welo

To save my 60 day tourist visa, can I just cover it up or tell the immigration officer not to stamp it. I will not put the visa number on the arrival card. I don't want to confuse him/her so I wonder if I can just cover it temporarily with a post it note so he/she doesn't stamp it.

I am not sure whether it's a good idea to try to hide the visa (cover it up with a post it note or whatever), he might understand this as an effort to trick him and will then be less likely to cooperate. Better you ask politely and prepare a backup plan (Re-entry permit?) if it does not work out.

Any serious tampering of the passport is illegal and might get you into troubles if the officer finds out, but I understand that this is not your intention, and this is good.

However, this is all based on my understanding of human nature and that of Thai immigration officers in particular, but I don't have actual experience in arriving on a Visa Exemption Stamp when you've got a valid visa.

welo

The day of arrival counts as the first day, hence 'extending' your stay for only 14 days.

However, I've been told that if you leave from Bangkok International Airport, you will not be charged if you overstay only 1 day.

welo

Sorry if I have confused you with my warning. The possible problem of entering Thailand without an onward or return flight only applies when you want to enter without a Tourist Visa on the 30-day Visa Exemption Rule. From what I know it is also not certainity that you run into problems, just a possibility. I also don't know whether this applies to land borders at all... I just looked up the old thread and it was LiteBeer providing this information, who is usually a relyable source, so I passed the warning on to you

For this and other reasons everybody recommended to come on a Tourist Visa, since it's free at the moment. Consulates might charge a handling fee though, don't know what the current policy at Cardiff is. If you get a Double or Triple Entry Tourist Visa for the same price. do it since it will give you more flexibility and no timing worries. Otherwise just go with the 15-day stamps, you will be fine.

welo

If you arrive without a Tourist Visa, and you don't have a flight out of Thailand within 30 days, you might not be allowed to enter Thailand. As reported on the forum, you even might not be allowed on the plane by your airline in the first place.

If you purchase your flight ticket to Vietnam or whatever before coming to Thailand, e.g. on an Airasia eTicket, you are on the safe side. (assuming it would take you out of Thailand within 30 days).

Another option is that you get a Double or Triple Entry Tourist Visa in your home country, which would allow you to exit and come back to Thailand 2 times and get a 60 day stamp each time (no matter whether my land border or by air). This would give you more flexibility, not sure though whether Tourist Visas with more than one entries are free at your consulate.

You could also get a Re-Entry Permit at the immigration office in Bangkok for 1000 each (or a Multiple Re-Entry Permit for 3800), so your 60 day permission to stay is not cancelled when exiting Thailand. But this is probably the weirdest way

welo

Can anyone confirm this?

If a person has only one previous tourist visa with an extension will they be refused another tourist visa?

Also confirmed by a thaivisa member, check this out:

Well, I just called Penang and according to the employee I had on the phone the situation is as follows :

I explained my situation, I have 2 back to back tourist visas with a 1 month extension from the local Imm office.

Now as weird as it may sound, I was told that I cannot get another tourist visa because I have already gotten a 1 month extension at the local Imm office.

If I hadn't done so I could still get 1 more tourist visa.

What they are willing to do is give a 1 month transit visa when I show them an airline ticket out of Thailand.

The reason they gave me was that indeed Thailand wants to get rid of the illegal workers.

IF anybody else has different info let us know but this is what they told me.

How much more expensive are repairs and spare parts for old Mazda sedan cars compared to e.g. Honda? Thinking about getting a Mazda 626, but worrying about the maintenance costs since it will be an old car (15 yrs.).

Anybody knows a good Mazda mechanic in Bangkok - for 10yrs.+ cars.

welo

Just because I'm curious. Do you have said 'Kinderausweis' (the one on the picture) for your kid or something else? If you've got any different kind of passport I'm pretty sure now that you will have no troubles.

I would not want to have you scared off from coming to Thailand, this country needs every quality tourist it gets at the moment . And Thailand is surely not something you'd like to miss for no good reason

For completeness (and since I was curious), here the information by the German Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Indonesia (Bali).

In short the 'Kinderausweis' is OK if it contains a picture of the child. So Malaysia and Indonesia do accept this special ID/travel document, Thailand does not.

Passports for children ('Kinderreisepass') are accepted by all 3 countries.

Reisedokumente

Der Reisepass muss zum Zeitpunkt der Einreise nach Indonesien noch mindestens sechs Monate gültig sein. Der deutsche Kinderausweis wird nur mit Lichtbild anerkannt, allerdings kann der Kinderausweis zu Rückfragen seitens der indonesischen Behörden führen. Ein eigener Reisepass oder vorläufiger Reisepass garantieren eine reibungslose Einreise.

Kinderreisepässe werden anerkannt und müssen bei der Einreise nach Indonesien ebenfalls noch mindestens 6 Monate gültig sein.

source: http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/de/La...inweise.html#t3

welo

I also checked the regulations for Malaysia, and it seems that the 'Kinderreisepass' is accepted there. But again, I'm confused with the terms, since I'm not sure if 'Kinderausweis' (ID for children) and 'Kinderreisepass' (passport for children) describe the same thing.

But if you've got that paper shown on the picture in the previous thread, I'm pretty sure you better get a temporary passport for your kid from the German embassy in KL, or at least check with the German embassy in Bangkok before you travel to Thailand.

If you are already on the plane to Thailand, good luck!

Information for Malaysia....

Der Reisepass muss bei jeder Einreise noch mindestens 6 Monate gültig sein, also auch bei Wiedereinreise im Rahmen von Rundtouren. Vorläufige Reisepässe und Kinderreisepässe werden anerkannt. Kinder sollten möglichst mit eigenem Reisepass oder Kinderreisepass mit Lichtbild reisen. Die Eintragung des Kindes in den Reisepass eines Elternteils ist nur dann zur Einreise ausreichend, wenn ein Lichtbild des Kindes im Pass angebracht ist. Vorherige Reisen nach Israel führen nicht zu Problemen bei der Einreise.

source: German Ministry of Foreign Affairs (http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/de/Laenderinformationen/Malaysia/Sicherheitshinweise.html#t4)

...and compare this to the information provided on Thailand

Die thailändischen Behörden haben bislang den deutschen Kinderreisepass offiziell nicht anerkannt. Bisher sind der Botschaft aber keine Fälle bekannt geworden, in denen Inhabern von Kinderreisepässen die Einreise verweigert wurde.

Die Einreise mit einem Kinderausweis ist nicht möglich. Die Betroffenen müssen daher in aller Regel die sofortige Rück- oder Weiterreise antreten.

Conclusion:

• Temporary passport or a full-blown international passport for your kid: definitely OK
  
• 'Kinderreisepass': probably OK (though still not sure if this is different from 1)
  
• 'Kinderausweis': definitely not OK
  
• child added to parent's passport: probably a problem, but maybe OK
  

(me talking to much: definetly! )

welo

I checked the website of a thai consulate in Germany as well as that of the German embassy in Bangkok, both state that a 'Kinderausweis' is not valid for entering Thailand and you will most probably be sent back at the border/airport.

I'm a bit confused about the terms though. They talk about a 'Kinderausweis' (ID for children), here is the picture.

If you have a proper passport for your kid, even if not the new biometric EU-passport, you should be fine. They also state, that a temporary passport that can be issued by any German embassy should be fine to enter Thailand.

You could also call the German embassy in Bangkok, they should be able to give a clear answer (address below)

OK, here some quotes in German so you can make your own interpretation.

Einreise mit dem Kinderausweis nach Thailand ist nicht möglich.

Deutsche Staatsangehörige, die mit Kindern nach Thailand reisen wollen, müssen beachten, dass eine Einreise mit einem Kinderausweis nach Thailand nicht möglich ist.

Entsprechend den Einreisebestimmungen nach dem thailändischen Immigrationsrecht vom Jahr 1979 Art. 12 benötigen Reisende einen Reisepass oder ein Reisedokument, das nach diesem Recht als vollwertiger Reisepassersatz anerkannt ist.

Da ein deutscher Kinderausweis nach dem thailändischen Immigrationsrecht nicht als ein Reisepass oder ein vollwertiger Reisepassersatz anerkannt werden kann, ist die Einreise von Kindern nur mit einem eigenen EU- oder vorläufigen Reisepass möglich.

Im Fall der Nichtbeachtung dieser Bestimmungen wird die Einreise verweigert, und die Betroffenen müssen die sofortige Rück- oder Weiterreise antreten.

Um Schwierigkeiten zu vermeiden, dürfen Kinder deshalb nur mit einem eigenen EU-Reisepass oder einem eigenen vorläufigen Reisepass, dessen verbleibende Gültigkeitsdauer bei Einreise mindestens sechs Monate betragen muss, nach Thailand einreisen.

Ferner benötigen Reisende für die Einreise nach Thailand neben einem gültigen Reisepass ein bestätigtes Weiter- oder Rückreiseticket.

source: Thai Consulate Frankfurt/Main (http://www.thaigeneralkonsulat.de/de/consular/visa.html#Kinder)

Wichtiger Hinweis

Die Botschaft weist darauf hin, dass deutsche Kinderausweise nicht zur Einreise nach Thailand anerkannt werden!

source: German Embassy Bangkok (http://www.bangkok.diplo.de/Vertretung/bangkok/de/04/Pass/Passangelegenheiten__unterbereich.html)

Einreisebestimmungen für deutsche Staatsangehörige

Reisedokumente

Reisende benötigen neben einem gültigen Reisepass (EU- oder vorläufiger Reisepass), dessen verbleibende Gültigkeitsdauer bei Einreise mindestens sechs Monate betragen muss, ein bestätigtes Weiter- oder Rückreiseticket.

Die Einreise von Kindern ist nur mit einem eigenen EU- oder vorläufigen Reisepass möglich. Die thailändischen Behörden haben bislang den deutschen Kinderreisepass offiziell nicht anerkannt. Bisher sind der Botschaft aber keine Fälle bekannt geworden, in denen Inhabern von Kinderreisepässen die Einreise verweigert wurde. Die Einreise mit einem Kinderausweis ist nicht möglich. Die Betroffenen müssen daher in aller Regel die sofortige Rück- oder Weiterreise antreten. Wenn Kinder nur im Pass der Eltern eingetragen sind, können Probleme bei der Einreise auftreten. Um Schwierigkeiten zu vermeiden, sollten Kinder deshalb nur mit einem eigenen EU-Reisepass oder einem eigenen vorläufigen Reisepass einreisen.

source: German Embassy Bangkok (http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/de/Laenderinformationen/Thailand/Sicherheitshinweise.html#t5)

Öffnungszeiten und Erreichbarkeit in Notfällen

Adresse Embassy of the Federal Republic of Germany

9 South Sathorn Road

Bangkok 10120

Tel. (0066-2) 287 9000

Fax (0066-2) 287 1776 Kanzlei

(0066-2) 285 6232 Rechts- und Konsularreferat

Bereitschaftsdienst

(nur in Notfällen) (006681) 845-6224

Call-Center

Terminvergabe für Visumbeantragung

1900 222 343

Öffnungszeiten Montag - Freitag: 08.30 - 11.30 Uhr

The money is for multi entry - there should not be any requirement for a normal single entry. Sorry can not address the child multi entry but expect they would like to see the same as marriage as extension of stay is the same. But have not seen any report the requirement is hard and fast (like Singapore used to be) but rather that they would like to see something.

Thx, I understand that we can only conclude that a 'child multi entry' would be similar to multi entry/marriage in KL.

So to restate the question of the OP, what are possible/best places to go get a multi entry based on fatherhood? Besides KL, what about Vientiane, Penang, Phnom Penh (in this order)? Looking at the 'latest reports...' thread there are not many reports on marriage/child multi entry Non-O.

I am lacking the overview here, can somebody step in?

welo

Nonsense. Thailand issues children passports themselves and many of our members have passports for their children and never have any problem.

I think OP talks about a special passport for children that does not have the full feature-set of the common modern 'ePassport' with biometric data. From what I've read Germany may issue the full-blown 'ePassport' for children on request, but will usually issue the less expensive passport for children. The latter is said to be widely but not world-wide recognised (e.g. in the US where children travelling with this kind of passport require a special visa which is not required if a full-blow biometric passport is available, source: de.wikipedia.org).

As a third option children can be added to the passport of one of their parents.

Since I'm not German national, and I don't have children, I've got no idea which of these options are recognised for entering Thailand.

welo

Signed copy of ID card and home register is all that would be required - you should have an original of marriage certificate and copy. Original and copy of bank passbook.

What are the requirements for a Non-O based on fatherhood to a Thai child in KL? Same money amount as mentioned for marriage? Any member reports?

thx,

welo

My son has a Sony PS2 and a Nintendo Wii, all bought about 2-3 months after they were on sale here in BKK.

He now got bored with them and would like to sell them (to get funds to buy something better), but he does not have any idea (nor do I) what asking price he should post.

Both (PS2 and Wii) are in top condition, have original packaging and documentation and many add-ons and a load of games.

Does anybody have an idea about what price he should ask for?

opalhort

Was quoted 4000 Baht for a new PS2 with two controllers (no games) at MBK last week. If it's the current model, PS3, it would be a lot more expansive though.

welo

I sent an email to the Thai embassy in KL a couple of days ago, got a reply today here's the copy :

Yes, you can lodge the application in the Royal Thai Embassy Kuala Lumpur. But, upon application time you should not have any valid thai visa on your passport.

* (1) passport sized photo

* Copy of your bank statement (only for the applicant who spend more than 3 months in Thailand)

* Copy and original passport.

'Valid' visa means 'unused' in this context, right?!? If so, it should actually be safe to go to KL for a Tourist Visa.

welo

Update on KL Tourist Visa from a German Expat Board:

The poster has just returned from a visa run to KL and was issued a Single Entry Tourist Visa there even though he already had 7 Tourist Visas in his passport! He didn't see any other person who was refused a Tourist Visa (however, he doesn't mention how many persons he has talked to).

source: thailandtip

Sorry for the news recycling but maybe it helps someone. Considering the information provided by likewise it might still be very risky to go to KL.

welo

Many members have reported having done this. Do not put the Visa number on the TM6 arrival card and ask the Officer nicely.

Nice! I've got a similar situation with my friends visiting in October.

This would be an easy option for the OP, if he is sure that he will exit Thailand again within 30 days.

welo

I wonder whether it's possible to enter on the Visa Exemption Rule (30- or 15-day stamp) even though one has a valid Tourist Visa in the passport? And save the TV for later...

welo

Thank you, Mario2008 and MrWiggle, for your answers.

welo

Update on Penang's rules for issuing Tourist Visas.

Based on the report in another forum, Penang will not issue a Tourist Visa in case

• there are already 3 Tourist Visas in the passport
  
• the passport holder has extended a Tourist Visa (30-day extension) and wants to apply for a new TV after that.
  

The traveller was told that the Penang consulate 'has/makes its own rules'.

welo

because some people say, if you extend your tourist visas ,

then you would not get another tourist visa after 3 time use?

Never heard of that, but maybe I haven't been around long enough.

Currently the consulate in Penang is giving troubles with back to back Tourist Visas, but Vientiane still gives Double Entry Tourist Visas with no limitations and Phnom Penh does with Single Entry TVs.

So if you decide to go with a Tourist Visa you should max it out with an extension after each 60 days so you get (close to) 9 months. Then you would probably go for a Double Entry Tourist Visa in Vientiane, and later for a Non-O based on retirement (if you fulfill the financial requirements).

However, better to go for the Non-O as I said before.

welo

Do you have the visa now? If not get a multi entry non immigrant O visa from Perth or Brisbane.

Haha, being an Austrian citizen myself this made me laugh quite a bit! I once saw a T-shirt sold in Austria saying 'there is no Kangoroos in Austria'

Go get a Non-O for visiting a friend, it is by far the easiest option in your situation. You have to find a friendly consulate though, I heard Stuttgart is doing that and accept mail-in applications, see discussion here.

I wonder whether the Consulate in Salzburg might do a Non-O for you, too. I for myself did not know enough about Visa rules before coming here so I did not check it out, but you might!

I recommend to go for the Non-O even if it seems a bit of a work now. As soon as you are here your options are limited (most probably a visa-run to Laos for a Double Entry Tourist Visa to get another 6 months) and the Non-O will make your time here more relaxed.

welo

@webfact, was able to log into zyxel - it doesn't display a username thingy, only a pass, but the default 1234 worked, and allowed me to access the "advanced" interface where I was able to change the addressing scheme no problem. Thanks a lot!

The SpeedTouch at home seems to be impossible to change even as admin, no idea why. I am guessing they did something to that firmware, unless there's yet another "superuser" besides admin that can do more. Will probably just get a new modem.

Sorry to bring up this old thread, but maybe my answer helps somebody crawling the archive for an answer.

Yep, you are right. The TOT admin is only 'superuser', but there is another 'administrator' role.

You can easily get full access to TOT's Speedtouch ST536 by using a simple trick: enable remote support and use the provided temporary user to login via your public IP and create a new user with 'Administrator' privileges - voila!

Step by step:

1. Login with admin/tot
   
2. Goto Toolbox/Remote Assistance
   
3. Take notes of the provided URL (your public IP), username and password and hit the 'Enable Remote Assistance' button.
   
4. Login to the configuration interface via the provided URL.
   
5. Goto Toolbox/User Management/Details and create a new user, assign the 'Administrator' role. The default password for the newly created user is the same as the user name
   
6. Login as this new user via your internal router IP and change the password.
   

The web interface is rather limited, better login via telnet.

welo

And there has definitely been an attack on the eVisa website, check out my report here.

However, the website has been fixed meanwhile.

I come to understand why cross-posting is considered evil by forum purists - despite my efforts everybody is discussing on the 'wrong' thread. This thread here was meant to bring people over to the discussion in the 'Visas and migration to other countries' forum HERE.

Whatever, it seems this forum is followed by more users and better we keep discussing here.

This is what I just posted in the other thread:

Applied for the eVisa this morning and just received the eVisa by email - 3hrs processing time is pretty good (and a lot faster than the 3 working days stated on the website).

The application process was pretty straight forward. The step of approving the credit card payment took more than 30 seconds during which one might be tempted to refresh the browser - which would not be a good idea since it might mess up the process and lead to re-submission which ultimately might have you charged the fee 2 times. So just be patient and wait for the page to reload.

Another minor glitch is that after the message stating the success of the billing process (which you are supposed to print for documentation purposes) the page refreshes automatically after 20 seconds and redirects to another page which however fails. So it seems that at the moment the final page of the process will be an error page. Nevertheless, in my case (and I guess in others too) this is AFTER the process has successfully finished, so don't worry.

From what I undertand you can restart the application process as many times as you want during the first 2 steps when you enter the application details (e.g. I did since I decided to upload a different picture), but do NOT re-submit the billing page where you enter your credit card details (the sole exception is if your payment was rejected because you missed to fill a field or something like that). If you submit this page twice you might be charged twice - I don't think the intention is to trick people, just that the system does not seem to be sophisticated enough to work around these cases. The last page before the e-billing page even contains a note that warns not to re-submit.

Be sure to copy/write down/print the page BEFORE you start the e-billing. This page contains a reference number that you can use to track the status of your application (http://www.mfaic.gov.kh/e-visa/status.aspx).

In case you accidentally resubmit you can also contact the support staff and have it sorted out - see Chris' post here.

The problem that the domain is not accessible for TOT users and one has to use the IP instead seems to be an issue with the TOT DNS servers - this is not limited to this page but occurs with other pages too (though from my experience not as regularly as with the evisa page). Whatever, change your DNS servers to openDNS, DNSadvantage or similiar and the problem is gone.

Conclusion: It seems the eVisa service works pretty smooth but with minor glitches and is also pretty fast. However, the recent attacks on the website (see my screenshots above) and the change from paypal to a new e-billing company do not actually boost my confidence concerning security. So I would not recommend the service unless you have good reasons not to use the Visa On Arrival office at the border (e.g. save one passport page).

welo

Applied for the eVisa this morning and just received the eVisa by email - 3hrs processing time is pretty good (and a lot faster than the 3 working days stated on the website).

The application process was pretty straight forward. The step of approving the credit card payment took more than 30 seconds during which one might be tempted to refresh the browser - which would not be a good idea since it might mess up the process and lead to re-submission which ultimately might have you charged the fee 2 times. So just be patient and wait for the page to reload.

Another minor glitch is that after the message stating the success of the billing process (which you are supposed to print for documentation purposes) the page refreshes automatically after 20 seconds and redirects to another page which however fails. So it seems that at the moment the final page of the process will be an error page. Nevertheless, in my case (and I guess in others too) this is AFTER the process has successfully finished, so don't worry.

From what I undertand you can restart the application process as many times as you want during the first 2 steps when you enter the application details (e.g. I did since I decided to upload a different picture), but do NOT re-submit the billing page where you enter your credit card details (the sole exception is if your payment was rejected because you missed to fill a field or something like that). If you submit this page twice you might be charged twice - I don't think the intention is to trick people, just that the system does not seem to be sophisticated enough to work around these cases. The last page before the e-billing page even contains a note that warns not to re-submit.

Be sure to copy/write down/print the page BEFORE you start the e-billing. This page contains a reference number that you can use to track the status of your application (http://www.mfaic.gov.kh/e-visa/status.aspx).

In case you accidentally resubmit you can also contact the support staff and have it sorted out - see Chris' post here.

The problem that the domain is not accessible for TOT users and one has to use the IP instead seems to be an issue with the TOT DNS servers - this is not limited to this page but occurs with other pages too (though from my experience not as regularly as with the evisa page). Whatever, change your DNS servers to openDNS, DNSadvantage or similiar and the problem is gone.

Conclusion: It seems the eVisa service works pretty smooth but with minor glitches and is also pretty fast. However, the recent attacks on the website (see my screenshots above) and the change from paypal to a new e-billing company do not actually boost my confidence concerning security. So I would not recommend the service unless you have good reasons not to use the Visa On Arrival office at the border (e.g. save one passport page).

welo