Bangkok Immigration Is Closed. Your Visa Appointment Isn’t Happening.

🌡️ Weather: 25-32°C (77-90°F). Lighter rain. Bangkok expected to receive 10-20mm daily going forward, a fraction of the 300mm that caused the disaster. The heavy system has moved toward Myanmar and Kanchanaburi.

🌫️ Air Quality: 68-130 (Good to Unhealthy for Sensitive Groups). The clean-air window from the storm is closing. Without daily monsoon flushing, pollutants are returning in some districts. The 130 at the upper end is worth watching.

🗞️ TOP STORY

BANGKOK IMMIGRATION OFFICES ARE CLOSED TODAY. ALL SIX DIVISION 1 LOCATIONS SHUT, INCLUDING CHAENG WATTANA. VISA EXTENSIONS, 90-DAY REPORTS AND WALK-IN SERVICES ARE SUSPENDED UNTIL WEDNESDAY.

The Immigration Bureau announced that all six Division 1 service locations in Bangkok will remain closed on Monday September 28 and Tuesday September 29 following the government's emergency holiday declaration. The closures affect the Chaeng Wattana Government Complex, the visa extension center at IT Square Laksi and four other offices. If you had a visa extension appointment, a 90-day report due or any in-person immigration business planned for this week, it is not happening until Wednesday at the earliest.

The closure follows the Cabinet's emergency decision on Sunday to declare two special holidays in Bangkok, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi and Samut Prakan. More than 400 BMA schools remain closed. Government employees who do not provide direct public services are working from home. Online immigration services remain available through the THIM app and the TDAC portal, but anything that requires a physical visit to an immigration office is paused until the holiday ends. For anyone whose 90-day report falls during this window, the Immigration Bureau has not yet announced whether the closure extends the deadline automatically or whether overstay penalties will be waived for the affected dates. If your report is due this week, check the Immigration Bureau's Facebook page or call the 1178 hotline before going anywhere. The last thing anyone needs right now is a trip across flooded roads to a closed office.

Bottom line: Chaeng Wattana is closed. IT Square Laksi is closed. All six Division 1 offices are closed. Wednesday is the earliest anything reopens. If your visa or 90-day report is due, monitor the official channels for guidance on deadline extensions. Do not drive there without checking first.

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The Bangkok Flood Control Center updated its figures on Monday: 329,000 households, approximately 700,000 people, have been affected by the weekend flooding across Bangkok. That is four times the initial 174,000 families estimate from Sunday. The AP reported that floodwaters were slowly receding on Monday, but some neighborhoods and major roads still remain underwater. Water levels in four main canals had risen too high over the weekend to accept runoff from surrounding communities, which is why drainage in areas near canals has been painfully slow even though the heavy rain stopped, yesterdays issue did mean to imply that flooding is over, just that the rain has stopped and hopefully in the next 2-3 days we’ll see a significant improvement in more seriously disrupted areas.

Meanwhile, a Thai man named Sorn Keadsiri posted a video of himself riding a jet ski at high speed down flooded New Phetchaburi Road on September 27, captioning it simply "B K K." Two men were charged. The video went viral because it captured something real about how Bangkok handles a crisis: someone, somewhere, will find a way to make it fun. The jet ski is not the story. The story is that 700,000 people had their lives disrupted, some neighborhoods were still trapped in their homes with waist-high water, and yet the city kept moving. People waded through it. Street vendors set up on higher ground, some setting up impromptu floating markets. The BTS and MRT kept running where they could. The jet ski just happened to make the best video. Floodwaters are now receding across most of Bangkok. The BMA says conditions have improved enough to accelerate drainage. But communities near canals should expect at least another 1-2 days before water levels return to normal.

Bottom line: 700,000 people. That is the real number. The water is going down but not gone. If you are in one of the areas still draining, you are not forgotten. The pumps are running. The city is drying out. And somewhere on Phetchaburi Road, a man decided hopping on a jet ski was the move.

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11 toll-free expressways remain available until midnight tonight, September 29. All eight Bangkok expressways are free of charge to help flood-affected commuters. The Department of Highways waived tolls on Sunday and extended the free period through Tuesday night. If you need to travel across the city today, the expressways are the fastest and cheapest option. Use them. After midnight tonight, tolls return to normal.

The government ordered nationwide monitoring of essential goods after panic buying in flood-affected areas. Residents in Bangkok began stocking up on food and drinking water after the disaster zone declaration on Saturday. The government responded by directing agencies to monitor prices and ensure supply chains for essentials remain functional. If you noticed empty shelves at your local Makro or Lotus's over the weekend, this is why. Supplies are restocking, but some items may remain limited for another day or two in the hardest-hit districts.

Animals at Siam Amazing Park were left stranded by severe flooding. An emergency operation on September 27 and 28 rescued 10 hog deer from rising water inside the park. Several others were found dead. Siam Amazing Park announced closures on September 27 and October 2 because of flood damage to the grounds. The park sits in a low-lying area of Bangkok's eastern suburbs, and the 300mm of rain turned sections of the grounds into temporary lakes. The rescued animals are being cared for. The ones that did not make it are a reminder that floods do not distinguish between people and the animals that live alongside them.

Today is the last day of the two-day government holiday. Schools, government offices and immigration are expected to reopen Wednesday, October 1. The SET operated normally through the holiday. Private companies made their own decisions on closures. If you work for a private employer who gave you both days off, tomorrow is the first day back. If your employer stayed open, you already know.

🍽️ SPOT OF THE DAY

OJO (THE STANDARD, 76TH FLOOR MAHANAKHON)

Ojo sits on the 76th floor of The Standard Bangkok Mahanakhon and serves Mexican cuisine 314 meters above Bangkok. The restaurant occupies one of the highest dining rooms in city, with outdoor terrace seating that puts the skyline at eye level rather than below it. The menu is built around Mexican flavors adapted for a fine-dining setting: Coconut Ceviche, Ojo Guacamole, Pescado Zarandeado, Carne Asada Tacos, Roasted Baby Corn, Crispy Suckling Pig and a Rice Pudding dessert. The cocktail program is strong enough to justify a visit to the bar without ordering food.

The 4.5-star rating across 3,101 Google reviews at ฿2,000+ is a solid score at massive volume for a restaurant at this price point. The reviews are honest in both directions: "Service, location, atmosphere top notch" is the consensus, though some reviewers noted the music volume runs high and portions are sized for sharing rather than individual plates. At 76 floors up, the view does a lot of the work. But the kitchen holds its own. Ojo is not trying to be the best Mexican restaurant in Bangkok. It is trying to be the best dinner with a view, and the Mexican menu is the vehicle.

→ See their menu and find them here ←

Insider tip: Reserve via TableCheck. Request terrace seating for the full skyline view. The Coconut Ceviche and Guacamole are the starters. Order several dishes to share. Opens 11:30AM Tuesday. Closed Mondays.

📍 76F The Standard, Bangkok Mahanakhon, 114 Naradhiwas Rajanagarindra Road, Si Lom, Bang Rak, Bangkok 10500
📞 02 085 8888
🕐 Opens 11:30AM Tuesday. Closed Mondays.
⭐ 4.5 stars (3,101 Google reviews) | ฿2,000+
🌐 hyatt.com/ojo

Always check opening times before heading out.

📅 WHAT'S ON

⚠️ Today is the last day of the government holiday. Schools and offices reopen Wednesday. Check event pages for flood-related changes.

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