ultramarine

This makes sense whether I end up staying for 4 months or 5 months. Thanks.

Yes, I guess I was thinking it through with the help of other board members including yourself. Thanks.

Right. If they reduce the 60 day VE to a 30 day VE (unlikely but possible), I can still get the 30-day VE and then extend it for another 30 days. Again, it doesn't make sense to extend the first 60-day VE if only staying in Thailand for 4 months total.

A lot depends on just how long I want to stay -- 4 months or 5 months. If only staying 4 months, then 60-day VE + exit to Laos/Vietnam for at least several days + re-enter on another 60-day VE makes the most sense as it avoids the trip to immigration for the 30-day extension as I would still need to exit the country after the 90 days are up. The 30-day extension only makes sense if I need to stay for 5 months. There's not much difference between 4 and 5 months, so I will likely limit my time to 4 months in Thailand and a week or two in another SE Asian country. The other benefit to a second consecutive 60-day VE is that I won't need to buy a separate disposable onward ticket to present on re-entry as I will already have a return ticket to Canada for March. I will have to have a short-dated onward ticket for the first entry, however. And I will hold the hotel reservation and 20K in cash just to be safe.

OK cheers. "No stated limit" which means take your chances at the border with a grumpy I/O officer who doesn't like the looks of you. Thailand visa policy is a reflection of the concept of impermanence and constant change. I guess we Westerners would do well to embrace it. And be frequent readers of this forum. An Agoda reservation it is then.

OK great. On the accommodation requirement, would this be proof of a paid hotel reservation or would a rental agreement in an apartment suffice? So it seems the informal rule of 2 visa exempt entries per calendar year is still OK and won't raise any suspicions.

Is that a typo "can imagine"? You meant "can't", no? Yes, proof of onward flight. How about 20,000 THB in cash too? Seems they are tightening the screws these days and finding ways to refuse people. Yes, I have stayed between 4 and 6 months every year except during Covid. Hopefully that is still considered OK. I'm just trying to understand the conditions where using border bounce and safe entry companies becomes advisable. Of course, if you've been here for a long time (more than 6 months) with many consecutive visa exempt entries. And they would also facilitate same day re-entry for VE on land borders. If you stay 2 or more days in Laos, then that makes the border bounce minivan companies unnecessary? Thanks again for your advice. You're an all-star.

Thanks. I'm assuming a similar flight to Nakhon Phanom and a couple of nights in Thakhek would also work. I'm not really a fan of Vientiane. If I opted for Saigon, how long a stay would suffice before attempting to re-enter at DMK for another VE stamp?

Wow. I didn't realize they could write a letter in this situation as just an out patient as opposed to something more serious or life-changing. Alas that option isn't open to me. I suppose I am a bit of a digital nomad but don't derive enough of an income from my websites to meet the DTV criteria.

I think Vancouver is more responsive than Ottawa, tbh. Ottawa seems overworked and have missed their own deadlines more than once with me. It's one reason why I'd prefer the VE stamp. But how did you get Bumrungrad to write you a letter? Are you an out patient there?

While I have 800K, I would rather not have to leave it in a Thai bank. Especially since I don't have a Thai bank account and it seems its getting harder to get one. How did you get a DTV? I have heard they have a high rejection rate?

Thanks for the ideas. Canadian winters are best enjoyed while still young. I'm not anymore. It seems that the longer you stay outside of Thailand in between VE stamps, the less likely you are going to run into problems the second time around. A direct correlation maybe. So if I stayed 2-4 weeks in Vietnam or Cambodia, then there would be less need to hire a safe entry company for the second entry. I'm not sure if my gf will go for that, however, Unless I take her along to VN of KH, Wasn't planning on it though. How will you be arranging your visas this winter?

That's amazing. If you opted for the DTV over the retirement visa, are there loopholes here that may be closed in the future? Also I wonder about which countries/embassies are more likely to grant the DTV. I have heard the rejection rate may be as high as 30%. And since you lose your money without explanation if you are rejected, that makes the DTV a bit of a gamble.

As usual, I'm thinking of coming to Thailand for the period of November 2025 to March 2026. Previously, I have either used the METV, or consecutive/extended SETV and/or 60-day Visa Exemption. Last year, I entered on a 60-day VE stamp and then did a land border bounce to Cambodia with a visa run company out of Pattaya. I then extended that second VE at my local immigration office. It worked out well for staying from November to March. But the current closing of the Cambodian border changes the calculation somewhat. Any land border bounce is going to take longer and cost more in order to go to Laos or Malaysia. The land border bounce to Laos via a grueling 9-hour minivan trip isn't very attractive in this scenario. But based on what I'm reading here traveling by air to a nearby country such as Vietnam and staying a few days and then re-entering Thailand for a second consecutive 60-day VE stamp is not advised and may require hiring a safe entry company. I have only ever come to Thailand during the winter and have never stayed longer than 6 months per year. I have done this for the past 10 years or so. And yet it seems that tourists wanting to stay any longer than 90 days (60 VE + 30 days extension) may have problems since border bounces from BKK/Pattaya to land borders must now go to Laos. In terms of maximizing comfort and speed, one alternative solution would be to travel by air to Udon Thani or Nakhon Phanom or some other town near the Lao border and then take a border bounce minivan across the Lao border in order to obtain a second 60-day VE stamp. But I would still have to stay in Laos for a couple of nights regardless if I understand the new rules correctly. How risky would it be if I crossed the Laos border myself and re-enter with another 60-day VE stamp? Of course, this assumes that the 60-day visa exemption will still exist early next year. No guarantee of that.

I'm relatively new to Bolt but I've no problems yet taking short trips by motorcycle and economy car around town in Chachoengsao and Chonburi. But I'm wondering about booking a motorcycle for two passengers -- me and my gf. I did this already this morning with no problem. I asked the driver when he arrived if it was okay and he said it was fine. I know that regular orange vest motorcycle taxi drivers sometimes ask for 50% more if there is a second passenger on the bike. This is fine with me. But then I ordered another Bolt motorcycle taxi this afternoon and the guy showed up with a Grab vest (!) and a Grab food container perched on the back. He then explained that I had to indicate there were two passengers in the booking process. I don't see where I can do this on the Android version of the app. Am I missing it somewhere? Anyway, I had to cancel the booking and ended up taking a regular motorcycle taxi off the street with no extra charge for the second passenger. I like not having to pay cash for Bolt but I would like to figure out the ins and outs of it to avoid these kinds of misunderstandings.