Visa agencies in tourist-orientated cities throughout Thailand are offering to help Destination Thailand Visa hopefuls cut the pain out of the bureaucracy when dealing with overseas embassies. DTV cannot be granted to foreigners present in Thailand but must leave the country to lodge an application.
Since the introduction of DTV last July, some foreigners have demonstrated on social media that Thai diplomatic posts do not have uniform documentary requirements. Some aspirants say they have been refused, others delayed or told to resubmit. The areas of ambiguity include what exactly counts as a cash bond, the precise evidence for a digital nomad working for overseas clients and the detailed proof about being a soft-power applicant.
What the Thai visa agencies, widely advertised on Facebook in particular, are offering is a visa run to a neighboring country and assistance in preparing the specific documentation tailored to that Thai embassy. Other services cover air or road transport to the destination, hotel accommodation (usually on a bed and breakfast only basis) and a pickup facility at the Thai diplomatic post.
The inclusive costs vary company-by-company but are generally in the 75,000 baht to 150,000 baht range (from US$ 2,400), dependent on the level of assistance given. Most agencies require applicants to fill in a pre- application form to check DTV eligibility which isn’t usually a problem as the soft power categories are non-specific on detail. Applicants who have trouble proving the cash or income bond requirement may be offered a third-party guarantee by the host company.
When DTV was first announced in July, there was the expectation that the visa could be granted only in the country of nationality or of employment. This appears to have been softened, consciously or otherwise, so that applicants (whether on their own or with an agency) can request DTV in a country where are visiting briefly. This softening has enabled entrepreneurs to step into the breach, howbeit for a minority of applicants.
Embassies vary a great deal in their visa-under-consideration timescale. The informal Thai consulate in Taipei (officially the Thailand Trade and Economic Office) has a walk-in facility in the morning with the visa issued the same day. Some embassies, for example in the EU and in parts of America, are apparently taking weeks. The average seems to be about one week, though some tour companies claim three days and nights. As ever, you get what you pay for.
Thai private agencies have long experience in offering visa runs, where visits to embassies are required, and border hops where they are not. It was always inevitable that a company-assisted DTV would be attractive to those applicants who are confused, unprepared or happy to pay extra. To judge from the positive reaction in the social and mainstream media, DTV is proving overall to be spectacularly successful. For as long as the rules and regulations remain unchanged, that trend will continue.
