't wait until the day your extension expires in case they tell you to come back the next day.

Be prepared to be aggressive when they open the doors -- there is no "pre-queue" sign-in sheet anymore, it's just who can shove into the door first when they open it.

[hellodolly]

Dolly, it's not a matter of "getting lucky" with the on-line appointment system, but to follow the procedure outlined in post #11, above, from habfan.

If you're past the 100 day window, then you have two choices -- either go really early or pay a visa agent.

Beetlejuice is right, it IS a crapshoot from one day to the next. I was out there a couple weeks ago at 7 am and everyone who was waiting got their visa extension tickets for before lunch. A friend went the next day at 7 am and was told to come back the following day -- the queue was full for the day's 12-month extensions. If you have to go in person, 6 am is probably a safe bet, but don't wait until the day your extension expires in case they tell you to come back the next day.

Be prepared to be aggressive when they open the doors -- there is no "pre-queue" sign-in sheet anymore, it's just who can shove into the door first when they open it.

Thanks Nancy. That was the information I was looking for. Same as last year get early and hope to get as good number.

Mods please shut this down. I finally got an answer from some one who knew.

[Tywais]

//Closed//