Thai Visa for ASEAN people

[parikesitan]

Hello, First off, I am an Indonesian and live in Surabaya City.

I'm about to go to a Univeresity in Bangkok for an undergraduate programme which takes 4 years to accomplish.

I applied a Thai visa last week, as instructed by the university and have just received it today.

In the application form I wrote starting from 26 June 2016 and going to use it for 4 years.

But in the visa, I didn't see any expiration date and only found a "Enter Before" date.

It's written that I have to enter before 15 Sep 2016.

My question is:

1. When will my visa expire ?

2. What will happen if I want to go home for holiday after the 'Enter Before' date and go back to Thai afterwards ? Will I need a new visa for that ?

3. Can I stay in Thailand for 4 years with this visa without any visa extension ? or do I have to extend my visa after the 'Enter Before' date ?

Thank you so much for your help, because my family and I have no experience in this.

[BritTim]

It seems likely that you were given a single entry Non Ed visa. If so, you will need to apply for an extension of stay after you arrive. Hopefully, the university can assist with this. If you want to leave Thailand for a short period and return, you will need a re-entry permit which can be cheaply acquired on exit at the major Bangkok airports.

[Maestro]

1. Your visa will expire on 15 September 2016. This means you can use it for one journey to Thailand and this journey must be made not later than the "enter before" date shown on the visa.

2. Once you have used your visa to enter Thailand, its "enter before date" becomes irrelevant. From that point forward, it is the expiration date of your permission to stay that matters. If you leave Thailand during the period of your your permission to stay and plan to return before its expiration, you must get a re-entry permit before your departure from Thailand.

3. No, you cannot stay with this visa for four years. Upon arrival in Thailand, you will be given permission to stay for 90 days and before the expiration of this period you must apply for an extension of stay.

[Sheryl]

The visa pertains only to entering the country. The date on it is not the date you are permitted to stay until. It is the date by which you must enter the country. As long as you enter before the date on it, you are fine.

When you enter they will stamp your passport with a date that you are permitted to stay until, which will probably be 2-3 months from the date you entered.You then need to go to immigration, bringing a letter from the school and proof of enrollment with you, and request a further extension of stay for purposes of study.

Usually they will give you just one year at a time, and then every year you have to go again and get another one year extension.

After you get your 1 year extension of stay (but on the same immigration visit) you can get something called a "reentry permit". This lets you leave the country and come back in anytime within that one year period without needing a new visa and with no change to the extension of stay. Re-entry permits can be for just one entry or for unlimited multiple ones. It is also possible to get a reentry permit at a later time, if for example you have no definite plans to leave the country at the time you get the extension of stay.

[parikesitan]

Wow, thank you so much for your helps.

1 more,

I have an Faculty entry test on 28 June 2016, which I will depart on 26 June 2016.

But my parents insist me to go home again on 29 June 2016 and go back to Bangkok once and for all on 10 July 2016.

is my visa still valid for my second arrival if I arrive on 26 June, go home on 29 June, and come back once and for all on 10 July ?

I am really sorry for being so complicated, but that is what I'm facing now. I'm so confused because I don't know anything about this.

Edited June 21, 2016 by parikesitan

[elviajero]

Wow, thank you so much for your helps.

1 more, what if I come to Bangkok before the 'Enter Before' date for 3 days, go home, and go back again once and for all ?

Do I have permission to do this ? Or if I go home and go back again before 'Enter Before' date, should I apply for a new visa ?

Assuming you have a single entry non immigrant visa......

• You will be granted a 90 day permit to stay when you first arrive and the visa will be used.
• You can exit and return during that 90 days by buying a re-entry permit before leaving (1,000 baht).
• On return you will be granted permission to stay for the remainder of the original 90 days.
• If you don't exit have a re-entry permit your permission to stay ends and you would need a new visa.

If you are going to stay here long term you will need to, with the help of the university, extend your permission to stay. You will need to do that within the last 30 (maybe 45) days of the initial 90 days. That extension should be for 1 year and is renewable each year.

This might help understanding the difference between a visa and permission to stay.

7. Please note that the period of visa validity is different from the period of stay. Visa validity is the period during which a visa can be used to enter Thailand. In general, the validity of a visa is 3 months, but in some cases, visas may be issued to be valid for 6 months, 1 year or 3 years. The validity of a visa is granted with discretion by the Royal Thai Embassy or Royal Thai Consulate-General and is displayed on the visa sticker.

8. On the other hand, the period of stay is granted by an immigration officer upon arrival at the port of entry and in accordance with the type of visa. For example, the period of stay for a transit visa is not exceeding 30 days, for a tourist visa is not exceeding 60 days and for a non-immigrant visa is not exceeding 90 days from the arrival date. The period of stay granted by the immigration officer is displayed on the arrival stamp. Travellers who wish to stay longer than such period may apply for extension of stay at offices of the Immigration Bureau

http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15405-General-information.html

[parikesitan]

Thank you so much for your help.

How do I get the Re-entry Permit ?

[Sheryl]

Wow, thank you so much for your helps.

1 more,

I have an Faculty entry test on 28 June 2016, which I will depart on 26 June 2016.

But my parents insist me to go home again on 29 June 2016 and go back to Bangkok once and for all on 10 July 2016.

is my visa still valid for my second arrival if I arrive on 26 June, go home on 29 June, and come back once and for all on 10 July ?

I am really sorry for being so complicated, but that is what I'm facing now. I'm so confused because I don't know anything about this.

You will need to get a re-entry permit before you leave. Your visa is valid for entering just one time but with a re-entry permit you can leave and come back under the existing visa and permission to stay.

Since you will at that point have been given just 90 day permission to stay the re-entry visa will be valid for that much time. After you come back for good in July you can see to getting the one year extension of stay and a re-entry permit valid for that time (assuming you expect further trips in and out).

[dhream]

Thank you so much for your help.

How do I get the Re-entry Permit ?

At any Thai airport when you leave once you go through airside security and before immigration departure control.

Or ahead of time, at your leisure, at any main immigration office.

[BritTim]

Thank you so much for your help.

How do I get the Re-entry Permit ?

At any Thai airport when you leave once you go through airside security and before immigration departure control.

Or ahead of time, at your leisure, at any main immigration office.

Although both major Bangkok airports can do re-entry permits, it not true that immigration at all airports provide them.