Asking for a friend here.

 

They signed up for a Non-Ed from an agent.

 

6-7 weeks to process. 12-15 months stay. Etc.

 

The school just got in touch this week, and have confirmed registration etc.

 

The thing is, friends current visa expired today, and the agency have yet to confirm the new Non-Ed.

 

They've only responded that things are busy, and to be patient.

 

Is this normal agent stuff, or does friend need to start packing their bags and getting cash for an overstay fine?

Agents for ED Visas.....  I don't get why people do this.  Reputable schools handle the whole process of ED Visas for students.  And there's been a crackdown on ED Visas and Immigration is doing more these days to make sure students are actually studying.  But I guess some people still go the agent route thinking it solves problems.

 

Anyway....  You might get more helpful answers if you can provide some basic info:

- Where the school is located?

- What kind of visa does (or did) your friend have?

- When did he start the process with the agent?

 

In Bangkok, it typically takes 2-4 weeks for the Ministry of Education to issue their letter.  Once that's done, CW Immigration takes 15 days to process an application to change to a Non-Immigrant ED Visa.  The student actually has to go to immigration to apply for the change.

 

So that's means it is typically 4-6 weeks, not the 6-7 weeks your friend was told, although if he's in a province it could take a little longer as I think they need to send the documents to the Ministry of Education here in Bangkok and that can add a little time.

 

Reputable schools (and agents I suppose) tell students that the need to have at least 45 days left on their current visa (that's 6 weeks plus a few extra days) and generally won't start the process unless the applicant has those 45 days.

 

If it's been a full 6 weeks and the school is just now contacting him... well, that's really strange, because documentation from the school saying he's signed up for classes gets submitted to the Ministry of Education right at the beginning.  They won't issue a letter to Immigration without that.

 

So it sounds like bad news for your friend because I don't think he can apply to change to a Non-Immigrant ED Visa with an expired visa.  He needs at least 15 days left for Immigration to accept an application to change to an ED Visa.

 

Perhaps others with more knowledge will weigh in.

Visa or stay expired today is a worry.  Perhaps the agent has arranged (with immigration) for a covid extension or other to buy more time to get the Ed Visa completed. Ed visas take a long time to get done, and some days this month were lost due to Songkran.  Hope it all works out for your friend.

The visa application is probably "under consideration", with nothing to worry about. One of the problems with using an agent, however, is that you cannot look at the passport to verify the current status. If you trust the agent, relax. If the agent is flaky, ask where the passport currently is, and whether it is possible to see a scan of recent stamps.

Had ED visa in the past (few years back - Phuket) as you state - used the school as my avenue to apply for the visa. Seamless an easy. Absolutely NO need to use and agent - a waste of time including unnecessary people, their fees and mumblings. 

Hi there, from my (and my friends) experience, that's just how it works, yes it's stressful to wait in the dark, but at the end it works out well... I just had ED 90d done, I was biting my nails past 4 weeks, each other day arguing with agent who didn't give me any update except "be patient, it's all ok, you worry too much, this is how it works"...  they were right.

 

You just need to confirm with agent *when exactly* immigration started processing ED visa (meaning, they already got school approved) - before or after current extension stamp... If before, then it's all clear... If after, then I/O will officially fix your overstay (500/day, stamped in the passport), this was my case, since I applied late (due to previous bad agent kept my passport 1 month and failed to make Covid extension).

 

If you worry about police checks, ask your agent to send you the receipt, so you can feel safe while waiting.

 

Lesson learned: next time I'll use better and more transparent agent... and yeah, after the summer in Europe, I'll be back with brand new and empty passport ????

P.S. will Aseannow ever fix that bold font error? I don't think it's rocket science...

14 minutes ago, sallecc said:

P.S. will Aseannow ever fix that bold font error? I don't think it's rocket science...

I am not aware of any bold font problem. It works if I select it.

10 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

I am not aware of any bold font problem. It works if I select it.

It occasionally shows up on unselected sentences or paragraphs after sending, seen them in other posters too... Next time I'll make screenshot and post it to a proper forum section, no problemo ????

 

Back to the subject, I don't think OP should be worried, that's how things work in LOS, just make sure the agent is legit.

15 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

I am not aware of any bold font problem. It works if I select it.

P.S. (I didn't do anything with 2nd paragraph, but it shows up bold)

3 minutes ago, sallecc said:

P.S. (I didn't do anything with 2nd paragraph, but it shows up bold)

That may be a problem with using a mobile browser for the site. What browser are you using?

I works good with Chrome on a android tablet (8").

3 hours ago, sallecc said:

It occasionally shows up on unselected sentences or paragraphs after sending, seen them in other posters too... Next time I'll make screenshot and post it to a proper forum section, no problemo ????

 

Back to the subject, I don't think OP should be worried, that's how things work in LOS, just make sure the agent is legit.

Has happened to me several times.

The problem is that you copy and paste text. The pasted text keeps the styling from the original source. @JimmyJ @sallecc

4 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

That may be a problem with using a mobile browser for the site. What browser are you using?

I works good with Chrome on a android tablet (8").

Chrome on Android mobile phone.

4 minutes ago, ThLT said:

The problem is that you copy and paste text. The pasted text keeps the styling from the original source. @JimmyJ @sallecc

I didn't copy/paste, just typed directly.

4 hours ago, sallecc said:

I didn't copy/paste, just typed directly.

Me too.

 

 

9 hours ago, sallecc said:

Lesson learned: next time I'll use better and more transparent agent... and yeah, after the summer in Europe, I'll be back with brand new and empty passport

If you're doing an ED Visa, a better lesson learned would be to NOT use an agent.  Go to a school that prepares and submits everything for you.  You'll keep your passport through the process.  The Ministry of Education doesn't need your passport - just a photocopy.  And Immigration needs the passport for a minute or two when you apply for the ED Visa, and another few minutes to put the stamp in 15 days later.

 

So....  If you're using an agent and your passport is out of your hands for 6 weeks (which based on what others have said seems to be the case) then I have to ask...

 

Where is your passport?

 

Simple answer - the agent is holding it.

 

But why?  Or at least, why don't they tell their clients this?

 

Is it that they want the process to seem more complicated than it really is, so you'll continue to use an agent?

 

Doing everything through a reputable school gives so much more transparency about the whole process.

On 4/29/2022 at 10:10 AM, Tropposurfer said:

Had ED visa in the past (few years back - Phuket) as you state - used the school as my avenue to apply for the visa. Seamless an easy. Absolutely NO need to use and agent - a waste of time including unnecessary people, their fees and mumblings. 

not true.  I would have had to leave the country and come back in to get my ED visa while under a new tourist visa.

Which would have completely defeated what I wanted to do, plus added 25k in expenses, time lost, paperwork, quarantines...and, like 2 of my friends...extra brown envelope money in excess of 15k at re-entry to get back in.

instead, I stayed here, paid very little more than going thru a school directly, and received my visa.

Yes...it took a little time and worry, as I had not used this agency before.  I won't lie.  But it was done as they stated it would be.

Agents most certainly have their place and value.

I went thru the same experience.  It was a little stressful after week 4 with no official way to get status reports of how the process was developing.

I was already on overstay when I applied.  They did tell me half way thru that my book was in immigration hands and the overstay had stopped accumulating, and how much I would owe for that.

So...confer with them that there is zero overstay because you had turned in your paperwork in time.  Get an answer.

In the end, I got mine end of week 5.  Of course, each situation is Agency independent.