Thank you for sharing your experience - we are also in Krabi so thats good to know 😊 5 years would have been great!! I wonder if there is anyone who got a 5 year one? Im interested mainly for international DL purposes.....would make that part much easier 😏

We had issues at the Hat Yai Padang Besar border a couple of weeks ago unfortunately. Crossed into Malaysia - turned around to come back and the Thai IO told us to sit outside for 2 hours. When I asked why that is, he threatened me with option #2 - not letting us back in at all. Very unsettling experience. I am on a freelancer DTV with a legit business, we are years old, were dressed nicely and always friendly and respectful. I'm sure the IO just had a bad day or needed to up his power but the whole process there was very confusing and not enjoyable at all. I wont be using that one again thats for sure 😒

I think the problem is that the soft power route will not allow you to work as a freelancer/ self empmoyed. So if you want to legally work as a freelancer while in Thailand - that would be the route to go. At least these were the rules when I applied in July 2024 in Vancouver Canada.

I run my own bookkeeping business and got the DTV in Vancouver Canada in July 2024. I included 2 client contracts (include remote work clause), 3 months worth of my biz bank statements and a cover letter explaining what I do, for how long I've been doing it and my monthly revenue. Proof of CAD equivalent to 500,000THB. I also added a screenshot of my Canada Revenue Agency business account. I think that was kinda it. Good luck 👍🏽

At the Vancouver Canada consulate it didn't matter. But as always - every embassy might have different requirements 😊

@Brad ******

every embassy might be different but my husband had to show 500,000 in his name. And the working part- ya, definitely better if she had her own DTV by the way it sounds 😊

If your spouse also wants to work as a freelancer in Thailand then she'd have to apply for her own DTV. As a dependant based on your approved DTV would not give her permission to work. So that'd be important to remember too 😊

As far as money - my husband who is trailing along under my DTV - he also had to show the funds of 500,000THB. That was in Vancouver Canada.

Maybe it is because one allows you to keep working remotely while in the kingdom - whereas with the soft power options you cannot legally work at all?! The proof for soft power would be your school registration etc.. (maybe even supply attendance records at one point ?!) and the proof for digital workers are contracts etc. Kinda makes sense?! 🤔 ☺️

@Greg **********

extension worked better for us this time round and the money requirement is not an issue - so it was pretty straight forward. All things considered lol 😉😂 Our Immigration officer would have also preferred for us to do a border run - but we managed to have a good time with it all anyways . But yes - from what I hear, many people have issues and border runs are suggested. We just seem to get lucky here with many things 😊

@Greg **********

we had to! I have the DTV and my husband had to have his own 500,000. We applied in Vancouver and did our first extension in Krabi and he also wanted to see 2 x 500,000.