Education Visa

[fin5prtw]

Another visa question....

I couldn't find anything about this so I wonder if anyone knows. I'm currently based in Europe but I am looking to return to Thailand around September. I've been offered an apprenticeship to train in the art of making tattoos. I would be doing this for approximately 6 months to 1 year. I was wondering if anyone knew whether this would qualify me for an Education visa? If not, would the next best option perhaps to take an online learn thai course for a few hours a week so I can gain this visa whilst learning to be a tattoo artist? Or should I just go for a tourist visa?

And finally, if I was applying for this visa, has anyone got any advise as to how I would do it? I'm from the UK, but currently based in Finland - would I be able to go to the Helsinki or Stockholm Embassy with the correct documents to do so, or should I do this when I go back to visit England? Or can I even do it by post?

Thank you in advance for the advice

[Mario2008]

This is a difficult one. For an ED-visa, you must study at a recognised school.

You don't seem to be studying at a recognised school. But there are people learning to become a dive master, a likewise situation as your. Maybe someone will come along who has knowledge of how dive masters organise their visa, they will have beter information.

Just getting an Ed-visa for a course and meanwhile also training at a tattoo shop is not advised. It could be considered working without a work permit and you could be in a lot of trouble.

[jak2002003]

Hello.

I have an Education Visa and you can only really easily get one by learning a language at a recognised language school. I, and most people, are studying Thai.

You have a attend the school, and can not do it over the internet or home study. The school is required to keep record of you attendance to classes.

My school is called Pro Language, but there are many others. You need to make sure its a RECOGNISED SCHOOL with the Thai Education Department. Here are the details for my school, and they should be similar....except the prices...with other schools.

Student visa courses. Students who register for 180 lessons (Thai course), or 90 lessons (English course), and pay the full tuition fee of 23,000 baht/course will be eligible for a 1 year ED Visa. First, students will get a Non-immigrant ED Visa for 3 months and then a 9 month Student Visa by extending it every 3 months and paying a Government fee of 1,900 baht. The school will prepare all the documents from the Ministry of Education for the students to have the Visa issued from a Thai Embassy and to get it extended at the Immigration on Chaengwattana road in Bangkok or at another Immigration office.

Hope this helps you. good luck with you time in Thailand!

[thaitero]

Avoid Helsinki embassy. They are strict.. Ed-visas only for university students.

[saengsureeya]

Avoid Helsinki embassy. They are strict.. Ed-visas only for university students.

Can copy that partly.

A student once applied for an ED-visa in Helsinki.

It cost us a lot of persuasion by mails and phone-calls to get him the visa from Helsinki.

[duiter]

Hello.

I have an Education Visa and you can only really easily get one by learning a language at a recognised language school. I, and most people, are studying Thai.

You have a attend the school, and can not do it over the internet or home study. The school is required to keep record of you attendance to classes.

My school is called Pro Language, but there are many others. You need to make sure its a RECOGNISED SCHOOL with the Thai Education Department. Here are the details for my school, and they should be similar....except the prices...with other schools.

Student visa courses. Students who register for 180 lessons (Thai course), or 90 lessons (English course), and pay the full tuition fee of 23,000 baht/course will be eligible for a 1 year ED Visa. First, students will get a Non-immigrant ED Visa for 3 months and then a 9 month Student Visa by extending it every 3 months and paying a Government fee of 1,900 baht. The school will prepare all the documents from the Ministry of Education for the students to have the Visa issued from a Thai Embassy and to get it extended at the Immigration on Chaengwattana road in Bangkok or at another Immigration office.

Hope this helps you. good luck with you time in Thailand!

If my 1 year Thai language course stars on 1 August 2012 ( and ends at the end of July 2013 ) and I arrive in Bangkok 30 August , can I go out of Thailand ( Vietnam ) for a couple of days and return to Thailand ( from 1 Sept ember to 7 September ) ?

If I "buy" multiple re-entry permit at airport, is this multiple re-entry valid from the date of "purchase" to the end of July 2013 ( the date thai language course ends ) ?

IF my course starts on 1 September, Can I apply Ed visa on Monday 23 July ( next week ) ?

How soon can I apply Ed visa in advance ?

when will the 90-day ( every 3 month extension ) reporting be due ?

Thanks

Edited July 21, 2012 by duiter

[lopburi3]

You can exit/return using re-entry permit.

Re-entry is valid only for current permitted to stay until date in passport.

You can apply but have no idea if Consulate will issue.

90 day extensions require TM.7, school paperwork and fee of 1,900 baht and are due every 90 days - so first will be due 90 days from initial entry (normally you do several days early but start date will be from passport permitted to stay until time.

[4evermaat]

Hello.

I have an Education Visa and you can only really easily get one by learning a language at a recognised language school. I, and most people, are studying Thai.

You have a attend the school, and can not do it over the internet or home study. The school is required to keep record of you attendance to classes.

My school is called Pro Language, but there are many others. You need to make sure its a RECOGNISED SCHOOL with the Thai Education Department. Here are the details for my school, and they should be similar....except the prices...with other schools.

Student visa courses. Students who register for 180 lessons (Thai course), or 90 lessons (English course), and pay the full tuition fee of 23,000 baht/course will be eligible for a 1 year ED Visa. First, students will get a Non-immigrant ED Visa for 3 months and then a 9 month Student Visa by extending it every 3 months and paying a Government fee of 1,900 baht. The school will prepare all the documents from the Ministry of Education for the students to have the Visa issued from a Thai Embassy and to get it extended at the Immigration on Chaengwattana road in Bangkok or at another Immigration office.

Hope this helps you. good luck with you time in Thailand!

Why some people insist on the long way is beyond me. I guess to each their own. As long as you have a letter proving you intend to study long term (12 months) + a thai consulate with straightforward paperwork requirements, you should be fine for non-imm ed multiple entry (always attempt the multiple entry). It does not have to be a thai language school. I used a dive school for 2 years (two different dive school each year) and already anticipate a 3rd year of rigorous diving study. Do you have any nearby honorary thai consulates?

I still know a consulate that may do 'o' visa for visiting friends, but you still need an invite letter from friend, and your passport would need to be physically located in the USA to make it happen.

Whatever route you take, always attempt the multiple entry visa up front if you are planning a longer stay in thailand, at least for the first year. You will not have to worry about extensions, just a border run every 90 days.

[fin5prtw]

Thanks for all the replies So I guess the tattoo education for a visa sounds pretty much out of the question. Last year I was in thailand on an Education visa for diving, but the consulate said that it would be pretty much impossible to get one again for diving.

I've seen online courses advertised in both magazines and online that say provided you apply for the right amount of hours etc, then you can have the education visa also? I've also seen a couple of threads about this on thaivisa.. So perhaps this is still an option?? I will be living in koh lanta, which has a recognized school, however they only have intensive courses - so if I took a 90 hour course, it would only last a couple of months, so surely the consulate would not provide an education visa for 1 year?

As far as I'm aware, you can't get a visiting visa anymore, I tried it before, and so have many friends who have had it in the past and have been unsuccessful with that case..

Why is it so darn complicated?! Boo

[4evermaat]

Thanks for all the replies So I guess the tattoo education for a visa sounds pretty much out of the question. Last year I was in thailand on an Education visa for diving, but the consulate said that it would be pretty much impossible to get one again for diving.

I've seen online courses advertised in both magazines and online that say provided you apply for the right amount of hours etc, then you can have the education visa also? I've also seen a couple of threads about this on thaivisa.. So perhaps this is still an option?? I will be living in koh lanta, which has a recognized school, however they only have intensive courses - so if I took a 90 hour course, it would only last a couple of months, so surely the consulate would not provide an education visa for 1 year?

As far as I'm aware, you can't get a visiting visa anymore, I tried it before, and so have many friends who have had it in the past and have been unsuccessful with that case..

Why is it so darn complicated?! Boo

I would re-attempt the diving or tattoo ed visa. Remember, an ED visa is ED visa....doesn't matter what the invite was for unless you were trying to extend in-country. Get the multiple entry visa.

It's not complicated....you're just being scared away too easily from the slightest technicality. Thankfully there is more than one thai consulate in the world. Find the one that works best for your situation.

[duiter]

What is the typical time table for tattoo school ?

Where is it ?

Website ?

Thanks

[ubonjoe]

Thanks for all the replies So I guess the tattoo education for a visa sounds pretty much out of the question. Last year I was in thailand on an Education visa for diving, but the consulate said that it would be pretty much impossible to get one again for diving.

I've seen online courses advertised in both magazines and online that say provided you apply for the right amount of hours etc, then you can have the education visa also? I've also seen a couple of threads about this on thaivisa.. So perhaps this is still an option?? I will be living in koh lanta, which has a recognized school, however they only have intensive courses - so if I took a 90 hour course, it would only last a couple of months, so surely the consulate would not provide an education visa for 1 year?

As far as I'm aware, you can't get a visiting visa anymore, I tried it before, and so have many friends who have had it in the past and have been unsuccessful with that case..

Why is it so darn complicated?! Boo

You can study on a tourist visa. Since you are from the UK I suggest you contact the consulate in Hull about getting a 3 entry tourist visa. That would give you almost 9 months without needing a new visa. That's 3 entries extended for 90 days each.

[Mario2008]

The problem with the tourist visa is that he might be considered working or at least will have a hard time convincing that he is following a course and not working.

[fin5prtw]

What is the typical time table for tattoo school ?

Where is it ?

Website ?

Thanks

That's the problem - it's not a school. I have some friends that run a tattoo shop there, and they offered to train me to be a tattoo artist in exchange for some designs from me (as I studied Fine Art at University) so thought it may also be a possibility to get an ED Visa for this.

Thanks for all the replies So I guess the tattoo education for a visa sounds pretty much out of the question. Last year I was in thailand on an Education visa for diving, but the consulate said that it would be pretty much impossible to get one again for diving.

I've seen online courses advertised in both magazines and online that say provided you apply for the right amount of hours etc, then you can have the education visa also? I've also seen a couple of threads about this on thaivisa.. So perhaps this is still an option?? I will be living in koh lanta, which has a recognized school, however they only have intensive courses - so if I took a 90 hour course, it would only last a couple of months, so surely the consulate would not provide an education visa for 1 year?

As far as I'm aware, you can't get a visiting visa anymore, I tried it before, and so have many friends who have had it in the past and have been unsuccessful with that case..

Why is it so darn complicated?! Boo

You can study on a tourist visa. Since you are from the UK I suggest you contact the consulate in Hull about getting a 3 entry tourist visa. That would give you almost 9 months without needing a new visa. That's 3 entries extended for 90 days each.

I'm from the UK but currently living in Finland, although I am closer to Stocholm than Helsinki (!!) so perhaps I would be able to get that visa there? 9 months would be fine as I am intending on going back to Thailand end of September, and my sister gets married in June next year so I'll need to be back in the UK then anyway.. Perhaps this would be the easiest option...

I've had the scuba dive ED Visa before from Hull, so I don't know how I would be applicable for this again? Also they advised that I shouldn't apply for this visa again.

Ps. I'm a she not a he.. at least last time I checked

[GazR]

Currently, Tourist Visas cost me about 24,000 baht per year and about 14 days per year.

I have a couple of questions for Lopburi 3:

1. A 25,000 baht course (for example) would generally not include the 3 x 1,900 baht visa extensions, right?

Do you know if any of these schools offer R&W courses?

I already speak Thai better than anyone except Thais and others who can read it, and I don't want to waste my money on a L&S course.

Thanks.

Edited March 8, 2013 by GazR

[puukao]

I am on an ED Visa, and it's only 6 months. I paid for 3 classes, maybe 13,000 baht. also a 2,000 admin fee. add on a 1900 fee at immigration. I did have to go to Laos after I had all the paperwork, since they told me I had to leave the country and come back. so add 1500 baht at the border and 2000 for visa fee in laos and 2000 for bus and another 1500 for lodging, food, etc...

in 6 months I have to go to class for about 18 weeks. 2 hours a day. the only days I missed was when I went to laos. if you miss 5 days, you are kicked out.

hope this helps someone.

[lopburi3]

A non immigrant ED visa entry is 90 days - if you paid 1,900 baht fee at immigration it would have been an extension of stay for 90 days (not a visa) and most education schooling allows more than one extension of stay.

1. Course fee would not normally include extensions of stay - some people will have a multi entry or other type visa and not require them.

2. I am sure reading and writing is available but have no personal knowledge.

[GazR]

A non immigrant ED visa entry is 90 days - if you paid 1,900 baht fee at immigration it would have been an extension of stay for 90 days (not a visa) and most education schooling allows more than one extension of stay.

1. Course fee would not normally include extensions of stay - some people will have a multi entry or other type visa and not require them.

2. I am sure reading and writing is available but have no personal knowledge.

Thanks - I will keep that in mind if/when I move.

Unfortunately there are no language schools that teach Thai anywhere near here i.e. Ladkrabang.

Edited March 9, 2013 by GazR

[richard10365]

I would go to the Walen School of Thai if I were you and study Thai. They have flexible schedules that might fit your tattoo schedule.