@Paul ******

It is possible to obtain a Non-O visa at the immigration office in Thailand (from a Tourist Visa entry) if you meet the qualifications for the visa you are applying for.

As an example,

If you are OK with hotel quarantine (ASQ) then no need to enter anything about vaccinations on your application for CoE. You will be considered to be non-vaccinated and as you say right now there's no advantage to being vaccinated in the ASQ program (everyone does 14-day quarantine, even those who are vaccinated).

If you would like to qualify for the Phuket Sandbox (when that becomes possible to do in the next few weeks) then you would probably need to get your vaccination cards translated into English or Thai if you wanted them considered for qualifying for the Phuket Sandbox (14-day stay in SHA Plus hotel, but allowed to go out around Phuket). I say probably because no one knows for certain what the rules will be for the Phuket Sandbox and how vaccination will have to be proven.

Yes as said you can achieve the same functionality as the multi-entry visa by getting a re-entry permit for your extension of stay. 1000 baht for a single entry, 3800 for multiple entries. You can get the re-entry permit at the immigration office anytime or at Bangkok airports just before departure.

@Thiparat *********

Only done at the immigration office and only done when you have less than 30 (some offices, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Buriram 45) days remaining on your permission to stay.

@Andy *********

I don't think that's a requirement for getting the elite visa. But on the other hand, if an agent told you that he did you a favor in steering you away from the elite visa. If you qualify for another visa (retirement or marriage) I just don't see the elite visa as being something one would want to have.

@John ********

Hopefully better, but I recognize that things can always be worse than they are now. I'm an optimistic pessimist. ;-)

@Kool ******

Yes and we know how media reports are generally sticklers for accuracy when it comes to immigration matters, especially the always precise and unambiguous use of terms for describing visas and extensions of stay. ;-)

@Kool ******

Gee, an English-language media outlet made a huge mistake in translating something that happened in Thai. Absolutely shocking. Especially concerning a subject like immigration with its precise and well-understood nomenclature. ;-)

@Bobby *******

I think you're right regarding people entering on a Non-O retirement visa, at least one obtained in some countries (US, UK) However, extending that Non-O visa in Thailand does NOT currently require health insurance (as opposed to the Non-OA which does). No one knows what the future holds. If logic were an important consideration in immigration policies I think we might have a totally different immigration system. ;-)

Some words of caution are in order. First, this report comes from the media. Second, this report comes from the Thai media. ;-) Third, this report comes in English when all events described occurred in Thai. Fourth, the nomenclature that is used to describe visas and extensions of stay is used VERY imprecisely (one might even say sloppily) by nearly everyone, especially immigration.

That said, "All foreigners living in Thailand as non-immigrants will in the future have to prove they have insurance coverage of at least US$100,000 (three million baht) against Covid-19." would indeed cover all non-immigrants foreigners living in Thailand if it were true.

Then they introduce the NIV abbreviation for Non-immigrant Visas, which I've never seen before.

Then comes the kicker:

"At present, holders of the NIV must be insured to the tune of just 40,000 baht for out-patient treatment, or 400,000 baht for in-patient treatment at a hospital."

That sentence just isn't true. Only holders of Non-OA [note the 'A' it's significant] visas and extensions of stay derived therefrom must meet the stated medical insurance requirement. Specifically, holders of a Non-O for purpose of retirement [note there is no 'A' the absence is significant] visas and extensions of stay derived therefrom do NOT have to meet the stated medical insurance requirement. People who have Non-O visas or extensions of stay derived therefrom for the purpose of marriage do NOT have to meet the stated medical insurance requirement.

In fact, ONLY holders of Non-OA visas or extensions of stay derived therefrom have to meet this insurance requirement.

[By the way, someone who has looked at the minutes of the meeting in translation has stated that nothing in those minutes indicates that the new requirement applies to any non-immigrant visa OTHER THAN the Non-OA. From Thaivisa.com's resident immigration guru, ubonjoe.]