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Teaching English Part-time?

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I will be coming to Bangkok in mid-August and will be looking for my first TEFL job.

Are there many part-time jobs in this field?

Ideally I'd like to work two days a week or maybe three.

Do jobs like this come up?

I have a degree and have done a TEFL course.

Thanks.

Is it possible, yes, however, very, very few places, if any, are going to give you a work-permit for part time work. What type of visa will you be on?

  • Author

Non-Immigration type O (12 month)

That is a shame. So its full-time or nothing?

If you want to be legal, then generally you need at least one full-time gig to get sponsorship for work permit (in your case you won't need the visa extension for non-imm. :). Don't let anyone tell you that you *have* to have non-imm. B to work- that is NOT true. It is more convenient for some schools if you do (and it puts you more under their thumb).

If you are only planning to do some private work behind the scenes on a very small scale, though technically illegal it is very unlikely that you will ever experience any problems- in the same way that brief periods of private tutoring in the UK or the USA usually wouldn't be declared on tax forms unless it was on a pretty big scale, even though technically that is also illegal.

This is what i understand about non-immigrant visas:

A non-immigrant O based on marriage to a Thai - you can obtain a work permit but there is a financial requirement

A non-immigrant O based on retirement - you cannot obtain a work permit without changing the status of your visa first

A non-immigrant O based on volunteering - you can obtain a work permit as a volunteer without a financial requirement

A non-immigrant B - you can obtain a work permit without a financial requirement

If you work part-time in a language school in Bangkok without a work permit, it is highly unlikely you will experience any problem with the authorities here and you will be joining thousands who do the same. It's tolerated and is normal practice in most Thai schools. It is illegal though.

  • 2 weeks later...
  • Author
If you work part-time in a language school in Bangkok without a work permit, it is highly unlikely you will experience any problem with the authorities here and you will be joining thousands who do the same. It's tolerated and is normal practice in most Thai schools. It is illegal though.

So do you think there is much chance of me finding part-time positions teaching English? Two days a week would be ideal.

You shouldn't have much trouble finding part-time work. The problem is that a lot of the work is on weekends or evenings. If you don't mind that, it's not too difficult.

  • Author
You shouldn't have much trouble finding part-time work. The problem is that a lot of the work is on weekends or evenings. If you don't mind that, it's not too difficult.

Don't mind a couple of evenings a week but probably won't do weekends.

Will I get that? 2x5 hour shifts would be perfect.

You shouldn't have much trouble finding part-time work. The problem is that a lot of the work is on weekends or evenings. If you don't mind that, it's not too difficult.

Don't mind a couple of evenings a week but probably won't do weekends.

Will I get that? 2x5 hour shifts would be perfect.

Possible but be more flexible and there will be more opportunities.

It's very, very difficult to set your own hours in part-time work, especially if you are new. People who have worked here for a long time can much more easily do it because they have plenty of work. People starting out new take a while to build a reputation and a clientele that is sufficiently large to accommodate the schedule you want. Generally, you work the schedule they want.

It's very, very difficult to set your own hours in part-time work, especially if you are new. People who have worked here for a long time can much more easily do it because they have plenty of work. People starting out new take a while to build a reputation and a clientele that is sufficiently large to accommodate the schedule you want. Generally, you work the schedule they want.

For the above reasons (not being able to choose your schedule) you may want to look at corporate work during the week and language schools in-house at the week-ends. Give yourself options and don't forget that teaching three or four days a week but for a couple of hours will be far less of a strain on you.

  • Author
don't forget that teaching three or four days a week but for a couple of hours will be far less of a strain on you.

That is true. Was attracted the thought of having lots of days off but if its more work then perhaps its not a good idea.

  • 2 weeks later...
This is what i understand about non-immigrant visas:

A non-immigrant O based on marriage to a Thai - you can obtain a work permit but there is a financial requirement

A non-immigrant O based on retirement - you cannot obtain a work permit without changing the status of your visa first

A non-immigrant O based on volunteering - you can obtain a work permit as a volunteer without a financial requirement

A non-immigrant B - you can obtain a work permit without a financial requirement

If you work part-time in a language school in Bangkok without a work permit, it is highly unlikely you will experience any problem with the authorities here and you will be joining thousands who do the same. It's tolerated and is normal practice in most Thai schools. It is illegal though.

Please excuse the intrusion, but you seem to know the ropes.

I've been here nearly 3 years and I'm due to renew my Retirement Extension (formerly on One Year Multi Entry Visa) at the end of August. I'm starting this thought process from scratch.

You're saying I would have to change my visa status first. To what and how would that work? Would it entail going back to UK?

Also, is the TEFL course (as advertised here) the way to go?

If you don't get an answer, you might want to send him a PM.

This is what i understand about non-immigrant visas:

A non-immigrant O based on marriage to a Thai - you can obtain a work permit but there is a financial requirement

A non-immigrant O based on retirement - you cannot obtain a work permit without changing the status of your visa first

A non-immigrant O based on volunteering - you can obtain a work permit as a volunteer without a financial requirement

A non-immigrant B - you can obtain a work permit without a financial requirement

If you work part-time in a language school in Bangkok without a work permit, it is highly unlikely you will experience any problem with the authorities here and you will be joining thousands who do the same. It's tolerated and is normal practice in most Thai schools. It is illegal though.

Please excuse the intrusion, but you seem to know the ropes.

I've been here nearly 3 years and I'm due to renew my Retirement Extension (formerly on One Year Multi Entry Visa) at the end of August. I'm starting this thought process from scratch.

You're saying I would have to change my visa status first. To what and how would that work? Would it entail going back to UK?

Also, is the TEFL course (as advertised here) the way to go?

Hi Mickba,

Received your pm.

I'm not a visa expert, so you should check my advice before acting on it. You could post the question in the visa section of the forum for a second input. However:

If you are planning to work or volunteer, I believe you will need to change the status of your current retirement visa to a non-imm B or O (married to a Thai) or O (based on status as a volunteer) to obtain a work permit.

If you are planning to volunteer, you will need to leave the country to obtain a new visa. That's the rule in my province, but it may be different in other provinces. Check with your local immigration office whether they can change the status of your retirement visa without you leaving the country.

You wouldn't need to return to the UK. A consulate or embassy in a country that borders Thailand should be able to do this.

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