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What should I do to activate my DTV visa after entering Thailand on a visa-exempt status?

DTV visaVisa ExemptionThailand ImmigrationVisa ActivationTravel AdviceBorder Run
Dec 22, 2024
a month ago
Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
I've arrived last week in Thailand and entered with a visa exempt. Two days later, I have received the confirmation and approval for my DTV visa, which was under processing prior to that. I've mentioned this situation to the IM officers at the airport, and they said it's no problem, I just need to wait for the confirmation, and once it's done have the stamp exchanged at the local IM office. I went to Huahin office and see if I can have the stamp changed, but they said I have to leave and re-enter the country. Please let me know your input on this. Thanks!
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TLDR : Answer Summary
The user entered Thailand on a visa exemption and received approval for a DTV visa. They were told by immigration officers that they could exchange their entry stamp once confirmed. However, when attempting to do so, the local immigration office stated that the user must leave the country and return to activate the DTV visa. Community responses confirmed that it is necessary to leave Thailand and re-enter to activate the DTV visa, with some suggesting border runs or trips to nearby countries.
DTV VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES
Greta *****
I thought you need to stay at the country where you applied for your DTV until it's been approved...
a month ago
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Nongnuch ********
@Greta ****
 not necessarily now, after all embassies and consulates have switched to the E-Visa System. Before, on many embassies you had to visit them personally and were issued a DTV visa sticker inside your passport. This is over by January 1st. After you submitted the application, you could theoretically leave that country and re-enter Thailand visa-exempt. However then, after you have received your DTV in your Email-box, you would need to do a border run to activate the DTV
a month ago
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Luit *****************
@Nongnuch *******
 According the rules as mentioned by most embassies it still is necessary to wait for approval.

Theoretically your application can also be rejected while you are not in the country you applied but instead are in Thailand.

So when you play according the rules, you just wait.
a month ago
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Luit *****************
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Jay *******
From what I was told in order to activate DTV you must arrive by air. Not all land border crossings acknowledge it
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Jay ******
 where did you hear this? It can't really be true but I'm just interested where this was said.
a month ago
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Graham ******
Strange but not true
a month ago
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Jay *******
@Bart *************
 the visa service I used said that
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Jay ******
 strange, they ought to know better.
a month ago
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Jay *******
@Bart *************
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Jay ******
 yeah strange. I do vaguely recall that some border was indeed not aware, but it's a bit much to advise against using them to activate a DTV indefinitely. Everyone should by now be aware that it exists.

Besides, you cannot not use a visa if you have one. If you have a DTV, they can't even stamp you in otherwise.
a month ago
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Luit *****************
@Bart *************
 Maybe arriving by air is indeed safer when you did not wait in the country where you applied
a month ago
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Luit *****************
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Terary **********
It was my understanding you would have to leave and come back to activate your visa. I have been in a similar situation, where I apply for and get my next visa before I leave Thailand.

You can do a quick border bounce, find a an agent, book passage to the nearest land border, go have lunch, come back (with the correct paperwork), you're done.

You don't have to use a land border, I just find it's easier where I live (Pattaya) to bounce at the border then grab a flight.
a month ago
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Wayne ********
I’m confused if the immigration officer said you have to leave the country and come back in. Why would you not take his advice but instead you turn to Facebook for suggestions? 
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Wayne *******
 if that would indeed be what the immigrations officer said, then taking the advice would be an reasonable way forward. Although even then, asking for potential different ways here in the group could reveal something (we know it doesn't, but we know the answer to the question; there certainly are situations where immigrations doesn't tell you the whole story).

But now that they are so wrong, wouldn't you agree that his seeking for confirmation in a group where people know this was useful?
a month ago
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Wayne ********
@Bart *************
 how can you say he is so wrong when everybody in this group will agree going through immigrations is strictly up to the office so you’re standing in front of so what might be so wrong for one immigration officer may not be so wrong for another.
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Wayne *******
 err, did you read any of the replies?

And I hope we do not have a discussion about whether you can exchange an entry stamp for a different visa at a local immigrations office? This really is established knowledge.
a month ago
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Bart **************
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Pierre **********
I had the same scenario in january 2023. Went to immigration and they told me I had to leave country. From Samui did a border run to Saturn, on the border of Malaysia. A pleasant 16 hours day 🙃🙄🙃. Logic with immigration left the building or it never got there😜
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Pierre *********
 yes, pleasant experience, especially on a cramped minivan 😃
a month ago
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Luit *****************
@Pierre *********
 This has nothing to do with logic of immigration.

These action are necessary when people trick the system.

Why should immigration have to facilitate this?
a month ago
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Pierre **********
@Luit ****************
, the Embassy in Canada took till I was landed in Thailand to issue me visa that I applied for, 3 months before trip. I wasn't tricking the system at all. I was the same person 🙃 and wasn't using an agent.
a month ago
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Luit *****************
@Pierre *********
 but you did not wait for the applied visa and decided to travel to the country anyway, that is tricking the system.

I agree with you that 3 months is far too long, but that is not decided by immigration, so you can not blame them for that.
a month ago
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Luit *****************
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John *********
Now that you have a real visa, you can do a true border run. Cross any land border and return right away. I did that in February. I was in Cambodia for 20 minutes.
a month ago
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Jay *******
@John ********
 okay so you don’t have to do it by air only? Can also do by land? With DTV
a month ago
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Jay *******
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Bob **********
Yes you need to do a border bounce to activate the DTV
a month ago
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Jay *******
@Bob *********
 can you do by land border?
a month ago
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Bob **********
@Jay ******
 yes
a month ago
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Bob **********
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Mark **********
Just go visit Angkor war and have a nice time, come back and get your stamp.
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Mark *********
 Yes, that's what I'm going to do. Looking at busses right now, but they seem to be taking quite long to get there
a month ago
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Mark **********
@Bogdan ******
 yeah to get there I just flew from Bangkok. You can do visa run buses from Pattaya to Cambodian border too but I’m not sure how easy it is getting the right dtv stamp on a land crossing.
a month ago
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Mark **********
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Will ************
You were lucky they didnt ask you to upload ALL the pages of your passport again 1 day before they approved to prove you were in the country you applied from. If they had your application would have been cancelled.
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Will ***********
 I'm not sure about that, I've seen others saying you only need to be in the country when you apply
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
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Luke **********
Why are you asking for advice here , they told you what to do 🙄🙄
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Luke *********
 but they were wrong.
a month ago
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Luke **********
@Chris ******
 they told him at immigration he has to leave the country , that’s what he has to do
a month ago
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Luke **********
@Chris ******
 deleting my comments 🤣🤣🤣
a month ago
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Brandon **********
@Luke *********
 if u wanna be a passport online police officer at least get it right or maybe just leave the job
a month ago
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Brandon **********
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Bobby *******
@Luke *********
 and they told him incorrectly. The only visas that can be ‘activated’ at immigration offices are visas they issue in Thailand such as a Non O. Not the DTV
a month ago
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Mark ********
@Bobby ******
 - can i ask u a question offline?
a month ago
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Luke **********
@Bobby ******
 no they told him at immigration he has to leave the country
a month ago
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Kim *********
@Luke *********
 and immi at the airport told him differently
a month ago
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Kim *********
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Vitico ********
You leave the country and when you return show your DTV and you will get stamped in for 180 days with the DTV. You can wait out your current 60 day entry before leaving and re entering.
a month ago
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Darren **********
you will have to leave the country and then return on your DTV visa.
a month ago
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Bart **************
Unfortunately the immigrations officers at the airport misinformed you. You cannot exchange stamps with immigrations, neither at the airport nor locally. You really need to leave the country to activate the DTV.
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Bart *************
 to be honest I was in a similar situation in Vietnam recently, and they were able to change it. I had applied for the 3 month tourist visa. I didn't arrive on time, so I've entered the country on a 30 day exemption. The next day the visa came, I printed it out, went to the airport, an in 20 they've changed my stamp. So that's why I had high hopes and asking here for potential workarounds
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Bogdan ******
 strange that Vietnam can do it, I don't think it's very common countries can do it. I also wouldn't put my bets on a second attempt in Vietnam.
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
@Bart *************
 I don't think it was out of the ordinary, since I've initially mentioned the situation to the officer when I had arrived, and he told me "no problem, just wait for the new visa, and then come back to us, we'll change it"
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Bogdan ******
 ah right, then it indeed sounds like it's common.
a month ago
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Bart **************
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Todd *********
That is accurate. You must leave and return to activate it. But may as will use up your 60 free days first.
a month ago
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Steven *********
@Todd ********
 a little off track here , but I've been just using the A4 paper that I printed for my DTV several months ago as I wasn't in the UK when I got it , Do you know if I can go to IM on Samui and get a proper visa Stamp for the 5 years from them or does it have to be done in London ? Cheers
a month ago
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Nongnuch ********
@Steven ********
 Immigration inside Thailand is Ministry of Interior, they do NOT issue visa stamps or visa stickers. Only the worldwide Thai Embassies and Consulates, which are under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, are allowed to issue a DTV. On Immigration, you can only get their very own stamps transferred from an old passport to a new one, this would be the "admitted until" red entry stamp. Your DTV .pdf visa document must stay with you all the time, if you want to use it at a border, to enter with. You need to carry it printed out with you! There won't be any replacement
a month ago
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Steven *********
@Nongnuch *******
 , no worries I thought that , but worth the ask
a month ago
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Steven *********
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George *******
@Todd ********
 I thought the DTV is activated from the day it is approved by whichever Embassy or Consulate, whether your still in your own country, or wherever you are. So using up the sixty days is irreverent if your DTV is already running. Can you or someone enlighten me on this, so that if I apply for the DTV and my application is approved would my first 180 days start from when I receive the e-visa even if I have not entered Thailand?
a month ago
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Todd *********
@George ******
 you cannot apply for DTV within Thailand. So you wont be ‘on DTV’ if issued while you are in the country.

You are right, DTV active from day it is issued. And the clock is ticking right away. But you won’t be ‘on’ the DTV until you exit Thailand and return. I just mean there is no real rush to exit and return
a month ago
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George *******
@Todd ********
 I know someone cannot apply for the DTV while in Thailand. I presume that because you've replied saying George Smith you cannot apply for the DTV while in Thailand you were under the impression that is what I intended trying to do. Unlike some people on FB (Sadbook) I do have a fairly good understanding of applying for visas having applied for visas for several countries whilst I was in Thailand previously, but obviously I wouldn't be trying to apply for any Thai visa whilst in Thailand
a month ago
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Nongnuch ********
@George ******
 You are confusing the „visa validity“with the period of stay permit you get stamped into your passport when you ENTER Thailand using the visa.

*** the DTV has a visa validity of 5 year, starting from the day it gets issued

*** on EACH ENTRY within the visa validity, you will get stamped in for 180 days.

The OP didn’t have a DTV when he entered Thailand, so according to his passport country, he entered visa-exempt and got stamped in for a 60 days stay permit.

*** He can ACTIVATE the DTV only by exiting Thailand and re-entering, showing the DTV printout to the Immigration officer at the border.

Then, and only then, he will get stamped in for a 180 days stay permit

He CANNOT activate the first 180 days stay permit out of a DTV while he is inside Thailand.

I have added a picture of a DTV entry stamp.

The OP can wait until the last day of his current stay permit (which is 60 days) before he exits Thailand. He also is free to exit any day before his 60-days stay permit expires, and activate the DTV on his return.
a month ago
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George *******
@Nongnuch *******
 So on the last day of his 5 year visa validity someone could go to immigration whether inside Thailand or re-entering and get another 180 days, is this correct.?
a month ago
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Nongnuch ********
@George ******
 correct
a month ago
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George *******
@Nongnuch *******
 Thankyou
a month ago
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John *******
@George ******
 - The DTV is valid for five years. The visa validity clock starts as soon as the embassy issues the visa. That being said, you can only be in Thailand on the DTV for 180 days (plus 180 day extension if you apply for one). Every time you exit and re-enter you get a new 180 day stamp. If you are already in Thailand on another visa or visa exempt, obviously Immigration can stamp you in for 180 days, as you are already stamped in on another stamp. This is why you have to exit and re-enter. Technically, if you are in process of applying for DTV and waiting on the embassy to approve, you are not suppose to travel outside that embassy’s juristiction
a month ago
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John *******
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Kayla ****************
Hey it sounds like before the 60 days is up you just leave and come back since it’s been approved so you can go on a trip to Vietnam or Cambodia and come back is what it sounds like. I don’t have personal experience with this but it seems that’s what the IM meant I hope it all works out for you ❤️ welcome to Thailand 🇹🇭
a month ago
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Brandon ************
You cannot activate a visa inside Thailand. The only way to activate a visa is to hand it to the immigration officer along with your passport when you're entering Thailand.
a month ago
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Bogdan *******
ORIGINAL POSTER
So I know certain visas can be exchanged inside Thailand, but since I don't have an actual visa but rather an exempt stamp, then that cannot be changed, is that correct?
a month ago
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Brandon ************
@Bogdan ******
 no. DTV is from an embassy. A visa from an embassy can only be activated by entering Thailand. Has nothing to do with what you're on now.
a month ago
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Brandon ************
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Tim *******
@Brandon ***********
 it depends on the VISA LTR for example can/was activated in Thailand. but im sure you correct with DTV
a month ago
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Bart **************
@Tim ******
 are you sure? Imho no visa can be activated in Thailand unless you received it in Thailand.
a month ago
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Tim *******
@Bart *************
 yes i had a non o activated in thailand and an LTR activated in thailand BUT the DTV is different
a month ago
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Brandon ************
@Bart *************
 you can receive the LTR in Thailand. But not relevant to the op
a month ago
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Brandon ************
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