Answered4 years ago

How can I leave Thailand without causing immigration issues upon my return?

Visa Rules Re-entry Permit Work Permit Non-Immigrant Visa Immigration Procedures Expat Advice

James **********

asked Feb 23, 2023

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Hi there, 

I am a teacher whose contract, wp and non imm b extension expire on 30th April.

I will not be renewing my contract. But I am not resigning as I will get paid my April salary, so my wp must remain valid.

I leave for the UK on 23rd March to return on the 8th May. I fly out and back with my 2 thai children and thai wife.

I could apply for a 60 day tourist visa whilst back home, conversely, I could have successfully found another teaching role and apply for a non imm b at a thai consulate in the UK. Nothing is known at this point.

My questions are:

How do I leave the country without causing an issue for myself when I come back?

Would it be better to get a reentry permit even though my extension would have expired?

I was planning to simply fly out, get the exit stamp, then return in May (either with a visa exempt 'visa on arrival, or a 60 day tourist visa, or a new non imm b).

Apologies if not clear. Appreciate any advice on the best course of action.

James

Answer summary

A teacher is concerned about leaving Thailand with an expiring work permit and non-immigrant B extension. He plans to return after a short trip to the UK and wants to know how to manage immigration to avoid issues upon his return. Comments suggest he should cancel his work permit legally before leaving and clarify that obtaining a re-entry permit post-expiration will not help.

7 repliesnewest first

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Tod *********

Whether your work permit or extension is still in effect wouldn't matter for the company to pay you your april salary,

𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝗱𝗼 𝗜 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻 𝗶𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝘆𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸?

You cancel your work permit and take that along with the termination paperwork from your employer to the immigration office where you got the extension. They will cancel it, stamp you in until the termination date<- which you should have the employer write is the day you fly OUT of thailand.

You have to remember that stamping out on an extension and having it run out doesn't officially cancel it AND when you come back IF you're going to get another Non-Immigrant Type visa and extension you WILL have problems and most likely be fined for failure to cancel the extension officially

𝗪𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗶𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝗺𝘆 𝗲𝘅𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱? <- that won't do ANYTHING at all 🙁 but waste the 1000baht for the re-entry permit

4 years ago

James **********

My ticket is for 23rd March.

Any idea how much time between cancelling the WP+go to immigration to cancel the non b extension and the flight date?

I wouldnt want to leave it until the day prior as doing these things could take many hours etc..

For example, could I go the week before? Is there a special document my employer gives me to cancel the WP and Extension? (The HR dept is quite inept at dealing with these types of l things)

Many thanks

4 years ago

Tod *********

@James *********

most offices will do the cancellation up to 2 weeks in advance (of the termination date). You're going to have to work with the employer to figure out the way to cancel a work permit and the documentation you take with you to immigrations to get the extension cancelled (inept or not, they need to step up and help you)

4 years ago

James **********

@Tod ********

OK, thanks. I could pop in to the wp office and ask them what they would need from my employer to cancel the wp given that I'm leaving the country on

****

etc.

4 years ago

John **********

@Tod ********

would it make sense, given he's married to a Thai, to switch from a non-b extension to a Non-O extension as married to a Thai? He wouldn't need to worry about visas and he could still hold a work permit under that visa should he choose in the future?

4 years ago

Tod *********

he could do that but he'd get a 30 day under consideration stamp cancelling the employment extension and applying for a marriage extension and then need a re-entry permit to keep that 30 day stamp alive so he could come back as well has having to coordinate a home visit (if they did one) while he's traveling out and back.

Good suggestion though

@John *********

(y) , and I'd say

@James *********

should think about coming in visa exempt and applying for the married to a thai Non-O then the year extension (if they meet the requirements) as then no matter if he worked or not the extension wouldn't change between jobs because it'd be issued based on marriage

4 years ago

James **********

@Tod ********

thanks and to john for the response. Getting a non-o visa could be an option as I have 400k in a bank for the last 18 months.

4 years ago