I have been doing a bit of research on ED Visa's. The school I have contacted which is nearest to where I plan to stay has told me that I need to pay for 50% of the classes upfront and then pay the other 50% before I start the first lesson. Is this normally the set up with ED Visa's

What the school does has nothing to do with the ED visa so suspect answer can be yes or no. Yes schools normally do require payment up-front. No it is not a requirement of the visa process.

In my case (your mileage may vary) the total cost was 23,000 bath for a full 180 hour course (the minimum) for an ED Visa. The school required 10,000 up front to do all the necessary paperwork, and the is a ton of paperwork to be done. I got a receipt from them that, after my questioning, had a full handwritten explanation that said very clearly that if, in the event my application was turned down by the Ministry of ED, that all my money would be returned, considering the fact I was actually in class for 3 weeks before the paperwork was completed, I thought that fair. That approval by the MOE is not a visa, it is the Thai government (MOE) approval process only. You can still be turned down (highly unlikely) when at a Thai embassy abroad, in which case wave bye bye to your deposit, since that decision is out of the school's hands. They are simply putting in a lot of work on your behalf to obtain the approval from MOE and do not want ex-pats who only want an ED Visa from using their resources to get an ED Vvisa with no intentions of buying the school's course. In my case, everything worked as smooth as glass.

From my limited experience schools want full payment before they give you the paperwork to get the visa. So I would consider that to be very good.

It's not a "school-thing", but it is a Thai (or Asian) thing: payments upfront, deposits, guarantee, etc.

You will see in the foreseeable future, that everything you would like to buy or obtain requires a payment up-front.

Sometimes ridiculous small amounts, sometimes refundable but mostly not.

Whatever happens: Before any kind of service or good will be delivered, a 100% payment must be completed.

In my case (your mileage may vary) the total cost was 23,000 bath for a full 180 hour course (the minimum) for an ED Visa.

Thanks for your replies. I suppose as long as you sign up for a course at an established school its doesnt make any difference that you have to pay for all the classes up front and if its a Thai way there isnt much choice if you want a ED Visa.

DowntownAl did you get a 1 year visa for the 180 hour course?