I'm a US citizen, age 23.

Basically, I'm trying to figure out a visa situation that will let me stay in Thailand for maybe six months to a year. If I decide to stay longer than that, then I by necessity will have to have found a decent job in Thailand as I won't be able to afford it So, I can worry about work permits and so on at that point.

I have been in communication with a guy at Chiang Mai University about a part-time job doing english-language editing. If I get that job, then I presume I can get a "B" visa which will give me a year… correct?

Now, the reason I'm asking here is that I'm not sure they'll offer me the job. In the case that they don't, my current thinking is to get the 3-month tourist visa, and to try to line up some work while there.

However, I will be arriving on a one-way ticket. I know in a recent thread someone asked if they actually care that you have a return flight for a tourist visa, and apparently they don't… but how does one work this? The two times I've been to Thailand previously (both for the full 30 days that are allowed without a visa) I just wrote the flight number for my return flight on the arrival card… can I just leave that blank without raising suspicion?

I'm OK with multiple trips to consulates and so on, I just want to make sure I'm planning this out properly.

Executive summary of my plan:

a) Get the job and be all set with the B visa (which I guess involves 'consulate runs' every three months?), or,

Arrive with a 3-month tourist visa (which involves one border/consulate run after two months?)

------- 1) Try to line up some work...

------- 2) Then, get a B visa or work permit and be all set for a little while longer

Does this sound reasonable? Am I approaching this the right way? Is there perhaps an easier way?

(if it matters, my reason for wanting to live in Thailand for a while is so that I can take a much-needed break from what I'm currently doing - I'm a grad student and will finish my MSc in May - and, naturally, to develop my relationship with a girl (a Thai student) I met in Chiang Mai…)

Edited March 4, 201016 yr by penguinchris

I Iarrived on a one-way ticket with a multiple entry (60 day x 3) tourist visa, and just wrote the letters TBA on the return flight for my departure card. No problems at customs, but it's because of the proper tourist visa.

a. If you get a job offer and papers to confirm it you can get a non-B visa and possible extensions of stay if you have a work permit and meet the requirements.

If not, you will have to come on a tourist visa, which is 60 days and can be extended by 30 day for 1,900 baht. No return ticket is needed when you have a visa. When you find work get a work permit, and a non-B from abroad..

Are you sure that is correct Mario, that you don't need a return ticket if you enter Thailand on a visa such as a Tourist Visa?

I would be very surprised if at check-in I wasn't knocked back because I did not have a return or ongoing ticket out of Thailand.

A one-way would suit me in lots of circumstances but I have always believed that a return ticket was necessary with a visa or otherwise?

Are you sure that is correct Mario, that you don't need a return ticket if you enter Thailand on a visa such as a Tourist Visa?

I would be very surprised if at check-in I wasn't knocked back because I did not have a return or ongoing ticket out of Thailand.

A one-way would suit me in lots of circumstances but I have always believed that a return ticket was necessary with a visa or otherwise?

Yes Mario is correct.

OP

Don't worry about what you put on the arrival/departure card. If you have a problem, it will be with the airline when you check in for your flight, not with Thai Immigration.

Are you sure that is correct Mario, that you don't need a return ticket if you enter Thailand on a visa such as a Tourist Visa?

I would be very surprised if at check-in I wasn't knocked back because I did not have a return or ongoing ticket out of Thailand.

A one-way would suit me in lots of circumstances but I have always believed that a return ticket was necessary with a visa or otherwise?

As another poster said, I'm correct. Airlines can check in a IATA database what the requirements are to enter a country. It will show them that you don't need a return ticket if you have a visa from a consulate or embassy.

Mario is correct.

Mario is correct.

There's nobody as correct as Mario is correct, is there?

<is that right>

Right.