I am seeking confirmation of advice I have already given as I think It will be better received if it is in print. Here is the situation: Married foreign couple in their twenties; husband is working in Thailand and expects to be receiving his Non-immigrant "B" Visa soon. Wife wants to join him here; they have a baby daughter, so there is no plan or intention that she will work once here. I have advised that she arrive here on a Tourist Visa, as visa on arrival is not an option in their home country. I have also told him to get a letter confirming his employment and salary. While I haven't specifically asked, I know they have taken steps to legalize the baby's departure; I am presuming they have, or will soon have, a passport for her. They also have an English translation of their marriage licence.

Seeking confirmation on this, as I can only recall one situation where the trailing spouse was not working, and had no intention of doing so.

Edited February 20, 201610 yr by allane

When the husband has a work permit and extension of stay based upon working the family can get non-o visas and then an extension as his dependent.

It is possible they might have to return home to get the non-o visas if they arrive on tourist visas dependent upon what country they are from. People from certain countries can only get visas in their home country. If this is the case they should wait until he has his extension of stay so they can get non-o visas as his dependents before traveling.

Much appreciated. If you have a list, and don't mind checking it, they are Armenian.

Armenia is not on the list. http://vientiane.thaiembassy.org/upload/pdf/RestrictedCountries2013.pdf

Sorry if I was unclear. In my second posting, I was trying to determine if wife and daughter can come to Thailand on Tourist visas and then apply for their Non - O visas while here. They have already determined that they need to apply for Tourist Visas in Armenia, as they are not eligible for Visa on Arrival here in Thailand.

They can arrive on tourist visas but they will have to leave the country to get the non-o visas.

Additional info: Before applying for the extensions at immigration they will need to have the marriage and birth certificates translated to Thai and the translation certified by the Ministry of Forign Affairs

So, it appears that in this case, arriving here on Tourist Visas gains them nothing, in terms of their desire to live for the longer term. That leads to my next question: Are they likely to be able to get Non-O visas in Armenia as his dependents, when he is already here in Thailand ? I am aware of several "trailing spouse" cases here, but in all cases that I can recall, the two spouses arrived at the same time, with the leading spouse holding an offer of employment letter in his or her hand. Perhaps he is going to have to return to Armenia to escort them here.

So, it appears that in this case, arriving here on Tourist Visas gains them nothing, in terms of their desire to live for the longer term. That leads to my next question: Are they likely to be able to get Non-O visas in Armenia as his dependents, when he is already here in Thailand ? I am aware of several "trailing spouse" cases here, but in all cases that I can recall, the two spouses arrived at the same time, with the leading spouse holding an offer of employment letter in his or her hand. Perhaps he is going to have to return to Armenia to escort them here.

Once he has his extension done he would just need to send them copies of his passport photo page and extension of stay stamp for them to get the visas. They may also be able to get the visas when he gets the non-b visa. There is no requirement for him to travel with them.

Just be sure they have both the marriage and birth certificates when they apply.

Many thanks. I am just trying to save them from paying for unnecessary steps.