Extending Non O-A Visa Obtained from Abroad with Closed Borders

[Isaanman]

I need someone to clarify a few things for me, regarding the closure of Thai borders due to COVID and the extension of an O-A Visa obtained out of the country last year. Am I correct in understanding that, if the borders in and out of Thailand remain closed into the next year (very likely) and I cannot jump in and out of the country before my 1-year O-A visa expires in February to get the additional year, that I will either have to deposit the required ฿800k in my Thai bank account at least 2 months before this visa expires to request an extension from within the country or I will have to leave the country to return home by that same date? Is there anyway at all to get this additional year amidst the ongoing COVID crisis without leaving the country?

 

Also, my family--all farang on Non-O visas (also good until Feb. 2021)--has not had to leave the country yet due to the emergency decrees (presently extended until the 26th of this month). Someone told me that they would need to get on my O-A visa by September 11th (this Friday) to avoid being fined for overstays or have other visa issues (I didn't really understand them well ???), should the decree not be extended again. This sounded wrong to me; but, I was not sure about it. Anyone have any thoughts about any of these matters? I want to get a feel for what others think before I make my appointment at the IO tomorrow to get my wife and kids on my visa. Thanks. ????  

[ubonjoe]

If you can't leave and re-enter the country before your visa expires your visa expire your only choice is to extend your current permit to stay from you visa for one year at immigration.

Your family can apply for extensions of stay based upon being members of you family. Their extension will granted to day the your current permit to stay ends. You will need your marriage certificate and their birth have that have been legalized by a authority in your home country or your embassy. 

[ThailandRyan]

My O-A ME Visa's end of the first year is coming up in November.  As I can not bounce out and then back in to add another year, I have moved 800,000 baht into a fixed deposit account to ensure I have the proper seasoning for said monies.  I have made an appointment for a date in October and it is exactly 30 days prior to my O-A Visa expiring, and I will be applying for the extension of stay based upon retirement.  The Thai Health insurance unfortunately is a requisite, and my policy will be regenerated to continue for another year in line with the extension.  My O-A Visa was issued before October 31st when the health Insurance requirement came into play, but with the issues folks were having at the time, and I already had a Thai policy I just kept it in force and had them move the start and end date to coincide with the Visa stamp that immigration placed into my passport when I entered the country.  I wish you the best.

[Isaanman]

11 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Your family can apply for extensions of stay based upon being members of you family. Their extension will granted to day the your current permit to stay ends. You will need your marriage certificate and their birth have that have been legalized by a authority in your home country or your embassy. 

Am I correct in assuming, then, that once I get my visa extended at Immigration for an additional year (renewing my health insurance, seasoning the ฿800k, etc) and my family gets on it, that my family's visas will also be extended as long as mine is, just as I have done before when I have popped out to get the extra year? 

 

Also, just to make sure . . . this would be the first time I ever deposited the ฿800k in my Thai bank. For people doing this for the first time, I only need to park the money in the bank 2 months--not 3-- before the date of expiration of my extended visa, correct? 

[Isaanman]

One last question . . . should I go ahead and park the THB in the bank and, at the last minute one of the borders open for me to pop out and back in the country so as to get the additional year, as things look right now, I would still have to undergo the 2-week quarantine and have $100k COVID health insurance to do that, correct? Recently, 2 friends of a friend were able to come back to the LoS last month and, with only 2 days left of their quarantine, they contracted COVID and are now confined to a Thai hospital for a month! Should a similar scenario occur in my case, would my family's visas automatically extend along with mine once I am back in the country with the stamp in my passport, even if I am not available to go with them down to our local IO to demonstrate it to them? I am just thinking of what might take place, if I could leave and wanted to get the maximum amount of extension (by waiting as long as I can before my present O-A stamp expires), but was unable (for some reason) to return to the IO with my family after returning before my current stamp expires. Thanks for your insights. 

[jacko45k]

13 hours ago, Isaanman said:

Is there anyway at all to get this additional year amidst the ongoing COVID crisis without leaving the country?

The only option is to extend your current Permission of Stay. (Since you cannot leave and return to get a new one). There are multiple basis to get an Extension but for a year the choices are limited. Usually retirement or marriage, both requiring seasoned money in a bank account or income (or combination).

Some family can piggy back on your extension but this is usually in the form of a new Non-Imm-O which you might be able to do in country, maybe even get an Extension for them. Have you discussed with an agent maybe?

Edited September 8, 2020 by jacko45k

[DrJack54]

OP, forget about your O-A "extra year" by exiting and reenter prior to it's expiry.

Follow advice given by ThailandRyan post #3

[ubonjoe]

32 minutes ago, Isaanman said:

Am I correct in assuming, then, that once I get my visa extended at Immigration for an additional year (renewing my health insurance, seasoning the ฿800k, etc) and my family gets on it, that my family's visas will also be extended as long as mine is, just as I have done before when I have popped out to get the extra year? 

You need to apply for their extensions now so that they can legally stay until your last one year entry ends (not your visa expiration date). What is you admitted until date shown on most recent arrival stamp.

Then when you apply for the one year extension they would apply for a new extension that will be valid up to the day yours end.

 

32 minutes ago, Isaanman said:

Also, just to make sure . . . this would be the first time I ever deposited the ฿800k in my Thai bank. For people doing this for the first time, I only need to park the money in the bank 2 months--not 3-- before the date of expiration of my extended visa, correct? 

The 800k baht will only need to be in the bank for 2 months before the day you apply for the one year extension of stay.

[ubonjoe]

29 minutes ago, Isaanman said:

Should a similar scenario occur in my case, would my family's visas automatically extend along with mine once I am back in the country with the stamp in my passport, even if I am not available to go with them down to our local IO to demonstrate it to them? I am just thinking of what might take place, if I could leave and wanted to get the maximum amount of extension (by waiting as long as I can before my present O-A stamp expires), but was unable (for some reason) to return to the IO with my family after returning before my current stamp expires.

If you were able to leave and re-enter the country your family would have to apply for a new extension when the one they have expires and it would be issued to the day you current permit to stay ends. They could do the extension themselves with copies of your passport pages to prove your new permit to stay.

[Isaanman]

2 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

You need to apply for their extensions now so that they can legally stay until your last one year entry ends (not your visa expiration date). What is you admitted until date shown on most recent arrival stamp.

Yes, I am going down to the IO to make an appointment to get them on my visa for the purpose stated today. As we never left the LoS (having barely slipped back in before COVID closures), we only have the initial stamp in our PP we received at the airport. Should we do everything to stay in country, will immigration grant me the additional one year from the original visa expiation date (the first week in Feb) or from the arrival stamp date (later in February)? 

[ubonjoe]

36 minutes ago, Isaanman said:

Yes, I am going down to the IO to make an appointment to get them on my visa for the purpose stated today. As we never left the LoS (having barely slipped back in before COVID closures), we only have the initial stamp in our PP we received at the airport. Should we do everything to stay in country, will immigration grant me the additional one year from the original visa expiation date (the first week in Feb) or from the arrival stamp date (later in February)? 

You families extension should start from the day the day they apply or from September 27th when the current "amnesty" ends and end on the same day your current admitted until date ends.

When ou you apply for your extension it will start from the day stamped on the arrival stamp you got on entry to the country in February. 

[Huckenfell]

Am i correct in believing that there is only one x  1 year extension on the O-A visa.

[ubonjoe]

7 minutes ago, Huckenfell said:

Am i correct in believing that there is only one x  1 year extension on the O-A visa.

Not sure what you mean.

If referring to 1 year entries to the country you can do as many of them as you want to up to the expiration date of you OA visa

if you apply for a new one year extension of stay you can get a new one year after year after getting the first one.

[Isaanman]

I am not sure how they are doing this at other immigration offices throughout the country; but, to make my appointment with immigration in Songkhla Province, I had to scan a QR code for the LINE app, which put me in a massive chat group (350 people!) with everyone else here who is trying to arrange appointments with officers to address their visa issues! Hard to believe that this is the way they chose to do it! ????

Edited September 9, 2020 by Isaanman
add details

[jacko45k]

16 hours ago, Huckenfell said:

Am i correct in believing that there is only one x  1 year extension on the O-A visa.

You actually extend the Permisssion of Stay that the Visa would allow on entry. That Extension can again be extended each year for the life of the passport.... this can even be transferred into a new passport.

Edited September 9, 2020 by jacko45k

[Sheryl]

OP note that, as you entered  on an O-A visa, in addition to the 800k you will be required to have health insurance from one of the companies on  this list

 

https://longstay.tgia.org/home/companiesoa

 

Unlike getting the O-A visa abroad, you cannot use a foreign policy to meet this requirement

[Isaanman]

6 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Unlike getting the O-A visa abroad, you cannot use a foreign policy to meet this requirement

Forgive me for not ploughing through the miles of threads on thaivisa.com that possibly relate to and answer this question; but, is there a police order or other legal declaration that explicitly states that the health insurance policy must be one of the companies on this list and cannot be a foreign insurance company? 

[ubonjoe]

33 minutes ago, Isaanman said:

Forgive me for not ploughing through the miles of threads on thaivisa.com that possibly relate to and answer this question; but, is there a police order or other legal declaration that explicitly states that the health insurance policy must be one of the companies on this list and cannot be a foreign insurance company? 

This from police order 248/2562. Note the website it mentions for the insurance.