bjaz

Tried again this morning.
We managed to book at Bangkok Hospital and arranged to go pick up the test results the next day, since the lab must fill in the required form - they seemed to know about the Japanese requirements, which is great!

thanks all

Thanks for the input everyone.

The issue is that the Japanese authorities apparently want a hard-copy form here filled out by the lab, so I need to make sure they can do that, either pick-up the test result ourselves.

They clearly state that a picture is not accepted. Maybe a PDF scan is, but I'd need to check.

000770637.pdf

Thanks. I hope this is true, I called Bangkok Hospital this afternoon and they said 48 hours, and "best book the flight after the test in case they need to do further investigations", which isn't the most reassuring...

I'll call again tomorrow and check the others as well.

Hello all,

Leaving to Japan soon, and trying to figure out the RT-PCR timeline.
We apparently need a hard copy (no email) of a testing report format provided in Thai/English andJapanese by the Japanese Ministry of Health, so trying to figure out a way to get RT-PCR results in 24h in Phuket.

Bangkok Hospital says 24 to 48h, which doesn't work as we won't have time to go pickup the documents and fly to Bangkok for our international flight and meet the 72 hours before the flight deadline.

With the luggage and all, we're trying to avoid sleeping in Bangkok if at all possible.

Thanks!

b

Hello all,

we are leaving Thailand in couple of weeks and would need to get an RT-PCR test done in Phuket within 72 hours prior to departure. Test has to be with date, test method and specimen specified, and all the rest.

Would anyone have recommendations on good (reliable) place/hospital to get this done in Phuket?

We plan on booking the test in advance once we get the tickets.

Thanks

b

Thanks everyone. It seems pretty unanimous then.

I'll try to do it online and just let it slide otherwise. Shouldn't be more than a few days anyway.

cheers

b

Hello all,

I will be leaving Thailand, for good in a few weeks, which will probably fall a few days before or after my 90-day report deadline, depending on flights and what not.

Issue is that I probably will have left my reporting base, will be dealing with red zones and tests, and not sure the online service will be operational (I've never used it).

What are the risks if I let it slide in this situation?
Is the 90-day reporting status checked on departure, and do I risk a fine for being a week late or so on the 90-day reporting as I the country leave?

Is it best to do an anticipated renewal just to be on the safe-side?
 

Thanks

b

6 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

You need read OP.

The OP is married. He is referring to non O based on marriage (90 days). Just did not express it clearly later. 

Also has zero idea re entry requirements to both Japan and Thailand. 

Confused chap.

I was talking about 90 day visa-exempt entries in Japan, these are also suspended for general purposes.

He would need a visa to enter Japan, unless he still has residency or can qualify for a business entry, but this would need to be cleared by the JP embassy in Thailand - and there is still a 14 day quarantine in Japan.
 

29 minutes ago, david2923 said:

I am a us citizen so a tourist no visa required for first 90 days

 Visa-exemptions (for tourism purposes) are currently suspended due to Covid-19.

Here's info specific to the US
https://jp.usembassy.gov/covid-19-information/
 

Otherwise general info:
https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2020/09/30/national/social-issues/entry-japan-coronavirus/

I have EU citizenship (so normally also visa-exempt)  but had to get a special visa to enter Japan, granted because I'm a spouse of Japanese national, we had to submit an application at the Bangkok embassy. Ended up not using it as we extended our stay in Thailand instead, but it was a process.

Visa restrictions are being eased for business travels for instance, but you would still need to contact the JP embassy in Thailand to see if you qualify:

https://www.th.emb-japan.go.jp/itpr_en/visaindex.html

 

If you do manage to get in, you will still have to quarantine somewhere for 14 days, and strictly no public transport, so I don't think the prospect of taking care of business in a couple of days is very realistic.

hope this helps

Do you still have residency or currently valid visa for entering Japan?
Otherwise you'll need some kind of visa allowing to do so - You can get one as a spouse of a Japanese national for instance, or other special purposes, but do check with the Japanese embassy in BKK.

Keep in mind that you'll need to quarantine for 14 days in Japan as well - it can be in a location of your own choice, but you'd need to justify this with the quarantine officer on arrival ( they do phone checks).
 

You;re not allowed to take a domestic flight connection or any form of public transport on arrival, but can rent a car (quarantine officer supervises rental) or get picked-up - you're not allowed to stop until you reach your quarantine location.

I was actually offered to do this by a Phuket law agent - Get my spouse a new work permit and non-B extension (she's not "Farang" per se but is Japanese, which also means that in her case a WP3 pre-work permit is not required for instance, perks of Japan-Thai relations...), and then get me on a spousal non-B extension.

We ended up doing something else to extend our stay in the country since we no longer have intention of working here, but it seemed pretty straightfoward, if costly. Timeline was a roughly a month, starting from expired non-Bs and cancelled work permits.

Other than the immigration 60 day extension(s), from a non-B agents can get you a 12 month non-O extension "for volunteering" - costly (35K to 50K) but pretty straightforward.
You will need to make sure your work permit has been cancelled.

On 9/9/2020 at 6:11 AM, BritTim said:

The cost to get an education extension on your Non B visa entry is very high because there is no normal way of getting it done. Immigration officials at various levels and officials in the Ministry of Education need to endorse the application, as well as (fairly easy) finding a suitable school. The money you pay to the agent needs to be spread pretty wide. It is probably academic at this stage because it usually takes at least three weeks to arrange and it is only two weeks until the end of the amnesty.

 

We tried the ED route from single-entry non-immigrant type B that expired on amnesty (as had our work permits) but no go. Most agents contacted said it wasn't possible, then we did a couple of informal language schools / agents who thought they could handle it, but it turned out to be a waiting game for government announcements allowing to do this in country, and it never happened.

We gave up on the ED and went for a 12-month non-O extension, took less than five days to process, but it is costly (going rates 35K to 50K).

Not sure you can apply for a non-B extension without a work permit, but maybe there are special rules for ASEAN passport holders, and these are weird times.

1 hour ago, Promula said:

I think anyone ticking only one box will be rejected, or limited to a maximum of one extension like when extending a TV.

Not sure of that - there's reason to think they might keep the status-quo until borders reopen more frankly - the current talk of paying for 60-day extension granted to all who apply for them does remind me of what Indonesia did a couple of months ago.

Indonesia had a sort of amnesty at first (a free and automatic "emergency stay permit"), then revoked it to introduce temporary regulatory amendments allowing both short-term and long-term visa holders to remain in the country by converting any visa type to Indonesia's general long-stay visa, the b211 "social visa" (for tourism and social purposes), with paying monthly extensions.
This visa allows for a 6 month stay in normal times (initial 90 days + 4x 30-day extensions), but extensions are currently unlimited in current circumstances, "until the emergency is deemed over" by the Indonesian government.

Indonesian "visa amnesty" timeline went as follows:

At the start of the pandemic they granted a free "emergency stay permit" to Chinese nationals:
http://ponorogo.imigrasi.go.id/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/emergencystaypermit.jpg
 

This "Emergency stay permit" was then extended to all foreigners in the country, regardless of their initial visa type:

https://www.bali.com/media/image/1926/immigration-restrictions-bali-indonesiaimmigration-restrictions-bali-indonesia.jpg
 

These "emergency stay permits"were finally revoked, but temporary amendment of regulations were instroduced to allow all foreigners (tourists + long stay visa holders) to apply in-country (onshore) for a long-stay tourist visa, with (currently unlimited) paying monthly extensions to extend their stay:

https://i2.wp.com/pemalang.imigrasi.go.id/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/imigrasipml_1599033978_1.jpg?w=1440&ssl=1

https://i0.wp.com/pemalang.imigrasi.go.id/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/imigrasipml_1599033978_2.jpg?w=1440&ssl=1

There was an almost 2-month deadline to apply for this visa, either in person at immigrasi or through an agent.

Sure, Thailand is not Indonesia, but after the initial, strict-sounding reminders of penalties for overstayers that preceded the end of Thailand's amnesty on September 26, it does seem like there now is a move towards a little more flexibility regarding foreigners currently in the country, pretty much since the TAT declaration.

It's not clear or official, but in the light of recent news, it does look like most foreigners with no valid stay permit but willing to apply and pay for extensions will be allowed to stay in Thailand until the end of December, and maybe even longer, we'll see.

Even if there is a theoretical risk of prosecution, I doubt that foreigners ticking the "the pandemic is ongoing" box on the form to justify an application for an exceptionnal extension of stay in Thailand will ever be asked to actually justify such a statement...

We tried to get an non-ED extension of stay (for a language course) from a single-entry 90-day non-B for employment that expired during the amnesty, as did our work permits, cancelled/returned, also during the amnesty.

Unfortunately after a long wait for "governmental announcements" allowing such a change, that were supposed to be announced around September 15 according to different schools/agents in contact with immigration offices, the regulation amendments never came, and we were refunded the preliminary amount we had paid to apply - meaning it's apparently not possible to get a in-country non-ED extension from a non-B at the moment.

Going through an agent, the most common in-country extension offered (if not married to a Thai national and under 50) is currently the non-O extension for volunteer work, where you'll be affiliated to a registered foundation. It's possible get a 12 month extension of stay from a non-B in country for volunteering purposes (not allowed to do paid work).
 

Actual extension is a standard 1900 THB, but the shall we say "all-inclusive package" will bring costs up to 35 to 50K on average for a 12 month extension of stay.

Good luck!

My wife and I were on 90 day non-Bs, difference being that they expired during the first amnesty period, as did our work permits, expired and returned/cancelled during the amnesty.

Fast forward to August - both our embassies were not issuing letters (and still don't to this day) - looking into what few options were available at the time to extend our stay in the country we finally went the agent route and got 12 month non-O extensions - prices quoted for the service went from 35K to 50K for the 12 month extension "package", process took 5 days. 

Not sure if this is an option in your case since you still have a valid stay permit, but I would look into it, if you don't mind a little grey in these unprecedented times.
 

56 minutes ago, Andrew45 said:

what do you mean by "change reason"? Do you mean there is another way to get a 1 year extension?

Agents can get you a non-O "volunteer" 1 year extension in-country from an expired non-B.
You won't be allowed to work though.

I've never done it, so can't be more specific but it's very common in the Phuket diving industry - many dive instructors set up a company with a lawyer to get their work-permit and work here.

You have quotas of Thai staff that you need to employ (= get on a payroll), and other requirements, so it's not exactly cheap but it's been done for years here, so process can be quite smooth with a good Phuket legal/visa agent.

In your case you probably don't even need to have a ghost-shell, especially since you already have a local partner...

Good luck!

One thing to look out for is chikungunya - I'm guessing you would have mentioned this but if you had a fever and a rash at some point in the recent past it could be this.
 

My wife and I both were infected by chinkungunya in Bali (Sanur) in September 2017, fever for 36 hours, dengue-like rash, then swelling and joint pains, oh my, like instant arthritis, focused on feet, ankles and hands, and fatigue - lasted about three month, very difficult in the morning, better in the evening, repeat.

In 2019, my father came to visit us for a few weeks where we were working in Thailand and he caught it there (Khao Lak, Phang Nga province) - he ended up in hospital back in Europe, showcasing this rare tropical disease for med students. Same thing, joint pain in hands and feet for about 3 months than full recovery (SE Asian strain is not as nasty as others, apparently)
 

There was a bit of an outbreak in Phang Nga and Phuket a couple of years ago, so it might have reached other places.

https://www.cdc.gov/chikungunya/index.html

https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/chikungunya

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chikungunya

I doubt you'll be able to go from non-B to non-ED in country.
We tried that route in August - there were supposed to be regulation amendments announced around August 15 allowing to do so but they didn't happen, so we couldn't switch/convert, and the agent/school refunded the money.


 

You could get a B211 social visa in Bali, which you (in normal times) apply for at the Indonesian embassy in Bangkok or in KL - This will give you (or used to, rules might change post Covid-19) an initial 60 days + four 30 day extensions (an agent can do them for you), which gives you 6 months in Indonesia to space things out, before hopping back to Thailand or Malaysia.

Philippines is supposed to be quite easy on tourist visas (apparently you can extend up to stay to 3 years in the country...).
 

If you qualify for some sort of long-stay visa in Thailand, there's a Thai consulate in Bali (Renon, Denpasar) and they're quite good and it's very quiet, got a few non-B for employment from them with no drama.
The Thai embassy in KL or Penang have their perks, I've found the KL embassy to be super efficient since they set up the online appointment booking system a couple of years ago.

Make sure you have enough pages in your passport, you'll burn through them quite fast...

And it might take a while before we can cross borders that easily though....

Did you have to apply at the Thai consulate in Khartoum to get a visa to enter Thailand?

Issue might be that Sudan seems to be on a list of countries that require applicants to apply for Thai visas in the country in which they are residents, which probably makes issuing a visa elsewhere, including onshore, more difficult:

Afghanistan, Algeria, Angola, Botswana, Bangladesh, Benin, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central Africa Republic, Chad, China, Comoros, Congo, Congo DRC, Cote d’Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea Bissau, India, Iran, Iraq, Kenya, Kosovo, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Mali, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal, Niger, Nigeria, North Korea, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Sao Tome Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Somalia, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Swaziland, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Yemen, Zambia and  Zimbabwe.

 

1 hour ago, audaciousnomad said:

Definitely sounds like a nod to the retirement visa holders who are currently stranded outside the Kingdom with no means to re-enter.

Possiblity also a reference to the proposal mentioned in the BPPost summary, that non-immigrant visas of various types that are to be issued for businessmen who do not have work permits, and also to allow 100,000 Apec Business Travel Card (ABTC) holders (businessmen screened and certified by Apec countries) to enter Thailand.