Volunteer Visa - Advice Greatly Appreciated

[rossy17]

Greetings fellow Thai Visa Forum users,

Thank you for taking the time to read through my post - I would greatly appreciate any constructive advice offered on how to solve my visa issue.

I am a UK citizen - 38 years old male - currently in Thailand (Chiang Mai province) on a tourist visa. I have been offered a position as a volunteer with a Thai foundation and would now like to proceed with securing a visa. I understand that I should be applying for a Non-immigration "O" (multiple entry?) visa and I have been provided with a letter of introduction from the foundation to take with me to help with the application process.

As the Foundation is fairly new and I am the first foriegn volunteer my advice on where to apply for a visa has been a little bit hazy and as such I would greatly appreciate your thoughts on the following plan -

Make my way from Chiang Mai to Mukdahan (I beleive there is no direct bus and as such I will have to transfer), cross over to Savannakhet and apply for my visa at the Thai consulate there.

I understand that I need to take with me my letter from the foundation, a photocopy of my passport (along with the original), 2 passport photos and the fee for the visa.

As I hope to help the foundation as a volunteer for as long as possible (at least one year) money/cost is an issue and as such I do need to travel as cheaply as possible which is why I plan to take the bus rather than fly.

Does anyone know what the current fee for applying for this type of visa is?

Is there anything else that I should take with me to assist in the application process?

Is Savannakhet the best option for me? If not please advise on other options.

Once again I thank you for reading my post and would like to wish you all a pleasant day.

[jazzbo]

I am not sure why Mukdahan instead of Vientiane ...

This is from the MoFA website:

Other activities (Category "O") as follows: to stay with the family, to perform duties for the state enterprise or social welfare

organizations, to stay after retirement for the elderly, to receive medical treatment, to be a sport coach as required by Thai Government,

to be a contestant or witness for the judicial process.

There are many types of Foundations -- your letter wherever you take it should reflect the statement above and maybe what special talents or skills you might bring to the Kingdom.

[Mario2008]

The visa costs something in the order of 2,000 baht in the local cureency for a single, 5,000 for a multiple.

To volunteer you will need a work permit, working without a work permit is illegal whether you are getting paid or not. I sugegst you first apply for the work permit. You won't get it till you have a non-immirgant visa, but they will give you a wp3 form. This form indicates that you will get a wp once you have the visa and the consulate will appreciate it if you have it. it will also ensure you that the organisation will get the work permit for you, which you need to get a 1 year extension of stay from immigration.

Thework permit costs 3,600 baht for 1 year, and a load of paperwork.

[merijn]

Good luck, as volunteer visas are very difficult to get.

According my information all ( one year ) volunteer visas have to be approved in Bangkok by the government.

This can a long time to get as all papers have to be send to Bangkok for approval and a simple letter from a Thai Foundation is not enough I’m afraid.

[Maestro]

...According my information all ( one year ) volunteer visas have to be approved in Bangkok by the government...

You are talking about the one-year extension of stay, aren't you?

[merijn]

...According my information all ( one year ) volunteer visas have to be approved in Bangkok by the government...

You are talking about the one-year extension of stay, aren't you?

Yes you are correct. One year extension basis on volunteer work.

[Mario2008]

Good luck, as volunteer visas are very difficult to get.

According my information all ( one year ) volunteer visas have to be approved in Bangkok by the government.

This can a long time to get as all papers have to be send to Bangkok for approval and a simple letter from a Thai Foundation is not enough I'm afraid.

First time I hear about this.

I know most immigration offices will send people to Bangkok for a conversion to a non-immigrant visa. So in that case a volunteer would need permission from Bangkok to get a conversion based on volunteering.

Unless the policy changed in the last two years or so I think you are mistaken and are talking about volunteers who want to convert a tourist visa or visa exempt entry into a non-immigrant.

[SanukMahk]

Good luck, as volunteer visas are very difficult to get.

According my information all ( one year ) volunteer visas have to be approved in Bangkok by the government.

This can a long time to get as all papers have to be send to Bangkok for approval and a simple letter from a Thai Foundation is not enough I'm afraid.

Well, they handed them out like free popcorn at a baseball game for Tsunami workers

The various military people from manyh countries were waived etc.

[jazzbo]

This is one of those situations that until you hand in your visa application and support data no one other than the consular officer really knows

[merijn]

Don't forget that it is up to the officer / immigration office to decide what is required.

If they really want almost everything is possible. ( like in case after the Tsunami )

And if they don't like it almost nothing is possible.

What is possible today does not mean it is possible tomorrow.

[dvdcm]

Welcome rossy17,

You don't say how often you've visited or how familiar you are with Thai culture or bureaucracy. At the risk of gentle caution, note that even generosity can have its complications within the Kingdom. The fact that you've been "offered a position as a volunteer" but seem to have been left on your own gives me a bit of concern. I will defer to the experts as to the process of converting from a tourist to non-o visa for volunteer purposes. My first non-o multi-entry visa was issued at a Consulate in my home country. While that made it was easy and friendly, there was more documentation involved than described here, including as I recall a bank statement, several official pages about the foundation, and a contract. It could all well have been overkill on the foundation's part, but it meant for smooth sailing. The work permit, which I insisted on before starting even though it was an unpaid position and will echo is essential, required a mound of paperwork I could not have handled myself. My constructive suggestion is to make sure someone within the foundation is sufficiently invested in you that you have help navigating those complicated parts of the process. My own volunteer attempt went south and we parted company. I trust that will not be your experience. But without sufficient attention to detail things could have gone very wrong and the details involved with a work permit are many.