Retirement Visa in Chiangmai. I'm trapped in vicious overstay cycle.

[Jingthing]

NancyL is a better woman than me in this case.

I don't have patience for a post here that was basically a complaint and then when help is offered, isn't willing to provide the key information needed to get that help.

Sorry I am no saint, but that kind of lack of response makes me strongly suspect there is a lot more to this story that goes well beyond poor customer service at CM immigration.

Of course nobody is obligated to respond to posts, but in this context of this visa advice subforum, if you don't provide details, you usually can't get help, or you get such general information that may not apply to you if the advice givers were given the needed information.

Edited March 29, 2015 by Jingthing

[Leonardo Madison]

If the Chiangmai immigration office was larger and was departmentalized,

[NancyL]

Welcome back, Leonardo. Well, since we can't reorganize the CM Immigration office, let see what we can do to help you. Let's start by getting some basic info.

Are you over age 50?

Nationality?

How do you fulfill the financial requirements for retirement visa -- 65,000 baht/month income, 800,000 baht in Thai bank account or combination?

What type of visa do you have now -- please be specific?

Are you currently on overstay? How long?

Other specifics you care to share would be helpful.

[Leonardo Madison]

Granted, I've mail my 90 day notifications to avoid the crowds at Chiangmai Immigration. it's my responsibility to follow the Thai immigration rules and guidelines .

I'm capable of following any written work process if the process is clearly defined. In Chiangmai, we deal with clerks initially, Chiangmai needs a public relations officer who can quickly evacuate questions from foreigners visiting immigration.

What are you recommending? What's your bottom line?

[Jingthing]

Welcome back, Leonardo. Well, since we can't reorganize the CM Immigration office, let see what we can do to help you. Let's start by getting some basic info.

Are you over age 50?

Nationality?

How do you fulfill the financial requirements for retirement visa -- 65,000 baht/month income, 800,000 baht in Thai bank account or combination?

What type of visa do you have now -- please be specific?

Are you currently on overstay? How long?

Other specifics you care to share would be helpful.

Good luck. He's already been asked to provide details and conspicuously hasn't

Sent from my Lenovo S820_ROW using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[NancyL]

Granted, I've mail my 90 day notifications to avoid the crowds at Chiangmai Immigration. it's my responsibility to follow the Thai immigration rules and guidelines .

I'm capable of following any written work process if the process is clearly defined. In Chiangmai, we deal with clerks initially, Chiangmai needs a public relations officer who can quickly evacuate questions from foreigners visiting immigration.

What are you recommending? What's your bottom line?

Leonardo, yes it would be nice if CM Immigration had a public relations officer. They don't even have native English speaking volunteers like other offices do.

I made one suggestion in my previous post, See Entry No. 16 above.

If you want to do-it-yourself. You may want to invest the time to watch the video when the upper management of the CM Immigration came to the CM Expats Club and spelled out the processes of obtaining a retirement visa, 12-month extension and 90 day reports (which it sounds like you've got under control.)

http://www.chiangmaiexpatsclub.com/immigration-2014/

Edited March 29, 2015 by NancyL

[Maestro]

Nancy has mentioned one possibility, the one I consider most likely: the agent helped the OP with his extension of stay, the OP mailed notifications of staying longer than 90 days, and he thought that was all there was to it until he found himself on overstay. Then he repeated the same thing again, with the same agent. What the OP should do is change to a new agent, as Nancy suggested, instead of continuing to blame the immigration office.

[Jingthing]

Good guess. Confirmation forthcoming?

Sent from my Lenovo S820_ROW using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Liquorice]

Seems as though the OP isn't renewing his extension every 12 months.

Gets an extension, does his 90 day reports, then told he is on overstay.

Perhaps he doesn't realise the extension (or Visa as he refers) is only valid for 12 months and has to be renewed.

[Suradit69]

My single story is not about being qualified for retirement visa, I meet the requirements for retirement visa. It's more about getting to the appropriate immigration office to process the retirement visa.

To begin with, visas are obtained at embassies or consulates. Presumably you are trying for an extension of stay based on retirement. To do that, aside from all the other requirements, you need to be here on a non-imm O visa entry (or more rarely a non-Imm O-A) and still have time left on your permission to stay.

If you're being charged for overstay, it sounds like you are not meeting at least that requirement.

[nzexpat]

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Granted, I've mail my 90 day notifications to avoid the crowds at Chiangmai Immigration. it's my responsibility to follow the Thai immigration rules and guidelines .

I'm capable of following any written work process if the process is clearly defined. In Chiangmai, we deal with clerks initially, Chiangmai needs a public relations officer who can quickly evacuate questions from foreigners visiting immigration.

What are you recommending? What's your bottom line?

This was the OPs response to Nancys very generous offer of assistance (post 33 ) answers to which would have enabled specific, detailed advice to be provided

He failed to respond to her very reasonable questions and chose instead to post further nonsense. He should therefore be ignored .

There is no way of helping those who will not help themselves.

That is, in the OPs words, "the bottom line" !

[Liquorice]

Suradit69, on 30 Mar 2015 - 00:08, said:

Leonardo Madison, on 29 Mar 2015 - 02:36, said:

My single story is not about being qualified for retirement visa, I meet the requirements for retirement visa. It's more about getting to the appropriate immigration office to process the retirement visa.

To begin with, visas are obtained at embassies or consulates. Presumably you are trying for an extension of stay based on retirement. To do that, aside from all the other requirements, you need to be here on a non-imm O visa entry (or more rarely a non-Imm O-A) and still have time left on your permission to stay.

If you're being charged for overstay, it sounds like you are not meeting at least that requirement.

Just watch Nancy's video.

CM Immigration refer to it as a 'Retirement Visa' all the way through.

The Thai Embassy in the USA also refers to an O-A Visa as a 'Retirement Visa'

Not hard to understand why people get confused.

[NancyL]

Oh yeah -- one of my pet peeves. CM Immigration (and I'm sure other Immigration offices) routinely uses terms like "retirement visa" and "renew retirement visa" "get new retirement visa" and "convert to retirement visa" At some point I guess they just threw their hands up in the air and decided to go with the flow and use the same lingo as the customers.

You've got to admit it's easier than saying "extend your permission to stay for 12 months due to retirement" but at least they could go with "retirement extension" instead of "renew retirement visa".

But this is one reason they wanted to do the presentation both in Thai and English. Where there are conflicts or questions, the Thai version is the correct version.

[pault17]

What a mess!

The OP has a problem, but can't explain it.

Various members try to help him, asking him for additional info, but he does not give it.

More people join the discussion adding possible clarifications, followed by more comments and solutions on an undefined problem.

Then suddenly, out of the blue, the OP adds more confusion and persists at not giving vital information.

Then I lost track, sorry.

But I admire several members patience and goodwill. I really mean it. I would have given up by so much OP unwillingness. MY perception, and I may be wrong.

[Jessi]

I would like to thank Nancy for posting that video. I think it might be a good idea to pin it on here.

Watching the video gives expats a good idea of the work load that Immigration officers have and I guess the reason for them having short tempers at times, they must be pulling their hair out by the end of the day.

About calling it a retirement visa, I have heard this term used for over 24 years, so the reason so many people call it a retirement visa including myself..........everyone knows what you are talking about.

Nancy thank you once again your a gem.

[Maestro]

The moderators of this forum and many members have become quite good at guessing what a poster means when he inadvertently uses wrong terminology, but occasionally even they are stumped. A question for clarification usually leads to a happy end. That's what this forum is for.