Wanderlust wrote:Guess,
I think you are getting confused between a visa and an extension;
Yes I am getting confused but it seems like a lot less confused than most. I thought I knew exactly the difference between a visa, a visa waiver, a visa extension and a visa renewal.
the various amounts required in a Thai bank either as a lump sum or a regular income are only required to extend a visa when you are inside Thailand so that you can stay in the country for 'up to 12 months', and reporting every 90 days to your designated immigration office.
I have never heard of a visa extension inside Thailand for twelve months. What I have heard of is a renewal in Thailand of an existing current visa. I have never done it myself as when my non-immigrant O based on marriage (as Lomu pointed out one year ago and many others have echoed since, there is no such thing as a marriage visa but only a immigrant O based on marriage) expired last March I was in a Private Hospital and unable to put the renewal scenario to the test. I have heard many different stories about the requirements to do this from different sources and I still don't know what is required for a renewal.
As far as I am aware there are normally only four scenarios (or variations of them) where you can do this, which are marriage to a Thai, having or being a dependent in Thailand, studying, and retirement (essentially being over 50). To obtain the relevant non-immigrant visa (all variants on the 'O' type) you are supposed to show proof of your circumstances to a Thai consulate or Embassy.
This ties up with my understanding regarding type O anyway without us muddying the waters by venturing into type I and I think type A but maybe that is finished , and type B. The point I am making is that the amount of money required to obtain the first Visa, changes dependent upon where the embassy/consulate is located, the nationality you are (even with the 40 odd accepted counties) and who you ask. There is a fifth scenario BTW that I have had and that is one that many people get which a non immigrant O for the purpose of visiting family and friends. This currently is only available at the embassy/consulate within the country that issued your passport, varies from country to country and even consulate to consulate. I have had one before and all it required was a letter from a UK citizen residing in the UK stating that they would bail me out of Thailand if I ran out of money and could not get back with my own resources. I too have heard that could now have been made single entry which case opens a completely new dialogue on that visa alone.
From what I can gather, the gradual change has been that certainly in the countries neighboring Thailand, only single entry versions of these visas are being issued, and eventually it seems that the idea is that you can only obtain multiple entry non-immigrant visas in your home country.
This ties in with the above and I have yet to see an official statement regarding any change to these visas in the passport holder’s home country. What I have seen published for sure in both neighboring countries, other countries and the passport holders own country is that tourist visas are now restricted to two month and single entry where up to now six month with up to four (in some countries) entries has been easily available from many, but not all countries, around the area.
However if you have the necessary funds in a Thai bank (for marriage this is currently either 400,000 baht or an average monthly income of 40,000 baht, retirement is 800,000 or 65,000) then you can apply for the extension once you arrive in Thailand, and if you need to go out of the country you need to apply for a re-entry permit so you don't 'lose' any extension that has been granted. Once you have been granted an extension, from what I can gather it is constantly renewable as long as you still meet the requirements. As far as I am aware in the last 7 years (the extent of my knowledge!) there has never been a requirement to show funds to actually get the visa, only to get an extension to it. This may of course be different for different countries, but it is certainly the case for most European countries.
Now this is the area where much uncertainty already existed. No official publications were readily available at consulate web sites that went down to that level of detail. From my experience and from others both before and since I got mine, and all within the seven years you specify there WAS a need to supply bank details to obtain a visa base upon marriage or at least that is what I was told. The story was: I went into Hua Hin Immigration office who said that they could not issue a new visa there so I should go to Dan Sing Khon. At Dan sing Khon they told me that I must leave the country and obtain a visa elsewhere as I had not got a current valid visa and they were only able to issue renewals. (I was already expecting that and suspect that I had been misinformed at Hua Hin and was actually already on my way down to Malaysia and only stopped at Dan Sing Khon just in case I might get lucky or be able to grease a few palms and save myself a lot of expense and an unwanted trip.) Just to prove another example of the left hand not knowing what the right hand is doing I was told to call in on my return to Hua Hin with my visa and they would "endorse" it. I traveled on down to Penang. applied for the visa through and agent and got a multiple entry 12 month visa which was what I expected. What I later noticed that there was no mention of marriage or Thai wife anywhere on the visa or passport unlike others I have seen. I stopped off at Dan Sing Khon on return and was asked why I came back I already had got a visa. I said because your colleague told me to. I was also told that I must leave the country every ninety days again unlike other visas that I had seen that had been issued well within the last seven years. Anyway that visa ran out early this year and I was not able to renew it as I was in hospital and therefore not able to put it to the test. I had had a couple of extensions during the middle portion of the visa which were both done at Hua Hin. I did however just in the nick of time manage to get to Ranong in time to get a 90 day stamp on the day the visa expired.
So if I am getting confused between visa and an extension it means that everything I have read and heard and my own personal experience must all be incorrect to this day and what I need is someone to explain what all the terms really mean. I will summarize my understanding of terminology so that you can correct me for the benefit of all:
Visa: An official endorsement in a passport authorizing the bearer to enter or leave, and travel in or through, a particular country or region. Nicked from the dictionary but common with my understanding and the topic of this thread.
Visa extension. My understanding is that in Thailand that is a misnomer in certain circumstances. It generally applies to a stamp that a local (or border) immigration official can give you to extend you stay when the 60/90 days has been reached on the red ink rubber entry stamp. The extension length and conditions depend on visa type and of course visa validity.
Visa renewal. After you have already had and used a 12 month visa and it is still current (i.e. before the expiry date on the visa, not the rubber stamp) you can in most circumstances renew it at any immigration office and I believe in some cases can change the type. Of course the fee has to be repaid for the further twelve months. It is on this topic that the most confusion seems to apply. I have never done it myself and have not seen any official statement. My information on this is word of mouth only and varies with each person you talk to including different immigration officers.
Visa Waiver: This is what you get when you enter the country on holiday for a short stay or for a business trip short stay. It does not matter where you came from, only the passport issuing nation is considered. If you are from one of the 40 odd acceptable nations you will (after completion of a small form on the aircraft usually) get a rubber stamp that allows you to remain in Thailand for 30 days. This is the one that has stirred up the most controversy in recent weeks although it has been on the cards for over two years that changes were to be made. This is another ruling that has been interpreted differently by different immigration offices. I think that Ranong however have got it right judging by what I have been told about notices in English displayed at their office. This change has been sufficiently documented by the Thai authorities and I would suggest that anyone planning to do a crossing via posts like Mae Sai and Mae Sot that they take a copy of the statement with them in both Thai and English.
So perhaps you can tell me where I have got it wrong as it will make it a lot easier for me and others that I speak to and read this forum understand.
