ian carman

45 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Probably because you did not apply for one. And had the supporting documents for it and have your wife with you.

Thanks for all the replies 

I may have no option but to try the online visa 

it’s funny because tat have launched a massive campaign in the uk but then they bring in a crazy new evisa system 

Having read how difficult it appears to get an online setv from the uk ( for someone not tech savvy)

I plan on coming to Thailand for about 55 days with my Thai wife

Would it be ok to enter on a voa or would immigration or the airline question me as my return flight would be past the visa expiry date

I would obviously get a 30 day extension to the voa

is this allowed?

I plan on going to Thailand with my Thai wife for about 55 days next year .

i might as well get a visa on arrival and extend by 30 days 

will the airline or immigration have a problem with this?

On 6/29/2019 at 11:21 PM, KhaoYai said:

That may not be correct. Yes they are saying they no longer issue multi entry visas and they say the system won't do them. However, their updated website still lists O-A's and O-X's as Multi Entry whilst all other O category visa have been amended to single entry.

 

http://www.thaiembassy.org/london/en/services/7742/84508-Non-Immigrant-visas.html#7

You are confusing o and oa visas.The oa visas last 1 year so by definition must be multiple entry 

3 hours ago, Pedrogaz said:

It is some years since I did mine, but what I was told (which might not be true) is that there is no such thing as a retirement visa.

I got a year non-O visa, came to Thailand, opened a bank account, put the funds in, waited 2 months for seasoning, and then went to BKK immigration.

I was advised at the time that you could not obtain a 'retirement visa' from abroad but could apply for that status in Thailand. So the visa extension is based on you being over 50 and retired and planning to stay long term in Thailand. You need 800,000 in a Thai savings bank account (note the money cannot be in any sort of investment...the funds have to be completely liquid and cannot be from a bank account from abroad). You also need various other things like a police report, a medical but in my case they never looked at these at all so it was a waste if time getting them....the police report from the UK took me about 6 weeks to get. I also needed proof of address from the British consulate....you just turn up there an fill out the form yourself and then have it stamped by them and about 40 quid later you're all set. I don't know if this is still needed.

 

You can use UK funds to get the original non O visa but I have no idea what the requirements are. They used to issue these visas from Consulates such as Cardiff and Hull, but that has stopped now.

 

As I say I don't know if this is still, or was ever, true or not.

There are advantages to the simple one year multi entry non O visa....the main one being you will not need insurance. The downside is that you must leave Thailand once every 90 days, but if you time it right your visa can be made to last 15 moths. 

Another downside to the non O multi entry is that if you are shipping household effects, then in order for you to avoid tax payment on the shipment, (which I did) you need to have the 'retirement' extension before the goods arrive in Thailand. These taxes can be very high.

 

If I were you I would consult Ubon Joe. He usually responds to all visa questions on TV but maybe he is away today?  He is the authoritative expert on visa requirements. It may be worth dropping him a message.

 

You should also know that immigration officers do not always follow the laws on immigration....they have a certain latitude in interpreting the status, so some offices are more lenient and some much more difficult. I was asked for a large sum of money at my first interview in a local office, and my GF told the guy to get lost and dragged me down to Change Wattana in Bangkok...which was a whole different and professional office as far as I was concerned.

The Thai embassy in London no longer issues multiple entry o visa only single entry

3 hours ago, scubascuba3 said:

I got my 3rd bank account a couple days ago at Bangkok Bank, it took 20 minutes and was painless. You need to pick your branch carefully

I made an initial enquiry last year and the bank asked for a certificate of residence.Do I get this from immigration or the uk embassy?

11 hours ago, jacko45k said:

The difference is in the requirement for a police report and medical, other than that an OA is a great way to retire to LOS. There might be a requirement for Medical Insurance in the pipeline for an OA which is another effort.

There is a link on the uk Thai embassy website to a company that does the police reports acpo?

4 hours ago, jacko45k said:

I suspect with a need to preseason for 2 months that leaves only 1 to get a bank account sorted and money moved in.

That is what I meant by only 30 days to get bank account 

Thanks for the reply.It seems logical to get a non oa rather than a non o because I will have nearly 2 years to open a bank account rather then have to rush around and try and open one in only 30 days under a non o.

I will be retiring to Thailand next year.I just wanted to know that if I get a non oa visa from uk and use it for the maximum 2 years can I get an eos on this type or can you only extend the non o type of visa

Thanks ubonjoe for clarifying this.I will get non o visa in uk and transfer money into Thai bank.

Just looked on Thai embassy uk website for the rules on non o visa for spouse.They no longer ask for bank account funds of 400k only mention income of £1400 per month .Have they changed their requirements for a non o visa ?I plan on giving up work and applying for non o in uk using bank funds but it would seem that I can no longer do this and would have to convert tourist visa in Thailand .Anyone else seen this?

i will probably retire in 2 years time in thailand so the posts on here are very informative .It is much cheaper to do everything yourself than pay an agent.

has anyone had a problem with the appointment letter that you have to submit with your docs when you go to vfs in bangkok?

i did not see the link when i booked the appointment and never received an email confirmation ,so i had no reference number(which you need to print)

They way around it is to try and reschedule the appointment on vfs website and the reference number is shown so you can then print the appointment letter.

i sent an email to vfs and they confirmed that if i change the hard copy and my wife signs the changes then everything is ok.

thanks for the help i was not sure if the ECO would allow for this.So i will just attach a note and should be ok.

i have entered my thai wifes birthday wrongly on the VAF4A form.Will the ECO reject my application for settlement visa even if we attach a note ?