Re-entry permit: what's the logic behind it?

[sabaijai]

3 hours ago, GanDoonToonPet said:

Isn't it amazing that Cambodia can do exactly the same thing without the need for re-entry permits. Maybe someone from Thai Immigration could pop over the border and ask them how they do it.

Laos as well. 

[DrJack54]

4 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

But, if you are changing from annual extensions to a DTV (eg) you would't be 'killing off' your permission of stay, you'd simply be changing the reason.

No. You would need to kill off Non O status in order to apply for DTV which is a "special" Tourist Visa category. 

You cannot change the reason (basis) 

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, DrJack54 said:

8 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

But, if you are changing from annual extensions to a DTV (eg) you would't be 'killing off' your permission of stay, you'd simply be changing the reason.

No. You would need to kill off Non O status in order to apply for DTV which is a "special" Tourist Visa category. 

You cannot change the reason (basis) 

 

I think we are debating from different perspectives - you are debating within the existing rules. 

 

My whole premise is to question the logic of the existing rules in the first place - and that was the point of the Op; to question the logic of the re-entry permit.

 

 

i.e. how hard would it be to allow the existing permissions to continue, until approval for a DTV is secured and then simply switch... The rules are human made and 'could' be adjusted.

 

The same can be said when switching from a Work Permit to a Retirement Visa for example. 

Conventionally one would have to leave the country and re-enter under the Non-Imm O.... But really, that regulation is put there by humans - there is no logical why that switch cannot be made directly, without having to leave - but, its just the rules.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[josephbloggs]

1 hour ago, GanDoonToonPet said:

 

...and allows for a 6 month stay without the need for extensions and to leave the country halfway through.

 

Also, isn't it ironic that the bribe you have to pay to corrupt immigration officials if you want to stay an extra 3 months as a tourist in Thailand is the same as the total cost of a 6 month UK visitor visa. 🤔 

How many tourists are bribing officials to stay an extra three months? How many tourists would even know how to do that? Most genuine tourists are in and out in 2-3 weeks.

It is hardly the same as corruption getting in your way is it. If a tourist chooses to offer a bribe to stay longer than they are allowed under the rules then you can't complain about the price. 

[DrJack54]

16 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

how hard would it be to allow the existing permissions to continue, until approval for a DTV is secured and then simply switch... The rules are human made and 'could' be adjusted

Really going off topic to immigration rules in general. 

There are many examples were one needs to kill of connection to visa. 

Most common one since introducing insurance requirement for extensions from a Non O-A..... 

Folk excited without rentry permit in order to "start over"  and obtain a Non O

Be careful what you wish for comes to mind. 

Make annual extensions include multi entry then take 6k to immigration for the new fee up from 1900. 

[nrasmussen]

2 hours ago, Liquorice said:

I really don't know whether using the term 'visa' rolls of the Thai tongue easier than 'permit', or whether they simply don't know any difference.

 

I think the confusion arises because the loanword 'วีซ่า' does not have the same restricted meaning as 'visa' does, and as such is used more like a generic catch-all. I believe the proper Thai word for 'visa' is 'การตรวจลงตรา'.

[lamyai3]

When Big Joke was immigration chief around 7 or 8 years ago he had a reformist mindset and considered the Immigration Act B.E. 2522 unfit for purpose, wanting to modernise the whole system. Everyone was excited as he promised to do away with 90 day reports etc, but he also wanted to reform the non-immigrant visa system in favour of far more exclusive visas similar to the LTR, valid for longer but with a much higher bar of entry. If his ideas had come to fruition many of the retirees here would no longer qualify to stay. 

 

His successor Big Oud was the opposite, an old school fossil who relished in pulling the TM30 out of the woodwork and tormenting foreigners and landlords with it.

 

Two ends of the spectrum, but which of them was worse? 

 

Be careful what you wish for is true, and I think many people who've spent more than a few years here merely wish for the rules to be kept as they are but to be applied consistently and fairly. If that includes needing re-entry permits etc then so be it, just make the process of getting them as simple as possible. 

 

[Liquorice]

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

The same way you would in 'any other country'...   

In most other Countries, the validity of the visa and limits of permitted stay are within the same dates, which is not the case for Thailand.

The validity of a Thai visa is the period during which you can enter, whereas the period of stay is granted by an IO on arrival.
It is that initial period of stay you extend annually.

 

1 hour ago, richard_smith237 said:

But, if you are changing from annual extensions to a DTV (eg) you would't be 'killing off' your permission of stay, you'd simply be changing the reason.

No, an annual extension is a 'permit', the DTV is a visa.
The different visa types dictate the periods permitted to stay.

[richard_smith237]

2 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

In most other Countries, the validity of the visa and limits of permitted stay are within the same dates, which is not the case for Thailand.

The validity of a Thai visa is the period during which you can enter, whereas the period of stay is granted by an IO on arrival.
It is that initial period of stay you extend annually.

 

No, an annual extension is a 'permit', the DTV is a visa.
The different visa types dictate the periods permitted to stay.

 

Agree with all of that... I completely understand the Visa's, the Extensions, the 'Permissions' of stay.

 

I also understand that these 'permissions' are human introduced policies, the logic of which an be brought into question as with any Visa anywhere.

 

From a Logical Perspective - once someone has been given Permission to Stay here for 1 year, what is the logical reason for having to obtain further permission to re-enter within that time-frame ?? - IMO - there is no logic - its just a 'human' decision, as such, I agree with the Ops point to question the logic... (but also fully understand questioning the logic of any beurocratic system is often a fruitless mental process).

 

 

 

 

 

[Liquorice]

1 hour ago, nrasmussen said:

I think the confusion arises because the loanword 'วีซ่า' does not have the same restricted meaning as 'visa' does, and as such is used more like a generic catch-all. I believe the proper Thai word for 'visa' is 'การตรวจลงตรา'.

He spoke in English and referred to a 're-entry permit' as a 'new visa'.

Same with extensions 'extend visa', which can lull an expat into thinking that is exactly what he did.
 

[Liquorice]

8 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

From a Logical Perspective - once someone has been given Permission to Stay here for 1 year, what is the logical reason for having to obtain further permission to re-enter within that time-frame ??

You don't receive any further permission of stay, just permission of stay up until the expiry date of the extension.

At a quick glance, the entry clearance Immigration officer can ascertain the period he should stamp you in for from the re-entry permit.

[nrasmussen]

17 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

He spoke in English and referred to a 're-entry permit' as a 'new visa'.

Same with extensions 'extend visa', which can lull an expat into thinking that is exactly what he did.
 

 

Yes, that was exactly the point I was trying to make. Thais think that the English word 'visa' is equivalent to the Thai word 'วีซ่า', which it arguably is not. This happens frequently, that loanwords acquire a somewhat different meaning than the original word.

[redwood1]

5 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Ok, which country gives away free long term visas? 

A short term visitor visa to the UK is £115 / 5,000 baht!

I've lived her for 30 years on various types of visas and never once encountered corruption at immigration. Never been asked for a bribe, never paid one. I also don't know anyone else who has ever come across it. 

If you don't meet the requirements and have to pay a bribe via an agent then that is up to you. But if you are a genuine applicant there is absolutely zero corruption.

This thread is certainly bringing out the bashers.

 

 

Its  Amazing that any human could live in Thailand for so long a and not see the corruption that occurs every day here....

 

Countless stories posted here about shady things happening at immigration....

 

Guys who were put through hell to renew a marriage visa.....Hand drawn maps to the house needed, photos of the house needed, blue,yellow, brown book needed, piles of paper work needed bla bla bla etc.....But it was made clear if a agent was used all this unpleasantness would just go away....And the guy would get his marriage visa right away.

 

Need I go on?..... Corruption happens all the time....

[josephbloggs]

23 minutes ago, redwood1 said:

 

Its  Amazing that any human could live in Thailand for so long a and not see the corruption that occurs every day here....

 

Countless stories posted here about shady things happening at immigration....

 

Guys who were put through hell to renew a marriage visa.....Hand drawn maps to the house needed, photos of the house needed, blue,yellow, brown book needed, piles of paper work needed bla bla bla etc.....But it was made clear if a agent was used all this unpleasantness would just go away....And the guy would get his marriage visa right away.

 

Need I go on?..... Corruption happens all the time....

Yes, Thailand has a lot of corruption, I am not arguing that.

If you can't meet requirements and have to use an agent then you have benefitted from corruption. If you have all your stuff in order you will NOT be asked for a bribe. Never ever. I stick by that.

Whether the rules are over complicated or silly is another matter.

[richard_smith237]

7 hours ago, Liquorice said:

7 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

From a Logical Perspective - once someone has been given Permission to Stay here for 1 year, what is the logical reason for having to obtain further permission to re-enter within that time-frame ??

You don't receive any further permission of stay, just permission of stay up until the expiry date of the extension.

At a quick glance, the entry clearance Immigration officer can ascertain the period he should stamp you in for from the re-entry permit.

 

Not without a re-entry permit....

 

If you are on (for example) a Non-Immigrant Type O (based on marriage) thats valid for another 10 months, and you want to nip out of the country...   IF you do not get a re-entry permit, your 'permissions' end when you leave.... 

If you get a single re-entry permit, you have permission to re-enter under the same permit and stay for that 10 months.

If you get a multiple re-entry permit,  you can come and go for the full 10 months.

 

... And, even without a re-entry permit, at a quick glance, the entry clearance Immigration officer can ascertain the period he should stamp you in for from the original extension of stay anyway.

 

The re-entry permit itself is rather moot and pointless... 

[Rob Browder]

5 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Yes, Thailand has a lot of corruption, I am not arguing that.

If you can't meet requirements and have to use an agent then you have benefitted from corruption. If you have all your stuff in order you will NOT be asked for a bribe. Never ever. I stick by that.

Whether the rules are over complicated or silly is another matter.

If you CAN meet the requirements, and have all your stuff in order, you may be put through hell to "encourage" you to use their agents.   Not everywhere, not all the time, but I've been through this, as have many others - as reported on this forum for years. 

[Rob Browder]

11 hours ago, GanDoonToonPet said:

Isn't it amazing that Cambodia can do exactly the same thing without the need for re-entry permits. Maybe someone from Thai Immigration could pop over the border and ask them how they do it.

Only multiple-entry on Cambodia's 6-Mo+ Visa offerings, unless that has changed.  Otherwise, you start-over upon return.

 

11 hours ago, josephbloggs said:

Thailand one year extension= 1,900 baht. Add a single re-entry and it comes to 3,700. Make it a multi entry and it comes to 5,700 baht.

How much is your amazing one year Cambodian extension with multi entry? $285 USD? That's around 9,250 baht.

No bank-money/etc requirements in Cambodia, though - so, make more having 800K invested.  It also works out cheaper than a no-money agent in Thailand. 

 

And for a bit more $$, under-55s (their retirement-age) can stay a year, also.

[DrJack54]

8 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

And, even without a re-entry permit, at a quick glance, the entry clearance Immigration officer can ascertain the period he should stamp you in for from the original extension of stay anyway.

 

The re-entry permit itself is rather moot and pointless... 

Frankly your posts  make zero sense.

Yet you continue with same mantra

[Liquorice]

12 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

And, even without a re-entry permit, at a quick glance, the entry clearance Immigration officer can ascertain the period he should stamp you in for from the original extension of stay anyway.

In a queue of 350, I wouldn't want to be behind anyone offering a passport where the IO has to scan through passport pages looking for the last permit stamp.

Very few Countries offer the diversity of options to visit or stay in Thailand.

If the re-entry permit requirement needles you, then they offer a range of multi entry visas, such as the Non O-A, Non O-X, DTV, or the LTR visas.

[josephbloggs]

1 hour ago, Liquorice said:

In a queue of 350, I wouldn't want to be behind anyone offering a passport where the IO has to scan through passport pages looking for the last permit stamp.

Very few Countries offer the diversity of options to visit or stay in Thailand.

If the re-entry permit requirement needles you, then they offer a range of multi entry visas, such as the Non O-A, Non O-X, DTV, or the LTR visas.

I understand the initial question out of curiosity but don't understand any of the rest of the whinging or saying "Cambodia doesn't do that" blah blah (especially when a similar visa there is way more expensive than here).

You have to visit immigration once a year to renew your extension, how difficult is it to do your re-entry at the same time?

Personally I don't as I want to get out of CW as quickly as possible so I pick up my extension then just get a multi re-entry permit at Suvarnabhumi the next time I fly anywhere as it is so quick and easy. And that is it for the whole year.

[Liquorice]

5 minutes ago, josephbloggs said:

I understand the initial question out of curiosity but don't understand any of the rest of the whinging or saying "Cambodia doesn't do that" blah blah (especially when a similar visa there is way more expensive than here).

You have to visit immigration once a year to renew your extension, how difficult is it to do your re-entry at the same time?

Personally I don't as I want to get out of CW as quickly as possible so I pick up my extension then just get a multi re-entry permit at Suvarnabhumi the next time I fly anywhere as it is so quick and easy. And that is it for the whole year.

I'm not complaining.
You quoted my post, which was in reply to a complainer.

[josephbloggs]

25 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

I'm not complaining.
You quoted my post, which was in reply to a complainer.

Yes, I know, I was just saying I don't understand all the complaining in this thread. Sorry if it looked like it was directed at you, it wasn't.

[DrJack54]

Some trolling posts removed

[Thingamabob]

The re- entry permit is a very simple way of ensuring a hassle-free return to Thailand. I would question the mental state of anyone objecting to it.

[sandyf]

On 7/26/2025 at 12:30 PM, Liquorice said:

I really don't know whether using the term 'visa' rolls of the Thai tongue easier than 'permit', or whether they simply don't know any difference.

Why do foreigners always want to use the literal when trying to prove a point.

Visa status comes to an end when leaving the country, a fairly common convention. The re-entry permit is a pseudo visa rather than forcing people to obtain another proper visa.

In the days of the TM6 and now the online version, the re-entry permit number would be used where a visa number is required.

It shouldn't be forgotten that English is not the first language of the Immigration Dept.

[Liquorice]

18 minutes ago, sandyf said:

Why do foreigners always want to use the literal when trying to prove a point.

To define the differences.

[sandyf]

20 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

To define the differences.

You mean the definition of differences in a translation.

Only the arrogant would take that as literal.

[J Branche]

Also some still pay for an Entry Visa, Visa on Arrival to specific countries

 

I had a long layover in Jeddah and was going to look around.  Visa was $105 so I said No Thanks.  

 

Most expats are saving by living in Thailand so any Re-Entry fee I see as fair priced.

 

[VocalNeal]

On 7/26/2025 at 11:02 AM, 10000Baht said:

Even foreigners with residency permit need a re-entry permit!

 

I believe they need an exit permit. Not a re-entry.🧐

[Srikcir]

The LTR (Long-Term Resident) visa for Thailand allows for unlimited re-entries into the country, eliminating the need for a separate re-entry permit. This benefit is included with the 10-year visa, which is renewable.

Obviously not a tax.