Business Visa In Laos Denied

[ragazzo-d-oro]

Hi to everyboby,

I just came back from loas yesterday with a very bad experience.

I was there to apply for a non immigrant b visa ( business visa ) that is necessary to ask in Thailand the work permit .

My lawier studio in bangkok ( one of the most accreditated company that give this service , the sunbelt asia ) check about my company documents ( 2 milion baht recorded company ) and prepare all the document for this application :

- company certificates

- invitation lecter for let me work in thailand

- application form

I also bring with me 2 pictures and photocopy of my passport

The first time they told me that I need the company balance and some other documents that require at least one year company activities and I told to the officer that I could not have those documents because I just set up my company 1 month ago'. If I don't work I can not get any activities.

So the officer told me I need the V.A.T. ( never required before for what I know !!! ) .

I came back and I apply after about one hour with another officer that look like to procede my visa application but then call me back and gave me a document example written in thai : the work permit !!!!!

He told me that for the non-b visa I need it.

BUT HOW TO GET THE WORK PERMIT IF I DON'T HAVE THE NON - B ????

Outside the embassy had many people with name card and picture of one of the officer that offer to get the visa in the same day for 5000 baht .

About tourist visas I heard from other people that there were no problems but I need to work in Thailand BECAUSE I JUST INVEST 6 MILIONS BAHT IN A BUSINESS THAT I STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TO RUN !!!!

I went to accreditated legal service company in bangkok, I invest mutch more than the money required for run business in Thailand and I spent about one year for build a very nice restorant and club , and I get what ?????

30 days on arrival COMING BACK FROM VENTIANE !!!!

I think I will call another embassy and ask documents required by phone to the embassy staff and then I will go to apply in some other country for the business visa .

Sincerly I hope that the mekong river will do its part and will arrive untill the houses of corrupted officers if they are ....

I just loose money and preacious time for work .

Thank you in advance for any suggestion !!!!

Edited August 15, 2008 by ragazzo-d-oro

[PoorSucker]

BUT HOW TO GET THE WORK PERMIT IF I DON'T HAVE THE NON - B ????

You must bring the WP3 recipe for applying WP.

With wp3 you will get 3 months Non-B visa.

You can apply for WP on a tourist visa, or exemption stamp.

when you get your "blue book", you can apply for 1-year visa on and embassy/consulate.

If you fulfill the requirements for extension of stay go any immigration office.

Edited August 15, 2008 by PoorSucker

[digitalchromakey]

BUT HOW TO GET THE WORK PERMIT IF I DON'T HAVE THE NON - B ????

You must bring the WP3 recipe for applying WP.

With wp3 you will get 3 months Non-B visa.

You can apply for WP on a tourist visa, or exemption stamp.

when you get your "blue book", you can apply for 1-year visa on and embassy/consulate.

If you fulfill the requirements for extension of stay go any immigration office.

Just to confirm, your company must apply for a Work Permit in Thailand, using form WP3 at your local labour department, before you apply in another country for a non immigrant visa.

Here is the Thai Miniistry of Foreign Affairs list of requirements for a non immigrant B visa http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2492

When the application is filed you will be given a receipt (small slip of Paper) this is the 'Letter of Authorisation' referred to in the above link.

Edited August 16, 2008 by digitalchromakey

[fm2002]

I'm very suprised Sunbelt didn't explain exactly what you needed to do and/or explained the probability of acceptance using the Thai Embassy in Laos ???

I used Sunbelt for my non-immigrant B and they told me exactly what to do and where to send it (which Embassy). They never told me Laos was a option and in fact they knew I would be in Laos and never brought up to me this place was an option.

[Sunbelt Asia]

I think I will call another embassy and ask documents required by phone to the embassy staff and then I will go to apply in some other country for the business visa .

Sincerly I hope that the mekong river will do its part and will arrive untill the houses of corrupted officers if they are ....

Goalposts change from time to time at Thai Consulates/ Embassies. They just changed in Laos to the stricter side for Business visas. With some Consulates an applicant only needs the application and an invitation letter from a Thai company. Others require proof the company is a real company and showing the company shareholders, registration and financial records ( if it has any) .

When some unscrupulous people have used photocopies and applied for themselves under false pretenses or simply the Consulate has given more visas than other countries. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs will tell that Embassy/Consulate to get stricter. When this call happens, it is overnight the change in attitudes and you were caught in this change.

To apply for a 90 day business visa, you will need the docs showing company shareholders, registration and financial records. However you now will also need a Wp-3 approval as well. In Laos before this, they were requiring this for only teacher applications. By the way even with a Wp-3 when a Consulate gets strict, its not 100% you will get a visa oy you can even apply for the wp-3 as a foreign director.

If you have already had a 90 day business visa and are applying for a second one… You must show everything as above but also a work permit or a receipt you have applied for the work permit.

The new requirement in Laos for people applying for a second business visa, if they have the receipt of the work permit pick up date they will now need also a copy of the contract filed with the Labor dept. In order to get the work permit pick up receipt in the first place you must have already given the Labor Dept the contract form signed by the Employer. This is not the employer employee contract but the form from the labor dept that says "Employer contract" For what ever reason, Laos is now requiring this form as well. Be aware if you go to the Labor Dept they will not allow you to photocopy anything there so you must keep a photocopy of this government form before you arrive at the Labor dept. Laos is the only Embassy/Consulate asking for this form now and it was just asked for the last few days.

Ironically, our lawyers were just warned by Laos Thursday that they should advise clients to not use agents ( runners) in Laos to handle the visa as this will complicate maters. Their thought was they are cracking down on runners and will look at the i to make sure it has a dot.

I'm sending you a pm on other countries that you may consider going to get a 90 day visa if you want to avoid going back to Laos.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

[Sunbelt Asia]

I'm very suprised Sunbelt didn't explain exactly what you needed to do and/or explained the probability of acceptance using the Thai Embassy in Laos ???

I used Sunbelt for my non-immigrant B and they told me exactly what to do and where to send it (which Embassy). They never told me Laos was a option and in fact they knew I would be in Laos and never brought up to me this place was an option.

Laos could have been "cold" then. With the Thai Embassies/Consulates near Thailand it’s changing from strict to lax to strict and back to lax Its a endless cycle.

I just had two employees get a 90 day visa last week with no Wp-3 in Laos. This Thursday another was rejected like the OP The cycles usually last 6 months to a year so look for Laos to be strict till next year sometime.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

[TopDogger]

I got one from Laos @ the end of last month with Sunbelts docs no problemo... Cheers Greg

[NHJ]

I'm very suprised Sunbelt didn't explain exactly what you needed to do and/or explained the probability of acceptance using the Thai Embassy in Laos ???

I used Sunbelt for my non-immigrant B and they told me exactly what to do and where to send it (which Embassy). They never told me Laos was a option and in fact they knew I would be in Laos and never brought up to me this place was an option.

Laos could have been "cold" then. With the Thai Embassies/Consulates near Thailand it's changing from strict to lax to strict and back to lax Its a endless cycle.

I just had two employees get a 90 day visa last week with no Wp-3 in Laos. This Thursday another was rejected like the OP The cycles usually last 6 months to a year so look for Laos to be strict till next year sometime.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

it's a bit surprising from a respectable company like yours(sunbelt) and very known in thailand that you don't provide your customers the minimum required documents listed on the ministry of foreign affaires website...

it's very clearely stated on it that the consulate may require any additional documents others than those listed, it's never said that some consulate will not ask for those documents.

it's maybe the will of your customer to jeopardize their visa but you shouldn't get involved in such things as it makes a bad promotion for your bisuness.

Edited August 16, 2008 by NHJ

[Sunbelt Asia]

it's a bit surprising from a respectable company like yours(sunbelt) and very known in thailand that you don't provide your customers the minimum required documents listed on the ministry of foreign affaires website...

it's very clearely stated on it that the consulate may require any additional documents others than those listed, it's never said that some consulate will not ask for those documents.

it's maybe the will of your customer to jeopardize their visa but you shouldn't get involved in such things as it makes a bad promotion for your bisuness.

We always tell clients this is what a particular Embassy/Consulate is asking for now but this can always change.

If you are a Managing Director of a comnpany who is a foreigner, it is impossible to submit the wp-3 application to the Labor Dept for yourself unless you already have a work permit. If you had a work permit, you would never submit a wp-3 application for yourself in the first place to get the visa.

The only solution exists of obtaining a Thai director for the company but this has additional cost and less protection for the foreign investor and even possible charges of the Thai being an nominee director.

This is why the quest for foreigners in finding Thai Embassies/Consulates that will give a visa without requiring documents that are impossible or complicated to get.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

[digitalchromakey]

it's a bit surprising from a respectable company like yours(sunbelt) and very known in thailand that you don't provide your customers the minimum required documents listed on the ministry of foreign affaires website...

it's very clearely stated on it that the consulate may require any additional documents others than those listed, it's never said that some consulate will not ask for those documents.

it's maybe the will of your customer to jeopardize their visa but you shouldn't get involved in such things as it makes a bad promotion for your bisuness.

We always tell clients this is what a particular Embassy/Consulate is asking for now but this can always change.

If you are a Managing Director of a comnpany who is a foreigner, it is impossible to submit the wp-3 application to the Labor Dept for yourself unless you already have a work permit. If you had a work permit, you would never submit a wp-3 application for yourself in the first place to get the visa.

The only solution exists of obtaining a Thai director for the company but this has additional cost and less protection for the foreign investor and even possible charges of the Thai being an nominee director.

This is why the quest for foreigners in finding Thai Embassies/Consulates that will give a visa without requiring documents that are impossible or complicated to get.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com

Bit of a catch 22 that; is it really the case that a foreign Managing Director of a newly formed company cannot sign a WP3 application form for themselves?

It would be perverse in the extreme to deny a WP3 application for director of a start up company on the criteria that the director does not have a Work Permit!

Also for a Thai legal entity you need Thai Shareholders. Surely as an alternative to the above strategy, one of them can sign the WP3 form and any associated company minutes in the first instance? By law they cannot be nominees, so what is the problem?

[Sunbelt Asia]

Also for a Thai legal entity you need Thai Shareholders. Surely as an alternative to the above strategy, one of them can sign the WP3 form and any associated company minutes in the first instance? By law they cannot be nominees, so what is the problem?

Several issues...

We have formed hundreds and hundreds of Thai companies a year with no Thai shareholders.

You are correct that it may be a requirement to have Thai shareholders for non -Americans in certain categories. Even then it is not a requirement when the foreigner obtains the Alien Business certificate or they are involved in a business category that is allowed 100% foreign ownership.

However, even if you can own the business 100% as a foreigner this does not give you the automatic right to work. Labor Dept laws are different than the Department of Business Development laws.

As for those Thai companies that are required to have Thai shareholders, it’s a big difference in having a Thai shareholder and a Thai director. Putting any nominee issue aside, a director has more legal responsibility than a shareholder such as making sure tax is paid, audits are done, and any government reporting is done. If fraud is involved, all directors could be held accountable. A shareholder who has bought shares in a Thai company with cash, service or property should never take responsibility of being a director of a Thai company lightly. As others have found, they may just find one day, their personal assets have been attached to pay civil or criminal penalties. When an audit is not done on time, the director gets the notice from the police dept to pay the fine or face going to jail. The shareholders themselves never get this same notice.

www.sunbeltasiagroup.com