Hello, i need some sound advice again guys and girls.

I am now considering moving back to Thailand, currently i reside in Laos. Please tell me how to apply for a 3 month or 12 month visa, i am English , i have a TEFL certificate (education visa ?) i will be looking for work and already have some interviews lined up, that's why i am thinking about a 3 month visa. I think i could apply at the Thai consulate in Vientiane, Laos, so i just want to know what i need etc.. and what type of visa.

I look forward to your comments, many thanks Kevin

The best you could get is a tourist visa. You will not be issued a non immigrant visa unless you are married to a Thai national, or until you have applied for a work permit.

I think Vientiane still issues double entry tourist visa's, so you'd have almost half a year for finding yourself a job.

Once you land a job, you apply for a work permit, with the papers received from them along with the papers from your employer you travel back to a neighboring country, where you then will be able to obtain a non immigrant B visa.

After returning on that visa the labor department can then proceed with issuing you your work permit.

The education visa is only for students, not for scholars/teachers, and in any case can only be obtained after enrolling in a licensed school as a student and receiving supporting paperwork from the ministry of education.

Unless you have the supporting documents to apply for some other type of visa, apply for a single entry Tourist Visa. That would permit a stay of 60 days upon entry, and could be extended by 30 days within country. If that is not long enough, apply for a double entry Tourist Visa.

Wow guys that bloody quick! Thank you so much, looks like the old tourist visa then, any idea's on price? i use to go to Penang many years ago and the price was something like 2000 baht cant swear though, i'm getting old haha.

Thanks again, Kevin

After May 11 they will be free (at least single entry) but now should be about 1,000 baht per entry.

After May 11 they will be free (at least single entry) but now should be about 1,000 baht per entry.

is that for 1 month and by merely going across a border?

After May 11 they will be free (at least single entry) but now should be about 1,000 baht per entry.

is that for 1 month and by merely going across a border?

No.

Apply at the Thai Consulate for a Tourist Visa.

The best you could get is a tourist visa.

When you land a job and with the correct paperwork, you can convert your Tourist Visa into a non-immigrant B visa at Immigration in Bangkok.1,900 THB is the fee.

Edited May 1, 201016 yr by aidenai

You can not convert a tourist visa to a non immigrant B visa.

The 1,900 baht fee is for a one year extension of stay but requires you have a non immigrant visa entry.

To convert a tourist visa to non immigrant visa entry you must qualify for extension of stay and have 21 days or more remaining and pay a fee of 2,000 baht.

Thanks again for all of your help, i will be staying in Laos for at least a week so i will check out the Thai consulate in Vientiane.

Cheers

Just a quick question why are you coming back to Thailand.

You can not convert a tourist visa to a non immigrant B visa.

To convert a tourist visa to non immigrant visa entry you must qualify for extension of stay and have 21 days or more remaining and pay a fee of 2,000 baht.

You're right. It was 2,000 THB. Apologise. So, what non-immigrant visa is it then?

It is not a visa. It is an extension of stay. Your visa died as soon as the extension of stay was issued.

Just a quick question why are you coming back to Thailand.

My sense of adventure, and just realising why it's called 'BANG..kok' ! joking aside i have been offered a good job in Bangkok, its just a case of me checking the job out and seeing if its a good prospect. i worked in Thailand for 5 years before, so it seems like a natural thing to do, plus i cant live under the same roof as my fiancee in Laos, no she isn't that bad, it's their culture, so better i look for work outside of Laos!

cheers Kev

It is not a visa. It is an extension of stay. Your visa died as soon as the extension of stay was issued.

Catching on words, eh? Concur, these are rules and it's law. Things has to be written as concrete and specific as possible.

Please tell me thaiphoon, on which rules is the extension of stay granted when converting a tourist visa into a non-immigrant visa meant to work in the occupation, OP has written in his initial post? You didn't mention that.

You can not obtain without meeting other (requirements except non immigrant visa entry) normal one year extension of stay rules. OP does not have employment so we do not know at this point what requirements he would need to meet. But the entry is just non immigrant (purpose) - there is no letter designation for extensions of stay.

You can not convert a tourist visa to a non immigrant B visa.

But the entry is just non immigrant (purpose) - there is no letter designation for extensions of stay.

Today I had a look again at my colleague's passport. He had a 60 days Tourist Visa expiring on the 11th May 2010 and had it on the 23th April 2010 converted into a 90 days permission of stay under the status NON-B in Bangkok.

His permission stamp includes a stamp stating NON-B and in handwriting the name of the school he's going to work at.

As Lopburi3 has said, you cannot convert a tourist visa to a Non-B visa per se; only as part of a 2 stage process resulting in an extension of stay being issued based on (in this case) employment. What your colleague has done is stage 1 of the 2 stage process where immigration have issued Non-Immigrant B visa as he meets the requirements for extension of stay. 60 days after issue of Non-B visa he can go back to immigration to do 2nd stage of applying for the extension of stay. Extensions of stay (not visas) carry no designation letters.