0 Visa

[nikisue]

With an O visa can I enter Thailand on a one way ticket? As well as this is an O visa similar to a non-immigrant B visa, whereby you have to check in every 3 months with the local immigration office.

I was not sure what visa I should have, but this is the one the Thai consulate in London seem to think is best for me. I am not married but have a long-term Thai partner. We have an 18 month old daughter who was born in Thailand. My partner is now in the UK with me on a resident visa. The problem seems to be with the fact that I am the mother and not father. So my daughter automatically got my nationality and was issued a UK passport. But because she was born in Thailand she has a Thai birth Cert. I have been told she can not hold a Thai passport because we are not married. But she can reside in Thailand as she is a Thai national. And because I am her mother, I can be in Thailand as well with her up until she is 18 years old. Can anyone confirm or disconfirm this. It was all a bit confussing and im still not clear on what I can and can not do in respect to staying in Thailand. As well as this my daughter does not have any kind of visa to travel back to Thailand. But just her Thai birth certificate. Is this OK?

[astral]

A one way ticket is fine for an O visa.

You must report every 90 days.

I am puzzled as to why your daughter cannot be granted a passport,

perhaps she will get it if the father applies??

If they accept she is a Thai national then a passport should be automatic,

but the father must sign the papers!

You should be able to get a Non Imm O visa based on our status as the mother

and then extend it once in Thailand for a whole year and subsequent years.

Not just to 18, she can sponsor you in later years also

[nikisue]

Thanks for the info. I was also confussed when told my daughter could not have a Thai passport. Makes it difficult as she has a Thai birth certificate. Maybe it is easier to apply for once in Thailand and not through the conulate in the UK. If I start working again once back in Thailand can I do so on this visa, or do I have to re-apply for a non B visa?

Thanks

[lopburi3]

The parent of a Thai child has no right to extensions of stay under current policy. You can not live in Thailand except on visa entry, unless you have child enter as a foreign national and use the 500k bank deposit method to accompany a student. Sorry. This may change but at present parents do not receive extensions of stay.

If you have a multi entry non immigrant O visa it allows 90 day stays and you must leave the country/return to obtain a new 90 day stay. There is no reporting to immigration required for visa entries.

Child should have a visa for entry. Believe birth certificate may allow child to extend stay but do not believe it can be used for entry on foreign passport. At least not without possible problems (airline may not allow boarding).

Believe the problem with passport may be child not being on a home register in Thailand (just a guess) and suspect that should be taken care of by the father after entry.

You can obtain a work permit with a non immigrant O visa.

[nikisue]

Thanks for the info. I think I might check with the airline before I fly, to see what their rules are. Just to be on the safe side. I have contacted the British consulate in Bangkok and they advice differently to the Thai consulate in London. So it is a little confussing as what to do. So I want to make sure I cover all points and make sure I have all relevant documents needed. I seems like if me and my partner got married it would make life easier. Do you think this would be the case? If we got married it would be here in the UK before we return to Thailand in January. For him it makes no difference as he has his resident visa in the UK, which was no problem to obtain. It just seems that in Thailand they are more flexible if you are married and not just as long term partners. Only reason we are not married is for me 'once bitten twice shy'. Not that keen on going down that road again, especially when its only for visa reasons. But if it will make a big difference in travel and living in Thailand, I guess I should think about it.

[lopburi3]

It makes a big difference - and even more so for a woman; as you will be able to extend your stay with minimal paperwork and have short tract to PR or citizenship if you wish.

[nikisue]

I guess that's my answer then. If we marry in the UK is the process the same as if we were in Thailand. i.e. take marriage cert to consulate have it translated etc....

[samran]

I would defineltly try again in Thailand for the Thai passport after you arrive. I don't seem to remember my wife and I needing to show our marriage certificate when we applied for our daughters passport at the Bangkok passport office, but it was essential we showed he Thai BC stating she was Thai and she needed to have her name on my families Tabieen Baan, or house registration.

What the London embassy is telling you is very strange though. I mean, if your daughter is a Thai national, she is entirled to her Thai PP.

As it stands, children entering on foreign passports are traditionally waived from the normal visa rules, meaning that even if they arrive on a 30 day visa, there is no penalty on overstay till they are either 7 or 14 YO, depending on who you talk to.

As Lopburi 3 mentioned, there is no real recognition of de-facto relationships here, which is a shame, especially when there are kids involved. Ironically, long term visas and access to Thai citizenship are very easy for foreign wives married to Thai citizens.

[samran]

I guess that's my answer then. If we marry in the UK is the process the same as if we were in Thailand. i.e. take marriage cert to consulate have it translated etc....

We've never needed it translated.

Wife and I got married in Australia, she got her O-Visa in London when we lived there for a bit, and our etensions of stay though Thai immigration are based on our English language marriage certificate from Births, Deaths and Marriages in Australia. I don't think you'll need to translate the UK one at all.

[lopburi3]

Normally you marry under the laws of the country you are in (UK) but I have seen reports that Thailand Consulate can marry persons so you could check with them - otherwise you would marry the same as anyone else in the UK (I don't know the procedure).

[nikisue]

I thought is was strange when they said my daughter couldn't have a Thai passport because we were not married. They also questioned that fact she had a Thai Birth Certificate. And said that she should have been given a UK Birth Certificate because as her mother I am a UK citizen and she should have the same citizenship as me. The hospital in Thailand where I gave birth took care of all the documents and got the birth certificate for me. They took all the details of my partner and my passport and she was issued her birth cert. on this.

I guess like mentioned, unless you are legally married a long term relatiohship is not recognised even with a child. I think that in most cases there is a marriage, Not many unmarried foreign mothers will have the baby in Thailand, and more often return to their home country. So there seems to be a difference in opinion as to your rights depending on who you speak too.

It just worries me, because there is such a conflict in advice, I don't want to end up in no-mans land, or having to return to the UK sooner than expected. I need to stay in Thailand for a period of time as I am doing my research for my MA on Thai Teaching, so I need to be based there.

[samran]

Very strange indeed.

Let us know how it all turns out!

[opalhort]

Here is a link where you may find some info about what is required for a Thai Passport.

Sorry it is all in Thai but the link (English) I had stored is no longer working.

Link to the passport info

opalhort