Hoping For Extension

[nongkhaigal]

Hello,

I arrived in Thailand in January with just a Visa On Arrival. Went to Laos, came back to NongKhai assuming I would get 30 more days in Thailand . . . Wrong! Only got 2 weeks. I have a Dr. appt on 26th February and an airline ticket to leave the country 14th March. Will I have a problem getting 30 more days (1,900 baht), even though I did not start out with a Tourist Visa? Thank you!

[lopburi3]

You can not get more than 7 days and that would likely require show of ticket out within that time. Visa exempt entry is 15 days by land or 30 days by air.

[merijn]

If your stay is for medical reason and you need constant treatment you can try to get an extension based on medical grounds.

For this you need the official medical statement which clearly mentions that you need medical treatment and can not travel with the exact dates.

With this you can an medical extension until the date mentioned on the medical statement.

[nongkhaigal]

Thank you!

[David48]

If your stay is for medical reason and you need constant treatment you can try to get an extension based on medical grounds.

For this you need the official medical statement which clearly mentions that you need medical treatment and can not travel with the exact dates.

With this you can an medical extension until the date mentioned on the medical statement.

Ummm ... just what exactly is the OP extending?

He arrived without a Visa, got a 30 day Visa exemption at the Airport.

Did a Visa run.

Got 14 days by returning overland.

Correct me if I'm wrong ... he still doesn't have an actual Visa, hence nothing to extend?

Does a Dr's appointment equate to constant medical treatment?

Would there be actual consideration given to allowing an extended stay if he did not have a Visa (OP ... do you actually have a Visa?) but proved that he needed constant medical attention?

...

[Lite Beer]

2.25 In the case of medical

treatment or convalescence or to look after a patient:

Permission will be granted for a period of not more than 90 days at a time.

(1) Confirmation and request has been made by a physician

responsible for the treatment. The Physician must describe the details of treatment and advised that the illness is a barrier for travelling.

(2) In the case of looking after a patient, confirmation and request has been made by the physician responsible for the treatment or by an embassy or consulate.

(3) Patient Carer, except parents, spouse, children, adopted children or children of spouse, shall be granted no more than 1 extra person.

[merijn]

If your stay is for medical reason and you need constant treatment you can try to get an extension based on medical grounds.

For this you need the official medical statement which clearly mentions that you need medical treatment and can not travel with the exact dates.

With this you can an medical extension until the date mentioned on the medical statement.

Ummm ... just what exactly is the OP extending?

He arrived without a Visa, got a 30 day Visa exemption at the Airport.

Did a Visa run.

Got 14 days by returning overland.

Correct me if I'm wrong ... he still doesn't have an actual Visa, hence nothing to extend?

Does a Dr's appointment equate to constant medical treatment?

Would there be actual consideration given to allowing an extended stay if he did not have a Visa (OP ... do you actually have a Visa?) but proved that he needed constant medical attention?

...

He never had a visa and he is not required to have a visa.

First he received an VOA 30 when he arrived by plane.

Later he received an VOA 15 when he arrived by land border.

Neither are visa's but visa exemption.

VOA can be easily confused by an Visa as they called it Visa On arrival but it is an visa exemption.

You can always receive an extension bases on medical grounds if you comply to the requirements as mentioned in my previous reply. ( can not travel due to medical grounds )

[lopburi3]

Visa exempt entry is not called visa on arrival (VOA) - VOA is a 15 day stay for a fee only available to a select and small list of countries without easy access to Thai Consulate facilities.

[merijn]

The small list you are referring to is indeed officially called Visa On arrival.

But immigration officers are calling the visa exemption stamps ( 30 or 15 day ) also VOA and use VOA15 or VOA30 descriptions on their paperwork which can be confusing.

[nongkhaigal]

So, I am in NongKhai now. I returned from Vientiane one week ago, got Visa Exemption Stamp for 14 more days in Thailand. But I need more. So if I just go back across to Vientiane, and fly to Bkk, can I be sure to get 30 more days - ? Is there a minimum amount of time I need to spend in Laos - - will overnight (24 hours) be enough time to then re-enter Thailand by air and get 30 days Visa Exemption? Thanks!

[Mario2008]

You will get 30 days when flying back in. There is no maximum number of times you can do this and there is no need to stay outside of Thailand for a minimum period of time. You can return the same hour.

[nongkhaigal]

Wow, that's great, sounds like a plan. Thanks so much for your quick reply. All of you guys are great!

[IMA_FARANG]

So, I am in NongKhai now. I returned from Vientiane one week ago, got Visa Exemption Stamp for 14 more days in Thailand. But I need more. So if I just go back across to Vientiane, and fly to Bkk, can I be sure to get 30 more days - ? Is there a minimum amount of time I need to spend in Laos - - will overnight (24 hours) be enough time to then re-enter Thailand by air and get 30 days Visa Exemption? Thanks!

======================

Yes, that is possible.

If you spend even one night in Laos, and return by air you will get the 30 day entry stamp (visa exempt entry). The important part to Thai immigration is getting stamped out of Thailand as you leave....that makes your exit from Thailand legal.

If you want to fly back the next day...that's not a problem.

And I'm not scolding you...but you should have got yourself a single-entry tourist visa in your home country before you left.

That would have given you 60 days on your entrance, and could have been extended for 30 more in Thailand for a small fee. In the long run, it would have been cheaper to have done that then than get the "free" 30 day entry you got upon arrival with no visa.

In fact, if you want to, but your original post says you don't want to....you could probably still get a single entry tourist visa in the Thai consulate/embessy in Vientianne Laos. That could let you stay for another 90 days (as I described above). It would, however, require you to stay at least 2 days in Vientianne...because you would have to submit the request on the morning of the 1st day, and return to pick it up on the afternoon of the 2nd day,

The embessy would also probably want to at least see a exit ticket to issue that visa...and that might cause problems or fees for you to change the date of your exit ticket from Thailand.

But it is a possibility, if that's what you want.

[Mario2008]

Just to clearify: there is no requirement to spend a night in another country before returning to Thailand.

[Maestro]

The small list you are referring to is indeed officially called Visa On arrival.

But immigration officers are calling the visa exemption stamps ( 30 or 15 day ) also VOA and use VOA15 or VOA30 descriptions on their paperwork which can be confusing.

A visa-exempt arrival stamp with VOA written on it is still missing in my album of "Current stamps of visas, extensions, etc" and I would be very grateful if you kindly scanned your stamp and posted it here for inclusion in my album, which serves our members as a reference to what a particular stamp looks like when such question arises.

[Maestro]

I found a recent visa-exempt entry stamp given at BKK airport in my passport but the scrawl on the line for visa class is unfortunately illegible. As already mentioned, a visa-exempt entry stamp is not a visa but since the arrival stamp has no line "Basis for permission to stay", which would be a lot of text for a small stamp, the line "Visa class" is used to write a code also for the permission to stay granted on the basis of a visa-exempt entry. However, this is not saying that immigration calls a visa-exempt entry a visa on arrival.

I'd like to get a variety of visa-exempt entry stamps issued at different border checkpoints (Mae Sai, Mukdahan, Aranyaprathet, Sungai Golok, etc.) and therefore invite all members to scan and post such recent stamp.

[merijn]

I found a recent visa-exempt entry stamp given at BKK airport in my passport but the scrawl on the line for visa class is unfortunately illegible. As already mentioned, a visa-exempt entry stamp is not a visa but since the arrival stamp has no line "Basis for permission to stay", which would be a lot of text for a small stamp, the line "Visa class" is used to write a code also for the permission to stay granted on the basis of a visa-exempt entry. However, this is not saying that immigration calls a visa-exempt entry a visa on arrival.

I'd like to get a variety of visa-exempt entry stamps issued at different border checkpoints (Mae Sai, Mukdahan, Aranyaprathet, Sungai Golok, etc.) and therefore invite all members to scan and post such recent stamp.

The little scrawl you mention on your VOA picture is the Thai (short) symbol for day.

So it means 30 Days.

Maybe i was not very clear in my previous mail but i meant to say that the officers ( Phuket Immigration ) are using VOA30 / 15 descriptions on their immigration papers which they use in the immigration office. ( for example the extension papers and their internal office extension numbering papers )

On the entry stamp stamp they use the Thai word for days with 30 or 15.

[Maestro]

Thank you for this additional information. I goes to show how difficult it can get for foreigners to find their way in the jungle of Thai immigration laws, regulations and other rules when even immigration officials -- and the website of the Immigration Bureau -- use some terms and acronyms wrongly.

[merijn]

Thank you for this additional information. I goes to show how difficult it can get for foreigners to find their way in the jungle of Thai immigration laws, regulations and other rules when even immigration officials -- and the website of the Immigration Bureau -- use some terms and acronyms wrongly.

Tell me something new.