This is exactly why I had not viewed the education visa as a good path. Increasing hassle.anamericaninbangkok wrote:
Thais know exactly what foreigners are trying to do in getting long-term education and tourist visas. If you want to live in the country, you really need to do things legally. The days of old are pretty much gone. ...............
If you're on an education visa you need to go to the class. You do know that if you just pay for an education visa and blow it off that in doing so you could be deported? Some of the schools will report you if you don't go. You have to pay for the tuition and it helps to know Thai so why ask for trouble? Why not just go to class? It's only like 4 hours a week!
But four hours a week - is great news. I had no idea it was such a small time commitment. I was expecting ot to be about 20 hours a week like a normal total-immersion language school.
So education visa can be done for three years straight wothout leaving (if legitimately atttending class)? Excellent!anamericaninbangkok wrote: It is no piece of cake to gain residency here, it's expensive, and the benefits are few IMO. You need to be here 3 years straight on a one-year visa (no problem here)
This sounds like you'te talking about citizenship, not residency. The ceremony where you swear allegiance to the king.anamericaninbangkok wrote: AND the Thai government only grants 100 residency permits a year.
So you get a 6 month visa but have to leave in 90 days? Not impressive.anamericaninbangkok wrote: ......you would need to fly to somewhere that gives multiple entry tourist visas, like Savannakhet in Laos.... You'll receive a 6 month multiple entry tourist visa. ......Anyhow, you come back to Thailand, at the end of the two months, go to immigration and get a 30-day extension. At the end of that 30 days, you need to do a visa run.
By old style do you mean a tunnel or chamber-like radiation scanner where you stand still, or do you mean the simple rectangular-pipe metal detector that you just walk straight through - which has been in use since the 1970's?anamericaninbangkok wrote: Bangkok's airports are very mellow compared to the US airports. The do use scanners but they're the old style scanners.