TOURIST METV
My name is Darren McGarry and I am the Managing Director of Key Visa Company and in this issue we will be explaining about the hottest topic around Thailand at the moment which is the new 6 month multiple entry tourist visa that was promised and in some ways taken away.
It has been widely publicized on many forums for the past 3 months about the new Thailand tourist visa which is a 6 months multiple entry visa or METV that was to bring a sigh of relief for people residing in Thailand with not many options unless you were over 50 years of age, married, working legally or studying at a language school.
This new visa was released on the 13th November and would allow you to go in and out of Thailand as many times as you wish over a 6 month period, but if your stay in Thailand is 60 days or more, then you will have to cross a border to start a further 60 day stay meaning you would have to leave Thailand on 2 occasions during the 6 months validity of the visa. This was an ideal visa for many foreign offshore workers using Thailand as a base and traveling in and out to work on a monthly rotational basis.
It was announced just before the release of this visa that foreigners residing in Thailand could not visit a neighboring country to obtain this 6 month visa it had to be obtained from your own country of origin, meaning a simple trip to Laos or Cambodia to obtain this visa from a Thai Consulate is no longer an option for foreigners staying in Thailand for long periods of time. If you wish to obtain this visa in your own home country then you must contact your local Thai Consulate or Embassy or look to their website which will advise what financial requirement is needed to obtain the visa and the correct documentation you must supply.
It has also been announced that if you need to extend your stay and wish to visit a Thai Consulate, for example in Laos, a foreigner can now only obtain a 60 day tourist visa that can be extended in Thailand for a further 30 days. It has also been stated that once a Foreigner has been issued with 4 consecutive single entry tourist visas then no more would be issued meaning you would have to look at other visa options.
Most will be aware that up until the 13th November you could have traveled to Laos to obtain a double entry tourist visa giving you a stay of six months maximum if the visa was used correctly, but sadly this has now been removed and only single entry tourist visas are being issued around Thailand.
The basic rule as I always advise is to get a visa from your own country before you arrive – don’t just bring your suitcase. Plan your trip properly and save yourself the heartache.
