justaguy1 Posted October 22, 2018 Share Posted October 22, 2018 I am having some confusion about a visa change I am about to undergo and I was wondering if anyone could shed some light on it. I am currently on a non immigrant type O visa for purposes of education. That will expire on November 1st. I will be transitioning to a non immigrant type B and getting a work permit. This is where the process is confusing for me. Per the office accountant for the company I am going to be working for, I need to leave the country for 3 days while she submits paperwork to Thai government. I have to be out of the country while she submits it. Once she gets the paperwork back, I can then use that paperwork to get a non immigrant B visa, and then once I come back to Thailand they will submit more paperwork to get me the work permit within the first 30 days. This seems relatively normal. However, she says that I should just get a tourist visa while out of the country and then just come back, and I can transition from the tourist visa to a non imm B withing Thailand. To me this seems more complicated than just having the company paperwork overnighted to me and I go apply for a type B at the Thai embassy where I'm staying. I am also not sure if there could be issues with getting a short tourist visa after 8 months of education visa, or if I would have any problem transitioning from tourist to type B within Thailand. If anyone has any advice for the best course of action, or sees any big misconceptions that I or the accountant might have please let me know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted October 22, 2018 Share Posted October 22, 2018 The first way is that the will do a WP3 application for your work permit and when approved then send the receipt for it to you so that you can apply for the non-b visa. It could be longer than 3 days though. The 2nd way would be that they would apply for the work permit and obtain a work permit application approval letter. Then you would apply for a 90 day non immigrant visa (category B) entry at immigration. The requirements for the visa application are much higher than than doing it at a embassy or consulate. Requirements are here: https://www.immigration.go.th/content/service_72 (click Eng at the top of the page for English) Number 12 can be a problem for many people when doing the application. You will not have a problem getting a single entry tourist visa at a nearby embassy or consulate. They don't count the visa or extensions based on attending school against being able to get one. You could also just do a border hop for a 30 day visa exempt entry if you qualify for one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justaguy1 Posted October 22, 2018 Author Share Posted October 22, 2018 @ubonjoe You don't think there would be any problem transitioning from a tourist visa to type B within Thailand? Or do you think it would be easier to just wait in Malaysia until I get the paperwork to apply for non imm B there, before coming back? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted October 22, 2018 Share Posted October 22, 2018 22 minutes ago, justaguy1 said: @ubonjoe You don't think there would be any problem transitioning from a tourist visa to type B within Thailand? Or do you think it would be easier to just wait in Malaysia until I get the paperwork to apply for non imm B there, before coming back? I don't think it would be a problem either way. The only risk of applying for the non-b at immigration is not meeting the requirements. That is why I mentioned #12 on the list of requirements. Waiting for the WP3 receipt is the only problem with getting the non-b visa at a embassy or consulate. It is your choice between the 2. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justaguy1 Posted October 22, 2018 Author Share Posted October 22, 2018 12 minutes ago, ubonjoe said: I don't think it would be a problem either way. The only risk of applying for the non-b at immigration is not meeting the requirements. That is why I mentioned #12 on the list of requirements. Waiting for the WP3 receipt is the only problem with getting the non-b visa at a embassy or consulate. It is your choice between the 2. I see that now, thank you for the advice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now