BritTim

No.

If willing to make border bounces, the obvious option is the multiple entry tourist visa.

Please let us know the reaction at IT Square to the acknowledgement from TM30.io. A lot of people are interested in knowing if using this service is a safe alternative to direct notification of immigration.

My impression is that there are a lot who only come to Thailand for a few months. Those resident here who make at least part of their income online probably well under 100,000.

I suggest you use the IATA Travel Center site (https://www.iatatravelcentre.com/TH-Thailand-passport-visa-health-travel-document-requirements.htm) to check any itinerary where your passport will have less than six months remaining validity. I am familiar with the Thai immigration rules, but I make no pretence to knowing what the immigration rules are for airside transfer in all the countries around the world.

If your husband is already working in Thailand, you can get a Non O visa and subsequent extensions as his dependant. I suggest you explain your situation to the Thai embassy in Manila, and see what they require to issue you the Non O visa. It is easy to subsequently change to extensions based on working.

If there is major damage that anyone would have noticed at the time of moving in, and your landlord is determined to make an issue out of it, then yes. It is possible for him to initiate legal action and impede your departure. Only a mentally disturbed landlord would do this over minor issues that would not be noticeable when you first viewed the property. It is unlikely that you will have a problem, but we do not have the full facts.

I absolutely do not disagree that the airline check in staff (under the supervision of the airline representative) can deny you boarding. What we disagree about is only whether this is because of IATA guidelines (which is, at most, only part of the story).

I received this image from the OP: It shows departure from Penang on July 26 (first post in this thread early on July 27) and return to Penang July 28. We do not know what other stamps might be in his passport, but this provides some support for his assertions.

All of those options are possible.

If you are not eligible for the 60-day extension, your best plan is to allow your current extension to expire, and to start again with a new Non O visa.

After careful consideration, I have decided to close this thread that I now strongly suspect was trolling. If the OP wishes to provide any evidence that what he reported was genuine, please do so via PM and I will post it. This thread is CLOSED.

You were told right from the start: You can go back immediately, but should avoid an entry point that has proven to be rogue. What you suggested was in the document you received is not a legal; reason for denying entry. I have treated your report as genuine, but must now say it bears all the hallmarks of trolling. In this kind of situation, I would normally expect all the details to be posted in the OP or shortly thereafter, and often photos from the detention room, and reports of the arrangements made for feeding you. It is very suspicious. You report an occurrence that in many ways is unique but missing critical details, and keep asking the same question (when can I come back) that has already been answered.

Any airline can deny boarding, whether or not the passport validity breaches IATA guidelines. In fact, IATA guidelines on passport validity match the immigration requirements of the country(ies) you are visiting or transiting through. As this is very complex, a handful of airlines adopt the simpler, more restrictive rule that your passport must have six months remaining validity, period.

At CW, if you apply for an extension of stay based on retirement, and they refuse to do that because your existing permission to stay is for studying at an informal school,, you will not be charged, just told they will not accept the application. If your application is accepted, the cost of the extension is 1,900 baht. I suggest you apply for the extension based on retirement at least two weeks early. That will give you time to decide on a suitable plan B if the application is refused.

For your credibility, could you please scan the pages in your passport that showed your departure from Penang and your arrival back there. Thanks.

I suspect that the page was written close to the time of the Chiang Mai raid (about 10 years ago). What they describe does not reflect what is observed in practice. Hundreds of coworking spaces up and down Thailand operate unhindered, and the authorities are well aware of their purpose.

It is normal that there would be no entry or exit stamps for Thailand. What is very strange is the lack of a denied entry stamp. As previously stated, the possibilities that come to mind are (i) immigration forgot to stamp your passport; or (ii) they finally realised that denying you entry lacked legal justification, so they decided to make it appear as though you voluntarily turned around and returned to Penang without entering Thailand. I would still be interested in seeing a scan of the document you were given, to see whether it included anything that would justify a denied entry under Section 12.

When entering Thailand, the initial permission to stay uses the day of your arrival as day 1. Thus, if you are given an initial 30-day permission to stay, this is actually 30 days but only 29 nights. A 30-day extension of stay adds exactly 30 days (30 nights) to your existing permission to stay as you would expect.

Can you point to an example of someone working as a digital nomad (with no Thai employer or customer in Thailand) who "did not get away with it" because they were "ratted on by people who held a grudge". I do not say categorically that it has never happened, but I have never heard of such a case.

The multiple entry Non O visa is only provided for marriage to a Thai and for retirement. For marriage, the multiple entry visa seems to require nothing extra. For retirement, I think the financial proof is necessary whether for single or multiple entry. I think foreign marriage certificates are acceptable, but should be accompanied by a certified translation if not in Thai or English. They might ask for additional evidence that the marriage is ongoing, but a simple handwritten note from your spouse requesting that they issue you a visa to visit is usually sufficient.

Historically, denied entry at Chiang Mai airport has only occurred under quite extreme circumstances. You are very unlikely to have a problem.

To be exact, IATA member airlines (most of the major airlines) will mostly follow the IATA guidelines in practice, but this is not a requirement of membership. Different airlines do vary in their policies. IATA guidelines often reflect international law and the immigration rules of the countries airlines serve. Where that is the case, there are certain minimum requirements that they will comply with. They supplement this with their own policies.

At some immigration offices, the official might helpfully do a report for you. If so, you will be given a slip. If not, your next report date remains unchanged.

Only a fraction encounter the wrong official at the wrong time. We were not there. Maybe, the OP did something to upset the official, but I do not get that impression. I think this event was pretty random. Some people get struck by lightning. It can happen through carelessness, but lightning can also strike out of a clear blue sky.