Will They Give You 30 Stay On Entry If You Have Tourist Visa In Passport

[justSumGai]

thing is, I want to hit Bkk, decompress for a couple weeks then hit Phils for a few weeks, come back to Bkk, and then go to cambodia for maybe a month. So ideally I'd like to do regular 30 day on entry, then hit Phils, Come back and get another 30 day on entry, then say a week later go to Cambodia. Not sure how long I'll stay there, might be a month, Might be two. Might even be just a few weeks and if short stay there, I would come back and possibly spend up to 2 months in Thailand before flying out. I'm really wondering if they'll ignore the routine 30 day permission to stay and go right to stamping and activating the 60 day tourist visa, which would screw my plans up. I mean how DO ppl use Bkk as a home base while visiting nearby countries?

[jdinasia]

Not knowing your nationality etc makes it impossible to say.

However, if you are eligible for 30 day visa exempt entry if entering by plane then that is what you get every time you enter the country by plane.

[justSumGai]

USA, and i know this. Point is, if they see that tourist visa stapled into your passport will they automatically just go to stamping and activating it? or do YOU get to choose when to use it? They stamp that sucker first and my whole trip is blown. No phils, no cambo.

[klfopera]

USA, and i know this. Point is, if they see that tourist visa stapled into your passport will they automatically just go to stamping and activating it? or do YOU get to choose when to use it? They stamp that sucker first and my whole trip is blown. No phils, no cambo.

My experience in the past (I use a retirement visa) is that you can come in on the 30 day and not use the tourist visa until you want to (assuming it is within the time frame allowed by the visa). It is better to get a multiple entry tourist visa.

[Stjohnm]

Why don't you just get another Tourist visa in Cambodia or Philippines when you are more certain of your plans, they are free at the moment

[lopburi3]

If you have a valid visa in your passport that is what will be used for your entry under current policy. All recent reports here of those trying to use visa exempt in such a case have been negative when visa was seen.

[justSumGai]

thanks Lop, that's EXACTLY what I was afraid of. Don't this screw up peoples plans? and make them do running around in places they don't really know? I get my tourist visa from an honorary consulate north of me thru the mail. Now I'll have to d*ck around in Cebu wasting time applying for a thai tourist visa, hopefully having no problem (it's Thailand, what would YOU expect?), then again in Cambodia? I can't just come back by land as before cuz they give a piddling useless two weeks this way and i'm NOT gonna waste a couple hundred plus to fly in when I can do it under 75 bucks by land. SOOOOOOOOooooOoo, once again Thailand is a royal pain in the ass. Might be better to just fly into Cebu or Phnom penh, tho those are a few hundred or more higher. More and more I'm having to fight to justify the bother of Thailand.

[conimex]

Get a multiple entry tourist visa ! All your problems solved !

[lopburi3]

Exactly - that is the reason they offer more than one entry tourist visas. But if only short visits visa exempt may be an option for most travel and just get a tourist visa prior to a known longer stay. It is not hard to obtain in most tourist areas.

[beechguy]

thanks Lop, that's EXACTLY what I was afraid of. Don't this screw up peoples plans? and make them do running around in places they don't really know? I get my tourist visa from an honorary consulate north of me thru the mail. Now I'll have to d*ck around in Cebu wasting time applying for a thai tourist visa, hopefully having no problem (it's Thailand, what would YOU expect?), then again in Cambodia? I can't just come back by land as before cuz they give a piddling useless two weeks this way and i'm NOT gonna waste a couple hundred plus to fly in when I can do it under 75 bucks by land. SOOOOOOOOooooOoo, once again Thailand is a royal pain in the ass. Might be better to just fly into Cebu or Phnom penh, tho those are a few hundred or more higher. More and more I'm having to fight to justify the bother of Thailand.

That's what happens when people can't be bothered to do any research before they plan their vacation. Not just Thailand, but wouldn't it make more sense to check on visa requirements before planning any trip rather than the other way around?

[justSumGai]

hey genius what do you think THIS IS? This ain't my first trip away from home mr. einstein. And permit me to say that SOME of us don't feel a need to make a SET intinerary, I see no fun in that. I'm on a break and if I LIKE a place I might want to stay longer.

Yeah Lop, that's my thinking, i'm only gonna be in Bkk for say 2 weeks or so, so why get a month visa for that? then only in phils for say a week maybe 3 at most, and back to Bkk for say another week or so before I get on the bus at the airport for the poipet crossing. I'm flying INTO Bkk and out of it a few months later. They SHOULD leave you the flock alone for short times. This seems like a manipulation. I mean i'm not even going to use the full month of the normal permission to stay on arrival.

[Mario2008]

If you only stay shorter than 30 days in Thailand on each visit and and have ticket out of Thailand within 30 days of each visit you will be OK.

[justSumGai]

If you only stay shorter than 30 days in Thailand on each visit and and have ticket out of Thailand within 30 days of each visit you will be OK.

Well, the first stay I'll relax and eat lots of good meals on Soi 38. Then I'll find a travel agent that can give me a good deal on a flight to Cebu with return a few weeks later. (as an aside, anyone know what an average price on Bkk to Cebu is?) When I get back in early January, say the first few days, I won't have any ticket out as you say as I'll get the bus at the airport that goes to the border crossing point to Cambodia. Unsure how long I'll stay there but guess is a month. That would put me back in Bkk the first week in Feb til the end of the month, maybe three or so weeks. This a problem? I'm assuming it won't run me afoul of the no more than 90 days in any given 180 days rule. Guess I'll look into the multiple entry tourist visa but with them going for free it seems a shame. Last time my consulate just suggested and sent me TWO one month tourist visa)but I was only going to Cambodia last time. Really did'nt need two except that I was a few days over the 30 day permission to stay period the first time. Seriously, if the multi entry costs up over 100 I'll consider flying into Phnom penh, IF a decent rate to Cebu can be had from there. Time to hit Kayak I guess.

[beechguy]

hey genius what do you think THIS IS? This ain't my first trip away from home mr. einstein. And permit me to say that SOME of us don't feel a need to make a SET intinerary, I see no fun in that. I'm on a break and if I LIKE a place I might want to stay longer.

Yeah Lop, that's my thinking, i'm only gonna be in Bkk for say 2 weeks or so, so why get a month visa for that? then only in phils for say a week maybe 3 at most, and back to Bkk for say another week or so before I get on the bus at the airport for the poipet crossing. I'm flying INTO Bkk and out of it a few months later. They SHOULD leave you the flock alone for short times. This seems like a manipulation. I mean i'm not even going to use the full month of the normal permission to stay on arrival.

Maybe not a genuis, but I'm not the one with my panties in a wad because I can't organize my trip around existing visa regulations. At any rate, visa exempt entries, as well as Tourist visas are free and easy to obtain. but if you decide to give Thailand a pass, I'm sure they'll manage.

By the way, there is no 90 in 180 day rule anymore that went away early December, 2008, and just to clarify for others that never affected entries with visas. Again it's helpful to do a little research.

Edited August 27, 2010 by beechguy

[Mario2008]

If you will be fine or not depends on your travel plans. If you don't have a visa for Thailand and no proof you will leave Thailand within 30 days of arrival, the airline can refuse you boarding.

[justSumGai]

If you will be fine or not depends on your travel plans. If you don't have a visa for Thailand and no proof you will leave Thailand within 30 days of arrival, the airline can refuse you boarding.

Beechguy, since you cannot post in a civil manner and enjoy being an insulting type, welcome to my ignore bin. No one needs such replies when they are simply trying to find the best way to proceed with a trip. I've read this forum and the explanations of visa,etc. for years now but keeping up with Thai regs can be like going thru a maze. So now you can go in and out endlessly on a 30 day permission to stay on entry? Hard to believe. I'd heard about that change but last I read on it it was just being enacted. I'm looking for it now, in the TV labyrinth.

Well, as silly as it seems to me maybe I'll just have to get two tourist visa's for two couple week stays. If I book the Phils leg now from USA, looks like all that's on offer is $400+ RT to Cebu. I've heard you can usually get half that in Bkk.

[beechguy]

If you will be fine or not depends on your travel plans. If you don't have a visa for Thailand and no proof you will leave Thailand within 30 days of arrival, the airline can refuse you boarding.

Beechguy, since you cannot post in a civil manner and enjoy being an insulting type, welcome to my ignore bin. No one needs such replies when they are simply trying to find the best way to proceed with a trip. I've read this forum and the explanations of visa,etc. for years now but keeping up with Thai regs can be like going thru a maze. So now you can go in and out endlessly on a 30 day permission to stay on entry? Hard to believe. I'd heard about that change but last I read on it it was just being enacted. I'm looking for it now, in the TV labyrinth.

Well, as silly as it seems to me maybe I'll just have to get two tourist visa's for two couple week stays. If I book the Phils leg now from USA, looks like all that's on offer is $400+ RT to Cebu. I've heard you can usually get half that in Bkk.

Upto you, I'm not the one complaining about Thai visa and immigration policies without knowing what I'm talking about. Here is the Police Order that changed land entries and did away with the 90 in 180 day limitation, it's dated November, 2008 but wasn't really effective until a few days later. http://www.immigrati...778-2551_en.pdf

Edited August 27, 2010 by beechguy

[justSumGai]

so I guess I can get three tourist visa's ? each good for 3 months, just for three weeks in the first two "stays".

OR I can go multi entry, for $150 I read.

Lop, is this a visa that I can get a permission to re-enter on? Maybe dual entry is a way to go?

[TAWP]

You can not get 30 days Exempt from Visa stay each visit? Where are you from?

[lopburi3]

You can obtain re-entry permit for any entry to keep it alive. Cost is 1,000 baht. But you may be able to obtain a number of tourist visas free currently. Check with Consulate.

[justSumGai]

You can not get 30 days Exempt from Visa stay each visit? Where are you from?

USA. Don't you have to show proof of onward travel within 30 days to GET that? I thought you can if you fly in with a ticket leaving in a month, and come back again same. But MY ticket will be for 3 or 4 months until I fly out of Bangkok. Just using it as a base of operation so to speak.

Plus for the last stay in Bkk I'll be there over a month probably. So I'll have to have at least one Tourist visa in the passport and Lopburi said they'll stamp THAT first when I arrive.

ahhhhhhhhh, THANKS Lopburi, I tried calling the honorary Consulate but they'd gone home early. Very good.

Edited August 28, 2010 by justSumGai

[Tod Daniels]

Interesting this topic came up;

I had an acquaintance try this very same thing last week upon entering thailand via Suvarnabhumi Airport. He had a triple entry Tourist Visa issued from an honorary Thai Consulate in the USA, which for some reason had a “must be used by date” of 9 months from when it was issued. He wanted to enter on a '30-day visa exempt stamp' FIRST, and then border run to activate the first entry on the Tourist Visa.

Now even though he DIDN'T write the Tourist Visa number on his entry card, the officers at the Immigrations and/or Passport Control desk, found it in his passport, and told him in no uncertain terms, ‘either use it or lose it’. In fact they were gonna stamp USED/CANCELED on the ENTIRE visa thereby negating it in its entirety.

At the end, even after hemming and hawing with them, they said, "You pick, one or the other..", and he chose to come in on the first entry of his Tourist Visa.

You mileage MAY vary, but I kinda doubt it.

However; IF it does, post back here and let us know.

[justSumGai]

Amazing Thailand huh. I WON'T be trying that. It's why I asked this question in the first place. But then it might be you need to be traveling OUT within 30 days to GET the permission to stay 30 days on entry. Probably I'll just get 3 Tourist visas. Seems silly to get a 90 day visa for a two week stay tho. Can only wonder why they do this. Might look better on tourist stats to have me there as three tourist stay visas. Can't be they want to trap you in Thailand to spend all your money.

[moe666]

It's called having visa rules for everyone and not the ocassional traveller who has an odd ball sch. Why don't you look at you entire trip and see what all this is costing you. It maybe cheaper to fly into PI first spend your 2 weeks there and then come to Thailand on a cheap Cebu flight. Then make your trip to Cambodia and then get a tourist visa in Cambodia for 60 days.Depending on the consulate they may charge you for second or not give you more than one since they are free. The Denver Honorary Consulate would only give me one tourist visa in Feb. because they were free.

Good luck working it out let us know how it all goes.

[asiawatcher]

I can't see the issue - you get 30 day stamp at the airport each time you come in as long as you fly in. No point heading to the consulate and getting 60-90 days when you don't need it and a single reentry is 1,000 but a multiple is 3,900 Baht (use form TM8 available from the internet to save time) so a waste of money really when all you need is a stamp on arrival which is free! Cambo is USD25 at the airport on arrival and so on. If you road trip Cambo then you will not get a 30 days at the border as I understand this has been reduced to 15 days but someone can advise us on that one. I only even fly in and out on business. As you say - you don't want to be d*icking around! Have fun!

[HahSipBaht]

I can't see the issue - you get 30 day stamp at the airport each time you come in as long as you fly in. No point heading to the consulate and getting 60-90 days when you don't need it and a single reentry is 1,000 but a multiple is 3,900 Baht (use form TM8 available from the internet to save time) so a waste of money really when all you need is a stamp on arrival which is free! Cambo is USD25 at the airport on arrival and so on. If you road trip Cambo then you will not get a 30 days at the border as I understand this has been reduced to 15 days but someone can advise us on that one. I only even fly in and out on business. As you say - you don't want to be d*icking around! Have fun!

i couldn't agree more. I was reading this thread and wanted to post the same answer. 30 Day visa is free (depending on the country of current legal residence) .

visit.. travel abroad. .. visit again.

Unless you are planning on staying more than 30 days within Thailand, why do you want to make it so complicated?

I would like to say this topic is useless, but it may actually help others who have the same questions.

[elliss]

BUY A MULTI ENTRY VISA .

[justSumGai]

I can't see the issue - you get 30 day stamp at the airport each time you come in as long as you fly in. No point heading to the consulate and getting 60-90 days when you don't need it and a single reentry is 1,000 but a multiple is 3,900 Baht (use form TM8 available from the internet to save time) so a waste of money really when all you need is a stamp on arrival which is free! Cambo is USD25 at the airport on arrival and so on. If you road trip Cambo then you will not get a 30 days at the border as I understand this has been reduced to 15 days but someone can advise us on that one. I only even fly in and out on business. As you say - you don't want to be d*icking around! Have fun!

This might be a way to go too, I was looking for clarification and options in first post

CAN A MODERATOR CHANGE THAT SECOND 30 DAY TO TOURIST VISA IN THE TOPIC?

I didn't notice til just now that I'd flubbed that.

So anyway, yeah, first thought was enter on 30 day arrival permission to stay, fly to Phils, come back and enter on same. Then go to Cambo and enter on one Tourist visa I would have obtained previously. We've all seen someone posting in suprise and shock of having been denied a visa at some other country. I did NOT want to be stuck in Cambodia waiting out time until 15 days before my return flight home. Unfortunately it appears THEY don't care how YOU plan your trip, if you have a Tourist visa in your passport they go to that FIRST and stamp and activate it. Seems quite wrong to me. In any event, at that point you've got to pony up the money for permission to re-enter, or find other ways to deal with it.

I can say that last time I wanted to stay in Bkk about 5 weeks and then travel to Cambodia and upon return to Bkk, stay another 5 or 6 weeks. My Honorary Counsulate here suggested 2 Tourist visas. Worked fine, no problem.

Hopefully when I contact my consulate 3 Tourist visas will be ok. Otherwise a permission to re-enter seems best. Tho it may turn out that I enjoy Phils and Cambo so much I stay longer in each and never do spend more than a few weeks at a time in Bkk making the ordinary 30 day permission to stay (on entry) doable. Just looking for options and costs and choice.

thanks for all the helpful input.

[Maestro]

...CAN A MODERATOR CHANGE THAT SECOND 30 DAY TO TOURIST VISA IN THE TOPIC?...

Done

[Tanaka]

thanks Lop, that's EXACTLY what I was afraid of. Don't this screw up peoples plans? and make them do running around in places they don't really know? I get my tourist visa from an honorary consulate north of me thru the mail. Now I'll have to d*ck around in Cebu wasting time applying for a thai tourist visa, hopefully having no problem (it's Thailand, what would YOU expect?), then again in Cambodia? I can't just come back by land as before cuz they give a piddling useless two weeks this way and i'm NOT gonna waste a couple hundred plus to fly in when I can do it under 75 bucks by land. SOOOOOOOOooooOoo, once again Thailand is a royal pain in the ass. Might be better to just fly into Cebu or Phnom penh, tho those are a few hundred or more higher. More and more I'm having to fight to justify the bother of Thailand.

Just a thought here, if you feel that Thailand is such a pain in your ass, why bother coming here? Why not enjoy yourself in Cambodia and the Philippines and save you the trouble? Read your own last sentence.