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expat experiences
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I currently have an LLC with funds in my business account and I’m based in Vietnam. I’m looking for the simplest and most straightforward place to apply for the DTV visa. I’m open to traveling to another country if it makes the process easier. Would appreciate hearing from anyone who’s had a smooth experience—where did you go, and how was it?
Just thought I would give an update on Ho Chi Minh Approvals as it took a lot longer than expected!
Type: Soft Power - Cooking Class 6 Month with Arun Thai Bangkok.
Passport: Australian
Funds: 3 Months of Bank Statements, Had 1 Mill Baht so 2 x amount required and the money had been in their the whole time.
Unemployed: with < 20000 USD.
Submitted: 14th October 2025
Request Documents / Provided Documents: 17th October 2025
Pending Approval: 27th October 2025
Approved: 3rd November 2025.
Documents Requested:
1. Student confirmation letter from Cooking School.
2. All pages of passport
3. Proof of income and what I plan to do for the whole 5 years ( I showed some rental income that I earn plus mentioned that I had double the amount required that I would use)
All up it took 21 days ( 14 working days) for approval. If I was to do it again I would definitely have just locked in a months accommodation and relaxed instead of having to stress about whether it was approved and moving accommodation constantly!
Another thing is that I did email and send messages to Line about 3 times throughout this period. They didn't acknowledge them at the time, but today as soon as I got the approval I got a line message and email response which was great!
Very Grateful today as I am about to board my flight to Thailand!
Submitted on the 13th October, soft power thaï cuisine with Arun Thai Cooking in Bangkok.
Extra documents requested on the 16th (picture matching thai standards and a cover letter explaining my plan for the next five years in Thailand)
Approved on the 31th !
No magic spells, just matching their criteria :
more than 15k euros bank statements (I showed three months and highlighted the ending balance), proof of enrollment, proof of current location, flight itinerary and Airbnb booking for 25 days
My partner got approved simultaneously with a Muay Thai course (Fitfac gym)
I applied for my Thai visa while in Bali, through the Thai Embassy in Jakarta. The process there was a bit slow — they asked for extra documents before approving it, but once I submitted everything, it went through fine.
About a month later, when I arrived in Phuket earlier today,, immigration took me aside to a holding area. They said they didn’t have the documents that Jakarta had received, and asked me to send them again. I had to dig through my computer and email them to a personal Gmail address (not an official government one), which felt a bit odd.
After about 15 minutes, one of the liasons came back and said okay, then told me I could go through immigration. They also had me fill out another short form with general information.
Overall, it wasn’t a big problem, but it definitely wasn’t as smooth as other people make it sound. My impression is that Phuket immigration might not be very familiar with this particular type of visa, or they just want to put on a front of being tough.
Just received my 12 month extension on the Non O visa application and bank account ccompleted by the Thai Visa Centre and documents returned to me within 7 days. That's what I call service
I'm seeing some sources that say that how long you have to keep 500k THB in your bank is different depending on where you apply.
For example if you apply from HCMC Vietnam the requirements are only stated as statement of last 6 months, and a balance of no less than 500.000 THB. No 3 month requirement is mentioned, I emailed them directly too.
I also found some people mentioning that they got their DTV visa by applying in HCMC literally a week after their balance got to 500.000 THB.
Im not asking this to cut corners, I have the balance and more, but it's in my business bank not in my personal, so I have to transfer the required amount to my personal bank.
Thats why I wanna know, how long do I actually have to keep this money in bank before I apply in НСМС? Would appreciate if anyone can tell me about their experience as well.
Oh and I’d appreciate it if you guys can share the agency you worked with that got it for you first try.