Cool, thanks Robert. I just wanted to check, because I heard about someone in Udon whose application was rejected because officials apparently visited several times, but nobody was home to let them in. :)

Ok. So does that mean they usually give you notice to say they are coming to visit? :)

@Benjamin *****

Thanks Benjamin. I suspect the "extensions begin after the amnesty is over" is going to get rather complicated since some are applying for 12 month marriage/retirement extensions which require deposits for certain numbers of months and the "30 day check". I guess we'll just have to wait and see.

If the extension starts from when the new amnesty is over (ie end of September) then that would be great for me as my passport is nearly full. Apparently it could conceivably take over 6 weeks to get a new one. Losing the ability to either border hop or get an extension stamp in my current passport, due to applying and waiting for a new passport, making my current passport "invalid" for crossing borders and stamps etc would have sucked. :)

After you visit your immigration, please let us know what they say regarding when the 60 day extension "starts" :)

@Benjamin *****

Ah ok, I guess it would be worth making sure about that when you go to immigration, but before they give you the stamp. Tod mentioned to me last week, before the new announcement, that if I got the 60 day extension based on marriage during the current amnesty (ending this month) then the 60 days would start from the date I applied for the extension. Chaiyaphum immigration told me the same thing on the phone.

However, the new announcement isn't particularly clear. I assumed it would remain the same(?) but I guess until people go and ask nobody will really know. It's worth noting August 1st is a saturday, so not all immigration offices will be open (I don't know about Samut Prakan specifically though). :)

@Benjamin *****

Of course this is assuming the amnesty does get extended, which I don't believe it officially has yet :)

@Benjamin *****

Can I ask, what's your rationale for getting a 60 day extension on August 1st if you are on the amnesty already? The amnesty is until the 26th September, and if the 60 days starts when you apply for the extension (as was mentioned on here before) then that would only give you another few days? Unless you're planning to switch to the 12 month extension based on marriage, surely it would be better to wait until mid/end of September, which would let you stay until November. At the very least it would give you more time to wait for Laos/Thailand to open up their borders.....? :)

@Helen **********

Sure, I get it. The thing is nobody knows what is going to happen. There are a lot of rumors and speculation going around, but in truth I would be surprised if the top dogs at immigration know what they are going to do. Just remember there are hundreds, if not thousands of people in exactly the same situation as you. Thailand always leaves everything to the last minute. Expect the worst, hope for the best. If people end up needing to leave then look into creating some kind of plan, but of course don't buy anything, things change in an instant over here. :)

It's also worth mentioning that the original amnesty (due to expire Apr 30th) was only extended on the 21st.... Given the government holidays at the end of this month, hopefully they'll announce something either tomorrow or early next week :)

Feel free to close the thread if you wish..... :)

Wow, that was quick Tod. Thanks for the advice, I suspected it would vary but wanted to make sure. I've already saved up for the deposit in the event I need to go down that route...... :)