Have to leave the country before employer can process documents for Non-B visa?

[commanderawm]

Hello all,

 

     I was hoping that I could get some clarification regarding the process for my upcoming application for a Non-Immigrant B Visa with my new employer: I am currently volunteering for a small nonprofit organization on a Non-Immigrant O visa (obtained at the Royal Thai Embassy, Yangon) and will be starting work full-time in January for a Bangkok-based organization. Since I'll be making my yearly visit to the US, I asked my new employer if they could prepare all the documents before I leave Thailand so that I could take them with me and apply for the visa at the Royal Thai Consulate General, Los Angeles. However, they told me that they could not prepare the documents for my visa application until I had left Thailand and that they would mail them to me while I am in the US. I am a little concerned with this method, as i would be leaving Thailand at the end of December without a reentry permit for my current visa, thus cancelling it on departure, without having the documents to apply for a new one already in hand. My previous two employers provided me with all the necessary documents to apply for a visa while I was still in the country and at my last job I was the one who handled visa arrangements for our foreign national staff and we never required them to leave the country before sending them the documents.

     My primary concern is that if anything happens in regards to my job offer or visa documents while I'm in the US waiting, that I will have already cancelled my current visa without anyway to return to Thailand other than on a tourist visa. It is my understanding that the method that my current employer is suggesting for me to get a visa is only one way to go about it and is more commonly used if the foreign national is already outside of the country. Any clarification on this issue would be greatly appreciated.

 

Thank you in advance for you comments and suggestions!

[commanderawm]

Update: I spoke with my future employer again regarding this matter and they told me that the company who processes visas and work permits for them said that this was a new regulation that started in September or October of this year. Not sure if that is true . . . 

[muzmurray]

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