Changing The NON-B Employment Visa To ED Visa

[Sued fatah]

Hi everyone, 

I'm asking this on behalf of my friend. 

He is on work permit currently but not working since March. He have taken admission in Thai university for masters. Since he is on NON-B visa which is going to end on feb'21.

1- can he switch to ED VISA without leaving the County. 

2- will there be any trouble as he is not working since March'20 and he already left pattaya where the work permit was issued and moved to bangkok. 

Your valuable advice will be appreciated. 

 

[ubonjoe]

1. You cannot change non immigrant visa categories while in the country.

It could be possible to apply for a extension of stay based upon attending school. It depends upon whether you are attending a formal school such as a university or a informal school such as a language school.

2. How have you stayed in the country since March.

[EricTh]

If you are not working since March, your non-B visa could have been cancelled by your employer without your knowledge.

 

You might want to check with immigration whether you are staying illegally, don't wait until Feb. 

 

There is a ban for overstayers over a certain number of months.

[Sued fatah]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

1. You cannot change non immigrant visa categories while in the country.

It could be possible to apply for a extension of stay based upon attending school. It depends upon whether you are attending a formal school such as a university or a informal school such as a language school.

2. How have you stayed in the country since March.

The work permit was issued in February'20 and last working day was march'20. After that employer asked my friend to take unpaid leave for 3months. After 3months employer asked him to be on leave until his visa ends in February. Employer also said there is no problem to stay in Thailand until visa ends. 

The main concern is he wants to change the Non-B to ED VISA and he is not sure weather it will possible or not. 

[Sued fatah]

1 hour ago, EricTh said:

If you are not working since March, your non-B visa could have been cancelled by your employer without your knowledge.

 

You might want to check with immigration whether you are staying illegally, don't wait until Feb. 

 

There is a ban for overstayers over a certain number of months.

Yes not working since March but the employer has kept him on unpaid leave until the visa ends in Feb'21. The employer said that he can live in Thailand legally until visa Ends. But the problem is he has to get ED visa to continue his masters in Bangkok as Non-B will end in Feb'21. What will be the possibility in this case? 

Please advise 

[EricTh]

3 hours ago, Sued fatah said:

Yes not working since March but the employer has kept him on unpaid leave until the visa ends in Feb'21. The employer said that he can live in Thailand legally until visa Ends. But the problem is he has to get ED visa to continue his masters in Bangkok as Non-B will end in Feb'21. What will be the possibility in this case? 

Please advise 

 

As Ubonjoe has mentioned, it's not possible. Why not ask the employer to extend your non-B visa again?

 

It's better to check with immigration whether your visa hasn't been cancelled rather than rely on the words of the employer.

 

The other solution would be hire a good 'agent' who knows someone powerful in immigration that will make it possible (not to leave country) but that will be quite expensive.

 

Edited December 25, 2020 by EricTh

[ubonjoe]

12 hours ago, EricTh said:

If you are not working since March, your non-B visa could have been cancelled by your employer without your knowledge.

That is not possible. A employer cannot cancel the extension without his passport. 

[ubonjoe]

11 hours ago, Sued fatah said:

The work permit was issued in February'20 and last working day was march'20. After that employer asked my friend to take unpaid leave for 3months. After 3months employer asked him to be on leave until his visa ends in February. Employer also said there is no problem to stay in Thailand until visa ends. 

Since he has not had his extension canceled and he is in touch with the employer they could give him a termination letter dated when he wants to change to another type of extension such asone for attending school. The cancelation and new extension would need to be done on the same day,

 

11 hours ago, Sued fatah said:

But the problem is he has to get ED visa to continue his masters in Bangkok as Non-B will end in Feb'21. What will be the possibility in this case? 

Please advise 

He needs to contact some schools about enrolling and getting a extension. Some informal schools can arrange to get the extension for a additional fee. If attending a formal school such a university it would be easier to apply for an extension of stay.

[bjaz]

My wife and I were in similar situation, on a non-B for employment + work permit that were terminated during the amnesty.
We initilly tried to get an non-ED extension for an informal language school, as there were rumours that this would somehow be allowed under the amnesty, rumours coming from a couple of immigration offices in contact with the schools.

 

The announcement (supposed to happen around mid-September) never happened in these parts (Phuket), so an onshore non-B to non-ED extension in an informal school was no longer an option on the table.

We then had two options, switching from the non-B to a non-O extension for volunteering (12 months) through an agent or finding a way of renewing our non-B/work permit, such as setting up one's own structure through a lawyer which is fairly common where we are.

 

Edited December 26, 2020 by bjaz

[EricTh]

9 hours ago, bjaz said:

My wife and I were in similar situation, on a non-B for employment + work permit that were terminated during the amnesty.
We initilly tried to get an non-ED extension for an informal language school, as there were rumours that this would somehow be allowed under the amnesty, rumours coming from a couple of immigration offices in contact with the schools.

 

The announcement (supposed to happen around mid-September) never happened in these parts (Phuket), so an onshore non-B to non-ED extension in an informal school was no longer an option on the table.

We then had two options, switching from the non-B to a non-O extension for volunteering (12 months) through an agent or finding a way of renewing our non-B/work permit, such as setting up one's own structure through a lawyer which is fairly common where we are.

 

 

What type of volunteering work is allowed in Thailand for foreigners?

 

[bjaz]

On 12/26/2020 at 6:30 PM, EricTh said:

 

What type of volunteering work is allowed in Thailand for foreigners?

 

Basically any volunteer work for a registered Charity or NGO. as explained here :
https://www.thaiconsul-uk.com/non-immigrant-visa-cat-o-volunteer.php

You can look into these for instance:
https://southeastasiabackpacker.com/visa-volunteering-guide/
https://www.volunteerworld.com/en/volunteer-abroad/thailand

Some are well known, such as Phuket's Soi Dog foundation if you're into that. You often need to pay to join their volunteering program though.
 

Also keep in mind that in these Covid-19 pandemic times, a lot is on stand-by.
As a visa arrangement you'll be registered as a volunteer with a registered foundation somewhere, regardless of the actual activity involved, which will allow you to get a visa extension.

The other option, setting up a structure to renew your own work permit and non-B, is more costly in the end, and takes over 30 days to setup.
It totally makes sense if you actually intend on working here, but if, like us, you're just waiting things out for a few more months after having worked here, the albeit grey-area volunteer option is more straightforward, since our visa type unfortunately means we can't sign up for a course in an informal school to get an ED extension, which was also our initial plan.

Edited December 28, 2020 by bjaz