Question About Back-To-back Tourist Visa's, ED Visa's and Multiple Entry

[JeffreyO]

Hello!

So I've been doing some research and I'm sure all of this has been answered elsewhere. in fact I found some answers but they were exceptionally out of date and rules change so I just wanted to know...

i work for a company in NYC, I am a salary based worker and will be maintaining my employment however I will be leading our team in India soon. I have been wanting to travel around Thailand and that region of Southeast Asia for sometime however I haven't had the opportunity. As I will be working from home with occasional travel to India, this seems like a great opportunity. So... here are my questions...

If I'm on a tourist Visa, does Thailand care if I work remotely for my company in the US off my laptop in my hotel room? I am not working illegally for a company in Thailand but would need to work for my normal company. I am there to be a tourist but with my position I can work from literally anywhere. I believe this does not break illegal work on a tourist visa because I'm not working for a company in or based in Thailand? Can you please confirm?

Also, if I really enjoy exploring the area I may apply for a second tourist visa. I heard that some consulates have restrictions on this but not others? Can anyone explain this to me or share their experience?

Finally, if I'm happy after my initial stay I may want to learn the language and apply for an ED Visa but with my need to travel to India it would need to be multiple entry. Do all multiple entry visa's offer a finite number of entries or are there multiple entries that offer unlimited entry to and from the kingdom?

i know it's a few questions but I really appreciate your help. Thank you for your time

(P.S. I'm traveling on an American passport)

[MrWorldwide]

So basically you dont want to live in India, right ? Fair enough, but I think you'll find that the board's 'experts' will tell you that you shouldnt be working in any capacity on a tourist visa. The issue, as I see it, is enforcement : CSI and other American TV shows make it seem like a trivial exercise to track someone's online activities - IME that just isnt the case and there is plenty of paperwork involved, at least in Australia. Whether Thai DoL or Immigration would go to those lengths for the sake of proving that an individual is in breach of a 60-day Tourist Visa is a tough one for me - until someone can provide a link to a case where they've pursued and deported an individual for something similar, I'm going to assume that level of scrutiny is reserved for suspected terrorists and organised crime. As always, TiT and they don't always subscribe to Western logic.

When Thai Immigration starts running detailed background checks on all incoming passengers and turning back convicted criminals, I might change my views on the above. As with many things in this country, the standard is 'Do it but dont get caught' - its the 'getting caught' part that terrifies most of us into compliance.

[JLCrab]

In any matter involving discretion of an Immigration official, they would not have to prove anything.

[JeffreyO]

Well, I'm a network engineer and all work is done via a VPN. From the Thai perspective they would only see that I'm connected to a network originating in the US. All internet traffic is done through a datacenter in the USA.

I would, however, be in Thailand for tourism purposes. I would however setup training for my frequent visits to India during my time in Thailand. For all intents and purposes I will be working in India and simply visiting Thailand, though my time in Thailand will almost certainly be significantly more than my time in India.

Now I have traveled all over the world and have always had to 'work' while on vacation, sometimes spending full days doing nothing but sitting in front of my computer. I feel this is very similar and I have read the recent, long, thread about someone who was attempting to make a long term stay in Thailand while working as a freelance web developer but my actual 'work' will be done while in India but yes, I will need to plan training while in Thailand.

Hopefully this gives more specifics to my scenario. Thank you for your time.

I'm also very interested in teh questions about the visa's.

[ubonjoe]

Rather than dealing with tourist visas I suggest you get a multiple entry non-b visa. Since you are working for a company you should be able to get it with a letter from the company and perhaps a few supporting documents. Just stating you will using Thailand as a base for your work in other parts of Asia should be enough. One of the honorary consulates would be the best choice getting the visa. Contract info here: http://www.thaiembdc.us/dcdp/Thai_Consulate_Directory2

As said what you plan on be doing would technicality be considered working. But....

This is something that has been discussed (or cussed) in many other topics on this forum so there is not much need for further discussion.

[JeffreyO]

I looked into the Non-B visa. it said I need a letter from the company IN Thailand. My company in NYC is aware of my intent here and they are happy with it so I'm certain they'd be willing to sign off on this but they're not technically 'in' Thailand yet. Would you have any idea how I could go about this?

[ubonjoe]

What you read on a website is not always factual as to what will be needed to get the visa.

I suggest you contact one of the honorary consulates they are normally more flexible on issuing visas than the embassy or official consulates.

[JeffreyO]

Great! I'll try calling one of them tomorrow. You are right, Non-B is ideal if I can get it done.

In the meantime, would anyone be able to give more information regarding ED and tourist visa multiple entry requirements? Thank you!

[ubonjoe]

There is no multiple entry tourist visa. They are issued as 1, 2, or 3 entry visas.

A 3 entry tourist visa would give you almost 9 months of stay by getting a 30 day extension of each entry and doing the last entry just before the visa expires 6 months from it's date of issue. If you needed to travel during on of the entries you could get a re-entry permit (single 1000 baht) that would keep the entry valid.

The get the 3 entry you would need to apply in the states before leaving.

[JeffreyO]

I'm sorry but can you go into a little more detail on the 're-entry permit'? I don't mind paying the cost, my income is more than enough to handle the expenses but could I simply pay each time for a re-entry permit if I traveled say once a month so as not to use up my 3 entry visa?

[ubonjoe]

A re-entry permit keeps you current permit to stay valid. With it you can leave and then re-enter keeping the 60 day permit to stay from your visa valid. You can also use one for the 30 day extension combined with the remainder of the 60 days you have when you apply for the extension.

You can apply for the re-entry permit at an immigration office or at either airport in Bangkok on departure from the country 24 hours a day.

You can get a multiple re-entry permit (3800 baht) but it would only be valid for the permit to stay you have when you apply.

[JeffreyO]

So as I understand this, I can apply for a tree entry visa. These are valid for 60 days per entry and can be extended by another 30 days. if I have to leave to India for work, i can apply for a re-entry permit while at the local immigration office or the airport. These are generally approved with a fee, I can fly out and re-enter without resetting my initial entry date? Is there anything I'm missing about this?

This sounds like a great possible solution for me if the Non-B doesn't work out. Thank you!

[MrWorldwide]

In any matter involving discretion of an Immigration official, they would not have to prove anything.

But are they actually enforcing the law in cases involving people who arent actually working for an employer in Thailand ? Please link me to a news item or other source where a foreigner has been arrested/deported for earning money overseas as a result of their online efforts in Thailand - not saying it doesnt happen and it may well become more common, I just havent seen anything in black and white beyond opinions on this forum.

[JeffreyO]

In any matter involving discretion of an Immigration official, they would not have to prove anything.

But are they actually enforcing the law in cases involving people who arent actually working for an employer in Thailand ? Please link me to a news item or other source where a foreigner has been arrested/deported for earning money overseas as a result of their online efforts in Thailand - not saying it doesnt happen and it may well become more common, I just havent seen anything in black and white beyond opinions on this forum.

I could see that happening if the person was selling goods that originate from Thailand, thus taking business out of the Thailand export market but I am working with India and the US with clients who only operate within the US so... I'm not using any form of Thailands marketshare. In fact, Thailand would only gain from me being there by purchasing their goods and products while in the kingdom.

[ubonjoe]

If anybody wants to continue the discussion about working online they can do it here: I have a job that allows me to work from anywhere.

One more post about it on this topic will result in it being closed.

[JeffreyO]

Any comment on multiple entry ED Visa? Or could I simply use a re-entry permit for that as well?

[ubonjoe]

If you enrolled in a school before leaving the states and used the documents from them to get multiple entry non-ed visa you would not need re-entry permits.

If you only got a single entry non-ed visa and then applied for an extension of stay at immigration based upon going to school you would need re-entry permits to keep your extensions valid.

[JeffreyO]

I looked into a few schools that were recommended but as most are based out of Thailand, I generally found the information... limited. Most essentially requested you transfer the funds and fill out some forms and then they would process your Visa and you would pick it up. From an Americans perspective sending money to a random bank account internationally is a great way of never seeing that money again. Do you have any advice regarding this? Or maybe schools with offices in NYC?

[ubonjoe]

I looked into a few schools that were recommended but as most are based out of Thailand, I generally found the information... limited. Most essentially requested you transfer the funds and fill out some forms and then they would process your Visa and you would pick it up. From an Americans perspective sending money to a random bank account internationally is a great way of never seeing that money again. Do you have any advice regarding this? Or maybe schools with offices in NYC?

I am not aware of any schools that have a branch outside of Thailand.

If you contact a reputable school here you can feel confident of not loosing your money. They will send you the documents to apply for the visa if you pay a percentage (50% at some) of the full one year enrollment.

Perhaps send an email to Walen (http://www.thaiwalen.com/en/Home) that is a sponsor of this forum and explain to them what your plans are and that you would prefer a multiple entry visa verses getting extensions of stay because of your travel needs.

I think you would even find that the annual enrollment will be less than if you were wanting extensions of stay.

[JeffreyO]

Thank you again. I will look into that school and reach out to them. One of their offices is very close to the area I was hoping to stay.