Obtaining a Thailand Visa
In recent months there have been many changes in Thailand’s Immigration and Visa regulations. Most notable among these changes has been the virtual destruction of the infinite visa exemptions once granted by Royal Thai Immigration authorities at border checkpoints. 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. Currently, this system is not the way Royal Thai Immigration handles those entering the Kingdom on visa exemptions.
Currently, the Thai Immigration authorities have begun allowing multiple visa exemptions at land borders, but now they are no longer allowing 30 day exemption stamps. 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 effect of this state of affairs was an increase in the amount of Thai tourist visa applications being submitted in the vicinity of the Kingdom of Thailand. Consulates and Embassies in Southeast Asia have seen a tremendous rise in applications for the Thailand tourist visa. 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. Therefore, the Consulates located outside of Thailand were doing more work while bringing in less money. Even though Consular posts are not run for profit, the decrease in funding and increase in workload may have led to an increase in visa denials. This issue became somewhat critical at so-called “visa run” posts. The Thai Consulate in Penang began restricting the issuance of multiple tourist visas under the assumption that many multiple filers were abusing the system.
This state of affairs likely leaves prospective travelers wondering: What must I do go through in order to get a Thailand 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 some visa categories that can be easily acquired and others that cannot. The three year Thai business visa is a prime example of the kind of visa that is not usually issued. The normal 1 year Thai business visa is more easily obtained, but even this application often requires the sponsorship of a company in Thailand and corporate sponsorship can be difficult to obtain.
Those who harbor an interest in visiting the Kingdom of Thailand ought to research Thai Immigration matters very carefully. For more information please Thailand marriage visa.
