Tourist/Work Visa Query

[trompelemonde82]

Hi all,

I'm planning to book a flight to arrive in Thailand for the end of June and then head straight for Phuket to look for teaching work, (I have a couple of contacts there but no job lined up). However, I must confess to being a tad confused as to what exactly the requirements on entry will be.

As I'm coming from the UK I should be able to enter under the Tourist Visa Exemption category then go south, enjoy a few days of sunshine then sort out employment, work permit and then teaching visa - voila. If entering under the TVE category, however, it seems I need to provide proof of funds (no problem) but also onward travel within the first 30 days. My question is this: would it be the easiest option to just pay for a tourist visa on arrival then arrange everything else from Phuket, or to book an onward bus ticket to Ranong within those 30 days to renew the visa there if necessary? Further internet research indicates that the visas can also be renewed in Phuket so any clarification on the matter would be appreciated.

Ideally I would aim to start working within the first month of arrival anyway, but if unable to find a job within that time then would obviously need to apply for or extend a tourist visa anyway. Any relevant advice is welcome. Thanks in advance.

[IMA_FARANG]

Personally I would highly recommend you get a Thai visa BEFORE you leave your country. There will be a small fee for this and you get visa at the nearest Thai consulate to where you live.

By getting a visa BEFORE you leave you should not need to get that visa free exempt entry that you are talking about,

And by having a visa you would NOT need to have that onward ticket on arrival .... because you would have the visa.

Also you should avoid any hassle with the airline that may cause you problems by wanting to see that "onward travel" ticket they may require to let you board the plane without a onward ticket. Much easier and less chance of a hassle to have the visa before you leave, just in case.

The least you should get is a single entry tourist visa. That visa would give you one entry to Thailand and one exit from Thailand. That's why it is called a single entry tourist visa .... you can only use it one time. That sounds obvious, but you'd be surprised at how many people miss the "single entry" part of that title.

A single entry tourist visa allows you a "permitted to stay" stamp in your passport that is good for 60 days on entry to Thailand. Now in the last 30 days of that 60 day entry stamp, you can go to your local immigration in Thailand, and extend that for another 30 day by paying a fee of 1900 Baht. Therefore, 60 day entry and 30 day extension, gets you a total of 90 days. use that time to find a job as you intended.

Now there is such a thing as a double entry tourist visa, which is basically two single entry visas. You enter on the first one, get the 60 day arrival plus the 30 day extension as in a single entry visa. Then on the 90th day you exit Thailand and return using the 2nd part of that double entry visa, and extend that also for another 30 days. Each of these extensions again costs 1900 baht (1900 Baht is the standard fee for extensions).

So to recap, a single entry tourist visa gets you a 90 day stay with the 30 day extension, and a double entry tourist visa can get you 180 days with the 2 entries and the teo extensions.

Be sure to write the visa number on your entry card when you enter Thailand because otherwise sometimes the immigration officer may miss it, and will only give you a 30 day entry by mistake.

When you enter on a tourist visa the permitted to stay stamp should read 60 days from entry. If it doesn't ask before you leave the arrival immigration desk. You can correct the stamp right there, otherwise you will have to go to your local immigration to get the mistake fixed.

Okay, now let's say you find a job. The company or school you work for must start the paperwork and you sign a contract. Either the school, or you, need to take that paperwork to the Ministry of labor, and get an application for a Work Permit. They should give you a letter of application for a Non B (work) visa. Once you have that and the paperwork and contract from the school.

Once you have that you usually will need to leave Thailand again to one of the nearby countries and get that Non B work visa from a Thai consulate there.

Then back to Thailand with your new Non B visa. here's where you go bak to the ministry of Labor and ger your actual Work permit.

Then finally back to immigration, where (if you signed a one year contract with your school) you're Non b visa is extended for that one year period of your contract.

So you see, it is a process, step by step, and not just a one time thing.

Don't worry, you'll get used to it, a lot of people have done it before.

You should ask on the "teaching in Thailand" topic on this forum, for the exact procedures and requirements from those people who are actually teaching in Thailand, as I am not a teacher.

[Puyai]

Good bit of information above, but before you apply for your work permit and visa you need a 2 year teachers licence waiver from the Kurusapa, your school will sort that out for you. Once you receive this waiver you may then change your visa from a tourist to Non-B in Bangkok. There is no need to leave the country unless you don't have at least 2 weeks left on your tourist visa before it expires.

[trompelemonde82]

Thanks for your helpful hints and tips, they certainly cleared up any confusion and now I'm on it - applying for the single entry tourist visa from the local Thai consul then will take it from there as suggested. Ta much!

[Adel8911]

I am a Yemeni man I want to get a visa for tourism is it possible to get it on arrival I will stay 5 days at Bangkok ,because there is no embassy here please help me

[sirchai]

I am a Yemeni man I want to get a visa for tourism is it possible to get it on arrival I will stay 5 days at Bangkok ,because there is no embassy here please help me

Are you an extraterrestrial ,who accidentally traveled to Mogadishu? Google it, please. Here we go:

http://thailand.visahq.com/requirements/Yemen/?js_widget_requirements_link