SAWASDEE 2

[dvddvd 0]

hello,

i'm planning a trip to see my fiance and we hope that she will have her visa in hand before i return to the states. our interview is in early may. i want to buy my plane ticket this week and hers once she gets her visa.

my united airline flights normally go through tokyo. does anyone know if there are any issues with my thai fiance being able to stop-over in any countries ... like japan? i want to purchase my ticket this week and i am trying to make sure that i'll have an option for attempting to get my fiance on the same planes on our return.

thanks,

dvd

[heyx2rr 0]

hello,

i'm planning a trip to see my fiance and we hope that she will have her visa in hand before i return to the states. our interview is in early may. i want to buy my plane ticket this week and hers once she gets her visa.

my united airline flights normally go through tokyo. does anyone know if there are any issues with my thai fiance being able to stop-over in any countries ... like japan? i want to purchase my ticket this week and i am trying to make sure that i'll have an option for attempting to get my fiance on the same planes on our return.

thanks,

dvd

When you go through Tokyo on United or other airlines in transit to the US you wont go through any local immigration in Japan, as you are an in transit international passenger. As long as your fiancee does not attempt to exit the airport and re-enter, there shouldnt be any problem.

You will normally have to exit the plane in Tokyo to switch to another plane for the flight from Tokyo to the US. At that point you follow the signs for International Transfers and go through a standard security checkpoint and bag check (show passport, x-ray carry on baggage you have with you) to enter the terminal and wait for your next flight.

Hope this helps...

[n2ojones 0]

Thanks so much for the reply, Yodrak. I didn't have much luck figuring out the comparable timetables...but I was pretty exhausted after reading the first 50 pages of this thread! What an excellent thread it is. Thanks again!

[goontar 0]

goontar,

Maybe it was someone else.....

It depends on if the visa application gets approved at the interview. They don't always.

If the application is approved at the interview the visa is generally available to be picked up on the afternoon of the following business day. (consular business day)

Yodrak

goontar,

Didn't you ask this question once before?

Yodrak

I am trying to arrange airline tickets. Does anyone know how long it takes from the interview to actually having the visa in hand. Is it the same day or does this take a while? Thanks.

Probably? But I don't remember.

Do they normally approve at the time? Thanks.

[n2ojones 0]

The biggest obstacle you will encounter at the Tokyo airport is boredom. Jing Jing. I don't know that I have ever been stuck at a more boring airport. Your significant other will have no problem with officials. As posted above, you are strictly in transit.

Besides, if you look out the windows, you'll see there's no where to go anyway. Pardon me if I sound jaded, I've been there 4 times in the past few months and another 2 more times (hopefully) very soon.

[dvddvd 0]

thanks so much for the replies. i thought that i might have read somewhere that thai's on k1 visas aren't allowed to go through tokyo. maybe i was dreaming. yes, i've spent quite a bit of time in the tokyo airport. i tend to burn some time going to the day shower and internet shop. cheap and nobody seems to go there.

thanks,

dvd

[n2ojones 0]

I've looked everywhere for that shower and thought it no longer existed! Can you give me an idea of it's location?

I typically fly JAL because of their affiliation with AA, maybe the shower is in a different area/terminal?

....I did find a bed (in the JAL lounge) last trip. You could use it for 3 hours. Problem was...I found it in the 4th hour of my 5 hour layover.

[Yodrak 7]

n2ojones,

Next time, keep your eye on the Northwest World Club lounge and walk in when the desk staff are busy, or behind a crowd of others, and head left or right rather than to the desk.

Yodrak

The biggest obstacle you will encounter at the Tokyo airport is boredom. Jing Jing. I don't know that I have ever been stuck at a more boring airport. Your significant other will have no problem with officials. As posted above, you are strictly in transit.

Besides, if you look out the windows, you'll see there's no where to go anyway. Pardon me if I sound jaded, I've been there 4 times in the past few months and another 2 more times (hopefully) very soon.

[Yodrak 7]

goontar,

If everything is in order, and the applicant is approvable. Sometimes a little detail may surprise you (my wife's visa was not approved until 3 weeks after her interview, because the doctor had not marked anything for the question about previous pregnancies on her 5 year old son's medical report form and the interviewer wanted the report to be completed), and once in a great while the applicant will be found ineligible.

Yodrak

goontar,

Maybe it was someone else.....

It depends on if the visa application gets approved at the interview. They don't always.

If the application is approved at the interview the visa is generally available to be picked up on the afternoon of the following business day. (consular business day)

Yodrak

Do they normally approve at the time? Thanks.

[dvddvd 0]

I've looked everywhere for that shower and thought it no longer existed! Can you give me an idea of it's location?

I typically fly JAL because of their affiliation with AA, maybe the shower is in a different area/terminal?

....I did find a bed (in the JAL lounge) last trip. You could use it for 3 hours. Problem was...I found it in the 4th hour of my 5 hour layover.

i believe the shower is in teminal 2, but i'm not sure. sorry. it's in the terminal that united uses. that day shower/internet room is at the very end of the shops as you are heading towards the gates. it will be on the left. it kind of sits behind a section of bathrooms (i think) that sits in the middle of the way. does that make sense?

i've spent numerous months on maui and absolutely love it there. are you on maui? i sure do miss hawaii's weather!!

dvd

[n2ojones 0]

n2ojones,

Next time, keep your eye on the Northwest World Club lounge and walk in when the desk staff are busy, or behind a crowd of others, and head left or right rather than to the desk.

Yodrak

The biggest obstacle you will encounter at the Tokyo airport is boredom. Jing Jing. I don't know that I have ever been stuck at a more boring airport. Your significant other will have no problem with officials. As posted above, you are strictly in transit.

Besides, if you look out the windows, you'll see there's no where to go anyway. Pardon me if I sound jaded, I've been there 4 times in the past few months and another 2 more times (hopefully) very soon.

Haha.....good stuff!

I'll go for it and let you know whether I was successful or not. In fact, maybe that will be my new thrill whereever I go...sneaking into the competition's lounge(s). Actually/hopefully there will only be one more solo trip thru Narita. Thanks for the tip, Yodrak!

Edited March 28, 2007 by n2ojones

[n2ojones 0]

I've looked everywhere for that shower and thought it no longer existed! Can you give me an idea of it's location?

I typically fly JAL because of their affiliation with AA, maybe the shower is in a different area/terminal?

....I did find a bed (in the JAL lounge) last trip. You could use it for 3 hours. Problem was...I found it in the 4th hour of my 5 hour layover.

i believe the shower is in teminal 2, but i'm not sure. sorry. it's in the terminal that united uses. that day shower/internet room is at the very end of the shops as you are heading towards the gates. it will be on the left. it kind of sits behind a section of bathrooms (i think) that sits in the middle of the way. does that make sense?

i've spent numerous months on maui and absolutely love it there. are you on maui? i sure do miss hawaii's weather!!

dvd

Hey dvd,

I do quite a bit of work on Maui...mostly Kaanapali side. I have been trying to move there for close to 20 years but something always happens here (like hurricanes) and I end up staying on Kauai.

I've been here since '83 but spend a good share of my weekdays in Honolulu. Best of both worlds really and yes, it's definately the weather keeping me here!

Thanks for the tip on the shower!

Where are you in Texas? My kids live in Dallas.

Edited March 28, 2007 by n2ojones

[n2ojones 0]

Cha cha cha!

Called the NVC this morning (automated message) and got our case number! The message informed me that our case was forwarded to BKK on March 26th! Not bad...the NVC reviewed our docs (1-130) in just under 30 days!

I would be very grateful if someone could teach me the DHL tracking trick.

This is the best I have felt since leaving the Kingdom (and my wife) two weeks ago! Look out NW lounge at Narita, here I come!

[heyx2rr 0]

Hi folks - I'll be visiting my fiancee in Thailand in about a week and we'll be finalizing all of our paperwork to start the K1 process. I'd like to get certified Thai to English translations of documents like birth certificates, child custody documents, etc. I've done a search through online and found the following two outfits - i think they would certainly work, but they may be overkill.

http://www.thai-english-translation.com/

http://www.thaitranslation.info/index.html

Is there an easier, more convenient way to get this done in Bangkok? Like going to something like the local version of the UPS Store for translations/certification? Or a "Translate While-U-Wait" franchise?

Thanks,

- Rich

[dvddvd 0]

Cha cha cha!

Called the NVC this morning (automated message) and got our case number! The message informed me that our case was forwarded to BKK on March 26th! Not bad...the NVC reviewed our docs (1-130) in just under 30 days!

I would be very grateful if someone could teach me the DHL tracking trick.

This is the best I have felt since leaving the Kingdom (and my wife) two weeks ago! Look out NW lounge at Narita, here I come!

n2ojones,

i ran across the following while reading this thread today. i'm almost finished with the entire thing. good luck. also, i live in austin.

to: www.dhl.com

Select: Track by Reference

Type in Reference: (Depends on Embassy) Use any of the following three keywords:

I-730

EXPEDITE NIV SECTION (Maybe Non-Immigrant Visas)

EXPEDITE IV SECTION (Maybe Immigrant Visas)

Put the range of dates around the date that NVC gives you as package has been shipped.

Look for any of the packages sent to BNK. There is no gaurantee that it will acutally be your package, but if you see a package sent on the date they told you, then it could possilby be yours.

On the date they said they sent mine, I got two "hits". One for the EXPEDITE NIV and one for the EXPEDITE IV, so I assumed one of them was mine!