Twin Wolf Technology Group

To clarify - yes we were both single when we got married.   We had a choice of getting married in the US, in Colombia or in Panama.   Colombia was the easiest, least expensive and least complicated as far as paperwork.   When it comes to a resident visa in Panama, the marriage is only important in the fact that it is needed to prove that my Panama company (Friendly Nations Visa via my Panama S.A.)  is what is providing the income.   Neither of us are pensionados and she does not qualify for any other type of visa.

My point was that in order to get the paperwork to prove our marriage in Colombia, we would need to go to Colombia to get it and upon returning they will not let her enter the country.  So the lawyer suggested that if we could not return with the paperwork, then we should essentially lie to Panama and get married here again as if we were single.   This goes to my point that yet another so called reputable lawyer's  answer is for us it to lie and create false paperwork to get around what should be a simple trip to get proof of marriage.   This is the system here.   Lie, cheat, get around the rules and play the game.   I did it before for 5 years because I was naive.   I am smart enough now to know that Panama is going to keep changing the rules with new decrees.   What the Panama and the lawyer tell me today will not be what the facts tomorrow.   

Admittedly we are in an unusual situation. Looking at her passport it appears she has been border hopping for the last year.  In fact we were merely dating and travelling between the two countries until we finally got married a few months ago.   The lawyer had no answer when I asked what the difference was between visiting often and border hopping.  Everything we did for the last year was legal and within the laws, rules and decrees at that time.  Our  visits were always in one country or the other for at least a month length - not a 3 day hop.

Is there a way for us to go thru the system and get her a visa?  Yes.    The cost is estimated at $5,000+ due to various circumstances.   There is no simple way for Panama to look at my residency for the last 8 years and then give her a spousal visa for some additional fee.    On the other hand, Colombia looks at me as her new husband and says I can have spousal visa for about $200 (effective immediately) and then permanent residency and dual citizenship after 3 years.   The process is a few hours long and my passport is updated within a week or two. 

As one lawyer told me - Panama sees the border hoppers as a great deal of money if it can just force them into a visa process.   And I do not disagree that people should be here legally.   I have proudly showed my papers at every checkpoint and admired the country for making sure people were legal.   My complaint is that they are punishing the very people who want to go thru the process, such as my wife.

Don't get me wrong, I love my life here and I have fought hard to be here legally.   As I said in my original post, I am raising the white flag.   I have lived here and been a supporting member of the community.   I have employed dozens of Panamanians and given to the country in many ways.   I have changed as Panama evolved and sought to always be honest and forthright.   Panama is asking too much. The lawyer sharks are circling ready to lie and cheat with promises of a simple visa that is just a mirage.   I think I will swim somewhere else, thanks...   

Moderator preface: The following posts were split out of a different topic that was related to an Executive Decree of December 2016 that dramatically shortened the time that a tourist visa was valid in Panama. That topic then began to focus on Steven Walker and his family, and their issues of being barred from returning to Panama after a "border hopping" cycle at Paso Canoas. For more details on that topic, see the referenced citation that has been added to this posting.

One side effect of that Executive Decree is that another expatriate with legal residency (@Twin Wolf Technology Group), who recently married a Colombian citizen in Medellin is having to make a decision how to handle their situation. That portion of the conversation started focusing on how to get Panama to recognize their Colombian marriage documentation so that the new bride could apply for residency in Panama as the legal wife of a non-Panamanian but legal resident of Panama. While directly related to the border hopping topic, the primary focus really is marriage outside of Panama, the Registro Civil, and the implications of a non-Panamanian wedding on residency in Panama.

Thus, the Moderator has made a decision to split out those postings and start a new topic. What follows is the split out topic related to marriage documentation. No one did anything wrong, as this is just a natural progression of a train of thought that morphed into a different but related topic.

The original topic is here:

On 3/2/2017 at 7:39 AM, Keith Woolford said:

Anyone considering making a border run to Paso Canoas to clean their Passport might want to hold off for a few days. At the moment there are about 300 Venezuelans stuck there who are being denied re-entry.

http://www.tvn-2.com/nacionales/extranjeros-denuncian-migratorio-reingresar-Panama_0_4701279858.html

And the new topic starts here:

The decision for me and my new bride comes down to how much of a battle we wish to fight vs the ultimate benefits.   One of the many lawyers we visited stated we should just get married again in Panama before we leave in April.  I quickly pointed out that this would mean forging documents to say we are both single when in fact we are not... the lawyer saw no problem with it.   I am a person with both persistence and patience.  I am also forthright and honest.  I will not try to game the system and if that is what is required,  We will move on despite my desires and the life built here in Panama over the last 8 years.

I have to take exception to the thought that if people would just do it right from the beginning they would not have this problem.   I have attempted to do it right from the beginning.   I have fought the battle for more than 5 years to get a resident visa because I wanted to do it right.   

Everyone has a different experience with lawyers and the immigration system, let me share a bit of mine.

I came to Panama 8 years ago with a company that invested more than $300,000 into Panama.   The law firm we chose came recommended by others in the same type of business. The lawyers at the time told us that several of us would then automatically qualify for permanent visas due to our investment.  Despite 2 years of promises and constant badgering, the resident visas never materialized.  When the business finally closed and returned to the US, I was left to battle getting a resident visa on my own.

The corruption among lawyers in Panama is rampant and there is no legal way to hold them accountable for their actions.   

My second attempt to get a resident visa ended shortly after it began and while it resulted in a loss of money, it was certainly less of a loss than the previous experience.  It seems that the man representing himself as a lawyer was in fact not a lawyer but his girlfriend was a lawyer and he was forging the documents in her name.   Again, no way to hold him accountable without throwing money into a system that cranks out lawyers like raindrops in October and never punishes them.

The third attempt was here in Boquete.  I signed on with lawyer that came recommended by many on Ning and other places.  It is always best to get recommendations but in each case those recommendations meant nothing.  Once again I ended up with a dishonest lawyer.  His office in San Francisco plaza closed shortly after I paid him and he refused most phone calls.  I continued to badger him for 2 years, tracking him down as he changed locations and refused my calls.   I heard every excuse in the book including "his car was broken into and they stole my final paperwork".  Multiple trips to Immigration were needed because his paperwork was rejected several times.  

Ultimately I triumphed but at a cost far exceeding anything reasonable and with 5+ years of border hopping to continue the battle..  Since I own a car, I was forced to hop every 90 days instead of the 180, just to keep my driver’s license valid.  I can understand that Panama is trying to prevent abuses but how is an honest person supposed to navigate the sewer of lawyers and endless hurdles?  Even if you get lucky and find the one honest lawyer in all of Panama, how is someone supposed to do it in the 90 days without multiple trips out of the country given the process take a year minimum?

Despite my long and finally successful battle, I am now faced with this issue again.   I married a wonderful Colombian woman in January and of course she is a tourist since we have only been married a couple of months.  We were married in Colombia and Panama could care less.   For them, she is a tourist who has crossed the border multiple times in the last year (of course she did, we were dating!)   We talked about where to live and she agreed to move to Panama.    

We have already purchased a flight back to Colombia at the start of April.   The purpose of the trip is for me to get a spousal visa for Colombia (I want to be legal) and for her to apply for a tourist visa so she can visit my family in the US for Christmas.  We were also going to get our marriage certificate and her paperwork apostilled so she could start her Panama visa process.   It now appears she will not be permitted to come back to Panama due to this short-sighted and ill-considered decree.    We have 21 days to get her a visa or some sort of paperwork that permits her to return to live with her new husband.   Anyone living here knows, Panama doesn’t do anything quick - other than change the rules and enforcement.    

It is looking like our best option is to raise the white flag of surrender.  Colombia is welcoming us with open arms.  My resident visa in Colombia is a simple one day process – not a five year battle with unaccountable lawyers.   Maybe Panama's next government can work on cleaning up its lawyers and legal system so the rules don't change at the gust of every breeze in March.

My point is that while it is easy for some to say “do it the right way from the beginning…  It will save you from problems in the future”, the reality in Panama is quite different.   While those who have their visas may rest easy now, as I was doing, Panama is just as likely to change the rules with a decree and take away your peace of mind.   My experience.

Great video - thanks Keith!   I always thought it was just a drunken party.   Nice to learn more...

Speed to a particular website can be effected by many things.   To help track down where the problem is occurring you can take the following steps:

1.  Try going to the slow website using a different web browser.   Compare Firefox Mozilla with Google Chrome and Internet Explorer.    If only one is slow, then the issue can likely be corrected by cleaning/dump the cache.   Rather than trying to figure out how to delete the cache of the web browser you are using, I recommend downloading the free version of Ccleaner.  Install and run the program, clicking on Analyze and then Clean.   That will delete the cache and temporary files.   This often speeds up web browsing that has gotten slow on a particular site or even in general.  This is always a good first step, along with restarting your computer as it refreshes everything.

2.  If the website is slow across all the browsers, the next step is to eliminate the computer as the cause.   To do this, go to the website using a different computer, or a tablet or phone.   If the other devices are quick, then the issue is with the computer and not the websites.

3.  If multiple devices in the same house are slow for a particular website, the cause is one of three things.   It is either with the Internet Service Provider, the path between you and the website or else with the website itself.     The fact that other sites are not slow helps eliminate the ISP as the problem.    Once you have eliminated everything above, you are left with the path between you and the particular website or else the website itself.

One cause for a particular website to be slow while others are not is the route your computer takes to get there.    This is determined by something called a DNS server.   Your computer asks the DNS server where a particular website is located out on the Internet so it can begin the journey to get you there.    Most people are setup to use the DNS server provided by their Internet Service Provider.    However, services such as Unlocator and VPN's will change the DNS server that  is used.   Therefore, a computer that is setup to use Unlocator (or similar service) can be slow getting to a particular website because it takes a different route to get to the website, often encountering slow downs along the way.

If possible, turn off the VPN or disconnect from services such as Unlocator and check the speed to a particular website that was slow.  Some VPNs have been included in Internet Security software and users may not be aware of it.   If all else fails, it is time for a call to your local computer guy/gal to help track it down.   Most of these types of problems can be easily diagnosed using some additional tools.   

I am not seeing any slow down for the site, however I am not in Panama at the moment.   Hope these tips help...  if not, contact me directly.

Dan 

John,

Sent you an email and have not gotten a reply.   You can send a private email to me at dan@twinwolf.net

When people think of Windows, they think of their personal computer.   However, most do not realize that many of the other things they interact with daily are also running Windows.

If you have ever walked into a casino and seen rows and rows of slot machines - most do not realize that many of them are simply a computer running Windows.   Without  seeing a keyboard and mouse, the average person would not think that this is a single game program being displayed and run by Windows.   The same is true of some ATM machines, some cash register terminals and many other devices we interact with every day.

With the news that Bonnie has quoted, I suspect that there has been a strong outcry from larger companies that need the security patches but are burdened by all the additional patches that can have an effect on their device's single purpose.  This was also they case when WIndows XP came to "end of life" and no more security patches were going to be released.   Microsoft soon reversed it's decision and continued security patches.

Having options is always a good thing because  the world is not simply black or white.  The fight for control tries to make it so but ultimately, there are exceptions to every rule.   Windows 7 and Windows 10 are distinctly different.   Each with its own advantages and faults.   I am happy to see Microsoft giving users the option to choose what best fits their needs.   Windows 10 is great for a one size fits all approach and Windows 7 is great for allowing companies and users to choose what fits them best. 

I believe he did not need to ask what was being purchased since nothing in the hardware part of the store qualifies for a discount.   Unless I am misunderstanding, the card is meaningless to him.   I would think the appropriate next step would be talk with the manager or then the owner of the store if in fact there is some item that you feel qualifies.   Before doing so, you need to be clear about which items you were purchasing that qualified for the discount so you can ask about those items specifically.    The card is "honored" for the discount on qualified items, nothing more.   It has no other purpose for a cashier.     

Threatening  ACODECO  is also probably meaningless to the employee.   The discussion needs to happen between you  and the person making policy within the store.   

I most likely have one.   If you email me the model number of the Toshiba, I will look and see.

I have had this happen from time to time when the Internet or phone lines are down in the local establishment.   They can not contact the credit card processing system.   This may have been the case for your hairdresser.   

I believe that Lee used to pay for Ning annually every year in July.   The current Ning hosting fee based on having more than 1,000 members and less than 10,000 memebers is $600 per year.   It appears that all of the old sponsors have not renewed their advertising.  Currently there are two local sponsors and one non-local sponsor listed, all of which appear to be fairly new ads.  For awhile there was an ad giving an email address to write to if you wanted to be an advertiser (sponsor); however that email address in fact did not exisit.   After a few weeks it was removed.

My guess would be that as it is time to pay the annual hosting fee, they will be looking for sponsors and/or donations.   It would not surprised me to see JLM asking members for donations.   Perhaps the long term "Ning is awesome" cheerleaders can now put money to their words and help pay JLM for the service it provides.    Without enough revenue from advertising, they will need to find another source of revenue to cover the basic costs of hosting and whatever they are paying Ambreen and Olga.

I doubt JLM will continue to just give the Boquete Ning forum to the community as a free service if they do not find a way to either make money or at least cover expenses.    It is a reminder to all Chiriqui Life members that community forums like this one have expenses.   Those that use this forum owe Bud and Marcelyn a big thank you as they donate the entire cost of hosting and operating this forum.

19 hours ago, TwoSailors said:

Do we really need to discuss guns, religion, and politics?

I have not seen much of that here on CL. Ning seems to be doing a very good job of it for those that want to bang their heads against the wall over those things. Not exactly consistent over there. They banned a member for a humorous "cinnamon toast" musing but now it is OK to rant and rave over guns, religion and politics. The once overly censored board seems to be wide open now and crys from members go unanswered. My opinion is that they are struggling with finding a balance, something I think CL has done well.

Me, I am happy with CL. I think each place is finding what fits its members best. I would wager that if the musings catergory got overly derogative or hateful, Bud would be quick to make the appropriate adjustments.

In my opinion it serves a very useful purpose. It is no different than the old style newpaper. News had it's place and musing or comics were dedicated to a specific page or pages. Some days I just wanted to read the comics. Then again in other days I did not find things to be so amusing and just read the news.

Not everything in this world fits into a category. Life comes with miscellaneous and "other". It serves a purpose. To remove it would not elimiate the need nor the desire of the CL membership to laugh and enjoy things outside of Chririqui.

Always leave space for laughter and fun and the miscellaneous things in life.

I would take it down to the M Store in David.   They are an authorized Mac dealer located in the Rey/Do It Center shopping mall near Conway.   They do repairs as well as sales of new computers, so I am sure they could help.

9 hours ago, JudyS said:

Has anybody installed the GWX Control Panel recommended in the article?

Yes Judy.  I offered it here as a download on CL back in December 2015.   It is the simplest and best way to take care of the problem.   In my opinion, the advice of deleting certain Microsoft Updates is just not smart unless you have a full understanding of what each update does and all the various ramifications.   Future updates will be added that may depend on an update that was manually deleted.   Microsoft has already moved some of these updates from optional to recommended and thereby forcing most users to get them without their knowledge, so they reappear.   

Windows 7 users should use the GWX Control Panel program to avoid the WIndows 10 upgrade issues.   It is what I use with all my clients.

It is not only the hotel business that has been hit by an oversupply.   Many hotels took the opportunity to add a casino to their property.  To do so and to obtain the gaming license, it required the hotel have more than the 300 rooms.  This meant building even bigger hotels.   Under a very different government this appeared to be an excellent opportunity.  Comparatively, the current government is not casino friendly which only adds to the over-supply/under-demand problem. 

Currently, there is an oversupply of casinos as well as hotel rooms.  Some of the larger, new hotel properties cancelled plans to add a casino at the last minute.  The RUI is one such property.   Other have decided to stick it out and are virtually empty such as the Hilton.

The ripple effect is sad as it touches everyone.   I would like to see this government doing more to fill both those rooms and casinos.   It provides jobs and boosts the economy.   Instead this government, looking for money, implemented an additional 5.5% tax on every chip-to-cash transaction.  The  result is the tourists feel cheated, the local workers lose 5.5% of any tips they make and this depresses an already depressed, over-supplied market.

For most people, if Windows 10 was installed, automatically or by selecting the upgrade, you get 30 days to roll it back to the Windows 7 or 8.1 that it was before.   The option is easy, you do not have to be a tech guy to do it.

At the start menu select settings. 

Next,  click Update & Security. 

Select Recovery 

You should see a “Go back to Windows 7” or “Go back to Windows 8.1” option. Click the Get Started button to get rid of Windows 10 and restore your previous Windows install. 

If it has been more than 30 days since the upgrade or if the upgrade was done as a clean install, then the option to go back to the previous version of windows will not appear.

Service appears to have been restored about 8pm

People reporting Mas Movil cell service outage from Boquete to David since about 6pm May 15

1 hour ago, Bonnie said:

I took a peak at Ning yesterday to read a topic that had been recommended. While there, I observed that there no longer are any local sponsors. I'm guessing contracts ran out and no one chose to renew.

Ning has come back online as of 2pm local time.

Good observation Bonnie.   Without any local sponsors there does not appear to be any revenue stream to help sustain it.   It will be interesting to see what the future holds.

It was nice to have additional social networks, such as Chiriqui Life, in place.  When one network fails, as Ning did today, people depending on a particular social network need information and answers.   Given the very large size of the Ning platform and company they did a poor job of updating their clients as to the outage.  In my opinion they could have quickly confirmed the outage and notified their clients using both Twitter and Facebook.

My last thought on the subject is this - as a client of a particular social network provider, you are dependent on that provider for their service.   If the service goes down do you have a backup of all the valuable data that has been posted?   All too often a tech company suddenly goes out of business and the clients are left with nothing.   It is just as important to backup the valuable data from your social network as it is your own personal data in case of disaster.   

Ning has posted the following to their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Ning

Yes the entire Ning network (not just boquete.ning) is down with no updates to their Facebook page

I must be the odd man out.   I have been here for seven and half years.   I have lived in more than a dozen places in and around the Boquete area as well as in Panama City.   Everyone of them dramatically different even tho they are all within the same community.   I have been amazed at the differences a mere few hundred feet down the road much less a half mile or mile away.   After all of the moves and all of the various micro-climates, not to mention services available or not available in a given area - I have finally found the right spot.   It took about two and half years to find it but it fits me perfect.

Personally, I would never buy without being here for a least a year.   Seasons are dramatically different as are how they effect everything surrounding you.   If you were to come during the rainy season and find a home close to a school or fair grounds you would be in for an ugly surprise that come the dry season when the noise from celebrations can last until 4am making sleeping impossible.   There are things that happen only during a certain month that can greatly impact your life here.

I am a gambling man by nature and I fell in love with this area.   I got lucky to find this area but I did a great deal of searching locally before putting down roots.   I chose to rent and move around to get to know the area first.   Then again others have gotten lucky and found just the right spot on their first visit.  

The ability to adapt, accept and change is as important as finding that perfect spot.   You have already found a great resource with the wide variety of people here at Chiriqui Life.   I wish you and hope to see you posting here more as you begin your exploration of Panama.    

If that ended up being a problem, making the videos available for a fee would solve it.    I know that there are people that would like to see and hear the Tuesday talks but for one reason or another simply can not come to Boquete every Tuesday.   I am one of those people.

I think adding them as a podcast here would be a wonderful community service, even if it required a very small donation to access the download area for those podcasts.   The donation could go directly to the BCP.

John & Susan - I am sorry to hear of your loss and I know how painful it must be.  

A few years ago the topic of home veterinary care for dogs was posted on Ning.   Among the discussion was a book called "The Dog Owners Home Veterinary Handbook".     I have attached a copy of that book here as a PDF.   It is a 658 page book covering just about everything.   The first chapter is 50 pages of various emergencies, including various snakebites.

It is not meant as a replacement to your vet but the information contained within would certainly help a person who suddenly has an emergency with their dog and does not know what to do.   

Being prepared is the key.   Giving this book a read will help.

DOG OWNERS HOME VETERINARY HANDBOOK.pdf