90 Day Border Run To Mae Sot

[apetley]

Hi, I am looking for some advice on making a border run to Mae Sot.

I am currently here on a non-o multi entry and my 1st 90 days are up on the 29th Dec.

I am planning to go to Mae Sot on the 28th or 29th Dec.

First question, is the border open then? No holidays or anything like that?

Do I hand in the TM6 Departure Card in my passport to Thai Immigration and fill in a new one on my re-entry?

I was told the fee on the Burmese side used to be 500Bht, is this still the case?

Will they need a photocopy of my passport?

Wifey fancies a visit to Myawaddy, what are the rules on a Thai National entering for a couple of hours, she does have a passport?

Are Thai Baht accepted in the market there?

Thanks for reading, Andy.

[bkkmadness]

I think there are no holidays but somewhere on this forum the Thai holiday dates are pinned so double check first.

Yep, departure card given on leaving, and you get a new one when you get back.

It's 500 baht on the Burmese side for the visa, just walk straight in the office they are about the most chilled immi officers in the world. Sometimes they fill out a form for you but if you are there with other people and it seems like too much work they won't bother. They either stamp you out right away or ask if you are popping into town for a bit and then I recall they give you a slip of paper and you collect the passport on the way out.

They will take care of the passport photocopy for you, it costs 5 baht. Don't worry if your passport is just handed out the window to seemingly a random Burmese guy, it's all taken care of for you.

Thai people need to go to another office on the Thai side and they can get there one day visa for Burma there though it sometimes takes a while. The office is just a little before the immigration checkpoint on your right hand side and is a wooden traditional looking building if I remember right, the Thai immi officers will point you in the right direction.

I think she only needs her ID card but perhaps you want to double check that. I can't imagine she needs a passport, its very easy for Thai's and Burmese to cross there since it's a major border trading town for them both.

I would imagine that you can use Thai baht there, I don't see why not really. In fact I would be fairly certain you can.

Try to get there not during the midday heat, it's gets hotter and hotter while your walking over that bridge!

[apetley]

Thanks for your detailed reply, I appreciate it.

Hopefully everything will be as straightforward as you make out, Andy.