CCSA: 'Six groups of foreigners are allowed to go to Thailand'
Image: Bangkok Post
The Center for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) on Monday approved the plan to allow six groups of foreigners, including tourists, into Thailand. The start-up of tourism is necessary to somewhat repair the damage the Covid-19 pandemic has caused to the economy.
CCSA spokesperson Taweesilp Visanuyothin said yesterday that easing travel restrictions is needed to help businesses in Thailand. The CCSA has defined six groups of foreigners who are allowed to travel to Thailand:
- Foreign athletes who will participate in a cycling race.
- Foreign pilots and THAI Airways personnel on repatriation flights.
- Holders of a Non-immigrant visa without a work permit but with a company in Thailand.
- Long stay tourists with a Special Tourist Visa.
- Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation Business Travel Card holders from low-risk countries.
- Foreigners who want to stay in Thailand for at least 60 days and can prove that they have at least 6 baht in their bank account in the past 500.000 months.
Prime Minister Prayut confirmed on Monday that the CCSA has discussed reopening the country with a focus on business travelers and tourists. However, measures will be taken to control foreign arrivals and to minimize the risk of infections. He stressed that the government must devise a comprehensive plan to stimulate the economy over the next three months and urged the public to comply: “We have to get the economy going in the next three months. If we do nothing, it will only get worse.”
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Health Anutin Charnvirakul said Thailand is able to contain the number of infections. He confirmed that the idea of limiting the quarantine period for tourists from low-risk countries to 7 days is being discussed. He also said that the "Phuket model" is off the table because the plan was not feasible.
Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn also says that shortening the quarantine period from 14 days to seven days is possible, but that this must be done step by step. His ministry has proposed halving the period to seven days in mid-November if the first two batches of 300 foreigners complete their 14-day quarantine on Oct. 15 and Oct. 21, without a positive case.
Arrivals of the first international tourists are expected at the beginning of October. Among them is a group of 150 Chinese tourists from Guangzhou who plan to fly to Phuket on October 8 on a charter flight.
Source: Bangkok Post
The latter category - which now just appears out of the blue - seems to offer an opening for the long-stayers who have been excluded until now. I am curious about the further elaboration, but there must be another catch in the grass…
That opening does indeed seem to be coming. The website of the Thai Embassy in Helsinki now describes the procedure for those with a non-immigrant visa OA.
https://helsinki.thaiembassy.org/en/publicservice/application-procedure-for-certificate-of-entry-coe-for-the-holder-of-a?page=5f49f4a199a85e260f4278de&menu=5d80876d15e39c3354007bb1
In theory and with rose colored glasses on , category 6 could apply to the retired categories , who anyway almost all have the necessary 500 000 via the 800 000 in their bank , and their 1 year extension also proves their planned long residence , for some also through eg a purchased condo in their name .
Where would that viper be now? LOL
Pfft,
Things are starting to get moving.
Very wise to open Thailand now that the 2nd wave is swelling. Not so.
But ok before you can enter Thailand there are still a lot of requirements (vipers) to follow.
Covid statement no older than 72 hours prior to departure. This is already not working in the Netherlands, mismanagement by Hugo de Jonge.
14 days of quarantine on arrival before you can continue, 2 tests, everything to be paid by yourself.
Health insurance with incl covid treatment worth 100000 dollars.
Since no fully loaded planes depart, it concerns charters. That costs something.
The first group is therefore only 150 Chinese with a charter flight. And very strange the Chinese have no more turnout in covid cases, until now.
But the next problem will be when the Americans discover that covid was deliberately released by the Chinese, then we start with WW3.
You can do a Covid test at a commercial party and then you will receive a neat report. GGD does not issue an English statement, but you can easily obtain one elsewhere. Another typical reaction that shows little knowledge!
@Peter,
What's wrong with experimenting with countries in the region first? It remains difficult for many Western people to accept that China is going to become a significant player and I dare say that you have also contributed to it. China as the factory of the world and no one who saw it as a threat, so don't complain afterwards.
China may not be the sweetest boy in the class, but they will have to deal with it.
Dear readers,
Today dated 29-09-2020 I had contact with the Thai embassy in The Hague. Non Immigrant OA and OX holders are allowed to re-enter Thailand from today. All other Non Immigrant O visas will expire.
I have a Non Immigrant O Multiple Entry visa that I have never used, but have never used. The embassy told me very clearly that I cannot exchange my Non O for OA, but have to go through the application procedure again for a Non Immigrant OA.
regards
Rob
One strange decision after another, pffft… Oh no, OA does. Curious what the background is.
'Nice' if, as an O holder, you were indeed obliged to apply for an OA (with the associated insurance obligation, separate from the Covid insurance).
And a Certificate of Good Conduct.
Well, there are more conditions
https://hague.thaiembassy.org/th/page/76475-non-immigrant-visa-o-a-(long-stay)?menu=5d81cce815e39c2eb8004f12
Very confusing explanation ?
How would holders of a Non OA visa be allowed to re-enter Thailand? Based on what? I think only people with a Special Tourist Visa are allowed in and there are only a handful.
An ordinary pensioner without family in Thailand or domicile cannot get in, even with a Non Immigrant OA.
To enter Thailand now you need a Certificate of Entry and you can also get that if you already have a NON -O visa and a still valid re-Entry. You must then belong to the people who are allowed to return … such as married people or people with children or people who have been put to work in Thailand and so on….
Is in the Netherlands and wants to go back to my girlfriend in Thailand. Rent a house there on contract for 3 years. Visa O valid until 04-03-2021. With valid reintry. Ask can I return. BVD.
No. You are not normally eligible with your current visa. Rent, girlfriend, etc doesn't matter and is currently not enough.
If we see what is stated on certain websites of embassies, it should be possible since yesterday if you apply for an OA or OX.
And otherwise wait and hope that it will be possible again before 04/03/21 with your Non-immigrant O.
People with an OA can apparently travel back in, do they also have to meet the entire Corona story of requirements? I don't read that in the rules of Thai Embassy The Hague, but in Helsinki.
But the question is even more, people with OA who are now in Thailand, can they just extend it for 1 year without the Corona bells and whistles?
Regarding your last question: I don't think those people should be quarantined after all....
Let's not give them ideas. 😉
And why should they not meet the Corona requirements.
Click on number 7
https://hague.thaiembassy.org/th/content/118896-measures-to-control-the-spread-of-covid-19?page=5f4d1bea74187b0491379162&menu=5f4cc50a4f523722e8027442
https://image.mfa.go.th/mfa/0/SRBviAC5gs/COVID19/1_11_non_Thai_nationals_who_are_permitted_to_enter_the_Kingdom_under_a_special_arrangement_(Non_OA_OX). Pdf
When applying for a visa and entry, they must meet the corona requirements / measures just like others.
There are currently no other requirements for extension than those that existed before the corona.
Rob,
how can they cancel the Non immigrant O with re-entry visa, there are plenty of people who have such a visa and have already been let in, they change every time and I don't think the embassy remembers either
I wonder if, for example, Non Immigrant O will be cancelled. As a parent of a child with Thai nationality, I think I am eligible as an applicant for a Non Immigrant O visa based on the 2nd group mentioned (I have translated the text from the Thai embassy website into Dutch): “2) to provide or receive support from the person whose nationality is Thai or the foreigner who has been granted patronage in Thailand as parents, spouse or child and who is part of that person's household.”
My old Non-Immigrant visa O had already expired last June and I have to apply for a new one. Better wait for the official messages as published by the embassy and others and only then can you say something about the various visas.
It probably only concerns the issuing of Non-immigrant visas on the basis of “Retirement” and you must go through the alternative, ie an OA or OX.
But as you rightly say, a Non-immigrant O can be awarded for other reasons and there is not always an alternative for this than the Non-immigrant O.
Read
“It probably only concerns issuing Non-immigrant O visas on the basis of “Retirement” and you will have to go through the alternative, ie go through an OA or OX.”
If Non Immigrant O would no longer be accepted, why did I receive yet another year extension on this basis this month?
Do not compare an application for a visa with an extension of a period of stay.
It may well be that temporarily no Non-immigrant O visas on the basis of Retirement are issued by the embassies, but then it has to do with entry.
Has nothing to do with the extension of your stay in Thailand.
Dear Rob
You look rather one-sidedly at the Non-immigrant O visa.
You may not be aware of this, but a Non-immigrant O is not only for “Retired” but can be purchased for various reasons, for example Thai Marriage.
The fact that the Non-immigrant O is currently no longer awarded on the basis of “Retired” may very well be, but that all Non-immigrant O will therefore be canceled is rather short-sighted.
On what basis should married people go to Thailand or do you think they are all over 50?
And of course you cannot simply exchange a Non-immigrant O for an OA. The conditions are also completely different. And that is why with an OA you also receive 1 year of residence instead of 90 days (O) upon entry
Compare it to buying an apple and then going back and asking if you can exchange the apple for a whole box. Whether you then say that you have not yet taken a bite out of the apple will make little difference, I think. 😉 (just kidding)
I thought the Elite Card Members TH were also allowed in, didn't they?
That's right, an Australian friend emailed me that he can travel to Thailand from Australia at the beginning of October thanks to his Elite Card, so not with a charter flight.
While it's not a cost-effective solution, it could probably get some people out of trouble.
A one-off amount of money for the purchase for 5 years and who knows, Thailand has become more accessible after that time.
There is an exit ban. You can only travel out of Australia with a permit from the Ministry of the Interior, or Home Affairs.
The Elite Card, if you do not belong to one of the beneficiary categories, is currently still insufficient to my information to enter Thailand, but that can change by the minute….
My 79 year old Australian friend has been given permission to travel to Thailand at the beginning of October, using his Elite Card and after taking out a very expensive Thai health insurance policy.
He has already been assigned a quarantine hotel at the beginning of Sukhumvit rd.
He does not belong to a special category, has no property in Thailand and is not married to a Thai person, does not have a work permit and has no medical reasons to travel to Thailand.
Good to hear it's possible! That insurance will indeed be very expensive, at his age.
In his case it is because he does not have Australian travel insurance that covers Cofid-19.
For the time being, regarding Elite Card holders, only the following information can be found on the website of the embassies in The Hague and Brussels.
Brussels
“For Thailand Privilege Cardholders, please contact Thailand Privilege Card Co., Ltd. (Thailand Elite) directly to request for authorization. At this stage, without authorization from Thailand, the Royal Thai Embassy cannot issue COE for Elite cardholders.”
https://www.thaiembassy.be/2020/07/09/application-for-certificate-of-entry-for-non-thai-nationals/?lang=en
The Hague
6. Non-Thai National holding a valid Thailand Elite Card >> please contact Thailand Elite for more information : http://www.thailandelite.com
https://hague.thaiembassy.org/th/content/118896-measures-to-control-the-spread-of-covid-19?page=5f4d1bea74187b0491379162&menu=5f4cc50a4f523722e8027442
Is all that officially confirmed by Thai Government or just news reported in Bangkok Post?
On the website of the Thai embassy in The Hague or Brussels, I do not yet see any information regarding access for OA or OX holders, but it can still come, of course.
It is also not clear to me where this suddenly came from or when this was decided.
Perhaps we will get more clarity in the next few days.
This option is also on the website of the Thai embassy in Bern, so it must have a basis somewhere.
For those who doubt whether a re-entry is also valid. It is the visa or a valid re-entry, but I suspect that it may also only be a re-entry based on a period of stay obtained with an OA/OX visa.
“-(3) A copy of your valid OA or OX visa. In case of re-entry to Thailand, please also
submit the valid re-entry permission.”
https://thaiembassy.ch/files_upload/editor_upload/VISA/1601376550_instruction-o-ao-x-visa29sepsemi-commercial-flights.pdf
OA and OX are real “retirement visas” and for retirees (officially 50+ but locally that age can sometimes be raised) this might be a possibility.
It's not clear to me where this came from either. Can think of something. It is understood that the OA Visa holder is a "permanent" tourist who brings in quite a bit. Health Minister Anutin has sung a tune since he saw a Farang brushing his teeth and washing a shirt.
The insight has come that this group should also be in the picture, that its numbers that one would like to see come, stop with the amateurish stuff of a few hundred tourists here and there, where we talked about millions in the past, stop with domestic tourism, just a day is a belch.
Another important question, the responses mainly talk about travelers. But what about the OA Visa holders who are now in Thailand, no hassle with Corona? In quarantine? etc., what requirements apply to them upon renewal?
The requirements that also apply to the corona measures when extending a period of stay obtained with a Non-immigrant OA visa.
There is currently no mention anywhere that other measures would apply to applications for annual renewals than for the Corona measures. Not for periods of residence obtained with a Non-immigrant O, not for periods of residence obtained with a Non-immigrant OA and also not for those who reside here as a “dependent”.
Read “Still the same requirements that already applied before the corona situation when extending a period of stay obtained with a Non-immigrant OA visa.
Now that Elite Card holders are eligible, I suspect that hopefully people who have a 'retirement visa' with a 're-entry permit' will be able to enter Thailand this year, provided they have valid health insurance and a negative Corona test result.
It is about time, high time, that the Thai government takes action and creates clarity for the people who have had a “Non Immigrant O” visa for years…People who have been staying here for years, supporting a family, sending children to college…Paying for university…to to give them the chance to make Thailand even better…So many “retired” with a “retirement visa non immigrant O” have been staying here for years and have contributed enormously to the development of this country…Is Thailand going to make life impossible for these people? Will Thailand impose impossible conditions to allow these people to stay here with their Thai families? I can understand that Thailand has conditions…But…now look at the conditions to re-enter Thailand. Insurance that covers $100.000….Understandable….But why doesn't Thailand offer affordable insurance for the countless farangs that help this country? Do the farangs have to take out prohibitive policies that also end at a certain age? The Thai government could offer/develop an affordable insurance….where the farangs could pay an EQUITY contribution….It would only benefit the government….But not a single moron in this government is up to date on this idea e come….
I don't know where this comes from for the OA holders either, give it a try. The tone of Minister Anutin of Health has been considerably adjusted by him. He apparently saw a Farang brush his teeth or wash a shirt.
The value of the "permanent" annual tourist has now rightly been rediscovered and kept in house with the interests of this target group. Right, just in time, because an exodus of 50+ was imminent. It is also acknowledged that massive numbers must be worked, otherwise the much-needed recovery will not come.
1. Thai Embassy The Hague.
Meanwhile, regarding Non-immigrant OA and OX, it has also appeared on the website of the Thai Embassy in The Hague
Click on number 7
https://hague.thaiembassy.org/th/content/118896-measures-to-control-the-spread-of-covid-19?page=5f4d1bea74187b0491379162&menu=5f4cc50a4f523722e8027442
https://image.mfa.go.th/mfa/0/SRBviAC5gs/COVID19/1_11_non_Thai_nationals_who_are_permitted_to_enter_the_Kingdom_under_a_special_arrangement_(Non_OA_OX). Pdf
And since I regularly see the question which visa and whether a re-entry is also valid.
“1.2 Copy of the passport and if applicable, the copy of the valid visa and re-entry permit.”
.....
“6. Apart from a valid visa (visa exemption not applicable / tourist visa not allowed), ..”
Typ.
For those who have obtained a year extension on the basis of “Retirement” with a Non-immigrant O and with a valid “re-entry” I would advise to ask again now. You never know. This OA possibility has suddenly come out of the blue.
Then ask the question correctly and do not conceal that the residence period was previously obtained with a Non-immigrant O, otherwise you may run into this at a later stage.
State that you have a valid residency period, ie a “Retirement” year extension that was granted by Immigration on a Non-Immigrant O basis and you still hold a valid re-entry for it.
Of course you won't be exempt from the COVID-19 entry measures, but who knows?
2. Thai Embassy Brussels
On the website of the Thai embassy in Brussels, I currently do not find any information about the possibility for OA / OX visa holders.
But a re-entry is also accepted there.
“2.2 A valid visa or re-entry permit”
https://www.thaiembassy.be/2020/07/09/application-for-certificate-of-entry-for-non-thai-nationals/?lang=en