Please can anyone help,

I have done a search but there are tons of posts but nothing really answering my question.

I am teaching in the Uk Brighton and I am British, I plan to travel to Thailand at the end of the year and hopefully pick up some TEFL work.

Please can anyone give me a idiot guide to go about getting all the permits and stuff?

Do I have to go to Embassy? How long does the process take? So far I undestand I need to get a Non immigrant visa then apply for a work permit all from the uk? Do I need a job to go before applying etc.

Thank you so much in advance and any help guidance will be hugely appreciated as do not know where to start.

Many thanks

Matt

Read all SUNBELTS postings - but a very short brief is as follows:

You get your WP in Thailand - you either apply yourself on the basis of meeting the various requirements (which in the case of a "teacher" , god only knows how you would go about that - unless you were starting your own school), or your employer will support your application - by far the most common route.

That all said, although most schools and the teachers dont advertise it, a large percentage start off working without WP's, and only go down that route once it is clear that the teacher in question is going to stay for some length of time - and this applies to both the international schools catering for ex-pat children and well - heeled Thai's, as well as the language schools (although more so the language schools).

Its a cut throat busines - wages are not high.

Yes - in eithe rcase you need to get the job before applying (and you can legally work while the application is been procesed). The WP is location specific i.e. you cannot use a WP issued to work for one school, to then go and work at another school - you will have to jump throough all the hoops again (and they are a bit cubersome to say the least).

But dont worry about changing your visa status from a 30 day entry to a Non - Imm type for a WP - you can do that once you get to Thailand (i.e. no need to go all the way home to get it re-issued).

Tim

But dont worry about changing your visa status from a 30 day entry to a Non - Imm type for a WP - you can do that once you get to Thailand (i.e. no need to go all the way home to get it re-issued).

Tim

how do you do that then? and if that is the case why are people sent to KL, Penang etc to get the "correct" visa in order to apply for the work permits??

But dont worry about changing your visa status from a 30 day entry to a Non - Imm type for a WP - you can do that once you get to Thailand (i.e. no need to go all the way home to get it re-issued).

Tim

Unless I'm mistaken I think this is incorrect. You do need to return to the UK to get the correct visa i.e. non-imm 'B' as this needs to be issued from your place of origin. I already had a chat with the Consulate here in the UK and this is what they told me.

But dont worry about changing your visa status from a 30 day entry to a Non - Imm type for a WP - you can do that once you get to Thailand (i.e. no need to go all the way home to get it re-issued).

It's far easier to leave Thailand and apply for a non-immigrant visa at a consular office (in Penang, KL, etc.). Here is the list of paperwork/conditions that immigrations requires to make the change to a non-immigrant 'B' visa at an immigrations office within Thailand: Changing to a Non-'B'

Unless I'm mistaken I think this is incorrect. You do need to return to the UK to get the correct visa i.e. non-imm 'B' as this needs to be issued from your place of origin. I already had a chat with the Consulate here in the UK and this is what they told me.

The folks at the consulate were incorrect. A non-immigrant visa issued anywhere will suffice for a work permit.