Can I convert my children's tourist visa to an ED visa while in Thailand?

You're right that a DTV can't be applied for from inside Thailand. It has to be applied for in the country of the applicant's nationality, or a country where they hold permanent residence, so a nearby country wouldn't work for the children unless they have permanent residence there. I'd also steer clear of overstaying. It is fined by the day, usually 500 THB, capped at 20,000 THB, and it stays on the passport record, which brings more questions and documents for later visas and extensions.

You're right that a DTV can't be applied for from inside Thailand. It has to be applied for in the country of the applicant's nationality, or a country where they hold permanent residence, so a nearby country wouldn't work for the children unless they have permanent residence there. I'd also steer clear of overstaying. It is fined by the day, usually 500 THB, capped at 20,000 THB, and it stays on the passport record, which brings more questions and documents for later visas and extensions.

I would take the kids back to the UK for xmas and apply for the dtv. The main applicant doesn't have to be there if that helps you at all, only the children that's applying. I personally wouldn't over stay just because you never know if an overstay stamp will negatively affect them in the future

Go back to the UK and do things properly.

Can u change dtv to ed

Usually no fine for kids under 14

You don’t both need to come back, send him back with the kids to add them to his DTV and mum can save the air fair and have a bit of a break without them all 👍🏻

This all sounds a bit messy. Are your children dependents on your DTV or on a tourist exempt status (30 days)?

Do not over stay your visa requirements (if you're talking about you and your partner) as this will likely have an impact upon future visa applications and/or entry to the country.

Do not use a "shady" agent as you have no idea what future ramifications will unravel in the future.

An ED visa for your children can be applied for in a neighbouring country, however if they're a dependent on your DTV you'll most likely need to contact the embassy/consulate that issued their status to get it cancelled.

Don't make it more complicated than it needs to be as you will eventually fall foul of processes that you have no control over.

Do you mind sharing why didn’t education visa conversion work out? We are about to do the same and school has told us it’s possible?

Why did the ED visas not work out?

Your kids need to be in the UK to apply for a DTV.

But kids under the age of 15 don't get fined for overstay and under the age of 18 they don't get a ban, just an overstay stamp in their passport. From a Thai perspective that stamp is pretty meaningless

You can't go to a nearby country to add your kids to your DTV unless you have perm residency there.

Just leave and come back from a short trip, don't overstay if possible