new visa rules vientiane?

by **kopkei** » February 7, 2011, 7:21 pm

hi guys, i just read this on thai visa and post it here as info, rumor or true?
A lawyer posted on her blog that she was refused a Thai double-entry visa in Vientane. Here is what she said:

"I was told I had too many prior entries into Thailand. Note to those applying: Vientiane is strictly applying the 'count the visa stamps' rule!

"I tried to explain that my visas were over the course of 3 years, but his response was "We count stickers, not days. You have 3 stickers. No double visa."

"I've heard from a number of other people who had the same issue."

"the paper he gave me was stamped Dec 10, 2010 so I think their 'crackdown' was pretty recent."

She is referring here to the double-entry visa obtained outside of Thailand, not the 30-day entry stamp at the border.

by **BobHelm** » February 7, 2011, 7:46 pm

I think the disadvantages of the free tourist visa are starting to show.
There is no financial benefit in the Consulates handing out Tourist visas.
I am lead to believe that the use of the 'touts' outside the Embassy before a refusal could resolve the problem. Although, the last time I went (which was just after Christmas) he did examine my passport quite carefully before agreeing the price to get a double entry Tourist Visa. As I only had one other Tourist visa in my passport (from 2 years ago) maybe that played a part in him agreeing to do it & at what price.
It will be interesting to see if Thailand carry on with issuing free Tourist visas when the current period ends. I think that is towards the end of March.
There is no doubt that Vientiane has become a little more tight with the rules on Tourist visas of late. I think they are starting to follow the same sort of rules that Consulates in surrounding countries were already following.
I think their continuing to hand out Tourist Visas without any checks in place has resulted in people who would have used another Consulate flocking to Vientiane.
Extra work for no extra cash seems like a bad business choice what ever angle it is viewed from.

by **bjoehoe** » February 9, 2011, 5:35 pm

I was denied a tourist visa at Vientiane on feb. 7. I've had no previous visa applications in Vientiane, and all visas in my passport was issued at the thai embassy in my home country.
I was handed a note which stated that as I had several visas in my passport (about 8-9 of them) I was not a genuine tourist and I was therefor seen as working illegally in Thailand (which I don't, by the way).

One of the "agents" outside the embassy informed me that everybody that had more than 5 visas in their passports would have their application rejected regardless of when and where the previous visas were issued. For the same reason there was no point in trying to get a 30 day transfer visa. He seemed quite confident that he knew what he was talking about.

(I have seen some suggestions that there might be some "business" going on between the embassy staff and the agents to regain revenue from visa applications to cover for the loss of revenue (and increased workload) with reference to free tourist visas. This seems not to be the case).

new visa rules vientiane?

new visa rules vientiane?

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