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Non-Immigrant B — business activity

ThailandStarting a business

Explore the five recorded questions, answers and sources for this pathway.

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Is this for a founder, startup entrepreneur, self-employed person, freelancer, company owner or another business profile?

The Thai Non-Immigrant Visa category "B" is the category the Ministry of Foreign Affairs uses for entering the Kingdom to conduct business or to work. On the business side the documents the Ministry lists are company-facing rather than founder-facing: a letter from a company stating the objective of the visit, correspondence with trading partners in Thailand, invitation letters from companies qualified to employ foreigners, and full corporate records of the Thai company. The page does not describe a startup, freelance or self-employed profile, and it does not set out any route for a person who has no Thai company behind the application.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The page does not describe a founder, startup, freelance or self-employed variant of category B, and does not say whether the applicant may be the owner of the Thai company.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 1. REQUIREMENT
    - to conduct business / to work (Category "B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Letter from a company stating the objective of the visit to Thailand ("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Document showing correspondence with trading partners in Thailand. ("B") - Letter of invitation from companies qualified to employ foreigners. ("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Copy of corporate documents; namely 1) list of shareholders 2) business registration and business license 3) company profile 4) details of business operation 5) list of foreign workers stating names, nationalities and positions 6) map indicating the location of the company 7) Balance sheet, statement of Income Tax and Business Tax (Por Ngor Dor 50 and Por Ngor Dor 30) of the latest year 8) Alien income tax return (Por Ngor Dor 91) and 9) Value-added tax registration (Por Ngor Dor 20) , etc.("B")

What must actually exist or be demonstrated: business plan, company, innovation, clients, contracts, economic activity, job creation or other substance?

The substance required is an existing, documented Thai company and a concrete business purpose: a letter from a company stating the objective of the visit, correspondence with trading partners in Thailand, and corporate documents (list of shareholders, business registration and business licence, company profile, details of business operation, list of foreign workers with names, nationalities and positions, map of the company location, latest balance sheet with income and business tax statements, alien income tax return and value-added tax registration). Tourism businesses must show the number of foreign tourists and export businesses must show export transactions evidenced by banks.

See recorded sources
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Letter from a company stating the objective of the visit to Thailand ("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Document showing correspondence with trading partners in Thailand. ("B") - Letter of invitation from companies qualified to employ foreigners. ("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Copy of corporate documents; namely 1) list of shareholders 2) business registration and business license 3) company profile 4) details of business operation 5) list of foreign workers stating names, nationalities and positions 6) map indicating the location of the company 7) Balance sheet, statement of Income Tax and Business Tax (Por Ngor Dor 50 and Por Ngor Dor 30) of the latest year 8) Alien income tax return (Por Ngor Dor 91) and 9) Value-added tax registration (Por Ngor Dor 20) , etc.("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Document indicating the number of foreign tourists (for tourism business only) ,or document indicating export transactions issued by banks (for export business only)("B")

What investment, capital, income, revenue, funding or viability evidence is central to this pathway?

The Ministry's page sets no investment minimum and no capital or turnover threshold for category "B". What it does require financially is evidence of adequate finance of 20,000 Baht per person or 40,000 Baht per family for the applicant, and on the company side the latest balance sheet together with the statement of Income Tax and Business Tax and the value-added tax registration, which is how the viability of the Thai company is evidenced. The visa fee is 2,000 Baht for a single entry and 5,000 Baht for multiple entries, and the page notes the fee may change without prior notice.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The page states no minimum capital, turnover, salary or investment figure for category B; any such threshold, if it exists, comes from work-permit or investment rules outside this page.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Evidence of adequate finance ( 20,000 Baht per person and 40,000 Baht per family )
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Copy of corporate documents; namely 1) list of shareholders 2) business registration and business license 3) company profile 4) details of business operation 5) list of foreign workers stating names, nationalities and positions 6) map indicating the location of the company 7) Balance sheet, statement of Income Tax and Business Tax (Por Ngor Dor 50 and Por Ngor Dor 30) of the latest year 8) Alien income tax return (Por Ngor Dor 91) and 9) Value-added tax registration (Por Ngor Dor 20) , etc.("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 3. VISA FEE
    2,000 Baht for single entry and 5,000 Baht for multiple entries.

What business/self-employed activity may the holder conduct? Are there important restrictions? What is the family position where clearly stated?

The page defines the permission by purpose, conducting business or working, but it does not itself grant the right to work. For category "B" it lists a letter of approval from the Ministry of Labour, obtained by the prospective employer in Thailand submitting Form WP3 at the Office of Foreign Workers Administration, Department of Employment, and a copy of any work permit previously issued by the Ministry of Labour. The activity is therefore tied to the Thai company that supports the application, and the page states no family rights for a category "B" holder.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The page does not state which business activities the holder may perform, nor any family accompaniment rule for category B.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 1. REQUIREMENT
    - to conduct business / to work (Category "B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Official Note certifying the purpose of travel from the Government Agencies /Embassies and Consulates / International Organizations / State Enterprises inThailand. ("F" / "B" / "ED" / "M" / "R") - Letter of approval from the Ministry of Labour (To obtain this letter, the prospective employer in Thailand is required to submit Form WP3 at the Office of Foreign Workers Administration, Department of Employment, Ministry of Labour Tel 02-2452745, 02-2453209 or at a Provincial Employment Office in the respective province. Further information is available at www.doe.go.th/workpermit/index.html) ("B")
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 2. DOCUMENTS REQUIRED
    - Copy of Work Permit issued by the Ministry of Labour (only in case the applicant has previously worked in the Kingdom ) ("B")

What approval/application sequence applies, how long is the status granted, how is it renewed, and what longer-term residence direction is officially stated?

After obtaining the company and Ministry of Labour documents, the applicant applies at a Thai Embassy or Consulate-General; nationals of certain countries must apply only in their home or residence country or at a designated Thai Embassy. Single-entry and multiple-entry visas are valid for three months, and multiple-entry visas could also be valid for one year. The holder is initially granted a stay not exceeding 90 days unless the Immigration Bureau instructs otherwise, and qualified persons can obtain an additional one-year stay permit at the discretion of the Immigration officer, filed through a Thai consular mission or the Office of Immigration Bureau in Bangkok. The page states no permanent-residence direction.

See recorded sources
Limits of the record
  • The page states no longer-term residence or settlement direction for category B holders.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 4. VALIDITY OF A VISA
    Single-entry and multiple-entry visas are valid for three months. Multiple-entry visas could also be valid for one year.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 5. PERIOD OF STAY
    The holders of this type of visa are initially granted a period of stay in the Kingdom not exceeding 90 days unless otherwise instructed by the Office of Immigration Bureau.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 6. EXTENSION OF STAY
    Those qualified persons can obtain an additional one year stay permit counting from the date of entry in the Kingdom pertaining to the Office of the Immigration Bureau's regulations on extension of stay. The extension of stay is at the discretion of the Immigration officer.
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 6. EXTENSION OF STAY (N.B.)
    N.B. Applicants wishing to stay in the Kingdom longer than 90 days have to file their application either at the Thai consular mission aboard or at the Office of Immigration Bureau in Bangkok located on Government Center B, Chaengwattana Soi 7, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Tel 0-2141-9889 (or website at (http://www.immgration.go.th ) . The consular officer must refer the case to the Office of Immigration Bureau for approval. Upon receiving approval, the consular officer may issue the visa as instructed by the Bureau
  • 3. NON-IMMIGRANT VISA, 7. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS
    Nationals of certain countries are required to apply for a visa only at the Thai Embassy or Consulate-General in their home/residence country or at the designated Thai Embassy. Therefore, travellers are advised to contact the nearest Thai Embassy or Consulate-General to find out where they may apply for a visa to Thailand before departure.

These are the answers currently recorded in the catalogue. A missing or partial answer is not an eligibility decision.

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