Visa change

Deerculler

Deerculler

Surin Dinosaur
Recently I went through the process of changing from my original OA Retirement to a Non O retirement .
It involved going across the border at at Chong Chom into Cambodia and returning to Thailand the same day.
It all started in early August.
I first sought advice and information from the woman immigration officer in Surin.
It involved a total of 4 visits to immigration. One at Surin and three at Kap Cheong.
I got my final stamp last Tuesday 5th of November at Kap Cheong which was the Non O retirement.
My dealings with immigration at all 3 points was fantastic.
I have nothing but the highest praise for the officers for there help.
My next extension is December 2nd 2025.
Cost of the new visa. 1900 baht.

I hope this is of some help to others if they decide to do the same.
 
When I went over into Cambodia.
I did not get a re-entry permit. That made my OA null and void.
Came back into Thailand with a 60 day entry.
Then I applied for a Non O Retirement.
Which what I now have.
Very sorry for not explaining better.
 
Deerculler said:
Came back into Thailand with a 60 day entry.
Then I applied for a Non O Retirement.
Click to expand...
Was that a visa exempt? If it was? It used to be against policy to be able to change visas as you were visa exempt. Mind you there was ways around this.
But you don't indicate that.
By your description of your service received it sounds like the bitch from hell has moved on.
 
Rice said:
Was that a visa exempt? If it was? It used to be against policy to be able to change visas as you were visa exempt. Mind you there was ways around this.
But you don't indicate that.
By your description of your service received it sounds like the bitch from hell has moved on.
Click to expand...
She moved on along time ago. I thank she was put charge of the IO in Surin City.
 
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Rice said:
Was that a visa exempt? If it was? It used to be against policy to be able to change visas as you were visa exempt. Mind you there was ways around this.
But you don't indicate that.
By your description of your service received it sounds like the bitch from hell has moved on.
Click to expand...
Her sister still works at Jomtien---TUNNEL C**NTED THING.
 
Rice said:
Was that a visa exempt? If it was? It used to be against policy to be able to change visas as you were visa exempt. Mind you there was ways around this.
But you don't indicate that.
By your description of your service received it sounds like the bitch from hell has moved on.
Click to expand...
Sorry Rice, It went as I have told it. There have been changes to visa this year.
I went through Immigration to make sure it was all legal.
The female officer at Surin was new to me.
Apart from being attractive.
She was very professional. helpful and friendly.
I was very impressed by her attitude and cannot speak highly enough of her.
The attitude and help at Kap Cheong was the same.
I got what I was after. So I am very happy.
The reason I changed was because of the insurance.
I have insurance and could not see why I should pay pay for other insurance that was useless.
PS.
As I said. I got the 60 day visa when coming back into Thaland.
At the end of the 60 days.
I had to go back and apply for another 30 days.
It was after all that I got the Non O.
 
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Les, apologies for labouring this but you understand that the terminology is quite important.

I fully get the idea of letting your previous permission expire by not using a reentry permit. That effectively gives you s clean sheet of paper.

You mentioned a 2 month visa obtained in Cambodia....that has to be a tourist visa. @Rice skirted around the visa exempt entry which is the only other thing that gets you a 60 day stamp.

You have finished up, I guess, with a 12 month permission to stay based on retirement (you don't have a non-o visa).

The bit I am foggy with is the transition from tourist visa (or 60 day visa exempt) to an extension based on retirement.......that transition would normally be the issue of a Non-Immigrant O visa from which the 12 month extension is then issued. It is possible that the 30 days (on top of your 60 days on entry) was done as a Non-O......

Does any of that make sense?......it is hard to follow the chain of events without seeing visa/entry stamps.
 
CO-CO said:
Les, apologies for labouring this but you understand that the terminology is quite important.

I fully get the idea of letting your previous permission expire by not using a reentry permit. That effectively gives you s clean sheet of paper.

You mentioned a 2 month visa obtained in Cambodia....that has to be a tourist visa. @Rice skirted around the visa exempt entry which is the only other thing that gets you a 60 day stamp.

You have finished up, I guess, with a 12 month permission to stay based on retirement (you don't have a non-o visa).

The bit I am foggy with is the transition from tourist visa (or 60 day visa exempt) to an extension based on retirement.......that transition would normally be the issue of a Non-Immigrant O visa from which the 12 month extension is then issued. It is possible that the 30 days (on top of your 60 days on entry) was done as a Non-O......

Does any of that make sense?......it is hard to follow the chain of events without seeing visa/entry stamps.
Click to expand...
Ray, I have just checked my passport.

I made a mistake in my first post. As I went into Cambodia at Chong Chom on July 23-2024 not August.
As I do not know how move something onto here.
I have sent 2 stamps to Nick and asked him to either post on here for me or send to you.

I came back in on a 60 day stamp. And later got a 30 day stamp.
There was no Tourist Visa.
Hope this helps.
 
Deerculler said:
Ray, I have just checked my passport.

I made a mistake in my first post. As I went into Cambodia at Chong Chom on July 23-2024 not August.
As I do not know how move something onto here.
I have sent 2 stamps to Nick and asked him to either post on here for me or send to you.

I came back in on a 60 day stamp. And later got a 30 day stamp.
There was no Tourist Visa.
Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

Les, thanks for sending those through....it is becoming clearer... :)

Whatever you came in on (I suspect 60 day visa exempt - I haven't seen that stamp) that entry successfully negated the previous Non Imm O-A and your permission to stay was likely to 21? September.

On the 5th September Surin Immigration granted you a single entry Non-Imm O visa valid for 90 days (this is where the 5 December date came from).

On 5th November you would have supplied the necessary financials etc to SI for an extension of stay based on retirement and it is that that created the permission to stay to 5 December 2025 ...ie 12 months after expiry of the 90 day Non-Imm O.

@Rice will follow that and will note that the book of words that says you must get a Visa outside of Thailand is actually rubbish.

I may consider doing similar, simply because my expiry date in June is no longer convenient.
 
CO-CO said:
Les, thanks for sending those through....it is becoming clearer... :)

Whatever you came in on (I suspect 60 day visa exempt - I haven't seen that stamp) that entry successfully negated the previous Non Imm O-A and your permission to stay was likely to 21? September.

On the 5th September Surin Immigration granted you a single entry Non-Imm O visa valid for 90 days (this is where the 5 December date came from).

On 5th November you would have supplied the necessary financials etc to SI for an extension of stay based on retirement and it is that that created the permission to stay to 5 December 2025 ...ie 12 months after expiry of the 90 day Non-Imm O.

@Rice will follow that and will note that the book of words that says you must get a Visa outside of Thailand is actually rubbish.

I may consider doing similar, simply because my expiry date in June is no longer convenient.
Click to expand...
Sorry Ray.
There is a 60 day stamp and from there I got a 30 day extension.
I use the Embassy letter for the finance.
The OA Retirement can only be got from outside Thailand.
I am not up on all the other visa's.
Hope all this was helpful.
 
CO-CO said:
@Rice will follow that and will note that the book of words that says you must get a Visa outside of Thailand is actually rubbish.
Click to expand...
You did note I said "policy"....................... You know the document nobody is allowed to read !! Except me of course and never to be repeated.
 
Deerculler said:
Hi Ray,
I seem to have that many stamps.
September 20th 2024.
I think that is the one.
And told to come back to Kap Cheong on November 5th 2024.
Which I did.
That is when it was all finalized.
Click to expand...

Thanks Les.

I am only labouring this because people on SF will read these posts and seek to learn, or be guided by them. Your process is a good example of how you can 'switch' visas - or, obtain a 12 month extension off the back of a visa exempt entry.


I don't think that you had a 30 day 'extension' anywhere along the process. I have only seen 2 of your stamps but it looks like you did a Cambodian border run on 23 July, getting a 60 visa exempt stamp.


On the 5th September Surin Immigration granted you a single entry Non-Imm O visa valid for 90 days (this is where the 5 December date came from).

On 5th November you would have gone back to SI for an extension of stay based on retirement and it is that that created the permission to stay to 5 December 2025 ...ie 12 months after expiry of the 90 day Non-Imm O.
 
CO-CO said:
Thanks Les.

I am only labouring this because people on SF will read these posts and seek to learn, or be guided by them. Your process is a good example of how you can 'switch' visas - or, obtain a 12 month extension off the back of a visa exempt entry.


I don't think that you had a 30 day 'extension' anywhere along the process. I have only seen 2 of your stamps but it looks like you did a Cambodian border run on 23 July, getting a 60 visa exempt stamp.


On the 5th September Surin Immigration granted you a single entry Non-Imm O visa valid for 90 days (this is where the 5 December date came from).

On 5th November you would have gone back to SI for an extension of stay based on retirement and it is that that created the permission to stay to 5 December 2025 ...ie 12 months after expiry of the 90 day Non-Imm O.
Click to expand...
Thanks Ray,
It was my visa.
Old age. And getting confused.
Reading what you have written.
You are correct. I can see it all now.
Now that you have clarified it.
I hope it is of some help.
 
Deerculler said:
Thanks Ray,
It was my visa.
Old age. And getting confused.
Reading what you have written.
You are correct. I can see it all now.
Now that you have clarified it.
I hope it is of some help.
Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing the story Les, I am delighted that you got yourself out of that O-A and into a much simpler O.
 
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