Thailand Visas: Immigration Rules In Flux

Although not as complicated as Immigration rules for countries such as the US and UK, Thailand's visa regulations can be highly confusing for those new to the system.

In recent months there have been many changes in Thailand's Immigration and Visa regulations. The most talked about topic regarding this issue is the now defunct system of granting an infinite number of so-called visa exemption stamps at Thai ports of entry. At one point, it was possible for a foreign national to obtain three Thai thirty day visa exemptions before being forced to depart the Kingdom, obtain a visa, and reenter in lawful status. At this time, this scheme is no longer the way Thai Immigration deals with those entering on visa exemptions.

At this moment, Royal Thai Immigration officers are allowing multiple visa exemption stamps. However, these stamps are only valid for 15 days. Instead, they currently allow entrants to gain admission to the Kingdom, but only for 15 days at land borders and 30 days at airports.

The result of this state of affairs was an increasing number of prospective visitors applied for tourist visas outside of Thailand. Consulates and Embassies in the ASEAN countries have seen a dramatic rise in Tourist visa applications as well as approvals. The most interesting aspect of this situation was the fact that this upsurge in Tourist visa applications also coincided with a program instituted by the Thai government to give away free tourist visas. As a result, Consular posts outside of Thailand were taking processing a larger number of cases and being paid less money. Even though a Consulate is not run in order to make money, the increased workload and decreased resources took its toll as Consular Officers began giving increased scrutiny to new Thai Tourist visa applications. This problem became particularly acute at notorious "visa run" posts. The Royal Thai Consulate in Penang effectively banned the issuance of multiple tourist visas as that post felt that the system was being abused.

This leaves the prospective traveler asking themselves: What do I do to get a long term Thai visa? The best advice: plan ahead. It is often easiest to obtain a long term Thai visa from a post in the applicant's home country. Although there are exceptions to this rule, usually an applicant will have the best luck obtaining a visa in their country of origin. That being said, there are certain types of travel documents that are easier to acquire than others. The 3 year multiple entry business visa is an example of the type of visa that is not generally granted. A Thai business visa with a validity of 1 year is more easily acquired by prospective travelers, but even this type of visa requires sponsorship by a company in Thailand and some companies are reluctant to act as sponsors.

Those interested in relocating to the Kingdom of Thailand should explore all avenues and research the issues very carefully.


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This information is provided courtesy of Integrity Legal (Thailand) Co. Ltd. Contact Integrity Legal at 1-877-231-7533 or email info@integrity-legal.com. See more articles and information on the web at Thai visa or Thai Business Visa.