RetiredRangsit Posted March 3, 2021 Share Posted March 3, 2021 Greetings, I am planning on going to Thailand in May for about 90 days to spend time with my family there. I was looking into the procedure for entering Thailand and feel completely baffled by the requirements. I received both of my Pfizer vaccine (65+) but I understand there isn't a vaccine passport system at the moment so I would still have to go through all the hurdles. Nevertheless I am prepared to meet all the requirements and move forward with my plan. Could anyone correct/inform/help me with the order of procedure? 1. Apply for eVisa (TR) (LA consulate) 2. Book semi-commercial plane ticket 3. ASQ reservation 4. Purchase Covid health insurance 5. Apply for Certificate Of Entry 6. Obtain fit to fly certificate 72 hours before flight 7. Obtain negative Covid test results 72 hours before flight I called Japan airlines and was told to wait until the semi-commercial flight schedule for May is updated before I book my plane ticket from LAX-BKK. She said I would probably have to wait until early April for that schedule to show up. Without the flight reservation, can I apply for an eVisa (TR) right now? I just wanted to make sure I get the visa on time since everything is taking a lot longer. Thank you very much in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUMMERJACK Posted March 3, 2021 Share Posted March 3, 2021 You need a booked flight to apply for TR visa, I got mine just a week ago so I got very recent experience. I have also gone through the entire process you listed, and as far as I can see you have gotten it all listed. Here in Sweden it only took me five days to get my visa, but I think I have read somewhere on this forum that people in LA area have been experiencing longer waiting times. The most important thing about booking your flight is to not use these agency companies, since it is an enourmous hassle if anything with the flight is changed/cancelled, in my opinion. Also, fly with one of the big companies if you can, I am travelling from Europe and over here the small ones cancel flights left and right. The major airline companies though seem to keep their flights running regardless of having a plane with many passengers or not. That said, I am just talking from my own research and European perspective, I do not know if all above would apply to US flights. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 You could avoid the visa application part of it if you were to enter visa exempt. A visa exempt entry allows a 45 day permit to stay that can be extended for 30 days. The tourist visa only gives you a additional 15 days of stay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BUMMERJACK Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 OP is looking for 90 days though, and TR is 60 plus an extension of 30, if I remember correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredRangsit Posted March 4, 2021 Author Share Posted March 4, 2021 Thank you, I appreciate your input. So it seems like I can't do anything for now until the semi-commercial flight schedules show up for May I presume. I plan on purchasing directly from Japan Airlines. JAL told me there are flights from Tokyo, Narita to Bangkok every Thursday until March 25th so hopefully that won't change in May. But who knows with Thai immigration. And yes I've been scrolling through the forum and it seems like folks have been experiencing slight delays with the LA consulate. I'm a bit bummed out because I live a few walking distance away from the Thai consulate here and could just drop off all my documents but the security guard told me everything is done through the postal service for now... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredRangsit Posted March 4, 2021 Author Share Posted March 4, 2021 8 minutes ago, ubonjoe said: You could avoid the visa application part of it if you were to enter visa exempt. A visa exempt entry allows a 45 day permit to stay that can be extended for 30 days. The tourist visa only gives you a additional 15 days of stay. I did not know about this. I thought it was 30 days for visa exemption + 30 days extension. I'll talk with my family and see if 75 days is good enough. Thank you for that information Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Monday Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 Disregard what JAL told you on the telephone, don't wait to buy your air ticket. You will need it apply for the visa anyway and waiting for visa and COE from the LA Consulate can take some time. Best start now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredRangsit Posted March 4, 2021 Author Share Posted March 4, 2021 2 minutes ago, Captain Monday said: Disregard what JAL told you on the telephone, don't wait to buy your air ticket. You will need it apply for the visa anyway and waiting for visa and COE from the LA Consulate can take some time. Best start now. I think that's a good idea since the airlines are a lot more lenient with change/cancellation policies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 20 minutes ago, BUMMERJACK said: OP is looking for 90 days though, and TR is 60 plus an extension of 30, if I remember correctly. I wrote about that in my post and stated there is only a 15 day difference in the total stay allowed. But at this time there are 60 day extensions that are possible due to covid 19. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wn78 Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 Is it possible to book an advanced flight in order to apply for a visa and cancel it later and rebook for another one if plans change? Same question about the ASQ reservation, is it possible to make a fully paid reservation that can be changed or cancelled with full refund? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Monday Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 Yes on flight changes I had two full refunds and multiple COEs. Doubt you could get a full refund. Every hotel has different policies. I dealt with a bonvoy property. It was very easy to change dates. 10 percent deposit. I was charged the full amount a few days before arrival. Non-Refundable. I pretty much had to commit to come to Thailand sometime, in my head , to get over that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 28 minutes ago, wn78 said: Is it possible to book an advanced flight in order to apply for a visa and cancel it later and rebook for another one if plans change? Yes that can be done. 28 minutes ago, wn78 said: Same question about the ASQ reservation, is it possible to make a fully paid reservation that can be changed or cancelled with full refund? The ASQ reservation is part of the Certificate of Entry (COE) application and it can be changed if needed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aomelia Posted March 4, 2021 Share Posted March 4, 2021 9 hours ago, BUMMERJACK said: You need a booked flight to apply for TR visa, I got mine just a week ago so I got very recent experience. I have also gone through the entire process you listed, and as far as I can see you have gotten it all listed. Here in Sweden it only took me five days to get my visa, but I think I have read somewhere on this forum that people in LA area have been experiencing longer waiting times. The most important thing about booking your flight is to not use these agency companies, since it is an enourmous hassle if anything with the flight is changed/cancelled, in my opinion. Also, fly with one of the big companies if you can, I am travelling from Europe and over here the small ones cancel flights left and right. The major airline companies though seem to keep their flights running regardless of having a plane with many passengers or not. That said, I am just talking from my own research and European perspective, I do not know if all above would apply to US flights. They say 3 weeks by mail unless maybe you go to consulate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RetiredRangsit Posted March 4, 2021 Author Share Posted March 4, 2021 19 hours ago, ubonjoe said: I wrote about that in my post and stated there is only a 15 day difference in the total stay allowed. But at this time there are 60 day extensions that are possible due to covid 19. Appreciate your input Joe Do visa exempt travelers have the option to extend the 30-days twice? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubonjoe Posted March 5, 2021 Share Posted March 5, 2021 4 hours ago, RetiredRangsit said: Do visa exempt travelers have the option to extend the 30-days twice? Only one 30 day extension can be applied for per visa exempt entry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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