Help obtaining Educational Visa

[mgmonk]

Sorry, for being such a noob to the forum, but I'm in a massive hurry, and I can't find the right forum to ask my question.

I'm going back to the States for 8 weeks, and I need advice on a non immigrant visa. I have paperwork to support an educational, one year non-immigrant, but when I tried in LA last year, I got turned down.

I've heard Huston or Dallas is far more accomodating. Any experience.

Let me know where to post this, and I'll elaborate.

Thanks, and I'm happy to re-post if this is the wrong forum.

g

[Tywais]

Moved to the Thaivisa forum.

[ubonjoe]

For a list of honorary consulates use the pulldown menu at the top of this page from the DC embassy website.

http://www.thaiembdc.org/AboutEmb/EmbDirect.aspx

I have used the Houston conuslate myself and have found them helpful. But you can probably contact any of them and they will be able to help you.

What you are wanting to get is a non immigrant ED multiple entry visa. With the correct paperwork you should be able to get it.

[mgmonk]

Thanks to the admin who moved my post. I'm new to this forum (or at least I haven't explored it yet), so I'm trying to get my way around.

To elaborate on my previous post.

I'm in the US for 8 weeks or more. I have a passport with several types of Thai Visas and stamps as I have been traveling in and around Thailand since the Spring of 2007.

Currently I have a letter from a company that I will be studying with that states, very simply, that I will arrive in June to attend a course that is 7 months minimum and will most likely result in employment following. It then asks for assistance in helping me obtain a student visa. It is printed on company letter head and singed by the manager.

I had a very similar letter (from a different company) last year and was turned away in Los Angeles. The best they could give me was a single entry non-b good for 3 months.

However, I have colleagues who have obtained and used with success letters that were exactly the same from both of these companies

in Denmark, Belgium, the UK, and Italy to name a few. All of these people sent the passport, an application, and the previously mentioned letter via mail, and received a year visa with no concerns.

There must be a consulate in the US that is more co-operative than the one in LA. I have heard rumors of either Dallas or Huston, but I would REALLY appreciate advice from others. As I am in the states for two months, I have plenty of time to mail or Fed-Ex my passport. I just want to be secure that I won't run into the same problem I encountered last year. I am even willing (to a certain financial extent) to obtain legal help if necessary.

Pleae post or PM me if you have any advice or personal experience in this matter. It is very important to me that I don't make the same mistake twice.

Thank you very much

[mgmonk]

I have used the Houston conuslate myself and have found them helpful. But you can probably contact any of them and they will be able to help you.

What you are wanting to get is a non immigrant ED multiple entry visa. With the correct paperwork you should be able to get it.

As I had such a miserable experience in LA, I question whether the paperwork was the problem or the consulate. I was told flat out that LA "did not provide non immigrant multiple entry visas of any kind" by the employees I spoke to.

I know that there must be a consulate with a better disposition. Can it be as simple as mailing my application, letter, and passport to Huston?

[ubonjoe]

You will need some kind of supporting documents showing that you are enrololed in a school with a course of study for a year. I suggest you contact the consulate by email and ask them exactly what is required. And then scan in what you have and email it to see if it is enough. That will save you a lot of time and trouble.

The honorary consulates normally only have one or two people that handle visas so you don't have to worry about dealing with an office full of goverment employees.

[mgmonk]

You will need some kind of supporting documents showing that you are enrololed in a school with a course of study for a year. I suggest you contact the consulate by email and ask them exactly what is required. And then scan in what you have and email it to see if it is enough. That will save you a lot of time and trouble.

The honorary consulates normally only have one or two people that handle visas so you don't have to worry about dealing with an office full of goverment employees.

Is Huston one of these "honorary" consulates? What you say sounds logical, but after living in Thailand off and on for years and having experience with the LA consulate, I can say for a fact that logic is not always a strong point in Thai culture. Especially when it comes to governmental issues. No offense to Thai nationals. They get most of life right over here. Better, in fact. Hoever things are never as easy as they seem like they should be.

[ubonjoe]

Houston is an honorary consulate. Look at the list I wrote about earlier.

Honorary consulates are not staffed by the Thai goverment. That is why they are easy to deal with. The one in Houston is a lawyers office.

[mgmonk]

Houston is an honorary consulate. Look at the list I wrote about earlier.

Honorary consulates are not staffed by the Thai goverment. That is why they are easy to deal with. The one in Houston is a lawyers office.

Gotcha. I looked at that list as soon as you posted, but I wasn't sure what defined "honorary" thanks for clearing that up. In fact, now that I looked into the Dallas branch, I recognize a name of one of the lawyers mentioned to me by a colleague who had the same problem as myself.

cheers for the info, and if I can ever help in return, let me know

[Tywais]

Topic title changed.