NiwPix Posted February 14, 2014 Share Posted February 14, 2014 Hello, I searched this forum, but couldnt find any good recommendations. If there is the answer I am looking for, please point me to the right direction. I have a rather complex case and need a decent, but most importantly reliable immigration lawyer firm...or individual. Siam Legal, SunBelt and TILA Legal are out of question for me. Does anybody know of anybody else? Thank you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mario2008 Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 To get a good answer best thing is: - to state in which area of Thailand you need a lawyer - what exactly you need a lawyer for (In a lot of cases you don't need a lawyer anyway). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
expat888 Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 I used an immigration lawyer in Bangkok the first time I got my non-o but it was really expensive. They made the whole process incredibly easy but you should expect surprises. They don't tell you about all the expenses up front. I do my own extensions now. If I kept paying them every year I would be broke. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lefty Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Try Tillieke and Gibbins , they get the job done butare not cheap. Goggle for contact info Lefty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CeeBee Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 Tillieke and Gibbins are known as excellent lawyers with hefty fees. But for immigration purposes? Better get a quote first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olddoc Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 The OP has, as yet, failed to respond to Mario's post. I suggest we wait for the OP's response to Mario's queries before attempting to assist. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 Good evening and thanks for the replies. I need to get an extension for my younger brother. He currently has a non Immigrant B Visa that expires end of March. I want to see what the best option would be for him...and possibly not having to leave the country to get it. Maybe get a different 1 year Visa, but he will need to be able to apply for a Work permit with the new Visa. He is German and US Citizen, but arrived in Thailand and has his Visa with his German Passport. He is not married, 25 years old. We are located in Ubon Ratchathani. I know it will probably be difficult or maybe even impossible to find reliable help here, so I was already coming to terms needing to travel to BKK for this. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maestro Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 You definitely do not need to hire a lawyer for such a simple matter, but you should give some more information to get specific answers here without having to resort to many "if...then" scenarios. Was the non-immigrant visa category B (non-B visa, for short) issued by the Thai consulate valid for one entry or for multiple entries? If for multiple entries, what is the "enter before" date on the visa? What is the expiration date of your brother's current permission to stay, ie the "until" date on the last arrival stamp in his passport? The non-B visa is generally issued for working in Thailand or for visiting Thailand to discuss business. Is your brother currently employed in Thailand, or does he have prospects of getting employment before his permission to stay expires? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 15, 2014 Author Share Posted February 15, 2014 1. It was issued by the Thai Consulate in Alabama. Multiple Entries. Enter before March 19th 2014 2. We just did a Border run, his permission to stay / Stamp is until May 5th. All previous border runs have been done on time ( no over stay ) 3. He is not currently employed. We just bought a business in November under our step moms name ( she is Thai ) and is set up as a Sole Proprietorship. With that kind of set up, as I understand, you're only allowed to hire one foreigner. So, I am the one with the work permit. He currently does not work and doesn't have a job prospect except for our moms business ( over 4 million registered capital and between 15 and 18 employees ). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maestro Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 For a start, your brother can use his current multiple-entry non-B visa for the last time on March 18 and get again a new permission to stay for 90 days, ie until June 15, if that helps. After that, he would have to a new multiple-entry non-B visa from his country of residence for the purpose of making business visits to Thailand, but requirements have become tougher since March last year. A company outside Thailand would have to issue a document stating that he needs to travel for business discussions to Thailand and a company in Thailand give an invitation for such discussions. There are law firms in Thailand offering to arrange this for a fee but I can't think of the names at the moment. Perhaps another member will post the information. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maestro Posted February 15, 2014 Share Posted February 15, 2014 If your brother plans to stay in Thailand for a long time he will find it useful to learn some Thai and if he signs up with a Thai language school he can then get repetitive 90-day extensions of stay. Minimum class attendance is four hours per week, I believe. This would be a viable alternative to a new multiple-entry non-B visa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 1. It was issued by the Thai Consulate in Alabama. Multiple Entries. Enter before March 19th 2014 2. We just did a Border run, his permission to stay / Stamp is until May 5th. All previous border runs have been done on time ( no over stay ) 3. He is not currently employed. We just bought a business in November under our step moms name ( she is Thai ) and is set up as a Sole Proprietorship. With that kind of set up, as I understand, you're only allowed to hire one foreigner. So, I am the one with the work permit. He currently does not work and doesn't have a job prospect except for our moms business ( over 4 million registered capital and between 15 and 18 employees ). He can do another border crossings on or before March 19th and get another 90 day entry. It is not possible to get extensions of stay with a sole proprietorship it requires a Ltd company. See clause 2.1 of Thai Police Order 777/2551 for info. The only option if you have a work permit is to get another multiple entry non-b visa from the consulate in Penang. As far as I know their is no limit on the number of work permits a sole proprietorship can have as long as the the number of Thai employees and registered capital is sufficient. Since you are in Ubon you will find it difficult to get any good legal assistance in Bangkok that can help you because most their help amounts to contacts they have at the labor ministry to get work permits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 16, 2014 Author Share Posted February 16, 2014 (edited) Seems like there are "only" 2 possible options, if I understood everything correctly. - One would be to try to get him a work permit now and then get another non-b from Penang - Other option would be to get an ED Visa, however with this he won't be able to get a Work Permit. Edited February 16, 2014 by ubonjoe Removed a line a question about info in a removed post. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 16, 2014 Share Posted February 16, 2014 If you can get the work permit for him the B visa is the only option unless you change from a business registration to a company and can show a full year of tax records. In Ubon the ED visa is not even an option because there are no language schools in Ubon. For legal help you might want to do a post on the Isaan forum for recommendations in Ubon or contact Isaan lawyers which is a sponsor of that forum. They are located in Korat verses Bangkok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 Ok, so a little update. We applied for his work permit today and according to the person who accepted and looked over the information the work permit should be ready for pick up in 3-4 days. We'll go there on monday and hopefully pick it up. Now, assuming he gets his work permit that will probably valid for 30 days, from what I understand he needs to leave the country to apply for his a new non-b? visa It is not possible to apply for this type of Visa from within Thailand? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 His work permit should be valid for a year. He won't need a new visa or extension of stay until his current permit to stay or the additional one that he can get from before his visa runs out. Since it is a sole proprietor business he will not get an extension he can go to Penang for a multiple entry B visa as long as he has 7 months remaining on his work permit with the required documents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 18, 2014 Author Share Posted February 18, 2014 The problem with the duration of the work permit is that for some reason they give you a work permit for 30 days and then you have to go there again and they will give it to you until your Visa expires. This has been the case with me and it also happened to others that I spoke to about this. I wish he will receive the 1 year work permit, but realistically speaking, I think he will get a work permit issued either until March 19th ( Visa Expires ) or May 5th ( entry stamp expiration ). When we pick up the work permit and it will only be valid for said dates, I'll try and see if I can get it for one year. Let's say the work permit situation works out, he will leave the country to apply for a new non-immigrant B Visa after his current one expires. You mentioned he will have to go to Penang ( or some western countries ). Why cant he go to the Thai Embassy in Vientiane for example? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olddoc Posted February 18, 2014 Share Posted February 18, 2014 There seems to be some serious misunderstanding here ! I wonder if there is some confusion between a " work permit" , "extension of stay" and "visa" Sorry I do not have the knowledge to sort it out ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 The problem with the duration of the work permit is that for some reason they give you a work permit for 30 days and then you have to go there again and they will give it to you until your Visa expires. This has been the case with me and it also happened to others that I spoke to about this. I wish he will receive the 1 year work permit, but realistically speaking, I think he will get a work permit issued either until March 19th ( Visa Expires ) or May 5th ( entry stamp expiration ). When we pick up the work permit and it will only be valid for said dates, I'll try and see if I can get it for one year. Let's say the work permit situation works out, he will leave the country to apply for a new non-immigrant B Visa after his current one expires. You mentioned he will have to go to Penang ( or some western countries ). Why cant he go to the Thai Embassy in Vientiane for example? Work permits are not normally tied to the permit to stay a person has. It could be though that is a local policy. If it is tied to it then he should get it valid until his permuted to stay date of May 5th. The visa validity is only the last date you can enter the country. Penang is the only nearby location that will do a multiple entry visa if you have a work permit valid for 7 months.. Others will only do a single entry visa. Do you have a visa (doing border runs every 90 days) or extension of stay you obtained from immigration? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 19, 2014 Author Share Posted February 19, 2014 Thanks for all your help and information so far Ubonjoe. we received our Visa for the first time from the US in March 2013. Non immigrant B and have to do border runs every 90 days Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 19, 2014 Share Posted February 19, 2014 You are close to needing another visa also. But you can still do an entry at Chong Mek if you do it on or before your visa expires and get another 90 days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 26, 2014 Author Share Posted February 26, 2014 So, quick update. My brother just picked up his work permit and validated it until May 5th ( same as his permit to stay stamp in the passport ). They refused to give him a 1 year Visa. What I am thinking of doing now, is just trying my / his luck and go to Phibun and talk with the immigration officer and see if we can extend the current visa another year or apply for a new 1 year multiple non-o. Maaaaaybe, just maybe, he can get a new visa that way. Worst case scenario would only be a 'no', right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olddoc Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) A lot of confused thinking/belief/understanding contained in the previous post ! Maybe hiring a lawyer would be a very good idea ! Edited February 26, 2014 by olddoc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NiwPix Posted February 26, 2014 Author Share Posted February 26, 2014 Yes, I made a mistake. Unfortunately I cant find how to edit my post...so here the revised version. My brother received his work permit and they validated it until may 5th ( which is the same date as his permission to stay stamp in his passport ). We asked to get a 1 year work permit, but they refused to do it. What I am thinking of doing now, is just trying my / his luck and go to Phibun and talk with the immigration officer and see if we can extend the current visa another year or apply for a new 1 year multiple non-b. Maaaaaybe, just maybe, he can get a new visa that way. Worst case scenario would only be a 'can not', right? If that doesn't work I'll probably seek help from a lawyer, which I still don't have a good one yet . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
olddoc Posted February 26, 2014 Share Posted February 26, 2014 (edited) A talk with an immigration officer sounds like a good idea! Edited February 26, 2014 by olddoc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted February 27, 2014 Share Posted February 27, 2014 Yes, I made a mistake. Unfortunately I cant find how to edit my post...so here the revised version. My brother received his work permit and they validated it until may 5th ( which is the same date as his permission to stay stamp in his passport ). We asked to get a 1 year work permit, but they refused to do it. What I am thinking of doing now, is just trying my / his luck and go to Phibun and talk with the immigration officer and see if we can extend the current visa another year or apply for a new 1 year multiple non-b. Maaaaaybe, just maybe, he can get a new visa that way. Worst case scenario would only be a 'can not', right? If that doesn't work I'll probably seek help from a lawyer, which I still don't have a good one yet . Ir must be the local work permit offices policy not to issue the work permit fort longer than the permit to stay. Since 2008 the rules are that they are not tied to a permit to stay. You should download Thai Police Order 777/2551 and read clause 2.1 and the relevant annex's to see if the company and his minimum salary meets the requirements for an extension of stay. If I recall correctly he still has a valid multiple entry B visa which could be used to get another 90 entry up to the date it expires. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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