Is the DTV visa a long-term or short-term visa in Thailand?

It's a long term tourist visa. It's not considered as a Non-immigrant long-term by immigration.

The DTV is a tourist visa aimed at those who are able to work remotely, outside of the Kingdom.

This is the wording "workcation" applied to those applying for that.

They can also apply for "soft power" leisure activities.

Cooking classes, Muay Thai, music festivals and various medical treatments.

The confusion is, on the 5 year length which is great, ( I also have a 10 year tourist visa for China and been once. That doesn't make me a longterm resident there either)this doesn't make DTV a longterm visa.

A longterm visa holder NEVER has to leave the country, they apply for extensions as required and stay as long as they want.

However the DTV does not allow this. The DTV requires you to exit the country and return every 6 months or if you extend 1x in country a year. BUT they must leave, there is no option to stay permanently.

As a retiree I can remain in Thailand as long as I want to keep extending.

All official things are no problem,

Banks, 5 yr Licences, health insurance, etc.

So YES its a good value visa for many BUT it is a Tourist Visa not a "longterm" I live forever in Thailand.

The DTV is a great visa. It is better than the Ed, Vol when it existed or continuous visa runs. There will always be people pushing the envelope. People down on the islands signing up for Muay Thai in Chiang Mai for example with no intention of attending classes. People working in country too as tour guides and property agents. Imkigrarion are nkt fans as it is not their visa. If it gets fecked it will be due to this. It would be a pity as for most they can stay and qualifiy and do not have to bend the rules. Little things like banking are just an annoyance and inconvenience in reality.

Doesn't matter what it's classed as. You can live in Thailand for 5 years with it if you want.

The DTV is officially a tourist visa

At the end of the day the only department the classification matters to is the Immigration Department. Everything else depends on their classification. They have final say over entry, extensions etc. They currently define the DVT as a tourist visa. I will gladly admit I am wrong if anyone can point to any official documents or declarations otherwise.

The DTV still baffles me... this visa goes against everything the Thai-Chinese government has done over the past decades. Is it just a PR stunt to trick foreigners to think that Thailand is suddenly treating foreigners fairly? It's only 10.000 foreigners in the past year who got this visa, considering there are 35m tourists yearly, it's a small number - possibly confirming that it exists to boost the country's image... Anyways, congrats to anyone who got it. It's the best value Visa for Thailand up to date.

For local insurance companies, this is a long term visa if your lease agreement is at least 1 year.

It's a 5 year tourist visa.

It's an interesting question. I have seen lots of people say it is a tourist visa but I am not sure I would agree. Yes it has constraints (bank accounts etc) but I don't think 6 months at a time, for 5 years would match any logical definition of 'tourist'. But clearly it is not a long term visa either as 5 years isn't really 'long' term. I don't think it is either. It's a DTV.

Long term tourist

It’s a tourist visa.