@Jim ******

you can always do it yourself, whether the first time or the 10th time. And if you use an agent the first time, it's almost impossible to stop using an agent in the future, so you'll be paying an agent every year. Better to start off on the right foot doing it yourself.

@John ********

No one looks at the TDAC. They verify that you did one or not, that's it. Whatever you put there is not anything that the officer is going to notice or acknowledge.

The e-mail system has no idea you cancelled your old extension and left and returned. It just did a countdown from your last 90-day report.

@James **************

so how is a new bank book going to fix when they check your 12 month bank statement to see if you kept your balance at 800,000 for 3 months after last year's extension and then never let it drop below 400,000 the rest of the year to ensure you met the requirements of your previous extension?

@Stan *********

there are still a few things that can trip you up.

If the agent got your visa and/or extension in an impossible time frame, then you can't do it yourself next year. Agents can get extensions 3 months early but normal people cannot. So if it stamp has an impossible date on it, no immigration office will let you apply.

Also if your agents takes your passport and gets your extension from an immigration office a few hundred kilometers away that's known for agent extensions, you also won't be able to do it yourself next time.

The window for not being fined is 15 days before until 7 days after. So as long as you get it done within that time you won't be fined.

They don't ask for the TDAC unless they can't see it in the computer. The other things were correctly presented so good job there. Make sure you always check the stamp they put in your passport as well after you step away to make sure there are no mistakes.

As far as exchanging your money, best to not do that at the airport. I believe the ones in the basement level near the ARL station have slightly better rates based on what others have said, but outside of the airport is better in general.

If you apply for an annual extension and your passport is not valid for a year, you will only receive an extension until the expiration date of your passport. That means you need to renew your passport a few months before you plan on getting an extension during the expiration year of your passport.

Wise is not a bank. It's a fintech service. Where did you transfer the money FROM? That was more likely a bank account. How long ago did you transfer the money? Perhaps you can show the bank statement from there if it was a recent transfer.

To select your arrival date, there's a calendar to choose the day. That calendar only lets you choose a date within 3 days as your arrival date. 72 hours isn't really relevant. It's any time within 3 days of your arrival.