ED Visa process?

[jimbob333]

My son is thinking of coming over in the summer,he is looking at maybe studying Thai and taking a one year ED visa with a local language school,he received an email from said school with the process,but it doesn't have any info about completing a Thai test or any changes are been made,below is a copy of what they need can anyone confirm or add to this?

Thanks

· 1. To register at the school you will need the following:

a) 8 photos (size 1.5” or 2” dressed respectfully).

Your passport.

c) The tuition fee.

· 2. Students must fill out all documents from the Ministry of Education (MOE) as well as application forms from the school.

· 3. Students will receive their 1st approval letter from the MOE within 3-4 weeks. If your current visa expires beforehand you will need to renew this visa first.

· 4. Students then have to go out of the country to obtain their non-immigrant “ED” visa at a Thai Embassy or Consulate this is the only time that you will be required to leave the country as part of the visa application process.

· 5. Students need to come back to our school with their stamped passport after receiving their non-immigrant “ED” visa to process the next step and fill in further documents.(IF YOU DO NOT COME BACK TO SCHOOL YOUR ED VISA WILL BE INVALID)

· 6. The school will submit all documents to the MOE in order to get the 2nd approval letter.(aprox 4 weeks to completion)

· 7. Students will then take the documents provided by school to the immigration office in Bangkok to extend their permission to stay for a period of 3 months (90 days) which must be done every 90 days until their 1 year visa expires.

*Students must come back to school with their stamped passport after receiving their ED VISA to process the next step and fill in further documents.

** Students must report to an Immigration office every 90 days to update address (fee of 1900 Thai baht)

[ubonjoe]

There is a good deal of misinformation in that email.

There is no one year visa.

You get a single entry non-ed visa that gives a 90 day entry. Then you extend that entry every 90 days to reach a total stay of of one year. After that year you have to go out for a new non-ed visa.

[inbangkok]

Only for the summer!?!? Tourist visa!do not mess with this ridiculous ED visa.

[jimbob333]

Yeah sorry he is thinking of coming in the summer and staying for a year,but he does want to study here and learn Thai,has anyone taking the Thai test at all?how strict is it?

[inbangkok]

Yeah sorry he is thinking of coming in the summer and staying for a year,but he does want to study here and learn Thai,has anyone taking the Thai test at all?how strict is it?

There is no official Thai test. He can get a double entry visa which is good for 6 months. He can then go to Laos and get another which will be a year when all is said and done. He can study Thai without the ED visa still.

[paz]

My son is thinking of coming over in the summer,he is looking at maybe studying Thai and taking a one year ED visa with a local language school,he received an email from said school with the process,but it doesn't have any info about completing a Thai test or any changes are been made,below is a copy of what they need can anyone confirm or add to this?

Check if the Thai consulate in your country would issue a multi-entry ED visa. Having it would require border hopes every 90 day, but no extension, no tests, and no interaction with immigration. If the fee charged to provide tuition paperwork to support it is reasonable, that could be a good choice.

[Maestro]

Jimbob333, how old is your son? What type of extension of stay do you have? Depending on your answers, he can perhaps get a one-year extension of stay as your dependent.

Anyway, since your son is "maybe looking at studying Thai" he should not sign up and pay for a full year of study before flying to Thailand. He should go with a tourist visa, sit in on trial lessons at various schools and then decide.

If he is then serious about learning Thai, attending classes regularly, studying hard and doing his homework, he should consider enrolling for a course at a university, which would qualify him for a one-year extension of stay.