Changing Work

[BigPanda]

Hi all,

I would really appreciate some help here. I am going to work for a new company soon.

I have a WP and a Non B visa already.

My WP with the current company is still valid for the next 8 months, but my visa will expire in 3 weeks.

So I have agreed already on work and work permit with a new company. It's in the same field and the position will be the same. Just different Thai company.

My question is do i have to apply for a new WP from 0 or I can just update the one I already hold.

I will also have to change the non B visa this I understand and it's not a problem, anyway it will expire soon. But I am worried that if I have to do everything from 0, i wont have enough time because my visa will expire in 3 weeks.

The new company has never done any WP for foreigners or anything of that sort, so I have to do all by myself, which is a bit of a problem (I always had people doing it for me) and I wonder if i could just avoid to remake from 0 a new WP, by just updating the new company in it and making a new VISA with the proper documents from the new company. These are quite big companies, who pay a lot of tax every year so it's not a problem about getting accepted or not for the WP and VISA, but more the time would be an issue right now.

Any advice would be great as I am bit lost about how to handle this.

Thank you!

Edited March 22, 2010 by BigPanda

[Mario2008]

New employer means you have to apply for a new work permit. Your permisison to stay expires the day your old job ends. That day you have to apply for a new extension of stay based on working for your new employer or get a 7 day extension of stay or leave the country. (That is if you are on an extension of stay, not if you have a valid multiple non-.

[richardt1808]

Hi,

Normally your extension of stay is linked to your WP so it is strange that yours expires before your existing WP.

At any rate, to answer your question: it is a new job with a new company so requires a new WP. There are a load of documents which the company is required to submit so they will have to acquire this experience if they want to employ you. For example, previous financial statements are required, names of directors/shareholders, company tax receipts etc Perhaps one of the other members will be able to quote the website which lists things in detail. Technically, your existing WP exipres on the day you stop working for the present company and they are supposed to return it to immigration but you may be able to do a smooth transition if you can get them to agree that your last working day is literally the same say as the day you apply for the new WP.

I hope it all works out for you.

Edited March 22, 2010 by richardt1808

[BigPanda]

Hi thanks,

Well it may be weird, it's because i had visa already, then got the WP then went outside the country for a while (more then a month while i was holding my current WP), then apply for a new visa non B from outside Thailand and came back... Then I was suppose to make the 1 year non B visa here in Thailand but I did not do it on purpose... Not being sure I would not stay for a year.

I know already about all the paperworks and things to do. It is not a problem for that...

But my big questions is about the visa. Obviously I don't want to ask the current company for the statements and just extend my visa right now as I will leave... So My visa will expire the 17 of April.

So I would need to cancel the WP lets say tomorrow and then apply for the new one tomorrow or after tomorrow for example. Then hopefully it should be done before my visa expires and I could get extension while I wait for the 1 year visa to be issued after the WP right ?

Then what is the process of canceling the WP with the current company ? I am holding it, not my employer, neither does he really care about what I do with it. So I can handle this by myself with no problems. I am not in bad terms with my employer, we still do business together... But i need to do this right in order to protect my status here.

Mario said my permission to stay will expire the day i finish my WP ?. So how would I apply for a new WP without any visa. Are you telling me when i cancel my WP I also have to cancel my visa ?

I'm not quite sure i follow on this one.

Thank you

[Mario2008]

Your employer needs to give you a letter stating the day which your employment ends. You take that with you to the labour office, together with the work permit.

Since you are not on an extension of stay (you didn't went to immigration for a 1 year extension), your permission to stay remains valid. Just apply for the new WP as soon as possible.

[BigPanda]

Thanks Mario,

This helps, I will do this way.

Have a nice day!