Thread: Educational Visa new arrangements

I ve just heard that the Immigration will no longer be giving one year educational Visas . They are now just giving six month educational Visas and you have to study for 160 hours per six months .
Its supposedly already being implemented, but it just hasnt been announced yet .

Not that TD readers particularly care, but there was a meeting between most private thai language schools in Bangkok, the Ministry of Education AND Thai Immigrations concerning current the ED visa system in place (its rampant abuse) and the changes which came into effect immediately after the meeting adjourned..

I wasn't there but from what I heard it sure pissed off some schools, especially those hawking thai at 4 hours a week! The minimum now is 10 hours a week, broke down to 2 hours a day over 5 days.

There is NO guarantee that ANYONE will get the full 90 day extension when showing up at Chaengwattana anymore. In fact some places (other than Bangkok) give a 14 day under consideration stamp and students are told to come back to get the extension then..

The random testing at Chaengwattana is really hit or miss..

All I can say is the "ED visa gravy train" is fixing to run off the rails as far as a way for foreigners who are not under 50, not married to a thai and not supporting half thai kids to stay long term.

I heard that if you study Muay Thai, they point to someone in the queue with you and tell you to kick his ass. If you're studying buddhism they make you sit cross-legged with a fan covering your face and do one of those mumbling chants. They're in the process of installing a dive tank to check the people on ED visas for diving too and a full kitchen so people on ED visas for thai cooking can whip up a dish or two..

Please note the last paragraph is total bullshit...

Originally Posted by toddaniels

Not that TD readers particularly care, but there was a meeting between most private thai language schools in Bangkok, the Ministry of Education AND Thai Immigrations concerning current the ED visa system in place (its rampant abuse) and the changes which came into effect immediately after the meeting adjourned..

I wasn't there but from what I heard it sure pissed off some schools, especially those hawking thai at 4 hours a week! The minimum now is 10 hours a week, broke down to 2 hours a day over 5 days.

There is NO guarantee that ANYONE will get the full 90 day extension when showing up at Chaengwattana anymore. In fact some places (other than Bangkok) give a 14 day under consideration stamp and students are told to come back to get the extension then..

The random testing at Chaengwattana is really hit or miss..

All I can say is the "ED visa gravy train" is fixing to run off the rails as far as a way for foreigners who are not under 50, not married to a thai and not supporting half thai kids to stay long term.

I heard that if you study Muay Thai, they point to someone in the queue with you and tell you to kick his ass. If you're studying buddhism they make you sit cross-legged with a fan covering your face and do one of those mumbling chants. They're in the process of installing a dive tank to check the people on ED visas for diving too and a full kitchen so people on ED visas for thai cooking can whip up a dish or two..

Please note the last paragraph is total bullshit...

Kinda liked the last paragraph to be honest. I remember last year some farang woman getting it from the immigration officer - he shouted along the lines of "You've been here a long time, why you cannot speak Thai". I wondered if she was on a Thai language ED visa.

Would be interesting if you got a wave through on the first (Thai language ED) visa, but there after you had to apply - in Thai.....

No loss, really, let's be honest.


If people are here to study Thai, then studying 10 hrs a week is hardly asking too much of them.

The educational Visa is nothing but a wrought, I would not be surprised if Thailand does away with it.

Obtaining a Visa simply on the Basis that one is studying Thai is bullshit.

Can study Thai in ones home country in every part of the world.

Originally Posted by terry57

The educational Visa is nothing but a wrought, I would not be surprised if Thailand does away with it.

Obtaining a Visa simply on the Basis that one is studying Thai is bullshit.

Can study Thai in ones home country in every part of the world.

The Ed visa is used for a lot more than studying Thai. It will not be done away with - it is used by legitimate students in Unis etc -but the abuse of it might be done away with.

^

That's what I'm referring too.

The tossers who stay here doing the minimum amount of hours and then work illegally earning money.

Actually terry, your lack of real knowledge on yet another subject to do with the glorious "Land 'O Thaiz" shines thru...

nidhogg is correct. All the international schools here and indeed all the uni's that have international students give out ED visas. They're issued a year at a time. It's only private schools which are limited to 90 day extensions of stay..

Also you can study ANY language that isn't your mother tongue at a private school and as long as they're approved by the MOE you can get an ED visa. I know foreigners here studying Japanese, Korean, Chinese, French, Spanish and even Burmese!! They also don't get tested at Immigrations because as a rule thaiz can't speak anything but thai and their version of engrish...

Another FYI; ANY student here going to a 'real uni' for a 'real degree' can indeed get a work permit and is allowed to work in their field of study as a paid intern!

Unfortunately terry is painting with a rather broad brush. It's not just "the tossers who stay here blah-blah-blah". I've met more than my share of monied up foreigners who are under 50, not married to thaiz, not raising half-thai kids AND not working here, but who have NO real way to stay long term.. I think this year you're going to see something along the lines of a visa extension which will let people like that live here.. We'll see..

Sheesh, even you terry played the visa exempt stamp/tourist visa game as a way to live here, before you finally got your ducks in a row with that OA longstay visa!

It's true the "study thai 4 hours a week" b/s criteria the MOE had did nothing but allow unscrupulous schools and students exploit the system. I hope this new system will actually make a difference, but as soon as immigrations makes a policy there're businesses willing to find a work around. We'll see.

IMHO; the increase in hours per week is long over due; a person could study thai 4 hours a week their entire adult life and never speak more than "2-word-tourist-thai" or "horse-peak-thai"!

Thanks for the info Todd .
I went to get my final extension last week at immi .
I wasnt confident os passing my Thai speaking test .
So, I took my 14 month old boy along with me to the test .
The test went like this , in English :
"Can I take my Boy abroad with me "
"Np, he hasnt got a passport"
"Can I got to the airport and leave him there on his own" ?
"No, thats child abandonment and thats illegal"
I gave my Boy to the immigration officer and asked her to take care of him
I got a thee month extension

Originally Posted by toddaniels

The random testing at Chaengwattana is really hit or miss..

That may not be the case .
I went to a Visa agency last week and they guaranteed that if I applied with them, going to a school of their choice, then I would be guaranteed a years worth of Visas. They would send a representative along with me when applying for an extension to sort out any issues . Maybe some Schools have a special relationship with officials

Originally Posted by terry57

^

That's what I'm referring too.

The tossers who stay here doing the minimum amount of hours and then work illegally earning money.

There are probably not many of those working, doing jobs that locals could do.
For example, in my class , there was a Chinese woman running a Chinese owned guest house that caters for Chinese youngsters . Another Chinese woman helping her Thai bf run a coffee shop and a Japanese Woman who also taught the violin to Thais .
These "tossers" are beneficial to Thai society .

Originally Posted by terry57

The educational Visa is nothing but a wrought, I would not be surprised if Thailand does away with it.

Obtaining a Visa simply on the Basis that one is studying Thai is bullshit.

Can study Thai in ones home country in every part of the world.

You're clueless about Thailand, Terry.

Le Cordon Bleu, Thammasat, Mahidol and Chula Int. Programs might have something to say about Non-Ed visas being done away with.

So let's be clear Fluke, you went to Chaengwattana Immigrations at Bangkok. and got a 90 day extension of stay.. You didn't do it up in Chiang Mai like where your profile says you're located, right??

The reason I say the testing at Chaengwattana is so hit or miss after watching it for nearly 6 hours is; it looks a LOT more like "racial or demographic profiling" than any real across the board test 'o thai skillz. Especially so, if you happen to "fit" one of the races or demographicz they're targeting.

It appeared that asians as a rule (who aren't Korean) aren't doin' too bad. White people seem to be grilled IF they're young-ish and look like they have "no visible means of support" or suspected of working illegally. Filipinoz are getting totally hammered and I didn't see one pull more than 60 dayz. If you're black, I don't care where you're from, you're getting the 3rd degree advanced grilling (or so it would appear from my observationz). .

How about you P/M me the agency? I'll call them up and check on what they say? After all, it can't hurt to know stuff like that...

IF I was a betting man I'd bet it was like those other agencies which were pulling spurious retirement or marriage visas (albeit with real visa stamps via the 'back door') from offices like Nakhon Ratchasima (Korat), Ayutthaya, and Samut Prakan. What's happening is; people (officialz) who were doing back door deals are being transferred with little fan fare. One day they're there, the next day they're gone! I know of a few agencies that have no one to funnel their visa business thru at those offices anymore!!

More than a few schools had a "special relationship with officialz" however it appears even the big gunz in the "teach thai to white buffaloez" arena (who could and did really grease the wheel) are more than a little miffed that things ain't running like the swiss watch they sell their program as anymore.

Originally Posted by toddaniels

Actually terry,

Your lack of real knowledge on yet another subject to do with the glorious "Land 'O Thaiz" shines thru...

So what was the other one then ?

Originally Posted by Bogon

Could you please clarify something that not a lot of people are aware about Todd.

Is it true that if you hold a non-imm O, then you can extend for a year at a time for the reason of attending university without leaving the country to obtain and ED visa?

Yes, it is true. There will be questions, but once you have paid for the full year's worth of study up-front, you will be okay. A friend did it when he started to study here full-time. Previously he was on a Non-O ME based on marriage. Enrolled in a Uni, paid for the first term, Immi at Cheagwattana would only extend it for 6 months until the end of term, told him to come back after that with receipts for one year and they will extend it for that period.

All non-Imm visas can be extended for the purpose of Education, but the full payment will have to be made for the period before hand.

Cheers for the info.

Originally Posted by Phuketrichard

tod; question for ya
u spent a whole day at immigration and didn't have too?? my god, u really need a hobby

You're totally correct, I had no reason to be there, to hang about, talk to the officers over lunch and watch what was going on other than so I know what's what. Because I review thai language schools for my friend's website, I try to stay up on what's happening in the "teach thai to white buffaloez" marketplace. Plus I'm not afraid of immigrations officers no matter how many stripes, starz or stuff they got hangin' off their uniform.

When I read the changes in the newest Police Order 327/2557, back in August when they first started "fine tuning the ED visa extension process", I went out to see what they were doing. This was when MOE implemented two forms one which listed every entry/exit a foreigner applying for an ED visa had over the last 3 years, in an effort to weed out people who were just picking up an ED visa because they had too many back to back visa exempt and tourist visas. The other one was a form stating how a foreigner studying thai on an ED visa was gonna live (as in where their money came from) seeing as you can't work on an ED visa while studying language at a private school. That's also when upped the hours per week from 4 to 8 and they said one 90 day ED visa could be extended 90 days at a time for no more than a calendar year.

At the end of last year there was a meeting with the MOE, Immigrations and all the big players in the private thai language school market. They issued a "handbook" outlining the newest changes; 10 hours per week at 2 hours; 5 days a week study, each "level, or "term" must be 200 hours and cannot run for more than 6 months, plus one 90 day ED visa can be extended once for 90 days, and possibly 2 more times IF the student enrolled in a higher level of learning. They also came up with some standardized attendance forms and stuff which must be included in the extension paperwork..

Terry, the other one was the comment you made about Sukhumvit versus Silom <- where you allege there are real thaiz, real office workerz and real marketz as opposed to the evidently fake thaiz, fake office workerz and fake markets I see here in the Lower Sukhumvit area.

Richard, I guess I do need a better hobby, maybe needlepoint, cross-stitch or something...

Originally Posted by toddaniels

[

Richard, I guess I do need a better hobby, maybe needlepoint, cross-stitch or something...

Dunno. You see near on bloody everything at the immigration office. An education on each trip.

Originally Posted by toddaniels

Terry, the other one was the comment you made about Sukhumvit versus Silom <- where you allege there are real thaiz, real office workerz and real marketz as opposed to the evidently fake thaiz, fake office workerz and fake markets I see here in the Lower Sukhumvit area.

Richard, I guess I do need a better hobby, maybe needlepoint, cross-stitch or something...

Jesus mate,

I do realize you are a humorless Fukin Septic.

You don't understand how us Australians like to take the piss, you need to lighten the fuk up a tad. Get with the program maybe.

At least I support your Visa posts where many think you are a pedantic arsehole.

Christ, Needlepoint may be a good option at this point.


That said, I'm very happy you are providing the good oil on Visa's, its very helpful.


Anyway, happy fukin birthday.

Originally Posted by toddaniels

So let's be clear Fluke, you went to Chaengwattana Immigrations at Bangkok. and got a 90 day extension of stay.. You didn't do it up in Chiang Mai like where your profile says you're located, right??

The reason I say the testing at Chaengwattana is so hit or miss after watching it for nearly 6 hours is; it looks a LOT more like "racial or demographic profiling" than any real across the board test 'o thai skillz. Especially so, if you happen to "fit" one of the races or demographicz they're targeting.



.

No, I went to CM .
They seemed very busy there, I ve been saying to my School that the visa situation has changed for the last two weeks, they assured me that it hasnt changed and that one year Visas are still easily able to obtain from Laos . For the last two weeks I have been telling them that things have changed and that I read it on the internet .
"Dont worry" , "Nothings changed " "anyone can write anything on the internet"
Went onto School yesterday : School admin said to me "We have a problem about Visas...................everythings changed ".
"Yea , I ve been telling you the the last two weeks"
I'll go back to the Visa company, to see whether they are still able to get one year Visas , maybe the Visa situation changes took a few weeks to get to CM .
Ill PM you the visa office weblink

I called a couple of "visa agentz/companiez" here in Bangkok today. None of them could do anything in country, or that's what they told me. Some did have a way to send you outside the country to get a one year, multi entry Non-ED visa at a neighboring embassy.

That kind means you border bounce every 90 days, but if you play the dates right it's good for 15 months in country.. The good thing about this type of visa is you NEVER deal with Immigrations for an extension or a 90 day report because you can't stay inside the country longer than 90 days. Plus you never deal with the MOE (in case they ever get back into the picture again) either...

The ONLY people I've ever seen who get true one year visas as in get a full year's extension of stay are international school students in university or at a private school like NIST, etc.. They get a 90 day Non-ED then it gets extended for 9 months. The following year they get a full year's extension of stay.

Thanx for the info, I'll check it out.

Interesting development;

This appears to be the notice handed out by thai language schools in Pattaya alleging that it came from Immigrations..


Unfortunately, there is NO "Pattaya Immigrations" it's in Jomtien and it's called Chonburi Immigrations. Plus, it doesn't have the official thai government garuda logo on it..

Now there are reports that this letter is being followed for students getting an extension of stay at Jomtien.. There are also reports where people chose "option one", paid 5000, but their receipt showed 1900.

Take it for what it's worth. I don't deal with Jomtien/Chonburi ever, but this is the "word on the street" down there. There are just too many people reporting it not to have some truth to their assertions..