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Posted

Hello TV Forum Folk,

 

This calendar year, I arrived in Bangkok with my HCMC-obtained SETV, which was for 60 days and extended at local immigration office in Udon Thani for 30 days. I made my first land-crossing into Vientiane and secured a 60-day SETV. I plan to extend for another 30 days at the local immigration office (UT), and then will be making my second land crossing 28-29 days afterwards. I should maybe also mention that these are the only stamps relating to Thailand in my current passport, and that I still have an active 1-year visa for Vietnam. My questions are whether there is any reason I would not receive the 30 day extension in UT again (e.g., a stamp or comment of some kind from the previous visa process, policy, etc.); whether going to Vientiane again is a high-risk proposition for obtaining the SETV again (owing to a stamp or comment in my passport, policy, trend, etc.), and perhaps a safer option if so; what my subsequent options for obtaining an SETV in this calendar year. 

 

Thanks,

TR

Posted

There is no reason why UT office will not give you an extension of your last 60 day stay, if any future tourist entries.

 

You shouldn’t have a problem getting a second SETV from Vientiane.

 

There is no set limit for land crossings as long as you have a visa. Only visa exempt (no visa) entries are limited to two per calendar year.

  • Like 2
Posted
5 minutes ago, ThaiRebound said:

Thanks, this means I can keep crossing into Vientiane to get a new SETV visa and coming back? 

Yes you can until you reach their limit (3 okay but 4 is a maybe) for getting tourist visas from them.

The 2 entry rule at at land borders does not apply to entries using a visa.

Posted

Does that max apply to within calendar year or passport? What other ways to get the visa after that -- would I need to switch to another visa at that point (maybe go back to homecountry and get an METV?)? Getting to the land border every 30 days is what I want to avoid, but I am not sure that is a realizable plan, is it?

Posted
3 hours ago, ThaiRebound said:

Does that max apply to within calendar year or passport? What other ways to get the visa after that -- would I need to switch to another visa at that point (maybe go back to homecountry and get an METV?)? Getting to the land border every 30 days is what I want to avoid, but I am not sure that is a realizable plan, is it?

For Vientiane it is the total of the visas in your passport that they have issued. When you reach their limit you could go to Savannakhet and get more visas from them or one the other nearby embassies or consulates.

Posted
2 hours ago, ThaiRebound said:

Does that max apply to within calendar year or passport? What other ways to get the visa after that -- would I need to switch to another visa at that point (maybe go back to homecountry and get an METV?)? Getting to the land border every 30 days is what I want to avoid, but I am not sure that is a realizable plan, is it?

It is becoming increasingly difficult to stay long term as a ‘tourist. Getting a METV from your home country every 6/9 months isn’t a bad idea unless you’re prepared to trawl SE Asia for SETV’s to get around the individual consular limits. Not applying for more than 3  SETV’’s per embassy/consulate from neighbouring countries is a sensible plan to work to.

 

You’ll have to consider your options every few months as the enforcement by the Thai authorities can/does change. 

Posted

Thank you to both of you! If I understand correctly, according to odds and current enforcement trend, going to Vientiane for next 2 SETV visas should be ok as I only have made 1 there already. If current trend continues, I could go to another embassy/consulate (even in Laos? riskier?) to obtain another SETV in my same passport. Does that sound right? 

Posted
18 minutes ago, ThaiRebound said:

If I understand correctly, according to odds and current enforcement trend, going to Vientiane for next 2 SETV visas should be ok as I only have made 1 there already.

Yes.

 

18 minutes ago, ThaiRebound said:

If current trend continues, I could go to another embassy/consulate (even in Laos? riskier?) to obtain another SETV in my same passport. Does that sound right? 

Yes. But each embassy/consulate has its own rules so it's best to check here nearer to the time of applying.

Posted

@ThaiRebound

Another thing to consider as your time "in Thailand" increases, is where you enter the country.  Avoid the Poipet/Aranya land-border.  Entry at both Bangkok Airports (and some other airports) may also become problematic (hassles, threats, stay-limits stated as if "laws," which don't exist) - even with a valid Tourist Visa - though having a Tourist-Visa is far superior to arriving Visa-Exempt.

 

All land-border crossings except Poipet/Aranya will not go beyond the 'real' rule restrictions, so you will be fine entering with a Tourist Visa (based on reports for the past few years).  That may include asking to see 20K Baht worth of cash (can be in dollars, euros, etc and also travelers checks) - especially coming in from Malaysia. 

 

Also, always have the exact address where you will be staying - I show a business-card, which IOs seem to appreciate for legibility (vs that tiny form-field). 

 

Be prepared to state what you plan to do this visit in Thailand, and where your money comes from (i.e. - you have plenty, and are not working illegally in Thailand).

 

In the event you go out for a Tourist Visa and are unsuccessful, bear in mind that you can enter Visa-Exempt through a land-border 2x per calendar-year.  These are not a problem at any land-border entry-point other than Poipet/Aranya, and can be handy to deal with an unexpected situation.  These are not recommended by-air to those with longer-stay histories.

Posted

JT, thanks so much, especially for the info about the visa-exempt return. I'll eave luggage tThai-side, so it's good to know I can get back to my stuff even if Tourist visa doesn't pan. 

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