Exit ticket after 30 days

[teatime101]

Given that immigration allows for a 30 day extension, no questions asked, it seems inconsistent that one must purchase a ticket to leave Thailand after 30 days before being allowed to enter Thailand. I may be wrong, but this requirement seems to be enforced automatically now at the airport in one's own country. 

 

I was obliged to buy a ticket to KL from BKK at $98, which I won't use, as I plan a border I/O at the end on my extended period.

 

I will have to do the same when I buy the return ticket HH-KL-HH. That's two tickets I won't be using. If anybody wants to buy a ticket at half price let me know :-/

Question: What do other people do in this situation?

 

[ThaiBunny]

1 minute ago, teatime101 said:

I was obliged to buy a ticket ...

Where were you obliged to but this ticket? I've boarded lots of one-way flights in Singapore to Bangkok for example and no-one has batted an eyelid about not showing a flight out of Thailand

[tomazbodner]

11 minutes ago, teatime101 said:

Question: What do other people do in this situation?

They come as tourists for 30 days or less, then leave on the ticket they have already bought.

 

And it's never a "no questions asked" for extensions. They can be denied, you know...

[steve187]

cheaper flights than that to be had, also some flights that can be cancelled. why do people bother to complain about something that has been that way for some time

[DrJack54]

40 minutes ago, ThaiBunny said:

Where were you obliged to but this ticket? I've boarded lots of one-way flights in Singapore to Bangkok for example and no-one has batted an eyelid about not showing a flight out of Thailand

So you were flying into Thailand without a visa? Intending to obtain visa exempt 30 day stay?

[ubonjoe]

I just removed several off topic and bickering posts. Time to end it.

[teatime101]

7 hours ago, tomazbodner said:

They come as tourists for 30 days or less, then leave on the ticket they have already bought.

 

And it's never a "no questions asked" for extensions. They can be denied, you know...

I should have made it clear that I am on a visa exempt visit. I have never been challenged about extending my ‘visa’ by 30 days. 

[teatime101]

7 hours ago, steve187 said:

cheaper flights than that to be had, also some flights that can be cancelled. why do people bother to complain about something that has been that way for some time

I wasn’t complaining. I have flown in previously without a return ticket. So it seems like it’s a recently automated process of verifying travel itinerary. 
 

There is an inconsistency in demanding an exit flight ticket yet permitting an extension once in the country. My question is about how to deal with it. 

[teatime101]

6 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

So you were flying into Thailand without a visa? Intending to obtain visa exempt 30 day stay?

Yes. Sorry for not making that clear. 

[unheard]

4 hours ago, teatime101 said:

There is an inconsistency in demanding an exit flight ticket yet permitting an extension once in the country. My question is about how to deal with it. 

That's a good question....

I wonder the same thing.

So if I am planning on entering on visa-on-arrival and then extending the stay etc etc...

Looks like I have no choice but to buy a round-trip ticket and then let the return leg go unused. (Yeah I know about the refundable fares but normally they don't make it easy or cost-effective to recover the cost of the unused leg.)

[DrJack54]

59 minutes ago, unheard said:

That's a good question....

I wonder the same thing.

So if I am planning on entering on visa-on-arrival and then extending the stay etc etc...

Looks like I have no choice but to buy a round-trip ticket and then let the return leg go unused. (Yeah I know about the refundable fares but normally they don't make it easy or cost-effective to recover the cost of the unused leg.)

Just to clarify. The flight ticket within the 30 day visa exempt period does not need to be a "return" ticket. Just needs to be onward flight. There are cheap flights to places such as Saigon, KL, Vientiane, etc.

There are also internet sites that you rent a ticket. Life span ~ 36hrs and provides a confirmed ticket. Cost ~$12usd.

Of course there is option of setv if it was intention to stay 60 days. Note the extension to visa exempt is 1900baht. 

 

[jacko45k]

13 hours ago, teatime101 said:

Given that immigration allows for a 30 day extension, no questions asked, it seems inconsistent that one must purchase a ticket to leave Thailand after 30 days before being allowed to enter Thailand.

If you plan to stay more than 30 days, use a tourist visa. It is blatantly wrong to try to enter Thailand using a Visa Exempt, which allows for 30 days only, when you know for a fact, you will stay for longer! Option 2, buy a flexible ticket!

They want people to enter with the correct Visa for purpose. 

[steve187]

3 hours ago, unheard said:

That's a good question....

I wonder the same thing.

So if I am planning on entering on visa-on-arrival and then extending the stay etc etc...

Looks like I have no choice but to buy a round-trip ticket and then let the return leg go unused. (Yeah I know about the refundable fares but normally they don't make it easy or cost-effective to recover the cost of the unused leg.)

depends on where you are flying from and the cost of the return leg, getting a return for the actual flights dates you require and then either booking a cheap throw away ticket for say 800-1000 thb, or getting a tourist visa in the first place may work out cheaper

 

i think that saying There is an inconsistency in demanding an exit flight ticket yet permitting an extension once in the country. a visa exempt and then an extension, is not a fair example, if you are planning on a 60 day stay the correct way would be to obtain a tourist visa, not combine 2 different things that seem to fit your requirements

[jackdd]

You are not always asked for a flight, but if you are you should be prepared to book one, look for a cheap one ahead already. An easy way to find a cheap flight is to use the website skyscanner und just select "from Thailand, to everywhere" and "this month" or "next month". The cheapest flight out of Thailand this month would have cost you 840THB, about 2000THB cheaper than what you booked.

 

15 hours ago, tomazbodner said:

And it's never a "no questions asked" for extensions. They can be denied, you know...

I've never been asked anything when getting a 30 days extension, and i've also never read about anybody else having problems to get one. So it seems to be indeed "no questions asked".

[thaibeachlovers]

2 hours ago, jacko45k said:

If you plan to stay more than 30 days, use a tourist visa. It is blatantly wrong to try to enter Thailand using a Visa Exempt, which allows for 30 days only, when you know for a fact, you will stay for longer! Option 2, buy a flexible ticket!

They want people to enter with the correct Visa for purpose. 

If it is wrong, why do they allow an extension for a visa exempt visit? That makes zero sense.

I too want to know the answer to the OP's question.

If I want a tourist visa, I either have to trust my passport to the mail, which I won't do, or make an expensive visit to the big city. If I only want to go for less than 2 months why should I not be able to use the LEGAL visa exempt and extend entry, without having to pay for a bogus exit ticket? Once again, the Thai immigration are imposing ridiculous obstacles to tourists- no wonder fewer are visiting. Too dumb to realise many want to travel OVERLAND out of LOS to neighbouring countries?

[jackdd]

18 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Once again, the Thai immigration are imposing ridiculous obstacles to tourists-

This rule is set by a ministerial order. You could blame Prayut for it, he didn't set it but could revoke it.

The company which made the system the airlines use at checkin implemented this rule in their system, so you could blame them as well.

Immigration only asks for a ticket out if they are looking for a reason to deny this person, in general they don't require it. So in this case you can't blame immigration.

 

[jacko45k]

3 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

If it is wrong, why do they allow an extension for a visa exempt visit? That makes zero sense.

I too want to know the answer to the OP's question.

Perhaps to allow plans to change.... not to facilitate plans,  

To accommodate flight disruptions. 

One could take another tack... by allowing 30 day extensions, they are actually sanctioning a Visa  Exempt of 60 days... why not simply stamp them in for 60 days.? Oh, you would be required to show 20,000 baht not 10,000. 

[ubonjoe]

49 minutes ago, thaibeachlovers said:

Once again, the Thai immigration are imposing ridiculous obstacles to tourists- no wonder fewer are visiting.

Immigration are only following the very old ministerial order that was not changed when the police order allowing the 30 day extension of visa exempt entries was issued in 2014.

Immigration does not normally enforce the ticket out within 30 days. It is done by the airlines due the info they have access to says it is needed.

[ChaiyaTH]

As far I know there is no issues with having a return ticket, later than the 30 days but within the 60 days. 
Other than that, just buy a cheap burner ticket. 98 USD sounds expensive, even a flight to Da Nang could be obtained for like 1400 baht.

Have to agree it is super silly as many people travel over land to Cambodia / Laos and then Vietnam afterwards. 

[DrJack54]

All these threads re limit in tourist visas and visa exempt etc etc amaze me.

I'm a newbie compared to folk here for many many years. Perhaps they can correct me.

So I arrived her (first time) ~ 7 years ago.

I was flying in/out Thailand every month from neighbouring countries. At some point I was told to get visa. Did that for year. Then recall I was Saigon....think I was after a triple tourist visa (when they were available). The io said this "you over 50 live Thailand. Why you no retirement Visa".

Yes I know such thing but knew she was referring to non o.

I obtained one after that.

Sorry long story. Nothing is new. 

I fly in)out Los every month. Thailand has unlimited visa exempt at airports. So why the heck do I need extensions with all the required compliance. 

Answer....because I do. 

These daily threads about how to sidestep system sooooo boring.

[teatime101]

14 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

 

These daily threads about how to sidestep system sooooo boring.

Perhaps don't read them?

 

I'm asking for people to share their experience and advice. Some of it has been useful. I need to remember that my situation is only one of many variations, and not making my spec clear at the beginning was clumsy. Getting an OA visa is not straightforward. There are several steps and hurdles. Right now, I need to make the best of my visa exempt status, until I can get the OA.

[teatime101]

16 hours ago, ChaiyaTH said:

Have to agree it is super silly as many people travel over land to Cambodia / Laos and then Vietnam afterwards. 

Everybody's situation is different. I have considered overland visa runs, but flying is my preferred choice at the moment.

[teatime101]

On 1/14/2020 at 9:10 AM, ubonjoe said:

Immigration does not normally enforce the ticket out within 30 days. It is done by the airlines due the info they have access to says it is needed.

Yes, that's what I experienced this time around. It produces an automatic block in the country of origin, at least it was at SYD for me.

[Chivas]

As far back as 2005 on Emirates I had this very problem flying to Thailand with no visa and using 2nd portion of return ticket (so now effectively one way) and no flight out of Thailand within the next 30 days

Took me actually talking to head of station of Emirates at Gatwick before I was allowed on with no ticket purchased back out again. I was lucky that day

It aint a problem arriving in Bangkok (I've never once been asked and wont be many on TV that have arrived more) but real danger of getting offloaded at departing airport