Stay To Follow Husband

This is Christmas Day, 2006. The Thai government gave us quite a wonderful Christmas present; permanently renewable visas that do not require us to leave the country every three months on, so-called, ‘visa runs.’ It’s a rather big deal, because visa runs are costly and hurried nuisances, so we are celebrating the day for a number of reasons.

Visa runs appear, on the surface, to be senseless pains in the butt, but there is logic and method behind them. Immigration is a complex and sensitive item for all countries and, until that impossible day when there are no guarded borders between countries, the flow of tourists, business travelers, workers, smugglers and runaways must be addressed.

I’m a worker. I’m allowed to work here only because I have a skill few Thais possess – it’s a skill that attracts tourists – and tourism is an important cog in the Thai economy, so the government is happy to grant me permission to stay, but only if I behave myself while I’m here. We’ve proven ourselves to be good immigrants by understanding and following the visa run rules for a year and staying out of trouble. We’ve been rewarded with in-country renewable visas. Yippee!

Obviously, the Immigration Department controls our umbilical chord to Thailand and sitting before the immigration officers is a bit of a daunting experience, only because they have the power to cut the cord for any reason – demeanor and appearance counts. I always wear a tie and make a point of being neatly groomed when dealing with government officials. I see the approval in their eyes. The dichotomies in this rare culture are enigmatic. There appears to be complete anarchy on the roads and highways. There is a general spirit of freedom that can border on the chaotic. Still, it was not too long ago when travelers were greeted by a large, rude sign in the airport that stated that men with long beards and hair, people who ‘smelled,’ and people who were otherwise unkempt would not be allowed entry into the country. (That sign is gone now – which probably explains many of the caustic odors one encounters on the streets.)

Today’s visit to the Immigration Office was a nervous adventure, even knowing it would turn out well. I have employment and a work permit that I have religiously kept up-to-date (handled by another government office) and my visa follows as a result. A has been here on a similar visa, work permit pending, but she is no longer pursuing employment, so her visa status was changed today and we had to produce our marriage certificate to get it. We held back our amusement and guarded our eyes when we read the English translation – “Stay to follow husband.” Well… they can call it whatever they want… we’re just happy that the Thai government is allowing her to follow me.

The desks of Thai officials are littered with stamps and ink pads. Thais love to stamp paper and they seem to have a stamp for every occasion. I release a silent sigh every time I see an official scramble through the clutter to find the right stamp for my passport and other documents – it means acceptance. It’s rather fun to watch them twirl the numbers for the date stamps, because we are living in two different years here. It’s 2006 on the one hand, but it’s the year 2549 in the Thai calendar – so all documents receive two official dates.

There was one slightly tense moment when the Immigration officer looked at me smilingly and asked how old I was. (He had my passport and work permit right in front of him, so he already knew.) “Sixty-six,” I replied. “And you are still working?” he asked. “Yes.” “How long will you work,” he asked. I paused. “Until I’m dead,” I replied jovially. He grinned and let it go, but it was a trick question and a serious one. Work permits are not easy to obtain and I’m told there are many scams surrounding them. A retirement visa – the type they would expect a foreigner my age to have – requires that you keep a very healthy sum of money in a Thai bank account and this officer was testing my waters. He could have asked to see my payroll account and the receipts for the Thai taxes I pay on my income to see if I was avoiding a retirement visa, but then… I was neatly groomed, wearing a tie and I didn’t smell too bad.