SpanishExpat

Thailand is sadly ALWAYS last minute, so don't expect this to be different this time. I have my personal deadline on 20th of October. If there is no clarification by then, then forget about November. However, if they clarify it, don`t expect it be to be published until 29th/30th of October in the Royal Gazette.

I still have to go, but I will book then an ASQ which gives me a full refund if I cancel up to 48hrs of traveling. 

Believe me, Thailand is annoying LOTS of travelers worldwide with their brainless strategy and we all would love to have at least one month of proper planning time.

Thx @ubonjoe The problem is that Germany has no evisa option ???? Thats why I asked. I guess you need a return ticket for the COE if entering on exempt right? No problem, as I got that, but I think the stupid consulate in Frankfurt will reject it, as it`s over 30 days. Even I know I am 100% entiteled to extend that exemption entry for 30 days at CW.

Anyone knows if they extended the 45 days or it really stopped on October 1st? Asking as I will fly in early November for 41 days to Thailand. I wouldn`t mind to get a tourist visa, but my home country embassy is simply ignoring my e-mails/calls. Walk-In is not possible due to covid and sending my passport to them is just too risky, as they may take up to 6 weeks. 

I have my return ticket booked, but my stay will be longer than just 30 days. I know that I have the possibility to extend the 30 days one time at the immigration, but will I still get the COE, if I travel by exemption and its over 30 days?

My last COE back in February was hassle-free , but I had a proper visa and they didn`t even ask for a return ticket. I know the possibility of onward-tickets, but that would really be my last solution. 

THX

Honestly I think something went wrong in your case. I got out of ASQ end of February and sent it via Post the following day. Received my TM 30 receipt yesterday. 

So the 6 weeks timeframe here in BKK is quite accurate and guess I got it only a few days later because of Songkran. 

On 4/10/2021 at 10:19 AM, scubascuba3 said:

Correct, but when they start again i would do that rather than a retirement visa ext and the faffing around it just for 6 months

Bad idea to be honest as Thai immigration HATES METV. Yes it will be re-indroduced, but he will most probably gets problems after his 3rd one. Thai immigration will suggest him to apply for the “right visa”, he may get grilled if he enters through the wrong airports and even potentially denied entry in the worst case.

Believe me, after 9 !!! METV before Covid, I could write a book about it incl problems/ loopholes etc.????

If that is true with the embassy letters , 95% won’t be able to fulfill the requirements. So let’s see and wait. It’s pure “Thainess” again, but that’s how we are used to it every single time ????

btw...just got it translated by a Thai friend and it says NOTHING about extra-requirements. So let’s wait

To be honest...the Elite Visa is already as good as it can get!  I mean..if you are under 50, not married, a remote worker and don't pay taxes, you will save those 600k Baht in more or less half a year  compared to your home country taxes with a decent job! 

I know that the EV officially is NOT a work permit, but inofficially no one cares about it. If I know myself 2 guys in person who do it exactly that way, there are much more out there! 

Thailand obviously doesn't want young cheap charlies here, as the Thai opinion is that they don't benefit the country at all. 

1 hour ago, JeffersLos said:

 

Just what on Earth does the ASQ and travelers being able to enter Thailand have to do with foreigners in Thailand being unable to go home??? 

Everyone, except maybe the Aussies /Kiwis can go home without major hurdles! So it’s just a mutual agreement. Thailand wants the money /most Covid extended Traveller want to enjoy TH!

I just quoted the IO so it’s NOT my personal opinion.

4 hours ago, 2530Ubon said:

Yes, that would be handy. Then again the phrase 'Thai time' comes to mind and let's not forget that after the amnesty finished in September, they re-announced amnesty 3 or 4 days later. Fingers crossed!

That was another situation back at that time. Now it's a fact that it would be mathematically impossible for those around 100k on Covid extensions to leave TH within 7 days, if it's not extended. With the lack of flights,  max 2000-3000 people can be transported on long-haul flights out of TH per day. And this would suggest that more or less every single airplane seat would have to be sold from the 31st of March onwards.

So no extension would lead to a massive chaos for immigration and overstays. They obviously tried this "60days and wait for the extension until the very last day"-approach in order to encourage people to leave step by step, but they failed. 

However, it's still TH and I wouldn't be suprised, if the government didn't think about that scenario. 

It will be 100% continued. Talked to a IO last week at MTT and he admitted that just a few guys at the top level decide/ know about that. 
 

However, he also told me that after it has been extended so many times, it will be extended over and over again, until the ASQ is discontinued or at least the first vaccined travelers can enter TH without ASQ. The ASQ thing seems to be a general info, that IO were told internally from  the top.

What a moron! you CANNOT fake a COE, as every COE is unique with a number on the top left corner. It states the Code of the embassy where you applied for  + a multiple digit number. 

Good that those positive people don`t seem the most intelligent ones! The whole idea of sneaking in is to stay quiet afterwards for some time. So why they went to test with no/mild symptoms? Guess it`s an effect of the Thai scaremongering "whoever gets symptoms will probably die".

It just shows..with so many green borders, it`s impossible for TH to keep the numbers at 0 until the pandemic is over. My guess is rather, that TH will sooner or later see a very low second wave with 1-20 /per day, which wouldnt be any problem at all.

Diethelm....thats a common name in Germany in the age group above 60.  So as there are no Diethelm`s traveling to Thailand right now and they just support their teeraks by Transferwise, no wonder they released their staff. 

1 hour ago, androokery said:

I think the problem is not really in the requirements or the cost. It's the fact that it's all a gamble. With all the risk sitting in the lap of the tourist. 

I apply for a COE, get approved to book everything , it turns out I have to prepay for pretty much everything,  and if my visa is denied there is no refund. The same if the COE is not sent back. The same if the PCR test is positive or late.  That last one is a killer, since it normally takes up to 72 hours to get the results.

 

If this crazy offer was packaged with any kind of safe-guards or guarantees, then the cost wouldn't be so bad. But as it now stands, there's a significant risk you might pay THB 150,000 and still get nothing. 

Don`t know where you live, but here in Germany the risk is close to 0 to get trough the process. 

Here you first apply for the visa and after that you start to COE process.  Haven't heard of any case, where the COE was rejected, if you upload the right flight/ASQ booking & the health insurance.

Airports like Frankfurt offer PCR tests, where they guarantee 97% will be done within 12hrs and 99% within 24hrs. If you pay premium, you even get your result within 6hrs.

The only small risk is the ASQ thing, but for that you clarify their cancellation-policies before you book it. Some hotels offer free date changes. If there is a problem <72hrs before flying with a cancelled flight/ positive PCR test, there are still enough hotels which rebook it for free or allow to cancel it for 10% of the total price. 

So if someone doesn`t check the cancellation policy and looses 50% or even the full amount, it`s that persons fault .

No need to panic, as we all know that it`s a just a short-term, brainless idea. They totally lost their face with the STV, so that's the next step now.

I had plenty of experiences in the past with METV`s, so the reality is that no embassy cares, if those 500k are from a current, a saving or whatever joint account. Even if the METV was just 1/3 with 5000E I got it approved every single time without 5k on my current account, but in savings account.

They just imposed that rule, as they still think that a lot of tourists would come with "too low" requirements. However, they still don't get that the ASQ is the no go for 95% of the genuine tourists. For the other 5% those 500k Baht are so much better and easier than the ridiculous requirements in the past. 

This 500k requirement will disappear sooner or later. Even the health insurance will disappear, once mass tourism restarts one day. 

44 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

What are you on? Few weeks back I obtained my next 12 month extension based on retirement. Money in bank method makes it a breeze.

VERY simple process and even better now with online appointment available CW. 

Did my online 90 report online last week, 3 minutes. 

I never have a problem with imm. Mainly because I have everything in order.

 

Again you don't get my point!! Tell that to all the people on retirement visas, who are out of TH now and desperately want to get back in. Furthermore, no one knowns how they may change the requirements in the future. As soon as a Thai national is involved, be it wife or husband, it`s always better. That`s why I would ALWAYS go for the marriage visa option! 

32 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

You just making this stuff up. Please post facts. I'm guessing a link to a post or thread won't occur. 

So you gathered this information where.

So your wild guess is that purchase of reentry permit for weekend in Vietnam is not possible?

 

No you didn't get my point. There may be problem, when you re-enter. Of course you can purchase the re-entry permit. I didn`t make that up, as I know personally a person who got his volunteer visa checked. Same as some IOs who started to talk in Thai to ED Visa students, accused METV holder of working illegally etc.  Ok , that was all pre-covid, but no one knows how and if IOs changed their attitude (once the borders re-open to 100%)

However, I said that the volunteer visa is a low risk long-stay option, if you want to stay in TH for the next 12-15months. That's it!

Sure it`s a grey area, but there is close to zero risk UNTIL you leave TH and try to reenter. Let`s say TH reopens the borders next April/May and a volunteer visa holder decides to fly over to Vietnam for 2-3 days. He/she should prepared for some hassle at the immigration at both BKK Airports, Phuket and Krabi. Especially, if that person has a long-stay history in TH without a proper long-stay visa.

Funny as always???? Even if I had that money laying around. No way!! I’m quite deep into the BKK condo market due to my gf’s job and we bought a 2nd condo to rent it out. All I can say is that they + 10 Mio condo market is super super difficult once you wanna resell it!!!

Most Thai ppl in BKK buy condos from 1.5- 5/6Mio Baht. After that there’s a huge gap and it gets interesting again in the luxury market starting at 20/25Mio. 
There’s a reason why many condo owners in the 10Mio Baht segment struggle to even find people to rent it and in the end have to decrease the rental/ reselling prices.