@Paul *******

. Yep. Wife forgot tabien bahn when we registered marriage at Amphur. Grey one fixed that

Give it 2 full working days, if not approved by then, I'd go. You can be up to 7 days late if you do it in person. My last online took 2 working days ,did it last month.

@Henrik ***

. Always pays to go at least a few days early for extensions, this is a classic example why. Forgotten or incorrect paperwork can cause same issue, yet alone funds.

My situation was a little different . I was due to return to Australia same time my yearly extension was expiring. Was going to get a new visa in Aust and return on that because of funds, (much lower financial requirement ). 4 days before I was due to fly out my wife was rushed to hospital. I wanted to stay here for her but didn't have the 400k in 2 months. Went to immigration and explained situation. They bent over backwards to help me and said that I can have a 60 day extension. I organized the 400k immediately and when the 60 day ext was due to expire they gave me another yearly spouse extension with no issue. It's all about being prepared for the unexpected. Going early buys you time.

@Henrik ***

. I have personally done this for same reason.. Yearly spouse extension -> 60 day visit family extension -> yearly spouse extension. As said above you can only use it once per visa/extension combo.

If you've left it to the last minute and the 60 days isn't enough to fill the funds gap then you're out of options other than getting a fresh visa from outside Thailand and re entering to buy the extra time. This was all explained to me thoroughly by a senior imm officer at Changwattana face to face.

Call the hotline ... 1178

@Jos ********

. Give your son and his friend your home adress before they arrive, on the very remote chance they are asked at passport control. On my first ever visit to Thailand on visa exempt I was asked for it because I didn't have hotel details and was staying with a relative working here. This was a long time ago and once I provided the adress it was fine.

@Carolyn ***********

. Don't know them , but be prepared to be offered a fulltime teaching job here for baht a month ( less than $900us a month less tax, a very basic lifestyle here on that) because that's all they have to pay you.

There are teachers here earning way more than that but they work for international private schools, have teaching degrees and a lot of experience.

All I'm saying is be absolutely sure of the decision before making it.

By the way a "sponsor" doesn't charge you for your tuition. Vantage charges you.

@Mitchell ******

. Agree. Telling immigration you have a 1 year rental on a visa exemption is a huge red flag.

And I could almost guarantee your landlord hasn't filed a tm30 with immigration stating you live there.

@Carolyn ***********

. Might pay to do some background research on your sponsor first. I've heard many stories of the "guaranteed work placement" not coming to fruition once study is finished. It's been used as a marketing tool for "schools" here to get quotas. Ask for proof and or examples. If they hedge, I would be wary. Same scheme has been used here for internships, which is unpaid work in the future.

My wife chose not to, and I was fine with it.

Her reason was she would need to change her name on her degrees , accreditations ,licences,accounts ,land titles,etc.

She's a qualified accountant/external Auditor and vp of a large finance /accounting firm here in Thailand. A lot of headaches to get it all done.

Having said all that, it wouldn't of had any affect on her status.