@Kool ******

You are not required to go "in-person" to get a visa, even less an extension. It's been like this forever. Maybe one day it's gonna change, but it hasn't yet. What you are referring to is still agent-related but not exclusively what agents do. There is a distinction between legality and legitimacy that you do not understand. I will give you a simple example: the black market for lotto tickets is illegal in Thailand, yet nobody gives a damn and if you win, you are getting paid which makes it legitimate. It's the same for a reputable agent. I asked OP about his definition of a "well-known" agent because I know most "well-known" agent in Thailand and none of them would do something like this.

What are your criterias for "well-known" agent?

@Mark *******

Go read

@John ********

post below and do a little research about the confusion of the last 2 years. "Improvisation" doesn't equate to "succeed".

@Mark *******

Doesn't understand that and never will. He's been here since October and he is already an expert with knowledge behind belief and double down on his nonsense.

@Mark *******

It does. You are implying that Thailand did a good job in the reopening process, which they didn't. Only 60% of people are fully vaxxed and a lot of them didn't get Moderna or Pfizer, especially here in Isan. Right now there is an upside of cases that you won't hear in the media because freedom of the press is limited. Strictly speaking about what is and is not open (with no care for the locals), is also very nebulous. Bars are rebranding as "restaurants" to be able to go around the law and serve alcohol. You have no idea of what's going on behind the scenes, the loophole, the bribes, and what owners go through, especially in Phuket and Bangkok to remind open. The people who complain most likely are not first-time travelers here and have been following what's going on since more than just "October".

And I even forgot to talk about the Covid vaccine fiasco!

Why are you asking a question if you already figured it all out after 2 months? Be more humble in your approach and you will get more sympathy. I hate when newb complain that the "regulars" are too mean toward them when the newbs are annoyingly playing the "known it all" game.

The fact is that the Thai locals have suffered a lot economically during Covid with very little help from their government. The fact is that the Thai government was overthrown via a coup d'état in 2014 and a lot happened since.

The fact is that Laos economy is completely dead, with a dead currency, and no infrastructure. The fact is that Myanmar is having its version of a Civil War atm.

The fact is that Covid is underreported not only in Thailand but in a lot of countries that are not "first world". For example, here in Isan (North-East Thailand), locals are not going to the hospital if they suspect they have Covid. They can't afford unexpected medical bills that could happen. This is why you see Covid numbers even lower in Cambodia and almost inexistent in Laos (a country that doesn't have hospitals that can deal with Covid patients).

The fact is that the administrative process to get into Thailand is overly complicated atm. A country like Thailand should be able to deal with the afflux of people wanting to come in better.

The fact is that Thailand, like many countries, is "reactionary", they wait for the Covid numbers to either go "up" or "down" to make changes. They don't proactively make decisions and stick with it. If these month numbers are lower they re-open this and this province, if next month it gets higher they close the same province. We have seen a lot of flip-flopping in the last 2 years, a lot of inconsistency, and a lot of last-minute decisions. There are a lot of things that you don't know, and you should be more humble in your approach instead of trying to lecture some of us who have been here for many many years.

@Gordon ******

Bobby Howard is correct. It's 500b per day overstay and you will not get in trouble for overstaying a few days. Whoever is saying that it will prevent you from re-entering Thailand or going to a neighboring country is not speaking from experience.

Most of these will rebrand as "restaurants", already happening everywhere.

3.5k is "agent price", so either you are in the system for having use an agent before or this immigration work closely with agent.