@Steve ******

could you please point me to that official rule, or law, requiring cancellation of the existing visa? That would have prevented me from making this mistake.

@Greg *******

That is a hugely helpful insight really, and

@Fitfac ****************

mentioned it as well. If there is indeed a requirement to cancel the active visa upon granting the new one (or even upon applying for the DTV, as you suggest) - that would have done the trick. If the law requires that previous visa must be cancelled, it suggests a procedural error was made which let me drop through the crack. If there is no such cancellation law, perhaps creating one would fix a 'bug' in the procedures. I had been living in Thailand on a Retirement visa, saw the DTV advertising, how it's good for 5 years instead of needing reapplication every year , you just extend every 6 months. So, I found all the info I could, talked to consulate, and actually flew to the US so I could apply from my home consulate, in person if need be. But I relied on the official processing estimate of 7 days when booking my flight, so I returned to Thailand while my OA visa was still valid, but before they issued the DTV. So yeah, it would have helped if they cancelled my active visa upon application or on granting the new one. For my previous visas, all were granted right at Immigration, there was no online-only application with email granting. I don't know about every visa type.

@Maksym **********

I guess I missed those instructions, even after reading and communicating with the consulate 🙁

@Steve ******

I actually flew back to the US, as I thought it best to apply from home country consulate - and that wasn't cheap at all 555

@Fitfac ****************

Hi, yes, I understand that now, but only after having run into trouble because I didn't find the official guidance on that. Would you mind if I sent you a PM with more questions?

@Greg *******

I am getting conflicting info on that... it seems possible to visit the airport or Immigration to get the passport stamped. But I'm looking for where this is explained.

@Greg *******

yes, I now understand how things are *supposed* to operate. In this case, I did leave - I actually flew to the US so I could be there during my DTV application. I researched (official site and facebook) and saw the processing time was 5-10 days, so I planned over 2 weeks before my return ticket, in case I had to visit the consulate, etc. But, it took over a month to process. The consulate raised no issue about my existing visa, and didn't ask me to wait before returning. I could actually have been in Thailand the whole time, but I was trying to follow rules. So now I'm looking back at what documentation was out there, as this scenario could arise for others.

@Henrik ****

I think I understand the "should not" parts by now.. my question is more about whether this scenario is covered in the published requirements , as it could be a 'procedural gap' that would apply to many others besides myself...

@Fitfac ****************

hi - are you saying we need to leave Thailand again, if we have returned on our active visa but before receiving the DTV? Could you please point me to where this is explained on the official site, or may I contact you directly? Thanks.

get a DTV visa, good for 5 years, no bank account needed...