whizzergo

Bumping this one again in the hope that someone has new insight to add with the passage of time.

On 5/12/2022 at 11:03 AM, KhunLA said:

Here's the not so fine print, from another news-blip.   Why would anyone who fits these, even consider living in Thailand:

 

Could you please share where you saw this reported?

For the first category "Rich global citizens", every piece i've read suggests that all of those criteria must be met. Your screenshot suggests that it would be enough to meet the last 2 requirements.

That's a big difference.

8 hours ago, DoorSnore said:

I’m in abit of a pickle with moving from volunteer to elite.

 

I’ve been aware of issues with people getting into Thailand after having the volunteer for a while (was told by numerous agents). Immigration seem to have declared war on those who had a fraudulent volunteer visa.

 

I’ve left Thailand and got a new passport, I intent to fly in next week, hope there’s no issues with immigration at the airport then pay my 600,000 fee. I’ve already recieved the acceptance letter but very worried that they reject it at the final stage and I’m 600k out of pocket.

There seems to be 2 layers of potential difficulty and it's not clear about the realistic complications of either as yet.

First is simply entering the country with the volunteer visa in the passport (so, airport IO refusing entry after arrival).

Second is getting the elite visa attached with the volunteer visa in the passport (although as has been mentioned previously, if they've already approved the application then this seems quite unlikely).

One way around this, if applicable to you, would be to try to get the Elite visa attached in your home country. I'm thinking, that way, if they refuse to attach it when you're still in your home country it should be much faster and easier to get a new passport and then try again.

There is perhaps another layer of issue here in that once you've been refused, does it then become an issue to get it attached even once you have a new passport? That seems to open up a whole new can of worms.

5 hours ago, SunnyinBangrak said:

There could be one reason to use an agent. A friend has one of those tour shops that also is an agent for thai elite card. He told me exactly how much commission he makes when selling the 1m baht plan. He said if I bought it with him we could split the commission, so it did make the card quite a lot cheaper.

In the same situation here I was told that the commission was 5% and I had the same offer of a split of it. So 2.5% discount to me as the customer. Was that the same you had?

48 minutes ago, Mikke said:

Can I contact them? I have the same issue. I was worried about the affix of the elite. And I cannot change a new passport now. Thank you!

I was told this by the elite team themselves. You can ask them, but they'll likely dissuade you and tell you to get a new passport. I suspect that they're just covering their backs in case it does go wrong, but obviously can't be certain on that.

In your position I would just give it a go. The worst that's going to happen is that you'll be denied and have to get a new passport before the visa is applied.

It would be great if you could update how you get on.

Good luck!

For what it's worth, I understand that there's agents offering the covid extension on Koh Phangan for 9,000 (to those who've been on a non-o etc)

I'm in the same boat OP. I'd love to see a concrete answer one way or the other. What I've been reading of late is that having been on any form of Non-O visa since being in the country, the existing covid extension is based on that Non-O (not on the tourist visa with which we arrived) and therefore we won't get a further extension.

Based on that, i'm making plans to leave unless I hear otherwise.

On 2/8/2022 at 4:13 PM, JoseThailand said:

Once and again - the impatient always lose. If they had not bought that dodgy ED/Volunteer visas in September 2020, they would've saved a lot of money and could've got covid extensions until March 2022 at least.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing isn't it.

I seem to recall this extension was issues on or even the day after the previous one expired. For those wishing to return to Thailand in the future, and dreading heading back to the West to an inevitable covid ravaged winter, waiting it out was simply too risky an option for the sake of saving a few dollars.

12 hours ago, 41632584 said:

No first hand experience, but to be of help, it was told to me, back in November, by two individual sources that since the change in power end of September, due to internal politics and interests, there is a high risk of being refused entry at the airport for those holding 'these' type of volunteer extensions trying to reenter on them. It has to do with who is in charge at port of entry. Apparently, they are looking for them.

 

One person was refused entry and sent back to its country in the region. Others have been 'harassed' too.

 

The advice was to only use these type volunteer extensions to stay within Thailand, and not for travelling in and out of the Kingdom.

Thanks for this. Most helpful.

Am I right in thinking that this only applies to those actively using those visas then?

In the case that they’ve already expired and I’m entering visa-exempt, this isn’t likely to be an issue?

Just bumping this one up again on the off chance that anyone has first hand experience.

1 hour ago, sallecc said:

Is your Volunteer extension still active, or you've been switched to Covid extension already? My extension is expiring this week and agent is handling it's cancelation and 1st Covid extension at the moment (for a handsome fee, of course ???? ) I think if you leave the country while Volunteer extension is still active, then no need to bother with this cancelation process, right @ubonjoe?

 

Anyway, please let us know how it goes on the way back here, I'm sure many of us with previous Volunteer stamps are interested, thanks ????

Yeh I've already switched to covid extension.

Hopefully somebody in here can enlighten us at some point, having successfully re-entered with the expired volunteer visa in the same passport.

3 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Where are you currently located. 

Still in country. But I need to leave and return on some form of tourist visa in order to be able to get an elite visa.

6 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Disregard the post you quoted.

IMO not creditable.

You will be able to enter visa exempt or with visa.

If you have concerns obtain a tourist visa. Not expensive.

Yeh, I really do tend to think that you're going to be right here.

The only issue was that it's not obvious that i'll have chance to get a tourist visa outside of the country and so I was hoping to just pop back in on an exempt. 

6 hours ago, visarunner said:

I know of some that got denied. Thai IO know exactly what is doing on. Do not attempt to enter with such kind of visa.

 

Can you please clarify if they were denied for attempting to re-enter on the same visa (multiple entry)? Or whether they were denied a visa-exempt entry because of the existence of the old visa in their passport?

Thanks

So this question follows on from conversation in prior threads. Basically there's a threat/hypothesis that passport holders who have a 'dodgy' volunteer visa from the Covid period (those issued in Korat, without a given volunteer organisation, for example) would be denied re-entry to Thailand if they tried to come back on the same passport housing that visa.

It seems very far fetched, but I'd be keen to know if anyone had first hand experience of being allowed/denied entry in these circumstances?

Cheers

I came off a 15 month volunteer visa, the agent organised version from Korat.

Managed to get a 60-day covid extension in Samui via an agent for 6,000.

It's definitely doable, but it's definitely one where you'll need to find an agent who can make it happen.

Bringing this one up again.

Would anyone happen to have experience with moving to a covid extension after the expiration of a 'dubious' volunteer visa?

With my volunteer visa due to expire I understood that I still needed to 'cancel' it before I could move to the covid extension. But the cancelling is going to be rather complicated it seems.

Could I just let it naturally expire and move to the covid extension without doing anything further?

3 hours ago, Ohyesuare said:

Someone else made a similar post recently. Apparently the organization that all the volunteer visas were being done under was busted in some form or another and the people who got one under them now have a so called "black mark" on their passport. Legally, the only thing that would prevent you from qualifying for an Elite Visa is an overstay in the past few years or a criminal record etc.. so if people were denied, it might have been at the discretion of the airport immigration officer(s) but I'd follow the advice of the Elite visa staff. If a new passport solves the issue then that's the way I'd go. 

Yeh. It does seem bizarre that i've been able to continue on that same visa to expiry, and now change over to a covid extension and persist. But then as soon as I leave and try to return to the country, they're going to prevent me entering.

If that was to happen on arrival at Suvarnabhumi it'd be a real logistical headache too. Presumably meaning i'd need to book an immediate flight out.

It just seems so unlikely, but I suppose there's only one way to find out.

14 minutes ago, JayClay said:

Warned by who?

By a member of the Elite staff actually.

"we have been informed that our applicants who obtained a volunteer visa and came back to Thailand with Tourist visa, they were denied to enter Thailand with Thai Immigration’ s reason"

Late last year when all the uncertainty about the covid extensions came around I bought a 15 month volunteer visa from a visa agent on the Southern Islands.

Needless to say that no volunteering has been done, but i've managed to stay in the country without any questions asked.

I'm now warned that I might face difficulties leaving Thailand and re-entering on a visa exemption (UK passport) due to having this volunteer visa in my passport. And that infact I might need to get a new passport before I can consider coming back to Thailand.

Would anyone have any corroborating reports on this? It seems really extreme but something that i'm a bit conscious of now, as I had planned to leave and return in order to get on the Elite visa.

Thanks

I'm trying to work out which 'type' of visa my covid extension would be under the following cirumstance:

1. Entered Thailand in 2020 on a 30-day arrival stamp (British)

2. After covid extensions, got a 15-month volunteer visa (Non-O) in late 2020.

3. Now looking to cancel the volunteer visa pre-expiration and move to covid extension.

Would that make my covid extension based on the original arrival (tourist) or the volunteer visa (Non-O)?

The reason I ask is that the Elite visa people have told me that I can't get an Elite visa affixed in Thailand if moving from a Non-O volunteer visa. So I'm trying to work out if the covid extension would still be classed as a Non-O extension, or a tourist extension.

I have tried to get to the bottom of it with the Elite team, but communication is not as clear as it could perhaps be.

Thanks

9 hours ago, Peterw42 said:

Koh Samui is renowned for (illegal) creative Thai nominee ownership schemes, there have been several crackdowns in recent years.

 

Google the phrase "koh samui thai nominee" and you will find a history of crackdowns, arrests, raids etc.

 

Even if you find someone who "was" successful in obtaining a userfruct, it looks like its no longer possible.

This wouldn't be a particularly creative scheme. The land would be owned by a Thai and I would hold an usufruct on it.