Thailand Visa for Startup Founders. Build Your Company. Skip the Immigration Headaches.

A tourist visa permits a stay of 60 days per entry, extendable once by 30 days at a Thai immigration office. It does not authorize work in Thailand. Founders who plan to stay long-term or conduct business activity should apply for the appropriate visa category, such as the DTV for remote work or the Non-B for locally employed roles. Relying on repeated tourist entries can draw scrutiny at the border; Thai immigration can question entry intent, and recent patterns show even legitimate visitors have been turned away.

The DTV is designed for remote or freelance work conducted for non-Thai employers or clients, and for other qualifying activities. Working directly for a Thai company or Thai clients under the DTV raises compliance questions. Founders with Thai-entity income should structure through a Non-B visa and work permit. Contact Issa Compass to review your specific situation before applying.

Processing times vary by visa category and by the embassy where the application is submitted. Some embassies process significantly faster than others. Issa Compass provides data-driven timeline estimates inside its platform, drawn from thousands of completed applications. Check the Issa Compass app for current estimates for your specific visa type and embassy.

The Issa Compass Money-Back Guarantee applies to all pre-qualified applications submitted through Issa Compass. If a pre-qualified application is not approved by immigration, Issa Compass refunds both the government fee and the service fee in full. The guarantee applies once Issa Compass has completed its pre-qualification verification and submitted the application. Certain countries or territories are excluded; contact Issa Compass to confirm eligibility for your country.

Switching from a DTV to a Non-B visa requires exiting Thailand and applying for the Non-B from outside the country. You cannot hold both visas simultaneously, and an in-country conversion is not possible for this specific path. Consult Issa Compass for the current procedure before making any plans.

Each foreign employee requires a Non-B visa sponsored by the Thai entity, plus a separate work permit. The sponsoring entity must meet the standard requirements of 2,000,000 THB registered capital per foreign employee and a 4:1 Thai-to-foreign employee ratio, unless the entity qualifies for an exemption under the SMART Visa S or a BOI promotion. The best-practice strategy when managing employees across multiple offices or branches is to apply for both the visa and work permit through the company's head office. Once issued under the head office, the foreign employee can be assigned to any branch location without a separate transfer process.

Issa Compass is a private software-automated visa services platform operated by Issara Platforms Pte. Ltd. It is not a government agency and is not a government partner or affiliate. The platform uses Visa Intelligence Engine and licensed immigration consultants to prepare and submit applications on behalf of clients. Approval decisions rest with Thai immigration authorities.