typ123

1 minute ago, ubonjoe said:

Yes it can be done at a immigration office.

Cheers! 

5 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

It has been 30 days at land border crossings for a few years now.

They made it 30 days for everybody when the rule went into effect that limits them to 2 per calendar year at border crossings.

Thanks for the reply. I just wanted to make sure because I was reading mixed info and hearing mixed things.

 

Is it possible to extend the 1-month visa exemption for an additional month for 1900 baht while in Thailand?

Dear Thai Visa members,

 

I'm American and have flown into Thailand once this year and received a 1-month visa exemption. Now I am in Siem Reap, Cambodia, and wish to enter Thailand via land border crossing by bus to get to Bangkok for an international flight back to the US. I'd like to spend some time in Bangkok with friends beforehand. 

 

Can someone please tell me if I will receive 15 days or 30 days for the visa exemption? Any other advice or guidance is very much appreciated as usual. 

 

Thank you for reading my post.

Are the proof of residence and TM30 the same thing? I'm just staying at a hotel, so am I correct to say that I should show my booking confirmation as proof of residence and also fill out a TM30? These two documents, along with the TM7 extension form, are all that's required to extend for 30 days, right?

2 hours ago, Tanoshi said:

You didn't get a Visa on arrival.

You were given a 30 day Visa exempt entry as a US citizen.

Perhaps that's why the information you read (on VOA) was misleading.

 

http://www.consular.go.th/main/th/customize/62281-Summary-of-Countries-and-Territories-entitled-for.html

Oh sorry, I think I was using VOA interchangeably with visa exemption. So I guess there is no issue extending a 30-day visa exemption stamp? 

17 minutes ago, Tanoshi said:

What's your nationality.

I suspect you received a 30 day Visa exempt entry.

 

You edited your post with your nationality.

You received a 30 day Visa exempt entry.

Yes, you can apply for a 30 day extension, but will have to provide proof of address and a TM30. You can only apply at the office where your residence is located.

Thanks. I was reading that I could only extend for 30 days on a 2-month tourist visa, not a VOA. TM30 and proof of address is easy. I've done that before for an ED visa.

Hey guys, is it possible to extend a 30 day VOA (visa on arrival) for an additional 30 days for 1900 baht in Phuket or Bangkok?

 

I am reading mixed things, and I just want to be absolutely sure with up to date info.

 

If the answer is no, then I guess my only option is to go to a border crossing or leave the country. I'm American if that makes any difference.

1 hour ago, elviajero said:

You can’t get a 30 day extension as that’s only available for tourism entries.

 

A border run for a 30 day visa exempt entry should be ok. Avoid the Aranya/Poipet crossing with Cambodia.

Ah, I see. I figured the 30 day stamp at immigration here in Thailand was only for tourists but wasn't absolutely sure. I will be in Chiang Rai around early February, so I imagine that the Mae Sai border run will be okay to get a 30 day stamp and come back. I'm guessing the main issues with border runs lately have been at the crossing in Cambodia you mentioned?

Hi everyone,

 

I am currently on an ED visa which expires on February 10th.  My family are now coming to Thailand for vacation from late February to early March. I'm not going to extend the ED visa to study for longer, because I will not be in the city in which the school is located during the time of it's expiration (unless I can change to another school for 3 months. Not sure if that is possible.)

 

My question is, being that I'm on an ED visa, would it be okay for me to go to immigration and get a 30 day stamp to travel with my family, or does that only apply to other types of visas? Would I be better off making a border run and getting a 30 day stamp or would I get into trouble? If I'm going to run into problems, I will just avoid it and they all said they would meet me in Malaysia instead.

 

Would really appreciate some guidance. So many helpful Thailand veterans on here as always.  : )

I paid the school 1,500 baht.

 

My passport got stamped with a 1 day overstay at 500 baht per day. The 1000 baht “no show” fine is because “you have to go yourself but school go for you” and bla bla bla. They said if there is enough time then I won’t have to pay that.

 

So this 1000 baht is either a fine that the school has to pay “under the table” to rush to get approved OR it’s a fine for extra work they had to do to rush to get my visa approved.

 

Either way, like a few other commenters said it’s not worth getting between immigration and the school over 1500 baht, or worse risking my future legal status in the country.

 

The school says they need 3 weeks to process it but they don’t state that there will be a “no show” fine if they don’t get to it in time. I think they purposely leave you in the dark so they can get this extra money.

 

I’ll go at least one month before my visa expires from now on and check in with them to make sure it gets done.

 

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You are expected to be financially well-off just to be here, so making an issue of 1500 Baht at immigration might not work in your favor.  I will be curious to see if there is any "overstay" remark in your passport; there may not be, which would be a good thing.  

The "no hassles" solution would be to pay the money (which may have gone into someone's pocket at immigration and/or MoE, to get your extension processed), then complete this term.  After that, perhaps transfer to a school that "plays the game."  It will likely cost more, to cover the costs involved, so ask if there is a fee for no-hassle extensions when shopping for a new school.

 

 

I tried to go pick up my passport but immigration said to come back tomorrow. I asked if I had overstay and they said yes. I asked if I had to pay any money and they said no. I then asked did the school have to pay money and they said yes. I asked how much, because I would like to ‘help’ the school.

 

They said 500 baht. So what is this business about 2000/1500 baht? And if I don’t have to pay immigration and I’m not being punished then why is it called “overstay”? I told the school I’ll get my passport tomorrow and then I will go visit them at the school. I still haven’t paid any money. I’m thinking I’ll go to the school and say I’ll pay what they paid to immigration for one day ‘overstay’ (ridiculous to even call it that) - 500 baht. And that I would like to continue studying and do further extensions.

 

If they still hassle me then I will say maybe it’s better that I change schools in the coming months and that I’ll leave them a review so other students can see what kind of customer service they offer.

 

Also the school didn’t respond when I asked what a “no show” fine is. Probably because the answer wouldn’t make sense due to the fact that I DID show my face at immigration on day of expiry and explained that my passport/documents were being processed with the school/MoE. “No show” fine probably means “we procrastinated and we were unclear about new regulations from the MoE. This isn’t our fault or the MoE’s fault - it’s your fault” fine.

 

 

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One of the departments of the MOE is the relevant agency.

 When I go to immigration on Friday to pick up my passport, should I tell immigration that the school wants me to pay 1500 baht for fines issued by immigration for overstay/no show (it’s possible, again, that these fines are for the school and not me but the school has found a sneaky way to make me pay) and all the while the MoE was delaying my visa approval? Or should I just pay the school and keep my mouth shut?  

 

I have no idea how long it takes for the MoE to approve a visa before it can be sent to immigration, but I can’t imagine is takes more than 15 days (I’d add that the process could have began before they received my residency certificate because that was for immigration, not the MoE). Why on earth wouldn’t the school or MoE be able to notify immigration that it’s currently being processed instead of just issuing fines? 

Also since it’s 1500 baht it seems that I am pre-paying for the time that it takes for immigration to approve my visa. Immigration now has all of my documents. This is so infuriating.

 

 

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Tbh, I would just pay up, get your passport with your extension back and change schools or whatever. I would not get into the middle of the school and immigration for 1500THB. Sent from my SM-G955F using Tapatalk

 

 

 

 You’re probably right. I just feel taken advantage of and I don’t think fines are necessary nor do I deserve overstay stamps. I was thinking since the school already paid another thing I could do was go to the school and talk to the manager and say I don’t believe I should have to pay. But ultimately they have control of my legal status in Thailand and if they want to sabotage it they can do so. Not worth 1500 baht. The MoE was probably giving them issues but that’s not my fault. The MoE should have a database of visas being processed and when they were submitted so immigration can see that it’s not the student’s responsibility. If the school is being honest about all this which I highly doubt from several dubious claims and maneuvers so far, then the school also shouldn’t be punished. If anything make the damn MoE pay a fine or make a new law that says the students don’t have to pay for others procrastination.

 

But of course that won’t happen because all of this red tape has thousands upon thousands of baht getting stuck to it. I’m sure that 1500 will go to a good cause along with the other fines that are helping improve immigration structure and policies.

 

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The overstay will be 1000 baht tomorrow. No sure what the 500 baht for no show is for.
I think you have no choice but to pay it. You could ask them what the 500 baht no show means.

Initially they told me it was 2000 but then changed to 1500. The school already sent the money and my documents to immigration, so I am waiting for immigration to call me to go pick up my passport on Friday. When I get to immigration I will try to explain what happened. Maybe the school is being fined, not me, and the school is holding me responsible. I think the school uses the 3 week excuse to exploit people when they are bordering on 3 weeks or less. That’s a huge extra chunk of cash. I have no idea if they actually even paid a fine. I’m just in the dark here.


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Okay. Now I believe they purposely waited to contact me at 4:00 PM and give me a 30 minute window to pay. They sent me this:

 

“For now your document it's already. Please come to pay the money tomorrow morning or you can transfer to our Bank account 1,500.- (overstay+no show). Thank you”

 

So I called to explain how can I overstay if I contacted immigration on the day of and said my visa is being processed? They said everything was fine. The school is upset that I went to immigration because immigration is “angry at the school”. And I can’t go to the MoE because “no one there speaks English”. MoE was waiting to approve something apparently. How convenient that they finally approve it exactly 1 day after my visa expires. And how convenient that the school pays this fine by bank transfer to immigration but only after giving me an ultimatum. They asked me if I wanted to extend it or not? Basically telling me either I pay or I’m shit out of luck and it’s out of my hands.

 

I don’t know what’s going on. And what is a no show? To me this is seems like a sneaky way of ripping more people off. I guess most people just go along with it cause they don’t understand. But this just seems like everyone knew exactly what was going on. I think they deliberately waited.

 

They are all working together and collecting extra fees. And of course the laws are always changing on a whim whenever they see a loophole they can exploit for extra money. Maybe the MoE is deliberately holding documents and waiting to process them last minute so immigration collects the fine. I wish someone in their right mind could explain the rationale behind why the hell I’m paying more money for an overstay/noshow. What have I done wrong?

 

 

 

 

 

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The staff from the school are going “down there again today” (no idea where that is but I guess MoE office) and I’ll know in a few hours if it’s been approved. I’ll send an update once I know.

Really appreciate all the comments so far. You guys are awesome.


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Does anyone know if there is a grace period for ED visa extensions? Seems ridiculous to ask since they have all of my application documents before the expiry date. I'm basically asking if there is a grace period for the arbitrary amount of time it takes them to process it. 

 

For 90 day reports on non-immigrant B you can report up to15 days before the report date or 7 days after including the report date in the count. Is there something like this for the ED visa? 

4 hours ago, darrendsd said:

I have a ED Visa and when I did my first 90 day extension a week or so ago it went to Immigration not the MoE

 

As far as I know there is no need for it to go to the MoE, you have already satisfied all their requirements when you first applied for the ED Visa, the only time it needs to go there again would be if you applied to continue the course after your first year

 

You need to speak to your school and don't leave until you get your PP back

I am starting to feel like the school definitely has my passport and they just chose to delay, perhaps because I gave them my residency certificate. I had no idea I had to do a photo shoot around my apartment grounds and hound my landlord (who had no idea what forms to fill out) and get that to them ASAP. I didn't know about taking photos in the classroom on whatever random day they were able to do it (had to wait for other students to do the photo shoot in class together). Before even getting the visa, they never stressed about any mandatory time limits for things. They just said "try to get it to us at least three weeks" before, but I think they should have told me all of this extra stuff I needed to do. I was thinking I just give my passport and it gets extended. To me it seems that there is a deliberate lack of transparency with the school and that they might be in cahoots with immigration to screw people over like this.

 

3 hours ago, JackThompson said:

No quiz unless you do the extension yourself (no extra money paid to immigration beyond the official fee) - but this varies by office. 

 

 

I have not seen forced-overstays reported - unlikely.  But ...

 

 

That is indeed possible, and I would guess, likely.  Sad they could be so caviler with something so important - but it won't be them in deep stink if it doesn't get done on-time.  Glad you reminded them to get moving - but be careful not to tick them off.

I think they were already ticked off by the fact that I showed them the date on my phone of when I first came to the school and dropped of my passport and signed some things (July 26th, 3 weeks before expiration, just like that told me to. And that was ALL they told me.) and they were quick to message back saying that I didn't come until the 31st (that's when I dropped off the residency certificate). Even if I think that's when everything started, for the sake of arguing with them, that's still 15 days. That's plenty of time, right?

 

2 hours ago, jackdd said:

You won't get the overstay as extra days.

Let's say your current stay expires on the 14th and the extension is processed on the 20th. You have to pay for 6 days of overstay (3000THB), but the extension will still start at 14th and is valid 90 days from then. You would pay the money for nothing.

For the future: Don't give your passport away. You are paying 7000THB for something that normally costs 1900THB and maybe now you even have to pay extra money for overstay. Everything you could have saved was a trip to immigration which you now had to do anyway when trying to get some infos regarding your situation.

That just seems completely illogical. Not what you said, but I mean the law. If that is what it is then that is clearly just exploiting people. I could understand that if they received my application documents after the visa expiration, but if they receive it beforehand, and it's only extended from the day of expiration, what is the reason for fines? I'm not getting any extra days, and I've complied with the law by reapplying before the visa expires. This seems to just be a way for them to indefinitely hold the passport and get overstay fines. I guess maybe the law says it's absolutely mandatory that they receive the application documents 2 weeks before or something? Even if that is true, I still don't understand why. I don't understand why I am paying for the time that it takes them to process it. I'm not even overstaying. They have all of my stuff and I'm not getting extra days. 

 

Wait so are some people only paying 9000 or whatever for their ED visa and then extending on their own for 1900 for another 3 months? The 7000 I'm paying is not an extension fee from the school it's tuition. I would think that most schools do the extension for you as part of the tuition. But if what you're saying is right then I'm guessing I might be able to get a discount next time and do it myself? Not sure if the fee for extending is included in my tuition. 

4 minutes ago, darrendsd said:

You are confusing, where is your PP? At Immigration or the MoE?

 

If your school has said it's at the MoE then you need to question them why, The MoE does not need your PP, only copies, 

 

If your PP is at Immigration then you need to ask your school why it is taking so long, it certainly does not take 3 weeks to process a 90 day stamp

 

You need to speak to your school ASAP

 

 

Sorry if I haven't been clear. I don't know where my passport is. I imagined it was with the MoE. All I know is I am not in possession of it so it could be with the school, immigration, or MoE, but apparently from what you're telling me it's probably with the school. While I was at immigration today, they were actually looking for my passport while I sat there and couldn't find it. So I guess the school has it still.

 

I have been speaking with the school and they told me that "immigration does not know about my visa" and one of the staff said "they will go down there again tomorrow". For all I know this could be the first time they are going. 

19 minutes ago, BritTim said:

In future, if you are handing your passport over to someone else (which I avoid as much as possible) always ensure you have copies of all the relevant pages in your passport. For one thing, you might need to show this to police under some circumstances. For another, if you visit immigration with this information, they are much more likely to be willing/able to tell you what your status is.

You are right. I agree. I actually did make copies of everything and they are in my motorbike.

 

I showed them my student ID today and for some reason they made me take a photo again, and then give my phone number again. They already had this information from me. They probably just put it in the paper pile of one zillion papers they have stacked somewhere instead of e-filing anything on an excel sheet.

8 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

The visa is valid for 3 months to enter the country. When you entered the country you got a 90 day permit to stay (admitted until date on the entry stamp). When did you enter the country?

Oh okay I understand. I entered the country ≈90 days before today. I entered Thailand on May 17th.

47 minutes ago, JackThompson said:

Some schools do this for you - usually for an extra-fee (possibly included in tuition?) - which avoids ed-extension hassles at some imm-offices. 

 

This is not unusual - they would rarely take responsibility for their own procrastination or whatever other factors led to them not getting your extension done on-time. 

 

If you told the immigration-folks which school you attend, and they have an "arrangement" to process extensions from that school, this could explain the response.  In that case, you will likely not have to pay a fine.  That is just a "best guess" though, based on your description of events.

 

Your passport was given to school-officials?  Ideally, you would be able to get the extension directly from immigration, and your passport would be with you at all times (as required by Thai law).  But, "arrangements" have been set-up to reward an agent-type extension process, at some offices.  Due to these "arrangements" with (and encouraged by) immigration, you have become reliant on an unofficial-channel for your extension.

A bit of history:  There was a so-called "crackdown" on ED Visa-extensions beginning a couple years back.  This event was manifested to create the current system you are caught in.  Prior to that time, honest students would go to immigration with school-paperwork, to obtain their extensions for the actual-cost of 1900 Baht.  As a result of the changes, many honest students and dishonest non-students must (or are "wise" to) pay "extension help fees" to schools, who act like agents, to provide hassle-free extensions from several immigration offices. 

Those not paying for this service have reported being given short-extensions, Thai-language "quizzes", and other treatment to encourage them to use an "arrangement" for their subsequent extensions - even switching schools, if necessary, to use a school with good "connections" to get this done. 

Thanks for the information. This is interesting.  Sorry for making a second comment. Something was funny when I tried to submit with this one added on to my previous one. Maybe too high of a word count.

 

I paid 9000 initially for my first 3 months, and then I paid 7000 for the current 3 month extension that has turned into this fiasco. My school never notified me of any extension services. Yes, my passport was given to the language school I'm studying at and then the school gave the passport to the MoE/immigration (not sure how it works).

 

I wasn't given any quiz but I think that it was obvious that my language skills are up to par. Also when I first went to immigration for the picture and mentioned my school name, two officers immediately shook their head and said the name and made clear they were very aware of the school. 

 

It seems to me that either the school deliberately waited to send my info later so they could collect a fee, or that immigration has an "arrangement" to hold the passport for an undetermined amount of time and collect extra fees from students for overstays. Maybe they are just randomly picking people out and saying it took longer to process but they are just randomly holding some passports to get more money from fines.

 

 

1 hour ago, Get Real said:

Of course you can never be sure, but my be would be to believe Immigration due to that they collect the fine.

 

On the other hand, everything here is up to the discretion of the officer at hand. If another one is deciding when you get your passport back, then you might be fined. 

Thanks for your reply.  I think you're probably right.  Last case scenario, if immigration drops a fine on me for overstay I can explain the situation and remind them that I came on August 14th to make sure all was okay and they assured me it was. At least that shows that I was trying my best to be lawful.

 

56 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

What is expiring?

Your permit to stay date is what you need to worry about not the visas expiration date. Perhaps that is why immigration told you not to worry about an overstay,

Hi thanks for asking. I'm sorry but I actually don't know what a "permit to stay date" is. I guess it would be the ED visa? I don't have my passport so I can't look, but the ED visa I has was for 3 months only and it expires today. I'm not sure if there is a grace period for ED visas. It seems like there has to be if they are holding my passport and documents. If they were extremely busy and it took 1 week then I'd have to pay overstay fines for 1 week? That doesn't seem fair at all.

 

Immigration told me not to worry about fines. BUT, when I told the school I went to immigration and everything was okay, the school said that immigration does not know about my visa, and that they are still waiting for the "boss" at the ED department to approve it. The school said they will go again tomorrow. Something about all this seems fishy to me. It seems to me that there has been some procrastination and I'm potentially being blamed for it.

 

16 minutes ago, darrendsd said:

I don't see why your school or the MoE has kept your Passport for 3 weeks, only copies are needed for the MoE

 

I am on a ED Visa and my school didn't keep my PP for 3 weeks when I applied, they just took copies

Hi, good to here from someone who has been through the ED visa process.

 

I went to the school July 26th and gave my passport, extension fee, and signed some things and what not. I don't know when the school actually initiated the ED visa process with immigration/MoE. But in the meantime I had to send the school a residency certificate (photos outside my apartment, inside the hallway with door in the background, and photo inside the room + some forms from the landlord and a rental agreement), go to immigration to take a photo and give them my phone number, and also go to the school and take photos in the classroom. 

 

I don't know why they needed to keep my passport. At the end of the day, my visa can just be extended three months from when it expires, August 14th. I shouldn't have to pay an overstay fine for an undetermined amount of days and then extend from August 20th or whatever that date is determined to be. I don't want those extra days and I'm not trying to break the law and cheat to get them. They have had all of my information before the expiry date.

 

 

 

 

Hello everyone,

 

I am wondering if I am going to be charged overstay fines from immigration for my ED visa and I could use some guidance.

 

I have already been approved once and studied for 3 months, and now I’m doing my 3 month extension which is currently being processed by the Thai education department. I gave all of the required documents and my passport to my school three weeks ago. My visa expires today, August 14th. The school notified me that I may have to overstay a few days because I gave them my information ‘late’. After finding out about this, I went to immigration immediately to talk to them (all was communicated in Thai language) and they said everything is okay and I won’t have to pay any fines. What is going on here?

 

I’m still not completely confident that I won’t be asked to pay fines. My passport is with authorities and currently being processed, so I don’t understand how I can be charged overstay fines from here on out. I’ve tried my best to obey the law and do this correctly and I don’t see how I could potentially be punished when this has been and is still out of my hands.

 

Does anyone know if I will be required to pay overstay fines? Or if not why is the school saying one thing and immigration another?

 

 

 

 

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Even the skypetrain shuts down at midnight.
Try catching the A1 bus at DMK to Mochit.  If BTS closed, get a taxi to a cheap hotel and head to the bus station in the morning.
Otherwise, ask someone in line at the airport if they are going to Pattaya and share a taxi.

Good advice! Thanks!


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