Are you considering furthering your education abroad and want to explore Thailand whilst doing so? Do you want to study Thai language whilst living on a tropical island in southern Thailand? How about training muay Thai boxing in Bangkok? Perhaps even learn how to cook Thai dishes from Thai chefs in Thailand?

If the answer to any of those questions was yes then perhaps the education visa for Thailand is exactly what you are looking for, and you are in good luck as I am going to share everything I know about the education visa as someone who spent 6 months studying Thailand language on Koh Samui for 6 months. So lets get into what exactly the Education visa is, explore your options of study, cost, Warnings & restrictions and how to get started with your application.

The education visa, officially referred to as the Non-Immigrant ED visa, is a visa designed for non Thai citizens who wish to study in Thailand. The visa is a single entry 90 day visa that can be extended every 90 days for up to a year in most cases, but the length of extension is dependent on the course of study that you are enrolled in. It is also worth pointing out that the extensions of stay is granted at the local immigration offices discretion. 

The education visa allows you to stay in Thailand whilst attending an education institution approved by the Thai Ministry of Education. 

The Education visa has many uses and people require it for many different reasons. The children of expats living in Thailand may require an education visa to study at school or university. Many people choose to study the Thai language whilst living in Thailand at a small language centres in popular tourist destinations. Some Muay Thai boxing gyms will help you apply for the education visa so you can train at their gym. Even diving schools on the islands or Thai cooking schools in Bangkok may be able to offer assistance to those wishing to study with them in applying for the ed visa. 

One of the coolest things about the education visa is the variety of potential courses of study. The education visa is most commonly used for the study of:

• Elementary to secondary level school 
• Higher education*
• Language learning 
• Vocational, technical, or diploma
• Workshop, training or seminars
• Monk, nun, priest to study dharma 
• Internships

If I had to guess I would assume that the majority of you watching this video are considering studying Thai language, and whilst that is a great option and I would encourage anyone interested in learning the language to do so, it is worth pointing out that that may not be your only option. It is lessor known but language schools offer English classes to non native English speakers and you can apply for the education visa on that course of study. And lets not forget may Thai boxing gyms and diving schools may be approved educational institutes and enrolling with them may offer you a route to accessing the education visa. 

*Before we move on I would like to say that those considering to study higher education in Thailand should consider the Education plus visa, Non-immigrant ED Plus visa. The ED plus visa is for those studying at bachelor degree level or above and has additional advantages over the ED visa such as being able to leave and re enter Thailand without the need of a re-entry permit and most notably the ability to extend for a year after graduation giving you time to seek employment in Thailand after graduation.

This is a tricky question to answer because the main cost involved with the education visa is not the visa itself, but the cost of the course of study you enrol on. The visa itself will cost you 2,000 THB and then a further 1,900 per extension every 90 days. But like I said the main cost of the visa is actually the tuition you pay for the course of study, and some courses will include the cost of the visa itself. To give you a vague idea studying a language for example and at language school will likely cost you somewhere between 30,000THB to 50,000THB for a years tuition. 

Maybe we can take a look at a few real examples to get a better picture. 

If we take the Samui language schools pricing as an example for the costs of studying Thai language, on their website they advertise courses from 3 months costing 15,000 THB and 9 months 32,000 THB, these prices exclude the acual visa costs so they would have to be added. 

They also offer English classes with ed visa with a variety of prices depending on the course you select, with costs starting from 38,500 THB for 12 months not including visa fees. 

If we take a look at the pricing of one of the popular Muay Thai gyms we can see that they offer a travel package for the price of 55,000 THB per month. Now this includes a lot including accommodation, all inclusive training of full MMA and access to gyms, airport pickup and even motorbike rental. I believe that they would be able to help you with application of an education visa If you enrolled with this packgage or one similar but again you would have to check with the gym and things do change. They do offer more affordable packages such as Muay Thai only excluding accommodation and the other perks, again perhaps if you contacted the gym they would be able to tell you if enrolment on this course would make the Education visa eligible for you. May Thai only for 6 months is priced at 58,000 THB.

I would be remised if I didn’t mention a few things to watch out for when it comes to the ED visa, and I am going to say these things as sensitively as possible but I do want to give you a few warnings about the education visa before moving on to application process. 

If you are looking for a visa to stay in Thailand but are not really planning on studying then look for a different visa route, this visa is designed for those who wish to study in Thailand and immigration officials are very aware that some may, and have, used the visa for purposes other than study. It is not uncommon to be asked questions and even quizzed about your Thai speaking abilities by passport control or immigration officers. This happened to me on one of my 90 day visits to the local immigration office. In fact this visa is tightly regulated and only really even available in tourist hotspots like Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Phuket and some of the larger islands. 

It is illegal to work whilst in Thailand on the education visa, never accept a job that wants you to enter and stay on the education visa whilst working for them. 

Be aware that any promises of an education visa without study is also illegal and could get you into all sorts of trouble.

Ok, so you have got this far into the video and are still keen to apply for an education visa and study for an extended period in Thailand, so what steps should you take next?

Step 1: Application and enrolment.  Apply and enrol in the course of study you have decided upon. The first step is to decide what you want to study and to pick the institution you wish to learn at. You should reach out to the school or education centre you have selected and inform them that you wish to enrol and check that they can help you with the application of the education visa. 

enquire about education visa

Step 2: Arrange your documents. Documents do very depending on the type of course you are planning to study and where you applying for the visa. But for example if you are going to be studying Thai language and applying at the the Thai embassy in London you will need the following documentation:

• Valid Passport 
• Photograph taken within the last six months Recent Photograph
• Document indicating current location
  (driving license, utility bill, official document withe name and address)
• Financial Evidence
  (the amount again may very depending on where you are studying and for how long, but it is going to most likely be proof of at least 20,000 THB)
• Letter from relevant authority under the ministry of education. Letter from ministry of education
• Letter confirming enrolment details signed and authorised with ID card or passport of the signer. 

When it comes to the documents this is going to be a collaborative effort with the school or learning centre, some of the documents you will need to collect and others the school will acquire for you. And again, you may need other documents like police backgrounds checks or medical insurance, it does vary as there is such a variety in courses to study. 

Step 3: Apply at a Thai Embassy. If you’re already in Thailand on a tourist visa, you’ll need to leave the country to apply at a Thai embassy outside of Thailand. If you’re not in Thailand yet, apply at a Thai embassy in your home country. This is when you will have to pay the initial visa fee which I believe is around 2,000THB and submit all of your documents. Pay fee and submit documents

Step 4: Enter Thailand and Start Studying! Once approved, your ED Visa is valid for 90 days initially. When you enter Thailand, you’ll get a 90-day stamp. Before that expires, your school will help you extend it at a local immigration office—usually for 1,900 THB per extension, until the end of your course. 

One year not enough for you and you wish to study longer? Well you may be in luck, recently a visa was released called the DTV that is 5 years in length and can be applied for on the grounds of studying Thai soft power activities that includes Thai language and Muay Thai, I recently made a video about the DTV find the link in the description.