Doe anyone know about visa run to Mae Sot

[gittu]

Hi,

i already did a visa run to Cambodia 4 times and Laos 4 times, so i dont know i still can go there again or not, so i'm thinking to go Mae Sot, does anyone recently go there for visa run?

i know i can go there with Myanmar visa, but i'm not sure about i can go there without Myanmar visa and just do visa run only.

 

[ubonjoe]

Unless you have a valid Thai visa for re-entry you would not be able to leave the country at that crossing unless you had a visa for Myanmar.

They do on allow crossings for a new visa exempt entry.

[JackThompson]

If those Visa-Runs you list reflect living in Thailand almost continuously, receiving a visa-exempt may be problematic.  You could get a Tourist Visa in Penang, though there may be some extra cash involved, due to that history. 

 

Next step after that, if it were me, and if you intend to stay here longer-term, would be to get a new passport, so you can start over again.  If you apply for a new passport immediately upon your return with the new Tourist Visa (60 days permitted stay), you should have plenty of time to receive it from your Embassy.

 

With the new passport in hand, do a few Visas at locations like HCMC,  Yangon, Hong Kong, etc - places which may or may not be as helpful if you have a passport full of Thai-Tourist-Visas (check recent reports).  Then move on to the easier ones, like Laos and Cambodia.  Note that the new passport will not help with getting Visa-Exempts, which are issued by Immigration, who will see your entire history on both passports.  This step will only help when applying for visas at Thai consulates.

[Fallangpakwan]

I did one about 6 weeks back as I have done for years; cross the bridge, pay 500 baht, wait about 10 minutes while they stamp your passport, and back across the bridge where my METV was perused and I was stamped in again for 60 days.Will be doing another run there in about 2 weeks. If you want to walk around the place while on the other side they will give you a temp pass, an hour or 2.

[TechnikaIII]

The process at the border is simple.

1. Thai Immigration stamp out for leaving the Kingdom

2. Walk over the bridge to Myanmar Immigration entry point. They ask you if you want to stay for the whole day, or is it just an in-out event. You hand over 500 Baht (The price when I last went there) They stamp you passport twice: Once for in, and once for out.

3. Walk back over the bridge. 

4. Line up to re enter Thailand. Fill out the usual form for entering Thailand. Hand it over through the little window. You may be asked a few questions about where you live, and why. I was once asked for the phone number of someone in my village who could verify everything. The only number I had was for my ex girlfriend. I joked about it, in order to prepare the officer for an unusual reply. I had also told him she was a busy hairdresser. He smiled at my long hair. "Well..." I said "I did say we are no longer together. To this he laughed and called her.  .. chuckling again when he spoke to her.  he got the verification he needed, and a bit more.

He stamped my passport with a smile, and that was it. He advised me to get a proper visa for next time. 

However, you get a stay of 14 days. If you have had several of these ins and outs, expect more questions.

 

I don't go there anymore. The van journey is one of the worst. On every one of the 5 times I have done that trip, we passed the debris of a recent accident. On three of those occasions, dead bodies were still in the vehicles. The absolute last time, just 15 minutes out of the bus station at Nakhon Sawan, we were slowed down by something up ahead. It was the van that had left just 20 to 30 minutes before ours. It had attempted to pass a large vehicle on the inside, .. did not see the truck laden with sugar cane that was parked there, and slammed into it at what must have been 100 to 120 kmph, because the driver's compartment of the van had been pushed two rows back into the seats behind: 3 rows of people squashed into one. Vehicle and body fluids were draining out of the crush. Our driver didn't even stop. 

 

However, I used to take some extra cash in my pocket, plus a few bottles of water and munchies for the kids who are forced to beg, sitting out in the blazing sun on the "Friendship Bridge." which must have Hell to them. A very sad encounter. 

Edited September 29, 2016 by TechnikaIII

[BritTim]

1 hour ago, TechnikaIII said:

The process at the border is simple.

1. Thai Immigration stamp out for leaving the Kingdom

2. Walk over the bridge to Myanmar Immigration entry point. They ask you if you want to stay for the whole day, or is it just an in-out event. You hand over 500 Baht (The price when I last went there) They stamp you passport twice: Once for in, and once for out.

3. Walk back over the bridge. 

4. Line up to re enter Thailand. Fill out the usual form for entering Thailand. Hand it over through the little window. You may be asked a few questions about where you live, and why. I was once asked for the phone number of someone in my village who could verify everything. The only number I had was for my ex girlfriend. I joked about it, in order to prepare the officer for an unusual reply. I had also told him she was a busy hairdresser. He smiled at my long hair. "Well..." I said "I did say we are no longer together. To this he laughed and called her.  .. chuckling again when he spoke to her.  he got the verification he needed, and a bit more.

He stamped my passport with a smile, and that was it. He advised me to get a proper visa for next time. 

However, you get a stay of 14 days. If you have had several of these ins and outs, expect more questions.

 

I don't go there anymore. The van journey is one of the worst. On every one of the 5 times I have done that trip, we passed the debris of a recent accident. On three of those occasions, dead bodies were still in the vehicles. The absolute last time, just 15 minutes out of the bus station at Nakhon Sawan, we were slowed down by something up ahead. It was the van that had left just 20 to 30 minutes before ours. It had attempted to pass a large vehicle on the inside, .. did not see the truck laden with sugar cane that was parked there, and slammed into it at what must have been 100 to 120 kmph, because the driver's compartment of the van had been pushed two rows back into the seats behind: 3 rows of people squashed into one. Vehicle and body fluids were draining out of the crush. Our driver didn't even stop. 

 

However, I used to take some extra cash in my pocket, plus a few bottles of water and munchies for the kids who are forced to beg, sitting out in the blazing sun on the "Friendship Bridge." which must have Hell to them. A very sad encounter. 

 

At this point in time, you cannot do border hops for visa exempt entries at Mae Sot.

 

(Enjoyed your story)

[Jdietz]

Also at this point of time the road has been widened, there are better buses but even better Nok Air flies 4 times daily from Bangkok. So if you have a multi-entry visa it's a good place to do a border run. Also as stated THB500 and more importantly, just 2 small Myanmar entry/exit stamps, no full page visas pasted in. But yeah no new visa exempts.

 

(Also the airport is very close to the border, no trips to plan. You could take one flight there, next back same day if you insist)

Edited September 29, 2016 by Jdietz

[NoshowJones]

Yes, I go on my motorbike to Maesot for all my 90 day visa stamps, it is always easy,  treated very well by immigration on both sides of the border, good hotels in Maesot too.

[edwarda909]

Regarding visa exempt visa run at Mae Sot:  I am reading different accounts, and would really appreciate an authoritative report, preferably form someone who has had recent experience.  I had my original 30 day visa renewed for another 30, and now I need to do a visa run. I was hoping to do a one day run to Mae Sot/Myanmar and back to Chiang Mai. I have not done any of these runs in the last 2 years. I do not have a METV. I have read I can get a 30 day visa exempt and I have read I can not at Mae Sot.   What is the real story.

[Jdietz]

No Visa Exempt stamps in Mae sot. Need a valid way of re-entry before exiting.