Originally Posted by
FlyingSloth
Hello, U.S citizen here.. I lived and worked in Thailand years ago. That was long before they changed it to 30 days visa-exempt. I used to do 90 days and then visa runs every 90 days. Things have changed a lot! I haven't been back to Thailand in 15 years but I know the situation has changed.
What is the longest visa I could currently obtain for Thailand and what would be the best visa to get? I am interested in being an expat in Thailand again.. either doing business in Thailand (no business yet) or just a long extended tourist stay.
Would I currently be able to get a longer visa for Thailand while still in the U.S.. or in Singapore, Vietnam, Hong Kong, or Japan? These are a few options I have. There used to be a Thai consulate near Seattle looks like they closed that one.. so I guess it's all electronic now and no need to get mail anything. that's good. Would a 6 month or 1 year tourist or business visa be possible anywhere?
Do note that the visa-exemption is a tourist visa, and does not permit you to take up any business activities (violating this would have consequences).
I obviously do not know your background, but there is another option in addition to those already mentioned by others: the Thai Board of Investment long-term resident visa, which comes in five different forms. You could look into that - the one I have is the ‘highly skilled professionals’ one (LTR-H) which allows for employment in BOI accredited companies, but there are similar types for investors, wealthy retirees, etc.
They all do come with a lot of specific requirements, but might be that one of those suits you
