jan2557

Rcoyote, Just a couple things you might want to be aware of --

1. Last time I was at the Myanmar embassy in Bangkok, they'd doubled the price of the tourist visa (3 day wait) to thb 1600; so there's no longer that big of a difference with the $50 evisa (which I've read is now accepted at some overland crossings).

2. When I got my Thai tourist visa in Yangon, I submitted a reservation for a hotel in Thailand (just 1 night, & via agoda), but no flight ticket, and had no problems.

Thanks, ubonjoe!

Found this old thread online:

https://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/773044-what-are-the-current-visas-for-monks/ (sorry -- couldn't open it up in the app).

Is this info regarding non immigrant R visas for monks still current? If you ordain while on a tourist visa, how do you go about getting an "R"? -- would you have to leave the country to do so?

And then if you disrobe while on the "R" visa, what happens -- do you need to leave the country within a certain number of days?

They are not free for all nationalities. Only those from the 17  countries that are eligible to apply for and obtain a 15 day visa on arrival get them free until August.

Update: The only extra documentation I submitted was a reservation for one night at a hotel in kanchanaburi; I got my tourist visa with no hassles. (They did ask the guy ahead of me in line -- he may have been Myanmar -- about flight reservations).

I did have to pay the USD 40 -- not that I'm complaining, but I thought tourist visas were currently free. Also, note that they're still looking for (pretty much) pristine bills.

A few weeks later I crossed from htee keep (coming from dawei) to phu nam ron, no problems.

All in all, straightforward and hassle- free.

@Nick: thanks again!

I posted a report back in November.
They are more concerned about perfect Dollar bills than a ticket.

I did wear a nice shirt with collar usually goes down better than the slackers in baseball caps & vests [emoji23][emoji38][emoji13]

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If you do not want to show them an outbound flight ticket, I believe you could claim you are going to, says, Lao, through border and show them hotel reservation in Lao to back up your claim (that you are really going out of the country). You could book a hotel in Lao through Agoda or something with "pay later" option. This way you do not have to pay anything and just cancel the booking without penalty fee after you done with the visa. I planned this for an employee I sent to Myanmar for Non-B visa, in case there was something wrong and he need to get a tourist visa instead. He got a Non-B though, so I do not know if this plan would work or not.

@Nick: when were you there? I got a tourist visa in Yangon March of last year, hadn't read their policy, and they gave me some grief about not having air tickeys (though eventually gave me the visa anyway, but only after my being interviewed by a senior official and having to write up an itinerary for them, of my Thai travel plans).

So, the website for the Thai embassy in Yangon lists, among their requirements for a tourist visa,

"5. confirmed round trip air ticket or hotel reservation/accommodation reference (for travelling through border)".

http://www.thaiembassy.org/yangon/en/services/33445-Tourist-Visa.html

Now I am wondering if I can get away with a hotel reservation (somewhere in Thailand) for just 1 or 2 nights, and *not* have to purchase a round trip flight in and out of Thailand.

Anyone have any experience with this?

I've always gotten my 30 day extensions for tourist visas at chaeng wattana in BKK. But is it possible to get it done elsewhere? Or do I need to come back to BKK?

Update: got stamped in for 30 days no problem, despite numerous previous visas (but only 1 previous exemption).

Thanks ubonjoe!

So I'm a US citizen, have been in myanmar for almost 4 weeks, planning to reenter Thailand at mae sot (from myawaddy). I did not get a new thai visa, so was just planning on getting stamped in for 30 days ("visa exemption"). I thought this wouldn't be a problem, but just wanted to double check that visa-exempt entries are given at mae sot.

The trouble with this thread is that 9 out of 10 posts are pure speculation. Makes it very hard to find any useful information.

Anything you can do about that moderators/admins? FB has several groups which currently have better METV coverage (because of tighter moderation).

Also difficult to find the info because this thread's so long. Are there no actual reports from people who've applied for the METV?

I think I'll be back in the US later this year, so I could apply for an METV then, but stuff like showing hotel reservations and a letter from an employer (!!) -- just wouldn't work for me.

The other one was deleted since this one showed a reply.

I have read that some embassies and consulates have been issuing non-ed visas instead of the non-r visa for religious studies.

Extensions of stay are allowed in this clause of Police Order 327/2557 basis for extension of stay.

"2.13 In the case of studying Buddhism or practicing religious activities:

Each permission shall be granted for no more than one year. The alien:

(1) Must have been granted a non-immigrant visa (NON-IM).

(2) Must have been confirmed and requested by the National Office of Buddhism, or Office of the Prune Minister, or Mahachulalongkomrajavidyalaya University, or Mahamakut Buddhist University.

(3) Must have been confirmed by the abbot of the temple where the applicant is studying Buddhism or practicing religious activities."

Thanks, Ubonjoe, for this detailed answer. I guess it comes down to the differences between a non-immigration ed visa and a non-immigration r (religious?) visa.

By the way, I've never understood why some non-immigration ed visas are good for one year (with 90 day extensions), whereas others are good for 90 days only.

Sorry somehow this thread double posted -- can the mod please delete this duplicate?

Posting this question for a friend. She has some kind of education visa that she got with paperwork from the Wat (temple) that she's practicing at. She was under the impression she could extend or renew this visa in-country -- in fact some official told her so, only to subsequently turn her down.

So -- anyone know anything about these types of visas? Is there any way to avoid having to leave the country every 90 days?

I should also mention my friend is a lay woman; how would the situation change if she ordains as a nun?

Haven't been on a tourist visa for some time, and need to check a few things for a friend --

1. Are single entry tourist visas still available for US citizens at Vientiane and Savannakhet (my tentative understanding is that the METV is not?)?

2. Need to show proof of anything (finances, hotel reservations, onward flight tix)?

3. Any limits on back-to-back SETVs?

Thanks!

It'll only be a few days late, so should work out. Thanks for the info!

I've been going to chaeng watana every 90 days to extend my ED visa & do a 90-day report. Unfortunately, the 2 dates (for the visa extension & the 90-day report) do not coincide. Question: if I end up being a few days late for the 90-day report, will I be penalized?

If I go to Chang Watana (government complex) for visa renewal and 90-day reporting, how late in the day can I get there and still get queue numbers? Will they process through everybody who they give queue numbers to in the same day, or do they ever make you come back the next day?

Anyone have recommendations / experiences they'd be willing to share regarding Bangkok hospitals? I'm not going for anything really serious (so far as I know!) - just a checkup & want to get my shoulder and back looked at. Thanks!

Well, please let us know what happens... for future reference.

Just reentered at DMK on the second entry of my double-entry tourist visa -- no problems, the IO didn't say anything to me at all, just stamped me in. What a (pleasant) contrast with 3 months ago!!

It's a complete mystery to my why anyone being asked for a bribe for some normal paperwork does not report the crooked official immediately.

And who do I report it to ?

I would start with whoever is in charge of that office. Failing that the main office in Bangkok.

So has anyone actually done this? Been asked for tea money and then, instead of paying, asked to speak to the supervisor & reported the corrupt IO's behavior?