The use of a Thai Visa application to generally refer to visiting the immigration office or Thai embassy/consulate overseas to obtain, renew or extend an entry permit is a common misnomer among baffled neophyte expats in Thailand. While the difference doesn’t really matter to the common Thai visa applicant whose main concern is to successfully obtain his pass, it certainly helps to be familiar with these different terms especially for future reference in relation to the maintenance of your long term visa in Thailand. Below are the common terminologies that are used in applying for a Thailand Visa:

Thai visa application as the word implies generally refers to obtaining an entry permit from the Thai embassy or consulate abroad. Depending on your circumstances and the type of entry permit being applied for it can also be done inside Thailand. Thai Visa application is the initial procedure prior to Thai visa extension as current entry permits are subject to extensions when needed. For example, the usual retirement visa application procedure starts with a NON O Visa application from the Thai embassy applicant’s home country. This is usually a 90-day pass. The same process goes with the Non B application. An initial 90-day B visa is given to the applicant during the application. These initial visas are then extended into one year retirement or one year or another 90 day B visas as long as the requirements are met.

Thai Visa extension, therefore, is carried out to lengthen or extend current entry permits whose validity is due for extension. The extension is granted as long as requirements are met. Extensions are normally done at any immigration office across the kingdom. A 60-day tourist visa for example can be extended for one month at the at the immigration office for a fee of 1900 Baht.

Thai Visa Conversion refers to the switching from one visa type to another. Say a business to a retirement visa. There are certain travel documents that can be switched without the necessity to leave Thailand. If you have a competent visa agent then you may need to go out of the country anymore when switching the said travel document into another type.

Thai Visa renewal is another term you may need to wont yourself to especially if you are not a Thai PR holder in Thailand. Most long term entry permits are good for one year however they are subject to renewal with the proper requirements. A retirement visa for example is renewed for another year as long as you have the required funds. A marriage visa can be renewed as long as you are still married and you have the required funds. The good thing about this type of renewal is that it’s simple and straightforward as long as you have the requirements.

Thai Visa Validity refers to the entire period the visa is valid. This is normally stamped in your passport when you enter to Thailand so you have to be wary with this date to avoid overstay fine later on. This should not be confused with the validity of the visa (or the grace period) prior to entering Thailand once the visa is obtained from the Thai embassy abroad. This is normally indicated with the phrase “ENTER BEFORE (DATE)” in the visa itself.

Tags : Thailand Business, Thailand Legal, Thailand News

Bangkok is the spoke in the proverbial wheel for anyone seeking to do business in the Far East. When living, working, or investing in Thailand it may become necessary to retain legal advice. For Thai legal matters, it is always advisable to retain a Thai attorney. However, in transactions involving multiple jurisdictions, it may be necessary to hire an attorney licensed in a jurisdiction other than Thailand. A major obstacle often faced when searching for a foreign attorney: separating the, “wheat from the chaff,” because Thailand has no mechanism for registering and regulating foreign lawyers.

In Asian jurisdictions such as Singapore and Hong Kong (to name just two) the authorities have promulgated legislation for registering and monitoring the activities of practicing foreign lawyers. The upshot of this system is a foreign legal community that is transparent and above board. In Thailand, the activities of foreign lawyers and “consultants,” are left in a somewhat gray area. Thailand, as a member of the World Trade Organization, has signaled its intent to open its market to international trade and services. However, Thailand has yet to implement many of the provisions required by the WTO most notably, for the purposes of this article, the provisions dealing with foreign attorney registration.

Under the foreign business act of 1999, foreigners are barred from practicing law, but a foreigner can conceivably obtain a foreign business license in order to operate a legal service business under list three in the appendix to the foreign business act. Thailand legislation seems to have distinguished between the practice of law and the opaque term, “legal service business.” The distinction between these two terms seems to turn upon whether a firm practices litigation.

Due to Thailand’s inaction with regard to her WTO obligations, the question as to foreign lawyers practicing foreign law in Thailand is precarious. The result of this slightly odd legal situation is that those people (both Thai and foreign) seeking foreign legal advice are at risk of using the services of someone who has no formal legal training. By putting a mechanism in place to regulate foreign lawyers other governments have ensured that those practicing foreign law are qualified to do so in their jurisdiction of licensure. By not having such legislation in place, laypeople could be easily duped by someone who has no business dispensing legal advice.

Tags : Bangkok Legal, Thailand, Thailand Business