Retirement visa

Hi Pete just asked our house designer he said you need to transfer 800,000 baht into a Thai bank account from your country or prove you have an income of 65,000 baht per month and must show evidence of where you stay in Thailand. He thinks the age is 50 year old but not 100% sure, Thai Immigration will have a site in English I expect

I am shocked to be honest why would anyone need so much money most Thai people don't earn 25% of that. What do you farang do with your money

Hi, I agree. It's the only thing forcing me not to make " the big move " to such a beautiful country. My only wish is that Thai Government re-looks at their immigration policies, take care all, Brian

My understanding is if you have the money it can be in any account. Not only a Thai bank account

I probably wont be coming to Thailand to live

Thats not because i dont want to. It is a beautiful country and has a wonderful culture but sometimes other responsibilities occur.

You can get a retirement visa from the thai consulate in your own country by showing the 800,000 baht in your own country's bank account.,

Your either 50% right or 50% wrong either way you are misleading people

Yes you can get the visa in the UK for example BUT the 800,000 baht must be lodged in a Thai bank 2 months before you apply and If you are renewing then it must be lodged 3 months beforehand. The 65k needs to shown ina Thai bank statement as been going in regular for 12 months before you apply.

I know America have some special relationship but I have never heard of that one. The money is to prove you can afford to live here not in your home country

I suggest you look at the Los Angeles thai consulate website, under the non immigrant o a visa retirement long stay category, and then apologise.

You are correct but still misleading people by telling half the story

7.21 In the case of a retiree: Permission will be granted for a period of not more than one year at a time.  Qualifications for consideration of extending a Non-Immigrant O-A (Retirement/Long-Stay) Visa include:

(1) The alien has obtained a temporary visa (NON-IM); and
(2) The applicant is 50 years of age or over; and
(3) Proof of income of not less than Baht 65,000 per month; or
(4) Account deposit with a bank in Thailand of not less than Baht 800,000 as shown in bank account transactions for the past 3 months; or
(5) Annual income plus bank account deposit totaling not less than Baht 800,000 as of the filing date of application

I cant understand why you say i am misleading people.I am just saying you can get a retirement visa in your own country from a thai consulate, showing money in your home country bank account, and not in a thai bank account.I know this applies in UK,USA, and Australia, not sure about other countries.

Read your own post "You can get a retirement visa from the thai consulate in your own country by showing the 800,000 baht in your own country's bank account."

It should read "Initially you can get a retirement visa from the Thai consulate in your own country by showing the 800,000 baht in your own country's bank account but when renewing a year later the money MUST be in a Thai bank account.

As I said you only stated half the story which could cause some not so smart person a problem in the future

Please help me someone.

John - Thai ladies are always right! Even when they are wrong!!

The 800.000 THB must be deposited into a Thai bank account from at least 2 months before the application (or 3 months before the renewal). I hope this would end the discussion.

Did you even read the posts

John clearly stated you can get your  Retirement Visa in your own country. Which for your initial application turned out to be 100%  correct and is done by showing the money in your bank in your own country and supplying a police clearance report.

What you have posted applies if you reach retirement age while living in Thailand and are applying here or when you are doing a renewal. Then the money must be in a Thai bank..........you got that?

Yes, I read the post, plus I know how the procedure works, it is not necessary to be such obnoxious, thanks. First, the OP asked for info on retirement visa. And this is the info: 800.000 thb in a thai bank account shall be present before the application, 2 months if it is a first timer, 3 months for a renew. This is regardless of where you are doing the application. Period.

BS....This is from the Thai consulate and applies to all western countries who's citizens apply from outside Thailand

Required documents (*** One original set and 3 sets of copies. Requested documentation 5–7 must be notarized.***)
      1. Four visa application forms |Download|
      2. Four passport-type photos (Passport-type photo, 2” x 2”, color, front-view, taken within 6 months, and write your name and last name on the back of each photo).
      3. Four copies of the applicant's passport (the picture page) - include the actual passport when submitting the application.  Passport must be valid for at least 18 more months.
      4. Four copies of Personal Data Form. |Download|
      *5. Four copies of:
               - applicant's bank statement (U.S.) showing a balance in the amount of not less than 800,000 Baht (current Thai exchange rate is available from the Bank of Thailand web site)
               - or an income certificate with a monthly salary of not less than 65,000 Baht
               - or a combination of a deposit account plus a monthly income totaling not less than 800,000 Baht a year.


AND
Extending the Non-Immigrant O-A (Retirement/Long-Stay) Visa

The consulate cannot extend/renew the Non-Immigrant O-A (Retirement/Long-Stay Visa) - you will have to re-apply for this type of visa (resubmit all of the required documentation) or you can apply for the extension through Thai Immigration in Thailand.

From: “Order of the Royal Thai Police Headquarters, No. 606/2549, Re: Rules and Conditions in the Consideration of Alien Applications for Temporary Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand”

Consideration for Extending Non-Immigrant O-A (Retirement/Long-Stay) Visa

7.21 In the case of a retiree: Permission will be granted for a period of not more than one year at a time.  Qualifications for consideration of extending a Non-Immigrant O-A (Retirement/Long-Stay) Visa include:

(1) The alien has obtained a temporary visa (NON-IM); and
(2) The applicant is 50 years of age or over; and
(3) Proof of income of not less than Baht 65,000 per month; or
(4) Account deposit with a bank in Thailand of not less than Baht 800,000 as shown in bank account transactions for the past 3 months; or
(5) Annual income plus bank account deposit totaling not less than Baht 800,000 as of the filing date of application
(6) For an alien who entered Thailand before October 21, 1998, and continuously allowed to stay in the Kingdom as a retiree, the following shall apply:

(a) He/she must be 60 years of age or over and has regular income. His/her bank account deposit shall not be less than Baht 200,000 a year and evidence of the account deposit for the previous 3 months must be shown; or he/she has a monthly income of not less than Baht 20,000.

(b) If he/she is under 60 years of age but not less than 55, the alien shall have regular income with a bank account deposit of not less than Baht 500,000 a year and evidence of the account deposit for the previous 3 months must be shown, or he/she has a monthly income of not less than Baht 50,000.

If I owe you an apology John will an IOU be ok?

Ok, we all understand that you have 2 methods of getting a retirement visa.One is at a thai consulate in your own country, and the other is come to Thailand to do it.
The first one requires money shown in your home country bank , and the second has to be in a thai bank.
Thanks Chalanda for an interesting debate.

So what happens when the spouse is not of retirement age.

They need to get a non immigrant visa

It says it must be in a thai bank account in thailand.so where you get your uk usa etc banks from is a mystery.

OK, are you sitting comfortably? Now pay attention LOL.

Mr. Donut is in the UK and he wants to retire and live in Thailand. So he goes to The Thai consulate in Hull eg with his bank book and other relevant ID etc and they check he has the funds in his UK account or a Thai account as he may have one already and all being well give him a 1 year retirement visa.

Showing money in a  UK account he can do only once and while he is still resident outside Thailand in the UK eg after that he must show the funds in a Thai account whether he applies in the UK or he has flown back to the UK.

Money can be home country or thai bank. Note now you have to health insurance for visa. I think upto 400,000 cover.

I believe that only applies to newcomers not to those already here.

The good news is you can get free life insurance from most companies if you are over 90 years of age and your Mum and Dad sign as guarantors