Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests the question is being posed: "should I get my Thai Business Visa before I come to Thailand?"

Now in the past, the answer to that was an unquestionable yes. However, dealing with sort of the immediate aftermath of all the COVID stuff and yes the Emergency Decree has gone, but it may be, I stress may, under very, very specific circumstances it may be possible to convert into a Business Visa here in Thailand. Again Business Visa conversion just like any conversion in-country, is discretionary on the part of the Thai Immigration Officer reviewing the case. Meanwhile the overall, the prevailing paradigm is those who are in Thailand and going from one Non-Immigrant Visa status to another or Tourist Visa status into Non-Immigrant Visa status or Exemption status into Non-Immigrant Visa status need to go ahead and deal with leaving the country and coming back in on their proper Visa status. The prevailing paradigm pre-quarter 2 of 2020 was "hey you need to come through and get your visa before you come. You need to go to the Embassy, get your visa then come in." They're not going to convert it. That paradigm changed a lot because a lot of people didn't have any choice. Immigration Officers were granted a great deal of discretion. We are still seeing a little residual of that, kind of a holdover. I am not overly optimistic that that is going to stay something that is going to be a viable option. Even now, I have seen circumstances where it is not possible to convert. So, the best way to come in is to come in with a Business Visa. Barring that, if you are dealing with a legal professional who can assist, it may be possible to deal with that upon arrival but it's not necessarily a foregone conclusion.