Phillip9

18 minutes ago, FritsSikkink said:

on marriage extension. No re-entry permit at this time.

Re-entry permit is easy to get before he leaves Thailand.  It’s different than a certificate of entry(COE) which can be difficult to get.  He will need to apply for a COE at a Thai embassy in his home country.

33 minutes ago, timendres said:

Your best bet might be to arrange with a local hospital to establish a medical need to return

This doesn’t help him at all.  He will still need to apply for a COE in his home country. 

6 hours ago, oompie69 said:

International flights to resume in the very near future?

No.  There has been no talk of normal international flights with tourists.  Only special “repatriation” flights will continue for a long time.

It seems impossible Thailand will allow normal flights before there is a vaccine widely distributed in Thailand.  Late 2021 at the earliest.

52 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

Why do western countries such as USA, OZ, etc not allow visa exempt entry then marry a chick, place 400k baht in a bank and happy days. 

If you are married to a US citizen, staying in the USA is relatively easy.  You don’t even need to have any money in the bank.

4 hours ago, jacko45k said:

A vaccine would like change the 2 week quarantine requiremnt. Until then, I expect it will remain.

And they have already said the Thai vaccine will not be available until late next year at the earliest.  And that is the most optimistic scenario.  Maybe they can never make a vaccine here....

It is very unlikely that other countries will allow Thailand to buy their vaccines soon since there is no covid here.  They will first donate or sell it to badly infected countries.  Thais will be the last to get it.

1 hour ago, mokwit said:

New people coming for up to one month are considered desirable tourists.

I think they will eventually change this attitude since it seems they will continue the 2 week quarantine for the next year or two or three until this pandemic is over.  No one will come here for only 30 days if they have to quarantine for 2 weeks.

23 minutes ago, Maktian D said:

anyone know if they allow people to come with ED Visa ?

No, Definitely not if you are just thinking of attending a language school.  Only if you attend full time at a university. 
 

Even if it was allowed, the cost of your quarantine and covid insurance alone would be several times the 29000 you mentioned.

The 23,000 to get the visa in country is quite high.  I have seen this averaging around 15,000.  But prices are going up everywhere now that we are near the deadline for application.  Everything else is reasonable.  Many schools add on some document preparation fees to the extensions.  3000 total is reasonable for the extensions.

13 hours ago, BangkokReady said:

Study something you don't want/need to and pay more, but have a slightly more "legitimate" visa

An Ed visa, if you are attending class at an approved school, is completely legitimate.

A volunteer Visa, if you are not actually volunteering, is completely illegitimate.

1 hour ago, Willy333 said:

From the Thai embassy in DC:

"For Thailand Privilege Card holders, please contact Thailand Privilege Card Co., Ltd. (Thailand Elite) directly to request for an authorization. At this stage, without an authorization from Thailand, the Royal Thai Embassy can’t issue COE for Elite card holders. "

https://thaiembdc.org/visas/

 

Interesting that if you read above that statement, Elite card is also listed in the group not currently allowed to enter.  It seems that they may only be allowed to enter in special cases.  Considering how difficult they are making it for them to enter, this card is not as “elite” as the advertising would lead you to believe.  

Currently, the following types of visas are NOT permitted to enter Thailand: Tourists visa holders (TR), Transit passengers (TS), Sports visa holders (S), Monks and other religious visa holders (R), Retirement visa holders (O-A/O-X), Thailand Privilege Card holders (Elite card), Volunteers (O), and non-formal students visa holders (such as language schools, diving schools, boxing schools).

For Thailand Privilege Card holders, please contact Thailand Privilege Card Co., Ltd. (Thailand Elite) directly to request for an authorization. At this stage, without an authorization from Thailand, the Royal Thai Embassy can’t issue COE for Elite card holders. 

5 hours ago, madmen said:

• Algeria
• Australia
• Canada
• Georgia
• Japan
• Montenegro
• Morocco
• New Zealand
• Rwanda
• Serbia
• South Korea
• Thailand
• Tunisia
• Uruguay
• China (on the condition of reciprocal action by the Chinese authorities)

The list was narrowed

Wrong list.  That’s not a list of countries Thailand is considering allowing to enter.  It’s a list of “safe” countries the EU published.  The article only links this list to note Thailand is on it.  

37 minutes ago, rimpsstar said:

Yes it seems they are.

 

Based on my research in the last few hours it seems my options are:

 

Apply for Elite card

Book a business class seat on a repatriation flight as apparently the majority of economy tickets are prioritised to Thai nationals

Receive visa when I arrive, then undergo 14 day Quarantine at an approved Hotel from the list

You will also need to obtain a COE from a Thai embassy.  I would start by explaining your plan to the embassy.   There is some possibility that they may not issue you a COE before you have your elite visa.  And you can’t actually get your elite visa until you arrive in bkk.....

29 minutes ago, rimpsstar said:

when I search for flights to book I see a lot of them heading from the UK to Thailand, are these not real?

Airlines have just been keeping their pre-covid flight schedule and then cancelling flights a couple weeks before departure.  They have been doing this since April and will probably keep doing it for many more months.

The only way here for the foreseeable future is on repatriation flights.

8 minutes ago, WhaleBomb said:

I have also seen that some people were talking about getting an Ed Visa and being able to study online, any information on this would be amazing as it would be extremely convient for me.

Another person reported that an Ed visa was available in nearby Koh samui and the school allowed you to study online.  I don’t know the name of the school, but there are not many schools there.  You could google schools there and contact them and ask.

17 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

The sensible thing to do is wait until the 15th September before taking any action.

But what will your action be at that point?  Your only options will be to overstay or leave.

1 hour ago, alexlm said:

I will arrive in 2021. And only once the borders will be opened

Keep in mind that no one knows when the borders will open.  They may even be closed through out 2021.
 

Since you are married to a Thai you can come here now if get the proper visa and jump through all the hoops. 

10 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

I would love to ditch SQ and go with Korean Air but since they are going to hold any potential refund for 16 weeks I’m ticked off at their useless Customer Service.  

At least they are offering a refund—That is better than most airlines.  I hold two vouchers for flights that were cancelled and the airlines refuse to give any refund.  One of the vouchers expires at the end of 2020 and the airline probably won’t even be flying by then. ????????????????

1 hour ago, soi3eddie said:

The Thai government is missing a golden opportunity to raise money here. Offer an option for renewal of expired visas/extensions in country at a premium rate. Also, allow entry to visa/extension holders but on repatriation flights (Thai airways) at $1,000 a seat in economy one-way and 2 weeks in ASQ at 40,000+ Baht to keep more hotels busy (Covid tests and state backed insurance a requirement). It's at least one way of controlling the situation and gaining revenue if they chose to do it. I think at this stage there are many who would do whatever it takes to stay or get back here. Just a thought...

Yes, I don’t understand why they aren’t selling special one year covid visas.  Something like a one year elite visa.  Many of us already here would gladly pay a premium to stay.  People all over the world would gladly pay for them and be willing to quarantine for 2 weeks to come and live here for a year in safety while the rest of the world deals with covid.

31 minutes ago, NanLaew said:

cabinet and PM approved OFFICIAL and Royal Gazetted change on 29 July that makes absolutely NO mention of the 'grace' period and having to leave on or before 26 September.

 

It does clearly state that we will have to follow the normal immigration laws (section 35 and 37 of the immigration act) by September 26.  I don’t see how this can mean anything other than an end to amnesty on that date.

9 hours ago, Logosone said:

It is annoying to pay for 4 months, however, can you not apply for another year of ED visa after the 4 months?

No.  Because the same rule applies—The maximum time you can stay is one year from your date of entry into Thailand.  Your only hope is the borders are open and you can apply for a new visa in a neighboring country.