Where And How To Apply For Visa Extension

[cdio]

hello all, im in chiang rai thailand and have 16 days before i am suppose to leave thailand becasue i will have been here for the alloted 90 days. i want an extension for 10 days or so. do you know how much it costs or where the closest place to here i can do it. do i have to go to bangkok or can i do it from mai sai?

thanks for the help.

caty

[lopburi3]

No extension of more than 7 days is available anywhere for tourist reasons.

[cdio]

No extension of more than 7 days is available anywhere for tourist reasons.

oh, thnak you, the loneley planet book say ten. good to know. does anyone know where the closest spot to chiang rai to do this is?

[ProThaiExpat]

Most visa runs from Chiang Rai are to Mae Sai. Not far as such runs go.

[cali4995]

The Visa sections of those travel books, Lonely planet and Rough guide, were out

of date before the manuscripts even made it to the publishing house. CDIO, you've

already used your 90 days and you're attempting to get a 7-day extension tacked

on to a visa-exempt entry. It's possible but be aware this is entirely at the discretion

of the immigration officer on duty. I guess for you, Mae-Sai would be the nearest

office where you could attempt this. For 16 days to might be worth considering

obtaining a tourist visa at a nearby consulate. No easy solution here.

[cdio]

thank you very much for the info

Edited December 7, 2007 by cdio

[cdio]

so sorry to not sent out a thank you sooner. thank you all so much for the help and the info. i went to mae sai and got a 7 day extention for 1,900 baht.

i have spoken to a man here in chiang rai who said if i were to open a thai bank account and had at least 50,000 baht in it i could get another extension for upwards of 6 months. does anyone know if there is any truth in this???

[lopburi3]

There is no up to six month extension of stay offered by Immigration. 7 days as you received, 30 days on a tourist visa, 90 days on an education visa and 1 year on a non immigrant visa for various proven reasons are the normal extensions. In no case is more the 30 days allowed without a valid supporting reason (marriage/retirement/employment/education and such). If someone is providing such a service I would be extremely uneasy about it (and would not use any such service) as you have not mentioned any special qualifications for extension in the thread.

[cdio]

thanks, no one offered me a service they just said they knew people who did it. just opening a thai bank account would help. they werent offering to help in any way. not creepy. anyway, thanks for the info. i am voluteering here with hilltribe children so i may qualify for work. but would i have had to apply for it from my home country?

[lopburi3]

If you have paperwork for work a visa can be obtained in a nearby consulate.