Possible to Fly in and Out of the country with Visa exemptions?

[Havrum]

Hello, I plan to stay in Thailand for about 6 months, possibly longer. I will be flying to Japan or Europe frequently for about 5 days at a time, perhaps every month, as I conduct business in those places. I won't be doing any business in Thailand, just staying there between my business trips. Thailand is a great base for me as the flights are cheap in and out, it is centrally located from the places I need to fly to and I love staying there. I already have about 10 visa exemptions from previous trips to Thailand in my passport.

Will this plan be possible? I spoke with someone who is flying back and forth between Cambodia and Thailand every month on visa exempts and he said he hasn't had any problems. For others in a similar situation such as mine, like offshore workers, how has your experience been with the visa exemptions since the reported crackdown? Also perhaps the crackdown is over. According to Siam Legal at the below link, it sounds like immigration is now more lenient on the in and outers (maybe they realized the amount of tourist money they were losing due to the crackdown):

http://www.thaiembassy.com/visa/thaivisa.php

This can be a visa (tourist visa for 60 days or non-immigrant visa for 90 days) issued by a Thai Embassy or Consulate outside of Thailand. You can also obtain a temporary stay with under the Visa Exemption Rule (VER). This allows citizens of 41 countries* permission to enter the Kingdom for a limited period of time (up to 30 days depending on the nationality) in accordance with Thai Immigration Law. This is commonly referred to as a 30-day stamp.

Under the new provisions of the Visa Exemption Rule (VER), visitors can now come regularly to Thailand without limiting their stay within a total of 90 days in a six-month period. Just keep in mind that under the VER, you are allowed 30 days maximum on each visit.

The restriction has already been abolished so tourists can now visit Thailand as often as they want, provided that they obtain 30 day Visa on Arrival at airports and 15 day Visa on Arrival if they are traveling via land borders. Thai Immigration Laws are revised on a regular basis for the convenience of tourists. However, immigration officials still recommend getting visas prior to arrival in Thailand, as they remind visitors that back-to-back short visas are not the proper way to extend the stay in the country on a long-term basis.

Edited May 22, 2015 by Havrum

[ubonjoe]

That info is over 6 years old when the dropped 90 days in 6 months rule.

You could probably get a way with going out and back with a 5 day stay outside the country and not staying for full 30 days every time you are here. There have been reports of people being questioned as to what they are doing.

[Havrum]

That info is over 6 years old when the dropped 90 days in 6 months rule.

You could probably get a way with going out and back with a 5 day stay outside the country and not staying for full 30 days every time you are here. There have been reports of people being questioned as to what they are doing.

Thanks, I didn't know that.

Edited May 22, 2015 by Havrum

[Havrum]

That info is over 6 years old when the dropped 90 days in 6 months rule.

You could probably get a way with going out and back with a 5 day stay outside the country and not staying for full 30 days every time you are here. There have been reports of people being questioned as to what they are doing.

What about going to Laos and getting a multiple entry tourist visa. If I get one of those can I then fly in and out of the country as I please for a period of 90 days?

[Mario2008]

There is no multiple entry tourist visa. Tourist visas come in a limited number of entries (single, double and even triple at some consulates.

A tourist visa gives 60 days per entry and each entry can be extended by 30 days.

[BritTim]

There is no multiple entry tourist visa. Tourist visas come in a limited number of entries (single, double and even triple at some consulates.

A tourist visa gives 60 days per entry and each entry can be extended by 30 days.

That is accurate. However, you can add a reentry permit to a visa entry if you are flying in and out a lot and want to avoid possible issues with visa exempt entries. It is also worth noting that airlines may give you a hard time if visiting Thailand without a visa unless you have a confirmed flight out within 30 days. That may be awkward if you do not plan your trips that far ahead.

[Suradit69]

There is no multiple entry tourist visa. Tourist visas come in a limited number of entries (single, double and even triple at some consulates.

A tourist visa gives 60 days per entry and each entry can be extended by 30 days.

That is accurate. However, you can add a reentry permit to a visa entry if you are flying in and out a lot and want to avoid possible issues with visa exempt entries. It is also worth noting that airlines may give you a hard time if visiting Thailand without a visa unless you have a confirmed flight out within 30 days. That may be awkward if you do not plan your trips that far ahead.

A re-entry permit is linked to your permission to stay, not the visa.

If someone gets a 60 day permission to stay, the re-entry permit will only be valid for that 60 days. If he was here on a 30 day extension of the first entry, a re-entry permit would only be valid for that 30 day period.

If he got a double entry tourist visa good for 60 days + 30 day extension of stay + 60 days + 30 days and wanted to use a re-entry permit to preserve his permission to stay the re-entry permit would not extend past the current 60 or 30 day permission. Depending on when he travelled the current permission period might end before he returned as would the re-entry permit for that stay and he would still need to use the second entry on the visa, if it hadn't already been used, or he'd be given a 30 day visa exempt entry if the visa had been fully used.

Edited May 23, 2015 by Suradit69

[misterphil]

No chance. A friend of mine works offshore on a 28 x 28 rotation and has been refused a tourist visa.

He now divides his time between here and the Phillipines.

[ubonjoe]

No chance. A friend of mine works offshore on a 28 x 28 rotation and has been refused a tourist visa.

He now divides his time between here and the Phillipines.

What embassy or consulate denied him a tourist visa?

Or do you perhaps mean a visa exempt entry was denied. Many people have not had a problem getting them.

[flyingdoc]

My experience is that if you have a lot of perfectly legitimate Visa exempt entries, you can be asked why, but permission has not been refused. Maybe time to jettison my overburdened

current passport ahead of time?!!

[Arandora]

"The restriction has already been abolished so tourists can now visit Thailand as often as they want, provided that they obtain 30 day Visa on Arrival at airports and 15 day Visa on Arrival if they are traveling via land borders."

It doesn't help when officials, or whoever wrote that information, apparently doesn't know the fundamental difference between a Visa Exempt entry, which is not a visa, and a Visa On arrival, which is!

[ALFREDO]

"The restriction has already been abolished so tourists can now visit Thailand as often as they want, provided that they obtain 30 day Visa on Arrival at airports and 15 day Visa on Arrival if they are traveling via land borders." It doesn't help when officials, or whoever wrote that information, apparently doesn't know the fundamental difference between a Visa Exempt entry, which is not a visa, and a Visa On arrival, which is!

Are you sure? That are news for me.

So, I qualify with my Passport, for a Visa exempt entry (30 or land 14 days)

and when the Authorities think, I had enough Visa exempt entries back to back,

I just make a VISA On Arrival - I have that choice, by myself?

And entry Thailand with that Visa on Arrival. Sure?

[ubonjoe]

"The restriction has already been abolished so tourists can now visit Thailand as often as they want, provided that they obtain 30 day Visa on Arrival at airports and 15 day Visa on Arrival if they are traveling via land borders." It doesn't help when officials, or whoever wrote that information, apparently doesn't know the fundamental difference between a Visa Exempt entry, which is not a visa, and a Visa On arrival, which is!

Are you sure? That are news for me.

So, I qualify with my Passport, for a Visa exempt entry (30 or land 14 days)

and when the Authorities think, I had enough Visa exempt entries back to back,

I just make a VISA On Arrival - I have that choice, by myself?

And entry Thailand with that Visa on Arrival. Sure?

He was quoting the posted info in the OP and commenting on it because it called a visa exempt entry a visa on arrival.

I see no where that he said you could get a visa on arrival. Only those from certain countries can get a 15 day visa on arrival and pay 1000 baht for it.

[ALFREDO]

"The restriction has already been abolished so tourists can now visit Thailand as often as they want, provided that they obtain 30 day Visa on Arrival at airports and 15 day Visa on Arrival if they are traveling via land borders." It doesn't help when officials, or whoever wrote that information, apparently doesn't know the fundamental difference between a Visa Exempt entry, which is not a visa, and a Visa On arrival, which is!

Are you sure? That are news for me.

So, I qualify with my Passport, for a Visa exempt entry (30 or land 14 days)

and when the Authorities think, I had enough Visa exempt entries back to back,

I just make a VISA On Arrival - I have that choice, by myself?

And entry Thailand with that Visa on Arrival. Sure?

He was quoting the posted info in the OP and commenting on it because it called a visa exempt entry a visa on arrival.

I see no where that he said you could get a visa on arrival. Only those from certain countries can get a 15 day visa on arrival and pay 1000 baht for it.

I tried to be ironic, but, shot me in my own knee, lol

Complete misunderstanding from my part, ok than.