Three-day workcation approval in London - sharing to help others as the posts here were very helpful for me

Submitted application Thursday late afternoon. Requested extra documents Monday lunchtime, submitted extra documents Monday afternoon and approved on Tuesday afternoon.

I submitted:

* Cover letter explaining my remote freelance work, my website and social media, with proof of portfolio and screenshots of payments from customers

* WISE bank statemeent with income from freelance work highlighted, I also downloaded and included the 'proof of account ownership' document that WISE offers

* Proof of funds in a seperate SANTANDER account that had been in account for exactly 10 days, I requested an interim statement from the bank for the 10th day and then went into branch where they printed and stamped it for me

* Evidence of UK rental income I also earn - I explained in the cover letter that this was not part of my freelance work, but included to highlight my financial security

* Booked a refundable flight, but wasn't asked to show the ticket. Just had to provide flight number and origin/destination of flight. They did say in the follow up email they may require proof of this

Extra documents"

* Two formal letters that I e-signed (wasn't asked to sign) confirming that I can work remotely in Thailand, would not work with Thai customers and that I would remain in the UK for duration of visa application.

Maybe I got lucky and they weren't busy, or maybe it was because I'd read so many posts on here I submitted everything that I thought they might ask for, either way was very surprised how quick it was!

Hope this helps someone. Good luck!

DTV approved in Manila in 6 working days.

Freelance DTV applied 28th Dec.

Pending approval 30th Dec.

Approved 7th Jan.

Proof of funds. (Provided 3 bank accounts)

1. Current account with an end balance of just above 500k Baht. Provided 3 months; it did drop below 500k a couple times by a little bit!

2. A UK cash ISA that had matured only 2 months ago. The ISA matured so it was possible to transfer money out of it. Provided 3 months.

3. Wise account that income was paid into with a low balance. Provided 3 months. I highlighted all payments into my account in yellow.

I made a cover note which explained:

-My full name at the top with a date and titled 'Financial evidence'.

-The two bank accounts had an average balance above 500k for the past 3 months.

-A screenshot showing 500k Baht converted to GBP.

-That my Wise account was where my income was paid into and that I highlighted it.

-On the last PDF I made a little declaration saying something like 'all info provided is true to my knowledge ' signed and dated it.

Portfolio:

1. First page: Full name at the top, date, freelance job title. An explanation of what I did for work exactly. Said I can work remotely from anywhere and that I don't, and will not have any Thai clients (this is important) and making it clear that I'm self employed and don't have an employer blah blah blah.

2. Next page. Explaining what platform I use to get clients from and entering a hyperlink so they can see the platform and my account.

3. Next few pages: Screenshots of some of the reviews I have from clients, screenshot of all the ongoing clients I have, screenshot of my calendar from the past 4 weeks (showing some of my past work) and finally screenshots of my profile on the platform I am on.

4. Last page another little declaration saying exactly this 'Declaration I declare that the information provided in this document and the accompanying supporting materials is true, complete, and accurate to the best of my knowledge. I understand that providing false or misleading information may result in refusal or cancellation of my visa or immigration status.

Date: 27-07-12

Signed:'

And that's it.

No further documents requested, no interview requested, no phone call just approved.

-Things to be very careful doing.

Do not make spelling mistakes and enter your data correctly.

If English is not your first language then I'd recommend using AI to write it.

I checked my documents and data at least 5 times before sending. On the 3rd check I noticed my phone number was wrong (If you put '0' to begin with it cuts the last number off!

Also, my passport is riddled with Thailand arrivals and exits over the past year! It also has 2 overstay penalties for a total of 3 days so I didn't know if I'd be approved but it was fine.

My arrival back to Bangkok was easy. Just print the DTV approval visa, show them at immigration and say this is the DTV (so they actually stamp your passport correctly).

I would also recommend using 'ILovePDF' to join lots of pdfs together along with google docs to write it all out before saving as a pdf.

Lastly this page has been very helpful, so thanks for everyones posts and comments!

Just came back into Thailand from Savannakhet, Lao through Mukdahan immigration, very straightforward. My second entry into Thailand to get the 180 stamp.

I did have with me my bank statement showing that I had more than 500,000 baht, and also evidence of my freelance work, just in case, but I was not asked any questions whatsoever. All cleared in less than 5 mins.

DTV approved in Hanoi 4 working days, freelance. Thanks for all the good advices, now is my time to return the favour and share my experience :

My first advice is for people like me switching from non-b visa to DTV : Cancel your visa or extension of stay and work permit prior to applying ! In my case this was my mistake, I exited Thailand while on extension of stay using a re-entry permit thinking that it was the safe way in case my application would be rejected.

However from my understanding this could be a good reason for the application being rejected, plus when coming back I was held at BKK immigration, the officer was very confused and did not know what to do, I told her that I wanted my non-B to be canceled and use DTV instead, she called 3 others immigrations agents for advice, in addition to long talkings on the phone, before finally stamping me with DTV. No questions were asked, and they were very friendly, they simply seemed confused about the right thing to do considering I had 2 valid visa and a work permit ...

Now I am back in Thailand trying to cancel my work permit, hoping will not have further problems with my local immigration ..

Second advice : have your DTV also ready in your phone, for my case I printed it on a strong paper in A5 format, but it was too big for their machines to scan the QR code and the officer looked quite annoyed 😅

Regarding documents, I provided :

1) Personal IDs documents :

- 1 copy of my first passeport page

- 1 ID picture from a photobooth

2) Return informations :

- Indicated that I was planning to leave 1 week after arriving

- Wrote the flight number of intended flight (did not actually made the booking for that flight)

3) Proof of sufficient funds :

-Introduction letter and a summary of all the balance sheets documents provided for each months so they can have a global view of all the documents

- Provided 9 months of bank statements showing over 500K bahts in my french bank from 2 different bank accounts (current + savings). For each statement I provided original + self translation copy, and highlighted on the translation copy the relevant informations (total balance, account number)

4) Employment Status :

- Introduction letter explaining my situation (freelance with a single client from France, yearly income)

- Service Agreement Contract (in Engligh) signed by my client and myself, explaining the current deal and income provided by my client

- Letter written by my client (in English), explaining that I worked for them for over 10 years, and that I was free to cary out my assignments in Thailand.

- Invoices from year 2025 with matching bank statements (again provided original + self translation with highlighted relevant informations)

- Portfolio examples, screenshots from my client's website showcasing products that I had developed for them being sold.

5) Location :

- Copy of passeport page showing Vietnam visa stamp

- Flight booking to Vietnam

- Copy of boarding pass from Bangkok to Hanoi

- Condo booking confirmation for 4 nights in Hanoi

Good luck everyone :)

Rejected DTV Visa - Freelance

Hi everyone,

Just a background about me that I have 7years work permit and Non-B visa until last month and been living in Thailand since then.

I applied in Bali visa and I don’t understand why they rejected my application.

Oct 13 - Submitted the following documents:

- Photo/ Passport Page

- Driving License in Thailand, Embassy letter about my address

- Bank Statement in Bangkok Bank over 1M THB over a 6months.

- Letter from my company that I have been working remotely since 2020 and it’s okay to work in Thailand.

Oct 21 - Requested additional documents:

- New photo with neutral expression.

- Visa stamp in Bali, Accommodation, and flight ticket going to Thailand.

- Full passport pages

Oct 22 3PM - Requested another photo of me:

- Submitted again my photo I took with my phone with proper background.

Oct 22 7PM - Got rejected email from embassy without any reason.

I would like to ask if it’s possible to apply again for freelance visa or should I change to soft skill DTV?

And if it’s good to apply the next day to try again or use Issa Compass agency?

Any tips or recommendation will be helpful. 🙏

I'll be applying from Hanoi for the DTV1 (workcation) soon! Has anyone had issues with applying with 500k in the bank for less than a month?

Documents:

Freelance contract

Portfolio of freelance work (10 pages of work samples)

Status of remote work (signed by boss, dated July)

Proof of monthly income / payslip for (Wise bank)

Proof of 500k in banks (amount would have been in bank for a week or so)

Appreciate any advice. Thank you

I’m delighted to announce that I am now part of the DTV visa holders’ family! 🎉

First of all, I’d like to thank this group, which has been an invaluable source of help throughout the process.

Now it’s my turn to share my experience, especially for French applicants who are considering submitting their application at the Thai Embassy in Paris.

I submitted my application on September 5, 2025, under the *workation* category, as a freelance language teacher working exclusively online through platforms like Preply and Italki. Ten days later, I received a call from the embassy requesting a few additional documents, which I sent immediately. One week later, on September 24, I finally received the precious visa.

All in all, the wait was just under three weeks.

Good luck to all of you!

If you have any questions about the required documents, feel free to reach out. In principle, simply following the instructions provided on the website of the Thai Embassy in Paris should be enough for everything to go smoothly.

Hey everyone 👋🏼 wondering if there’s people here who have successfully gotten their DTV under the freelancer category? Would love to here your advice and feedback 😊 thanks everyone

I’m a Canadian in Thailand (5+ yrs on Non-B, paying taxes) running an AI consulting biz (HK LLC, US clients). My visa expires end-Aug 2025, so I’m applying for DTV (freelance or business owner?) to bridge to LTR for PR later. Which DTV category is best for PR transition? Planning to apply in Cambodia/Vietnam. Advice appreciated!

I just turned 20 on May 14th and I’m planning to apply for the Thailand DTV visa under the Workcation category as soon as possible. I’m currently working as a freelance Graphic Designer. I understand that the minimum age requirement is 20 years old, but since my birthday just passed, I’m a bit concerned whether this might cause any issues during the application process. If anyone has experience or reliable information regarding this, I’d really appreciate your advice. Thank you in advance! Any insights would be truly appreciated 🙏✨