Education Visa For Muay Thai/Language?

[CrankyCarrot]

Hi,I was wondering if it were possible to get an education visa for studying Muay Thai kickboxing. As far as I know, you can get a 3 month education visa which can be extended up to a year, as long as you are able to provide paperwork from a 'recognised institution'.The two things I'm interested in studying are Thai language and Muay Thai. Does anyone know the procedure and costs off hand?

[Mario2008]

Some people seem to be getting a visa and extensions of stay based on Muay Thai, some not. If you want to try this, find a school that is able to get extensions of stay for its students.

Procedure is to get a Ed-visa with a letter from the school and in Thailand extend your stay every 90 days with paper work from the school confirming you are still studying.

A lot of schools will want you to pay the course first before they give you a letter. reason why a lot of people arrive on a tourist visa and find a decent school and than go to a neighbouring country to apply for an ED-visa.

Some get a multiple Ed-visa, valid for 1 year. With this visa you have to leave the country every 90 days and can come right back the same day for a new 90 days, as long as the visa is valid. By leaving and returning just before the visa expires you can get almost 15 months out of it.

Cost for a language course will be around 29,000 baht. You have to add the cost of the extension every 90 days, which is 1,900 baht per extension.

Click on the banner of one of the language schools on this page. It will direct you to more information.

[CrankyCarrot]

Cheers Mario,

So you have to be out of the country to apply for the Ed visa... I'm already on a tourist visa, so I could go find a language or MT school that suits now and sort out payment with them first.

Then I'd have to go somewhere with an embassy and submit the paperwork, so I guess - get the letter from the school while I'm here, pay etc, THEN leave and submit docs somewhere like Penang.

<Thinking out loud>

So the choice then comes down to what's more economical/convenient:

1. Leaving the country every 90 days and saving 1900thb on extensions (but paying for flights, buses etc and wasting time)

2. Paying 1900thb every 90 and staying put, but not having the option to leave and come back if you want to visit home or anywhere else

?

29,000 for a language course sounds okay - that's for a whole year? I'll be MT would be way more expensive though. I'll check out a couple of those banner ads.

[lopburi3]

You always have the option to leave. And a 1,000 baht re-entry permit keeps your current permitted to stay time alive if a short trip.

[CrankyCarrot]

Walen offers 180 lessons (min to qualify for ed visa) for about 25k and has schools in various places; Phuket, BKK etc. Is it possible to do lessons for a few months in Phuket, then continue them in Bangkok for example, allowing you to see a bit more of the country?

[CrankyCarrot]

You always have the option to leave. And a 1,000 baht re-entry permit keeps your current permitted to stay time alive if a short trip.

1000 baht re-entry permit? Do you just pay that the once or every time you leave? How long is a "short trip"?

[CrankyCarrot]

A lot of Q's answered here:

http://www.thaiwalen.com/student_visa.php

[Mario2008]

A re-entry permit is valid for 1 re-entry and you must re-enter before the date of your current permission to stay.

You can get a multiple re-entry permit for 3,800 baht. It allows unlimited leaving and re-entering. but since it is only valid till your permission to stay ends and you get only a permission to stay for 90 days at a time it is probably not worth it.

Not sure what the procedure is on changing schools, but should be possible.

[lopburi3]

Single is 1k - multi is 3.8k - all are valid for the current permitted to stay period so you have to return before that time expires to use for entry and continue the same permitted to stay time. So if you have a one year extension of stay and travel a lot the multi would likely be worthwhile. But for extensions of 90 days it is unlikely most people would travel enough to make more than single(s) cost effective.

[CrankyCarrot]

So you could buy a re-entry permit for 1 trip out and back at 1k, or unlimited trips for 3.8...

And that all has to be used up within the current period of stay permitted, usually 90 days - but sometimes more? How do you get more than 90?

I'm guessing you buy the 1k/3.8k re-entry permit at the time you submit the 1900thb for an additional 90 days?

[Mario2008]

On an ED-visa you will in almost all cases only get extensions of 90 days, unless you go studying at an university.

[lopburi3]

You must buy before you exit the country - best to buy at same time you extend if any chance of travel being required or expected.

[CrankyCarrot]

Only 90 days unless at uni.

Check.

Not planning on uni so I guess 90 days a pop for 1900thb it is...

So a year here with an ed visa through Walen would cost 25 000 bare min tuition for Ed visa) plus 1900 x 3 (5700) for each 90 day extension. 30 700 thb total, or about a grand US/Aus.

Hmmm... not such a bad deal when you factor in how much is saved on rent alone in the two dif countries. Plus I'd learn to speak Thai

[CrankyCarrot]

And I suspect you can get a Thai driver's license/bank acc with an Ed Visa too.

That should make life easier.

[tombkk]

CrankyCarrot: For a drivers livence, you need a non-imm. Category is not specified.

Most banks require a work permit to open a bank accoumt tnesr days. Even for savings accounts!

[lopburi3]

Most banks by names perhaps but not the largest banks in Thailand which offer even for tourist visa holders at most branches and in the case of Bangkok Bank have it spelled out on there website. A confirmation of address seems to be the most important factor but even without that most people have no problem opening an account if they do not take a no as meaning impossible - but go to the next branch (even same bank company) and it may be approved.

Where a work permit is normally required is for a checking account - but most Thai people here do not even have them and find the normal passbook savings account fine.

[CrankyCarrot]

I just want to avoid the 150thb withdrawal charge, and the various other charges imposed by my foreign bank whenever I make a withdrawal. Bangkok Bank is pretty prominent here in Phuket, so maybe I should try opening up a savings acc with them.

So I can't get a drivers license on an Ed visa? dam_n. So to legitimately drive a bike here I'd have to return home and apply for a motorcycle riders license?

[tombkk]

Most banks by names perhaps but not the largest banks in Thailand which offer even for tourist visa holders at most branches and in the case of Bangkok Bank have it spelled out on there website. A confirmation of address seems to be the most important factor but even without that most people have no problem opening an account if they do not take a no as meaning impossible - but go to the next branch (even same bank company) and it may be approved.

Where a work permit is normally required is for a checking account - but most Thai people here do not even have them and find the normal passbook savings account fine.

It keeps changing whether the banks require a work permit or not for opening of a savings account. I helped one friend the otehr day, and a year later, another friend was told that it's not possible to open any account - even savings - without a work permit.

That bank said it was a regulation of the Bank of Thailand, and then we went to another bank who said, no problem.

If the current policy of major banks is that they tourists can open savings accounts, that's good news. I know many people who come every year, and they want to transfer the money when they feel that the exchange rate is good, and then just draw locally from the ATMs.

[CrankyCarrot]

Does anyone know what sort of fees to expect when transferring cash from Australia to Thailand?

It's 3% currency conversion at the ATMs (on top of the 150 baht foreign atm charge, and $5 OS withdrawal charge imposed by my Aus bank)

For a bulk transfer of 1-10k I imagine there'd be some kind of a discount on the base 3%...

[lopburi3]

If you use a bank card it will be whatever the bank charges. Most people use SWIFT (wire transfer) and that will have 3 fees normally but receive the full wire transfer exchange rate for the day/time made. Sending bank fee, correspondent bank fee (very small) and receiving bank fee (1/4% in range 200-500 baht).

[CrankyCarrot]

Making the max withdrawal of 20,000thb, I usually end paying an additional 900 baht worth of fees total - and typically get an exchange rate about 0.5-1 baht below what's posted on www.xe.com

At its strongest (in my time at least) the aus dollar bought about 31 baht. Factoring in all the fees I was paying and the disparity in exchange rate, I ended up getting about 28.5 baht in the hand for every dollar out of my Aus bank account.

As far as I'm aware the best way to get the most out of my Aussie dollar is to open a 28 degrees mastercard account, which doesn't hit you with a currency conversion fee, and may not charge the OS ATM fee too. I don't know if they give a substantially lower exchange rate though... that's probably the catch.

Maybe I should take this to another thread? What say the mods?