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My Elite Visa Application (Day 1 until the End)


LASportsNut

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On 26/09/2020 at 17:54, CJ-PAF said:

Isn't that the truth. I worry about getting all of the boxes ticked and then not getting the COE as well. That would be an expensive disaster.

One thing I was thinking was going somewhere to fill the 30 day bookings before going home to Chiang Rai. The tirak has not been anywhere for a while. It would cost nothing to head to Kamala for a few weeks.

How is covid doing in the PI? I thought the borders were closed.

Lockdowns in Philippines are quite severe.. As far as Covid cases, I don't follow the numbers.

I'm trying not to express any  Opinions about Government response on social media! The way I look at it is, I'm a visitor . They set the rules, I obey them. If don't like the rules I should go elsewhere. It's not my country, it's not my place to complain. 

The border are closed.

I want to leave.

I prefer to stay in SE Asia. But, I want a long term solution. I hope I can make the STV work. Unfortunately, i'm afraid  that Thailand just isn't going to let anyone in from the Philippines right now. It's not very high on their list of "Ideal Visitors"...

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On 04/08/2020 at 14:35, LASportsNut said:

The Thai Embassy in the USA held my application from February to July 2020

At the end of July they returned my entire packett and informed me Thailand was not accepting Retirement Visas in 2020 (so far).

As per my post here:

The RTE Washington has now added the O-A visa to the groups that can apply for a CofE.

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"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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17 hours ago, davidge said:

The RTE Washington has now added the O-A visa to the groups that can apply for a CofE.

I thought I read that but all of this is so confusing, as they are all over the map with this.

I will review and see how it goes.

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5 hours ago, LASportsNut said:

I thought I read that but all of this is so confusing, as they are all over the map with this.

I will review and see how it goes.

I went to the website and used the Apply for CofE link and O-A is now in the drop down box of categories.

Edit: and it has now been added to the RTE London website as well.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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Yes I sent an email to the Thailand/Los Angeles Consular.

I inquired about APEC, as I have one, but they indicated Thailand is not accepting that from USA at the moment.

But they referred me to the Thailand embassy in Washington DC for the retirement visa.


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1 hour ago, LASportsNut said:


I inquired about APEC, as I have one, but they indicated Thailand is not accepting that from USA at the moment.
 


I assumed we wouldn't be on the list yet, but it would be great if my APEC card got me something besides skipping the line at immigration!  5555

Good luck continuing to work through this freakin quagmire!  

 

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I assumed we wouldn't be on the list yet, but it would be great if my APEC card got me something besides skipping the line at immigration!  5555
Good luck continuing to work through this freakin quagmire!  
 

Exactly! It is definitely nice to avoid that stupid line.

I don’t mind a line but the chaos of two lines and uneven agents at each line, especially with the Chinese, drove me to get the APEC card.


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On 01/10/2020 at 23:50, davidge said:

I went to the website and used the Apply for CofE link and O-A is now in the drop down box of categories.

Edit: and it has now been added to the RTE London website as well.

I don't understand it. I wend to the RTE wash dc site, and it looks like they are issuing retirement visas. But that can't be correct, right? 

 https://thaiembdc.org/2020/07/10/visa_coe_forthaipermanentresident/

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3 minutes ago, WhiteThai said:

I don't understand it. I wend to the RTE wash dc site, and it looks like they are issuing retirement visas. But that can't be correct, right? 

 https://thaiembdc.org/2020/07/10/visa_coe_forthaipermanentresident/

That link was just to the Permanent Resident page.

If you go to the application page:

https://thaiembdc.org/onlinevisaapplication/
 

and say you don’t have a visa, then you select the visa you want apply for and can choose Non O-A. Once they issue the visa you can then apply for the Certificate of Entry.

As of a week ago, Non O-A (and O-X) retirement visa holders are being allowed to enter Thailand. 

Non-O retirement visas (which aren’t available in the USA anyway but are in some countries eg U.K. ) still are not allowed to enter.

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"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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sorry if this question has been answered, but where does it say retirement visa holders are allowed to enter?  can i go to the LA consulate and get a COE?

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3 minutes ago, Rodewayinn said:

sorry if this question has been answered, but where does it say retirement visa holders are allowed to enter?  can i go to the LA consulate and get a COE?

It was announced last week and many embassies now have it on their websites. You need to get a visa first (O-A or O-X) then, once you have the visa, apply for a CofE.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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i have the retirment visa already.  valid until jan 2021.  i looked at the LA consulate and i dont see it anywhere saying i am allowed.  your thoughts.

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5 minutes ago, Rodewayinn said:

i have the retirment visa already.  valid until jan 2021.  i looked at the LA consulate and i dont see it anywhere saying i am allowed.  your thoughts.

Number 10 on this page:

https://thaiconsulatela.org/en/visa/related-procedures-in-requesting-for-a-certificate-of-entry-and-visa-to-enter-thailand/
 

So, you can apply for a CofE

 

Looks like you apply using the online portal on the Washington DC Embassy website

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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i just called LA consulate.  american issued (new and old) retirement visa's are allowed to apply for a COE.  Thailand issued, like mine, still no definative word. 

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1 minute ago, Rodewayinn said:

i just called LA consulate.  american issued (new and old) retirement visa's are allowed to apply for a COE.  Thailand issued, like mine, still no definative word. 

If you got it in Thailand then it’s not a Non O-A it’s a Non O.

They are not being allowed in at the moment.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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I am confused. I emailed the thai embassy London and asked if they were issuing O-A visas. They said they were. I contacted scott's visa services and they assured me they were not. I don't want to go to expense of preparing paperwork if Scott's visa service is correct. Does anyone know the situation for uk

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9 hours ago, Cannon60 said:

I am confused. I emailed the thai embassy London and asked if they were issuing O-A visas. They said they were. I contacted scott's visa services and they assured me they were not. I don't want to go to expense of preparing paperwork if Scott's visa service is correct. Does anyone know the situation for uk

Why are you using a visa service? Especially one that obviously doesn’t know what they’re talking about. YES THE EMBASSY IS ISSUING O-A VISAS AND THE CERTIFICATE OF ENTRY IF YOU HAVE THIS VISA.

The application is online with RTE London.

The requirements for a Non O-A are:

Non-Immigrant Type O- A (Long Stay) 1 Year/Multiple entries 

 

  • Printout of visa application form submitted online, with bar code

  • Passport or travel document with validity not less than 6 months and at least 2 blank pages

  • A medical certificate issued in the UK or Ireland or Thailand, showing no prohibitive diseases as indicated in the Ministerial Regulation No.14 (B.E. 2535) which include Leprosy, Tuberculosis, Elephantiasis, drug addiction, third stage of Syphilis, and the certificate shall be valid for not more than three months.
  • Certificate of criminal record clearance from the UK (ACRO, DBS, or issued by the police) or Ireland
  • Financial evidence showing monthly income of not less than 65,000 THB (approx. £1,625) or having the current balance of 800,000 THB (approx. £20,000), e.g. bank statements, proof of earnings, for at least 1 month
  • Copy of evidence stating that applicants have insurance as per stipulated by the Office of Insurance Commission and health insurance of Thailand which has insurance money for outpatient not less than 40,000 Baht and for inpatient not less than 400,000 Baht. Please check http://longstay.tgia.org> for more information regarding the insurance requirement.
  •  
  • If you wish to be accompanied by spouse, the marriage certificate will be attached. But your spouse will be granted Non-Immigrant “O” instead of “O-A”(Long Stay)
  • Applicant must be of age 50 years old or over.

 

Probably best to get the paperwork together first as you’ll need to upload everything and then post it off.

You create an account here to apply:

https://thaievisa.go.th/Home/SignUpIndividual

When you start to apply it’s a good idea to save each page as you go in case it crashes. If you have problems, try different browsers. It seems to work better with a PC than on an iPad etc.

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"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

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Yes, instead of trying to get the Chinese to come they should have focused on Retirement Visa holders still locked out and Thailand Elite Visa (current and new).

These groups of people alone would boost the economy significantly.

 

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I have a criminal record for a couple of violence offences when I was younger. I think they're "spent" now as the last one was just over 11 years ago. 

If I was to apply for an elite visa would they reject me for having a bit of a chequered past?

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10 hours ago, BuakhaoBarry said:

I have a criminal record for a couple of violence offences when I was younger. I think they're "spent" now as the last one was just over 11 years ago. 

Depends where you are from. In the UK offences involving violence are typically never spent/filtered and will remain on your criminal record until you are 100 years old. I have a conviction for 'Assault ocassioning ABH' going back over 30 years ago and it will never go away.

Full list of UK offences here: 

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/756791/List_of_offences_that_will_never_be_filtered_PDF_.pdf

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11 hours ago, BuakhaoBarry said:

I have a criminal record for a couple of violence offences when I was younger. I think they're "spent" now as the last one was just over 11 years ago. 

If I was to apply for an elite visa would they reject me for having a bit of a chequered past?

I don’t know if they check in the U.K. or only on the Thai system? For Elite they don’t ask you for a CRB/ACRO check they just say a check is carried out.

For some other visas they do ask you for a completed check. I ‘think’ the police came up with their own system for visas (basically ignoring the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act) so even spent convictions could show up on those.

In the latter case, it’s easy enough to just get that check done before you apply anyway so you’ll know what it says. With the Elite, I can’t see a way to find out what the Thais hold on you beforehand.

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"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

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  • 1 month later...
On 04/08/2020 at 09:26, LASportsNut said:

Greetings everyone.

Like most of us, I have been miserable waiting for the travel restrictions to end.

It appears it is much more serious and/or problematic than most expected.

I have been following the Thailand Embassy restrictions closely.  I have been zigging and zagging trying to come up with a solution for "my" needs.

Here is my story.  This includes my most normal travel to Thailand as well as most recent and current Visa request(s):

I have been traveling to Thailand and Pattaya since 2012. 

I always traveled 30 days each May and again 30 days each November (2012-2018).  

In March 2019 I retired and was able to spend 180 days in Thailand.

I traveled May to July with side trips to Japan and Vietnam to break up the 30 day travel restrictions.

I then returned to Los Angeles, California, USA from August to mid September.

I then repeated a similar Thailand trip from September to November, however I substituted China (Hong Kong, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Shanghai and Taiwan) to break up the 30 days.

 

@LASportsNut thank you for taking the time and effort to share your EV application experience. I found it to be very informative and It gave me the confidence to apply for my own. 

I'm not sure if your still waiting for visa stamp confirmation but I noticed on RTE-London website under the 'COE application' page below the usual passport upload section there is a 'further consideration' with document upload facility and the following text (notice point number two)

Attachment, for further consideration

Attachment
1. Copy of Thai visa or re-entry permit (if any). If the applicant does not have a valid visa or re-entry permit, the applicant must submit visa application in requesting the issuance of an appropriate visa directly to the Embassy / Consulate-General (if required).

2. Letter from Thailand Privilege Card Co., Ltd., or the Ministry of Tourism and Sports or relevant government agencies.

I did some Googling and a few bloggers are saying that once TPC receive payment they will provide a letter that can be used to secure the COE and then after 14 day quarantine, arrangements can be made to get visa affixed to passport by appointment with a TPC agent.

I have not read any details of someone who has actually gone through this process (using just the TPC letter) so would need to be checked.

Wondering if RTE-Washington-DC has the same notes in there COE application, may be worth shooting them an email if your still considering the Elite Visa.

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