Foreigners That Are Exempted From The Visa

[binro]

From my reading it seems that you have as many entries as you like in Thailand but can only spend a total of 90 days here in a six-month period. Thus when you turn up at the border, they will count up the number of days you've spent here in the last six months.

Do you think they have notified the airlines. Most carriers won't take you if there is any chance you might get bounced at immigration because then they are responsible for repatriating you and they don't like that. So when you check-in at Heathrow, or wherever, the girl is going to have to examine every stamp in your passport and do the arithmetic. On top of the current security measures, it is going to take about 10 hours to check-in! Or is this only for land borders?

[meom]

A few comments

-tourists/visitors in thailand per year : 12 millions

-on thoses 12 millions, how many come from the "41 countries" with visa exemption (30 days stamps) ? Don't know. Let's say 6 millions.

-with the new regulations : it means Immigration will have to manage 6 millions personal "clocks"

because the "6 month period" starts with the first day of the first stamp, for each tourist....

-consequence number 1 : it can be only done with a computerized system

No way, immigration officers can do the math for each visitor...

If they're smart they will have a new column in your landing card in which you have to fill out how many times/days you have visited LOS in the previous 90 days.

Randomly the official can check passports and if it turn out you were lying you will be deported or fined or something.

[LOS NICK]

so immigration is giving up the millions of baht they take in giving 15 day extensions to a 30 day voa stamp.

I find that real hard to believe.

Any comments.............

[wilko]

A lot of people talking about something they know nothing about

And one who can't understand any of it?!?!?!

[wilko]

Have you seen how many people are reading this?!?!?!

[danone]

so immigration is giving up the millions of baht they take in giving 15 day extensions to a 30 day voa stamp.

I find that real hard to believe.

Any comments.............

they make much more money now: force people to apply for working papers and pay taxes.

and all because of john karr?

had immigration police at our international school. parents were so scared.

other stories of thailand being a paradise for crooks from all over the world didn't help many long term residents here as well.

but the party spoiler for sure is karr, who for himself at least enjoyed lobster and champagne on the way over.

Edited September 14, 2006 by danone

[aqua4]

Have you seen how many people are reading this?!?!?!

It affects many many people and some might just be worried. This MIGHT only be the start of more bad news. Since the cutting of the investment visa and tourist visas, I would think that they might just tighten all the screws on visas.

Who knows what falls out of the wood work in the next few months.

[rexall]

Those that they really want to get rid of, the more or less criminal elements, will always find a solution.

Ain't it the truth! This type of regulation, in LOS or elsewhere, merely inconveniences the people whom it targets (criminal elements) who merely regard it as an occupational hazard and cost of doing business.

Aloha,

Rex

[dunez]

I am so confused, I am coming to Thailand on sep 26th. I want to stay for 6 months. I have a 60 day tourist visa which (I think) I can extend for 30 more days, I (think) I can do 3 border runs and get 3 x VOAs hence giving me 6 months.

Can I stay for 6 months?

[rexall]

Have you seen how many people are reading this?!?!?!

I have spent years chasing my tail around trying to understand this stuff. I guess I don't have a mind well-suited to the subject matter. It's tiresome. Very tiresome. Never wanted to go for an amateur BA in Thai Immigration law!

[Pattaya46]

I am so confused, I am coming to Thailand on sep 26th. I want to stay for 6 months. I have a 60 day tourist visa which (I think) I can extend for 30 more days, I (think) I can do 3 border runs and get 3 x VOAs hence giving me 6 months. Can I stay for 6 months?

Hi dunez,

Why did not you ask for a double or triple entry visa ?

It was more simple and no risk of problem during a visa-run...

Do not know if you can change it now

Pattaya46

[Bates]

I am so confused, I am coming to Thailand on sep 26th. I want to stay for 6 months. I have a 60 day tourist visa which (I think) I can extend for 30 more days, I (think) I can do 3 border runs and get 3 x VOAs hence giving me 6 months.

Can I stay for 6 months?

Dude, believe me I don't understand it too...

I've entered LOS with a Non Immigrant Visa Type O which will expire september 28th.. I was planning to stay 1 year so was planning to do border runs here where i stay in Mae Sot..

i don't know whats going to happen now ...

[Starsky]

I'm really confused with the new rules

Can anyone give me advice? I've got a double Thai visa for 6 monthes (3+3) issued by a foreign Thai Embassy. So I've been living in Thailand for almost 6 months so far. In the end of September I'm going to Laos to get a new visa (for 3 months too) in the Thai Embassy. Do they give me a new visa or not? Am I permitted to go back to Thailand?

Thanks in advance.

[dunez]

I got the visa the day before all of this came out, what I need to know is does the 90 day max stay apply to VOA only, ie someone can have another visa, it will expire and then they get 3 x VOA's.

Also can the 60 dayer still be extended.

[beats]

I am so confused, I am coming to Thailand on sep 26th. I want to stay for 6 months. I have a 60 day tourist visa which (I think) I can extend for 30 more days, I (think) I can do 3 border runs and get 3 x VOAs hence giving me 6 months.

Can I stay for 6 months?

From what I understand, you can do 60 days, go to the immigration office and pay (1900b) to extend another 30 days. You could then pay again to extend 15 days. After that I think you could do a couple of border runs but not 3 of them.

As a previous reply said, it would be best to have paid for more than one entry when you applied for that visa. Maybe you still have time to change it and pay a bit extra to get another entry on the tourist visa.

[samiotis]

You can shoe shine that threat as long as you wish, but it doesn't change the fact that someone was turned back from the immigration office in ranong yesterday with the permission to stay until october first and than leave the country for 90 days at least. He arrived back on koh tao this morning. so what's it gonna be for all those people who have been here 90 days on VOA visas? Nothing changed? you must be kiddin'me!

[poorfarang]

is there a decision yet on weather the 3 visa runs starts on cotober first or if it counts backwards?

[dunez]

From what I understand, you can do 60 days, go to the immigration office and pay (1900b) to extend another 30 days. You could then pay again to extend 15 days. After that I think you could do a couple of border runs but not 3 of them.

Why not 3, surely that would be my 90 day quota???

[beats]

From what I understand, you can do 60 days, go to the immigration office and pay (1900b) to extend another 30 days. You could then pay again to extend 15 days. After that I think you could do a couple of border runs but not 3 of them.

Why not 3, surely that would be my 90 day quota???

oh yeah, my mistake. I think you could do 3 at the most at that point. After that, you'd have to stay out of Thailand for the 90 days or get another visa in your passport.

Edited September 14, 2006 by beats

[madmitch]

within six months period[/b], the holder of passport or substitutive documents which issued by any country that is approved by the Minister of the Interior, under the approval of the Cabinet, to enter to temporarily stay in Thailand for tourism purpose, shall be permitted to enter Thailand several times. Each permitted time shall not be exceeding 30 days period, and the total period shall not be exceeding 90 days from the first day that the passport holder arrived in Thailand.

It should be remembered that this will be a translation from the original Thai therefore what may seem ambiguous to farangs may well be clear in the Thai language.

The above paragraph is certainly open to interpretation in the English version.

I am pretty sure that the intent is that no more than ninety days may be spent in Thailand during ANY period of six months and no more than thirty days on each VOA. That is logical.

Other interpretations have been offered already.

The use of the words at the end of the paragraph "from the first day that the passport holder arrived in Thailand" is the confusing area. If it relates to continuous border runners then it is straightforward but what about frequent visitors? Does the clock restart after six months? Can you arrive on, say 1st January for one week, starting the clock, come again on 1st May for two months then restart the clock again on 1st July, allowing five months stay with border runs?

Probably not, and an unlikely scenario, but possible?????

As an aside, I really hope that the airports open up separate lanes for VOA and visa holders.

[engism]

I am sorry but I can never understand government jargon....

I work in Hong Kong and work a 4 day on 4 day off roster, on my 4 days off I come to Phuket where I own an apartment. Normally I get a stamp for 30 days in my passport (Australian). Obviously I come to Phuket 4 times a month for 4 days each time...where do I stand.

Again I appologise but I have read the govt rules several times and it just doesn,t make sense to me.

[Orion76]

3. According the Article 13 (3) of the Ministerial Regulation which stipulated the criterions, practices and conditions regarding the verification, exception and the changes in the visa requirements B.E. 2545 (2002) dated on 16th August B.E. 2545 (2002), within six months period, the holder of passport or substitutive documents which issued by any country that is approved by the Minister of the Interior, under the approval of the Cabinet, to enter to temporarily stay in Thailand for tourism purpose, shall be permitted to enter Thailand several times. Each permitted time shall not be exceeding 30 days period, and the total period shall not be exceeding 90 days from the first day that the passport holder arrived in Thailand.

If the above translation is accurate then I don't believe this new rule will/can be applied universally because it doesn't make sense to apply a rule like this to for example a European working in Singapore who has frequent 1 day business meetings in Bangkok, or someone living in Vietnam who does his shopping in Bangkok. If someone would enter once for 3 days in January I find it implausible that he will be forbidden to enter Thailand between March and July.

This sounds to me like a law which can be applied selectively to certain individuals, ie: the back to back entry stamp border runner. It will be a convenient unambiguous piece of text which an immigration official can wave in the face of an angry farang who's pissed he's being denied his umpteenth consecutive entry stamp.

[bennyboy0102]

So is it ok to go for 30 days then do a visa run, then come back and do another 30 days and so on??

[dotcom]

Royal Thai Police

Order No. 608 / 2549

Subject: An authorization for permission to foreigners that are exempted from the Visa requirements to stay temporarily in the Kingdom of Thailand.

Good of you, Sunbelt, to have been able to get your hands on the English version of this order and post it here.

Can you also get the original Thai version and post it, for those who read Thai?

---------------

Maestro

Operative word "TEMPORARY" Lots of these backpacker types want to reside PERMANANTLY on temporary visas. Buy a clue.

Edited September 14, 2006 by dotcom

[cclub75]

As an aside, I really hope that the airports open up separate lanes for VOA and visa holders.

Indeed ! Actually, it's the only certainty that we can have today.

It's going to be hel_l.

[enuff said]

.

Everybody is overlooking the words "temporarily stay in Thailand for tourism purpose"

If your passport shows you have been here for months and MONTHS you are NOT "temporarily stay in Thailand for tourism purpose". You are LIVING here.

You are NOT a tourist. You are taking advantage of tourism visas to LIVE here. You are disrespecting the authority and good faith of the Kingdom in its attempts to make it easy for legitimate tourists to travel and enjoy Thailand TEMPORARILY.

It's no wonder they want to get rid of the lot of you.

'nuff said

~

[pgrin]

I'm really confused with the new rules

Can anyone give me advice? I've got a double Thai visa for 6 monthes (3+3) issued by a foreign Thai Embassy. So I've been living in Thailand for almost 6 months so far. In the end of September I'm going to Laos to get a new visa (for 3 months too) in the Thai Embassy. Do they give me a new visa or not? Am I permitted to go back to Thailand?

Thanks in advance.

Starsky,

I hope I read your post wrong but the way you state this makes me concerned that you have made a big mistake. There is no such thing as double entry tourist visa for 6 months. You were given a double entry valid for 60 days each. This means you must apply for an extension to stay an additional 30 days before the 60 days are up. After this you must leave and re enter to use the second 60+30. Please tell me you paid for an extension and then did a border run after 90 days. If not then you are about 4 months overstay by this time.

P

[dunez]

can someone be a tourist for 6 - 12 months? Theres a hel_l of a lot to see in Thailand, I think it is perfectly plausable that if someone has enough money to support themselves they could legitimatly be a tourist for an extended period of time. People like ME who are getting tarred with the same brush as illegal teachers / criminals etc etc etc

[Chua]

Does any of this affect non-immigrant B (Business visas), retirement visas, marriage visas, student visas, or anything else besides Tourist Visas?

No, only repeated 30 days border runners are affected.

[cclub75]

If your passport shows you have been here for months and MONTHS you are NOT "temporarily stay in Thailand for tourism purpose". You are LIVING here.

You are NOT a tourist. You are taking advantage of tourism visas to LIVE here. You are disrespecting the authority and good faith of the Kingdom in its attempts to make it easy for legitimate tourists to travel and enjoy Thailand TEMPORARILY.

It's no wonder they want to get rid of the lot of you.

I think that's a very good summary of the whole visa reshuffle operation. Just too many of "permanent" tourists in Thailand.

The doors of the paradise are closing. That's the new paradigm.