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Do you need to be in your home country to apply for a Digital Nomad Visa in Thailand?

Digital Nomad Visa DTV Visa Application Requirements Thailand Visa Process Expats in Thailand Travel Costs Embassy Information E-Visa Foreign Residency Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE)

Jul 17, 2024

5 months ago

Julian **********

ORIGINAL POSTER

DTV Requirements seem clear with the exception of 1 critical items related to the application.

1. Do you need to be in your local passport country to apply?

As an example, for me, traveling back to USA would be significantly more expensive and time consuming then a neighboring country. Also, if it takes more then 30 days, I risk breaking the "FEIE" (foreign earned income exclusion) law. 

USA travel + cost to stay would easily be 150k+ baht. Rather then say going to Vietnam for 30k.

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TLDR : Answer Summary

The conversation discusses whether applicants for Thailand's Digital Nomad Visa (DTV) need to apply from their home country. Various comments mention that while some embassies allow applications from neighboring countries, it may not be true for all locations or visa types. Details provided about specific embassies, such as those in Malaysia and Vientiane, suggest that eligibility may vary. Overall, it’s emphasized that applicants should contact the embassy directly for the most accurate information.

DTV VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES

Take the basic DTV Qualification Test to see if you're eligible for the Destination Thailand Visa (DTV).
For immediate assistance, contact Thai Visa Centre directly via LINE at @ThaiVisaCentre or Email them.
Explore recent discussions by using the DTV Visa tag in the search box at the top of the page.
Join the Thai Visa Advice Facebook Group to ask your questions, and get advice from others.

Julian **********

ORIGINAL POSTER

I'm pretty sure they can check your passport and flight records. Also, if you apply from say Malaysia, the document requirement means you have to show you are living in malaysia?

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Kieran *******

@Julian *********

I’ll let everyone know the answers soon as I’m applying in Malaysia in the next day or two. I spoke with the embassy and they said it should be fine

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Julian **********

ORIGINAL POSTER

hi how did your application go?

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Eva *********

are you applying as a remote worker or for Muay Thai etc?

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Kieran *******

I am applying as a remote worker.

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Kieran *******

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Julian **********

ORIGINAL POSTER

Okay great, I am wondering, since it's online, if I can just apply at the US embassy and show i have an active driver license there still along with a bank account registered there. Do we know if E-visas only can be applied for if you're physically in the country?

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Henrik *****

I think you forgot, that you get a stamp in your passport when you enter Thailand, and they put that information into something called a computer.

Then it will take them 30 seconds to see you have traveled into Thailand, but you have not left yet, so they will denie your application, keep the fee, make a note on the computer, that you try to deceive the authorities, and then it will be a looooong time before you can get into Thailand again.

They may even put you faceshot from when you entered Thailand, into the face-recognition software, which is connected to cctv and cameras in police vehicles, and suddenly your stay in Thailand end very abrupt, with you ending up in Bangkok Hilton until next flight out.

As they say in Thailand: Bad guys out, Good guys in.

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Julian **********

ORIGINAL POSTER

Where did I forget that? (entertaining post though sir)

I responded with the same comment to another person under this post about needing to be outside of the country. If you mean the Evisa, I was referring to applying to it while in another country that is not my home country and also not Thailand.

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Kieran *******

@Julian *********

Only some countries allow you to apply online when you are in them, Malaysia isn't one of them. That's because their embassies do not process e-visa applications yet.

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Kieran *******

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Bhavin **********

As it’s online, you can apply from anywhere as long as you have the supporting documents.

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Henrik *****

Lying to the authorities in a country, where you want to stay for months, isn’t a good idea.

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Graham ******

@Bhavin *********

and lie about your current location

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Graham ******

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Kieran *******

I am in Alor Setar Malaysia and I’ve contacted the Thai Embassy in George Town, they said there is no problem with applying - I’ll be heading there tomorrow. I have a UK passport.

It doesn’t matter which Thai embassy you apply at for any visas, you just can’t apply online in some countries because their local embassies do not process online applications yet. And it’s the responsibility of the country you’re in to accommodate the visa. I hope this helps.

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Timmy *******

Such a useful information for everyone who plan to apply in Penang , thanks bro for sharing, just wondering how long does this visa process take? Planning same schedule with you. Following.

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Brandon ************

that's not the case. Some Thai embassies only accept visa applications from residents and citizens of that country, for example the Thai embassy in Korea and Japan. Also there are some specific visas that you can only get in your home country like the METV and the non-OA and OX.

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Kieran *******

@Brandon ***********

ahh okay thanks. I didn’t know that. But Malaysia seem to be accommodating.

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Kieran *******

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Michael ********

Singapore not accepting applications yet as havent recieved full details

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John **********

I believe you can apply in Vientiane but you need an appointment. Best to verify with them directly

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Jan ******************

At least I can add that’s it seems to be possible to apply for a DTV visa in the e-visa application outside your passport nation.

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Anique *******

There was a digital nomad meet-up in Chiang mai and I asked the representative talking about the new visa measures and he mentioned you could go to a neighbour country, but offline.

I am not sharing this from personal experience though. (As indeed it is a very new development)

So far, I understand that Vientienne embassy has stated it on the website and an embassy in Malaysia. You can check their websites, but think it is best to check yourself also and contact them.

He also mentioned that in the next few months they aim to make the evisa system available from more countries, but for now this is not the case.

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Brandon ************

The visa was just released 2 days ago. Contact the embassy you're interested in applying at to ask if they allow foreigners to apply. You're not going to get any answers from people on something this new.

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Brandon ************

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