Married persons return options to Thailand

[Anythingleft?]

Any updates or news about married persons being able to return to Thailand in the near future? did read that there is a possibility that this particular group may be up for some kind of travel sooner than tourists.......

[Aussieroaming]

Yes I read the same thing a week or so ago and it seems to have fallen back off of the radar. Hopefully it will be discussed as part of the forthcoming revised travel bubble agenda meeting.

[itsallmine68]

You have to apply via your Embassy

 

[ifmu]

7 minutes ago, itsallmine68 said:

You have to apply via your Embassy

 

d ya got a link to that info .. thanks

 

[EvetsKram]

Thai foreign affairs say they will look at all applications but as yet have approved none.  If they did approve any how would those people get back here? 

[Max69xl]

1 hour ago, ifmu said:

d ya got a link to that info .. thanks

 

There's been info about it here and on every news website online. Very hard to miss. 

[Kalasin Jo]

Nothing definite. Speculation? Yes. Talk? Yes. Detail? None

[vinny41]

In this video clip, Khun

@NatapanuN

from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says that work permit holders and foreigners married to Thais should contact their local Thai embassy if they want to come back now. Other people with urgent or humanitarian reasons will also be considered.

 

[eastcst84]

30 minutes ago, vinny41 said:

In this video clip, Khun

@NatapanuN

from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, says that work permit holders and foreigners married to Thais should contact their local Thai embassy if they want to come back now. Other people with urgent or humanitarian reasons will also be considered.

 

Someone mentioned that:

 

'Mentions you need flight details and quarantine booking before applying. That’s a big risk for them to say no as there non refundable.'

 

That is definitely a concern.

[vinny41]

4 minutes ago, eastcst84 said:

Someone mentioned that:

 

'Mentions you need flight details and quarantine booking before applying. That’s a big risk for them to say no as there non refundable.'

 

That is definitely a concern.

I would think the 1st step is to contact the Thai embassy before making any bookings 

[eastcst84]

4 minutes ago, vinny41 said:

I would think the 1st step is to contact the Thai embassy before making any bookings 

That's my plan for Monday.

[unheard]

6 hours ago, vinny41 said:

I would think the 1st step is to contact the Thai embassy before making any bookings 

Absolutely.

Just go to your thai embassy website and start an application.

There should be an online form available that guides one through the process:

"Online Visa Application and Declaration Form"

Edited June 19, 2020 by unheard

[idannyb]

I'm US citizen married to a Thai and I have a current/valid spousal Visa w multiple re-entries good till end of 2020 (but that and 20 Baht will get me a popsicle). I left Thailand for USA on biz in mid-March (just before COVID19 lockdowns commenced globally). Now I'm stuck in USA. Following the recent announcement that 'married to Thai' foreigners *may* be considered for entry to Thailand, I am now researching the hoops I will need to jump through. After going to Thai Embassy D.C. in USA online (only D.C. and Los Angeles are presently open and accepting apps), I looked over the online Cert of Entry app process. There's quite a bit of data-fill and then you get to the Catch 22... at the end of the application, you're presented w *required* a doc upload template. In short, 'they want it all' (lots of documentary proof - appx. 9 doc *initial* uploads required in order to successfully *submit* and *begin* the app). I'm confident I can relatively quickly compile all that's being asked; however, it looks like there are four (4) final doc uploads that I likely will be allowed to submit *later* in the application process:

1. Alternative State Quarantine (confirmation page)

2. Fit to Fly Health Cert - to be presented to the Airline (issued no more than 72 hours before traveling)

3. Confirmed Air Ticket with proof of payment

4. A Health Certificate (test negative for COVID19 - issued no more than 72 hours before traveling)

 

I say Catch 22 as you obviously need to buy your plane ticket well in advance, yet the final Thai govt approval will likely not be given until you've uploaded the above final four docs. The "no more than 72 hours" criteria means that your app won't be approved until well after you've paid for air-tickets?  Unless I'm missing something?

 

Moreover, the Thai govt. likely won't be giving Cert of Entry apps a rubber-stamp approval... only those 'properly completed' and show "an urgent need to travel to Thailand." Naturally, I believe my circumstances are urgent, and I hope I can successfully make the case via the online app process. But who really knows?

 

I will begin to search out COVID testing here (I'm in Oregon USA). I suspect I will have to get two (2) tests... one now to pre-qualify for COVID health insurance, and one less than 72 hours before my flight. 

 

Questions for those who've been through this...

1. Any COVID19 health insurers you know of or can recommend? 

2. Wondering how quickly COVID19 test results can be provided for formal Health Cert purposes?

 

[kokesaat]

I got my insurance from Trawick International.......$252 for 30 days.  Walgreens in Texas advertises 24 hour results for testing.

[vinny41]

20 minutes ago, idannyb said:

I'm US citizen married to a Thai and I have a current/valid spousal Visa w multiple re-entries good till end of 2020 (but that and 20 Baht will get me a popsicle). I left Thailand for USA on biz in mid-March (just before COVID19 lockdowns commenced globally). Now I'm stuck in USA. Following the recent announcement that 'married to Thai' foreigners *may* be considered for entry to Thailand, I am now researching the hoops I will need to jump through. After going to Thai Embassy D.C. in USA online (only D.C. and Los Angeles are presently open and accepting apps), I looked over the online Cert of Entry app process. There's quite a bit of data-fill and then you get to the Catch 22... at the end of the application, you're presented w *required* a doc upload template. In short, 'they want it all' (lots of documentary proof - appx. 9 doc *initial* uploads required in order to successfully *submit* and *begin* the app). I'm confident I can relatively quickly compile all that's being asked; however, it looks like there are four (4) final doc uploads that I likely will be allowed to submit *later* in the application process:

1. Alternative State Quarantine (confirmation page)

2. Fit to Fly Health Cert - to be presented to the Airline (issued no more than 72 hours before traveling)

3. Confirmed Air Ticket with proof of payment

4. A Health Certificate (test negative for COVID19 - issued no more than 72 hours before traveling)

 

I say Catch 22 as you obviously need to buy your plane ticket well in advance, yet the final Thai govt approval will likely not be given until you've uploaded the above final four docs. The "no more than 72 hours" criteria means that your app won't be approved until well after you've paid for air-tickets?  Unless I'm missing something?

 

Moreover, the Thai govt. likely won't be giving Cert of Entry apps a rubber-stamp approval... only those 'properly completed' and show "an urgent need to travel to Thailand." Naturally, I believe my circumstances are urgent, and I hope I can successfully make the case via the online app process. But who really knows?

 

I will begin to search out COVID testing here (I'm in Oregon USA). I suspect I will have to get two (2) tests... one now to pre-qualify for COVID health insurance, and one less than 72 hours before my flight. 

 

Questions for those who've been through this...

1. Any COVID19 health insurers you know of or can recommend? 

2. Wondering how quickly COVID19 test results can be provided for formal Health Cert purposes?

 

My understanding is you complete the application and if your application is approved the Thai embassy will contact you and say there are seats available on flight xxxx upto that point no money spent just time and effort if you accept the flight that the embassy has suggested you then contact the airline and pay you then actioned the 1-4 items you mentioned in you post email to embassy and they then issue the Cert of Entry via email. Without the Cert of Entry its unlikely that you would get past check-in at the airport

[unheard]

18 hours ago, vinny41 said:

My understanding is you complete the application and if your application is approved the Thai embassy will contact you and say there are seats available on flight xxxx upto that point no money spent just time and effort if you accept the flight that the embassy has suggested you then contact the airline and pay you then actioned the 1-4 items you mentioned in you post email to embassy and they then issue the Cert of Entry via email. Without the Cert of Entry its unlikely that you would get past check-in at the airport

That's my understanding also.

[Orton Rd]

Daily Mail reporting today that anyone from UK can come here on holiday from July 6th, no quarantine

[vinny41]

13 minutes ago, Orton Rd said:

Daily Mail reporting today that anyone from UK can come here on holiday from July 6th, no quarantine

Quote

They mean No quarantine when you return to the UK 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8464769/Families-book-summer-getaways-air-bridges-open-travel-operators-slash-prices-70.html

[idannyb]

I have now submitted my application/documents for Cert. of Entry into Thailand under their new protocols. I ostensibly qualify, as I am married to a Thai National who resides in Thailand.

 

I managed to assemble and submit -- via the Thai Embassy website Cert of Entry portal -- all of the initial document requirements, and there are many. I also included a detailed “Letter of intent (LOI) to explain the necessity and urgency” (as Thai govt. describes it online).

 

I spoke on the phone today with a Thai embassy official in Wash D.C. and I am hoping the guidance/clarifiers I received are accurate. The Thai embassy staffer I spoke with confirmed that merely “being a married to a Thai National would not necessarily qualify me to gain entry”… hence, I did my best to support my circumstances of necessity and urgency in my LOI cover letter.

 

A few other questions I had for the Thai Embassy staffer I spoke with:

 

Q: “Are you required to book and pay $ for your air-travel tickets ahead of time… that is to say, before you receive entry approval from the Govt of Thailand?”

 

Embassy Answer: “NO! While we require that you initially provide ‘booking info’ (prerequisite to the initial app submission), what the govt really wants to know, initially, is your general travel plan – desired dates and flight numbers.” They will only require proof of confirmed ‘paid for’ booking after you get formal approval to enter Thailand. There are four (4) final doc uploads that must be submitted before you travel but only afteryou get Thai Govt approval:

1.     Alternative State Quarantine. (A confirmation page)

2.     Fit to Fly Health Certificate - to be present to the Airline (issued no more than 72 hours before traveling).

3.     Confirmed Air Ticket with proof of payment

4.     A Health Certificate (test negative for Covid-19) issued no more than 72 hours before traveling. 

MOREOVER… The embassy official was clear to say “the flights that are approved from USA to Thailand would be very limited in number and only after (if) my application for entry is approved would they let me know which specific flights/dates are approved.” He suggested for instance, that I might have to take a flight out of Los Angeles (LAX). And I might not get the airline or connection I want. 

 

This is unfortunate as I need to depart from a smaller US city in Pacific NW USA and fights/connections I’ve found – that show online – are well-priced. I can round-trip fly to Seattle to Tokyo to BKK for a decent $850 fare and these flights can be booked online now. However, the Thai embassy official warned that if I were “to try to take a non-approved flight, I would likely be prevented from boarding.” I must therefore wait and see if I get approved and then be told what flight options they are offering me. Something tells me this is going to bump up the air-travel price/cost substantially.

 

Q: My doctor uses an offsite lab for COVID19 tests, and they can only promise a test result turn-around time of 3 to 5 days… Hence, to be safe (and ensure I get my test back before my flight) I would need to get tested 5 days in advance of my flight… So my question is; “how strict are you (Thai govt./embassy) about the 72 hours before rule?”

 

Embassy Answer: “We are very strict about this rule. Find another health care provider who can give you 24-hour test result turn-around time.”

 

So whish me luck w the whole Cert of Entry approval process… the Thai embassy staffer would not say how long it might take… not even a timeframe. 

 

A few websites that might be helpful for others in similar circumstances:

 

MFA Thailand Channel (COVID and travel/visa updates w many videos in English) https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcY8pNizzuqj2rNrgSr_Pzg

 

Online Cert of Entry App – Thai Embassy USA D.C. https://thaiembdc.org/onlinevisaapplication/

 

Facebook -- PR Thai Government https://www.facebook.com/thailandprd/

 

 

 

 

 

 

[unheard]

18 minutes ago, idannyb said:

I must therefore wait and see if I get approved and then be told what flight options they are offering me.

Thank you for a comprehensive report on your communications with the Embassy.

It just confirms that we have already assumed to be the case:

 

1. The approval is not guaranteed even if you're fully qualified.

2. It could take weeks or possibly months to receive such an approval.

3. The only available flights back are the pricey repatriation flights or possibly later on the so called cargo flights specifically approved by the Thai Government.

 

There's still not a single report of the granted entry approval based on marriage reported here on TV.