Answered2 years ago

How should I handle special characters and periods in my Thai E-VISA application?

e-VISA Thai immigration name formatting passport details expat advice

Laurent ************

asked Feb 5, 2025

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I have some hesitations to fill out the online E-VISA form...

I have 3 first names and on my passport it appears as XXXXX XXXXX X.

So the last one is shortened with a period at the end but in the MRZ zone the period does not appear.

I think I will not write the period in the form, what do you think?

Another thing, on my passport under "Authority" there is the name of the city where the passport was issued, there is an apostrophe in the middle of the name XXXXX-X'XXXX and it is impossible to write an apostrophe in the online form.

Do you think that replacing the apostrophe with a space will not be a problem?

Answer summary

The user is hesitant about completing the online e-VISA form due to issues with their name formatting, specifically with periods and apostrophes. Responses from the community suggest using information from the machine-readable zone of the passport and avoiding periods and special characters that could lead to rejection of the application. It is also recommended to contact the embassy for clarification on how to handle such discrepancies.

12 repliesnewest first

Click comment and we will ask for your email, then OTP, then name.

Greg ***********

Don't use periods "." and the separation key "-"

2 years ago

Greg ***********

check the lower column of your passport. You name will be displayed in international format. Check for the separation marks, they are always "<<" between separate names and only one "<" between a single name. This will enable you to separate each name from the others, into surname, middle name and family name . . . . And make sure NEVER use the separation key "-" as the system will read it as a "minus". . . type your name into the e-visa application manually (!!), save it, and only after this upload the passport scan. This will prevent the system to read the scan wrongly.

2 years ago

Laurent ************

2 years ago

Greg ***********

@Laurent ***********

Okay: one "<" does not constitute a separation, so you can write your family name correctly in the form "De Bruyn". The following two names "Willeke Liselotte" are separated from the family name by two "<<" , so far okay, but from each other only by a single "<" which constitutes them being your first name, and you don't have a middle name . . . . . . . . . . . ATTENTION: I cannot give you ANY warranty for my advice, because I cannot esteem how far the stupidity of the Thai processing side will go

2 years ago

Laurent ************

@Greg **********

The Hague

*********************************************************************

Look like they recommend to use Middle Name section for the second first name even if there is only one ">" between first names. What do you think?

And about the name of the city I have to type, it's BRAINE-L'ALLEUD

So I think I have 3 options:

BRAINE-LALLEUD

BRAINE-L ALLEUD

BRAINE-L-ALLEUD

2 years ago

Greg ***********

@Laurent ***********

they perfectly explained it. But what I don't understand, why is there no separation after "NLD" and "DE BRUIJN" ? Shouldn't it read NLD<<DE<BRUIJN<< ? Now I am even more confused 😑

2 years ago

Wolf ******

Always use the informations in the machine readable section (bottom). This especially, when special character didn't exists.

Same issue when booking airplane tickets. Some people have to rebuy a new ticket at check-in due to wrong special character ("U" instead "UE" for a "Ü")

2 years ago

Laurent ************

@Wolf *****

the "funny" thing is I never used that "middle name" in my life in any occasion, even if they appear just next my first name on my passeport, never had any problems or questions when booking a flight or asking for a visa even if they appear on the MRZ, I always ignored them. I think I will ask to the consulate in person to be sure.

2 years ago

Tod *********

Those are definitely some tricky questions 😮 (ones I don't know the answer to😕)

I certainly would email the embassy you're applying thru and see what they say.

I know if there's a data mis-match they will reject the eVisa application and there's no way to correct data once you submit the application.

These are some links to "Common mistakes when applying for Thai e-Visa"

Oslo

****************************************************************************************

*****

722b

*****

4a1f2

The Hague

*********************************************************************

Bern

***********************************************

2 years ago

Laurent ************

*****************************************************************************************************************

After reading that now I'm still not sure.. technically there are Middle Names even if they appear just next my first name 🤔

Maybe I should ask directly at the consulate before apply..

2 years ago

Laurent ************

@Tod ********

I sent an email to several consulates, the one where I will apply (vte) answered me with a list of links but did not answer my questions. The others each answered me different things...

Some told me to just write my first given name in the First Name category and to use Middle Name for the rest as we can read on the links you showed.

Another told me to write everything in the First Name category as it is the case on my passport.

Different answer also regarding writing the period or not.

And to write the name of the city, one answered me that the apostrophe was not important, another that I should just write it without the apostrophe and another to replace it with a space.

So I got all the answers possible.. I even asked Gemini what he thought..

I decided to write exactly what it appears on my passport, and since I don't have a Middle Name category, I'm going to write everything in First Name. And for the city I'm just going to remove the apostrophe.

And we'll see..

2 years ago