The Thailand expat forum for Travel, Lifestyle and Fun.

Nawty

Dude....this is the rollercoaster ride of the last 2 and half months of a visa extension application by moi....and my 7 and a half hours at Suanplu yesterday.

Background.....Been 4 years on a thai child support visa, not left the country for 3 and half years, 2 thai/oz children, 1 thai wife of 11 years, err....not quite right as not married but as good or close as it gets after 11 years and 2 kids.


Ok, so visa due mid April, so by the end of march I get all the exact same documents together as last year.

As the requirements for my visa class were changed at the end of 2006 I believe, when I applied in 2007 I was told that they would let me have this visa again, but only this time, definitely not next year….ok ok tanks so much yadda yadda….next year will be next year, new rules, old rules, who knows.

So, this year I decide to go in fully armed and equipped, wifey and unbelievably cute daughter in tow, hoping for the sympathy vote if in fact they decide to stand by their last years comment…’NEVER AGAIN’ read my lips.

I believe now this was a mistake as they simply grilled her in Thai basically the whole time. I got reprimanded for talking to the officer in the way that I did, but I will not bow to anyone usually, specially not some halfwit making rules up as they go along, or so it seems. I was not rude, no bad language, just firmly stated my views and points….REPRIMAND and a big black star next to your name sir.

So, this year I walked in thinking I would get my 1 year visa, I walked out with some sound advice ringing in my ears and a 60 day only extension. The sound advice I hear you ask ??..... You have 3 choices my son…..Get married, Get a work permit…or Get out.

Basically they told me to get married……some more background…..I was married previously for 7 years, divorced from a lovely Singapore/dutch gal, but just did not workout, I fell for a 4 foot black island girl in Vanuatu whose teeth glowed in the dark and still holds the record with me for number af shags in one night…..stay focused….anyway, current day, not married, 11 years and 2 kids and going strong. Marriage does not mean shit to me but a piece of paper.

Second suggestion was to get a Work Permit…..I do not need this as do not work, live off investments in Oz and do not want or need the hassle of work permits or company formation for nothing.

Third rather nice option suggested to me….if I have enough money to live off of in Oz, then go back there. This suggestion I found rather offensive and held back tell her to fuck off back to isaan or whatever shithole she surfaced from also as she is obviously out of her depth here. But I did not, cos I a nice guy.

So that was that, went away thinking my only choice will be to get married, which was eating into me every day, simply because being told by a country to get married or else sucks big time. But if I had to, I would of course to stay with my family and all.

So, 2 months go by, I put off getting married, kind of like going to the dentist when I was 21, wisdom teeth came through, could not open my mouth as it was so swollen. Went to the doctor hoping it was something else…I hate dentists…he made an appointment with the dentist, I did not go, I put up with it for 2 weeks sucking through a straw until they came through.
Anyway, visa due again in 4 days, 2 of them the weekend. I went to the other immigration office that used to be on Ratchada, hoping to avoid the long cues and waits at SuanPlu. They have moved to Phaoyothin I think it is called. I get in a taxi with a note from wifey to the taxi driver, asking him to take care of me and take me to this place. Taxi ends up out near fucking don muang and then comes back to near the elephant building which is only just up the road from where we departed. I am getting annoyed….but I remember I must stay in a good place, breath breath think good things.

So go there, go up to 16th floor, ask for 90 day extension, she says we not do that here must go suanplu, I go away but come back as the form she was confused when she pointed to my yearly visa, not extension. I go back and explain I want 90 day extension only, not yearly…..oh ok here you go sir, she gives me 90 day reporting form, I say no 90 day extension not reporting…oh solly we not do that here. Ok thankyou so much……breath breath.

Get another taxi, tell him to Suanplu, don’t spare the gee gee’s and do not go down ratchada, take the highway which was a U turn behind us. He goes down ratchada……good place good place.

So I decide to go in and see what happens in SuanPlu, took in all the documents they gave me back 2 months ago, nothing new and applied for a 90 extension, filled in the form 90 DAYS please. Hoping to get 90, but would settle for 60 and then procrastinate some more about marriage…maybe I can just keep applying for extension every 90 days ???

Get ticket, 45 people waiting, wait for an hour while chatting to a nice elderly Yank gent to my right and a very cute Filipino gal to my left, she had a 15yo son and looked mid 20’s herself, very nice girl, was wondering if I could get her number for something different, but I don’t do that kind of thing anymore.

I decide to go and ask how long it would be at the front counter, as not sure how the number system, was now working….I had 900, it was at 955 when I entered ? Find out it recycles at 999 back to 900 and so on again. The lady at front desk says you can go and come back, it will be around 3 hours she thought. I thunked no way, not that long. So I go to starbucks and come back in 90 minutes….972….fcuk, it was at 969 when I left 90 minutes ago.

So waiting waiting…. Luckily I brought stuff to do, drawings for plans, paper and water.

Eventually my number pops up and I present my docs to the lovely gal. Usual go through, do this, do that, copy this, have you got this, that, go copy this, pay money, come back. Sounds quick huh…..2 and a half hours in the interrogation chair.

Upside was, to my utter disbelief and somewhat nervousness, combined with sweaty palms that they did not discover my little indiscretion I am hiding…. The gal crosses out my 90 day application and writes in 365 DAYS….woohoo woofcukinghoo…..do not show enthusiasm, do not show surprise, do not ask, keep quite, do not look the wrong way, stay calm, cool, wipe the sweat off of the palms regularly in cas you have to shake someone’s hand…..

So, over to the boss for consideration, here I sat with her asking all sorts of questions and grilling for 2 hours. Turns out she was putting all of my information into the computer, updating it basically. Even my first visit to Los in 1998, they looked at my old passport and recorded every entry and exit, each visa type and then personal information re income, kids, wife etc etc. Her English was not great, but she smiled a lot and had a giggle from time to time. All the immigration officers wear yellow shirts now, not sure if that is all the time to make a friendlier face or what. But one lady entered in full military dress, could not take my eyes off of her, slim hot figure, tall, nice face. Entered several times and then as the hours dragged on and she saw me sitting there for so long, she came over and talked to the lady doing me, or my case.

They all chatted between her, her and 2 hims and even another her from another desk, finally the military chick looked at me, laughed, smiling and in quite good English asked me why I not get married….like it’s the first time I have had to explain this in here….I explained a little….then said to her “your English is very good, would you like to sit down and I will try to explain in detail”..she said “oh yes please with a smile and sat down, moved the computer aside and we began.

I told a story….I was married to a singapore dutch girl in Oz for 7 years, divorced, no kids. Now I have my thai wife of 11 years, 2 children and going from strength to strength……can I ask you which one do you think is stronger…the marriage or the current non marriage relationship…..she instantly said the ‘Thai’ one and nodded her head in full agreement. I went on to explain that marriage now is nothing but a piece of paper to me and that I did not think it was fair, when I had been on a child support visa for 4 years, that you now change the rules and tell me I must get married, your country is forcing me to get married, do something that I do not believe in and that you just agreed was not correct, just to be able to stay with my 2 children. She nodded again and then chatted away in thai to the others. They seemed to all agree.

So, eventually we finished, she handed me my passport, said 30 days….I was gutted, I said 30 days only…WHY….she walked off to do something else, I sat there looking at my passport, 7 and a half hours, 2 and a half sitting here answering ever fucking question and all I get is 30 fucking days…..stay cool, breath, good place…..fcuk the good fcuking place…..I calmly walked over to her and nicely said, so what happens in 30 days, do I have to leave my kids….she said no you come back here for decision on your yearly visa……sheepish I said so 30 days is just to come here for the decision, not a 30 days visa and leave the country….no sir, come back every 30 days until they make decision……woohoo, thakyou darling.

So after all of that, I walked in looking for 90, would settle for 60, but ended up getting submitted for 1 year to be confirmed…..I was very pleased.

Now there is still a chance it will be refused, but if it is I am going to apply and apply and apply every 30, 60 or whatever days until they are sick of the sight of me.

What a ride.

DrB0b

That was boring

JoGeAr

Dealing with Thai beaurocrats is the pits. Please keep us posted on the final outcome.

Nawty

Nevermind, most visa issues are.

I hope by posting it, any other guys out there in the same boat as me and having troubles with visa now since the changes, can perhaps do something about it.

With or without success, I will find out which way in 30 days I hope.

kingwilly

not if you're the person involved.

ignore him nawty.

good luck getting the visa mate.

erm, if marriage is just a piece of paper, why the problem getting married for a visa then???

peterpan

Your a stronger man than I nawty, I would and have just buckled under & got married, fighting city hall and all that sort of thing.
Any way thanks for posting your experience.

ChiangMai noon

I enjoyed that post.

think you might as well just get married though.

Nawty

Lol, thats what someone else said exactly.

Marriage has other legal considerations along with it. I look at it from the belief of meaning nothing, so why do it, not why not do it.

As I mentioned, if faced with no other choice, I will of course, but not before stubbornly exhausting as many other options as possible.

I am very stubborn, my wife says I am and I wonder where my daughter gets it from also.

Texpat

Why not get married, get your visa, and then get divorced?

It's faster, cheaper and easier to get married and unmarried than fight these assholes.

sabang

You'll get your yearly Visa, but you face the prospect of the same bullshit each year.

Renewing my marriage Visa, me and my wife were asked to explain why we don't have kids.

DrB0b

__________________

Texpat

A few years back the requirement for a marriage visa was either money in the bank or a pension. I showed proof of money in the bank. All was progressing until the fuckwit learned I was retired and demanded proof of my pension. I didn't have that (required a trip to the Embassy) and politely explained that the money in the bank satisfied the requirement and I would get the Embassy paper for my next annual renewal -- next year.

He was not amused and my visa was denied. They gave me thirty days to go to Bangkok.

So much for rules.

Thetyim

No need to wait
You can check the outcome online now

Nawty

Lol, had thought of this, but then would rather face immigration each year than explain to the wife I want a divorce.


[quote=DrB0b;656851No need to wait
You can check the outcome online now [/quote]

Doubt it would be up that quick.


DocBob, yes I know I was rude, in their way of thinking, but not nearly as rude as I have been or could be. In other words....according to moi, I was nice.

I know I have the wrong attitude for Thailand and maybe asia in general, but I still like it here, my kids are Half thai and I want them raised here. So for me I try my best and deal with it in whatever way I can. I am also extremely lucky that I do not have to work or do business here because I have to, I do some business here because I want to and love it, so the temperament changes and I get away with a lot more because I do not have to try to reproduce the thai or asian way to get by all the time. But generally I am reasonably quiet and well behaved.

Nawty

They are nosy bastards of late.

Were they updating your online profile as they questioned you ? That is what she was doing with me, everything went into it. Where my wife is now, when we first met, first time in Los, first visa type, income, kids ages, school etc etc.

Bobcock

I know Nawty very well.

He's not the most conventional of gents.

He was once driving from Perth to Broome to start a new job, happened along two Swedish hitch hikers and ended up in Townsville.

He doesn't own socks.

He is not the marrying kind.

But I like him.

__________________
Can't win on a compromise, I'd rather lose on my own.


TEAK DOOR FORUM - 'Giving wackjobs a voice'

Nawty

Its all a lie....I did not go to Townsville, it was Darwin.

tsicar

[quote=Nawty;656943]Lol, had thought of this, but then would rather face immigration each year than explain to the wife I want a divorce.


there are two ways to get by in thailand.
one way, that most followed (and the way most people will tell you to go ), is to suck their little yellow cocks, in which case you will be fucked around simply because they get their jolliest by screwing over somebody more cowardly than themselves.
the other way is to handle it the way you did, in which case you will be fucked around for being rude and arrogant.
you do not get any further being rude and arrogant, but at least you do not end up with a foul taste in your mouth.
bet you get that visa quicker than the guy who waaid and sucked the arrogant, uneducated, self-im,portant little yellow peasant's nob!