Leave on Educ Visa, re-enter on 30 day exemption BEFORE Educ Visa expiry? Possible?

[desakota]

Hi all - my son (Canadian) has an Education visa (with multiple re-entry permit) that will expire at end of June 2018.  We need him to stay for a while longer into July, so I'm wondering about the easiest way to do this.  Will this work:

 

* he goes on a trip outside Thailand in mid-late June

* when he comes back (before the end of June), he requests entry on the basis of a 30-day visa exemption (which Canadians are normally eligible for), rather than on his soon-to-expire-but-still-valid Education visa.

 

Is this likely to succeed?  Is it possible to ask the Immigration Officer to ignore the still valid Education Visa, and let him in with a 30-day exemption stamp instead??

 

Thanks for your thoughts.

[ubonjoe]

If he has a valid re-entry permit when he enters the officer could insist on using it for entry. But if there is only a few days remaining on the re-entry permit they should do the 30 days since it will allow a longer stay.

[desakota]

34 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

If he has a valid re-entry permit when he enters the officer could insist on using it for entry. But if there is only a few days remaining on the re-entry permit they should do the 30 days since it will allow a longer stay.

Thanks - so, it seems like it could go either way, no real way to know in advance....correct? 

 

(By the way, the reason we don't just have him leave at end of June and re-enter in July after Educ Visa expires, is that the trip in question is already pre-planned for mid-June.)

[ubonjoe]

Just now, desakota said:

Thanks - so, it seems like it could go either way, no real way to know in advance....correct? 

The only way to be certain is to cancel the extension at immigration by presenting a letter from the school stating a date he will no longer be attending classes. If you went a few days before that date immigration would postdate the cancelation to that date.

[desakota]

22 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

The only way to be certain is to cancel the extension at immigration by presenting a letter from the school stating a date he will no longer be attending classes. If you went a few days before that date immigration would postdate the cancelation to that date.

Ah, perfect - this is quite clear, thanks.  So, in advance of his trip in June, we process a cancellation of his education visa/re-entry permit effective (say) on the date he leaves on his trip.  Then when he comes back, he can re-enter like any Canadian traveller on a 30-day tourist visa exemption.  Thanks!