Non Imm OA Visa - anything changed?

[Guest TerryS123]

I am 8 months into my OA visa in Thailand. My understanding is that if I leave/return to the country before it expires I get another year. I know I need to renew my health insurance before I leave/return. Anything else I am missing? With the way things change here I am sure I have missed something. Hopefully, there is no test-n-go or anything in late May/early June. 

 

Any advise is appreciated. Thanks

Edited February 8, 2022 by TerryS123

[DrJack54]

No change. 

With 4 months left, there is some chance a land border may be open or even flight to somewhere like Saigon.

 

Edited February 8, 2022 by DrJack54

[oldcpu]

I don't know if it is something you are missing, but be wary of being required to pay large extra COVID Health Insurance (which is separate and additional to regular Health Insurance) which could be up to one year in duration if you re-enter on your Type-OA (as you will be stamped in for one year).

 

Dependent on your age, this additional 1-year COVID health insurance (again, I believe it additional to the regular nominal health insurance) could be expensive. Possibly, if you can get your 'regular' Health Insurance company, to produce a letter saying it meets the specifics of the Thai COVID insurance (for entering Thailand) then you could combine the two separate Health Insurance into one.

 

Possibly < unsure > another approach could be to buy a cheap one way airplane ticket leaving Thailand two weeks after your arrival on your Type-OA, and claim that even thou you are entering on a Type-OA, you are only staying for 2 weeks (using the departure ticket as 'proof') ... and then possibly you could get away with only buying 2 weeks of COVID insurance (in addition to also having your 1-year regular health insurance).

 

There is a degree of speculation in what I have typed above - and I am not certain about any of it, but this would be a concern for me if I were in your shoes.

[DrJack54]

OP, buy one month cover for covid insurance.

[rwill]

5 hours ago, oldcpu said:

I don't know if it is something you are missing, but be wary of being required to pay large extra COVID Health Insurance (which is separate and additional to regular Health Insurance) which could be up to one year in duration if you re-enter on your Type-OA (as you will be stamped in for one year).

When I renewed my Pacific Cross insurance in January they gave me both the regular Insurance letter and a Covid-19 letter.

[Guest TerryS123]

28 minutes ago, rwill said:

When I renewed my Pacific Cross insurance in January they gave me both the regular Insurance letter and a Covid-19 letter.

That's who I use. 

[skatewash]

7 hours ago, oldcpu said:

I don't know if it is something you are missing, but be wary of being required to pay large extra

Possibly < unsure > another approach could be to buy a cheap one way airplane ticket leaving Thailand two weeks after your arrival on your Type-OA, and claim that even thou you are entering on a Type-OA, you are only staying for 2 weeks (using the departure ticket as 'proof') ... and then possibly you could get away with only buying 2 weeks of COVID insurance (in addition to also having your 1-year regular health insurance).

 

There is a degree of speculation in what I have typed above - and I am not certain about any of it, but this would be a concern for me if I were in your shoes.

If you convinced immigration that you wouldn't need a year's worth of insurance because you planned to leave Thailand in two weeks (based on an onward airline ticket) surely you would only be given a two-week permission to stay consistent with that departure date.

[oldcpu]

4 hours ago, skatewash said:

If you convinced immigration that you wouldn't need a year's worth of insurance because you planned to leave Thailand in two weeks (based on an onward airline ticket) surely you would only be given a two-week permission to stay consistent with that departure date.

I am not convinced/certain wrt the suspicion that they might only give a two-week permission to stay.  I suspect it could be otherwise.

 

Prior to COVID, I know of people who on a type-OA come in/out of Thailand with a recent departure after arrival, and they were able to do so because they obtain a re-entry permit to make that possible. But they still get a one year permission to stay stamp in their passport.  They had to get a re-entry permit soon after arrival so not to invalidate their Type-OA.   The departure fairly soon did not affect the permission to stay in their passport.

 

Does immigration look at the departure ticket if one arrives on an OA-Visa ?  When I arrived in Thailand (on 29-Feb-2020 at the start of COVID) on a Type-OA (granted it was 2 years ago), they never looked at my departure ticket, nor did they ask for my departure ticket.

 

I can't say based on experience if immigration at the airport (on arrival) looks at one's COVID insurance.  I read on a forum (I think it was this forum) that Thai immigration at the airport only confirm that one has a Thailand Pass and that they themselves do not check the Insurance details - as that is nominally done as part of the Thailand pass.  If one has the Thailand pass, one is assumed to have the COVID Insurance.

 

But since I don't have personal experience on going in/out myself, I can't be certain.

 

Where I do have 'sort' of experience:  I do know of a friend in his 70s, who came in on a Type-OA with 11 months left in his OA (he was on a re-entry permit) and he was required as part of the Thailand pass to get the 11-months COVID insurance to get the Thailand Pass.   Eleven months COVID insurance was very very very expensive for him.   When applying for the Thailand pass, he did not try to advise his stay would only be for 2 weeks (showing a departure ticket to prove), but rather noted it would be for the 11-months remaining on his Type-OA permission to stay. ... I also note this was at the start of the Thailand Pass implementation - maybe things have changed?

Edited February 8, 2022 by oldcpu

[Searat7]

Assuming Thai insurance policy for O/A is good in Thailand only and also assuming that borders to neighboring countries open at some point this year, would you have to apply for travel insurance in Thailand to visit other Asian countries which would have health insurance requirements ?

[NoshowJones]

1 hour ago, Searat7 said:

Assuming Thai insurance policy for O/A is good in Thailand only and also assuming that borders to neighboring countries open at some point this year, would you have to apply for travel insurance in Thailand to visit other Asian countries which would have health insurance requirements ?

Good question, I think we would all like an answer to that.