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As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing Business Visas, specifically Thai Business Visas and applications associated with Thai Business Visas in 2022. I sometimes do videos at the end of a given year where I take a Visa category both US and Thai, and just do a quick roundup and some things off the top of my head that I am thinking about may be an issue going into the new year.

With Thai Business Visas we saw a number of folks coming to Thailand utilizing Business Visas in the past year and a half especially under the priority scheme in mid-2020, back in the summer of 2020, Work Permit holders were the only people with able to get into Thailand. Now things have any, the restrictions have eased but Business Visas remain a high priority Visa category; I don't think that is going to go anywhere. Those that have work authorization will likely be able to enter Thailand I mean unless they do a full lockdown where even Thai Nationals, Permanent Residents can't regain entry. I can see a scenario where B Visa, Work Permit holders into '22, if something were to arise are probably still going to be prioritized in the same way that they were back in 2020. Now that is not a foregone conclusion and we all hope we don't see any circumstances like that arising in the forthcoming year but things to kind of think about with respect to Business Visas is one thing I think is going to get harder in 2022 for folks who are in other Visa categories to convert into Business Visa. During the, especially when Immigration was granted a higher level of discretion in response to the COVID situation, it was increasingly and it was not a foregone conclusion, Visa conversion was difficult in a Business Visa context in any event but it was possible under certain circumstances to get somebody moved from say a Tourist Visa or in some cases like a Spousal Visa over to a Business Visa in their own right and get them a Work Permit in Thailand which prior to all of this with somewhat unheard. They really wanted to see people especially Non-Immigrant categories, leave and come back in on the proper visa and then extend that rather than convert in-country. Again, there were sort of exigent circumstances so they allowed it on a case by case basis and I saw cases that were not allowed. They basically said "yeah this doesn't warrant a favourable exercise of discretion" but in 2021 for the most part Immigration was at least open-minded. 

As hopefully the situation continues to improve and all these restrictions and travel restrictions and things begin to abate, hopefully we will see things start to reopen. The upshot of that is, it is very possible that Immigration may take the position yet again that they would prefer folks who are not in a Business Visa to leave Thailand and come back in in a Business Visa which that can create issues and I could see that being a possibility especially in the latter half of 2022.