Guenter has visa problems .....

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izzix
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Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by izzix » June 27, 2007, 11:13 pm


Guenter Bellach

27 Jun, 15:40


From: [email protected] (Guenter Bellach)

Date: Wed, 27 Jun 2007 14:40:09 GMT
Local: Wed 27 Jun 2007 15:40

Subject: Bad Surprise at Immigration

I have been legally married to my Thai wife for 14 years, have been
supporting her as well as raising over the years as many as 6 children
out of her extended family whose parents had been unable or unwilling
to take care of them, three of these are in my house at the present
time. And I have been living in Thailand permanently on 1-year visa
extensions for a total of 11 consecutive years now, initially under
the requirement for marrieds of having Baht 250,000 in my bank account
and more lately Baht 400,000.

I thought I was all set for a happy remainder of my life in this
country which I love. Two days ago I presented myself at Immigration
in Phuket for the yearly renewal with all my documents in order (I
thought). All went well at first, the officer dealing with me, amidst
jokes with my wife, completed all the paperwork and handed everything
to his supervisor for signature. Then the trouble started. The
supervisor consulted his rule book and pronounced that Baht 400,000
was not enough, and they could not approve my application. He did not
exactly say how much money I needed on my bank account, but I had the
impression that it was Baht 800,000, the same as for retired people
who are not married to a Thai. Alternately I could prove I had Baht
40,000 per month retirement income. Well neither did I have the one
nor the other. My retirement income amounts to a mere Baht
35,000/month, which happens to be 7 times the income of the average
Thai employee, but apparently the authorities feel the larger amount
is needed for a farang to live on.

So what to do? Do I have to return to my home country where living
costs are much higher and where I would need ALL my income just to
support myself as a single person, and abandon those 4 Thai people who
at the present time depend on me to feed them? Do we long-staying
farangs who have been living a decent life, supporting our Thai
relatives do we not deserve more considerate treatment, and
consideration of the contribution we have making to this country over
so many years? Everybody knows that a very significant part of the
income of many Isaan villagers come from their farang family members.

Has anybody else in this group had a similar experience? What exactly
are the financial requirements for foreigners who are married to a
Thai person to stay here long-term? It seems the Thai government is
turning up the screws all the time. My retirement pension certainly
does not increase at the same rate as their requirements. Do they want
to get rid of us?
saw this on another forum ...

i thought it was 400,000 in the bank ,when did they ramp it up again ?



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Irish Alan
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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by Irish Alan » June 27, 2007, 11:53 pm

All part of those dreaded foreigner friendly new rules izzix.
Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote:2. Required Documents
- Passport with validity of not less than 18 months.
- 3 copies of completed visa application forms.
- 3 passport-sized photos (4 x 6 cm) of the applicant taken within the past six months.
- A personal data form.
- A copy of bank statement showing a deposit of the amount equal to and not less than 800,000 Baht or an income certificate (an original copy) with a monthly income of not less than 65,000 Baht, or a deposit account plus a monthly income totalling not less than 800,000 Baht.
- In the case of submitting a bank statement, a letter of guarantee from the bank (an original copy) is required.
Here is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website with full rules.

http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2493

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jackspratt
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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by jackspratt » June 28, 2007, 8:20 am

Irish Alan wrote:All part of those dreaded foreigner friendly new rules izzix.
Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote:2. Required Documents
- Passport with validity of not less than 18 months.
- 3 copies of completed visa application forms.
- 3 passport-sized photos (4 x 6 cm) of the applicant taken within the past six months.
- A personal data form.
- A copy of bank statement showing a deposit of the amount equal to and not less than 800,000 Baht or an income certificate (an original copy) with a monthly income of not less than 65,000 Baht, or a deposit account plus a monthly income totalling not less than 800,000 Baht.
- In the case of submitting a bank statement, a letter of guarantee from the bank (an original copy) is required.
Here is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website with full rules.

http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2493
I think you will find these are the rules for a "retirement visa" (extension).

My understanding of Geunter's post is that he is on a "marriage" visa, and my understanding of the requirements are TBH40,000 per month income. This can be combined income for husband and wife.

TBH400,000 doesn't cut it anymore.

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Pakawala
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Post by Pakawala » June 28, 2007, 8:47 am

A quick check of the www.mfa.go.th web-site shows the Non-immigrant O-A Visa requirements but no where on the 'mfa' listing is any indication of a "Marriage Visa". I also checked the Q & A section?? :?
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Bandung_Dero
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Post by Bandung_Dero » June 28, 2007, 8:48 am

In the OP's case they should have accepted this application with proof of 400K Baht in the bank. The 400K thing has been 'Grandfathered' for existing applicants to Oct 2007 where ALL applicants will have to show 40K Baht a month.
The 400K application worked for me 2 months ago. 800K Baht or 65K per month applies to the retirement OA visa extension.

There must be 1000 pages of text and experiences related to this subject on ThaiVisa.com

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Post by polehawk » June 28, 2007, 10:20 am

Guenter should make tracks to Bangkok Immigration with documents (and TW) in hand ASAP. Sounds like recent changes were miscommunicated to the Phuket supervisor.

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UdonExpat
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Post by UdonExpat » June 28, 2007, 10:18 pm

Here's what the immigration department says is needed:

http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/en ... ge=service#

Click on visa extension and then the third choice on the page that comes up.

As usual things are about as clear as mud. I'd try a different immigration office.

patriot
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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by patriot » June 28, 2007, 11:25 pm

Irish Alan wrote:All part of those dreaded foreigner friendly new rules izzix.
Thailand Ministry of Foreign Affairs wrote:2. Required Documents
- Passport with validity of not less than 18 months.
- 3 copies of completed visa application forms.
- 3 passport-sized photos (4 x 6 cm) of the applicant taken within the past six months.
- A personal data form.
- A copy of bank statement showing a deposit of the amount equal to and not less than 800,000 Baht or an income certificate (an original copy) with a monthly income of not less than 65,000 Baht, or a deposit account plus a monthly income totalling not less than 800,000 Baht.
- In the case of submitting a bank statement, a letter of guarantee from the bank (an original copy) is required.
Here is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website with full rules.

http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2493
Thanks for that IA, clear and concise site.
I recently needed a letter of employment, flight ticket, 3 photos etc just to get a 60 day Tourist visa in Doha.
Question is, what happens if you're not working in the country in which you are applying? Surely 99% of applicants don't work in Penang or KL etc. Does one just have to produce a bank statement proving you have dosh in Thailand??????????

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Irish Alan
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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by Irish Alan » June 29, 2007, 12:51 am

patriot wrote:Question is, what happens if you're not working in the country in which you are applying? Surely 99% of applicants don't work in Penang or KL etc. Does one just have to produce a bank statement proving you have dosh in Thailand??????????
I presume the requirements differ from whatever country you are applying from patriot. For example you do not need either a letter of employment or flight tickets if applying from Ireland. Just the fee, 3 photos and the app form.

Hopefully someone in the same position may give you a more definitive response to your question regarding finances.

When you look at the usual list of requirements it usually says "financial evidence" and not necessarily in a Thai bank so I take it as a statement from a bank in your home country.

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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by Doc » June 29, 2007, 7:21 am

Irish Alan wrote:When you look at the usual list of requirements it usually says "financial evidence" and not necessarily in a Thai bank so I take it as a statement from a bank in your home country.
I believe that you have to show that the money is coming into Thailand or has come into Thailand.
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Re: Guenter has visa problems .....

Post by papaguido » June 29, 2007, 7:42 am

Doc wrote:
Irish Alan wrote:When you look at the usual list of requirements it usually says "financial evidence" and not necessarily in a Thai bank so I take it as a statement from a bank in your home country.
I believe that you have to show that the money is coming into Thailand or has come into Thailand.
5. Only for clause (6), there shall
be a letter of confirmation from
a bank in Thailand and copy of
bank book or proof of income of
either party or both in the total
amount of not less than Baht
40,000 per month, such as
personal income tax return with
receipt, proof of pension, proof
of interest from bank account
deposit or proof of other income
from authority concerned.

Reference:

Order of the Royal Thai Police Headquarters
No. 606/2549
Re: Rules and Conditions in the Consideration of Alien Applications
for Temporary Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand

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Post by fremmel » June 29, 2007, 11:28 am

Here's a link on the Pattaya Immigration website:
http://www.pattaya-immigration.org/visa ... ck&lang=EN
The second scroll box down is for an "alien husband who supports a wife who is Thai citizen".

It says:
10. Financial documentation:
- Bank statement and copy of bank account showing at least 400,000.- Baht deposit
- Employment evidence, work permit, and tax documentation showing an income of at least 40,000.- Baht.

This doesn't have the either/or option so I don't know. They do give a BKK number to call for other info: 0-2213-2556.

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Post by patriot » June 29, 2007, 5:21 pm

I am genuinely looking forward to my 50th birthday ..... only 2 years to go !!!

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