What visa options are available for my daughter who is currently in Thailand with parents on work permits but lacks a valid visa?

Thai Education Visa (ED Visa)Dependent Visa Child Visa Overstay Rules in Thailand Visa Options for Expats in Thailand Non-O Visa Thai Immigration Procedures

Sep 16, 2020

4 years ago

Giselle *************

ORIGINAL POSTER

Hi, our daughter is 4 years old(born in Thailand to 2 parents with work permits) and has started school. The school says they can't get her an Ed visa. I called immigration and they said they cannot do a dependent visa because she doesn't have a valid, current visa. Her last stamp is from 2 years ago when we flew in from a vacation to the US. What are our options?

Edited: We had planned to fly to Laos to get a non-O for her pre-Covid but obviously, that is not an option now. The school says she needs a valid visa because it is a Thai school and not international or bilingual school.

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TLDR : Answer Summary

The user is seeking visa options for their 4-year-old daughter, who has been born in Thailand to parents with work permits but currently does not have a valid visa. The school is unable to provide an Education visa (ED visa), and immigration has stated a dependent visa cannot be issued due to her visa status. Suggestions from the community include potentially overstaying her visa until the age of 15, applying for a tourist visa to then switch to an ED visa, and considering options for a dependent visa when next traveling outside Thailand. Additionally, options like the ‘family excursion ELITE visa’ for parents and children were mentioned.

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Giselle *************

ORIGINAL POSTER

Thanks everyone for the input. Truly appreciate it, even

@Gre***

Huettner's jest ;)

4 years ago

Gregor **********

well that said, it might be a bit too late for the ELITE option

4 years ago

Gregor **********

how about a "family excursion ELITE visa" ? It is 800,000 THB for the parents and top up 300,000 for the child

4 years ago

Shayne **********

Don't stress, next time you are outside take paperwork for a dependent visa. Forget the education visa.

4 years ago

Jay **********

@Shayne *********

that would be a solution if the parent is on their own long stay visa. It's possible the OP wants their kid on an ED Visa so that they can piggyback off of it with a guardian visa for themselves--in which case, the ED is needed.

4 years ago

Benjamin ******

@Jay *********

But they didn't say that though

4 years ago

Jay **********

@Benjamin *****

true, but of all of the farang parents I know that have their young kids in school here, the only ones that go through the steps of getting them an ED Visa (VS dependent) are ones who want the guardian visa along with it... So just thinking it's a reasonable possibility.

Especially when the OP has had her kid of overstay for 2 years, so why start paying now u less there's a good reason to get it. (I'm not saying that in a judge way too, it's exactly as I have done it).

4 years ago

Reply to

Jay **********

Katy *******

If you want her to have a visa in her passport, I believe she needs to Exit the Country and return on a tourist visa. Then she could get an ED Visa from there. But as someone stated above, she can overstay until the age of 15. This was the norm before Covid, now I'm not sure what needs to be done

4 years ago

JJ ******

@Benjamin *****

Dear Benjamin, how about for children over 15 year old but under 18 years old, I have a teenager boy now age 15+, entered with tourist visa this year and now on amnesty until Sept 26.

As the family still want to stay in Chiangmai until October or November to wait for all risks/quarantine are eased for available direct flight home from Chiangmai to Guangxi, China, (now there's no direct flight available), but our consulte/embassy say they no longer issue a letter to Immigrations. Therefore, it would be very likely that our teenager boy will become overstay. (no problem for parents because both have non-o retirement visa to stay for another year)

So what penalty will the teenager boy be facing if stay passed Sept 26? (besides fine of 500 baht/day)

4 years ago

Benjamin ******

She'll need to have either a non-immigrant visa, or an ED visa in her passport. In the Pre-COVID-19 era, she could get that in Laos.

4 years ago

Reply to

Benjamin ******

Here's my opinion:

1. Your child *IS NOT* a Thai citizen because your child does not have any Thai parents. The child should have a passport from one of your nationalities.

2. *EVERYONE* in Thailand should either have a valid visa, or a valid extension of stay (or amnesty until September 26, 2020)

3. For children under 15 years old, all punishments are waived for being on overstay.

My advice?

Ideally, you should get a visa for her, however you can keep her on overstay for the next 10 years without any problems.

4 years ago

Reply to

Benjamin ******

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What options are available for obtaining a long-term visa for my daughter not eligible for an ED visa while I apply for my retirement visa in Thailand?

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