Best Place To Change Tourist To Non-imm Business Visa

[krikrik]

What do you recommend as the best place to head to convert from Tourist to Non-Immigrant Business Visa, from Chiang Mai ?

Hoping to keep the time spent down to no more than a few days - is that possible ?

[millwall_fan]

I'm interested in the answer to this as well. I'm a Brit, also based in Chiang Mai, looking to get a non-imm B on the basis of being married to a Thai national.

I've heard that the Thai consulate in Penang is pretty efficient and clued up on this kind of visa, but what about the Royal Thai Embasy in KL or Singapore, which have direct flights from Changers?

[Maestro]

What do you recommend as the best place to head to convert from Tourist to Non-Immigrant Business Visa, from Chiang Mai ?

The local immigration in Chiangmai.

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Maestro

[Maestro]

I'm interested in the answer to this as well. I'm a Brit, also based in Chiang Mai, looking to get a non-imm B on the basis of being married to a Thai national.

If like Krikrik you are here on a Tourist Visa you do not need to leave the country but instead go to the local immigration office and apply for change of visa. Fee 2,000 Baht.

For your situation I suggest you change to a non-O visa, not non-B, then apply for annual extension of stay for support of Thai wife (fee 1,900 Baht). Advantage of non-O with extension: if you get a work permit and later leave your job, your extension of stay remains valid and you can remain in Thailand.

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Maestro

[krikrik]

I'm interested in the answer to this as well. I'm a Brit, also based in Chiang Mai, looking to get a non-imm B on the basis of being married to a Thai national.

If like Krikrik you are here on a Tourist Visa you do not need to leave the country but instead go to the local immigration office and apply for change of visa. Fee 2,000 Baht.

For your situation I suggest you change to a non-O visa, not non-B, then apply for annual extension of stay for support of Thai wife (fee 1,900 Baht). Advantage of non-O with extension: if you get a work permit and later leave your job, your extension of stay remains valid and you can remain in Thailand.

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Maestro

Wow.

I had read about B-Visas, O-Visas, and no end of other visas as well as Non-immigrant Visas, but have so far not heard of non O or non B visas ...

Come to think of it, I have never heard of Immmigrant visas; only Non-immigrant visas.

Maestro, are you playing evil games ?

[vinny]

See Types of Visa.

[Maestro]

I had read about B-Visas, O-Visas, and no end of other visas as well as Non-immigrant Visas, but have so far not heard of non O or non B visas ...

Come to think of it, I have never heard of Immmigrant visas; only Non-immigrant visas.

Maestro, are you playing evil games ?

Not that evil, really Economical, perhaps, with my keystrokes.

The triple-m “Immmigrant” is not mine, I believe. And yes, there is an “Immigrant Visa”, at least I have one stamped in an old passport, and then there is also the “Non-Quota Immigrant Visa”. I am not sure, but I believe permanent residents (PR) get them. I lost my PR status when I moved back to Europe.

While I detest seeing arcane abbreviations without the full name being given at their fist mention, “non-O” and “non-B” are very frequently used abbreviations on this forum for “non-immigrant visa category O” and “non-immigrant visa category B”

Welcome to the world of ThaiVisa and its specialised jargon!

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Maestro

[krikrik]

Bumping and adding a question : recommended airlines ? Websites for online bookings ?

[Maestro]

What do you recommend as the best place to head to convert from Tourist to Non-Immigrant Business Visa, from Chiang Mai ?

The local immigration in Chiangmai.

recommended airlines ? Websites for online bookings ?

To fly from your residence in Chiangmai to the immigration office in Chiangmai?

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Maestro

[Rinrada]

Tuk-Tuk Airways....but food aint up to much.

[krikrik]

We will be setting up a business. There's no Thai wife involved.

We were advised we must leave Thailand to change the visa type.

Can anyone confirm or deny ?

[Maestro]

We will be setting up a business. There's no Thai wife involved.

We were advised we must leave Thailand to change the visa type.

Well, in that case, if you do not have a work permit already lined up, I don’t see how you can convert your tourist visa to a non-B. Indeed, you have to go to a Thai consulate somewhere. Try Singapore.

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Maestro

[krikrik]

Thanks for the reply.

Does anyone have suggestions for booking flights online ?

[Donnyboy]

I'm interested in the answer to this as well. I'm a Brit, also based in Chiang Mai, looking to get a non-imm B on the basis of being married to a Thai national.

If like Krikrik you are here on a Tourist Visa you do not need to leave the country but instead go to the local immigration office and apply for change of visa. Fee 2,000 Baht.

For your situation I suggest you change to a non-O visa, not non-B, then apply for annual extension of stay for support of Thai wife (fee 1,900 Baht). Advantage of non-O with extension: if you get a work permit and later leave your job, your extension of stay remains valid and you can remain in Thailand.

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Maestro

Ive never heard of this before.

so, what you are saying is that you can apply for a tourist visa in your home country or overseas consulate, come back to Thailand and apply for the change in visa to a non-o or non-b visa??

Is there any supporting documentation you require apart from passport and 2 photos? Like say documents proving personal funds etc?

I was thinking of going to a TL lawyer to get support documents for a non-B visa, flying home to NZ and applying there.

By going through the actions youre suggesting, I wouldnt need to get a lawyer at all, just apply for a tourist visa in NZ ( I was going back to see family anyhow) and coming back and changing it to a non-B here in TL.

sorry about all the questions but Ive never read about switching visas anywhere

[lopburi3]

You can not change without the required paperwork. The procedure is listed on the Immigration web site but you may need to use IE to view it. Click on Change Visa