BritTim

A nonsense post in all caps has been removed

I had the same problem trying to use a card to pay for my UK passport renewal. Bangkok Bank swore blind that there was no record of any attempted transaction. The charge was denied four times, once when I was actually on the phone with the HMPO (His Majesty's Passport Office). In the end, as transferring the money directly to the British Home Office account from my Thai bank account proved almost impossible (they would only transfer money to personal accounts) I had my brother pay HMPO and transferred money to him to cover it. Very irritating.

5 minutes ago, briley said:

I'm following the same route. 

 

My wife was my dependent on my retirement visa. To do the same again I am told that we must get a visa before entering Thailand. This visa can (maybe) have my wife as dependant but it seems this visa will be a non-OA and will need medical insurance. Difficult at my age.

 

Doing a visa conversion from a visa free entry, or a tourist visa, in country and you can not have your wife as a dependent. You have to get a retirement visa each, I.e. you both have the 800,000 baht in the bank on the day of applying for a conversion to a non-O visa. And your wife must transfer the money from her account to her sole account in Thailand . No joint accounts. 

 

I'm ok for myself as I have the 800K in my account. Appears my wife will have to transfer to her account in Thailand, luckily we had opened such an account before covid.

 

I might be wrong but I have been following things for the last year.

 

One thing has changed. If you enter on a visa free 30 day entry and you must get to immigration with 21 days remaining that is a rush. But immigration will give you a 30 day extension on your visa free entry, so you have 38 days to sort things things out and still apply with 21 days left on your stay.

A possible alternative:

1. You, one way or another, get a Non O visa based on retirement, while your wife is initially here as a tourist.
2. You get a one-year extension of stay based on retirement.
3. You both travel to Savannakhet and, based on your one-year permission to stay, get a Non O (dependant) visa for your wife.
4. You and your wife are all set to apply for extensions in Thailand.

If the money for separate Non O (retirement) visas is inconsequential for you, that is obviously less complicated. To simplify the situation when one of you passes away, you could discuss matters with your local immigration office to see if they will allow you to both apply using the same (joint) bank account with 1,600,000 baht in it. Some offices do allow that.

10 hours ago, whaleboneman said:

With income letter, I believe there are no requirements for transfers.

That varies between immigration offices. Some offices can hassle you for all kinds of documentation showing how you support yourself in Thailand.

9 hours ago, Phillip9 said:

I don't think the income method is available to US citizens.

While US citizens cannot get an income letter, extensions of stay based on retirement are possible with regular monthly transfers to your Thai bank account of 65k+ baht. If you want the initial Non O visa as a US national without depositing 800k baht in a Thai bank account, it is best to get the initial Non O visa in home country.

9 hours ago, Middle Aged Grouch said:

Then you have been scammed.

If that is what the rental agreement specifies, it is all perfectly legal. Fwiiw, it is the most common kind of long term rental agreement in Thailand.

2 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Thanks for that, when did London start issuing Multis again?  They refused me in February 2020. Just out of interest really as I'm divorced now.

 

Also, prior to E Visa, although the info on their site stated they required financial evidence, they didn't actually require it. I'm guessing its a requirement of the E Visa system?

London has been known to offer multiple Non O visas to visit your Thai spouse and also multiple entry Non O as pensioner visas this year. Dealing with the London embassy is a bit of a lottery. I think it depends on the official who gets to process your application whether it goes smoothly. I am pretty sure they will require financial proof, though that is up to the individual embassy.

2 minutes ago, TravelerEastWest said:

Good thinking and what if I didn't send it but my mother gifted the tuition to my kids?

Creative thinking can greatly reduce your tax liabilities. Many years ago, when I had a regular job with IBM, a friendly tax official in the UK advised me on various deductions I could legally claim. One example was for conservative business attire which was a requirement at the time when working for IBM.

3 hours ago, K2938 said:

While making detection a little more difficult, this is highly unlikely to be a legal way around the remittance taxation.  However, as there currently is no detailed guidance from the Thai Revenue Department nobody really knows

I am not an expert but, especially if the transfer was done when not in Thailand, it might be legal tax avoidance. Presumably, they would not demand income tax on all funds used to purchase Thai products and services while outside Thailand.

4 hours ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

What are you smoking... you must have a guilty conscious... I am only "accusing" those who game the system as being the reason that IO's are making it more and more difficult for the rest of us who follow the rules... if you walk like a duck, and quack like a duck... my guess is that you are a duck. 

You have stated that those applying for multiple entry Non O visas in Savannakhet are "gaming the system" and availing themselves of the "continuing corruption" at the Savannakhet consulate. You appear to do this based on the illogical view that people should only apply for visas at locations that impose the most onerous requirements, and that consulates that are friendlier to applicants are somehow corrupt because they do not exhibit the requisite level of xenophobia. If you have any proof of your "corruption" claims, let's hear them.

5 minutes ago, Sigmund said:

Never seen a country that harasses foreigners as much.

The bureaucracy here is annoying, but Thailand is nowhere near at xenophobic as many other countries.

4 hours ago, leeedwards said:

Just one more question,  does anyone remember the name of the hotel that does the shuttle bus from Sakhon Nakhon to the Savannakhet border?

If you are flying into Sakon Nakhon airport (and some other airports) there are fly-ride options available where the airline provides a van to take people to Mukdahan. These will often drop you are the border on request. Google "fly-ride services to Mukdahan" to find out the details.

2 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Last time I looked no E Visa locations offer Multi Non O's - just single entries and they only provide any type of Thai visa to citizens of that country or those with a legal right of residence.  It seems that the days of the Multi Non O are numbered.

The e-visa system does now support multiple entry Non O visas. Whether to provide one depends on the Thai embassy in your home country. Some have acquired them based on Thai spouse, and (from the UK embassy) a multiple entry Non O based on being a pensioner has occasionally been issued again.

Since 2020, there have been no substantive changes. If the money has only recently been transferred when applying for the initial Non O visa at Immigration, you will probably need the credit advice document that shows definitively that the money in the bank originated abroad. Also, while proof of a TM30 notification was often not required in the past, it is now usually important that you have done one. I am not 100% familiar with the situation in Chiang Mai. Someone who uses that office might have something to add.

41 minutes ago, Des1 said:

The exact wording on the information sheet: "Evidence of foreign currency fund transferred to Thailand." Bangkok Bank at CW understood that I needed the actual transaction record from their system. If you did the full 800,000bt in one transaction then it will be one sheet. Just showing them the foreign transfer code in your bank book will not be accepted. So you will need two documents from the bank 1/ Deposit Certificate from the bank confirming your account name and balance. It must be in Thai language, Attention: Immigration Officer 2/ The actual foreign currency transaction from your bank. And yes, they want copies of all pages of your bank book including your name on the first page.

The credit advice document for the transfer (which your bank can provide) has all the relevant information in one place.

1 hour ago, problemfarang said:

normally your last day in thailand is the date written on the termination letter. im not sure if its still possible to ask IO to get 7 days and pay 1900 for that or not. If not you aill have 24 hours to leave the country. 24+1 is 500 baht per day.

If you do not have a post dated termination letter, and are cancelling your permission to stay on the actual termination date, then the situation is the same as ever. You can apply for an extension, which is denied, and be ordered out of Thailand within the next seven days.

1 hour ago, problemfarang said:

you need to get it from your embassy.

... which is a bit problematic when your embassy does not issue them.

15 minutes ago, Tropicalevo said:

Or maybe their home in Gaza has been bombed?

It is extremely unlikely that anyone from Gaza is in Thailand. Israel has banned virtually all travel in and out of the Gaza concentration camp for the last 15 years. This (combined with the crushing poverty there) is one of the main causes for the current irrational and horrific explosion which Israel has already basically announced will lead to officially endorsed genocide. Netanyahu has announced that anyone deemed to be a Hamas member will be liquidated without trial, and there will be no investigation of human rights abuses. I really hope (but doubt) that Israel will permit the evacuation of non combatants from Gaza before they raze it.

3 minutes ago, MangoKorat said:

Thank you for a reasoned argument - unlike out keyboard name callers.

 

I must disagree though - in real life terms.  I fully understand in legal and technical terms, there is a world of difference but its mainly just in status.

 

For the purposes of the OP's original question and my earlier posts in relation to it, I don't see any difference in terms of what actually happens on the day.

 

I accept that I wrongly thought you were taken to IDC if denied entry but wished to appeal but in terms of the OP's question, there's no difference. If he was denied entry he'd be sent out. If he wished to appeal he'd be detained and if he lost his appeal - he'd be sent out.

 

I do fully understand the difference between denial and deportation - legal and technical. 

 

Someone who has been deported could possibly be more sure of their next entry than someone who has been denied entry. With a deportation, its usually a punishment or part of one and you are usually given a time period after which you will be able to enter on normal terms.

 

Someone who has been denied entry - and when we are talking about Thailand, that's usually because of their entry history, has no idea whether or not they will have problems on their next attempt.

 

But in either case - your entire entry/departure history is available to the I.O. when you attempt and entry and it will be scrutinised at the time.

 

I've seen the amount of notes Thai immigration have on their screens when you hand them your passport ('I had plenty of time to do so whilst the I.O. was on the phone to my wife) so I'm pretty sure that a denial of entry is flagged up - just as a deportation would be.  They actually have a field that tells them the amount of entries in the last 12 months so all this flicking through your passport pages that the I.O.s love to do before telling you you've "come too mut" is just for show.  When I saw the screem I was amazed to see all my old passports - including two that I'd held at the same time.  This was before biometrics but they'd managed to link the two.

 

So just to set the record straight:

 

OP, I apologise for making incorrect statements. If you are denied entry you will be held airside at the airport whilst you either appeal or accept the denial and arrangements are made to send you out of the country.

 

I would just add that if you decide to appeal, it is vitally important that you refuse to sign anything the I.O. puts in front of you.

 

I'm not 100% sure but I seem to remember that people have stated they are presented with a document, written in Thai that basically states you accept you have not met the entry conditions. Make sure you have 20k baht or the equivalent in another widely used currency with you - not just available in your bank account.

Very short summary:

Denied entry: you are held airside at the airport for a short period until the airline that brought you to Thailand removes you. In principle you can travel anywhere.

Deportation: you are held in the Immigration Detention Centre until your deportation can be arranged. Any airline or destination country where you plan to go must by international law be informed that you are being deported and can refuse to carry/admit you. In practice, in almost all cases, you are forced back to your home country on your nation's national carrier who are obliged at accept you. The airline may insist on additional on board security, such as an accompanying guard, as a condition of flying you (at your expense).

What is your age? If over 50, you have additional options. Do you want to travel, or would you prefer to spend all your time in Thailand? Where will you be staying? Is that location close to a friendly land crossing?

7 hours ago, Yeah rightio said:

Report from October 5th denied!! Printout of submission taken to office.... All good.

Seems there's a data entry requirement by IO staff and they'd put a space in passport number.

Laughs all around..... slip provided.

Unnecessary visit to the immigration office. Hilarious.

2 hours ago, WebGuy said:

Thank you very much. 

 

I have had the WP for the last 5 years. Does it cover the financial requirements for applying for non-immigrant O based on marriage with my Thai wife and not leaving the country? 

If you are not employed at the time you apply for the extension based on Thai spouse, use the money in the bank option (400,000 baht) unless you can show continuing sources of income of at least 40,000 baht per month backed up with an income letter from your embassy.