Temporary Tourist Visa

[laawaaris]

I am a USA passport holder and my wife is an Indian passport holder. We will be traveling directly from India to Thailand.

As a USA passport holder I can enter Thailand Visa-free; however my wife who is the Indian passport holder must apply for a Temporary Tourist Visa (Visa on Arrival)

There are several detailed questions I have about this - I appreciate any responses or experience that people have had with this.

• Where will my wife obtain the form/application for Temporary Tourist Visa ?
• Is it a strict requirement that the photo dimensions be 2.25 inches x 2.25 inches ? Other sizes will be flat out rejected ?
• At the Thai airport, which immigration line do we stand in? I assume there are multiple lines - but because of our different passports I want to accompany her in the same line.
• Is there any need to carry our original marriage certificate with us - just in case?
• Would it be feasible to fly into Phuket, obtain the Temporary Tourist Visa, and then fly back to India from Bangkok ? Since this is a Temporary Tourist Visa, when I present proof of a fully paid ticket describing my flight pattern (multi-city) - will this cause any concern or additional questions from the immigration officer? Is it simply easier to show them you are flying in and out of the same city in Thailand ?
• What would be considered an acceptable proof of FULLY PAID TICKET ? I normally book tickets online and so I only have online receipts or itineraries to print out from websites or my email. Is there some particular document they are looking for to show proof of FULLY PAID TICKET ?
• The Thai Embassy says you must present 10,000 Baht per person. What are they are really asking for - are they going to pocket some of that money for themselves? Are they expecting you to show them cash - what are the other acceptable instruments to show - Traveler's Checks, International Debit/Credit Card? Or do they just want to see cash ?
• If ALL requirements listed on the Thai Embassy website for Visa On Arrival - is there a fairly good chance that the Temporary Tourist Visa will be granted? Visa rules can be somewhat hard these days so I just want to inquire if it is a good idea to bring any extra documents in case there is something that they would additionally ask for.

I know my questions are extremely detailed, but I usually have a visa in hand before traveling. So just want to confirm all the details and ask questions about what documents will satisfy the requirements.

Thanks in advance !

Edited August 21, 2010 by laawaaris

[Lite Beer]

There will be a Visa on Arrival desk at the airport before passport checkpoint. The forms will be there. The Visa is free of charge until March 30th.

A passport size photo is needed.

The E Ticket will be OK.

The requirement is for 10,000 Baht to enable the applicant to finance there stay. They rarely check.

I would have thought that it would have been easier for Her to apply for a Tourist Visa in India, especially as they are free at the moment.

[Crossy]

Yup, get the visa in India, whilst the visa on arrival system at Suvarnabhumi is well controlled there are always queues.

You will be expected to provide your full itinerary with paid tickets into and out of Thailand.

Visa applications are handled by VFS, you can apply in Delhi, Chandigarth, Chennai and Bangalore or via one of the specified Blue Dart Express offices.

Start here for your application process:- http://www.vfs-thailand.co.in/

Edited August 22, 2010 by Crossy

[laawaaris]

The reason why I was leaning towards Visa On Arrival is because my wife's bank account has 0 (zero) rupees in it, meaning she does not have any money in it. She is currently not working and I suppose I could put some money in it to cover the Visitor Visa requirement - but there would be no history of account balance. It would all of a sudden be a bunch of money deposited into her account.

Maybe they do not care too much about the financial requirement. However, she still currently (and for some time) has had 0 in the bank and that is why I thought of applying for Visa On Arrival instead.

Do all airports in the Thailand participating in Visa on Arrival have express photo services for passport photos ?

Edited August 22, 2010 by laawaaris

[lopburi3]

Do not believe photo are available at airport as you are in the controlled zone. Normal photo size in Thailand is 4x6cm but they normally allow anything near that.

VOA desk I believe will check for money so she should have the cash. Normal Immigration desks normally do not. Once VOA is obtained you both would proceed to the normal Immigration area for entry.

I would have marriage certificate as it can help prove relationship if questioned. But a copy should be enough.

Should not be an issue using two airports - just be sure exit is within the time allowed by entry. E-tickets should be fine.

Being with you should ensure that there are no issues if meet the normal conditions for entry.

[laawaaris]

In one flight pattern I found we would fly from India to Bangkok, layover for 2 hours then continue to final destination of Phuket.

In this situation - would the Visa On Arrival be in Bangkok or in Phuket ?

Where are you getting the photo requirements from ? On VFS website it says 3.5cm x 4.5cm (http://www.vfs-thail...ifications.html) but on the Thai Embassy website it simply says 2 1/4 inches ?

What are the correct dimensions ?

Edited August 22, 2010 by laawaaris

[Lite Beer]

The VOA would be in Phuket.

The photos? Anything close to Passport size. Do not worry.

[monty]

In one flight pattern I found we would fly from India to Bangkok, layover for 2 hours then continue to final destination of Phuket.

In this situation - would the Visa On Arrival be in Bangkok or in Phuket ?

Not sure here, the other way around (land in Phuket and then on to Bangkok) immigration is done in Phuket as the flight will become a domestic one over there.

If the airline does not take on any domestic passengers in Bangkok (Bkk -> Phuket), immigration will likely be in Phuket.