I suspect it's more down to the office than the visa and an office that will do 5 year for DTV will also do it for Elite, they are the same class of visa. Plenty of Elite people do get 5 year licenses, some they will only do 2 year as it's a tourist class visa but it's down to the office.

@Ne**

There is no reference to an exemption in the Royal Gazette posting for the DTV. The only reference is to the Immigration Act BE 2522, there is no reference to the Labour Protection Act or the Foreigners Working Decree.

.pdf

Indeed, Section 7 says "Aliens and their legal spouses who have been granted a special tourist visa (Destination Thailand Visa: DTV) and wish to work in the Kingdom, upon receiving permission to stay in the Kingdom, must apply and change the visa type to a temporary resident for work first, and then apply for a work permit in accordance with the law on the management of alien employment." (Google Translate)

So this is EXPLICITLY saying that what people are going to be doing on the DTV is not "work in the Kingdom", and that if they actually want to do this they have to change visa to one allowing work and also get a work permit.

I understand you can read the labour laws and come to the conclusion that it covers remote work because it doesn't explicitly say it doesn't. Every indication though is the Thai government does not interpret it that way as they DIDN'T see the need for an exemption.

Unless there's an exemption somewhere else that I'm missing, but my reading of the DTV it seems pretty clear they are saying remote work is NOT "work in the Kingdom" covered by those laws.

@Ni***

right, but people say working on retirement visa isn't allowed because it's stamped "employment prohibited" and you can't get a work permit. So what's the difference with the DTV?

@Ne**

@An**

right, but it's exactly the same on the retirement visa. People say you can't work on retirement because it says "employment prohibited" and you can't get a work permit. But this is EXACTLY the same as on the DTV.

They have already explicitly stated that a work permit cannot be obtained for remote work, and is not necessary.

I get the DTV was specifically for remote work, but it seems on the framework remote work may never have been prohibited, just work in Thailand.

What do you have that remote working is explicitly illegal on a retirement visa, other than these two things which are the same for the DTV? I totally accept it's less of grey area with the DTV as that's the point of the visa, but I'm beginning to suspect that "work" and "employment" as understood in Thailand do not cover remote work.

@Ne**

DTV is "employment prohibited" and no work permit, just like retirement visa.

@An**

MFA have stated it's fine and expected to leave and come right back with no minimum time out, that this is an accepted use of the visa. Elite is also technically a tourist visa but it's promoted as residency and some people live here for decades on it.

@Ni***

DTV is stamped "employment prohibited" as well. It does seem this means local employment.

@Ge***

suggestions from where? MFA has said they won't.

@Gra***

I said may. But people have already re-entered and no one has been asked for anything. This is exactly how the MFA said it would work, and how other visas work, they don't ask for the proofs on every entry.

@Ni**

more likely they'd ask you when you were applying, before you paid, if you were doing it physically in Laos. It's most likely you will get the visa if they took the application and the money, they check the documents when you apply. It's the e-visa they come back to ask for more.