The Process from Australia

[Phobovile]

Hi everyone. I was wondering if any compassionate folks could help me out with my process of getting from Australia to Thailand, for long-term stay, and as soon as possible. I will post updates here and hopefully in turn this forum thread can help other people in the future.

I have been living in Myanmar for several years, but came back to my hometown in Australia during its nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Now due to political developments in Myanmar, I need to get to Thailand for personal and business reasons related to my life in Myanmar.

The first step is the travel exemption from the Australian government. Now, they state that you do not need to have a travel exemption if you can prove that you lived the majority of the last 12 or 24 months outside of Australia. That's easy for me to do-- up until the pandemic when I came back to Australia. Since then I haven't budged, being close to family in an area that has undergone several COVID-19 lockdowns. So I believe I could be now ineligible for that exemption. As a result I applied for the travel exemption on "urgent personal humanitarian or business reasons" and I simply stated the truth about my situation.

If that is knocked back by the Aust. govt, then I believe I need to either go the business or long-term tourist route. It seems to me that the business route would pay the most dividends as it is straightforward: Australians can leave for work reasons. But then, getting a business VISA for Thailand would be more complicated than getting a tourist or tourist-exempt VISA status. Ideally I don't want to go through the process of actually getting a job in Thailand that will no doubt take ages to be accepted for online, and then require x hours of my time per week in x city while I try to organise all my other concerns (I will be moving around the Myanmar border and based in Chiang Mai). Any tips or ideas on this would be really helpful. Feel free to PM me.

The most risky things I have noted while researching this process are the "exemption risks" - I like things to be, ya know, set up and foolproof. I could be eligible for not needing a travel exemption still... but you don't know until you rock up at the airport. I could be eligible for a tourist VISA exemption, but you won't know until you rock up at the airport. I would prefer to have all the documents, all the time.

Thanks for taking the time to read this long message. Wish me luck and godspeed to everyone who is looking out for fellow travelers during this difficult time.

[4MyEgo]

8 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

Thanks for taking the time to read this long message.

I have to be honest I didn't read your post, however can say this from a friends Thai wife's experience which I found very harsh.

Her father took in the village, her family put the call out to her to return asap, with her husbands assistance they completed the paperwork and supplied hospital documents, they applied twice and on both occasions the application to return to Thailand for her failed.

One week later her father passed away, no I don't know if the paperwork wasn't in order, e.g. translated or what, but I know the husband is very good with doing paperwork.

Wish you luck and don't let this deter you, just hope someone else has had a better experience/success.

 

 

[DrJack54]

OP, being OZ myself, I will be interested in how your process develops. There are literally threads every day from UK and USA folk detailing success. I have hardly  read a post re Australians going through the same process. The only thing I recall was that in order to get past the Au gov added restrictions was a post advising to ask for longer term travel. That would suggest tourist visa as a minimum. You cannot apply for a non O based on retirement in Oz so that's out.

Hopefully someone who has been successful can advise. Good luck.

Edited March 10, 2021 by DrJack54

[Polaky]

I got an exemption to leave late last year, provided no supporting documentation, simply stated on the form that I would be travelling for over 3 months, permission granted within 24 hours.

[DrJack54]

12 minutes ago, Polaky said:

I got an exemption to leave late last year, provided no supporting documentation, simply stated on the form that I would be travelling for over 3 months, permission granted within 24 hours.

Yeah thought the 3 month + advice was the recommended path. Which type of visa or visa exempt did you use. 

Meaning can you just state to gov that you intend to be away 3+ months then after approval apply for your COE and travel visa exempt? 

[Bluetongue]

I will be following this with interest as I am just about to do it. For me though the exemption is clear, all of 2020 in Thailand except for 7 days and only in Australia less than 3 months in 2019 and 5 or so months this year.

Plus I have retirement extension (originally marriage visa) protected by re-entry permit. So I cant help you there but I am interested in the COE process from here, particularly if the Embassy here is still rogue on a 400k/40k ipd/opd insurance requirement on my non 0. I probably will buy the 12 months Thai Covid insurance even though I don't know how long I'll be there. The Safetywings/Tokio Marine policy was about twice as expensive for my age.

The ASQ i know from my two Australian experiences, a balcony is a must, so far I've contacted a few and each one had some rule or feature that I didn't like. Singapore Air are doing a return ticket ex BNE (return date changeable) for about 1300. You can only fly direct from Sydney on Thai. The 72 hour PCR test should be easy here, I've had four tests here, results all less than 24 hours, fit to fly I was just going to ask my GP for. Good luck.

[Will27]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

I have to be honest I didn't read your post, however can say this from a friends Thai wife's experience which I found very harsh.

Her father took in the village, her family put the call out to her to return asap, with her husbands assistance they completed the paperwork and supplied hospital documents, they applied twice and on both occasions the application to return to Thailand for her failed.

One week later her father passed away, no I don't know if the paperwork wasn't in order, e.g. translated or what, but I know the husband is very good with doing paperwork.

Wish you luck and don't let this deter you, just hope someone else has had a better experience/success.

 

 

Couldn't your friends Thai wife have applied to be repatriated through the Thai Embassy in Canberra as a Thai citizen?

[Phobovile]

Thanks everyone for these first replies. Polaky-- that is heartening. Fingers crossed. Bluetongue-- I am not up to the insurance part yet, but I wondered which providers Australians would be best going for.

[ubonjoe]

7 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

Thanks everyone for these first replies. Polaky-- that is heartening. Fingers crossed. Bluetongue-- I am not up to the insurance part yet, but I wondered which providers Australians would be best going for.

If entering visa exempt the only insurance you will need is the $100,000 covid 19 insurance valid for the length of your 45 day entry. You can buy it here. https://www.tipinsure.com/CovidRegional/product_detail

[HungDonger]

The application process has tightened up. Some who applied late last year were approved immediately but recent applications have required multiple applications. One friend applied 4 times before being approved. If your initial application is rejected (likely) then try again. Good Luck.

[Phobovile]

Thank you Ubonjoe for your suggestion of an insurance provider. Regarding the VISA exempt thing, I would feel very nervous going through all these hoops and shelling out all this cash, only to arrive in Thailand without a VISA and relying on being exempt. Having a valid VISA just seems more sensible as a precaution?

 

HungDonger-- thanks. Any tips on their successful methods?

[DrJack54]

12 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

, only to arrive in Thailand without a VISA and relying on being exempt

You would have zero issues arriving visa exempt. If you decide to take that option you will be stamped in for 45 days. Normally 30 however currently adding 15 to allow for quarantine. That can be extended by a further 30 days. Also 60 day covid extensions most likely will still be available.

Edited March 11, 2021 by DrJack54

[Phobovile]

Thank you and your confidence is noted Dr Jack. Having lived only in Myanmar (and many many years ago, China and Vietnam), I have bit of paranoia about paperwork!

[ubonjoe]

35 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

Thank you Ubonjoe for your suggestion of an insurance provider. Regarding the VISA exempt thing, I would feel very nervous going through all these hoops and shelling out all this cash, only to arrive in Thailand without a VISA and relying on being exempt. Having a valid VISA just seems more sensible as a precaution?

The only visa you could apply for would be a single entry tourist visa that allows a 60 day entry that can be extended for 30 days. With visa exempt you get a total stay of 75 days.

For a longer stay you could apply for special tourist visa (STV) that allows a 90 day entry that can be extended twice for 90 days but you cannot change it to any other category of visa.

[4MyEgo]

2 hours ago, Will27 said:

Couldn't your friends Thai wife have applied to be repatriated through the Thai Embassy in Canberra as a Thai citizen?

Not sure which avenue they went through as she has dual citizenships, at the end of the day I believe it is up to the Australian government.

I also know they went to their local member, but couldn't help.

[DrJack54]

2 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

I also know they went to their local member, but couldn't help.

Apparently in Australian if your a wealthy fella with connections you can some Au Pair girls work for you and get visa clearance. (fiasco year or so ago)

[Phobovile]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

The only visa you could apply for would be a single entry tourist visa that allows a 60 day entry that can be extended for 30 days. With visa exempt you get a total stay of 75 days.

For a longer stay you could apply for special tourist visa (STV) that allows a 90 day entry that can be extended twice for 90 days but you cannot change it to any other category of visa.

OK cheers... So down the track, to extend my time in Thailand, if on an STV I would need to exit and re-enter but not if I enter VISA exempt? I could get a new VISA from within the country?

[Will27]

1 hour ago, 4MyEgo said:

Not sure which avenue they went through as she has dual citizenships, at the end of the day I believe it is up to the Australian government.

I also know they went to their local member, but couldn't help.

Pretty sure that would've been an avenue for her.

Couldn't see the Oz government even knowing, let alone caring about a Thai being repatriated.

[ubonjoe]

32 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

OK cheers... So down the track, to extend my time in Thailand, if on an STV I would need to exit and re-enter but not if I enter VISA exempt? I could get a new VISA from within the country?

With a STV you would get a total stay of about 270 days without needing to leave the country. You apply for the 90 day extensions at immigration.

The only visas you can apply for at immigration are non immigrant visas based upon qualifying for certain extensions of stay.

[DrJack54]

39 minutes ago, Phobovile said:

cheers... So down the track, to extend my time in Thailand,

How long do you wish to stay in Thailand.

[Phobovile]

It is going to depend on politics in Myanmar and to a lesser extent COVID-19. One year would be a good guess. If it is as ubonjoe helpfully says and I can get 270 days on the STV, then that should be plenty. I'll be in a position to move to a business VISA by then I would think.

I am not sure what non-immigrant VISA means. Aren't all VISAs non-immigrant VISAs for Australians? I didn't know foreigners could migrate and gain citizenship in Thailand; it has a different idea of national identity to settler colonies. I know Burmese who "migrated" to Thailand nearly 60 years ago and still aren't citizens there.

Edited March 11, 2021 by Phobovile

[BRUFC]

5 hours ago, Phobovile said:

Hi everyone. I was wondering if any compassionate folks could help me out with my process of getting from Australia to Thailand, for long-term stay, and as soon as possible. I will post updates here and hopefully in turn this forum thread can help other people in the future.

I have been living in Myanmar for several years, but came back to my hometown in Australia during its nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Now due to political developments in Myanmar, I need to get to Thailand for personal and business reasons related to my life in Myanmar.

The first step is the travel exemption from the Australian government. Now, they state that you do not need to have a travel exemption if you can prove that you lived the majority of the last 12 or 24 months outside of Australia. That's easy for me to do-- up until the pandemic when I came back to Australia. Since then I haven't budged, being close to family in an area that has undergone several COVID-19 lockdowns. So I believe I could be now ineligible for that exemption. As a result I applied for the travel exemption on "urgent personal humanitarian or business reasons" and I simply stated the truth about my situation.

If that is knocked back by the Aust. govt, then I believe I need to either go the business or long-term tourist route. It seems to me that the business route would pay the most dividends as it is straightforward: Australians can leave for work reasons. But then, getting a business VISA for Thailand would be more complicated than getting a tourist or tourist-exempt VISA status. Ideally I don't want to go through the process of actually getting a job in Thailand that will no doubt take ages to be accepted for online, and then require x hours of my time per week in x city while I try to organise all my other concerns (I will be moving around the Myanmar border and based in Chiang Mai). Any tips or ideas on this would be really helpful. Feel free to PM me.

The most risky things I have noted while researching this process are the "exemption risks" - I like things to be, ya know, set up and foolproof. I could be eligible for not needing a travel exemption still... but you don't know until you rock up at the airport. I could be eligible for a tourist VISA exemption, but you won't know until you rock up at the airport. I would prefer to have all the documents, all the time.

Thanks for taking the time to read this long message. Wish me luck and godspeed to everyone who is looking out for fellow travelers during this difficult time.

Mate, Aussie YouTuber...'The Holistic Trainer' arrived from Melbourne last week. He has a video on YT how he managed it. Good luck

 

5 hours ago, Phobovile said:

Hi everyone. I was wondering if any compassionate folks could help me out with my process of getting from Australia to Thailand, for long-term stay, and as soon as possible. I will post updates here and hopefully in turn this forum thread can help other people in the future.

I have been living in Myanmar for several years, but came back to my hometown in Australia during its nationwide COVID-19 lockdown. Now due to political developments in Myanmar, I need to get to Thailand for personal and business reasons related to my life in Myanmar.

The first step is the travel exemption from the Australian government. Now, they state that you do not need to have a travel exemption if you can prove that you lived the majority of the last 12 or 24 months outside of Australia. That's easy for me to do-- up until the pandemic when I came back to Australia. Since then I haven't budged, being close to family in an area that has undergone several COVID-19 lockdowns. So I believe I could be now ineligible for that exemption. As a result I applied for the travel exemption on "urgent personal humanitarian or business reasons" and I simply stated the truth about my situation.

If that is knocked back by the Aust. govt, then I believe I need to either go the business or long-term tourist route. It seems to me that the business route would pay the most dividends as it is straightforward: Australians can leave for work reasons. But then, getting a business VISA for Thailand would be more complicated than getting a tourist or tourist-exempt VISA status. Ideally I don't want to go through the process of actually getting a job in Thailand that will no doubt take ages to be accepted for online, and then require x hours of my time per week in x city while I try to organise all my other concerns (I will be moving around the Myanmar border and based in Chiang Mai). Any tips or ideas on this would be really helpful. Feel free to PM me.

The most risky things I have noted while researching this process are the "exemption risks" - I like things to be, ya know, set up and foolproof. I could be eligible for not needing a travel exemption still... but you don't know until you rock up at the airport. I could be eligible for a tourist VISA exemption, but you won't know until you rock up at the airport. I would prefer to have all the documents, all the time.

Thanks for taking the time to read this long message. Wish me luck and godspeed to everyone who is looking out for fellow travelers during this difficult time.

'The Holistic Trainer' on YouTube arrived from Melbourne last week. Check his video out, may be useful for you.

[Old Croc]

3 hours ago, BRUFC said:

Mate, Aussie YouTuber...'The Holistic Trainer' arrived from Melbourne last week. He has a video on YT how he managed it. Good luck

 

'The Holistic Trainer' on YouTube arrived from Melbourne last week. Check his video out, may be useful for you.

I also watched this vid,  was going to suggest same.

This is the link:

The Holistic Trainer - YouTube

[Phobovile]

Thank you champions, I will watch it now.

[Yuli Hu]

If you're 50 and over, see an agent soon after you arrive and you'll be able to stay indefinitely as a retiree with annual renewals. I've had three renewals on Australian passport.

Edited March 11, 2021 by Yuli Hu

[MadMuhammad]

A buddy from Oz flew in December 9 on an SETV, extended 30 days and just now got his ‘automatic’ 60 day covid extension. 
His reason to leave aus was 3 months plus

[thasoss]

On 3/11/2021 at 9:46 AM, DrJack54 said:

Apparently in Australian if your a wealthy fella with connections you can some Au Pair girls work for you and get visa clearance. (fiasco year or so ago)

plus the hollywood elite are allowed to quarantine in their villa's near byron bay.....should be one rule for all meaning any and all returning aussie citizens should be allowed the same priviledge.

[Phobovile]

I received notification that my application for a travel exemption was unsuccessful just now. So, it took 24 hours.

I told the truth about the military coup in Myanmar and how I had to get to Thailand for humanitarian reasons. I stated that I would not be returning to Australia for 24 months on the application.

Back to the drawing board.

[Phobovile]

6 hours ago, MadMuhammad said:

A buddy from Oz flew in December 9 on an SETV, extended 30 days and just now got his ‘automatic’ 60 day covid extension. 
His reason to leave aus was 3 months plus

This did not cut it for me. I said urgent personal business, provided all my VISAs from Myanmar since 2016, and said I would not be back in Australia for two years and was rejected. Any more info on what their "compelling reason for travel for a duration of at least 3 months" actually was in the application form?

 

[Phobovile]

I was successful in my travel exemption on the third attempt, under "Ordinarily resident in country other than Australia". Geez, that was a bit of a dance. I steadily provided more and more information with each attempt. In the last one, I added a sentence at the end stating I would be talking to the media if I was denied... Risky move but may have paid off.

Time for the next step, which I believe is the CoE.