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Home » Reader question » Reader Question: Does Immigration in Chiang Mai only issue 20 retirement visas per day?
Reader Question: Does Immigration in Chiang Mai only issue 20 retirement visas per day?
Dear readers,
Has anyone been to Chiangmai Immigration last week? And can confirm what I've heard, that they now only do 20 retirement visas a day and the rest get a flyer saying they can go to an "intermediary" who charges 3000 baht and then arranges the visa for you .
That is in addition to the 1900 baht for the visa itself. Have they finally found the gold mine (at least 100.000 to 150.000 baht per day). Because on average every day between 75 and 100 people come for the retirement visa.
Could they have finally found a "legal" way to be corrupt?
Yours faithfully,
Cees1
Dear Cees1,
Personally I have not heard anything about this, but then I am not in Chiang Mai but in Bangkok.
However, I suspect something like this would spread quickly.
Seems like a pretty strong story to me too, and I don't think an Immigration office would openly issue something like that either.
Stories often take on a life of their own as they pass from person to person.
Perhaps they mean that there is a limit of 20 people who can make an appointment online for a certain day. (However, I thought the maximum was 10 people for a given day and this from 100 days before that date)
If there are more than 20 (10?) for that day who want an appointment, then those who have not been able to make an appointment must present themselves on the spot and get a number.
It would therefore not surprise me that visa offices smelled money at those waiting with a number.
They then hand out a flyer offering their services for the price of 3000 Baht.
Some do not want to wait at all for or with a number and have the 3000 Baht for that.
You will find this working method of visa offices at every immigration office or border crossing.
That such flyers would be handed out by immigration itself would surprise me.
FYI – I did read the following
Chiang Mai Immigration”
Online Registration for VISA Renewal (Chiang Mai)
Aug 14, 2015 – For the past 3 weeks (since they moved to Promenada Mall) the Queue has
not worked. No indication when, and if, it will be functional again.
But hey, maybe someone has been there recently and knows more details.
I went to immigration for my visa in hua hin last week and have not heard or seen anything about it, I was out again in 10 minutes for a new year, but what I found strange was that I received a phone call a few days before from a lady who asked if I was interested if she could take care of my visa I asked her how she got my number but didn't tell her that I've been doing it myself for 10 years so also this time, but what I don't understand is even if you are sick you have to report yourself for the visa, but another reason is that I don't intend to hand over my passport and other papers to a stranger, so you have been warned!!
She says it's from a notary office.
Dear tonymarony, this also concerns the immigration office in Chiang Mai and not in Hua Hin.
BeerChang you are absolutely right. We should learn not to compare apples with oranges. Indeed, the rules should be the same everywhere. But that is absolutely not the case. Read Janbeute's response. Chiangmai has always been very busy. But at least you got help. And then you think ha nice a new larger location, that will go much better. But unfortunately.
After the attack, the penultimate sentence is of course mainly reminiscent of passport forgery, in addition to corruption.
That sounds great in 10 minutes outside again. Did you have an appointment? Here in Chiangmai that is really not possible. Even if you had an appointment you still had to wait a long time before the Chef had put his stamp. And now that they are in Promenade it will take much longer because the Chef is still in the old building. So they go there with 20 passports every time. I think Chiangmai has the busiest immigration office. People come at 04.00 a.m. just to get a number. I went for 90 days at the beginning of August, was there at 10.30 and had number 115 and therefore came back in the afternoon at 13.30 and then they were only working on number 78. In the old small office they normally did 100 in the morning. They are really training it. And they just want to see money. Because you don't think they would hand over a gold mine like that. That office is really connected to immigration.
we have been aug 17 for extension retirement.
Were there at 5.30:5 am and were number XNUMX.
The official who helped us said that 20 numbers are being issued.
The rest of the day is for the people who have made an appointment on the internet.
A girl came by in the middle of the morning with a flyer stating that the agency could arrange everything for 300 baht.
I would like to see a flyer like this. Original then.
Not many visa extensions are being done now that Immigration has moved to the Promenade. So far there is only one desk available at the new location for visa extensions. I wouldn't know the exact number, but it will be a little over 20. Ten appointments could be made online per day.
Now that online service can no longer be used (for the time being). I know there are offices that take care of your renewal. However, you must be present at Immigration in person if that office has made an appointment with Immigration. I don't know what the costs for that mediation are.
I had an appointment at ten in the morning and I was there the first week of the move. I was also helped at exactly ten o'clock and the procedure was done within fifteen minutes. But because the extension still had to be initialed and a red date stamp, it took until after two o'clock in the afternoon before I got the passport back. Fortunately, I live near Chiang Mai, in Hang Dong, so I could go home and come back at two o'clock.
A friend of mine had an appointment at half past nine, but was not helped until after eleven. He too had to return in the afternoon to collect his passport.
Sorry, but Bangkok and Hua Hin are very different from Chiangmai. They have now also closed online appointments in Chiangmai. This morning I received confirmation from an American who visited last Wednesday. And he just paid the 3000 baht. Because they didn't help him.
I'm not talking about immigration Bangkok either
Dear tonymarony, this concerns the immigration office of Chiang Mai and not that of Hua Hin, to avoid any misunderstandings.
I was already planning to ask a reader question about the situation at the Immigration office in Chiang Mai. I too have heard that the state of affairs and procedures would have changed thoroughly and that the situation would be as Cees1 describes.
It is a pity (with all due respect) that there are now only reactions from readers from other cities.
My question now is if anyone can clearly describe his/her actual experience of the last few weeks at Immigration Chiang Mai. So preferably a personal visit for example for a retirement visa and not from “hearsay”, because unfortunately such a rumor sometimes gets completely out of hand and one confusion piles up on the other.
Maybe it's all just a temporary measure due to the transition from the office to Promenade in Chiang Mai, or does anyone know if that is/was just a temporary move?
If you are sick and unable to go to the immigration office, they will come to visit you, either in hospital or at home.
In the latter case, do not confirm with a government hospital doctor that you are unable to go to the office.
It is possible that not a year extension if stay is given, but a temporary extension of the existing extension.
That is an “under consideration” stamp. Awaiting a decision. Can be a maximum of 30 days.
Hans, what does that have to do with the fact that they are only processing 20 visa applications.
And have you ever experienced them with you or someone you know. Been on a sick visit?
If you really want to know how things are going now .
It is too much for me to describe all this .
Then go to Thaivisa.com and then to the Chiangmai forum .
Read the many and many responses to postings that are now being made there about the CMI since the Prom office opened, and you will never want to LIVE in Chiangmai again.
It is unbelievable how things are going there now .
Some responses also include photos taken by farangs early in the morning, so you get an idea of how long the line is.
Doesn't matter if you are old or in a wheelchair you stand there for hours in the burning sun.
90 days report has now become a day job .
Retirement visa later we will camp there all night on the promenade shopping mall.
Early in the morning some Thai students are queuing up with some passports ( Visa Mafia ) .
The queque on line is also stopped , and does not come back , I read .
If it was so difficult to get a place anyway , I only succeeded once since its existence .
Reportedly, the 90-day notification by mail will also be stopped.
Since I also fall within the CMI area, I have already read a lot about this through some internet sites, and believe me.
It will only give you a splitting headache.
When I was there for the last time at the end of April this year, before my 11th retirement, it was already around five o'clock in the morning to queue up, and they were still working for RET. two CMI officers at the office located at the airport office.
CMI has now become a nightmare for many farangs .
Only if you give in to the visa mafia can things happen quickly.
Example you can only sign up for RET for one person , those are the rules .
How is it possible that there are young Thai students standing in line early in the morning looking like sombres at their cell phones with two or three passports in their hands from farangs, also for RET.
How is it possible that you can arrange your RET visa at the adjacent visa office before 10 am?
The passport cannot be signed at the Prom office because the authorized commander-in-chief is not present.
They sometimes go to the old office with a load of passports or the commander-in-chief comes to the Prom late in the afternoon.
So even if you have your approval around 11 am in the morning, you will still have to wait until late in the afternoon around XNUMX pm before you can receive your passport back.
A reaction I can still remember from a poster was , he wrote that he came there around 5 o'clock in the morning and left around 6 o'clock in the evening .
No, CMI is no longer necessary for me.
It may be a reason to leave the CM district.
And not only do I feel that way , there are many who are fed up with it .
An angry Jan Beute.
.
Pattaya immigration also has an organization that can help you arrange visas. I was there in January of this year and had a 0 multiple entry visa issued by the Thai consul in Amsterdam. Cost 140 euros. So I reported neatly after 3 months and then I was told that I had to leave the country or arrange a retirement visa on the spot. I had no desire to leave the country and accepted their request for help. It was arranged for 8000 bath all in. I had to be able to quickly prove whether I had enough money of my own, the known amounts were 800.000 baht on a Thai bank account or document showing more income of 65.000 baht per month. If I could not prove that I had sufficient money of my own, this could be arranged for me with a special banking structure, whereby an amount of 800.000 baths is briefly deposited into my bank account, which is withdrawn immediately after obtaining the visa. Costs for this fraudulent act are 25.000 baths. Well, perhaps there is a solution for people who cannot prove this. For me, this is yet another confirmation of how fraud keeps popping up here. Anyway, I was not aware of the amounts and I acceded to their request and paid the 8000 bath. I already had a document showing that I had sufficient money. I do not participate in fraud. Later I found out that the elderly visa cost 1900 bath. So you can learn it that way. A reminder for me to gather some more information in advance and not to respond too quickly to this kind of helpfulness.
Here are some options.
criminal suppression department
- hotline call center 1111 (extension 2)
[email protected]
http://www.ocpb.go.th
http://www.1111.go.th
It remains doubtful whether action will be taken in response to the complaints.
There are many mouths to feed.
Today I went to take a look at the Chiangmai immigration myself. And it is indeed true that they only issue numbers for 20 retirement visas. I was there at 13 pm and then number 50 was announced. Can you imagine that person probably sat there at 17 a.m. and will probably get his passport back at 05.00 p.m. I then went to the visa office and asked about the costs. For a retirement visa it is 17.00 baht, 4900 for the visa and 1900 for their “mediation”. For 3000 days it is 90 baht. And for a re-entry. They also charge 500 baht in addition to the normal costs. If you arrive at 500am you can pick up your passport at 9pm. Can you imagine how much money immigration collects in a day? Because as I wrote, there are on average between 16.00 and 75 people who come to extend a retirement visa. And don't tell me the money doesn't go to immigration. Because they really won't hand over such a gold mine. I think if they get away with this, it will quickly be adopted by the other immigrations. And maybe improved something. Oh yes, I have a flyer from that office, but I don't know how to upload it to this blog.
Cees1
That's what I mean from the beginning.
That flyer is not an official document from immigration, but from that visa office.
It is not the case that immigration asks 20 Baht on the 1900th and 21 Baht on the 4900st.
They only process 20 per day and therefore artificially create a shortage, driving people to that visa office. And they then make a nice profit.
Officially, immigration has nothing to do with the visa office, but that does not mean that they do not cooperate behind the scenes, of course.
They do this, among other things, by deliberately causing those queues.
In fact, I wouldn't be surprised if there were relatives of immigration officers running that office
Don't think that Chiang Mai is so special.
Those services and flyers are handed out at every immigration office and border crossing.
They are even cheap in Chiang Mai.
Chiang Mai is no different from any other immigration office in that respect.
Of course the owner of that visa office is connected to immigration. And of course immigration does not issue such a flyer itself... But you now pretend that they only help 20 people a day everywhere. Is that also in Bangkok? Like I said, they make 150.000 baht a day. Of that, no more than 10% really goes to that office. Because those are only 2 women. And I also know that there are much more expensive offices. But you can decide for yourself whether you want to use it. And that is not possible here. Because they only help about 20% of the people for free, the rest are obliged to use that office.