DTV WORKACTION APPROVED - SOLE PROPRIETORSHIP LLC GUIDE - VISUAL MEDIA FREELANCERS

I would like to thank everyone in this group for contributing in my DTV visa process. This was an invaluable source of quality information and I would not have been able to do it right without you.

Special thanks to Dragiša Dobić, Johan De Reiziger and Benjie Thomas from this group for giving me very specific information I needed to make this successful on the first attempt.

I would like to contribute by making this specific guide for all people applying with sole proprietor LLC route. The information publicly available in this group regarding this specific route was not clear enough to me, and left me with many questions (yes, I am probably stupid). I hope that this post will address these gaps for everyone interested.

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Embassy: Hanoi

DTV type: Workation

Nationality: USA

Company's field of work: Video and Film production

Personal Bank Statements: 3 months (most recent)

Date applied: October 22, 2025

Status changed to "Pending Approval": October 24, 2025

Date approved: October 29, 2025

Total - 1 week

NO ADDITIONAL DOCUMENTS REQUESTED

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In the attached images you will find:

1. Content page, listing the exact organization of the supporting PDF document. This is usually your Field 5 in the application.

2. Proof of location setup + an ADDITIONAL TIP about this section will be provided below. This is usually your Field 4 in the application.

3. Cover page with a table for the personal bank statements section (proof of funds). This is usually your Field 3 in the application.

4. Cover page which explains the relationship between your business account and your personal account. This was inside the supporting PDF document of Field 5 (page 42 of my Content page attached).

5. Portfolio page. I work with videos, so I provided links to each of these listed projects.

You can mimic the structure of the Content page for your application and edit sections as you see fit. However, I highly suggest that you keep Cover Letter, Employment Contract and No Objection Letter at the top of the document, right after your content page.

For these 3, you can get some assistance from chatGPT.

Example of the prompt would be: "Please write me a No Objection letter for DTV Thailand visa application, addressed to the embassy, which states clearly that I am allowed to work remotely". Done.

As a sole proprietor, you will be writing letters addressed FROM YOUR COMPANY TO YOURSELF, even though you are the only member of the company. This was a confusing part for me, but it is the correct way to do it. Do not overthink it. It might make no sense, but they just need paperwork confirming that you can take care of yourself.

Sign them all please.

All the other sections, tailor as you see fit.

For example, I included my IMDb page, instead you can include your LinkedIN, Instragram page, Facebook page, or similar.

Make sure that you SCREENSHOT everything and include the screen grabs in the application. They will not bother visiting your links. Make it easy for the embassy staff.

Portfolio - see attached. Make your links clickable, and double check all the links before submitting. If your work is images or some similar creative field, attach as many as you can in your application. The stronger your portfolio is the better. Again, do not assume that they will visit your links.

Business section - You can see the breakdown of the documents I submitted for my LLC in the Content Page. The summary is:

* Articles of Organization *(if your company is U.S. based, you can download this online from the STATE where you incorporated. Most states have these available online for free).*

* Business Bank Statements - 3 months

* 2024 Tax Filing - Schedule C only (hide your SSN)

* Highlighted Statements proving relationship between business and personal bank accounts - I made a landscape oriented image, placed 1 page of my business statement on the left side and 1 page of my personal statement on the right side. I highlighted the salary transaction on both and connected them with an arrow. Whatever you do, make it simple to understand. Also, I included a cover page for this section, explaining exactly how this transaction happens. I have attached this cover page in this post

* Invoices Sent out for the past month (1 month)

* Screenshots of my company's Web Page, with a clickable link to my webpage. Please make the screenshots.

The last page of this document was my flight ticket to Thailand. It was a return ticket within 180 days.

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PROOF OF LOCATION

See the attached cover letter for this section and use it as a template.

* IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL TIP: *

Initially, I tried to include ALL my passport pages in the main supporting PDF document (Field 5 of your application).

I quickly realized that after compressing over 70 pages to under 3MB that most JPEGS were completely unreadable. In order to mitigate this issue, I INCLUDED THE SCANS OF ALL MY PASSPORT PAGES IN THE PROOF OF LOCATION SECTION. I just appended them at the end of my Proof of Location document, with a cover page explaining that this is what I'm including.

It worked, and most importantly it made a DRASTIC DIFFERENCE in the readability and clarity of my heavily compressed supporting PDF file.

The embassy never requested me to attach my passport pages again. You can save yourself a lot of headache by doing so. And if you are feeling lazy - Yes, you need to include ALL your passport pages!

PDF COMPRESSION TOOLS

This has been discussed many times before in this group, but let's be thorough. I recommend 2 options:

smallpdf.com

ilovepdf.com

Both will give you good results, but in my case the readability of the final document was much better with SMALLPDF.

DESIGN TOOLS

You can use Canva to make your documents look more professional. They offer free trials, and it will vastly improve the overall look of your application.

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Feel free to DM me with specific questions that are not covered in this guide.

Yes, the process is stressful, but my advice is to include as much as possible in your application so that you don't get additional request for documents.

It will move your application quicker and give you less stress in the long run.

Good luck to you all!

Im currently applying from Vietnam the DTV. I can only upload one document for each section. What would you recommend as a freelancer to upload: CV, portfolio, contract with customer or references? Or should i make one PDF in put all my contracts, bills, documents together in one PDF and upload? Please help me :D ☺🤓🙆

I recently exited my full-time software developer job and planning to freelance now in the same field. I have good bank balance but what documents I can show as a freelancer?

Is it possible to apply for a Digital Nomad Visa (DTV) without a registered business? I work as a freelancer and, due to being below the taxation minimum bracket in my home country, I’m not legally required to register a business.

I can provide the following supporting documentation:

• A portfolio showcasing my work.

• A client list with active contracts.

• Bank statements demonstrating regular income from clients.

Would this be sufficient for a successful application? I plan to apply in Ho Chi Minh City.

Applied online from Australia well over a 12 days ago.

Keep getting questions about providing my portfolio. I finally got frustrated and called the Thai embassy for answers. They stated that my business " didnt look legitimate", even thought its been operating for 4 years. They want a detailed breakdown of work I do as well as invoices to clients.

My website is fine... I dont understand what is going on here.

Anyone else had this sort of issue?

DTV Questions:

1) Applying as a freelancer - I am a life coach/ content creator and I own my own business (LLC). Does anyone have a successful experience applying for this visa as a coach? What would you use for your portfolio?

Have any freelancers successfully gotten the DTV visa with just their portfolio and not current contracts with clients?

Provided they meet all the other requirements.

Edit: I plan to apply in Taipei in the next two weeks

Hello, I am a self-employed freelancer - will showing my online portfolio of work be sufficient to fulfill the employment part of the DTV application?

I successfully got my DTV from the Thai Embassy in Ho Chi Minh City. The process was a bit tricky but manageable. They didn’t ask me many questions. And it’s best to make an appointment at least two weeks in advance.

Here are the documents I submitted as a freelancer:

1. Completed Application Form

2. Photocopy of my passport info page

3. Six months of bank statements (Put the latest bank statement at the top and highlight the total balance.)

4. A few pages from my portfolio

5. CV

It took two working days to process.

Try to submit as few documents as possible until they ask for more. Giving too many documents can make things harder for them and lead to unnecessary questions that you might not be able to answer. Be ready to take extra time to submit any documents they might ask for later. When I was there, it seemed like everyone else was waiting to re-submit something they did not have the first time. *Resubmit the document; do not request additional appointments.

Make sure all your documents are in English; if they’re not, get them translated first. I submitted a portfolio with screenshots of my web design work, but it was not in English. Because of that, I was asked to translate it.

The next day, I returned with my translated portfolio, but then the other staff said they also needed my CV. Luckily, I had my MacBook with me, so I printed it out and went back within 30 minutes (before they closed for lunch) from a nearby photocopy shop (just a 5-minute walk; you can find it on Google, located southwest of the consulate).

Finally, make sure all your USD bills are in "perfect" condition because "good" condition isn't enough. It's a shame that I always carry some US dollars just in case I need them, which I get from an ATM in Hong Kong. They all have an authenticated crop mark on the back. Even though the bills are new, many places won't take them. There are money exchange shops in HCM city D1 area where you can buy USD; I bought some and carefully checked each bill for perfect condition. When the embassy staff accepted my bills and gave me a receipt, I felt so relieved. *One of my $20 bills was rejected, probably because the corner wasn't sharp enough.

I got my passport back on Friday afternoon after applying on Wednesday. So, it’s better to make your appointment on a Monday or Tuesday rather than later in the week; otherwise, you’ll have to wait until the next week to pick up your passport.

Always bring your laptop for quick replies. It's a good idea to have a USB A flash drive with you for the printing shop, as they may not have USB C connections. If you're using a Mac, make sure to format the drive in FAT32 or ExFAT so it works with Windows OS. Otherwise, many printing shops allow you to email your files for printing. Good luck~