Criminal background checks

[cdnmatt]

It's not like I flipped out, and started yelling or anything. By no means was I rude or disrespectful to any immigration or police officer.

But yes, I'm sure I was visibly distraught, because I knew full well what was going to happen. Then naturally in that situation, your mind goes to the worst possible scenario, so in my mind my dogs were going to get murdered and eaten,
I'd never see Leo again, I was going to be in Thai jail for months maybe, then spend my life in Canada alone and blind.

I didn't really do anything bad. Just kind of said fuck it, I'm going over to the corner here, sitting down, having a smoke, and you guys do whatever the hell you want, type of thing. Nothing that would have caused me to get black listed. Don't worry, we'll fine out in a few weeks once I mail my new passport to the Laos embassy in Vancouver.

[StevieWonders]

It's not like I flipped out, and started yelling or anything. By no means was I rude or disrespectful to any immigration or police officer.

But yes, I'm sure I was visibly distraught, because I knew full well what was going to happen. Then naturally in that situation, your mind goes to the worst possible scenario, so in my mind my dogs were going to get murdered and eaten,
I'd never see Leo again, I was going to be in Thai jail for months maybe, then spend my life in Canada alone and blind.

I didn't really do anything bad. Just kind of said fuck it, I'm going over to the corner here, sitting down, having a smoke, and you guys do whatever the hell you want, type of thing. Nothing that would have caused me to get black listed. Don't worry, we'll fine out in a few weeks once I mail my new passport to the Laos embassy in Vancouver.

You seem genuinely confused about blacklisting, Matt. You have been blacklisted by Thailand. You have been denied entry by Laos because you have been blacklisted by Thailand.The Lao immigration computers almost certainly have recorded the fact that someone of your name, nationality and date of birth was denied entry and probably why. As you are blind you cannot see directly what they did, so you are simply making assumptions or relying on hearsay evidence such as Leo might provide.

The Lao Embassy may or may not issue you with a visa. All that does is allow you to travel to a Lao border where passport control will evaluate whether to allow or deny you entry. Maybe they will match you up with what's already in their system, maybe they won't. Maybe they'll re-evaluate your circumstances and permit you to enter, maybe they won't. It's entirely up to the Immigration officer(s) on duty at the time.

[francois]

No problem, matt, if they deport you, you will already have a return flight to Canada. But we know they will allow you in and the saga of Leo and the Dogs will continue on and on.

[cdnmatt]

You seem genuinely confused about blacklisting, Matt. You have been blacklisted by Thailand. You have been denied entry by Laos because you have been blacklisted by Thailand.The Lao immigration computers almost certainly have recorded the fact that someone of your name, nationality and date of birth was denied entry and probably why. As you are blind you cannot see directly what they did, so you are simply making assumptions or relying on hearsay evidence such as Leo might provide.

The Lao Embassy may or may not issue you with a visa. All that does is allow you to travel to a Lao border where passport control will evaluate whether to allow or deny you entry. Maybe they will match you up with what's already in their system, maybe they won't. Maybe they'll re-evaluate your circumstances and permit you to enter, maybe they won't. It's entirely up to the Immigration officer(s) on duty at the time.

Now you have me debating whether or not I should change my mind. Initial plan was once we submit my passport application, and the accept everything, I'll send Leo a good chunk of money to pay 6 months rent, get setup in Vientiane, and get the dogs back under his care. Now I may wait until I have physically crossed the Laos border to do that.

Sucks for the dogs, but might work out better. That way, Leo and myself can hang out in a hotel for a few days, and check out houses together.

[Blacktouch]

Now you have me debating whether or not I should change my mind. Initial plan was once we submit my passport application, and the accept everything, I'll send Leo a good chunk of money to pay 6 months rent, get setup in Vientiane, and get the dogs back under his care. Now I may wait until I have physically crossed the Laos border to do that.

Sucks for the dogs, but might work out better. That way, Leo and myself can hang out in a hotel for a few days, and check out houses together.

I think that would be your best option, as sending Leo a good chunk of money may not be a good idea just yet.

So get your visa first (if it's granted) then fly to Lao and take it from there?

Good luck

[cdnmatt]

I think that would be your best option, as sending Leo a good chunk of money may not be a good idea just yet.

So get your visa first (if it's granted) then fly to Lao and take it from there?

Good luck

Nah, change of plans again. Dogs are still alive, but doesn't sound like for much longer if they stay where they are. They're fine, but causing quite a few problems I guess. I don't know what the "problems" are yet, and will find out once Leo gets up. I'm guessing the usual -- killing chickens, making people crash their motorbikes, kicking the shit out of other dogs, etc. I'll just run the risk that I'll be allowed entry into Laos, and Leo can get a house now. If I get lucky, I'll be back in Asia in about a week anyway. See what happens.

Oh, and confirmed by even a Canadian doctor, I am indeed blind. Well, no shit. Now maybe Leo, my family, and everyone else in my life will shut up with the, "well, you really need to get checked out by a doctor in Canada, because you know, Thailand is 3rd world and the doctors there aren't very good". Never really understood that argument as optic nerve damage is optic nerve damage, but whatever, done and confirmed. Optic nerves are dead.

Maybe I'll get to see again in 10 - 20 years once they figure out how to fix spinal cords, but for now, I'm blind.

[cdnmatt]

This is really starting to get under my nerves. My current passport is a 2 year limited validity passport, which is also glued to my previous passport. Tyhis shows neat things like 7 years of overstay in Thailand, the 5 year black list, and so on. Not exactly the greatest look.

Canada refuses to issue me a new passport, as mine has 21 months of validity left, and they will only process a new passport application if there's less than 12 months of validity on the existing passport. So I have to wait until January 26th, 2019 to submit a new passport application. Just fucken great.

Ok, off to Laos immigration lawyers then. If that doesn't work, then off to Canadian immigration lawyers to get Leo here.

Fucken hell...

Too bad same-sex marriage isn't legal in Laos. This would make everything a whole lot easier.

[colmx]

pro tip:
Mugging on street and loss of passport and wallet... Damn (insert pejorative term for foreigners in Canada) taking advantage of your blindness...
Problem solved... Plus shiny new ATM cards!

[NitNoi]

The old "washing machine" trick is safer than making a false police report.

[Blacktouch]

Just report your passport as lost or stolen, get a Police reference number, and apply for a new one. Simple.