Spain Threatens Hard Border at Gibraltar Amid Post-Brexit Tensions Over 'Generous' Deal

[macgt3]

I applied for the STV visa last week using the Thaievisa online system with the necessary documents. After making the $80 payment, the system generated my e-appointment and showed that my application was submitted to the Consulate General in Chicago. The status of my visa application reads: "Post your passport and e-appointment". Now, the official procedure (https://thaiembdc.org/2020/12/10/stv/) lists the following:

"The Royal Thai Embassy / Consulates-General will review the application and will send an email requesting the applicant to submit the following required documents through mail to the Royal Thai Embassy (ATTN: Visa Section) or Royal Thai Consulate-General in Los Angeles, Chicago, or New York:"

The confusing part:
1. I never received any such email requesting to submit anything and it's already been a week.
2. I called the Thai Consulate General in Chicago at least 20 times on different days during their alleged business hours. I left multiple messages. I also sent out multiple emails to [email protected] and [email protected]. I haven't gotten a single response. Is this the norm? - Is this place dead? - Should I blindly mail my passport and documents to them and hope for the best?

What on earth am I suppose to do next? - There is so much conflicting information on this topic everywhere. I read somewhere that Thai Consulates in US have been closed since Covid. Other sources state that they have since reopened to the public. If that's the case, is mailing visa documents necessary? - Do I have the option to submit them in person?

This is turning out to be the most draconian visa process I have ever encountered and I've been traveling abroad for the past 30 years.

[mtls2005]

TR60? or Tourist Visa Exemption?

Immirgation published this infogrpahic this week.

 

[macgt3]

4 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

TR60? or Tourist Visa Exemption?

Immirgation published this infogrpahic this week.

 

Sorry, I don't understand your response. Can you elaborate?

I already applied for the STV visa. I have all the necessary documents and ASQ booked. My date of arrival in Thailand is 30 April 2021. 

[ubonjoe]

37 minutes ago, macgt3 said:

Sorry, I don't understand your response. Can you elaborate?

I already applied for the STV visa. I have all the necessary documents and ASQ booked. My date of arrival in Thailand is 30 April 2021. 

He apparently misread you post.

I think I would go ahead and mail in the the application and supporting documents. Be sure you send the application form you can print out on the e visa site. I assume you already paid the fee online.

The 3 official (NY, Chicago and LA) consulates never closed. They like the the embassy are not accepting walk in applications and etc.

[mtls2005]

1 hour ago, macgt3 said:

Sorry, I don't understand your response. Can you elaborate?

I already applied for the STV visa. I have all the necessary documents and ASQ booked. My date of arrival in Thailand is 30 April 2021. 

Just that, at some point, they will stop issuing STVs. And that maybe there is some internal debate on when to implement this change? And that maybe it is affecting your application?

The STV was promoted as being 90+90+90 (with two extensions).

[macgt3]

38 minutes ago, mtls2005 said:

Just that, at some point, they will stop issuing STVs. And that maybe there is some internal debate on when to implement this change? And that maybe it is affecting your application?

The STV was promoted as being 90+90+90 (with two extensions).

Got it. I'm not really worried about that right now, since they accepted my application and generated an e-appointment. And since I should have my STV visa long before July, it doesn't seem like it will affect me?

 

I don't believe them not answering anybody's calls has anything to do with STV visas. It's just a shame how archaic of a process this is and how difficult it's become to get in touch with a consulate that is suppose to be the authority on Thai visas, passports, etc.

Edited March 19, 2021 by macgt3

[macgt3]

49 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

He apparently misread you post.

I think I would go ahead and mail in the the application and supporting documents. Be sure you send the application form you can print out on the e visa site. I assume you already paid the fee online.

The 3 official (NY, Chicago and LA) consulates never closed. They like the the embassy are not accepting walk in applications and etc.

Thanks. I will mail my documents and hope somebody is there to receive it. 

And yes, I already paid the $80 fee when submitting the application at https://www.thaievisa.go.th. The e-application was accepted and submitted to the Thai Consulate in Chicago. I was suppose to receive an email that never came (I checked spam too). 

[Dan O]

Check Facebook and I think they have a page you can message them thru. That's the only way I've been able to communicate with the DC Embassy consistantly

[Marknreston]

I have received responses to my emails to the DC consulate.  Have you tried email?

[macgt3]

3 hours ago, Marknreston said:

I have received responses to my emails to the DC consulate.  Have you tried email?

As I mentioned in the OP, I sent out multiple emails to two different email addresses they list on their website. This was a week ago. I emailed them almost daily since. I also called several times a day for the past week. 
 

No response. Zero. Nothing. 

[Dan O]

1 hour ago, macgt3 said:

As I mentioned in the OP, I sent out multiple emails to two different email addresses they list on their website. This was a week ago. I emailed them almost daily since. I also called several times a day for the past week. 
 

No response. Zero. Nothing. 

I also had great difficulty getting responses direct. I sent emails numerous times to both the Embassy and Consular General with no response. I also called numerous times and had to leave messages each time with no response at all. I was only successful when started to use their Facebook pages

[macgt3]

50 minutes ago, Dan O said:

I also had great difficulty getting responses direct. I sent emails numerous times to both the Embassy and Consular General with no response. I also called numerous times and had to leave messages each time with no response at all. I was only successful when started to use their Facebook pages

Thanks. I reached out to them via Facebook. I messaged them directly. Within a few minutes, they responded and told me that for visa inquiries I should send an email to [email protected], which I already did. I sent multiple emails to this address with no response at all. I replied to their message and told them exactly this. No response after that. 
 

lol this must be some kind of a joke. Early April Fool’s?

[KhaoYai]

45 minutes ago, Dan O said:

I also had great difficulty getting responses direct. I sent emails numerous times to both the Embassy and Consular General with no response.

This has been an oft repeated complaint throughout th Covid Pandemic.

However, it goes further than that - I've had several run-in's with the Thai Embassy in London over the last 19 years.  I've always found them rude and uncaring with an 'if you don't like it, sod off' kind of attitude. Fortunately the Thai Consulate nearest to me has always been very good and helped out with matters that should have been dealt with by the Embassy.

Thailand's tourist industry has been lucky that the majority of tourists don't need a visa, if they did, and the Embassy's staff's attitude was the same, there's no way they'd be getting almost 40 million visitors per year (in normal times).

Rather then promote their country, I've always found the Thai Embassy in London pretty poor in terms of customer service and since the Pandemic, it has become clear that other Thai Embassy's around the world are the same.

[macgt3]

1 hour ago, KhaoYai said:

This has been an oft repeated complaint throughout th Covid Pandemic.

However, it goes further than that - I've had several run-in's with the Thai Embassy in London over the last 19 years.  I've always found them rude and uncaring with an 'if you don't like it, sod off' kind of attitude. Fortunately the Thai Consulate nearest to me has always been very good and helped out with matters that should have been dealt with by the Embassy.

Thailand's tourist industry has been lucky that the majority of tourists don't need a visa, if they did, and the Embassy's staff's attitude was the same, there's no way they'd be getting almost 40 million visitors per year (in normal times).

Rather then promote their country, I've always found the Thai Embassy in London pretty poor in terms of customer service and since the Pandemic, it has become clear that other Thai Embassy's around the world are the same.

Makes sense. 
 

At this point, I’m close to calling it quits. They clearly don’t want me to go to Thailand. I’m still going to mail the paperwork and see what happens. 

[Don Chance]

1 hour ago, macgt3 said:

Makes sense. 
 

At this point, I’m close to calling it quits. They clearly don’t want me to go to Thailand. I’m still going to mail the paperwork and see what happens. 

It is hard to imagine they actually want tourists to come to Thailand with all these rules. After July no more extension???

[macgt3]

6 hours ago, Don Chance said:

It is hard to imagine they actually want tourists to come to Thailand with all these rules. After July no more extension???

That’s what I’m thinking. I get the feeling this is the goal; for me to give up and not go. Maybe they don’t want outside influence under the pretext of Covid. 

[ubonjoe]

7 hours ago, Don Chance said:

It is hard to imagine they actually want tourists to come to Thailand with all these rules. After July no more extension???

That is only for a STV that is issued after July. The order for them expires at the end of September.

[jackdd]

16 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

That is only for a STV that is issued after July. The order for them expires at the end of September.

But it probably also means that they won't let people with a STV apply for extensions after 30th September. People who enter with a STV from Mai on will probably not be able to get the second 90 days extension, thus they can stay max 180 days.

Edited March 20, 2021 by jackdd

[ubonjoe]

34 minutes ago, jackdd said:

But it probably also means that they won't let people with a STV apply for extensions after 30th September.

The announcement if not very clear on that. It does state this.