Working as instructor or DM in Thailand

[Blueskys4ever]

I would recommend that you hook up with a school that is looking for a English teacher. ( You don't have to be that good) Get your WP through the school and then teach diving on the side. Two incomes are better than one. Most schools provide living quarters.

 

[stevenl]

I would recommend that you hook up with a school that is looking for a English teacher. ( You don't have to be that good) Get your WP through the school and then teach diving on the side. Two incomes are better than one. Most schools provide living quarters.

Take into account, that a workpermit as a teacher is not valid for diving. So that means if there is a check, you will still be teaching diving without workpermit, so you could get fined and/or deported for that.

 

[Zippsy]

Just learn how to teach English in a pool, on a boat and underwater and you'll be fine.

 

[jamin]

Thanks for all the info people...I will be going to Asia Divers Koh Tao in March to do my MSDT specialities and I'll take it from there...hopefully be a bit easier to sort out when I'm back living in TL for a few months.

 

[Belushi]

When I was in Phuket, I applied to Brisbane for a 12 month multiple-entry, 3 month renewable visa. This meant that you only had to leave to renew your visa 4 times a year and you could come and go as many times as you wanted without penalty
I cannot remember how much it cost, but it was not extortionate.
I also paid for my visa to be "ran" across the border into Malaysia for the last 2 years of my time in Phuket and the guy who was doing it was an immigration official who did it on his days off because his wife's brother worked on the border in the south.

 

[stevenl]

I also paid for my visa to be "ran" across the border into Malaysia for the last 2 years of my time in Phuket

That is highly illegal. A lot of immigration officers doing this or cooperating with this got transfered, and everybody using these services got extradited.

 

[Blox]

Many Freelance Instructors open up their own companies in order to get a work permit.
Basically to set up a Company Ltd. the cost is around 20 000 baht and a Ltd Partnership about 15 000 baht. In order to do this you would need your landlord/landlady's address and their approval to use their home as an office base.

A good contact on Phuket is Khun Ae from Scubaline Accounting Services via tel: 015697505. She speaks very good English and has vast experience with this. There are other companies who can do this as well such as Sam from the International Law Office.

In the event of an Instructor given a work permit from a company?
Bear in mind that irrespective of the company who applied for the work permit for an Instructor. The work permit belongs to the individual Instructor and not the company. In other words should the Instructor decide to leave a company to work for another - the work permit can be transferrable. Although the company that the Instructor joins must have the same baht value as the previous company in order to accommodate the work permit.

Complicated? Yes. Hope this info is of some help to those who want to know more about the Red Tape on Phuket.

The above seems to be incorrect on various counts:

In order to be considered to be granted a work permit for a foreigner, the company must have a registered share capital of THB 2,000,000 per foreign work permit. I am quite sure that you won't get a work permit for a "Farang" with a company of just THB 15,000 or 20,000. Founding the company with a registered share capital of THB 2,000,000 but only putting up 15,000 would not be exactly legal and the revenue department et al will have your butt for breakfast when they find out.

Work permits are NOT transferable. Work permits are always granted for the particular employment only, the employee (and I'm always talking foreigners here, because Thais obviously don't have to deal with the work permit issue) can not "take it with him" when he goes to work for another company. The work permit is not even valid if working for the same company in a different location than initially declared/applied for, i.e. if you've got a work permit granted for work at "X Scuba" on Phuket, you can't legally work under the same work permit at "X Scuba's" dive shop in Krabi.
If an employee leaves a company, the company is obliged to inform the labour department. If you quit your job, the work permit is revoked/void - and so is your business visa that is tied to it.

 

[buksida]

The above is pretty accurate, I'm on my third one as I've changed jobs/companies often. Each one is no easier to get than the previous, if anything it seems to be getting harder every year.

For diving I would stay in the area for a couple of months and check out the options while familiarising yourself with the local dive operators and their staff to see whats available.

Nothing happens fast in Thailand

 

[Ringo]

The above seems to be incorrect on various counts:

In order to be considered to be granted a work permit for a foreigner, the company must have a registered share capital of THB 2,000,000 per foreign work permit. I am quite sure that you won't get a work permit for a "Farang" with a company of just THB 15,000 or 20,000. Founding the company with a registered share capital of THB 2,000,000 but only putting up 15,000 would not be exactly legal and the revenue department et al will have your butt for breakfast when they find out.

Work permits are NOT transferable. Work permits are always granted for the particular employment only, the employee (and I'm always talking foreigners here, because Thais obviously don't have to deal with the work permit issue) can not "take it with him" when he goes to work for another company. The work permit is not even valid if working for the same company in a different location than initially declared/applied for, i.e. if you've got a work permit granted for work at "X Scuba" on Phuket, you can't legally work under the same work permit at "X Scuba's" dive shop in Krabi.
If an employee leaves a company, the company is obliged to inform the labour department. If you quit your job, the work permit is revoked/void - and so is your business visa that is tied to it.

Sorry Guys - this is actually what is allowed on Phuket and has been allowed over the last 5 years. We all know that things were different in the past on Phuket (refer to above info from Blox) and we also know that the various provinces have different rules. I am certainly not speaking for other areas in Thailand.

In fact these foreign freelance Instructors who are allowed to open up a small business (they are supposed to declare 2 million baht) in order to work legally here can also state which provinces they are allowed to work in. For example if they are based on Phuket and also do work at The Similans, their work permits must declare this. The officials here recognise the fact that most companies cannot afford to employ many full time Instructors as each work permit is to the value of 2 million baht in the company. In order for this to be sidestepped these Instructors can open a company in order to service the Diving Industry as such. In the old days a work permit was for a particular company and could not be used for another company.

Should an Instructor decide to leave a company who has declared the 2 million baht want to move onto another company: the next company must also declare the 2 million baht value in order for this Instructor to transfer the work permit.

Work Permits not Transferrable? Sorry this is how many companies on Phuket have been operating legally. To give you an idea, over the year's this is what happened between our company and many others. On the other hand one of our ex Instructors recently transferred her work permit over to another dive center. This is all done in corroboration with the Labour Department. Absolutely no problems as long as it has been processed within the time required by the L D. How else would we be able to get work permits processed quickly in order for the Instructor to work legally? Certainly cannot wait for a couple of months.

The Individual Instructor has already passed the criteria to work in the Diving Industry on Phuket and has the right to keep the work permit and transfer it on Phuket.

If the employee leaves the company and does not want the work permit transferred then it is up to the company to inform the Labour Department in order to cancel.

 

[subaquaman]

This may be a bit of an obscure question but how much would a PADI instructor expect to earn in Thailand? Could someone even suggest a price range?