help! Visa overstay and re entry

[flow98]

Hello , my boyfriend is coming back to thailand from china. He was at university there and now wants to come back to visit me.

He has booked his flight made arrangements for a condo alread . however , he went to get his visa at the thai embassy in beijing and they did not give it to him as he overstayed 2 days last time. 

I got worried so i asked a friend who runs a treatment center and knows about visas ect...she aid that 2 days overstay shouldn't be a problem and he suggested that he comes in without a visa as he has a French passport (and get a ticket to laos as a departure proof) and then get sorted once he gets here ie: extensions or what not. I don't think he is banned from thailand as the embassy said that if he got an education visa it should be fine. I thought of getting him vip fast track service when he arrives at the airport , he's worried that they will turn him away . He came and stayed with me at a wellness retreat from april to september 2017 (2 border runs) but the person in charge of his visa went a bit late hence the 2 day overstay . and plans to come back in january 2018. i'm still a bit worried however , so better get the most information .

Any ideas or advice would be good

thank you 

[BritTim]

He will have no problem entering visa exempt (even with the short previous overstay) unless he had several visa exempt entries in the past. He should have the onward flight (to satisfy the airline at check in) and 20,000 baht (or at least 10,000 baht) equivalent in cash or travelers' checks in case he encounters the wrong immigration official on entry.

 

He is very unlucky to encounter a consulate that takes short overstays into account in issuing tourist visas.

 

If flights were not already booked, I might suggest flying via Vientiane (getting a tourist visa there, and entering by land if, highly unlikely) there was any issue with the visa.

[JackThompson]

This post is good information for those who claim "short overstays" are never a problem.  Evidently, they can be - even if rarely.  None the less, a 2-day overstay does not get you banned from Thailand. 

 

But because he has been here somewhat recently + a past overstay (although short), he may be questioned by the IO at the airport.  He should be sure to have 10K Baht (20K is better) worth of Cash in his pocket upon arrival in Thailand.  Also, proof of an outgoing flight within 30-days - which he will also likely need to board his flight to Thailand (you mentioned a ticket to Laos - good). 

 

I would also carry proof of additional finances (home bank accounts with a lot of money are good), and have a solid story for how he can afford to live like he does (i.e. not working in his home-country), what he plans to do in Thailand on this trip, plus when he plans to leave (within 30 days on his flight).  He could also bring proof of what he was doing here before (the wellness center), to explain his previous visit.  He may not want to mention he has a GF in Thailand, as that could indicate to the IO he might want to stay longer.

 

They may ask nothing, and just stamp him in - so what I have suggested is likely overkill - but having these at the ready should make the trip less stressful.

 

To eliminate any risk / stress about rejected-entry, he could fly to a neighboring country (say, Penang), then enter by land, then take a domestic flight to his destination in Thailand.  But since he has been out of Thailand for 3 months, they cannot reasonably claim he is currently working here illegally. 

 

Make 100% sure he has the cash in-hand - not on plastic - before he boards his flight to Thailand, because no ATMs exist between his incoming-plane and the immigration checkpoint; they won't let him go visit an ATM to get the cash - and could use the lack of cash as an excuse to refuse-entry.

[flow98]

Thank you so much for your quick responses.

 

Do you think that a train ticket or a bus ticket from Nong khai to laos would be sufficient ?

[sanemax]

9 minutes ago, flow98 said:

Thank you so much for your quick responses.

 

Do you think that a train ticket or a bus ticket from Nong khai to laos would be sufficient ?

The train ticket from Nong Khai to Vientiane is 22 Baht

[ubonjoe]

11 minutes ago, flow98 said:

Do you think that a train ticket or a bus ticket from Nong khai to laos would be sufficient ?

Normally embassies and consulates will only accept flight tickets.

[BritTim]

34 minutes ago, flow98 said:

Do you think that a train ticket or a bus ticket from Nong khai to laos would be sufficient ?

The airline at check in will require an onward flight specifically. Bus and train tickets will not interest them.

[1sickpuppy]

3 hours ago, flow98 said:

Thank you so much for your quick responses.

 

Do you think that a train ticket or a bus ticket from Nong khai to laos would be sufficient ?

A ticket back to France would be much appreciated

[Autonuaq]

If you have doubts in your story like this one.

 

Only air tickets work.

Entering and leaving by aiplane

[NorthernRyland]

Are you serious that 2 days of overstay is anything more than 1000 baht fine? China is being hyper vigilant I guess but Thailand couldn't possibly care could they?? Sounds crazy to me.

[tonray]

27 minutes ago, genericptr said:

Are you serious that 2 days of overstay is anything more than 1000 baht fine? China is being hyper vigilant I guess but Thailand couldn't possibly care could they?? Sounds crazy to me.

What does China have to do with anything....he was rejected by the Thai embassy in China....Thai government not Chinese officials

[NorthernRyland]

5 minutes ago, tonray said:

What does China have to do with anything....he was rejected by the Thai embassy in China....Thai government not Chinese officials

Are the embassies always staffed by Thai nationals? They don't behave consistently across countries (from my experience) so I thought there were maybe some locals in there to and thus the national culture would rub off on them.

[flow98]

ye indeed my boyfriend did mention that the staff were chinese when i asked if they were thai. So maybe it has to do with that. Fingers crossed that it will all work out. I'll book a cheap flight to vietnam or lao as a proof of departure .

thank you all again for your help

[tonray]

30 minutes ago, genericptr said:

Are the embassies always staffed by Thai nationals? They don't behave consistently across countries (from my experience) so I thought there were maybe some locals in there to and thus the national culture would rub off on them.

Yes...they will employ locals...but policies are strictly made by Thai government...locals are just support staff. Now the reality is that the Thai ambassador who is the high level official who represents Thailand within the PRC may implement policies that he believes would be beneficial to Thailand's favor with the PRC.

[orchis]

5 hours ago, sanemax said:

The train ticket from Nong Khai to Vientiane is 22 Baht

the train to vientiane?

[sanemax]

1 hour ago, orchis said:

the train to vientiane?

There is a steam train from Nong Khai to Vientiane (although the train station is quite a long way from the center of Vientiane