Hi everyone,

First of all, sorry in advance for the possible mistakes i'll make in my message as english is not my first language.

I'm a regular reader on the forum but for once i wanted to write this post to have some feedback of people who are maybe experiencing the same situation as i am for the moment.

Let me start from the beginning...

I'm a teacher from Belgium. I decided to have a break with my job to travel around during a year. So, as I loved this country, I decided to stay here to practice Muay Thai for 6 months and to explore other countries.

For my first month, I used the normal visa on arrival as i was travelling with some friends around the country. Than I've been to Cambodia for three weeks to visit and apply a tourist visa for Thailand in Phnom Phen.

I came back in Thailand with a simple entry one. I did my first three months of Muay Thai in Samui then moved to Lao to apply for a double entry tourist visa. I traveled a little bit around Lao then came back to Samui for another three months of Muay Thai.

After that, I've been to Goa for a month and was unable to use my second entry when i came back because i didn't ask the Consulat to adapt the second entry with my travelling dates. Anyway, i entered the country with a visa on arrival and applied for another tourist visa in Lao one month later for what has to be my last three months in Thailand.

But when time arrived to leave, i just wanted to stay here. I was with my girlfriend who will be soon my wife and i just wanted to know more about this culture.

I decided to apply for an ED Visa in ThaiSolution in Phaya Thai in July 2013. I always attended the lessons during all year and just took a break three weeks in december to visit my family and to introduce my girlfriend to them and of course to enjoy Christmas.

Last July, I decided to extend my ED Visa for one last year as i will have to go back next year to work again .

I've been to the MOE and passed the test which was just a short conversation in thai. I didn't understand everything but i was good enough to receive the paper.

I've been to the Immigration and extend for three more months in July and i normally have to go on the first of October for the next one. I'm not attending the lessons at school for the moment as they have to open a class with at least two other students with the same level.

They didn't inform me a lot as they don't have a lot of information for the moment.

If i've understood well, whatever happens, i will have to leave the country to ask for a new ED Visa.

My questions are as i'm waiting for my school to answer me:

- With my situation, do you think i will have any problem to receive another ED Visa in Vientiane?

- Will I have to go to the MOE again even if i already passed the test three months ago?

- Do you know people in the same situation who were denied to enter Thailand with their new Visa?

- My level of Thai is basic. I know the daily life things: telling direction to the taxi driver, ordering food (almost everything) and basic conversations with some locals. I'm actually able to read and write basic words which are not full of rules. I can of course write my name. I'm also able to read almost everything on a food menu as i already know the words in phonetics. Well my question: will it be enough for the Immigration officer? I know what i studied at school and i'm really not sure i will be able to understand every single words of the Immigration officer at the border who will speak fast and ask me something maybe totally out of my comfort zone.

I normally have to be quite confident as I'm not someone trying to trick the system but with all i've already heard I'm scared to stay blocked at the border.

I already planned everything for my last year here. Paid some phone and tv packages, of course paid for my thai lessons and the most important thing I will get married in December. We plan to leave Thailand together next July.

I'm really stressed with all this situation.

Thank you in advance to those who will be able to help me by answering my questions.

Fred

- With my situation, do you think i will have any problem to receive another ED Visa in Vientiane?

- Will I have to go to the MOE again even if i already passed the test three months ago?

- Do you know people in the same situation who were denied to enter Thailand with their new Visa?

Answer is no to all questions.

Thank you for the quick short answer! You are surely more straightforward than i am! hehehe

Hi All, I m currently in my second year of my student visa, and I have a few questions, one of my friend who is also under student visa, 2nd year went to the Immigration in Bangkok yesterday, for his second extension, he passed the test a 4 months ago at the Ministry of Education and he did his first extension 3 months ago. But after checking out his passport, the officer told him that he cannot get 3 months for his 2nd extension, as he stayed over 1 year in Thailand, he got only 7 days...

So we know that the rule changed since the 29 August, saying that after the first year under student visa, the student will have to leave the country. But we didnt know that it would be effective for student who are already in the second year.

What is the solution ? Can someone help us, our school is also clueless as the information were not very clear either from the Immigration or the Ministry of Education.

Do we have only need to leave with a re-entry permit and come back to Thailand ? Or do we need to leave the country, lose our Ed visa, come back with a visa on arrival and restart the process with the school and the ministry of Education, wait 4 weeks to get the documents, and leave again to apply for the Ed visa in a Thai Embassy,

It's kind of a stress, as we are going to school regulary, and we never had overstay or any problem. I have to do my 2nd extension of my 2nd year in about 3 weeks.

Any advice or help would be nice.

You would need to go out for a new ED visa.

One thing that has been suggested by a school owner is that the embassy or consulate might accept the extension documents from the MOE to get the visa.

Thank you for your quick reply,

So do we need to do a re-entry permit or we just have to leave and lose our Ed visa, and then apply with the extensions documents ?

The first document to apply for an Ed visa and the documents for the extension are not the same, so I am quite afraid that we would be rejected ? or maybe there is an agreement between the immigration and the Thai embassies ?

So that means that every students from every language school, in the 2nd year will have to leave the country right now if they are close to the end of their current extensions ? They didn't make it very convenient

You leave without a re -entry permit. A new ED visa is required to get another extension of stay (it is not a visa).

It might worth the time spent to contact one of nearby embassies or consulates and ask if they will accept the extension documents. Sending a scan of them by email might be a good idea.

Ok got it, thanks a lot,

I am waiting some more informations from my school to know what to do in case they got some new informations, and will try to call the Thai Embassy in Laos to make sure it will work with the extension documents, to ask for a new ED visa.

Sorry, I am just thinking about one thing, my friend didn't leave the country since he started his student visa,so indeed he was over 1 year in Thailand but in my case, I left the country 2 weeks ago (15 august), with a re-entry permit, I went to Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat, so technically I didn't stay over 1 year in Thailand, as I left for 4 days. Does it restart the 1 year stay in Thailand, or the in and out during the year of the visa are not count ?

Sorry, I am just thinking about one thing, my friend didn't leave the country since he started his student visa,so indeed he was over 1 year in Thailand but in my case, I left the country 2 weeks ago (15 august), with a re-entry permit, I went to Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat, so technically I didn't stay over 1 year in Thailand, as I left for 4 days. Does it restart the 1 year stay in Thailand, or the in and out during the year of the visa are not count ?

I am in the midst of all this myself and as I understand the new rules, the ED visa at 'non regular' schools can now only be extended 3 times. After that the individual needs to leave the country and a get a new ED visa.

The original 90 days + 3 extensions (3x90) = one 360 day 'year'. Being outside of Thailand for part of that year has no effect on the visa/extension validity.

I sort of got lucky with the timing of mine, I got what was to be my last extension on my first 'school year', taking me from 360 days to 450 days, just under 2 weeks before this new policy was announced. My school has been very on top of the situation, I got clued in that this change was probably happening a couple of days before the meeting when it was announced. They had not yet sent in forms to the MOE for my next school year, so now they are doing papers for me to take to Vientiane for my new visa instead.

Edited September 2, 201411 yr by Furryman

Sorry, I am just thinking about one thing, my friend didn't leave the country since he started his student visa,so indeed he was over 1 year in Thailand but in my case, I left the country 2 weeks ago (15 august), with a re-entry permit, I went to Cambodia to visit Angkor Wat, so technically I didn't stay over 1 year in Thailand, as I left for 4 days. Does it restart the 1 year stay in Thailand, or the in and out during the year of the visa are not count ?

Using a re-entry permit does not give you a new entry. You would be entering on the same entry you got when you entered with the ED visa that you have been extending since then.

You have to leave and get new entry.

Thanks for the feedback Furryman,

Indeed you got the perfect timing in your case, my friend was told by the school that he will have to leave the country, come back with visa on arrival or tourist visa, and then the school will start the process again with the Ministry of Education. Once he will have his documents around 4 weeks, he will have to leave again and apply in for the visa in a Thai Embassy.

Our school went to the Ministry of Education today, and they told them to do like this for his case, but they said that normally others students will get 3 months and not 7 days, to have the time to prepare again the documents for the student visa.

Yeah the timing works out for me pretty well, as the new 360 day year I'll get with this new visa will end about 2 weeks after my 50th birthday, giving me time to switch to retirement extensions. Never thought I would be looking forward to turning 50 so much.