Vientiane,Laos

[vbkk]

Originally Posted by beerlao

I am glad I am back in Thailand too.

Good visa matters advice bro Soi6. KL is good for Non O Marriage, Bali is good for Non ED, Vientiane is good for Tourist Visa, Savannakhet is good for all especially Non O and Tourist Visa. Singapore is good for nothing.

Vientiane recently change it's chief of consular affairs and thus the more demanding requirements.

For Non Immigrant Visa applications, lack of documents will result in application rejected at Embassy. For Tourist Visa applications, having more than 3 will be specially sorted out and reconsidered by the approving officer. They will accept the application first but they can refuse giving the visa. Collection done the following day and if no visa sticker on passport means visa refused. Fees not refundable (though for sinkies it is just a waste of time and transport money as sinkies do not pay anything for visa).5 or more TR out of the question, they will send the applicant to the main gate.

Avoid Thurs and Mons at Vientiane where my 5 to 6 vans full of customers arrived to do their visas and also other visa agency customers. If there is no other option but to apply visa on these two days, then arrive at the embassy as early as 7am to be among the first in the queue.

I reckon the above mentioned scenario about having 3 or more tourist visa only applicable to the one at vientiane. And not savannakhet?

[playboy84]

Originally Posted by Soi6

Visa matters..

Its worthwhile to note that Thai embassies have become a bit more demanding during visa applications.

Depending on your visa you applied for,be prepared to show additional proof or documents which previously they never asked for.

The Thai embassy in Singapore sucks..period. Poor attitude and sullen staff.Really spoil your day types.

The Thai embassy in KL is easy w marriage visas but unfortunately refuses to entertain 'O' type visas. I dun know why.

Even the one in Vientiane seems more demanding. Not to mention long queues.
Have been asked to provide more documents which last year did not ask for. As the embassy hours are limited..ie morning for applications and afternoon for collections only..any lack of documents would mean an additional nite stay.

I wont elaborate on this but genuine queries can PM me.

I was one such person delayed but I have bro playboy84 to thank..cos he took some time to show me some nice places I not know about in Vientiane.

I am glad to get back to Thailand today. I hope not to see any beerlao for a long time to come.

Bro soi6 don mention it I still very PS as my friend is drunk n spoil the overall mood, the heavy rain oso spoil alot of action..... nice to know u bro n if I ever goes to Thai will definitely visit u

[beerlao]

Originally Posted by vbkk

I reckon the above mentioned scenario about having 3 or more tourist visa only applicable to the one at vientiane. And not savannakhet?

You can make your 4th TR at Savannakhet. After that you will have to change visa type to Non ED if you cannot qualify for Non O or Non B. Generally speaking, most embassies or consulates will refused TR to applicants who have been on TR and or visa exempt for more 1 year. Current rule now almost everywhere.

I also do not advise you to stay on TR for more than 1 year now else your profile will not be "clean" and subject to screening by Immigration at border. An Indonesia customer got his 4th TR from Savannakhet but was refused entry by Mukdahan Immigration and his visa cancelled. Reason for entry refusal given by Immigration was he is not a tourist even with TR and funds. Immigration told him his visa history is dubious. He was stuck and called me up for help. I told him his best option was to enrol to Thai school and get a Non ED so got my contact in 1 of the Thai school to arrange his documents and send over to Vientiane. He took a bus to Vientiane, stayed for 4 days while his documents are being processed and got his Non ED. But of cause, there are still people who gain entry on their 4th TR with no questions asked.

Rules can change without notice so check with me again nearer to your TR expiry if you want to know the latest ruling.

Sinkie in Thai news..
A 50 year old sinkie was caught with fake Thai ID, arrested and now released on THB 150,000 bail with passport impounded until investigations is complete. He is likely to be deported back once case closed and barred from entering the Kingdom for X number of years or even blacklisted. Thai Immigration goes hard on identify forging.

[vbkk]

Thanks for the information. Likely would go back SG clear some work and back to Thailand after this.

ICA goes hard on identity forging also. Banned for life if caught

[mrgolden]

according to my friends, they told me laos is worth to visit. i think they are right since they went there for many times a year

[beerlao]

Any sinkies in Vientiane?

[tresni888]

Savannakhet can anot @_@

[DavidF68]

back in Vientiane for a few days for a visa run.......

notice people keep talking about farms.... what are they and where are they located please?

Thanks

[picco]

Recently my non b visa expired and had to reapply my non b. My company lawyer advised me to go to vientiane as he cannot help me do the visa run for me even if i pay, so i take it as a holiday cum visa application trip with my family.

Everything was as said, but i turned up at 8.20am on a monday morning. I had someone to fill up the form for me at 100baht even though i can do it myself. Then the tout ask me whether i want a shortcut way though i need to pay. As my documents are all completed by my company lawyer, i don't need to pay for my visa. So after some deliberation, i decided to pay for their services for all the shortcuts so i can bring my family for sightseeing and not waste time queing.
Of course not without some negotiation, where eventually i settled for 3000baht.

Before me were loads of Filipinos, Caucasians and basically a long long queue.
So at 8.40am, i was brought in by the tout, showed my face to the officer at the counter when they called for me. I was kind of embarrassed as there were many people who were queing since early morning and i just skipped all of them.
At 8.45am, all was done, and the tout told me to go sightseeing and come collect passport the next day.

I think its quite worth it as i spent the whole morning visiting many temples and sightseeing places with my wife.
Next day i just had to wait at a nearby cafe and my tout passed me back my passport.
If u asked me for 3000baht, its expensive but money well spent as i can skip all the queue. I had a 3 month non b visa as i have a work permit. Didn't want to go for 1 year as advised by my lawyer as i am applying for marriage visa next.
so just take it as a chance to visit laos.

Btw stuff in laos is not really cheap as compared to thailand.

[fcykeu]

The crossing at the Mohan/Boten border was a breeze based on my experience in May, 2015.There were hardly any crowd at the IMM & the officers at both ends are friendly & helpful. With the closing of the casino, both Mohan & Boten have become ghost-towns and newly-built houses are mostly emptied. Yes, I find Laos pretty expensive compared to Thailand & nearby Chinese towns,like Jinghong or Mangla .I also find that public transport was a problem.

[beerlao]

Originally Posted by picco

Recently my non b visa expired and had to reapply my non b. My company lawyer advised me to go to vientiane as he cannot help me do the visa run for me even if i pay, so i take it as a holiday cum visa application trip with my family.

Everything was as said, but i turned up at 8.20am on a monday morning. I had someone to fill up the form for me at 100baht even though i can do it myself. Then the tout ask me whether i want a shortcut way though i need to pay. As my documents are all completed by my company lawyer, i don't need to pay for my visa. So after some deliberation, i decided to pay for their services for all the shortcuts so i can bring my family for sightseeing and not waste time queing.
Of course not without some negotiation, where eventually i settled for 3000baht.

Before me were loads of Filipinos, Caucasians and basically a long long queue.
So at 8.40am, i was brought in by the tout, showed my face to the officer at the counter when they called for me. I was kind of embarrassed as there were many people who were queing since early morning and i just skipped all of them.
At 8.45am, all was done, and the tout told me to go sightseeing and come collect passport the next day.

Allow me to share some tips so you can make your next visa run cheaper and faster.

1. Mons and Thurs morning are bad days to apply visa in Vientiane as these are the days visa agencies vans arrived. Either you start queuing at 7am to be the first in line or skip these two days to do your visa.

2. The touts outside the embassy is treating you a big carrot head. THB 3,000 just for you to cut the queue.

3. If your work in Thailand is going to exceed 3 months but you don't want to get a 1 year extension from Immigration, you could get a Multiple Entry Non "B" Visa from Penang.

[equalizer]

Originally Posted by picco

Btw stuff in laos is not really cheap as compared to thailand.

Vientiane is crazy expensive! A bowl of beef noodles can set you back more than US$2 (around 15-20000 LAK) that's like 65-70 THB!!

Everything from Laos is imported from Thailand so expect similar stuff to cost 20-30% more...China goods are cheaper but the food stuff, I would advise to avoid. I have stayed in China for periods of 2-3 months and found that the food stuff you might find in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand Supermarkets are not available in China Supermarkets...just export go figure if that is good or bad!!

Good luck in Laos!

[finn2046]

Any bro at Vientiane next month around 9 Feb...

[youngciku]

any bros free to bring me around vientiane this week ? I am here now on work assignment..

[asiancigar]

Originally Posted by youngciku

any bros free to bring me around vientiane this week ? I am here now on work assignment..

Shouldn't it be "Any Bros free to cheong together, dinner and drinks on me off course"

Cheerz
AC