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ResourcesVisa & Immigration LawThailand Immigration Law"Holes" in Visa Status and the Impact on PR Applications in Thailand

"Holes" in Visa Status and the Impact on PR Applications in Thailand

Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing Thai Immigration and Visa matters; specifically visa applications and subsequent applications for Permanent Residence. 

So specifically what I am talking about today is so-called "holes" in one's visa status. And what do we mean by a hole? Well what I mean to say basically is, if you have got a Thai B Visa and you extend it, you extend it in one year increments, okay let's say that individual that has that extension, misses and allows their visa to expire without getting the application in regarding extension prior to the Visas expiration, so it has a one-year expiration. If an application to further extend is not lodged within that one year, the Visa goes ahead and expires. 

Well first of all you have got issues with respect to what is called overstay. You need to get out of the country if that does transpire and go ahead and pay overstay fines, get out and get a new Business Visa to come back in and extend further.  But the reason that this is important for subsequent Permanent Residence application is because one of the requirements with respect to a Permanent Residence application is that the B Visa or the O visa, whatever visa is being used as a platform for a work permit and I get into that specifically this issue with respect to work permits in another video on this channel, but either one of those that is used as the platform for the work permit, one who is applying for a Permanent Residence in the Kingdom of Thailand,  that individual needs to go ahead and show three contiguous years of status in the Kingdom, be it B status  or O status, either of those visa categories again along with a work permit which I get into another video, you need to have three continuous years.  By having a “hole” you have to start all over again.  It essentially restarts the clock with respect to that 3 contiguous years requirement. So this can have a dramatic impact upon someone's ability to go ahead and apply for Permanent Residence. It can also have a dramatic impact upon one who has already applied for Permanent Residence and is pending the adjudication of that application, especially if that application is rejected on the first time around and a re-application has to be made that “hole” can result in even further delay in being able to re-file an application.

So the thing to take away from this video is,  those who are serious about possibly becoming Permanent Residents in the Kingdom of Thailand need to assiduously keep track of their immigration status, make sure that they don't fall into a “hole”, as we say it here in this video, and doing that and having the three contiguous or more years necessary to file for the PR application, again you got to be very diligent in maintaining one's vigilance with respect to that issue, because failure to do so can result in substantial delays with respect to a PR application.