Jump to content

Non-Imm Visa Help With A Bit Of Tefl Trouble


Recommended Posts

Hi,

I have read every article on here and other sites but cannot find anyone who has been in the same situation as me, so I'm afraid I've had to start a new thread.

My partner is moving out to work in Bangkok in May 2011 and his work will sort his Visa and Work permit. I want to go and live out there with him and potentially TEFL.

I understand there is no permanent or 'living' visa for Thailand so I need to apply for a Non-Imm visa. I've studied what each of the letters after Non-Imm mean, but can't find one which matches what I need. We are a same-sex male couple and I understand that to get an O visa we have to be married. Does Thailand recognise a Civil Partnership and that would be enough to qualify for an O type visa? If this is the visa I would be getting, does it A) allow me to remain in Thailand for as long as my partner works there? or if not, how long? B ) do I need to have any of the 'money-in-bank-account-guarantees' etc, or am I getting mixed up after reading hundreds of posts with retirement visas?

My next question would relate more to the TEFL section, but I didn't want to seperate the two issues as getting the visa is the main thing. I have no degree, only GCSE's, A-Levels and 6 years Retail Management Experience. After we return from Thailand I am wanting to become a primary school teacher, so see this opportunity whilst in Thailand to see if I can hack teaching - it's something I've always wanted to do. When I arrive in Bangkok I am going to be doing CELTA at IH Bangkok (hopefully). I know there is really no fixed answer to the 'Can I TEFL without a degree question?', after reading the answers on 6 different sites but am going to rely on my presentation and communication skills at interview as well as the CELTA to get me through.

However, if I successfully complete the CELTA and bag a job TEFL, do I then apply for a Non-Imm ED visa or a teachers license? My only issue with the teachers license route is that I'm sure I read the Education Committee in Thailand demand a full BSc/BEd/BA...which I don't have. This leaves me with the Non-Imm ED visa, but how long can i stay in Thailand for with that? As long as I have the job? Do I apply for the ED visa before going to Bangkok and supply a course confirmation letter from IH Bangkok?

I hope I've been as clear as I can on the issues I'm facing and that someone can help! If you need any clarification on what I've said, please don't hesitate to ask. Thank you in advance,

Future Farang Ajarn Johnathan

Edited by jabenna
Link to comment
Share on other sites

My next question would relate more to the TEFL section, but I didn't want to seperate the two issues as getting the visa is the main thing. I have no degree, only GCSE's, A-Levels and 6 years Retail Management Experience. After we return from Thailand I am wanting to become a primary school teacher, so see this opportunity whilst in Thailand to see if I can hack teaching - it's something I've always wanted to do. When I arrive in Bangkok I am going to be doing CELTA at IH Bangkok (hopefully). I know there is really no fixed answer to the 'Can I TEFL without a degree question?', after reading the answers on 6 different sites but am going to rely on my presentation and communication skills at interview as well as the CELTA to get me through.

However, if I successfully complete the CELTA and bag a job TEFL, do I then apply for a Non-Imm ED visa or a teachers license? My only issue with the teachers license route is that I'm sure I read the Education Committee in Thailand demand a full BSc/BEd/BA...which I don't have. This leaves me with the Non-Imm ED visa, but how long can i stay in Thailand for with that? As long as I have the job? Do I apply for the ED visa before going to Bangkok and supply a course confirmation letter from IH Bangkok?

Hi Future Farang Ajarn Johnathan :jap:

I can't answer your 'O' visa question, but I am shortly to embark on the CELTA at IH also.

IH only requires that you have the qualifications to enter HE, but you should make a start on the pre-interview task now. The CELTA is not like your average 'Island TEFL' course. After you have submitted the pre-interview task, you will be required to undergo a telephone interview during which your communication skills, grammar knowledge & basic lesson planning skills will be assessed.:blink:

Your lack of degree means that your job prospects will likely to limited to language schools, unless you want to work in the sticks, sans WP. If your 'O' doesn't work out, I would apply for a (free ATM) 60 day tourist visa, which can be extended for 30 days at immigration if need be. You will then have to leave the country to apply for your work or 'B' visa once you have found a job. This can then be 'converted' to a 1 year extension of stay at immigration, which means that you won't have to leave the country for a year, although you will have to report to immigration every 90 days. Be advised that you will need to have proof of WP application in order to secure the 'B', so all of this may be moot.<_<

I almost forgot the teacher's licence. You will need a degree, 1 year's teaching experience, Thai culture course & strictly an education degree to obtain one. You will likely be granted a 2 year 'waiver' which will at least give you the time to gain the experience & culture course.

Good luck for your future plans in the UK; male primary teachers are apparently highly sought after. Applications for the GTP usually start 18 months before intake.:o

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Does Thailand recognise a Civil Partnership and that would be enough to qualify for an O type visa?

No. Thailand only recognizes a legal marriage between a Man and a Woman.

Your partner's Immigration status will have no affect on you.

You will have to qualify in your own right.

You would probably need a Tourist Visa to start with.

Once you arrive in Thailand one option would be to enroll in a Thai Language School and qualify for Visas that way.

Have a look at forum sponsors.

As for teaching help ask for advice in the Teaching Forum

Link to comment
Share on other sites

ElCata...thanks for much for the detailed response. Ok, so the 60 day tourist visa is different to the one you get if you just arrive in Thailand and fill in a landing form on the plane? I would need to go to the Hull Consulate to get this via an appointment and interview? As soon as I get into Thailand on the 60 day visa, I can go to the immigration office and set this up to last for 90 days in total?

Can I do the CELTA at IH on a tourist visa, do I not need to get a non-imm ED? I have downloaded the pre-course assesment and already my head in swirling haha - I have seen on other boards the telephone interview can be quite tricky as well! Think I need to get my studious head on!

Once I've got the CELTA, let's say I am now 60 days (take a month to settle in, move stuff around and then a month for CELTA) into the original tourist 90 day extension visa, I need to go and find a job, leave Thailand (for how long? Just for a day to go into another country?), then re-enter with some of my 90 days still outstanding and ask for my b-visa? Does a B-visa automatically include a work permit or do I have to get the B visa to be able to take this to my perspective employer for them to apply for my work permit? It's just with you saying I need to show work permit app in order to get the B.

Once that's all hunky dory I can then take everything back to immigration and get a 1 year extension. OK....this is not as easy as it sounds, is it? What happens after that year though? If I am still working (please god!), I can just get another year extension? Working in language schools is fine for me...I really just want to get a grasp of teaching a class so when we return to the UK in 2/3 years I will know if I need to get my bum in gear and get back to uni! To teach in the language schools though do I need the teachers license? Is this what you were saying, that yes I would need license but I could ask for a two year waiver and obviously I'm not going to have the degree by then but I could have done the experience part and the culture course? I'm so sorry if it seems I'm just repeating you points but I'm just so nervous about this whole move...it seemed so easy at first!

Lite Beer thank you for the information. I'm going to look now on the sponsors forum and have a read.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

ElCata...thanks for much for the detailed response. Ok, so the 60 day tourist visa is different to the one you get if you just arrive in Thailand and fill in a landing form on the plane?

Don't mention it.B)

Yes, they are very different, one is a visa & one is a visa exemption. You will need to obtain the 60 day tourist visa prior to travelling to LOS.

I would need to go to the Hull Consulate to get this via an appointment and interview? As soon as I get into Thailand on the 60 day visa, I can go to the immigration office and set this up to last for 90 days in total?

You can apply to Hull by post. I just got mine back yesterday morning (posted Thursday afternoon, special delivery).:jap: You can only apply for the 30 day extension a few days before before your visa runs out. Don't forget to take into account immigration closing times; weekends, holidays etc.

http://www.thaiconsul-uk.com/

Can I do the CELTA at IH on a tourist visa, do I not need to get a non-imm ED? I have downloaded the pre-course assesment and already my head in swirling haha - I have seen on other boards the telephone interview can be quite tricky as well! Think I need to get my studious head on!

IH advise in their FAQ that students obtain a 60 day tourist visa, then extend. Don't forget to state 'tourism' as the reason for visit & remember the visa is free if APPLIED FOR before 31st March. 'ED' visas cost money & are usually only used by people who want to undertake long term study.:blink:

I recommend 'English Grammar in Use' for the pre-interview task. I may be able to help you with that & others if I can find a way to send the PDFs down the information superhighway.:whistling:

The interview will be quite tricky, especially as you've never taught before. How would you explain the difference between 'I stopped to talk to my friend.' & 'I stopped talking to my friend.' to an English learner? Which teaching strategies / activities would you use to teach adjectives to a class of 20 intermediate English students?

Once I've got the CELTA, let's say I am now 60 days (take a month to settle in, move stuff around and then a month for CELTA) into the original tourist 90 day extension visa, I need to go and find a job, leave Thailand (for how long? Just for a day to go into another country?), then re-enter with some of my 90 days still outstanding and ask for my b-visa?

Does a B-visa automatically include a work permit or do I have to get the B visa to be able to take this to my perspective employer for them to apply for my work permit? It's just with you saying I need to show work permit app in order to get the B.

Once that's all hunky dory I can then take everything back to immigration and get a 1 year extension. OK....this is not as easy as it sounds, is it? What happens after that year though? If I am still working (please god!), I can just get another year extension?

You need to exit the country before your visa / extension expires, then re-enter on the 'B'. People generally go to Vientiane in Laos to obtain the 'B'. I could be wrong but I think in Laos you apply for the visa, stay overnight, then pick up the visa the next morning. There are many companies that will take you there in a nice air-conditioned minibus & nursemaid you through the process for around 10000B.:o

A visa is a document that grants you entry into a country for a specific purpose & for a set period of time. A visa can not be obtained within Thailand. The WP is, well, a permit to work <_<. It is obtained from the Ministry of Labour. I could be wrong on this as I'm still finding my feet also. I gather that to obtain a 'B' in Laos, you have to have proof that you have applied for a WP (receipt for WP3 form?). Your school should help you apply for this.

I gather that the extension of stay process is one of the more painless, although time consuming, processes.:ph34r: If you want to stay at the same school for another year, just renew the extension, otherwise you will have to start the process all over again.:bah:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really just want to get a grasp of teaching a class so when we return to the UK in 2/3 years I will know if I need to get my bum in gear and get back to uni! To teach in the language schools though do I need the teachers license? Is this what you were saying, that yes I would need license but I could ask for a two year waiver and obviously I'm not going to have the degree by then but I could have done the experience part and the culture course? I'm so sorry if it seems I'm just repeating you points but I'm just so nervous about this whole move...it seemed so easy at first!

Many degree-less TEFLers who work in language schools, usually for an agency, have their TL & WP perpetually 'stuck' in the application process; you will be working illegally.:unsure:

Chock dee krap.:jap:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you so much again for such detailed response...you seem to know your stuff! What stops you from going into Thailand, getting a 60 day tourist, extend by another 30...then go to another country for a long weekend and come in again as a tourist? Is there a limit to how many tourist visas you can have in a year?

We will hopefully find out the date my boyfriend moves over to BKK by this Friday, so then can start planning a bit more effectively. Help with the IH assessment would be amazing, but I don't want to seem too 'full of it' because I will need some help when I start the course. Off to Oz for 2 weeks on 25th Feb, so it'll be a job to do when I come back...or do you think it's worth trying to do it before holiday to Oz and just send it off so it's been processed by time I come back? I am thinking of printing it off and hand writing answers and posting to them. I can't seem to find a way to write on the .pdf document.

As for the skype/telephone interview questions you got asked, difference in 'stopped to talk' and 'stopped talking', would you explain one uses two verbs and the other one? Perhaps 'act out' walking past someone and 'stopping to talk to them' and then show class me having a conversation with someone and 'stopping talking'?

The adjectives ones I had few ideas on: could you do a lesson on colours, find out what colours they already now, teach them new ones, then maybe try to learn some vocabulary by linking BLUE with the sky...GREEN with grass? To do things like hot and cold, bring in ice cream and a plate of steaming noodles? Or perhaps give them 5 adjectives each, and bring in objects which reflect that adjective?

Haha, I'm probably going to get slated on here now for my ideas, but as I say I have no teaching experience (apart from 6 years as a trampolining coach - fat lot of use now!). What dates is your CELTA running at IH?

Johnathan

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thank you so much again for such detailed response...you seem to know your stuff! What stops you from going into Thailand, getting a 60 day tourist, extend by another 30...then go to another country for a long weekend and come in again as a tourist? Is there a limit to how many tourist visas you can have in a year?

Don't mention it. :D

Hull consulate is issuing triple entry tourist visas ATM, which in theory would give you 3*(60+30) days, although the 3rd entry has to activated within 6 month of issue, I believe; maybe a double is in order (where have I heard that before?) :lol:

Several SEA consulates can get a bit sniffy about back to back visas. Regularly check the forum for the latest info on that.

We will hopefully find out the date my boyfriend moves over to BKK by this Friday, so then can start planning a bit more effectively. Help with the IH assessment would be amazing, but I don't want to seem too 'full of it' because I will need some help when I start the course. Off to Oz for 2 weeks on 25th Feb, so it'll be a job to do when I come back...or do you think it's worth trying to do it before holiday to Oz and just send it off so it's been processed by time I come back? I am thinking of printing it off and hand writing answers and posting to them. I can't seem to find a way to write on the .pdf document.

Enjoy your holiday. I'll be having a little one before & possibly after the course.:lol:

Don't worry about your place on the course, they can never fill it. However, I would make a start now, even if you just make some preliminary notes. Remember that you also have a personal statement & a couple of 300 word essays to write for your application, aside from the pre-interview task. Once you've been accepted you'll also be given another more in depth task to do, to be handed in on the first day of the course.:blink:

The course is VERY intensive & the more you can get done beforehand, the better.

The pre-interview task is also available in MS Word format on their website.

As for the skype/telephone interview questions you got asked, difference in 'stopped to talk' and 'stopped talking', would you explain one uses two verbs and the other one? Perhaps 'act out' walking past someone and 'stopping to talk to them' and then show class me having a conversation with someone and 'stopping talking'?

Good idea & well done. Role-playing is an excellent teaching strategy. Involve the students, rather than yourself, as much as possible; means less walking.:lol:

Try & avoid explicit language such as 'verbs' & also think about how you would explain the difference to a student during a one to one lesson.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The adjectives ones I had few ideas on: could you do a lesson on colours, find out what colours they already now, teach them new ones, then maybe try to learn some vocabulary by linking BLUE with the sky...GREEN with grass? To do things like hot and cold, bring in ice cream and a plate of steaming noodles? Or perhaps give them 5 adjectives each, and bring in objects which reflect that adjective?

The key point in the question was 'intermediate learners'. They will likely already be familiar with vocab & will need to learn how to use it within phrases. My idea was to pair them up, ask one of them to think of a famous person then the other would try to guess who it was by describing their characteristics; like a game of 20 questions!

Haha, I'm probably going to get slated on here now for my ideas, but as I say I have no teaching experience (apart from 6 years as a trampolining coach - fat lot of use now!). What dates is your CELTA running at IH?

Slated? We're not allowed to do that to the precious little darlings nowadays. :ermm:

My course starts mid March; holiday beginning of March.B)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'm liking the 20 questions idea....promise I won't copy haha. Also, I meant slated by people reading this thread...on another site forum I have used, I asked a question and had about 6 replies just taking 'the mick' out of me and being generally obnoxious and gratuitously nasty to make themselves look better.

Triple 60 day'er makes my head spin again and you'd only just calmed my nerves in the prior post. I can imagine my luck getting to Thailand and them turning me away *sad face*. If I do the IH task in the Word document, in the section where you underline the stressed consonant, would I just use the 'underline' format tool?

JB

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.




×
×
  • Create New...