3 X Back To Back Visa On Arrival (30 Days)

[royaljenny]

Both the husband and I are UK passport holders, and our previous Non O (visiting Family) visa expired last year. Today we have completed our 3rd back to back visa run (HKT-KUL-HKT - Air Asia) and have been stamped in for 30 days each time. Today however, the Immigration Officer told both of us that he was going to report us for staying in Thailand for a long time with no visa. He did stamp us in for another 30 days though. I now have a couple of questions which I am hoping somebody can answer:

1. Mr RoyalJenny is applying for his retirement visa next week - I understood that there would be no problem in applying for the retirement visa having had 3 x VOA 30 stamps in his passport? Hopefully it will still be OK, even though he has been reported.

2. Mrs RoyalJenny has another visa run (HKT-KUL-HKT - Air Asia) on 20 March and then has a flight booked for the UK 8 April. Hopefully she will be OK to do the visa run in March, and Immigration will let her back into Thailand. (She will take all her flight confirmations to show she is leaving Thailand for the UK in April).

3. Has anybody else been reported for staying too long in Thailand without a visa. If so, what impact did it have, were you still able to leave and return, or were you stopped from returning. I didn't think it was a problem to do several visa runs and obtain 30 day stamps? I know it is not ideal, but it is something we did to get us to the stage where Mr RoyalJenny can sort out his retirement visa and Mrs RoyalJenny can head back to the UK.

Many thanks in advance.

Kind regards,

RoyalJenny

[Mario2008]

There no longer is a 90 day in 6 month rule. There is no limit on the number of visa exempt entries one can make.

The officer might make a note and they could question you if you are not working illegally if you do it very often. But not seen any reports about that actually happening. But that will be the officers concern, not the number of entries itself.

[bobl]

Sounds like an immigration officer got out the wrong side of the bed, is all.

Meanwhile...

It's absolutely none of my business but surely I can't be the only one who is wondering why on God's green earth you'd choose to spend three or four hundred bucks a month flying back and forward to KUL for a visa run?

In all likelihood (with a 1 or 2 night stopover) you'd have easily got a tourist visa good for 3 months from the consulate in KUL... Unless you had a reason to go to KUL every 30 days...

[ALFREDO]

Well written bobl

Maybe

royaljenny

did not know the Tourist Visa option?

[royaljenny]

Mario2008 - many thanks for the reply - thought that was the case.

bobl & ALFREDO - thanks also for your replies. The Immigration Officer looked like he was having a bad day, with the 100+ Russians in the queue before us!!! Most seem to be having problems completing their arrival forms correctly!!

[moe666]

To get a retirement extension of stay has nothing to do with multiply 30 day entries there are several threads here that will explain the procedure for converting a 30 day visa exempt entry to a non o and the obtaining a retirement extension of stay.

[royaljenny]

Thanks very much moe666