Can you do a 2nd border run if you entered via the border this year

[jspill]

I came in via land border from Laos in mid January, extended, and then have done one border run already and extended it

 

Can I still do a 2nd one, for the allowed two a year, or does the January entry count as one

 

thanks

 

 

[Bangkok Alex]

January did count. You cannot do any more border runs till next year.

[DrJack54]

@Bangkok Alex is correct.

You have done your 2 visa exempt entries per calendar year. 

You can apply for a tourist visa at nearby consulate eg Vientiane. 

That consulate requires appointment

 

Appointment here

https://thaivisavientiane.com/

 

Edit: OP this post is incorrect.

@Liquorice has posted correct reply

 

[Liquorice]

2 hours ago, Bangkok Alex said:

January did count. You cannot do any more border runs till next year.

You're allowed 2 VE border entries per calendar year.

 

I'm interpreting the OP's post as he did a border run in mid-January this year, which allowed him a stay of 30 days, which he has extended for a further 30 days (which takes him to mid-March).

 

He's now asking if he can do a 2nd border run this year, to which the answer is yes, he can do a 2nd border run.

[DrJack54]

15 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

I'm interpreting the OP's post as he did a border run in mid-January this year, which allowed him a stay of 30 days, which he has extended for a further 30 days (which takes him to mid-March).

You are correct.

I completely misread the OP. 

So the one bounce in January + extension means still has one more visa exempt via land available 

[Liquorice]

5 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

You are correct.

I completely misread the OP. 

So the one bounce in January + extension means still has one more visa exempt available 

I take it the OP is not a native English speaker, therefore his grammar is ambiguous and misinterpreted.

 

I think what he meant to say was;

"I came in via land border from Laos in mid January, extended, and then so have done one border run already and extended it".

 

Edited March 13 by Liquorice

[impulse]

11 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

I think what he meant to say was;

"I came in via land border from Laos in mid January, extended, and then so have done one border run already and extended it".

 

If that were the case, I don't know why there would be any question, like "Can I still do a 2nd one, for the allowed two a year, or does the January entry count as one"

 

At any rate I think his/her answer is that you can only enter by land 2x in a year on visa exempt?   Note the question mark, because I don't know- just going by answers here.  Seems that they don't differentiate between a border bounce and an entry out of the blue?  (Question mark again...)

 

I guess my question then is whether that's a calendar year, or does the 12 month clock start when you do your first one?

 

 

[Liquorice]

1 minute ago, impulse said:

I guess my question then is whether that's a calendar year, or does the 12 month clock start when you do your first one?

It's 2 VE exempt entries via a border in a calendar year, so the effective period starts again in January of each year.

 

Yes, it was the OP's question "Can I still do a 2nd one" that led me to re-read his first line and realise it had been misinterpreted.

[Gottfrid]

@jspillI guess we need you to clarify what you mean, as more than one person trying to help you are confused.

However, I take it as you have entered 1 time via land border, and after that made 1 more border bounce. If that is true, you will not be able to make another crossing via land border. However, you might be granted another entry if you choose to fly in and enter at one of the friendlier airports.

[impulse]

9 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

It's 2 VE exempt entries via a border in a calendar year, so the effective period starts again in January of each year.

 

Yes, it was the OP's question "Can I still do a 2nd one" that led me to re-read his first line and realise it had been misinterpreted.

 

That's good to know for someone who may have done a border bounce in October and another in December.  They can do another in January...  Meaning that, with extensions, they can stay 8 months without hopping on a flight (if they time it right).

That said, I wonder how the IO's would perceive that.

[Liquorice]

5 minutes ago, impulse said:

That said, I wonder how the IO's would perceive that.

From various reports posted on this forum, it would appear to be at the discretion of the individual Immigration official.

[Caldera]

1 hour ago, Liquorice said:

From various reports posted on this forum, it would appear to be at the discretion of the individual Immigration official.

 

At land borders, it's usually no problem to get those two visa exempt entries per calendar year that are permitted.

 

I say "usually" because there's the infamous Poi Pet / Aranyaprathet border. If you go there, all bets are off.

[Bangkok Alex]

8 hours ago, Liquorice said:

You're allowed 2 VE border entries per calendar year.

 

I'm interpreting the OP's post as he did a border run in mid-January this year, which allowed him a stay of 30 days, which he has extended for a further 30 days (which takes him to mid-March).

 

He's now asking if he can do a 2nd border run this year, to which the answer is yes, he can do a 2nd border run.

You make a good point. I believe OP will have to clarify if he crossed a border to enter Thailand once or twice so far in 2024.

 

Sorry for jumping the gun if I misinterpreted it.

[MangoKorat]

8 hours ago, Liquorice said:

It's 2 VE exempt entries via a border in a calendar year, so the effective period starts again in January of each year.

Is that correct?  I was under the impression that it was 2 entries in 12 months.  That's only an assumtion though but I'm pretty sure that's what an I.O. told me as he was totting up entries in my passport.

[persimmon]

11 hours ago, impulse said:

 

That's good to know for someone who may have done a border bounce in October and another in December.  They can do another in January...  Meaning that, with extensions, they can stay 8 months without hopping on a flight (if they time it right).

That said, I wonder how the IO's would perceive that.

Good question . Maybe you could ask the IO when leaving the country if there might be any problem getting back in ? 

[Liquorice]

4 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Is that correct?  I was under the impression that it was 2 entries in 12 months.  That's only an assumtion though but I'm pretty sure that's what an I.O. told me as he was totting up entries in my passport.

 Entering the Kingdom visa exempt via sea and land checkpoints is 2 per calendar year.

 

 ***Foreign nationals entering Thailand on the Tourist Visa Exemption Scheme (30 days) may enter Thailand via land border only up to 2 times per calendar year (This limit does not apply to nationals of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and Singapore). There is no limit on the number of entries by air arrival***

https://vientiane.thaiembassy.org/en/page/do-i-need-a-visa?menu=63bcd53b53c0f0192b3b8ff3

[Caldera]

11 hours ago, persimmon said:

Good question . Maybe you could ask the IO when leaving the country if there might be any problem getting back in ? 

 

You might get an answer, but it won't be an authoritative one, because the IO stamping you out won't be the same IO stamping you back in.

[MangoKorat]

18 hours ago, Liquorice said:

 Entering the Kingdom visa exempt via sea and land checkpoints is 2 per calendar year.

 

 ***Foreign nationals entering Thailand on the Tourist Visa Exemption Scheme (30 days) may enter Thailand via land border only up to 2 times per calendar year (This limit does not apply to nationals of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia, and Singapore). There is no limit on the number of entries by air arrival***

https://vientiane.thaiembassy.org/en/page/do-i-need-a-visa?menu=63bcd53b53c0f0192b3b8ff3

Thanks for the clarification. I suspect however, that the authorties made that rule by way of a translation error.  Twice in any 12 month period would make more sense for their purposes.

[DrJack54]

33 minutes ago, MangoKorat said:

Thanks for the clarification. I suspect however, that the authorties made that rule by way of a translation error.  Twice in any 12 month period would make more sense for their purposes.

That's irrelevant as it's 2 visa exempt entries per calendar year.  

End of. 

[Liquorice]

2 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Thanks for the clarification. I suspect however, that the authorties made that rule by way of a translation error. 

Hardly. You may Google the question, the same answer appears on many sites, including legal ones.

 

1 hour ago, DrJack54 said:

Twice in any 12 month period would make more sense for their purposes.

That would be a 'rolling' calendar year.

They have enough problems with months falling in the same year.

3 years ago I applied for my annual extension in June, due July, as I always do, only to be informed I was on a month overstay.
The IO had to revert to the calendar on his phone before admitting his error.

[bbi1]

On 3/13/2024 at 10:24 AM, impulse said:

 

That's good to know for someone who may have done a border bounce in October and another in December.  They can do another in January...  Meaning that, with extensions, they can stay 8 months without hopping on a flight (if they time it right).

That said, I wonder how the IO's would perceive that.

That's actually not a bad strategy that I never thought of before. You could really stay for a total of 10 months.

 

Arrive by air from your home country visa exempt in August, 30 day extend in September. 1st border bounce in October, 30 day extend in November. 2nd border bounce in December, 30 day extend in January. Now it's a new year so you have another 2 border bounces to use again. 1st border bounce in February, 30 day extend in March. 2nd border bounce in April, 30 day extend in May, which expires beginning of June.

 

Why has nobody ever mentioned this strategy on this forum? You could have 10 months in Thailand on visa exempts and extensions like this without any visa hassles!! Why even need to apply for a METV which would give you a maximum of 9 months but in reality it's closer to 8 months due to date of METV being issues, etc.

Edited March 14 by bbi1

[Celsius]

you must be in your 60's by now and you still border hopping with backpackers in their 20'?

[bbi1]

16 minutes ago, Celsius said:

you must be in your 60's by now and you still border hopping with backpackers in their 20'?

Are you referring to myself? If so, nope, I'm still below the age of 40.

[MangoKorat]

2 hours ago, Liquorice said:

Hardly. You may Google the question, the same answer appears on many sites, including legal ones.

Yes well given that immigration rules emanate centrally, do think every single office will have had their own translation done or that the MFA will have done it for them? My money would be on that what they were really trying to achieve at the outset was 2 entries in 12 months.

 

Believe me I've seen some real humdingers on translation over the years.  The official translation of the Thai Land laws is terrible.

 

I'll never work out why they don't get English translations at the very least proof read by a native English speaker.  Have you ever looked at the English text books used to teach kids English in Thai schools?

Edited March 14 by MangoKorat

[Liquorice]

3 hours ago, bbi1 said:

Why has nobody ever mentioned this strategy on this forum? You could have 10 months in Thailand on visa exempts and extensions like this without any visa hassles!! Why even need to apply for a METV which would give you a maximum of 9 months but in reality it's closer to 8 months due to date of METV being issues, etc.

You need to redo your maths calculations.

Using 2 VE entries in one calendar year + extensions would amount to a total stay of almost 4 months.
30 + 30 + 30 + 30.
Using 2 VE entries in the following calendar year + extensions would also total almost 4 months.

30 + 30 + 30 + 30.

Total 240 days, almost 8 months, not 10.

 

The METV could allow you to stay for almost 9 months in the same calendar year. There are also no limits to the number of land border entries using a valid multi entry visa.

[bbi1]

12 hours ago, Liquorice said:

You need to redo your maths calculations.

Using 2 VE entries in one calendar year + extensions would amount to a total stay of almost 4 months.
30 + 30 + 30 + 30.
Using 2 VE entries in the following calendar year + extensions would also total almost 4 months.

30 + 30 + 30 + 30.

Total 240 days, almost 8 months, not 10.

 

The METV could allow you to stay for almost 9 months in the same calendar year. There are also no limits to the number of land border entries using a valid multi entry visa.

You forgot the initial fly-in by air and 30 day extension, which gives you an extra 2 months at the beginning. So that would be 10 months.

[Liquorice]

22 minutes ago, bbi1 said:

You forgot the initial fly-in by air and 30 day extension, which gives you an extra 2 months at the beginning. So that would be 10 months.

Try it and let us know how you get on!

[jspill]

I flew from the UK to Laos in January (via transit in China), and entered Thailand via land border from Laos, in January

 

I extended that stamp, then did one border run in a van to Cambodia, then extended that, so I can stay until early May

 

So i've only done one 'in out' trip in a van.

 

But it seems it's not about two 'in out' trips in a van, it's two visa exempt entries by land, ok thanks for the info

Edited March 19 by jspill

[Upnotover]

5 minutes ago, jspill said:

I flew from the UK to Laos in January (via transit in China), and entered Thailand via land border from Laos, in January

 

I extended that stamp, then did one border run in a van to Cambodia, then extended that, so I can stay until early May

 

So i've only done one 'in out' trip in a van. Thanks for all the replies

 

So the answer to your original question is therefore NO.  You have entered visa exempt by land twice already.