The Thai government’s pioneering DTV option for long stay foreigners is stimulating great interest amongst expat communities here and abroad. There are basically three markets: remote workers with contracts from overseas-based companies but no business within Thailand, “soft power applications” from those enrolling on skills-based education courses (or medical treatment) and a family visa for those with legal partners and/or children under 20. No official statistics are currently available, but staff at the Thai embassies in neighboring countries suggest well over 1,000 applications worldwide in less than two months. Most of the visas granted so far appear to be in the digital nomad category.
There are several key advantages to DTV. It has long validity – five years with multiple-entry – which surpasses the traditional one year extensions of stay for retirement or marriage. The official enrolment fee is 10,000 baht ($US30) for an initial 180 days which can be extended for another 180 days, if wished, for a 1,900 baht fee at local immigration. But it is then necessary to leave the kingdom – briefly if you like – and return to begin the process all over again.
There is a financial guarantee of 500,000 baht ($US16,000), but this is cheaper than the much larger sums required for traditional visas or the five years’ Elite which requires a non-returnable 900,000 ($US26,000). Many retirees in Thailand are looking carefully at the cost-benefit analysis. All they have to do is to find a justification to apply for the DTV, although some agencies in Thailand are already partnering Muay Thai academies or cookery schools to prove enrolment in advance of arrival here.
Although DTV applications can be made online, they are actually referred to the appropriate embassy for consideration. Applications are not accepted from within Thailand, or shouldn’t be. Here a few ambiguities creep in. The Thai embassy in Washington DC specifies that the 500,000 baht bond must be in the form of a checking or savings account credited to the applicant, whereas the Laos diplomatic post includes payslips or other financial guarantees. The Laos embassy is also cheaper as it does not include a service charge beyond the 10,000 baht. Washington DC charges $US400 or 13,600 baht.
Ordinarily, DTV applications are made from within the home country, but not necessarily. If the applicant can show residence in or ties to another country (proof of employment or residential lease for example) that’s acceptable. The Washington DC embassy requires extra documentation from all foreigners who don’t have a US passport or a permanent resident card, but in Laos extras are required only from applicants from 28 “controversial” countries (Iran, Iraq, North Korea etc). As always, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs allows embassies to set their own policies within a broad framework.
Given all the advantages of DTV, embassy discretion notwithstanding, this new kid on the block could upend the traditional visa framework and regulations as the Thai government strains to boost immediate revenue. There are, of course, ambiguities such as whether the 500,000 baht bond is ever checked for updating or whether one hospital appointment for surgery will cover you for five years. As things stand, the multi-entry visa is valid for five years and there has been no announcement to date that immigration officers will query documentation at entry or extension over the validity period. However, the safeguard is that you can always apply for another visa during the validity period which will cancel the DTV. Let’s hope you don’t need to.
