BangkokReady Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 3 minutes ago, DrJack54 said: Why? A fair exchange. A mutually beneficial arrangement. Dedicate your life to a country that is not your own, get security and the ability to build a proper life in return. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DrJack54 Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 1 minute ago, BangkokReady said: A fair exchange. A mutually beneficial arrangement. Dedicate your life to a country that is not your own, get security and the ability to build a proper life in return. Good plan, just need to select a country that will allow that. Simple really. Why do western countries such as USA, OZ, etc not allow visa exempt entry then marry a chick, place 400k baht in a bank and happy days. Or turn 50 and do same (bit more money in bank) and obtain non o RT then annual extensions. And you complain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post JackThompson Posted August 17, 2020 Popular Post Share Posted August 17, 2020 (edited) 53 minutes ago, DrJack54 said: Good plan, just need to select a country that will allow that. Simple really. Fair enough - people should be warned about this. But many who married Thais years ago faced far fewer obstacles to merely "staying with" their Thai families. The changes were not anticipated. Quote Why do western countries such as USA, OZ, etc not allow visa exempt entry then marry a chick, place 400k baht in a bank and happy days. If one marries a USA citizen, the first application process for a visa is a PITA (they may do a home-visit), but after that ONE TIME process, it's easy-sailing to a green card (PR), with citizenship for the taking (no quota-limits, etc on citizen's spouses). I am not familiar with the AU system, but would be surprised if you cannot stay with your AU-spouse fairly easily. Quote Or turn 50 and do same (bit more money in bank) and obtain non o RT then annual extensions. And you complain! Other immigration options are more difficult, due to the differential in wages and social-services. Thailand offers no welfare to foreigners, or higher paying jobs than Westerners can get in our passport-countries. We could not "mooch" of of the locals here, even if we were so-inclined. The only ones Thailand needs to worry about, are those coming in from poorer countries. But, of course, this is made easy - separate offices set up just to process their visas - because the elite-rich here want workers who will work cheaper than Thais. So, the system is Exactly Backwards - keeping out those who improve Thai's lives by spending foreign-capital here, while allowing-in those who undercut Thais in the labor market, forcing them to work-overseas, away from their families. Edited August 17, 2020 by JackThompson 3 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phillip9 Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 52 minutes ago, DrJack54 said: Why do western countries such as USA, OZ, etc not allow visa exempt entry then marry a chick, place 400k baht in a bank and happy days. If you are married to a US citizen, staying in the USA is relatively easy. You don’t even need to have any money in the bank. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JackThompson Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 1 hour ago, BangkokReady said: I don't really blame them either about owning property, as I have seen what that has done in other countries. But if a person wants to move to another country and begin a new life, learn the language, embrace the culture, takes a job that the country has deemed beneficial, perhaps marrying a local and having children with them, it seems reasonable for them to expect citizenship, the ability to buy a house and being able to change their status to where they at least have a few more rights than a backpacker on a tourist visa on their first day in the country. I support PR for those cases. No one with long-term family here should live in annual-fear of being booted-out. Agree entirely with the "backpacker" analogy - it is a lot like that, now. You can own a house - just not the land it sits on; though you can lease the land (I think "ufstruct" is the term?), while it is in your wife's name - and set things up so that it all goes to your children when you die. This can also protect you from other family-members taking a lean against the land. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bwpage3 Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 36 minutes ago, JackThompson said: Fair enough - people should be warned about this. But many who married Thais years ago faced far fewer obstacles to merely "staying with" their Thai families. The changes were not anticipated. If one marries a USA citizen, the first application process for a visa is a PITA (they may do a home-visit), but after that ONE TIME process, it's easy-sailing to a green card (PR), with citizenship for the taking (no quota-limits, etc on citizen's spouses). I am not familiar with the AU system, but would be surprised if you cannot stay with your AU-spouse fairly easily. Other immigration options are more difficult, due to the differential in wages and social-services. Thailand offers no welfare to foreigners, or higher paying jobs than Westerners can get in our passport-countries. We could not "mooch" of of the locals here, even if we were so-inclined. The only ones Thailand needs to worry about, are those coming in from poorer countries. But, of course, this is made easy - separate offices set up just to process their visas - because the elite-rich here want workers who will work cheaper than Thais. So, the system is Exactly Backwards - keeping out those who improve Thai's lives by spending foreign-capital here, while allowing-in those who undercut Thais in the labor market, forcing them to work-overseas, away from their families. with citizenship for the taking (no quota-limits, etc on citizen's spouses) If you marry a US Citizen, you still have to meet the requirements for a US green card. Once in the US, you have another set of requirements to be a US citizen. Once the requirements are met, you can apply to be a US citizen. However, you do have to past a citizenship test and have a command of the english language. While waiting at the center in Orlando Florida, for my wife to get her citizenship, I was surprised to see how many folks from Nationalities all over the world, came out the testing door crying their heads off and in many cases trying to be consoled my their immigration lawyers because they did not pass the citizenship test and were denied citizenship. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krey Posted August 17, 2020 Author Share Posted August 17, 2020 On 8/16/2020 at 8:01 PM, L0cky said: Hey @krey, on the one hand it's nice to finally find some people under similar circumstances (expired TE visa with valid POS), but on the other hand we all seem to be having problems. Where did you see specifically that a PE visa does not qualify for amnesty? This may have serious implications for me as my POS expires in two days, and @BKKTRAVELER whose expired already. It's incredibly difficult to find information for people in our situation so I go by the official signs which typically say 'to ALL foreigners', or separate between short and long term visitors. @ubonjoe When applying for in-country 1 year extensions, PE visa holders are required to tick 'Tourist' as our visa type, and I've read various times that it falls in the category of tourist visa. Though I guess it's difficult to expect ultimate clarity during these times when we may as well have categorised it as a Custard Pie Visa for all it mattered Pre-Covid ???? My visa expired in January so according to the 3 visa agents the amnesty didn't go into effect until March. They even tried to see if I could get that 6 month Thai Elite extension but yet again that early expiring date. Was also told that the Thai Elite Visa just was not part of the amnesty at all, in sense of the expiring ones, it was never connected to the new amnesty rules, which kind of makes sense when you think about it. I think immigration was focusing on all the tourists here and those visas, I doubt Expiring Thai Elite visas even came up (this is just an assumption) so now when people like us inquire they go back to the old rules. Thai Elite? want to change visa? Leave and come back... which of course does not help at all:) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
david555 Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 (edited) Seems Bali is more severe than Thailand Australians ordered to leave or face visa fines ….(by Friday.. said Australia TV news channel ) https://www.google.be/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=2ahUKEwi-xOzsx6LrAhWOWX0KHX5AAVAQFjABegQIAhAB&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.abc.net.au%2Fradio%2Fprograms%2Fam%2Faustralians-in-bali-ordered-to-leave-or-face-visa-fines%2F12564356&usg=AOvVaw0FgmKSW6g7Q4Ts5W9kXdIn Edited August 17, 2020 by david555 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ukrules Posted August 17, 2020 Share Posted August 17, 2020 6 hours ago, DrJack54 said: Why? When they opted to marry and perhaps have children they already knew the rules that Thailand has. Why do so many folk wish to push their own countries rules onto Thailand. It's called reciprocity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L0cky Posted August 18, 2020 Share Posted August 18, 2020 (edited) 9 hours ago, krey said: Was also told that the Thai Elite Visa just was not part of the amnesty at all, in sense of the expiring ones, it was never connected to the new amnesty rules, which kind of makes sense when you think about it. I finally found some clarity on this, on TE's COVID-19 page: As far as I'm aware 'visa expiry' has always meant POS, or the later of visa and POS. Edited August 18, 2020 by L0cky Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
krey Posted August 21, 2020 Author Share Posted August 21, 2020 On 8/18/2020 at 7:51 AM, L0cky said: I finally found some clarity on this, on TE's COVID-19 page: As far as I'm aware 'visa expiry' has always meant POS, or the later of visa and POS. Perhaps to you but not the 5 agencies and multiple times I talked to immigration. My visa expired before march 26th, and did try the extra 6 months but again they said no, sure their might be an immigration officer somewhere that might say yes:) but I am tired of trying to find him/her:) time to go home Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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