Polish guy in love

[JustTheGuyInLove]

Dear Community,

Sorry for opening new topic but I really need someone's opinions on my options. Let me introduce my situation at the moment.
I'm a Polish citizen who met the girl that makes him a happy  during his studies in UK. She happened to be Thai.

We were together for 4 years and even after 7 months of separation still staying strong.

Recently, I've quit my job and opened a freelance Self Assessment company in England (small possibility to prove my income of just opened company). 

I've bought the ticket to Thailand for 16th of July and currently working on some projects while saying goodbyes to my family in Poland.

Me and my girlfriend are willing to do anything to be able to be together and we're planning to stay in Thailand for a year before we'll start to plan our next place to live.
Sadly as an animator any legal stuff confuses me and makes me scared. I'm trying to sort out as much as I can but I find myself forgetting about the details.

Currently I'm planning to get a 60-days tourist visa to Thailand and get married there so we can apply for the marriage visa, even though we would like to wait a little bit longer because of our young age.
Do you think I have other options? If not then how should I prepare myself? Of course I've checked the info and other topics.
I wanted to ask you if you could help pointing me the direction to research or a good immigration lawyer.

Many thanks

[richard_smith237]

First things first... forget the immigration lawyer. Also, you will have to be thick skinned in filtering out the positive comments from the negative in the responses this thread may offer (I imagine the most common response will be from older guys suggesting 'forget it, come back once you are retired'... for the most part these guys are unimaginative, but ultimately correct). 

 

In getting married in Thailand to a Thai your long term visa options open up a little - others forum members will be able to offer more advice. From my understanding you should be able to obtain a Type-O visa based on Marriage. If I'm not mistaken you will need to show certain level of income to support this visa (i.e. 40,000 baht income per month, or 800,000 baht in your local (Thai) account for 3 months).

 

Long term and perhaps more significant than your visa issues are income issues. 

 

If you are working in Thailand you will need to have a Work Permit - if you can obtain one (working for a company) life becomes much easier. Without a work permit and earning a living here in Thailand you will need to be careful as Thai immigration considers pretty much anything resulting in income coming to you from work carried out here (i.e. working online) as work although I suspect many people do this. 

 

As you are Polish, teaching English may not be a viable route as it is for many in your situation. That said, obtaining a TEFL qualification (Teaching English as a Foreign language) may open up options for you. 

 

There are also other Visa options: Thai Elite: 5 years, 500,000 baht - Its expensive, but it pretty much guarantees a long term stay. It does not permit you to work.

 

If you do intend to work, only a Work Permit allows you to do so. Thus, in starting out this response, its not an immigration lawyer you require, its a Job offer to work in Thailand. Secure a job here in Thailand, everything else will fall into place. 

 

As a final comment: To 'just stay here' you could secure a Tourist Visa, 60 days and follow up with an extension plus a couple of border runs. Guys on this forum do this, but that does open up a life if insecurity for your 'next visa run' could always be denied and you end up living from 'decision to decision' in a fairly volatile immigration climate. 

 

There are plenty of threads on this forum discussing long time stays, border / visa runs etc...  plenty of experience, plenty of examples of guys from whom it works and those who get tripped up - The search function will help you find these threads. 

 

 

[JustTheGuyInLove]

Thank you Richard for fast response! I can't explain how much I appreciate your help

I've done some research and considering either:

 

1 Apply for a single entry Tourist Visa in Poland > extend the stay to 90-days in Bangkok> get married> apply for a marriage visa

I will be able to gather 400 000 THB on the account I would make after registering in the condo my fiancee is renting, then provide all the additional evidence.

 

2 Apply for a single entry Tourist Visa in Poland > extend the stay to 90-days in Bangkok > go to Laos or Cambodia > apply for another single entry Visa there > repeat that for a year

As I've said I only want to stay in Thailand for a year, so even 'just stay here' would work for me. I'm also planning to continue my education and extend my skillset through online courses while living with her so I won't be working during that period.

Is the one year tourist Thai visa with multiple entry still an option? Because the people in Siam Legal (lawyer company) told me otherwise over chat message.

[overherebc]

Contact the nearest Thai Embassy/Consulate nearest to you ref' the Multi entry visa.

Most of the service agents/lawyers will give you information that would mean spending money you really don't need to.

All you should mention is that you want to have a one year holiday. Don't try to explain anything about study/maybe find a job sometime etc. It will only lead to you getting confusing info' from them and different ones will give you different info'.

[ba ba]

Do number 2 and stay away from lawyers in this country

[Upnotover]

1 hour ago, JustTheGuyInLove said:

Is the one year tourist Thai visa with multiple entry still an option?

No.  The multi entry tourist visa is valid for entry 6 months from issue.  It can allow up to nearly 9 months in the country if extended and last entry is close to expiry date.

[PoorSucker]

When you get married, go to Savanakhet, Laos and get a multiple entry non-immigrant O visa, they will issue one without financial proof.
This gives you unlimited 90 days entries to Thailand during one year.
If you enter last day of the validity of the visa and extend it by 60 days (based on marriage) you will get 17 months out of your visa.

If you can deposit 400.000 in a bank you can apply for one year extension at immigration and don't have to make border runs every 90-days.

[JackThompson]

If *not* getting married, the best would be starting with a Multi-Entry Tourist Visa.  Each Thai consulate makes up its own rules on these, so check with the consulate nearest you and see what they require to get it. 

 

On the Marriage route, be aware you will need an "affirmation of ability to marry" document from your Embassy/Consulate first.  Then, after getting married, you need to "Convert" your Tourist-Visa to a "Non-O based on marriage" a process which varies somewhat depending on which immigration office you will be using (some may not do it at all).  Your money will need to be in a Thai bank on the day you apply for this. 

 

The alternative to "Conversion" is to go to Laos and get a single-entry Non-O Visa (no financial proof needed), which can then be extended for a year at an immigration office in Thailand.  Others mentioned the Non-O Multiple-Entry from Savanahket, but since you have the cash to put in the bank, the 1-year extension would avoid the need for border-runs.  If getting your Non-O visa abroad, be sure to put your cash in the Thai-bank 2+ months before applying for the 1-year extension.

 

Last Rule - Most Important: Money in the bank in your name for the extension is ok, but do not "invest" any money in Thailand (houses, businesses, etc) which you cannot afford to lose.

[hgo]

Is the multiple entry non-immigrant O visa from Savanakhet same as the ones you get from other immigrations with the exception of Savanakhet not asking for financial proof?

With the single-entry Non-O Visa, is a 1-year extension done without financial proof only in Laos?

Regarding the 400.000 bank deposit, is this required only the first time you apply for the visa or for 1-year extensions too?

[Upnotover]

4 minutes ago, hgo said:

Is the multiple entry non-immigrant O visa from Savanakhet same as the ones you get from other immigrations with the exception of Savanakhet not asking for financial proof?

With the single-entry Non-O Visa, is a 1-year extension done without financial proof only in Laos?

Regarding the 400.000 bank deposit, is this required only the first time you apply for the visa or for 1-year extensions too?

1.  Remember a visa from a consulate is not the same as an extension from immigration in the country.

2.  1 year extensions are not done outside the country, they are done at immigration offices, and do require financial proof.

3.  It is not required for a visa in Savannakhet, it is required elsewhere, i.e. Penang, and is always required for a 1 year extension in the country.

[ubonjoe]

10 minutes ago, hgo said:

Is the multiple entry non-immigrant O visa from Savanakhet same as the ones you get from other immigrations with the exception of Savanakhet not asking for financial proof?
With the single-entry Non-O Visa, is a 1-year extension done without financial proof only in Laos?
Regarding the 400.000 bank deposit, is this required only the first time you apply for the visa or for 1-year extensions too?

Visas are issued at embassies and consulates outside the country not at immigration offices.

It does not matter where they are issued all multiple entry non-o visas are the same. Only a few embassies and consulates want to see financial proof to get the visa.

You can get a single entry non-o visa without financial proof and then apply for a one year extension of stay at an immigration office within Thailand. To apply for the one year extension of stay based upon marriage you need 400 baht in a Thai bank for 2 months or proof of 40k baht income. If you get a multiple entry visa you can apply for an extension during the last 30 days of any of the 90 entries from the visa.

[PoorSucker]

Regarding the 400.000 bank deposit, is this required only the first time you apply for the visa or for 1-year extensions too?

You must show it ever year to get your extension.

[anon789561]

if you are thinking of studying why not enrol on a course for a year in bkk if you have enough money and get an education visa to do so. study for a year, check the place out and go from there. depending on what you do, there's also good work options in bkk. not everyone is an English teacher or retired as some seem to think.  good luck whatever you decide

[JustTheGuyInLove]

hey guys! Thank you a lot for all the help! I feel way more confident in my actions now.

After reading all of your responses and contacting the embassy I've decided to go for a multiple entry tourist visa.
Almost gathered all the necessary documents for my stay and I'm planning to apply for it 2 weeks before my leave so I'll have some safety but still menage to squeeze out 8 and a half months out of it with the border run on the last week + extension. 

Additionally, I will  try to apply for work during this time or get married towards the end of the multiple entry tourist visa if we decide to with my fiancee and her family.
To be honest 9 months should be enough for us to plan our future in a different country. 

As it goes for the education, I'm afraid the enrolment dates are way off the time I'm planning to be there. 

I will update this topic when I'll progress with the application.

Huge thanks for all the responses again!