Thailand Visa question No. 090/24: Which visa/period of stay with a Surinamese passport?

Questioner: Prim

You previously advised me well and to my complete satisfaction regarding my visa questions I had (Thailand Visa question No. 426/22: A year in Thailand. What are the options?). I have already been there 4 times, three times with a multiple entry visa. For my next visit on August 6, I no longer know exactly which visa I should apply for. I've looked at:
a. Multiple Entry Tourist Visa (METV).
b. Non-immigrant O Multiple entry visa (Retirement)
c. Non-immigrant OA Multiple entry visas

Due to my country of birth and residence, and passport, (Suriname) I am dependent on the Embassy of Thailand in Brasilia, and I must send my application to them via FedEx. It usually lasts a month if there are no complications.
For my upcoming trip, I have asked the Consular Section of the Thai Embassy in Brasilia for advice on which visa I will need. They answered me as follows:

“Thank you for your email and queries.
It is, however, outside of the purview of the consular officer to indicate the appropriate type of visa that suits your future needs as there might be unforeseen factors and circumstances that arise.
Best, “

Therefore, my request to you as to which visa I should apply for. My passport does not have an option for an E-visa or a Visa Upon Arrival. My situation:
– Departure to Thailand (Surat Thani) on August 6, 2024
– From Thailand, departure to the USA on September 1, 2024, for a friend's wedding, and back in Thailand on September 19, 2024.
– In October 2024, my partner and I want to get married “For the Buddha” and spend the rest of my future together in Thailand (as long as she does not retire (8 years) from the government where she now works), so Retirement in Thailand.
– During my stay in Thailand I will go on holiday from Thailand more often.

May I ask you again for your advice in this situation? I am very grateful to you for this.

Reaction RonnyLatYa

The Visa exemption is indeed not available for people from Suriname and they must at least apply for a Tourist visa.

It's a pity that you have not previously applied for a one-year extension during your previous stays. The only thing you have to do if you want to leave Thailand during that year extension is to apply for a re-entry, so that you do not lose that year extension when leaving Thailand. When you return, you will always receive the end date of your annual extension. But you can do as you did before to apply for your visa. Too bad about that detour through Brazil.

Although I would personally drop the period from August 6 to September 1. We are talking about barely 3 weeks here. But that's your decision of course. I would then immediately leave from the USA on September 19.

– You can already apply for a Tourist visa for this. With or without Multiple entry.

Upon arrival you will receive a stay of 60 days, possibly extendable once by 30 days. During such a stay period you can then convert that Tourist visa to a Non-immigrant O. You must do that, because to obtain a one-year extension you must have Non-immigrant status. You can find what you need for this here. Make sure that there are at least 2 weeks of stay remaining when submitting the application: https://bangkok.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022C1_09.pdf

If permitted, you will first receive a 90-day stay. You can then extend those 90 days by one year and you can then repeat that extension annually. The financial requirements will be known by now.

– You can also immediately apply for a Non-immigrant O. Upon arrival on September 19, you will immediately receive 90 days, which you can extend for a year and repeat this extension annually. You don't have to convert anything in Thailand.

– You can also apply for a Non-immigrant OA, but keep in mind that you will also have to prove health insurance, even if you want to apply for an extension later and much more proof is required when applying. Personally, I find that a less interesting visa.

– If you really want to be in Thailand during the period from August 8 to September 1, you can also do the following.

– You apply for a Multiple Entry Tourist Visa (METV). Has a validity period of 6 months. During those 6 months you can enter Thailand as often as you want. Upon arrival you will always receive a new stay period of 60 days, which you can extend once by 30 days. Any of those 60 days can then be converted to a Non-immigrant O in Thailand.

– You can enter with a Non-immigrant O on August 6 and will immediately receive 90 days. Will be sometime until November 6th. Before you leave Thailand on September 1, you must apply for re-entry. This way you will not lose the period of residence until November 6. When you return on September 19, you will again receive the end date of November 6 due to re-entry. You will then still have plenty of time to apply for a one-year extension.

– You could also do the latter with a Tourist visa Single entry of course. If you arrive on August 6, you will be granted a stay until October 6. Apply for a re-entry before departure and upon your return you will again have your period of stay until October 6, which you can possibly extend by 30 days. There is still time to request your conversion to Non-immigrant O.

Such a Single re-entry costs 1000 Baht. If you later want a Multiple re-entry on your annual extension because you want to leave Thailand several times during that annual extension, it will cost 3800 Baht. If you leave Thailand more than 3 times during a one-year extension, it is therefore more interesting to request a Multiple re-entry. Otherwise you will be better off financially with 1, 2 or 3 Single re-entries.

You can obtain this not only at your immigration office, but also at the airport.

- For your information.

“Getting married for the Buddha” is a nice ceremony for you and probably also those around you, but officially it does not have any values ​​that you could use when applying for a period of residence. For this you have to get officially married.

Good luck in advance.

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