Multiple entry visa option, questions, queries

[Sometimemaybe]

Hi,

A question about the best types of multiple entry visa's for Thailand. I live in Australia and at the end of the year I want to work in Australia for 1 week then fly to Thailand for 2 weeks to visit my partner and then fly back to Australia 1 week, then back to Thailand for 2 weeks etc etc. Obviously I'm going to be coming and going quite a lot. I'll be doing this from November through to April (High season), basically 6 months of the year. The other 6 months will mostly be split between  Bali and Australia.

I'm just wondering what the best options are for visas are or if anyone has had any experiences? I'm 48 so a retirement visa isn't an option.

As far as I can work out my options are;

• Visa exempt 30 days. This is apparently unlimited if flying into Thailand however apparently you get flagged at 6 entries..Anyone done this or any advice?
• Tourist visa 6 months duration multiple entries. Apparently unlimited entries to Thailand (if anyone can confirm), costs $300 but worth it i think. Only question is can you apply for more then 1 every year? I was told this isn't being offered but not sure, the form has it but the website doesn't in Australia, just 60 or 90 day but form still has the option.
• Elite visa - 5 years unlimited entry but 600,000baht!
• Maybe a 1 year marriage visa multiple entry sometime in the future, but not now.

If anyone has any comments, experiences or suggestions about these options or others I'd be very interested.

Cheers

[davidge]

There’s no hard and fast rule about number of Visa Exempt entries by air but an Immigration Officer can look at your history on arrival and decide to make a fuss if they want to. You might have no problems using them each time or they might decide to be difficult. Usually, this just means they say ‘get a visa next time’ rather than refusing entry. If you do it then probably best to make sure you have the required cash on you and some proof of where you’re staying. They rarely ask for them but they might if they want to be difficult.

The multiple-entry Tourist Visa hadn’t been available for a while but has reappeared on some Embassy websites. If it appears on the online system when you log in then it’s worth applying, or asking the Canberra Embassy if it is available, as it should reduce the chance of problems. 

No other options I can think of really without paying for the Elite.

 

[Sometimemaybe]

Appreciate the reply! Not sure what's going on with the 6month visa, typical Thailand! In the US embassy it's there..anyway I've emailed the Thai embassy Canberra. Worse case scenario I just use the visa exempt and see what happens, maybe space out the entries.  Cheers.

[davidge]

34 minutes ago, Sometimemaybe said:

Appreciate the reply! Not sure what's going on with the 6month visa, typical Thailand! In the US embassy it's there..anyway I've emailed the Thai embassy Canberra. Worse case scenario I just use the visa exempt and see what happens, maybe space out the entries.  Cheers.

It’s often the case that some visas are available from certain Embassies only. For example, the Non O ‘for Retirement’ was available in the U.K. but not in the USA nor in Australia. It was then made available in the USA about 2 years ago and only made available in Australia very recently.

 

[Ohyesuare]

2 hours ago, Sometimemaybe said:

Hi,

A question about the best types of multiple entry visa's for Thailand. I live in Australia and at the end of the year I want to work in Australia for 1 week then fly to Thailand for 2 weeks to visit my partner and then fly back to Australia 1 week, then back to Thailand for 2 weeks etc etc. Obviously I'm going to be coming and going quite a lot. I'll be doing this from November through to April (High season), basically 6 months of the year. The other 6 months will mostly be split between  Bali and Australia.

I'm just wondering what the best options are for visas are or if anyone has had any experiences? I'm 48 so a retirement visa isn't an option.

As far as I can work out my options are;

• Visa exempt 30 days. This is apparently unlimited if flying into Thailand however apparently you get flagged at 6 entries..Anyone done this or any advice?
• Tourist visa 6 months duration multiple entries. Apparently unlimited entries to Thailand (if anyone can confirm), costs $300 but worth it i think. Only question is can you apply for more then 1 every year? I was told this isn't being offered but not sure, the form has it but the website doesn't in Australia, just 60 or 90 day but form still has the option.
• Elite visa - 5 years unlimited entry but 600,000baht!
• Maybe a 1 year marriage visa multiple entry sometime in the future, but not now.

If anyone has any comments, experiences or suggestions about these options or others I'd be very interested.

Cheers

There's no limit to visa exempt when flying in. If you're flying in and out often, obviously you're not working here which is their only concern so I'd just use the visa exempt for the 6 months.

[Sometimemaybe]

thanks for the advice, if anyone on the forum has done a similar thing with the 30day it'd be great to hear from them too. Cheers!

[Sometimemaybe]

 

15 hours ago, davidge said:

There’s no hard and fast rule about number of Visa Exempt entries by air but an Immigration Officer can look at your history on arrival and decide to make a fuss if they want to. You might have no problems using them each time or they might decide to be difficult. Usually, this just means they say ‘get a visa next time’ rather than refusing entry. If you do it then probably best to make sure you have the required cash on you and some proof of where you’re staying. They rarely ask for them but they might if they want to be difficult.

The multiple-entry Tourist Visa hadn’t been available for a while but has reappeared on some Embassy websites. If it appears on the online system when you log in then it’s worth applying, or asking the Canberra Embassy if it is available, as it should reduce the chance of problems. 

No other options I can think of really without paying for the Elite.

 

Also, just had confirmation from the Canberra  embassy staff via email and the 6 month METV is available. I have forwarded this email onto a Local Thai travel agency who deal directly with the embassy and consulate staff to double check this is correct. I'll post here once he gets back to me and it is confirmed by their supervisors. Appreciate everyone's help. Cheers!

[Thomaz73]

One noteworthy detail about the METV. It's valid for 6 months. But if you enter just before it expires, you get stamped in for 60 days (and can extend for a further 30.) So, it's good for nearly 9 months of Thai based Asian adventures.

[Leo_Bia]

Was the 6 month METV not the one that needed a letter from your employer, well in the UK anyway?

[Thomaz73]

1 minute ago, Leo_Bia said:

Was the 6 month METV not the one that needed a letter from your employer, well in the UK anyway?

It was. Never a thing in Denmark. So, ymmv, I guess

[Sometimemaybe]

3 minutes ago, Leo_Bia said:

Was the 6 month METV not the one that needed a letter from your employer, well in the UK anyway?

The Australian form asks for 200,000 baht bank statement https://canberra.thaiembassy.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/1Update-lastest-Visa-Application.pdf