Hi guys need some suggestions. I am kind looking at soft power cooking for dtv. I heard from AI that 6 months will get rejected 99 percent. is it true? AI suggest for 12 months. I don't work but has income from rental. also what cooking school people went for and for how long. which country people apply their dtv from. how long it took and when was it approved. just need suggestions many thanks.

Hello all, I am in the process of applying for the DTV and would love to know peoples experience with House of Taste Thai Cooking School. I am specifically looking at the 6 month course and applying from the London Embassy. Thanks :)

#APPROVED

Hi everyone, just wanted to document my DTV journey for anyone applying or waiting right now.

📌 Category: Soft Power – Culinary (House of Taste - Thai Cooking School located at Sukhumvit Soi 4)

📌 Applied via: Thai Kru Agency

📌 Embassy: Vientiane, Laos

📌 Initial Document Submission: 9 January 2026, 08:36 AM

📌 Payment confirmation: 9 January 2026, 11:01 AM

There was no queue at the embassy that morning.

📌 Update – 13 January 2026

15:40: Received a request for additional documents

17:45: Agent submitted all required documents the same day

After submission, the status changed back to “Pending Document Checking.”

I’ll continue updating this post with every change (approval, e-visa issuance, etc.) to help others get a clearer idea of the current processing speeds.

📌 DTV Visa Journey Update (16 Jan, 11:00 AM)

Quick update for anyone following my timeline:

I’m still currently at “Pending Document Checking.”

No movement yet since I submitted my additional documents on 13 Jan at 17:45 (Laos consulate).

From what others have shared, it seems normal for after-hours submissions to be reviewed the next working day, and many updates happen either late afternoon or the following morning, so my case is abit weird since there's no movement at all after submission, just back to Pending Document Check.

Will continue to update this post the moment the status changes, in case it helps anyone else track their own timeline. 🙏🏼✨

If anyone submitted additional docs around the same window (13–15 Jan), feel free to share your progress too.

📌 DTV Visa Journey Update — Approved

Final update for those following my timeline in case it helps others applying in Vientiane:

I received my visa approval email on 17 January at 1:55 AM (Saturday).

Interesting note: my application skipped the “Pending Approval” stage entirely — it went straight from “Pending Document Check” → “Visa Approved.”

THERE WAS NO INTERVIEW. 🤗

My full timeline:

9 Jan (Fri, 11:01) – Paid visa fee at Vientiane

13 Jan (Mon, 15:40) – Received request for additional documents

13 Jan (Mon, 17:45) – Submitted all additional documents

14–16 Jan – Status remained “Pending Document Check”

17 Jan (Sat, 1:55 AM) – Approval email received

A few key things I learned from this process:

Staying in Pending Document Check for several days is normal, especially for Vientiane.

The system can skip “Pending Approval” completely.

Approval emails can be issued during weekends / after midnight, because the e-Visa backend seems to be automated.

Hope this helps anyone else who’s currently waiting.

I’d like to share my DTV journey with soft culinary skills training, in case it helps others.

I chose Arun Thai Cooking after comparing different schools, mainly because their packages looked reliable and interesting. They offer two options; 6 months or 1 year, with or without a visa support package. Since I’m from a low-income country, I decided to go with the visa support option, which includes a full refund guarantee if anything goes wrong with the visa application. That gave me some peace of mind.

For the visa process, the school arranged the connection with Issa Compass, which made everything easier.and honestly, the application process was very smooth and effortless.

My timeline:

Application submitted: 3 January

Pending approval: 5 January

Additional documents + interview request: 7 January (afternoon)

Visa approved: 7 January (evening)

I’m now in Bangkok for the course. The program is very flexible. You can book and attend classes on the dates that work best for you, which makes it easy to manage your schedule.

Hope this helps anyone considering a similar path 😊

DTV Approved!

Big shoutout to Arun Thai CookArun Thai Cookinge entire process so seamless. We paid our fees, got connected with their partner visa agency Issa Compass and we had our DTVs approved within 3-weeks from Washinton DC embasssy from start to finish! If anyone is looking for a cooking school that makes the entire process stress-free, definitely reccomend!

Approved visa in Hanoi Vietnam! ✅🎉

Applied for the Soft Power DTV with Arun Thai cooking

Application submitted: Friday 16/10

Changed to Pending approval 17/10

No document requests.

Approval received: Wednesday 29/10

What I submitted:

Bio data page of US passport

Passport photo

Proof of current address:

- Hanoi evisa document

- 1 passport page with Vietnam stamp

- Agoda bill recent for apartment in Hanoi

- Confirmed booking for flight from HAN to DMK for 25/11

- a picture of me holding apartment keys and a grocery receipt showing the date on the receipt as 14/10

- A close up of the keys and receipt together.

- Agoda page with address of serviced apartment

Three months of bank statements from a HYSA

- September, August, July statements

- The tenth of August had the full amount 500k baht amount and September the entire month. July had like 200k baht.

Arun Thai Cooking school documents.

I wrote a cover letter in English explaining that I will write a small letter in Thai explaining why I choose soft power cooking. I explained why in Thai because I had previously studied Thai getting an ED visa for 18 months and wanted to show that I actually studied and am continuing to learn Thai. The letter was basic and just said Thai food is famous and listed some of my favorites and that I want to learn.

Last time I went Bangkok in January 2025 after spending a month in Japan, I got grilled by the IOs for trying to come back without a proper visa. Because I had basically lived in Thailand for a little over two years. Mostly with ED visa. So an hour later they agreed to let me in but they left a note on my file that said I would apply for the dtv visa.

Huge thanks to the group for all the help. I'm excited to go back! Happy to answer any questions!

Hello! I received my DTV visa by enrolling at House of Taste Thai Cooking School as a soft power! The school was super friendly and helpful in providing me everything I needed from their end quickly. Approved first time with NO ISSUES!!

DTV approved! Enrolled in House of Taste Thai Cooking School 👨‍🍳 [members only]/ I highly recommend them if you are going soft power route.

They are super fast to respond on WhatsApp and so nice. They quickly provided all the documents needed for the DTV and the LA Consulate did not ask for anything additional.

I’m so excited for my first class with a market tour next week! 😁

I can also confirm the LA Consulate is moving much faster now as my DTV was approved in 3 business days. Best of luck to everyone!

who have successfully obtained a DTV through the cooking school.Please share to me.Thanks.

Can anyone recommend places in Chiang Mai that do the DTV ‘soft

power visa?