Ed Visa - Go To Bangkok In Person?

[thuisinthailand]

Hi all,

We are living on Samui and informed at one of the local schools about the Education Visa. They told us, amongst other things, the following:

"... it is currently necessary for students to go up to Bangkok and apply in person for the verified letter from the Ministry of Education ..."

We always thought that it is the school sending all the required documents to the MOE, and then after receiving the necessary letter, you go abroad to a Thai embassy or consulate and get your ED-visa, etc etc.

Does anyone here know if the obligation of going to Bangkok in person is a new rule?

Or does this school has it wrong?

Thanks in advance for any light on this.

[jamesbrock]

I have recently obtained a Non Imm ED visa through a school on Samui, the paperwork for which was all handled by the school. I started my process in early September, so the rules could have changed since then.

[Maestro]

If a foreigner has been on extensions of stay for study for some time already the Ministry of Education may want to talk to the applicant to see if he is making progress. It seems to me to be asking a lot, though, to have to travel all the way from Samui to Bangkok for this.

[thuisinthailand]

@meastro: yes, that was my understanding as well.... seems that the school I was referring to is having troubles with their registration... so we will choose another school, plenty of options here on Samui, some good ones too

[Maestro]

At the back of my mind I was considering the same possible problem, ie that the school may perhaps have a reputation for too many students enrolling only for the extensions of stay but not actually studying yet still getting attendance certification and that for this reason the MoE wants to do personal checks on the students' progress. It makes me wonder whether asking students to travel a long way for the interview is the MoE's sly way of putting such schools out of business.

[Maestro]

...so we will choose another school, plenty of options here on Samui, some good ones too

I just read here that Walen is about to open a branch on Samui and from what I know, no student of theirs has ever been asked to go from a faraway province to the Ministry of Education in Bangkok for an interview to get the next extension of stay.

[Onnutrd]

Technically speaking the school is suppose to do the paperwork and submit it on your behalf. I went to do the application at the HK Embassy and I got told off by one of the officials, she told me that it was my university which was suppose to submit the letter, not for them to give it to me and then for me to go about doing it. However I was there and I certainly was'nt leaving, and with abit of Thai language; she eventually gave me the ED Visa.

At this point I went back to BKK, got all the documents from UTCC and applied, by myself, at the HQ Immigration. Took 5 minutes, got a stamp and left. It's very easy, for a university, I don't know the technicalities of a language school.

[Onnutrd]

I'm also lost as to why you need to apply in person for a letter from the Ministry of Education. Why would you need a letter from them? Are'nt you suppose to be submitting documents to them for study? I think that school has got it all wrong and I would'nt study with them if they can't even get it right the first time.

[thuisinthailand]

...so we will choose another school, plenty of options here on Samui, some good ones too

I just read here that Walen is about to open a branch on Samui and from what I know, no student of theirs has ever been asked to go from a faraway province to the Ministry of Education in Bangkok for an interview to get the next extension of stay.

Thanks for this info, have asked them already where they will be, and when...