O/A visa and insurance experience today

[Peter Denis]

8 minutes ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

Where would go at Suvarnabhumi exactly to correct this stamp.

 

7 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Immigration has an office in the terminal that a person can go to.

 

From post #901 it seems that those unfortunates that were incorrectly denied their 12 month permission to stay, and got a 30 day stamp, don't need to go to the Airport but can have it corrected at their provincial IO.

[AAArdvark]

If someone were given a "30 day stamp" upon reentry, what is that stamp called and is it extendable like an exempt is? 

[ubonjoe]

8 minutes ago, Peter Denis said:

From post #901 it seems that those unfortunates that were incorrectly denied their 12 month permission to stay, and got a 30 day stamp, don't need to go to the Airport but can have it corrected at their provincial IO.

Correct but the person who did it went to Chaeng Wattana immigration and was told to do it at the airport.

[ubonjoe]

3 minutes ago, AAArdvark said:

If someone were given a "30 day stamp" upon reentry, what is that stamp called and is it extendable like an exempt is? 

It is a normal 30 day visa exempt entry stamp that can be extended for 30 days.

[Travelerusa40]

I traveled from the US and my OA Visa was approved 6 Septermber 2019. I arrived in Thailand on 7 November 2019. They said I needed a Foreigen Insurancae Certificate. I said this was not a requirement on 6 November 2019 when i got my OA Visa. They then stamped my visa with a Transit 30 day Visa. I emailed the US Thai Consulate in Washington DC and they were set back and said that they have no control over Bangkok Immigration and I need to go to the Main office in Bangkok and talk to them. Well, I did that and it has been a week. I waited all day and everyone who makes the big decisions where in a meeting about thsi OA Visa Issue specifically like mine. It has been over a week and nothing is happend. I paid $200usd, made apartment lease arrangments, and booked some trips and know I am force out of Thailand in 30 days. It is sad to me me! Congrats on all you others that they did not kick back.

 

Also, this BS about the Foreign Insurance Certificate. What major insurance company is going to have 2 directors sign and stamp this form plus put specific requirement amountss for inpatient and outpaitent. Most if not all, Insurance companies only give you a Standard letter verifying your insurance and will not complete this Thailand form. So, you hare told to buy Thai insurance which is can be $750 a year with $1500usd deductable or $1,000 a year with $400 deductable. The coverage is very low and not quaility insurance. Also, if you got pre-existing problems then for get it you will not get coverage. Also, if you are over 75 your done! Just leave Thailand or don't even apply to come in.

 

[peterbkk2]

5 minutes ago, Travelerusa40 said:

I traveled from the US and my OA Visa was approved 6 Septermber 2019. I arrived in Thailand on 7 November 2019. They said I needed a Foreigen Insurancae Certificate. I said this was not a requirement on 6 November 2019 when i got my OA Visa. They then stamped my visa with a Transit 30 day Visa. I emailed the US Thai Consulate in Washington DC and they were set back and said that they have no control over Bangkok Immigration and I need to go to the Main office in Bangkok and talk to them. Well, I did that and it has been a week. I waited all day and everyone who makes the big decisions where in a meeting about thsi OA Visa Issue specifically like mine. It has been over a week and nothing is happend. I paid $200usd, made apartment lease arrangments, and booked some trips and know I am force out of Thailand in 30 days. It is sad to me me! Congrats on all you others that they did not kick back.

 

Also, this BS about the Foreign Insurance Certificate. What major insurance company is going to have 2 directors sign and stamp this form plus put specific requirement amountss for inpatient and outpaitent. Most if not all, Insurance companies only give you a Standard letter verifying your insurance and will not complete this Thailand form. So, you hare told to buy Thai insurance which is can be $750 a year with $1500usd deductable or $1,000 a year with $400 deductable. The coverage is very low and not quaility insurance. Also, if you got pre-existing problems then for get it you will not get coverage. Also, if you are over 75 your done! Just leave Thailand or don't even apply to come in.

 

Based on the most recent posts, it seems that you can go to the airport and get the stamp fixed to reflect your 12-month entitlement.

[lopburi3]

6 minutes ago, Travelerusa40 said:

It has been over a week and nothing is happend.

Did you read the thread?  CW told at least one person to go to airport to have it changed and that worked fine and he now has a one year stay.  Those arriving after 7 Nov should not have this issue from previous report.

[Peter Denis]

6 minutes ago, Travelerusa40 said:

I traveled from the US and my OA Visa was approved 6 Septermber 2019. I arrived in Thailand on 7 November 2019. They said I needed a Foreigen Insurancae Certificate. I said this was not a requirement on 6 November 2019 when i got my OA Visa. They then stamped my visa with a Transit 30 day Visa.

...

Several reports since today that when you were incorrectly stamped in for 30 days when arriving on an OA Visa issued before Oct 31, that you can get this corrected at the Airport (or at some local IOs, e.g. HuaHin).

[LivinLOS]

Great new that it would appear the 'stamped in until end date of' parts of the written instructions is being ignored. 

 

Its crystal clear in the legal text as to how IOs should proceed, but they appear to not want to impose the restriction and good, it would have been a royal mess of a system. 

 

Also makes an OX much more useable.. 1 year entrys without insurance for 5 years. 

[AJ5358]

27 minutes ago, Peter Denis said:

Several reports since today that when you were incorrectly stamped in for 30 days when arriving on an OA Visa issued before Oct 31, that you can get this corrected at the Airport (or at some local IOs, e.g. HuaHin).

By the way, Hua Hin does have a local airport, and therefore it may be why they are able to give a corrected stamp. 

[brianj1964]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

No

As I always have valued your advice Joe as it seemed to be only you and Sheryl and Ellis that said I was here legally, what extensions will require insurance? I thought any extension applied for after 31/10 did require insurance? Is it only ones that were originally granted after 31/10 or are we still unclear

Edited November 12, 2019 by brianj1964

[Sheryl]

32 minutes ago, LivinLOS said:

Great new that it would appear the 'stamped in until end date of' parts of the written instructions is being ignored. 

 

Its crystal clear in the legal text as to how IOs should proceed, but they appear to not want to impose the restriction and good, it would have been a royal mess of a system. 

 

Also makes an OX much more useable.. 1 year entrys without insurance for 5 years. 

It is not at all clear in the police order that IOs should apply the insurance criteria to entry on OA visas issued before the effective date. I don't read it that way and neither did Embassies and Consulates, all of whom  understood the effective date to be the date of visa issuance and proceeded accordingly. After initial mix up it has likewise clarified to IOs at entry point that this is the case.

[Haribo]

One of our clients just came to us from immigration in Hua Hin. The customer is continuously for 4 years with annual extensions of an OA visa in Thailand. He has not received a new extension because he had no health insurance certificate. This means that in Hua Hin even with an extension of an OA visa the proof of insurance must be present. So not only at new exhibitions abroad but also with extensions in Thailand. Can someone from another region confirm or deny this to me? Thanks

[Momofarang]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

No

[vivananahuahin]

i will confirm you after November 22,i will ask to the IO in my immigration office what are the rules for Tha Yang, anyway i am also in the same situation,one solution go out the country and kill this visa and begin a new one NON O one entry  for 90 days,and after 60 days extend for one year marriage,and i will avoid this new regulation.

[LivinLOS]

44 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

It is not at all clear in the police order that IOs should apply the insurance criteria to entry on OA visas issued before the effective date. I don't read it that way and neither did Embassies and Consulates, all of whom  understood the effective date to be the date of visa issuance and proceeded accordingly. After initial mix up it has likewise clarified to IOs at entry point that this is the case.

I think these instructions seem crystal clear.. "Up to the end date of the insurance". It is explicit that this process is to start for enforcement on the 31st and is to apply to all arrivals. There is no 'pre and post' 31st for the visa listed anywhere I can see. 

 

I think its great these instructions are not being strictly followed, but cannot read this order any other way, no matter how much I try. In fact the order explicitly states it DOES apply to visas issued prior to the 31st, as the following instructions commence then and apply to all visas presented to the IO on arrival. 
 

Edited November 12, 2019 by LivinLOS

[LivinLOS]

56 minutes ago, AJ5358 said:

By the way, Hua Hin does have a local airport, and therefore it may be why they are able to give a corrected stamp. 

Theres international flights into Hua Hin ?? 

[LivinLOS]

41 minutes ago, Haribo said:

One of our clients just came to us from immigration in Hua Hin. The customer is continuously for 4 years with annual extensions of an OA visa in Thailand. He has not received a new extension because he had no health insurance certificate. This means that in Hua Hin even with an extension of an OA visa the proof of insurance must be present. So not only at new exhibitions abroad but also with extensions in Thailand. Can someone from another region confirm or deny this to me? Thanks

as per the order 

 

 

[brianj1964]

7 minutes ago, LivinLOS said:

I think these instructions seem crystal clear.. "Up to the end date of the insurance". It is explicit that this process is to start for enforcement on the 31st and is to apply to all arrivals. There is no 'pre and post' 31st for the visa listed anywhere I can see. 

 

I think its great these instructions are not being strictly followed, but cannot read this order any other way, no matter how much I try. In fact the order explicitly states it DOES apply to visas issued prior to the 31st, as the following instructions commence then and apply to all visas presented to the IO on arrival. 
 

Yes I was told issue date is irrelevant its entry date that matters, so I have to ask why they are altering stamps, surely not a good will gesture?

[Mango Bob]

9 minutes ago, LivinLOS said:

as per the order 

 

 

Why would someone who on an extension of stay have to go online to get insurance?  Also those who got their o/a visa before this date would never know about the insurance.  It does not apply to them.

Edited November 12, 2019 by Mango Bob

[jackdd]

3 minutes ago, Mango Bob said:

Why would someone who on an extension of stay have to go online to get insurance?

If they would take this point literally nobody with an OA visa would be able to get a retirement extension anymore. They write "via the website longstay.tgia.org", but there are no insurance policies sold on this site.

They probably wanted to write something like "buy an approved health insurance, a list of health insurance providers offering such policies can be found on longstay.tgia.org"

[LivinLOS]

4 minutes ago, jackdd said:

If they would take this point literally nobody with an OA visa would be able to get a retirement extension anymore. They write "via the website longstay.tgia.org", but there are no insurance policies sold on this site.

They probably wanted to write something like "buy an approved health insurance, a list of health insurance providers offering such policies can be found on longstay.tgia.org"

The point being that after the first year, it is likely that they have to be part of the database linked packages, which are only sold visa the companies listed online at xxxxx 

 

The first year overseas and other companies are accepted, how the enforcement of this evolves will be the nitty gritty and I would guess highly local office dependant. 

[LivinLOS]

18 minutes ago, brianj1964 said:

Yes I was told issue date is irrelevant its entry date that matters, so I have to ask why they are altering stamps, surely not a good will gesture?

Clearly they have decided to allow entry for a full year, even tho that is counter to the written instructions. Thats great news for holders of this class. 

 

Those written instructions clearly state that entry stamps should be only up to the end date of insurance, and the commencement for that process is to start after the 31st. There appears no 'pre 31st issued visas' exemption to the instructions. 

 

 

[crazygreg44]

2 hours ago, Haribo said:

One of our clients just came to us from immigration in Hua Hin. The customer is continuously for 4 years with annual extensions of an OA visa in Thailand. He has not received a new extension because he had no health insurance certificate. This means that in Hua Hin even with an extension of an OA visa the proof of insurance must be present. So not only at new exhibitions abroad but also with extensions in Thailand. Can someone from another region confirm or deny this to me? Thanks

excuse me, are you an internet troll ?

 

There are incoming reports that a correction in the interpretation of the police order has led to a "grandfathering" scheme regarding all O/A visa that were issued before 31 st of October 2019 which says, NO health insurance needed for extension of the O/A or an EOS resulting from an O/A from this period.

 

and YOU - completely new to this forum - want to tell us something else ?  

Edited November 12, 2019 by crazygreg44

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

1 hour ago, jackdd said:

If they would take this point literally nobody with an OA visa would be able to get a retirement extension anymore. They write "via the website longstay.tgia.org", but there are no insurance policies sold on this site.

They probably wanted to write something like "buy an approved health insurance, a list of health insurance providers offering such policies can be found on longstay.tgia.org"

 

What it means in practice is (despite the predictably lousy Thai wording), that someone needing health insurance under the O-A requirement must obtain it from one of the approved health insurance providers listed on the TGIA/O-A website.  The notion about buying online is irrelevant, despite their wording.

 

[Kadilo]

6 minutes ago, crazygreg44 said:

excuse me, are you an internet troll ?

 

There are incoming reports that a correction in the interpretation of the police order has led to a "grandfathering" scheme regarding all O/A visa that were issued before 31 st of October 2019 which says, NO health insurance needed for extension of the O/A or an EOS resulting from an O/A from this period.

 

and YOU - completely new to this forum - want to tell us something else ?  

The problem is that there are numerous threads posting similar and showing photos of the instructions in local Immigration Offices. 

Its really worrying and confusing for many and needs sorting by the Mods as it’s getting out of hand. 

 

[deej]

And now on this thread to morning reports from Penang????saying Non O visa.s etc etc are in danger of execution 

What a load of rubbish!!!

Edited November 12, 2019 by deej

[crazygreg44]

3 minutes ago, Kadilo said:

The problem is that there are numerous threads posting similar and showing photos of the instructions in local Immigration Offices. 

Its really worrying and confusing for many and needs sorting by the Mods as it’s getting out of hand. 

 

the introduction of the "grandfathering" scheme is absolutely NEW  . it came from a meeting of Immigration offcials at Suvarnabhumi Airport as of November 7th.  So all the conflicting messages and postings are in line and understandable regarding the confusion that was imminent BEFORE today 

Edited November 12, 2019 by crazygreg44

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

15 minutes ago, crazygreg44 said:

excuse me, are you an internet troll ?

 

There are incoming reports that a correction in the interpretation of the police order has led to a "grandfathering" scheme regarding all O/A visa that were issued before 31 st of October 2019 which says, NO health insurance needed for extension of the O/A or an EOS resulting from an O/A from this period.

 

and YOU - completely new to this forum - want to tell us something else ?  

 

How Immigration is treating pre-Oct. 31 O-A visa entries at the airports or land borders is an entirely separate issue from how they're treating extension of stay applications that originated from prior (or future) O-A visas...

 

It seems as though Immigration has sorted out the pre and post Oct. 31 issue date O-A visas.  Those before Oct. 31 not requiring insurance when used for entry, and those from Oct. 31 requiring insurance.

 

There's been no such clarification regarding O-A based retirement extension of stay applications being filed from Oct. 31 onward. And there continue to be fresh reports arriving from various Immigration offices of insurance being required, rightly or wrongly, when past O-A visa holders now apply for retirement extensions of stay.

 

Edited November 12, 2019 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Momofarang]

6 minutes ago, deej said:

And now on this thread reports from Penang????saying Non O visa.s etc etc are in danger of execution 

What a load of rubbish!!!

This would make sense wouldn't? But I'll keep my doubts for myself.