Good morning. I need help. I have been living in Thailand for two years. My baby was born few months ago. I am a proud father 😊. I have been on a non-o visa since then. However, when extending the visa, I was told at the immigration office that as a father I could apply for a 12-month visa. An additional advantage of this 12-month visa is the fact that it can be extended every year by one year without having to leave the country. This is a very good option. However, in order to obtain this visa, I must obtain a document from the juvenile court stating that I am the father because I am not married to the child's mother. So I went to the court to submit the documents and was told that as a foreigner I could not do it in person. I need to hire a lawyer. How is this possible? Why can't I submit the documents myself? The cheapest lawyer we could find was 20,000 baht! This is ridiculously expensive. Even in Europe, legal services are several times cheaper. I don't understand why I can't submit the documents myself and go this route without hiring a lawyer. Is this another farang money grab? Can anything be done? Or maybe do you know any other option for a father who wants to be with his child? Thank you for all your help.

Sorry for my English, this is a translation because English isn't my native.