Hello everyone,

 

Thanks for being the best source of VISA info on the web! I have a question which I'm  sure will seem stupid but just need some piece of mind.

 

I'm British and 25. This is my first time in Thailand.
 

I have just arrived in Thailand on a VISA exempt stamp as I couldn't sort out a proper VISA in time. I arrived on the 25th OCT and the stamp says I'm clear until the 23rd NOV. I'm staying in Phuket.
I want to stay 90 days, and I've read the standard way to do this is to get a 30 day extension at an immigration office for 1,900 bht, then do a border run to get another 30 day exemption.

I want to avoid getting in a minibus for 16 hours in one day, and I dont mind paying a bit extra. So can I just fly out of the country, from Phuket to Kuala Lumpur for example which has cheap flights, and fly back in on a later flight that day? Do I have to stay overnight? 

Also, do I have to get the extension first? Or could I fly out and in, in November, then get my extension at an immigration office in December? Do I need to show an outbound flight within 30 days? If so I'll need to do the flights in December as my return flight to London is in January. I'm asking because the flights are much cheaper in November, and I want to get this out of the way as early as possible.

I'm sure these are stupid questions but I would like some reassurance, as I will probably have to leave some valuables in Phuket when I fly out and in so being denied re-entry would be a disaster.

Thanks for your help in advance. 

Olly.

 

4 minutes ago, OllyCrockett said:

So can I just fly out of the country, from Phuket to Kuala Lumpur for example which has cheap flights, and fly back in on a later flight that day? Do I have to stay overnight? 

Yes you can. No need to stay overnight.

 

5 minutes ago, OllyCrockett said:

Also, do I have to get the extension first? Or could I fly out and in, in November, then get my extension at an immigration office in December?

You don't need to do the extension first. You could do the Visa Exempt entry and then extend that by 30 days.

 

6 minutes ago, OllyCrockett said:

Do I need to show an outbound flight within 30 days?

• Immigration don't need to see onward flight bookings for extensions of stay.
• Some airlines do want to see an onward flight if you don't have a visa.

All your suggested options are fine, in principle. However, bear in mind that immigration frowns on visitors using visa exempt entries to spend extended periods in Thailand. Also, Phuket airport is known to be more picky than Bangkok in this respect. I cannot see a second visa exempt entry (assuming you have no previous ones) being an issue, but suggest you plan getting tourist visas (for instance, in Penang) if you plan to stay any longer.

Thanks elviajero, big help! I'll be flying out and back in next week as it's much cheaper than December, so I trust your advice that won't be a problem. Will buy a pretend outbound flight within 30 days just in case AirAsia are difficult.

Thanks BritTim, as I said it's my first time in Thailand and will only be staying until January, so only have the one VISA exemption from when I arrived and won't be doing this again. So as long as they don't mind two in a row, I should be fine!

Final question. The Immigration Office (Phuket) won't mind that I have 2 consecutive VISA exemptions (In OCT and NOV) when I apply for the 30 day extension in DEC, will they? I will be able to show proof of my outbound flight to London within 30 days, just in case he immigration officer wants to see something. As elviajero said the order of exemption-or-extension doesn't matter, I assume this will be fine?

Thanks again guys.
 

Final final question :)

I have seen you need to provide a reason for extension of stay on the TM7 form. What's the best advice for this? The truth is I want to continue training Muay Thai here in Phuket, will that be good enough or should I make something up?

And there is absolutely no chance of me getting a 60 day extension for a 30 day exemption is there? Just thought I'd double check as that would be amazing haha.
 

You do not need to sweat the extensions. Although the law says they are subject to the discretion of immigration, extensions of tourist entries are automatic in practice.

Ok, thanks for the peace of mind!

I attach the following from the London Thai Embassy website re Visa Exemption. I understand from knowledgable members on this Forum that there is actually no set limit of Visa Exempt entries but if you want just 90 days this should well and truly cover you. A second flight in and out may be almost as cheap as an extension and a chance to see somewhere different.

 

Foreigners who enter Thailand under the Tourist Visa Exemption category and would like to leave and re-enter may only stay for a cumulative duration which does not exceed 90 days and is within a 6-month period from the date of first entry. (Passport or travel document must be valid for at least 6 months after the date of first entry).

Edited November 14, 20169 yr by rogeroc

4 minutes ago, rogeroc said:

I attach the following from the London Thai Embassy website re Visa Exemption. I understand from knowledgable members on this Forum that there is actually no set limit of Visa Exempt entries but if you want just 90 days this should well and truly cover you. A second flight in and out may be almost as cheap as an extension and a chance to see somewhere different.

 

Foreigners who enter Thailand under the Tourist Visa Exemption category and would like to leave and re-enter may only stay for a cumulative duration which does not exceed 90 days and is within a 6-month period from the date of first entry. (Passport or travel document must be valid for at least 6 months after the date of first entry).

The 90 days in 6 months rule was rescinded 8 years ago.

Thanks for the heads up ubonjoe. It's terrible that the London Embassy's website is 8 years out of date! I've read that these days 3 consecutive exemptions is pushing it, so I'll stick to 2 and an extension. Thanks anyway!

6 hours ago, OllyCrockett said:

Final final question :)

I have seen you need to provide a reason for extension of stay on the TM7 form. What's the best advice for this? The truth is I want to continue training Muay Thai here in Phuket, will that be good enough or should I make something up?

And there is absolutely no chance of me getting a 60 day extension for a 30 day exemption is there? Just thought I'd double check as that would be amazing haha.
 

• Just put 'Tourism' as the reason for the extension of stay. There is no problem with Muay Thai training as a tourist.
• You can only get a 30 day extension for tourism.

9 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

The 90 days in 6 months rule was rescinded 8 years ago.

 

As i said i am aware of that but i posted as it gives written confirmation from the current (albeit wrong) London embassy website that 3 consecutive Visa Exempts is OK. I would think an IO would be unlikely to reject entry if you showed him the rule you were following.

4 hours ago, OllyCrockett said:

Thanks for the heads up ubonjoe. It's terrible that the London Embassy's website is 8 years out of date! I've read that these days 3 consecutive exemptions is pushing it, so I'll stick to 2 and an extension. Thanks anyway!

 

The website refers to METV's as opposed to double and triple entry Visas so at least some sections have been updated.

Agree with what has been said on extensions of stay from immigration.  Though if you are flying out anyway, if it were me, I would make the flight to Penang, instead of KL, and get an SETV there.  This avoids the "throwaway" ticket and any issues with the very-strict IOs at the airport in Phuket on a back-to-back Visa-Exempt entry.

Edited November 14, 20169 yr by JackThompson