Summary Report: Just back from Lao, received 2nd ED Visa

[mataleo]

It must be terrible to go through that every 3 months!! Really feel for expats living in Thailand and feeling so unwelcome

U dont go laos every 3 months do u?

U go to local immigration to extend it for another 90 day.

Goin to laos is once per year..

[mataleo]

I went on Wednesday and had small queue but when i picked up passport on Thursday the queue from morning was in the 600 hundreds, so looks like i picked the right day, mine was like 100 people and i was 11th in line at 730am

U got ED?

Did they ask show funds?

[krey]

I went on Wednesday and had small queue but when i picked up passport on Thursday the queue from morning was in the 600 hundreds, so looks like i picked the right day, mine was like 100 people and i was 11th in line at 730am

U got ED?

Did they ask show funds?

1, Yes you only have to go out of the country once a year, you used to be able to stay longer on same visa but after Aug 29th they are changing the rules

2. Yes you check in every 90 days at local immigration office, schools will usually give you the correct paper work with 1900 Baht to pay for most schools, it is here where there are talks about more testing

and so forth to make sure you are actually learning Thai

3. The Thai Embassy officially opens at 830 am. I think you would be fine arriving at 7am, you probably wont be first but you should be fine... my friend went at 630 on a monday and he was number 60, it just depends really on what rules are coming, if there is a holiday coming etc, in reality you probably be fine going later you just will be farther back, but since they close up at 1130 for new applications the closer you get to the 1130 time the more chances you might not get in

4. I wore a light red shirt in my passport photos never got asked for a retake

5. They did not ask me for funds but I did bring a copy of a bank statement just in case

6. If you are worried about the white shirt then take a passport photo in white and bring a white shirt with you, there were many people not in white in line

I am writing a blog post of my experiences on the trip and will post the link tonight to give you an idea of my experience will put it in this post

Edited August 10, 2014 by krey

[jenk4lyf]

 

I went on Wednesday and had small queue but when i picked up passport on Thursday the queue from morning was in the 600 hundreds, so looks like i picked the right day, mine was like 100 people and i was 11th in line at 730am

U got ED?

Did they ask show funds?

1, Yes you only have to go out of the country once a year, you used to be able to stay longer on same visa but after Aug 29th they are changing the rules

2. Yes you check in every 90 days at local immigration office, schools will usually give you the correct paper work with 1900 Baht to pay for most schools, it is here where there are talks about more testing

and so forth to make sure you are actually learning Thai

3. The Thai Embassy officially opens at 830 am. I think you would be fine arriving at 7am, you probably wont be first but you should be fine... my friend went at 630 on a monday and he was number 60, it just depends really on what rules are coming, if there is a holiday coming etc, in reality you probably be fine going later you just will be farther back, but since they close up at 1130 for new applications the closer you get to the 1130 time the more chances you might not get in

4. I wore a light red shirt in my passport photos never got asked for a retake

5. They did not ask me for funds but I did bring a copy of a bank statement just in case

6. If you are worried about the white shirt then take a passport photo in white and bring a white shirt with you, there were many people not in white in line

I am writing a blog post of my experiences on the trip and will post the link tonight to give you an idea of my experience will put it in this post

 

How sure are you about all of these points because I am still left in the dark with my school saying one thing, others on here saying something else, and many confused people still.

I have only left the country once in the past 3 years to Malaysia to obtain my ED visa, since then it has just been 90 day stamps. Renewed a new year of schooling last month and my next visit to immigration needs to be before October 30th. My school says that I don't have to go to Laos until next year, yet according to you I have to go before October 30th this year.

IF I have to go I am going to fly from Bangkok, no way am I making the tedious journey by road which is also dangerous, that is one thing that really bugs me about this new rule, it may sound silly to some but traveling long distances on the Thai roads is a dangerous game, and now we have to do it annually by law.

>When I enter Laos by plane how much will the tourist visa be?

>How many passport photographs do you need for the visa?

>Seeing as I payed for my year visa last month, do I have to pay again and if so how much?

>Why would they need to see my bank balance? I don't work as I have no work permit, but I have money.

Gah this is so frustrating and IMO a silly rule that wastes money, time and resources. There are easier wasy to keep tabs on people if that is what they wish to do, this is pretty unfair. Also I can speak Thai pretty damn well, often Thais will say 'khun phut Thai chat maak' etc etc etc, but my reading and writing is poor, so I hope they don't test me on my reading or writing skills.

[mataleo]

I went on Wednesday and had small queue but when i picked up passport on Thursday the queue from morning was in the 600 hundreds, so looks like i picked the right day, mine was like 100 people and i was 11th in line at 730am

U got ED?

Did they ask show funds?

1, Yes you only have to go out of the country once a year, you used to be able to stay longer on same visa but after Aug 29th they are changing the rules

2. Yes you check in every 90 days at local immigration office, schools will usually give you the correct paper work with 1900 Baht to pay for most schools, it is here where there are talks about more testing

and so forth to make sure you are actually learning Thai

3. The Thai Embassy officially opens at 830 am. I think you would be fine arriving at 7am, you probably wont be first but you should be fine... my friend went at 630 on a monday and he was number 60, it just depends really on what rules are coming, if there is a holiday coming etc, in reality you probably be fine going later you just will be farther back, but since they close up at 1130 for new applications the closer you get to the 1130 time the more chances you might not get in

4. I wore a light red shirt in my passport photos never got asked for a retake

5. They did not ask me for funds but I did bring a copy of a bank statement just in case

6. If you are worried about the white shirt then take a passport photo in white and bring a white shirt with you, there were many people not in white in line

I am writing a blog post of my experiences on the trip and will post the link tonight to give you an idea of my experience will put it in this post

Cool

But I am polish so I signed for English.

No stress about being tested innit

Waiting link

How about lao visa on arrival on airport? Same as in nong khai? Pay dollars and thats it?

What hotel did u stay?

I booked mercure cuz heard got disco around.

Once before i stayed AV hotel ok but boring

Thx

Edited August 10, 2014 by mataleo

[krey]

First I am not totally sure on everything I dont think anyone can say they are totally sure

August 29th

The idea is they do not want people to be staying on an Education Visa for more then 12 months at a time, so people that have been in Thailand for 2 or 3 years on an ED visa have to reset

does that mean people before August 29th that just renewed their visa have to go and reset it, well I am not totally sure that is something you really got to contact your school on. There is a few people that are surely to be in the same situation as you, paying for a new renew and then this rule comes up

Tourist Visa on Arrival in Laos

1. It costs usually 30 dollars to 42 dollars , it depends on your country, Canada was the most expensive at 42 dollars and Vietnam I believe was 20 dollars, America was 30 if I can remember correctly

2. You need one passport photo for the visa or they will take one for you there for 1 dollar USD

3. They Expect you to have USD dollars already so bring the correct cash

4. Visa cost at the embassy is 2000 Baht if you have to go and reset it

5. They did not ask me for any income statements but I did have a photocopy ready of my bank account if i was

6. As for hotels i stay in one by the river, spent a little more this time as last time I was in a total dump... there is several hotels around the embassy and several more down by the river, from super dirt cheap to highly expensive

most people seem to go cheap as they might be staying only one night... i spent a bit more as i stayed for 4 days.. i went ot a disco, had 8 people haha:) hope u have better luck

as i said i will have a blog post tonight and will leave the link here on what i did, how i did it and perhaps that will help some people

addition

yes the Visa on The arrival at the airport was easy

got off plane, greeted by a staff airport employee

She gave me the form to fill out (visa form) I just put hotel name for my address and put hotel name and number for Laos contact person as well

walked up paid for it

done in 10 minutes

Edited August 10, 2014 by krey

[muffy]

My wife rec'd hers from Laos ( Vien. ) last month , we paid extra for the agent . I recommend paying extra for the agent unless you want to put up with the crowd hassle . I used the agent across from Pizza co on the corner with the Blue tent and red chairs . He was very good and delivered the passport to our hotel . His price was 5000 and it included the visa fee. He delivered it to our hotel .She can now piggy back on my retirement visa but will go to English school too .

We had a complete waste of time at the KL consulate a month before .Wouldn't even give a tourist visa after turning down the non O , we had all the paper work and the Muslim girl at the window enjoyed saying no . They only offered a transit visa (said we were only there a day ) wouldn't listen to the fact that we came for a non O . They need to replace the whole staff .

Looking at the large crowd at the consulate I was very happy to pay the agent .

Edited August 10, 2014 by muffy

[krey]

My wife rec'd hers from Laos ( Vien. ) last month , we paid extra for the agent . I recommend paying extra for the agent unless you want to put up with the crowd hassle . I used the agent across from Pizza co on the corner with the Blue tent and red chairs . He was very good and delivered the passport to our hotel . His price was 5000 and it included the visa fee. He delivered it to our hotel .She can now piggy back on my retirement visa but will go to English school too .

We had a complete waste of time at the KL consulate a month before .Wouldn't even give a tourist visa after turning down the non O , we had all the paper work and the Muslim girl at the window enjoyed saying no . They only offered a transit visa (said we were only there a day ) wouldn't listen to the fact that we came for a non O . They need to replace the whole staff .

Looking at the large crowd at the consulate I was very happy to pay the agent .

Personally I am not a big fan of handing over my passport to some random guy in a tent... they do approach you though right out of your taxi or tuk tuk they are there trying to help you out

I declined i had everything ready and was number 11 in the line... was told by some dudes in the line that they charge around 2000 plus visa fee.... in any case I often wonder if these guys will be on the target list soon for

another visa rule, like you must apply in person or something who knows..... glad it worked out for you and i heard others have used it with no problems, I cant really say myself, the whole process for me took less then 2 hours

as for KL I have seen a number of posts that KL is a tough embassy to get a visa

Edited August 10, 2014 by krey

[kevindorian]

This is Kreys link to his experience

http://learnthaireviews.com/thailand-ed-visa-run-vientiane-laos-experience/

[NolaK]

What would be reasonably good time to turn up on monday to apply? 7am?

They open it at 8am right?

They open at 8:30. I hope 7 would be plenty early and perhaps now that the 12th has come and gone the rush is over. Of course many changes appear to be starting on the 29th too. If what I read is true their may still be a rush.

[NolaK]

My wife rec'd hers from Laos ( Vien. ) last month , we paid extra for the agent . I recommend paying extra for the agent unless you want to put up with the crowd hassle . I used the agent across from Pizza co on the corner with the Blue tent and red chairs . He was very good and delivered the passport to our hotel . His price was 5000 and it included the visa fee. He delivered it to our hotel .She can now piggy back on my retirement visa but will go to English school too .

We had a complete waste of time at the KL consulate a month before .Wouldn't even give a tourist visa after turning down the non O , we had all the paper work and the Muslim girl at the window enjoyed saying no . They only offered a transit visa (said we were only there a day ) wouldn't listen to the fact that we came for a non O . They need to replace the whole staff .

Looking at the large crowd at the consulate I was very happy to pay the agent .

Personally I am not a big fan of handing over my passport to some random guy in a tent... they do approach you though right out of your taxi or tuk tuk they are there trying to help you out

I declined i had everything ready and was number 11 in the line... was told by some dudes in the line that they charge around 2000 plus visa fee.... in any case I often wonder if these guys will be on the target list soon for

another visa rule, like you must apply in person or something who knows..... glad it worked out for you and i heard others have used it with no problems, I cant really say myself, the whole process for me took less then 2 hours

as for KL I have seen a number of posts that KL is a tough embassy to get a visa

I also can't imagine handing my passport over like that. I have family, a home, cars, dogs, etc... in Thailand and am almost to my 50th Birthday. If I get turned down for a visa now I want to know I did my best and was there to answer questions. Plus, I was asked for new photos while I was there. Was the guy on the street going to grab a blonde wig and smile for the camera? Of course that I might have paid to see.

[mataleo]

U need to be 6am at the gate. Otherwise u screwed.

I was 6am. Got nr.2

Out 9:10

[NomadRip]

To avoid the crowd, I always go to Vientiane on Friday. I just got back from Vientiane dropping off my visa application. Now I get to enjoy the weekend here. They opened at 830, we got there 840. There was one guy who got there before us, and a family of 3 filling out their forms.

We made copies of our stamped visa page, submitted our paperwork (I was number 2), walked into the other building to pay and stepped out the consulate gate at 855am.

[mataleo]

To avoid the crowd, I always go to Vientiane on Friday. I just got back from Vientiane dropping off my visa application. Now I get to enjoy the weekend here. They opened at 830, we got there 840. There was one guy who got there before us, and a family of 3 filling out their forms.

We made copies of our stamped visa page, submitted our paperwork (I was number 2), walked into the other building to pay and stepped out the consulate gate at 855am.

Yeh i was on monday. I was hundreds of ppl.

I was there 6am...