BritTim

There is no definite answer to that. In most cases, if you can meet the requirements for the most recent extension, then the officials will not care about your immigration history. For retirement extensions, that would mean that you can show correct financial proof for the previous 12 months. There can be immigration officials who decide to make trouble, especially if they can see a benefit to themselves from forcing you back into the clutches of the agents.

If arriving by air at Udon Thani airport (which is actually close to Nong Khai) taking the international bus from Udon Thani town does not make sense. Use the international bus only if you will be in Udon Thani itself. From the airport, take a van to the Friendship Bridge at Nong Khai, cross and pick up transport on the other side.

As others have pointed out, you will need to change to a permission to stay that allows work in the first place. Once that is done, it is probably true that the work permit is possible with only the two to one ratio if you are supporting a Thai national. In the end, it will depend on interpretation of the law by the local labour office. I suggest you discuss the issue with them.

Yes (5,000 baht) and no.

Officially, you are only supposed to use the e-visa system to apply when actually within your home country (or country of residence). I believe as the e-visa system spreads to other countries, eliminating applications at embassies/consulates, that restriction will become unworkable. Already, some have succeeded with out of country applications, but it is certainly risky. Another poster has indicated that UK nationals applying for a ME Non O visa based on marriage must show £10k so it will apparently not be a viable option for your friend anyway. I wonder if single entry Non O visas in conjunction with 60-day extensions might be a good alternative.

When first implemented, the e-visa system did not support multiple entry Non O visas of any description. That limitation was later rectified.

To apply without financial proof, the easy solution right now seems to be Savannakhet, avoiding Mondays and Thursdays to put in the application because of crowds. Depending on your friend's nationality, it is possible that an application might be possible via the Thailand e-visa site.

While people's appearance tends to change over time, in most cases, they keep the same name, date of birth and fingerprints.

Thank you for outlining the current status. Just to confirm: when returning to Thailand, you can get a visa exempt entry if desired, right? I ask because when crossing from Ranong to the Grand Andaman resort became possible, this was only for those with multiple entry visas or re-entry permits.

There is a lot of confusion in many people's mind over "machine readable passport" and "biometric passport". A machine readable travel document simply has an optical strip summarising information on the passport data page. A biometric passport contains an embedded electronic processor that uses various techniques to more reliably verify the holder's identity. Machine readable passports may or may not have a biometric chip. While almost all countries now issue machine readable passports, in many cases, biometric chips are not included. Further, the information that a biometric chip might contain varies, and immigration in most countries does not take advantage of all the various kinds of biometric data the chip may store. On entry, I do not believe Thailand yet makes use of the data on biometric chips, though it does, of course, use the basic information on the electronic strip that is more or less the same as that on the passport data page (name, date of birth and so on). I assume that Immigration is able to access biometric data from passports when they want, even though doing so is not part of the standard entry process (as far as I know).

It is true that immigration officials will sometimes make mistakes, and the linking of your old and new passports might not be done. That has been known. However, when immigration's system recognises that someone is entering Thailand on a specific passport for the first time, it looks for other passports in its system with the same name and date of birth. If found, the official is prompted to determine if this is for the same individual, and to link the passports if so. It is not unknown for you to be linked to someone else with the same name, but this is much rarer than no link at all being made. Recently, airport immigration has not been happy when the system reveals that someone is using a new passport to enter Thailand when they know a different one was used previously, and the previous one was not full.

Your immigration history in the Immigration Bureau's system is not deleted as a result of you using a new passport. They can continue to see it going back over at least 20 years (all entries and exits from Thailand, the visa types used, all extensions of your permissions to stay and so on). However, using a new passport can help when applying for visas via an embassy/consulate. The consular officials do not have access to Immigration's system.

Is it really the case that the consulate will not issue you a visa when your current permission to stay was cancelled on leaving Thailand? That seems strange to me. I can see that they would refuse to allow you both a valid re-entry permit and a valid visa at the same time, but why on earth would they refuse you a visa when that is the only way you can return to Thailand (other than visa exempt)?

Again, there is no 180-day rule. You are limited to two visa exemptions (what you refer to as "45 days on arrival") by land in a calendar year. By all means try leaving and returning to Thailand by air for a visa exemption rather than doing it by land. You will probably be lucky, but it involves an unnecessary risk.

For future reference, you can avoid confusion by only referring to visas as "visas" (even if your immigration office refers to every stamp in your passport as a "weezah"). You have not had a valid visa for over a year at minimum. The visa was used when you entered Thailand, and you have been in Thailand on a permission to stay that was most recently extended (based on retirement or marriage to a Thai) that expires April 22, 2023 Your question can be clearly expressed as: "I have an extended permission to stay based on [retirement | marriage to a Thai] that expires April . 22, 2023. I have a re-entry permit to protect this extended permission to stay. What will happen when I enter Thailand by air on March 17?" to which the correct answer is that you will receive a stamp that reinstates your permission to stay expiring April 22. EDIT: I am assuming that you have a re-entry permit and not a multiple entry Non O visa. If you instead have a multiple entry Non O visa, you will receive a 90-day permission to stay starting March 17.

Definitely, Chiang Mai airport does not have a history of harassing travellers who have visas. Of course, history is no guarantee that things cannot change. However, I will be surprised if you have any problem entering at CNX with a tourist visa.

Serial Non Ed visas to study at informal schools have become more difficult to get. You cannot just study Thai for years on end. If you can enroll at a university or other formal high level education institution, it seems still to be OK.

The "180 day rule" is a guideline used by some immigration officials for determining if you are a "regular tourist" but it is not an official regulation. I would recommend that you not try for a visa exemption through an airport, in case you run into an official who does not like long stay tourists. Consider flying to Udon Thani, and doing a border bounce at the Friendship Bridge in Nong Khai.

Flying into even CNX from Vietnam would be risky. The trouble is that, in the event of a denied entry, the airline could not return you to Vietnam (unless you had an unused Vietnam visa). Thus, it is all too likely that you will be forced back to home country with whatever luggage you have brought with you. CNX tends to be lenient, and you might well succeed in entering visa exempt, but the consequences of a denied entry would be unpleasant.

You can apply for a re-entry permit at your local immigration office at any time to protect your current permission to stay around an overseas trip. At international airports, it can be done on the day of your departure. A few major land crossings also have re-entry permit facilities usable as you exit Thailand.

The easiest reliable option for a tourist visa is probably Savannakhet, then crossing into Mukdahan Thailand, followed by using fly-ride (Nok Air or Air Asia) or buses for further travel within Thailand. Another place that is pretty good for tourist visas is Yangon. However, that would necessitate either returning to Thailand by air (OK to Chiang Mai but possibly risky to Bangkok).; or a nightmare return journey. Recent reports still suggest crossing into Thailand for a visa exempt entry from Vientiane via the Friendship Bridge to Nong Khai is still OK. That could be a decent stop gap solution. Are you from a country eligible for Thailand e-visa applications? Applying from outside home country is dubious. Officially, it may not be allowed. However, as e-visa applications spread, it may become totally impractical to insist on home country applications for tourist visas. Good luck! I think long stay tourism in Thailand has pretty much become a thing of the past.

Being arrested without a passport or visa, and probably suspected of illegal working, was a serious matter even 30+ years ago. I note that the whole situation was resolved within a couple of weeks, with no blacklisting. That supports your notion that they were much more lenient at that time, but that does not mean you could do what you liked with no consequences.

Unlucky with your problems at HCMC which was a good place to apply in the past. In answer to your questions: The HCMC consulate will not enter any information into a system run by the Immigration Bureau. You have a better chance entering visa exempt in Chiang Mai than in most other airports, but are at risk in all of them (with the possible exception of U-Tapao which will not be an option). are you willing to consider flying to Vientiane, and arriving by land over the Friendship Bridge? That will be only a temporary solution, but denied entry there is extremely improbable.

First, to clarify a point that is commonly misunderstood: you are not in Thailand on a visa but on a permission to stay. The distinction may seem academic, but understanding this makes the whole system more comprehensible. You can be in Thailand as a foreigner on three different bases: tourism, temporary non immigrant, or permanent residency. If you entered Thailand using a Non Ed visa (or were granted a "conversion" Non Ed visa at immigration) then you are in Thailand on a permission to stay as a temporary non immigrant. There are many ways, other than via a Non Ed visa, that you may have acquired this status. Once you are a temporary non immigrant, subject to conditions specified in Immigration Order 327/2557 (basis for extension of stay) the reason for your current permission to stay can change to any other reason permitting you to stay. No visa is involved in the process. Thus, in your case, you only need to know the criteria for receiving an extension of your permission to stay based on marriage to a Thai. According to the police order I cited above, these are:

It is true that the fine for overstay is 500 baht per day. However, the fine is capped by law at 20,000 baht maximum. Anything over 20,000 baht would be to pay for something other than an overstay fine.