Non-immigrant o visas

[marty]

Is the fact that that I have been supporting my Thai "fan", her two children and mother since 1995, sufficient grounds for obtaining some type of Non-Immigrant - O visa under which the minimum income rule is relaxed? Given the following details, would that qualify as "special circumstances" for granting an "O" visa?

I am a South African citizen, aged 72, who came to Thailand in 1994 as Accounting Manager for a petroleum company, and currently hold a retirement visa granted in August 2002 by reason of a 400,000 Baht bank balance and a monthly pension of approximately 32,500 Baht (when I took early retirement in 1991 my South African pension was equal to 90,000 Baht a month, but since then the South African Rand has devalued 300%).

I read that "For a foreign spouse of a Thai national to live in Thailand permanently you need a steady income. There are no hard and fast rules regarding this. There is no "minimum income" like there is for a retirement visa."

Does that rule only apply to permanent resident permits, and if I am married to my Thai lady?

I have the following documentation:

- an affidavit from an attorney substantiating our long term relationship.

- a letter from my pension fund administrators verifying my pension.

- proof from my pension fund administrators that I have named my Thai lady as beneficiary to my pension when I die, whereby she will receive 2/3rds of my pension for the rest of her life.

- bank transfer forms showing that I deposit 15,000 Baht into her bank account each month.

The reason for my query is that, while my pension is sufficient to live on and support my Thai family, I may not have sufficient cash to meet the 400,000 Baht requirement when I re-apply next year. So I would like to clarify my options well before then, in case I have to leave Thailand permanently when my visa expires.

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Thai law does not recognise defacto relationships at all. Thus you need to rely on the retirement visa, or marry the lady. It may be that you could find a sympathetic immigration officer  prepared to exercise discretion in requirements because you are certainly doing ' the right thing ' by the lady.  Remember that the  Department wants a letter from your bank stating that you have the reqired amount in the account as at the date of application, not average balances over the past 12  months. A little creativeness might see you over the hurdle long enough to get the letter from the banker.

[george]

If you are legally married you only need to show 200,000 Baht in the bank plus your pension coming in.