RMN

Today I flew back to Thailand and was able to have the visa affixed in my passport on arrival at the airport. Note that the appointment to affix at the airport must be booked 5 days in advance minimum, so still requires some advance planning. In good news, they have immigration officers available even outside normal hours so you can do this even if your flight arrives early or late. The interrogation by the officers was pretty long and intense, and included disclosing financials and personal details, so be ready for that. But in the present moment at least, that seems to be the way to have your Elite visa attached if you can't wait for the new check system to be implemented.

Just received the members monthly newsletter and this new process is not mentionned in there either. Thank you for confirming I'm not the only person affected.

I understand very well why you wouldn't want to state those speculations publicly, but if you wanted to shared them with me by private message I'd be interested. I'm currently following the news and discussing the situation with my Thai acquaintances and any information about what is going on is very welcome.

Just realized I will also need a proof of onward travel in order to board my return flight. Any recommendation on airline/destination for a fully refundable one if I end up not using it?

I just bought my roundtrip ticket in order to leave before my permission of stay expires. I will update this thread to let everyone know what happens next.

Yep I had already received the approval letter weeks ago, made the bank transfer for the full fee, and received my welcome letter and member number. Since I made the first post I contacted them asking for a copy of the official document announcing this change of policy and received the following answer: "Greetings from Thailand Privilege Card, Member Contact Center. We would like to inform you that this is an internal policy communicated by the Immigration Bureau to Thailand Privilege Card Company for implementation. At present, we have not yet any official written document issued by the Immigration Bureau regarding this matter." For people who are considering getting the Elite visa, I would recommend being cautious. It sounds like as of right now the company does not have a way to obtain new visas for its new members as they have been informed that new background check steps will be needed but they do not know yet what those steps are or how to initiate them. This leaves them in the position for the time being - if my understanding is correct - of selling a service they have no legal ability to provide at this time.

Going to have to leave before my permitted stay expires to avoid an overstay stamp. Hopefully at some point in the future the company behind Elite will be again able to get visas stamped in and I will be able to have it then. Of course I don't expect any compensation for the costs incurred and their inability to deliver the service I paid for, I'm fairly sure their terms and conditions specify that the delivery of the actual visa is at the discretion of the government and they don't guarantee it nor issue refunds.

First time insertion. Cancelled my previous visa as I was told I could "seamlessly" transition to elite and made the payment. Now left hanging with no solution offered and days ticking down. Not the happiest of campers.

This might vary by visa type (and be at the discretion of the officer to some extent) but I have recently cancelled a non-B work visa and was given last day of work +6 days as my deadline to leave. I believe the 6/7 days "grace period" is typical but don't bet your life on it.

I had an appointment set in a couple of days to go have my elite visa put in my passport. This evening I out of the blue received an email saying: "Greetings from Thailand Privilege Card, Member Contact Center. Thailand Privilege, with immense regret, must inform you of the cancellation of your Visa Affixation appointment at the Immigration Chaengwattana, which had previously been confirmed. This is due to a new national security policy recently enforced by the Immigration Bureau, requiring additional background checks from relevant government agencies. As a result, all confirmed appointments are currently affected and cannot proceed as scheduled." The contact center was unable to offer any further information on the matter. This leaves me in a bind as I don't have many days left on my permission of stay before I will be forced to leave the country. Has anyone encountered a similar situation, or know anything about this "new national security policy"?