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What can I do if I received a 6-month tourist visa instead of the DTV from the Tokyo embassy?
Visa Approval IssuesThailand DTV Visa6-Month Tourist VisaEmbassy ExperiencesThailand Visa Application Process
Apr 16, 2025
a year ago
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTERHello, my visa got approved (tokyo embassy) but i got the 6 months visa instead of the DTV. Can i do anything to fix that or did i just loose money and i need to wait 6 month to apply for the DTV again and praying again ?
UPDATE: I went to the embassy I told them that I had a problem with my visa they didn’t care and told me to make a phone call. The phone number for visa is available only from 4:30PM to 5:30PM wtf is wrong with them ?
UPDATE: I went to the embassy I told them that I had a problem with my visa they didn’t care and told me to make a phone call. The phone number for visa is available only from 4:30PM to 5:30PM wtf is wrong with them ?
TLDR : Answer Summary
The user received a 6-month visa instead of a desired DTV visa from the Tokyo embassy and is seeking advice on how to address this issue. Many commenters suggest that it may be a mistake and advise contacting the embassy, while others claim there may be nothing that can be done but to wait until the current visa expires before reapplying. There is a shared sentiment of frustration toward the embassy's response and the overall application process.
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.
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Dean *****
that is why people here never go to japan to apply for DTV.
John **********
Nope. Nothing you can do. Use the visa you have until it expires then try applying somewhere else for the DTV
Toni *******
6month visa for 6month course of anything is enough though? Dont know how you applied, but if so, its enough for you?
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@Toni ******
it’s not enough I applied as a remote worker.Toni *******
@Cedric ******
thats weird, i did the same route. Is your employment contract continuous?Brandon ************
@Cedric ******
did you do the consultation they have listed on their website first? Without that you're not likely to get the DTVCedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@Brandon ***********
no I didn’t know that there was a consultation before applyingReply to
Cedric *******
Reply
Christopher ********
Did you pay by Visa or Mastercard ?
I mean, if you really want the money back, it’s not what you intended to purchase so they sold you the wrong product and you can make a claim, but I will forget about Thailand after that
I mean, if you really want the money back, it’s not what you intended to purchase so they sold you the wrong product and you can make a claim, but I will forget about Thailand after that
John *******
@Christopher *******
- Well, you are not paying for the visa, but for the consideration/review. If they rejected your application, you wouldn’t receive money back. Here, they are technically rejecting but then giving you a consolation prize.Christopher ********
@John ******
if the person is like truly like upset and doesn’t ever wanna go to Thailand again, they can file a claim with Visa MasterCard because this item is not described. They applied for a destination, Thailand, visa instead of rejecting it they gave them a substitution which is not in any terms and conditions, and under that under the purchase protection policy of Visa MasterCard, you can file a claim and get your money back
But I doubt that the Thailand embassy would ever process a visa for them again if they did, but it’s up to them
John *******
@Christopher *******
- Have you checked to see if there are any notices listed when you pay stating they have the option to supply another visa in place? If so, and you confirm acknowledgement, then they can do that.Christopher ********
@John ******
I have not. I didn’t even know they could do that and I’m not even sure if they can.John *******
@Christopher *******
- I only looked at the first page,Because I didn’t want to enter my info, but when it comes to single entry vs. multi entry visas, they state the difference in price will not be refunded. Therefore, in this instance, if you applied for a multi entry and only got a single entry, you couldn’t ask your bank for a refund. It is possible this type of notice is stated in other places in the application, when it comes to specific visas
Reply to
John *******
Reply
Tim ***********
Could it be just a mistake ? It is still Songkran and they could have been celebrating for the last three days. Did you called them and asked if that was really their intention to only give you an ordinary Tourist Visa ?
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@Tim **********
I need to wait to call them tried today but no answerTim ***********
@Cedric ******
The only problem is, even if it's a mistake, these people can't admit they've made a mistake. They've lost face, and they'd probably still insist on it. So, when you call, don't ask if they made a mistake, ask if the computer system might have made a mistake.Reply to
Tim ***********
Reply
Peter ******
For what reasons were you applying ?
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@Peter *****
remote workBen ********
@Peter *****
I'd be interested to know that too. For me it was for remote workingPeter ******
@Ben *******
He may have applied for a six month Muy Thai training course?Reply to
Peter ******
Reply
Ben ********
I'm sorry to hear that. My DTV was approved in Tokyo, after a fairly brutal interview! I made a post about my experience, so you can search for that if you want to see more details about my experience
Anonymous ******************
I’m a Japanese national and I got the same incident when I applied for DTV.
As far as I know, you need to wait for 6 months for the current tr visa to be expired (I am in the same situation currently).
I was called for an interview but they did not interview me properly (the consul did not even show up and there were just usual staff members there).
All they said was “your visa has been rejected but we instead will issue you a tr visa.”
Don’t apply there again.
As far as I know, you need to wait for 6 months for the current tr visa to be expired (I am in the same situation currently).
I was called for an interview but they did not interview me properly (the consul did not even show up and there were just usual staff members there).
All they said was “your visa has been rejected but we instead will issue you a tr visa.”
Don’t apply there again.
Anonymous ******************
匿名参加者627
I questioned about it in this group before , and that is what I got from others 😁
I believe there has been successful and unsuccessful cases though.
I questioned about it in this group before , and that is what I got from others 😁
I believe there has been successful and unsuccessful cases though.
Tore *********
Anonymous participant 627 are you sure about that? I think as long as you don’t activate the visa (don’t enter with it) you can apply in another country, then enter with the DTV.
John *******
@Tore ********
- Visas are active once granted. It has the issued and expiration dates listed clearly, regardless of when you enter (your entry stamp).Jonas *************
@John ******
physically it's a new Visa issued previous Visa are automatically canceled. But this doesn't say anything about the success in applying especially in Japan. I once try to apply for a Chinese visa in Japan and they were flat refused and were very rude and these were Japanese people...
John *******
@Jonas ************
- There have been many posts on here where Thai embassies would not process visa applications while the client has another valid visa. If your statement was fully true, that wouldn’t have happened.Jonas *************
@John ******
well I'm not saying you're guaranteed to get a Visa... I just said if you actually get a new Visa approved any previous visas are typically void. If you apply for a new visa and you don't get it your old Visa is not void unless you ask them to void it typically.
The generic rule is that you can't hold two Visas for one country at the same time at least in general.
I've heard of people who have gotten DTV Visa while having a retirement extension with re-entry permit, if they sctually get to the TV Visa, their extension is canceled.
But I think for work visa or student visa you may explicitly need to cancel them in many cases...
John *******
@Jonas ************
- A retirement extension is processed by the Immigration Department. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has no knowledge of what extensions one has/doesn’t have, so that is why one can submit an application via MoFA’s e-visa system. However, MoFA does have record via e-visa, of any visa you received through them. The embassy will tell you that this visa needs to be canceled/expired first, and it can only be canceled by the embassy that originally issued it.John *******
@Jonas ************
- Not true. There are many examples on this page where embassies have refused to issue a new visa because they already have an active visa. They have been told they either need it canceled or expired before a new visa can be issued. Extensions on a visa, made by immigration office are much easier to cancel.Reply to
John *******
Reply
Maksym ***********
@Tore ********
visa is active from the day it was issued. What activation?Reply to
Maksym ***********
Reply
John *******
Unfortunately not. They decided to only give you a tourist visa
Tore *********
What 6 months visa did they give you? METV?
This would be a first I hear of this. Did you try asking them if they made a mistake ?
This would be a first I hear of this. Did you try asking them if they made a mistake ?
John *******
@Tore ********
there have been other cases like thisTore *********
@John ******
interesting, specific embassies?Brandon ************
@Tore ********
I've seen 2 other reports of this happening at Tokyo.John *******
@Tore ********
- Did a quick search, the first one I see was from March 27th and it was via the Dubai embassyReply to
John *******
Reply
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@Tore ********
tourist TR visaJames ********
@Cedric ******
let's clear the type of tourist visa they issued to you...Is it a METV multiple entry tourist visa, valid for 6 months ?
Which is now in your Thai Immigration history.
Cedric *******
ORIGINAL POSTER@James *******
yes it’s a multi entry visa valid for 6 monthsReply to
Cedric *******
Reply
Tore *********
@Cedric ******
ouch, sorry to hear that. You may be able to head to for example Jakarta and apply immediately as long as you don’t activate the METV (Don’t enter Thailand with it)Reply to
Tore *********
Reply
Greg ********
@Tore ********
There have been other reports of this from TokyoReply to
Greg ********
Reply
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