New Visa Extension Regulation in Thailand

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Thai Immigration has just released a new regulation that will affect people who need to renew their passport before their visa expires. In the past, Immigration would transfer your visa from your old passport to the new one for free. But, this has now changed. Not only do you have to pay a 1,900 Baht fee, you also have to submit all of the documents again as if you were applying for the visa again. Here is their announcement:

According to the New Regulation from August 13, 2013: When submitting application for Visa Extension if the validity of passport of the applicant is not longer than one year left before expiry, the extension of stay will be permitted not exceeding the expired date of passport. After the renewal of your passport of obtaining a new passport, you have to re-apply for Visa Extension by submitting required document and paying extension fee ( 1,900 Baht ). In case of overstay, the fine is 500 Baht per day.

Source: bangkok.immigration.go.th

I am going to be one of the people affected by the moving of the goal posts while the game is in play. I renewed my visa back in March and it was stamped “Extension of stay approved up to 30 March 2014”. As my passport will expire at the end of the year, they added “but permitted to stay up to 18 December 2013 due to validity of passport”. At the time they assured me that it is no problem to transfer the visa to the new passport and that it would be free.

I’m hoping I will be exempt as I already applied for my visa before this new regulation started. But, I am not too hopeful. Paying the 1,900 Baht visa extension fee is fine. I am used to that kind of thing now. What is daunting is having to collect all of the documents again to support my application. It took nearly a month last time. I am not looking forward to having to do this again so soon.

UPDATE: According to Lt Col Napat Nusen from the Phuket Immigration, people who have already been given a one year visa beyond the expiry date of their passport, will be exempt from this new regulation.

“Foreigners who already have a permit-to-stay that extends beyond the expiry date on their passport will be allowed to have their current permit-to-stay transferred into their new passport when it arrives.”

Source: www.phuketgazette.net

This is good news for people like myself who already have a visa but their passport expires before the visa. But from now onwards, if your passport expires in say 11 months you will only be given a visa for 11 months instead of the full year.

17 thoughts on “New Visa Extension Regulation in Thailand

  • April 17, 2015 at 2:03 pm
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    I believe this has now changed back to the old process,anyone got news on this

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    • June 10, 2015 at 5:42 pm
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      I, too, would be very interested in reading an answer to Mark’s question as I will get a new passport before the 10 July and my Non-B visa extension is valid until the 2 Aug. Will I have to transfer an the present visa extension over to my new passport for the sake of two weeks and then go back again to renew my extension of stay for a further one year on 2 Aug?

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      • June 11, 2015 at 7:10 am
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        You can extend your extension of stay one month before it expires. So, go to Immigration when you get your new passport around 10 July.

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  • May 5, 2014 at 4:15 pm
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    Hi all.
    Having scoured the Internet for half-reliable answers to my predicament I have stumbled upon this which worried me greatly.
    I have a newly issued UK passport with no visa and an old not-actually-expired, invalid UK passport with a tourist visa that expires on the 6th of May (tomorrow). My flight leaves Bangkok tomorrow night at 10pm. Can I or can I not turn up at the airport with both passports and leave the country? Or do I need to go to an immigration office to get it transferred for the princely sum of 1900 baht as mentioned above?
    Everything I read to this point seemed to indicate it would t be a problem going to the airport bit as you’ve stated, the policy had changed.
    Please help.
    Thanks in advance.
    Daniel

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  • August 30, 2013 at 4:56 am
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    Just curious here – why? Why did they change the process?

    And, yes, I can attest to the painfulness of the US and French visa/residency/Blue Card/Green card process. đŸ™‚

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  • August 29, 2013 at 8:24 pm
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    I wonder what happens if you need to transfer the visa to a new passport because your current one has no space left for visas? It doesn’t actually mention this, so perhaps this will be FOC… If this is the case, renew your passport one year before it’s expiry date, and then transfer the visa across?

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  • August 29, 2013 at 7:57 pm
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    I like your site and please keep up good work.

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  • August 28, 2013 at 6:06 pm
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    Interesting though how well Thailand performed in the 2012 Global Survey of Expats conducted by HSBC on 5,339 expats. Anyone has experience with trying to navigate the paperwork and regulations to live in the UK, USA or Europe? It runs the entire alphabet from Migraine, Neurotic, Oppressive through Yikes! right into Zero. Remember Stephen Stills: “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with”. And here’s the full survey results – http://www.expatexplorer.hsbc.com/files/pdfs/overall-reports/2012/report.pdf.

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  • August 28, 2013 at 5:27 pm
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    I have the same problem, passport expires October and I renewed my visa in June. I will go to imm tomorrow to transfer the visa to my new passport. This afternoon they send me home to come back tomorrow early in the morning because Chiang mai imm is too busy.

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  • August 28, 2013 at 5:14 pm
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    This morning I have been refused the change from the tourist stamp from ED visa for taking care of my son studying in Thailand stating there is a new regulation that makes only parent over 50 years old able to apply from thailand. So my son got his visa but i did not… do you know anything about this new regulation cause i am not sure about how to solve my problem now.

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  • August 28, 2013 at 5:13 pm
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    You’re kidding? I spent a few hours at the British Embassy last week to get the letter allow my visa to be transferred! Grrr!

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  • August 28, 2013 at 4:46 pm
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    Mostly expats, tourist visas are not a problem for westerners,as I have experienced for the last 25 years, no matter where the consulate or embassy. Only once was I asked to show a return ticket, and that was at the embassy un Phnom Penh, whose (cambodian?) employees are notorious for appreciating “facilitating” tips.

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  • August 28, 2013 at 4:26 pm
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    The Thai authorities seem to revel in making Visa applications a painstaking process for foreigners, notably expats

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  • August 28, 2013 at 3:42 pm
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    They just keep making our lives easier and easier don’t they? And all for one reason only – to get more money for meaningless stamps form our wallets. I admire how you manage to keep your cool in your posts – I probably wouldn’t be able to avoid a few “F” words reporting on these issues.

    Reply

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