I have moved visas from an old passport to a new one two or three times. As far as I can remember it was free or almost free.

The question is if it still free or if they have started charging a couple of thousand for this too ?

It is still free to transfer stamps of permitted stay - visas are and never have been transferred (you must continue to show old passport for valid visa entries). There has been a change in that those on visa or visa exempt entry (90 day stay or less) take care of it at exit point if they have old passport rather than at immigration office. Those on extensions of stay or lost passport continue to do at immigration office when new passport is received.

It is still free.

But there have been reports of some offices charging an unofficial fee of 200 to 500 baht.

Did not pay for it last week at Phibun.

First, thank you both.

Mr. Lopburi. 1. I have never been asked for or shown my old passport, only the new one. 2. The stamp is evidence of the fact that I have permission to stay in Thailand, that is, a visa. The stamp has no value in itself. Example. If I lose my passport I do not also lose my permission to stay in Thailand; the visa.

The visa allows you to travel to Thailand.

What allows you to stay in thailand is the permisison to stay you get when entering, which you can extend at immmigration.

The visa itelf cannot be extended, it has a limited validity and then it is expired. Meaning you can no longer travel to Thailand on it.

If you lose your passport, you lose your visa. What you do get back from immirgation is your current permisison to stay, not the visa itself. If you had a valid visa and in your lost passport, you could stay and extend your stay (and get a re-entry permit) but you could not longer use your visa to travel to Thailand after leaving. You would need to get a new visa for that.

A visa is issued by a embassy or consulate and allows you to enter the country.

On entry you are given a permit to stay date. A permit to stay can be extended at immigrtion.

Immigration cannot transfer visas to a new passport. They will on departure transfer entry/permit to stay stamp to new passport and stamp departure date in it.

Thet will annotate visa info and transfer an extension of stay to new passport.

Well, I am also a retired lawyer.

I would love to take a look at theThai legislation in connection with "visa". Unfortunatlely, my Thai is not good enough to handle that sort of language. What I can do is to take look at my two latest passports and see how Thai consulates and imm. police use the English word "visa". If they consistently use the word in a certain way then that should be an indication of how they define this word. I am not sure that it is correct to say that they are all wrong. There is a practical side to law.

It is free as long as you do not go to Sakhon Nakhon, they tried to gouge me for 3,000 Baht to transfer visa extension and stamps. As I have reported here before they should all be charged with fraud.

Since when do immigration officers earn the money to drive Mercedez Benz? Bad enough the director has to use it to block the front entrance of the building.

Edited August 16, 201312 yr by Colabamumbai

bow

An extension of stay is NOT a "visa"

Go here!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visa_(document)

And non immigrant visas are normally issued as single entry or multi entry - a multi entry that has not expired can be used for new entry as I said in my post by showing both passports - if you do not have such then there is no need to show old passport once current entry information is transferred.

Well, I am also a retired lawyer.

I would love to take a look at theThai legislation in connection with "visa". Unfortunatlely, my Thai is not good enough to handle that sort of language. What I can do is to take look at my two latest passports and see how Thai consulates and imm. police use the English word "visa". If they consistently use the word in a certain way then that should be an indication of how they define this word. I am not sure that it is correct to say that they are all wrong. There is a practical side to law.

A visa allows you to enter the country whose embassy/consulate issued it.

Immigrations may or may not agree to give you permission to stay. If you leave the country, the permission to stay alone will not get your back in. You'd need a re-entry permit or visa exemption or a visa to present to immigrations to enter again, so the permission to stay won't do the work of a visa.

Being a retired lawyer doesn't make the facts change.

Edited August 16, 201312 yr by Suradit69

Well, I am also a retired lawyer.

I would love to take a look at theThai legislation in connection with "visa". Unfortunatlely, my Thai is not good enough to handle that sort of language. What I can do is to take look at my two latest passports and see how Thai consulates and imm. police use the English word "visa". If they consistently use the word in a certain way then that should be an indication of how they define this word. I am not sure that it is correct to say that they are all wrong. There is a practical side to law.

A visa allows you to enter the country whose embassy/consulate issued it.

Immigrations may or may not agree to give you permission to stay. If you leave the country, the permission to stay alone will not get your back in. You'd need a re-entry permit or visa exemption or a visa to present to immigrations to enter again, so the permission to stay won't do the work of a visa.

Being a retired lawyer doesn't make the facts change.

"Being a retired lawyer doesn't make the facts change."

Can't swear to it but I can swear that on Wednesday August 14 2013 it was free to transfer my retirement extension from my old passport to my new one.

At least in Chiang Mai.

Well, I am also a retired lawyer.

I would love to take a look at theThai legislation in connection with "visa". Unfortunatlely, my Thai is not good enough to handle that sort of language. What I can do is to take look at my two latest passports and see how Thai consulates and imm. police use the English word "visa". If they consistently use the word in a certain way then that should be an indication of how they define this word. I am not sure that it is correct to say that they are all wrong. There is a practical side to law.

The immigration act of 1979 is available in english.

The Thai police order 777/2551 which covers the requirements for extension of stay also is available in english.

Both can be downloaded at pinned topic on page 1 of this forum.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?/topic/523810-Important-Visa-Information#entry4955961

Edited August 17, 201312 yr by ubonjoe

Well, I am also a retired lawyer.

I would love to take a look at theThai legislation in connection with "visa". Unfortunatlely, my Thai is not good enough to handle that sort of language. What I can do is to take look at my two latest passports and see how Thai consulates and imm. police use the English word "visa". If they consistently use the word in a certain way then that should be an indication of how they define this word. I am not sure that it is correct to say that they are all wrong. There is a practical side to law.

I don't understand why ,if you know everything so well and keep contesting everything people living here for a long time and are absolutely correct in everything they say about your question,by own experience, I've never practised law, you asked your question to start with. By the way on the entry form , in case you leave the country, they ask your Visa Nr, what they really want in this specific case is your re-entry permit.

Can't swear to it but I can swear that on Wednesday August 14 2013 it was free to transfer my retirement extension from my old passport to my new one.

At least in Chiang Mai.

Good news for me. Thank you.

Just yesterday, I went to have my old passport stamps transfered to the new one and it was free.

I started this thread. I think it is polite to say thank you all.

I might be back in October whith lots of exiting statistics about the stamps and stickers in my, three, passports.