The Multiple Entry Tourist Visa Topic (METV)

[Senior Player]

On 9/4/2019 at 10:49 PM, edwardandtubs said:

I'm in the process of uploading documents for an METV from the London Embassy. How am I supposed to upload 6 months of bank statements? I have the PDFs so do I really have to join them all together and send that? And does the letter from my employer just have to confirm I am currently employed or is additional information required?

I believe you can convert and combine several PDF pages as a single JPG by downloading free software such as from Universal Document Converter. There might even be a number of free upload sites that do the conversion which enable you to download afterwards. I haven't looked to be honest, but the method I've pasted below shows it can be done using the Universal Document Converter download software.

To save several PDF pages as a single JPG file please follow the instruction:

1. Open PDF and press File->Print in Adobe Reader menu
2. Select Universal Document Converter from the list of printers and click Properties
3. Select JPEG Image in File Format window and click OK
4. Click Multiple and select number of pages you need to paste on the output image file horizontally and vertically like shown on the screenshot below
5. Press Print to start the conversion process.

 

https://www.print-driver.com/how-to/convert-pdf-to-jpg

[fhickson]

On 9/3/2019 at 2:25 PM, jackdd said:

Judging by reports it looks like that it are mostly female IOs who give people problems. So your theory is most likely 

 

in fact, going through any checkpoint i vet the io before getting in that line, if possible.

 

youd be surprised how easy it is to sniff out someone who is having a good or bad day that day. takes me a couple seconds of eye contact across the room. no problems so far. 

 

Edited September 6, 2019 by fhickson

[fhickson]

On 11/14/2015 at 10:47 AM, JLCrab said:

From Washington, DC Royal Thai Embassy website:

Processing time : (with completed documents)
In person 2-5 business days
By mail minimum 15 business days

So this is not easy to do unless you are willing to spend about a month or more in USA if using mail (and then hope there's no snafu with your return flight) or spend a week or so yourself in Washington DC to get the METV done.

unless you have a contact or relative in the usa with address who can mail it in and back to you, if you want to risk mailing your passport from abroad. gotta a be cheaper then a flight ticket.

 

[BritTim]

1 hour ago, fhickson said:

unless you have a contact or relative in the usa with address who can mail it in and back to you, if you want to risk mailing your passport from abroad. gotta a be cheaper then a flight ticket.

Unless you have two passports, this will not work. If the embassy can see from your passport that you are in Thailand, not in the US, they will not issue you a visa.

[farangzy]

Hi,

 

After reading here about recent denied entries, even on METV, i decided to buy a new ticket and extend my flight into BKK to BKK-Vientiane and try to enter over land instead of BKK Suvarnabuhmi airport later this month.

- I have been on 2 METV's so far in the last 2,5 years, always with extentions, but with some months back in my home country every time in between.. applying now for my third METV.

- End 2016 i came in on some Visa exempts, even overstayed for some days, little did i know back then..

 

My question: since i have an international transfer at BKK-Vientiane, will I be clear from immigration at the airport? Will i have no problem to enter via land border with my METV?

Thanks for your replies!

Regards!

Edited September 10, 2019 by farangzy

[BritTim]

3 hours ago, farangzy said:

Hi,

 

After reading here about recent denied entries, even on METV, i decided to buy a new ticket and extend my flight into BKK to BKK-Vientiane and try to enter over land instead of BKK Suvarnabuhmi airport later this month.

- I have been on 2 METV's so far in the last 2,5 years, always with extentions, but with some months back in my home country every time in between.. applying now for my third METV.

- End 2016 i came in on some Visa exempts, even overstayed for some days, little did i know back then..

 

My question: since i have an international transfer at BKK-Vientiane, will I be clear from immigration at the airport? Will i have no problem to enter via land border with my METV?

Thanks for your replies!

Regards!

No problem entering via the Friendship Bridge with an METV. Usually, at Suvarnabhumi, you can do an international to international transfer without passing immigration. Even if you had to clear immigration, I would not worry if you have an international flight out the same day. It would be an extremely tough official who refused to let you use Suvarnabhumi to transit because you have been a tourist "too long" in Thailand.

[cantplay]

Visa Help -Royal Thai Embassy - New York

 

I'm planning a roundabout without a specific exit flight date landing in BKK on Feb 1st, 2020,  North through Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and then back into Thailand.

What are my visa options?

Would a METV allow for a flexible exit date?

 

[BritTim]

36 minutes ago, cantplay said:

Visa Help -Royal Thai Embassy - New York

 

I'm planning a roundabout without a specific exit flight date landing in BKK on Feb 1st, 2020,  North through Laos, Vietnam, Cambodia and then back into Thailand.

What are my visa options?

Would a METV allow for a flexible exit date?

Both an METV and a single entry tourist visa give you an initial 60-day permission to stay in Thailand. In both cases, this can be extended for 30 days at the local immigration office on payment of 1,900 baht. You then need to leave Thailand. The difference with an METV is that you can re-enter and get a fresh 60-day permission to stay. An METV provides you with a lot of flexibility for the six months it is valid, but you cannot stay over 90 days without at least doing a border bounce.

I cannot say if an METV is your best option without some idea of the length of time you intend to spend in Thailand, and the number of times you envisage entering. Alternatives exist, such as a single entry visa combined with visa exempt entries.

[cantplay]

24 minutes ago, BritTim said:

Both an METV and a single entry tourist visa give you an initial 60-day permission to stay in Thailand. In both cases, this can be extended for 30 days at the local immigration office on payment of 1,900 baht. You then need to leave Thailand. The difference with an METV is that you can re-enter and get a fresh 60-day permission to stay. An METV provides you with a lot of flexibility for the six months it is valid, but you cannot stay over 90 days without at least doing a border bounce.

I cannot say if an METV is your best option without some idea of the length of time you intend to spend in Thailand, and the number of times you envisage entering. Alternatives exist, such as a single entry visa combined with visa exempt entries.

Tim,

 

I was planning on landing in swampy during Feburary 2020 , immediately heading north into Laos, traveling onto Vietnam and then south and eventually crossing at Poi Pet into Thailand again (patts). Your basic backpack trip without specific dates.

 

Could I enter at BKK with no return flight, do my trip and then book a return flight before my 60 days is up?

 

How would Customs at Suvarnabhumi and Poi Pet react with no return flight?   

 

I live in the US.

 

[BritTim]

38 minutes ago, cantplay said:

Tim,

 

I was planning on landing in swampy during Feburary 2020 , immediately heading north into Laos, traveling onto Vietnam and then south and eventually crossing at Poi Pet into Thailand again (patts). Your basic backpack trip without specific dates.

 

Could I enter at BKK with no return flight, do my trip and then book a return flight before my 60 days is up?

 

How would Customs at Suvarnabhumi and Poi Pet react with no return flight?   

 

I live in the US.

If your total trip will be less than 60 days, and you have little history of visits to Thailand in the past, you should not have any real problems using visa exempt entries, except for one annoying wrinkle. Your airline for the flight to Suvarnabhumi is likely to insist on an onward flight out of Thailand when you have no visa. Perhaps best is to get a single entry tourist visa to keep the airline happy. As an alternative, you could buy a cheap throwaway ticket out of Thailand (usually about $30-40) to satisfy the onward flight requirement.

Suvarnabhumi would be no problem. Generally, I advise people to avoid Poipet, Perhaps, you could consider entering via Phsar Prom (near Pailin) to Ban Pakard in Thailand. 

[cantplay]

2 minutes ago, BritTim said:

If your total trip will be less than 60 days, and you have little history of visits to Thailand in the past, you should not have any real problems using visa exempt entries, except for one annoying wrinkle. Your airline for the flight to Suvarnabhumi is likely to insist on an onward flight out of Thailand when you have no visa. Perhaps best is to get a single entry tourist visa to keep the airline happy. As an alternative, you could buy a cheap throwaway ticket out of Thailand (usually about $30-40) to satisfy the onward flight requirement.

Suvarnabhumi would be no problem. Generally, I advise people to avoid Poipet, Perhaps, you could consider entering via Phsar Prom (near Pailin) to Ban Pakard in Thailand. 

Tim,

 

Thanks for the great info.  I wouldn't want to encounter problems with immigration at bkk. The outward bound throwaway ticket was considered, any cheap suggestions? 

Ive done the night trip from Siem Reap to Pattaya by bus/minivan several years ago and remember it being a nightmare.

Maybe best to fly into DMK and bus it down to Pattaya.

Did the ferry from Koh Tao, Surat Trani - DMK, Mo Chit to Pattaya during Feburary 2019.

 

Maybe I'll loop into Laos for a week and then back into Thailand.

 

Thanks again.

 

 

  

[BritTim]

11 minutes ago, cantplay said:

Thanks for the great info.  I wouldn't want to encounter problems with immigration at bkk. The outward bound throwaway ticket was considered, any cheap suggestions? 

When looking for any onward ticket out of Thailand on the cheap, a good place to start is https://www.skyscanner.net/. Specify One way, From Thailand, To everywhere, Depart selected whole month. Prepare for some frustration because the quoted prices are invariably wrong. However, it gives a good clue on the cheap routes to investigate if you cannot find anything suitable directly.

[Anthony18]

Since November 13, 2015, Thailand began issuing new tourist visas for 6 months with the possibility of multiple entry (it is METV, multiple entry tourist visa). Under the terms of the visa, the duration of one visit to Thailand should not exceed 60 days. The cost of a visa is 5000 baht.
Secretly decided to prepare for this momentous event, to find out where to make a Thai multivisa to a Russian person, and also compare the requirements of different Thai embassies for issuing a new multivisa for six months.

[Chomper Higgot]

Does anyone have an example application form for a METV?

 

A relative is coming to visit me and use my place as a base to travel around the region. He wants to know what to write in the boxes 'Proposed Duration of Stay' and 'Exiting Thailand Details'.

 

To be consistent with the rules of the visa, the answers to the first question would seem to be 'mulitple visits each less than 60 days, over 6 months'. 

 

But what about the second question, is that the final flight home?

 

 

 

 

[jackdd]

11 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Proposed Duration of Stay

I always write "60 days"

 

11 minutes ago, Chomper Higgot said:

Exiting Thailand Details

This doesn't exist on the visa application in Germany, but i would expect that to be how you leave Thailand after your first 60 days.

[lawgate io]

Without reading every post, is the Elite visa program legit? It looks like a very easy option for me.

[BritTim]

27 minutes ago, lawgate io said:

Without reading every post, is the Elite visa program legit? It looks like a very easy option for me.

If you are comfortably off financially, and expect to spend a high proportion of the next five plus years in Thailand without working, it is a good option. The company is owned by the Tourist Association of Thailand, and is as legit as anything here is. I would not rely completely on extra services, but I believe the visas are virtually certain to be honoured. If you have the money, especially if under 50, it is probably your best option.

[elviajero]

37 minutes ago, lawgate io said:

Without reading every post, is the Elite visa program legit? It looks like a very easy option for me.

Yes. It’s owned by the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT).

[Percy Penguin]

With the SETV, if you extend to 90 days I think you can get a re-entry permit at the same time, then re-enter after the original last entry date. Can you do the same with the METV e.g. if the Valid Until date on the visa itself is 10 November, can you enter 1 November, extend stay to 90 days and get permission to re-enter, leave 1 December, and re-enter 20 December?

[jacko45k]

2 hours ago, Percy Penguin said:

With the SETV, if you extend to 90 days I think you can get a re-entry permit at the same time, then re-enter after the original last entry date. Can you do the same with the METV e.g. if the Valid Until date on the visa itself is 10 November, can you enter 1 November, extend stay to 90 days and get permission to re-enter, leave 1 December, and re-enter 20 December?

Yes, but I expect you would extend by 30 days on your return. The re-entry would be up to 30 Dec. 

[Frequenc1]

I'll take a bag with my important things. If they deny me, I'll leave the rest behind in my hotel room -- along with 2 weeks pre-paid on a hotel room I rent by the month (not that cheap, either). Maybe it's time for a downsize~

[ThaiRebound]

On 9/17/2019 at 1:13 AM, Frequenc1 said:

I'll take a bag with my important things. If they deny me, I'll leave the rest behind in my hotel room -- along with 2 weeks pre-paid on a hotel room I rent by the month (not that cheap, either). Maybe it's time for a downsize~

What an original thought

[ThaiRebound]

When re-entering for a two-month extension on METV, do they ever ask for proof/plans of travel out of Thailand? Proof of amount of cash or savings?

[elviajero]

10 minutes ago, ThaiRebound said:

When re-entering for a two-month extension on METV, do they ever ask for proof/plans of travel out of Thailand? Proof of amount of cash or savings?

Yes, but it’s unlikely unless you’re a serial tourist.

[ThaiRebound]

3 hours ago, elviajero said:

Yes, but it’s unlikely unless you’re a serial tourist.

Would you say that having stayed here since April 2019 on tourist visas would qualify one as a serial tourist? What would you have ready? Flight tickets, how much in cash or savings?

[BritTim]

1 hour ago, ThaiRebound said:

Would you say that having stayed here since April 2019 on tourist visas would qualify one as a serial tourist? What would you have ready? Flight tickets, how much in cash or savings?

It is conceivable that the wrong immigration official, if entering at some airports, might give you grief, but unlikely.

 

If an official decides "you have been a tourist for too long", you will have about 10 seconds to try to convince them otherwise. Likely, cash, bank statements and flight reservations will not help. That said, carry the equivalent of 20,000 baht in cash as the failure to have it is a legitimate official reason to deny entry.

[ThaiRebound]

If I were denied entry at Laos into Thailand on the final 60 days of METV, how would I best get back into Thailand? Would the visa-exempt 30 day be an option on that day, the next day, or only another border? Would there likely be a way back in with that method, or would an education visa still be allowed? I'm wondering if I'm blacklisted at that point for any amount of time due to being rejected entry?

[jackdd]

30 minutes ago, ThaiRebound said:

If I were denied entry at Laos into Thailand on the final 60 days of METV, how would I best get back into Thailand? Would the visa-exempt 30 day be an option on that day, the next day, or only another border? Would there likely be a way back in with that method, or would an education visa still be allowed? I'm wondering if I'm blacklisted at that point for any amount of time due to being rejected entry?

Where do you plan to enter Thailand?

Regarding land crossings, so far we only have heard of problems at the Poipet crossing, and here was once an indian guy who had a problem coming from Malaysia.

We didn't hear of any problems regarding any other land border crossings, if the visa was in order. If you have a visa or haven't used up your two visa exempts at land borders limit they will let you in coming from Laos. Carry the required cash (20k THB), to be sure.

[ThaiRebound]

Jackdd, Vientienne, and Thanks!

[ultramarine]

I'm thinking of coming to Thailand for a few months this winter.  I have been coming for the past six years and staying for 4-6 months,  mostly with METVs.  I've had no issues in the past.  I'm Canadian.  But a couple of posts here have me wondering if I can do this again.  My passport is full of Thai, Lao and Cambodian visas. 

 

What are the chances that an IO is going to refuse me entry at Suvarnabhumi because "you come here too much" or some such?  Or at some border crossing when I do a border bounce to re-enter for the next 60 days? 

 

I know there is always a chance of getting an IO in a bad mood, but this year it seems like it is becoming a problem. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited September 23, 2019 by ultramarine