12 Month Visa Extension With Valid Work Permit

[Bodger22]

Hi

I currently have a valid Non B Visa.

My work permit should be granted +- one week before the Non B Visa expires.

What is the process to extend the Non B for an additional 12 months and how long does it normally take?

My main question is if my visa is valid when the extension application is made, can the B Visa expire before the approval comes through or does it have to be valid until the extension is granted?

If I have a valid work permit before my B Visa expires is there any reason I would have to leave the country again?

Thanks

[PoorSucker]

You'll be fine until your current border stamp runs out.

[Bodger22]

Thanks for the response but I would still like to get some specific answers to my original questions.

What is the process to extend the Non B for an additional 12 months and how long does it normally take?

If my visa is valid when the extension application is made, can the B Visa expire before the approval comes through or does it have to be valid until the extension is granted?

If I have a valid work permit before my B Visa expires is there any reason I would have to leave the country again?

[lopburi3]

A work permit does not mean you can obtain an extension of stay. There will be company paperwork required, tax payments record for a year or so and income requirements for your nationality. If you meet the requirements and apply before permitted to stay expires it should not be a problem.

[Sunbelt Asia]

A Non-immigrant B visa can be extended at the Immigration Office in the district where you reside. It can only be extended for 1 year if you have a valid work permit booklet issued. The officer will not accept visa extension application without a valid work permit booklet, even if you show receipt that you have submitted a work permit application already. However, they may accept to extend it for another 7 days if you don’t have the work permit booklet yet for a fee of THB 1,900 per extension. Nowadays, the work permit is issued with 6 months or 1 year validity (depending on the officer’s discretion) separate and independent from the visa period. So in your case, even if you have only a few days left on your visa, for as long as the work permit has already been issued, you may extend your non-immigrant B visa for 1 year provided that you have all the remaining requirements accomplished.

On the day that you submit all required documents, the Immigration officer will put a stamp on your passport with a 30 day validity. This is what they refer to as “consideration period” wherein they review your application, make a file for you and gather whether you are fully qualified for the 1 year extension. On the 30th day, you will have to “hear the result” of your visa extension in which if approved, you will obtain an extension stamp expiring 1 year after the day you submitted the extension. Bear in mind however, that despite the extension being 1 year, it is a SINGLE ENTRY visa and will therefore be canceled the moment you leave Thailand. It is highly recommended to apply for a “re-entry permit” at the Immigration Office prior to your departure. Re-entry permits are available on single entry or multiple entries valued at THB 1,000 and THB 3,800, respectively.

For additional reference, issuance of the work permit booklet is not enough to qualify you for the 1 year Non-immigrant B visa extension of stay. Additional documents must be supplied by your company. Moreover, your company must qualify with the 3 major requirements below, especially if it has been operating for more than a year:

1) 2 Million baht registered capital per 1 work permit holder with 4 Thai employees per 1 work permit holder (must be supported by PND 1 –monthly withholding tax forms and Social Security Fund forms and receipts)

2) The revenue/gross sales of the company (at the time of the visa extension) must be able to cover for 1 year salaries of all the employees including the work permit holder(s). This is usually shown by the previous annual audit or by the half-year report (por ngor dor 51) of the current year.

3) The Owner’s equity must be positive with at least 1 million minimum.

If any (or all) of the above requirements has (have) not been met, the officer may still consider your visa extension if the officer is convinced that your company is operating on a regular basis and not just setup solely for visa and work permit purposes. In this sense, they will review your Monthly VAT Submissions (Por por 30) and may base the decision based on the transactions and daily operations of your business and/or the nature of your business. It is understandable of course that each company may suffer a loss, or fail to hire 4 Thai employees due to numerous economic factors, hence, it is on the discretion of the officer whether they see it fit to issue the 1 year extension of stay.

[sunbelt][/sunbelt]