1 year visa

[George Duguid]

Iam from uk looking to live in Thailand with my thai partner and  looking for some help with this visa's... Can i get a 1 year visa and then get an extension every 90 days without leaving Thailand. Or what are my options.

[Kopitiam]

You can't get a 1 year visa with a Thai partner.  You need to get married first.

[overherebc]

Then after getting married you can transfer in 400,000 baht, divide by 37 to give you an idea in Sterling and apply for a one year extension of stay where you report every 3 months to your local Imm' office.

That's the simplified version.

[overherebc]

How old are you? Important to know as it changes what you can apply for.

Over 50 or under 50 years old?

[Peter Denis]

I presume that your thai partner does not need a Visa to stay in Thailand, but you as UK citizen does need one if you plan to stay long time in Thailand.

I also understand that your are not married yet, so here are already 3 options:

- If you are over 50 years of age and meet the financial and other requirements, you could apply at the Thai Embassy in UK for a Non-Imm OA Visa multiple entry.  Such a Visa would allow you to stay 1 year in Thailand (as well as make trips outside Thailand), and you would need to do the so-called 90 day reporting if you stay longer than 3 months consecutively in Thailand.  At the end of the first year, by leaving the country and re-entering before your Visa expires will give you an additional year of staying in Thailand.  The same 90 day reporting applies but when leaving Thailand you would then have to apply each time for a re-entry permit (to avoid that your extension of stay is not declared void). 

After that you either return to your home country and restart the above process, or stay in Thailand but that would mean that you have to 'park' sufficient funds on a Thai bank-account.

- If you are under 50 years of age, you could apply for a Multiple Entry Tourist Visa, which would allow you to stay almost 9 months in Thailand. However after every 60 consecutive days you would need to extent your stay with 30 days at the provincial IO where you are residing, or leave the country and come back in (so called border-run).  

Please note that you cannot stay indefinitely as a Tourist in Thailand, so after your 9 month stay on METV there are ways to prolonge, but if you are going to stay more than 180 days per year in Thailand, you risk that your application can be denied during the process of extending your stay.

- However, when during your stay in Thailand, you marry your thai partner, you could then apply for a Non-Imm O Visa based on marriage.  That would allow you to stay in Thailand indefinitely provided that you leave the country every 90 days for a visit to your home-country or do a borderrun to a neighbouring country.  Also with that option there is a requirement to park sufficient funds on a Thai bank-account once your visa expires and you switch to extensions of stay.

> The above are probably the most relevant options for you, so I suggest you take a look into these, and post your questions - if you have any - on the forum. 

 

[George Duguid]

Thanks very much guys, will have to read this over a few times. George

[ThaiRebound]

3 hours ago, Peter Denis said:

Please note that you cannot stay indefinitely as a Tourist in Thailand, so after your 9 month stay on METV there are ways to prolonge, but if you are going to stay more than 180 days per year in Thailand, you risk that your application can be denied during the process of extending your stay.

Does this also mean you risk not being permitted back into the country when leaving and entering after the second set of 90 days (60+30, 60+30)?

[overherebc]

7 hours ago, ThaiRebound said:

Does this also mean you risk not being permitted back into the country when leaving and entering after the second set of 90 days (60+30, 60+30)?

No.

Generally people who are refused have a string of Visa Exempt entries or a long list of continuous Tourist Visas.

Not always the case but if the Imm' officer is suspicious that you are working you can be refused entry.

There is no legal limit but it seems after 6 VE or SETV questioning on reasons to be here may be asked..

[Peter Denis]

9 hours ago, ThaiRebound said:

Does this also mean you risk not being permitted back into the country when leaving and entering after the second set of 90 days (60+30, 60+30)?

There are many different opinions on the issue of how long you can stay as a Tourist in Thailand.

Myself had 3 almost back-to-back METVs and stayed well over 180 days a year in Thailand (approx 16 months in a 20 month period).  But after that I applied for a Non-Imm OA Visa as the risk of being denied entrance because 'not being a tourist' became too high and I didn't like the stress of possibly being denied when re-entering Thailand (which I had to do every 2-3 months).

When you have a long consecutive history of VE (visa exempt) or Tourist Visas, it seems that it is largely up to the opinion and mood of the immigration officer where you enter the country, if he/she lets you in. Although there is no official +180 day per year rule, that criterium is often cited as the reason for being denied entrance as tourist.  When the officer suspects that you are working in Thailand (e.g. you entering wearing a suit and briefcase) or when you look like a bum (e.g. barefoot and in ragged clothes) that might trigger a reason for denial and 'no tourist' can then be used as excuse for denying your entry.  So polite behaviour and smart casual clothes will surely help if you are a tourist borderline-case.  However, if your history of VE/tourist visas is blatanly excessive, you better be prepared that you can be refused entry.