It looks from the evisa site as though they've simplified the requirements for METVs since I last got one a few years ago. At that time you could only apply in your home country and you had to get quite a bit of financial documentation together including tax records. Now it looks like you can apply in any country as long as you can prove you're actually there and the financial evidence is just a bank statement.

 

I'm not sure though because the evisa portal tells you to check with the embassy but the embassy sites tend to just refer you back to the evisa portal, if they say anything at all.

 

So can anyone who's recently applied for an SETV in SEA let me know what docs are required and how complicated it all is? If it's basically the same as an SETV then it's a much better option for me, but I have been getting SETVs or entering visa exempt because I thought that was simpler.

Yes, the document requirement is much lower.  But the requirement that you can only get it in your home country or a country of permanent residence still remains.

Agree with Brandon post above.

Apply in pp country or country where you have Permanent Resident status.

Have you considered DTV. Can apply in most countries. 

Might be a better fit.