i need some URGENT advice/input on how to extend my stay (due to visa expiring)

[cftwo53]

hey guys

i'll try to be as brief and concise as i can(but if you dont wanna hear it just skip to the underlined part at the bottom)...heres my situation.i always loved thailand.moved here 2 years ago.thai government is extremely difficult to deal with regarding immigration but up until now i made it work.i been here on an ED visa.but around 4 months ago misfortune has befallen me (severely).my father back home passed away,so had to spend 200k thb on funeral.and as faith would have it,exactly ONE WEEK after that ,i lost my online job.so i lost both my savings and my income in one fell swoop.bills started piling up extremely quickly (even tho i live a humble lifestyle).but i have tuition fees for college every 3 months (9000thb),yearly school fee (5000thb),1900 thb ed visa renewal every 3 months,rent,electricity,food etc...i got overwhelmed from all sides.drowning in the water

 

i even went as far as trying to get teacher jobs in some boonies out there in esan for 15k a month but...since i still have one year left before i get my degree from college they all told me "they cant process the work visa at immigration if they give me work permit without me having a ba degree".ive been coasting by getting freelance jobs as a translator (im 100% fluent in 3 languages) but i worked for very cheap ,in order to make my bids stand out from the crowd (very competitive crowd with degrees,experience and reputation).

 

anyway,to get to my point...this has become unsustainable.mainly because im relying on college for my ED visa in order to stay here.thats not an option anymore because my visa expires on the 9th of this month and i simply cant afford the tuition fees.

 

after 2 years of scratching my head regarding how to stay in thailand i finally decided to just give up.its not worth it.the thai government makes it way too difficult to live a peaceful existence here.you cant even give me a one year ed visa???have to go renew it every 3 months?nah...im done with this!

so i started looking at other countries.and i noticed how much more relaxed things are there.philipines,cambodia,vietnam (it seems like only thailand is makin it such a pain in the ass to stay here.like theyre korea or japan or something).so i decided to move to the philipines.you can keep extending your arrival/tourist visa for a year.then after the year is up just leave the country and come back in and start again.not to mention you get a 5 year visa if you marry a filipina woman....i love thailand,i love thai people...but i cant stand the way the government does things.so im out!

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ufff that was more long winded than i expected.sorry guys,im venting 2 years of frustration.so...my question is :

what can i do to prolong my stay in thailand for a few months while i settle things ,tie loose ends and get ready for the move?

when i first came here,i had to switch from tourist visa to ed visa.is it possible to switch from ed visa back to tourist visa at immigration?without leaving the country?and is it possible to extend the 1 month tourist visa for another 1 month?or do you have any other suggestions?keep in mind,this is a one time thing.im not looking for little tricks to stay here indefinitely .just trying to buy myself some time to recollect my thoughts and move on.boost my stay as much as i can so i can work online,make some money and make the move.any loopholes you can think of?no matter how unconventional?any sort of request for a grace period or something?i already know the answer but im in dire straights so i figured...wouldnt hurt to ask you guys (my last shot)

(keep in mind im already familiar with border runs and i would like to try and avoid it.because financially it wouldnt be feasible for me right now.pay for transport/pay for cambodian visa/pay for thai visa on reentry/pay for transport back to bkk...cant do it)

 

thank you in advance for any input.it would be very appreciated 

[Cletus]

47 minutes ago, cftwo53 said:

is it possible to switch from ed visa back to tourist visa at immigration?without leaving the country?

No.

 

48 minutes ago, cftwo53 said:

and is it possible to extend the 1 month tourist visa for another 1 month?

There's no 1 month tourist visa. Maybe you mean 30 days visa exempt entry?

[cftwo53]

i mean...the first time i came to thailand they gave me a 30 day tourist visa (entry visa?)

[cftwo53]

oh and one more thing...what if you go by plane?i remember when i first came to thailand by plane they just stamped my passport at the airport gate and that was it.i dont remember paying any fee.lets say i fly to cambodia,dont leave the airport and fly right back.would i have to pay any visa fee while getting off the plane in cambodia and getting off the plane in thailand?or just a stamp (and only pay for plane ticket basically)

[Cletus]

4 minutes ago, cftwo53 said:

i mean...the first time i came to thailand they gave me a 30 day tourist visa (entry visa?)

They gave you a 30 days visa exempt entry (it's not a visa). You can extend this at an Immigration office and get 30 days more.

[cftwo53]

ah ok,thanks...got mixed up there.well,that sounds good.so what about the plane thing?can i fly into a neighboring country and get that country exempt entry,then fly back to thailand and get thailands exempt entry at no cost?and then extend that for 30 days more?

[Cletus]

41 minutes ago, cftwo53 said:

ah ok,thanks...got mixed up there.well,that sounds good.so what about the plane thing?can i fly into a neighboring country and get that country exempt entry,then fly back to thailand and get thailands exempt entry at no cost?and then extend that for 30 days more?

Yes, theoretically you can. But it depends alot on your previous visa/entries history, you could be grilled by an immigration officer when entering Thailand at the airport. For Cambodia you'll need to buy a visa. Malaysia will grant you 90 days entry no fee. Some people fly Bangkok-Kuala Lampur back on same day but I repeat, it depends on your entries history, and lately it seems Immigration is getting tighter on this kind of "visa trip". I'd suggest you get a tourist visa in a nearby consulate/embassy (being Vientiane the easiest one) and get 60 days permission to stay upon arrival to Thailand.

[BritTim]

35 minutes ago, cftwo53 said:

ah ok,thanks...got mixed up there.well,that sounds good.so what about the plane thing?can i fly into a neighboring country and get that country exempt entry,then fly back to thailand and get thailands exempt entry at no cost?and then extend that for 30 days more?

First, be aware that entering many countries requires you to purchase a visa on arrival. This is true, for most nationalities) in Laos and Cambodia. Immigration will generally check that you really entered the other country when you do a same day out and back.

Second, using visa exempt entries to stay in Thailand, when the immigration official can see that you have been living here is very risky. Some officials are liable to deny you entry, and send to back to where you boarded the plane.

I recommend you go to Vientiane and get an actual tourist visa. You can do this with a single night's stay in Vientiane. The visa itself costs 1,000 baht. If keeping costs to the minimum, take a bus or train to Nong Khai to cross to Vientiane. To avoid a long bus journey, slightly more expensive is to fly to Udon airport about 45 minutes from the Friendship Bridge at Nong Khai.

[cftwo53]

thank you for your responses!

i only exited thailand ONCE 2+ years ago.and i only did it because i didnt know you cant switch to ed visa unless you have at least 15 days left on your exempt entry.so im far from your tipical "boarder hopper"(had a stable ed visa for 2 years straight)

 

so i guess i will go to get a tourist visa and do things the legit way.thanks again 

[JackThompson]

You would have no problem getting a Visa-Exempt entry at a land-border other than Poipet/Aranya 2x per calendar year.  But, if using Malaysia, where you can probably enter visa-free, you may need to stay out overnight before returning and may also be asked to show 20K Baht worth of cash or travelers checks when re-entering Thailand.  The 30-day extension on this entry is 1900 Baht.

 

A Tourist Visa is good for 60-days and also extendable by 30-days, and costs 1000 Baht - so if you need 2-3 mo, that is the way to go.  If you don't have other TR Visas in your passport, you could get several in the area before needing a new passport to continue.  Again, all land-border except Poipet/Aranya will allow you to enter Thailand without issue holding a TR Visa, provided no overstay-record.

 

The trouble is entering by air, where an "ED" Visa can get you treated like a criminal.  I would not try to "fly in" to Thailand at all, given your history.  Entering by air with a Tourist Visa is far better than attempting a visa-exempt entry by air, but could still see you dealing with an IO who is angry you were able to legally stay here on an ED - something which he and/or his-boss thinks should be legally abolished, as well as more than "so many" (undefined - just guess and pray) days as a tourist. 

 

As to the PI - yes, no problems - their Immigration folks won't screw with you for faithfully following their laws at any entry-point or office by making up non-existent rules or such.  I found them to be very pleasant and friendly at all times - just follow the rules. As to Vietnam and Cambodia - easy visa options, don't overstay and no problems. 

 

As to Korea and Japan - many have an incentive to enter those countries to work illegally - quite unlike Westerners in Thailand.  What seems to be missed, is that screwing your country's businesses out of willing customers by denying them entry or stay-extensions doesn't make you a "1st World Country" - quite the opposite, in fact.  Controlling the labor-market such that blue-collar laborer-citizens earn middle-class wages is what qualifies a country for that classification.

[cftwo53]

thank you,appreciated the info

[The manic]

Consider Malaysia as an alternative country.

[Shocked farang]

On 10/5/2018 at 5:25 PM, cftwo53 said:

oh and one more thing...what if you go by plane?i remember when i first came to thailand by plane they just stamped my passport at the airport gate and that was it.i dont remember paying any fee.lets say i fly to cambodia,dont leave the airport and fly right back.would i have to pay any visa fee while getting off the plane in cambodia and getting off the plane in thailand?or just a stamp (and only pay for plane ticket basically)

The cheapest Cambodian Visa (tourist) costs 30 us dollars, the shortest and cheapest flight would be with Air Asia to Siem Reap, you get a 1 month stay with this Visa. You would have to go through immigration and then wait for the next flight back to Bangkok. By the way, have you thought about staying in Cambodia indefinitely? If you get the ordinary Visa that costs 35 US dollars you can extend it up to one year. 

[rickudon]

The Op's basic problem is no source of income. Without one how can you pay for anything? Time to really stop, look at your life and see if continuing is viable.

[JackThompson]

2 hours ago, rickudon said:

The Op's basic problem is no source of income. Without one how can you pay for anything? Time to really stop, look at your life and see if continuing is viable.

Let's hope he thinks continuing his life is viable - but I think I know what you meant.

 

16 hours ago, Shocked farang said:

By the way, have you thought about staying in Cambodia indefinitely? If you get the ordinary Visa that costs 35 US dollars you can extend it up to one year. 

On 10/5/2018 at 3:42 PM, cftwo53 said:

i even went as far as trying to get teacher jobs in some boonies out there in esan for 15k a month but...since i still have one year left before i get my degree from college they all told me "they cant process the work visa at immigration if they give me work permit without me having a ba degree"

If one hits a rough patch, and needs to get work quickly and keep expenses very low, Cambodia is a good option.  You can teach English there - probably find a job in a few days.  Most schools only care that you can speak English clearly and have a good teaching-attitude - not what degrees you have.  In the PI, this is not an easy-option, because many natives teach English there (including to visiting foreign students).

 

Fan-Rooms in Phnom Penh can be $60/mo or so (nicer ones $100+), and food from the market is fresh and cheap.  It's not living The Ritz, but you can save some money doing this, while you decide what to do next. 

 

Oh, and as mentioned above, you can extend an ordinary visa out for 3-mo, 6-mo, or a year at a time, without ever leaving the country.  You will pay an agent for this, but around $25 USD - not $hundreds$.  Like the PI, they are happy to have well-behaved foreigners stay/live there.

[PhilippBKK]

Start a Gofundme page and if that doesn't help, there was an oldtimer selling sunglasses at he the airport the other day, not sure how that went though,....