General Reports

[Etaoin2003]

Very interesting about Thai restaurants overseas.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W09QCLmnCUU

My experience has been that some "Thai" restaurants in the USA are actually Vietnamese.

[Mr Enternational]

Very interesting about Thai restaurants overseas.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=W09QCLmnCUU

[Banana Boi]

Has anyone had experience with the 24/7 test & go claims by the sha+ hotels? Was planning on arriving around midnight, but don't want to be forced to pay another day if they actually won't test you until morning. On that note, is there any requirement on leaving the airport through private transit, or can you just grab a taxi?

Transportation only through Test and Go hotel. It's included in your package so not sure why you would want to pay for your own taxi. You will get to stay at your SHA Plus hotel until you get your test results back no matter what time you arrive. You will not have to pay for a 2nd night. Always good to confirm that first with any hotel you are considering.

[KimJongil]

Has anyone had experience with the 24/7 test & go claims by the sha+ hotels? Was planning on arriving around midnight, but don't want to be forced to pay another day if they actually won't test you until morning. On that note, is there any requirement on leaving the airport through private transit, or can you just grab a taxi?

[Mogwai]

Most "visa on arrival" are actually "visa exemption" schemes. You don't get a visa, just an entry stamp and a date before which you must leave.

The covid-situation put some extra admin on top of the existing visa regulations.

Actually, you now have three controls:

* the airline checks your documents (ticket, visa (if needed) and covid-papers) before checking in.

* immigration checks if you are allowed in.

* health authorities check the covid-documents and administer the tests.

At each of these checks you can be denied.

This was actually a little bit different when I went to Thailand recently.
After arrival, about halfway between the gate and immigration, all documents were checked. But not by health authorities I think, but just immigration people or some other kind of officers.
Then at immigration I had to hand over all documents again to get the visa exemption stamp.
The PCR-test was not taken at the airport but at my hotel, by a nurse from a hospital. And all she needed was my passport.

[Turgid]

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/why-...091008385.html

[Wolvenvacht]

You can get a visa on arrival if you are going to be visiting for 60 days or less.

Most "visa on arrival" are actually "visa exemption" schemes. You don't get a visa, just an entry stamp and a date before which you must leave.

The covid-situation put some extra admin on top of the existing visa regulations.

Actually, you now have three controls:

* the airline checks your documents (ticket, visa (if needed) and covid-papers) before checking in.

* immigration checks if you are allowed in.

* health authorities check the covid-documents and administer the tests.

At each of these checks you can be denied.

[Wolvenvacht]

I don't know how many restaurants are still open at the land side of the airport. I should have checked that, but I didn't. Most likely the situation is not much better there.

Not a huge amount, but still enough if you only need a quick snack before or after or in between flights.

I went all the way down to the raillink level (to change money at the Superrich counter. Much better rates than at the bank counters!) and saw at least 3 or 4 food stalls at that level.

[Explorer8939]

They not allows visa on arrrival?

It depends on your country.

[Downandup]

They not allows visa on arrrival?

You can get a visa on arrival if you are going to be visiting for 60 days or less.

[Member #4740]

1 Showed it to embassy, got my visa.

They not allows visa on arrrival?

[Breadman]

Might be useful when your trying to grab one on the way out of Thailand.

https://service.dmsc.moph.go.th/labscovid19/indexen.php

[SinfullyKorean]

Thanks again for the wonderful bit of info / advice! I'll definitely do this in a month or so. Beer's on me!

1. Do it yourself. You really don't need an agent unless you are dealing with something very complicated like a business visa or some type of semi dodgy visa which requires "special fees" to be divided up between said agent and senior immigration officer.
One point in regards to Thais, they love their paperwork. As long as everything ticks the boxes with the required document they will be happy with your app.

2. Yes I did this when last entered on a Multi entry Tourist Visa pre covid. I booked at a big name hotel for 12 weeks on the fully refundable stay rate. Some hotels won't even hit your credit card until a week before your entry but will still send you out a fully confirmed reservation.

3. I would always get a fully refundable ticket back out of the country. I simple $100 ticket out to a nearby country that is currently open will be good enough. I have done this many times and many visas, never needed a round ticket.

4. There is no rule which says you cannot just leave the country for 1 night and come back the next day to a visa on arrival. Then repeat this forever as many people did for decades. There were even visa run companies with Vans set up to do this to the closest land borders in Burma or Cambodia.

About 4 years ago they started to stop some people doing this at some entry points including Bangkok airports. Technically they were not meant to do this but ultimately it is up to the discretion of the immigration officer to admit you or not for whatever reason. They started to deny some people that had been doing this for say 18 months in a row. They never really did it to anybody that did it for less than a year.

Interestingly Chang Mai Airport and the land border back in from Vientiane Laos / Udon Thani never sent anybody back. So guys staying here for a long time simply did visa runs through this route and it worked until Covid started.



At the moment I cannot imagine Thailand denying anyone that wants to come back on a tourist visa or visa on arrival even if they have stayed for basically 9 or 12 months straight. There is no immigration law against doing this and they desperately need tourists. Phuket, Samui, Chang Mai, Tourist area of Bangkok are all at 5% capacity, so they are not going to deny any fully vaxed up tourist with cash in the next year or 3.

They are currently talking about new visas for longer term tourists but the Thai government loves to overly complicate stuff so don't know how workable they will be.

There is also the annual "Volunteer Visa" that any agent can help you get. The only volunteering you need to do is to "voluntarily donate 50,000 to the agent" which then gets split with some higher up immigration officer usually in the middle of Issan. These work quite well, I know people that have entered and left the country within the year without any issue at border crossings or airport. Everyone knows what it is but they are not going to interfere with some ones "special fees". A junior immigration office that tried to interfere would probably be put in a bad career position by interfering with a higher ups source of tea money.

[Turgid]

https://www.yahoo.com/news/frenchman...125343578.html

No wonder you guys never criticize the Thai government.

[Member #4753]

1. The Special Tourist Visa application looks relatively simple. Do you think it's worth hiring a company to handle the application process?

2. I heard people are making a 3 month reservation for a place to stay, then cancelling the reservation once necessary paper (proof of payment) has been submitted. Airbnb only seems to allow cancelations within 48 hrs. What alternative bookings allow free cancelations past that (to cancel after STV has been approved)?

3. I need to provide proof of a departure flight, right? I've read that a round-trip itinerary is not necessary, only a departure flight. Is this true? Should I book an outbound flight with points so I can cancel after arrival? I don't think I can even book a 3 month round trip flight (from Google flights at least).

4. After 9 months (2 extensions), if I want to visit with visa exemption (from USA, the normal tourist visa), will having had an extended STV impede on my ability to do so?
TIA.

1. Do it yourself. You really don't need an agent unless you are dealing with something very complicated like a business visa or some type of semi dodgy visa which requires "special fees" to be divided up between said agent and senior immigration officer.
One point in regards to Thais, they love their paperwork. As long as everything ticks the boxes with the required document they will be happy with your app.

2. Yes I did this when last entered on a Multi entry Tourist Visa pre covid. I booked at a big name hotel for 12 weeks on the fully refundable stay rate. Some hotels won't even hit your credit card until a week before your entry but will still send you out a fully confirmed reservation.

3. I would always get a fully refundable ticket back out of the country. I simple $100 ticket out to a nearby country that is currently open will be good enough. I have done this many times and many visas, never needed a round ticket.

4. There is no rule which says you cannot just leave the country for 1 night and come back the next day to a visa on arrival. Then repeat this forever as many people did for decades. There were even visa run companies with Vans set up to do this to the closest land borders in Burma or Cambodia.

About 4 years ago they started to stop some people doing this at some entry points including Bangkok airports. Technically they were not meant to do this but ultimately it is up to the discretion of the immigration officer to admit you or not for whatever reason. They started to deny some people that had been doing this for say 18 months in a row. They never really did it to anybody that did it for less than a year.

Interestingly Chang Mai Airport and the land border back in from Vientiane Laos / Udon Thani never sent anybody back. So guys staying here for a long time simply did visa runs through this route and it worked until Covid started.



At the moment I cannot imagine Thailand denying anyone that wants to come back on a tourist visa or visa on arrival even if they have stayed for basically 9 or 12 months straight. There is no immigration law against doing this and they desperately need tourists. Phuket, Samui, Chang Mai, Tourist area of Bangkok are all at 5% capacity, so they are not going to deny any fully vaxed up tourist with cash in the next year or 3.

They are currently talking about new visas for longer term tourists but the Thai government loves to overly complicate stuff so don't know how workable they will be.

There is also the annual "Volunteer Visa" that any agent can help you get. The only volunteering you need to do is to "voluntarily donate 50,000 to the agent" which then gets split with some higher up immigration officer usually in the middle of Issan. These work quite well, I know people that have entered and left the country within the year without any issue at border crossings or airport. Everyone knows what it is but they are not going to interfere with some ones "special fees". A junior immigration office that tried to interfere would probably be put in a bad career position by interfering with a higher ups source of tea money.