fellig

12 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

Yes it is.

You do not anything other than your passport and the fee plus 200 baht service charge for them to do the form photo and copies for you.

Great, thanks.

1 minute ago, ubonjoe said:

At a immigration office or at either airport in Bangkok on departure from the country 24 hours a day.

The fee is 1000 baht for a single re-entry permit or 3800 for a multiple.

Ah, right, that sounds familiar. So re-entry permit should be relatively quick and painless at BKK? I've seen threads in the CM forum about insanely long lines for visa extensions there...

Quote

Key word here is visit in September,

One assumes that's to activate the Visa before it's expiry date in November.

He isn't planning to make the permanent move until December.

 

So in that context, he'll need to get a re-entry permit to keep his permission to stay valid for his planned return in December.

Right, visiting in September, then going back to stay indefinitely in December or January. 

Where do I get the re-entry permit? 

1 hour ago, ginjag said:

Try Udon,  near the second biggest city, climate good, having a WINTER,  rail, bus, and a big airport. Lowest cost of living areas,  super 3 bed air con, garden, near city,   7,000 baht monthly.    Immigration good,  has mega shopping mall.

Sounds good, thanks. Is it relatively easy to cross the Laos border?

17 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

 I think one of the tricks to being happy here is living in either a rural area, or a smaller town. Life in Bangkok, Pattaya, and Phuket or Samui is a lower quality life than elsewhere, in my opinion. Of the four, I would choose Bangkok, which is a great city. But crowded, expensive, and alot of traffic, etc.

Kind of off-topic, but I'm curious about recommended rural areas and small towns in LOS. I've spent a few months in Chiang Mai, which I like a lot (especially a bit north of the Old City, away from most of the tourists), but don't know about other areas (other than BKK, which I'm not crazy about). 

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

You will get a one year entry since you have a NON-OA visa. The 90 days is for a standard NON-O visa.

Great, thanks again.

And thanks Tanoshi.

1 hour ago, Tanoshi said:

If you visit CM in September you'll receive a stamp entitling you to stay for 1 year until Sept 2019.

 

However when your visa expires on Nov 5th 2018, you also lose any entitlement to the ME facility.

To keep your 'permission to stay' valid until Sept 2019, you need to purchase a re-entry permit (1,000 baht) which will allow you to re-enter Thailand after expiry of the Visa but keep your current 'permission to stay' valid until Sept 2019.

 

http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15405-General-information.html

7. Please note that the period of visa validity is different from the period of stay.  Visa validity is the period during which a visa can be used to enter Thailand.  In general, the validity of a visa is 3 months, but in some cases, visas may be issued to be valid for 6 months, 1 year or 3 years.  The validity of a visa is granted with discretion by the Royal Thai Embassy or Royal Thai Consulate-General and is displayed on the visa sticker. 

8. On the other hand, the period of stay is granted by an immigration officer upon arrival at the port of entry and in accordance with the type of visa.  For example, the period of stay for a transit visa is not exceeding 30 days, for a tourist visa is not exceeding 60 days and for a non-immigrant visa is not exceeding 90 days from the arrival date.  The period of stay granted by the immigration officer is displayed on the arrival stamp.

You'll be granted 1 year on arrival with an O-A Visa type.

If your going to stay in the Country for more than 90 consecutive days then you must report to local Immigration.

This is commonly known as making a 90 day report.

 

Thanks ubonjoe. Was just doing a bit more reading, about single vs multi entry; my visa says "M" for "no. of entry", so I assume that's multiple. From another thread someone said, "So even if you have only one day left in that visa before it expires, when you re-enter with just one day left on your visa you still get a 90 day stay permission stamp." 

Does that sound right, I'll get a 90 day stamp next time I enter Thailand?

4 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

As long as you do an entry before the enter before date you will get a one year entry without a problem.

After the enter before date you will need a re-entry permit to keep that one year entry valid if you want to travel. Without a re-entry permit you would only get a visa exempt entry.

Thanks for your help folks, I did get the visa last November (from the L.A. Thai Consulate). I was going to move to Chiang Mai last December, but due to family emergency I'm still in the U.S. 

New question: I'm planning to move next December, but the visa says "enter before Nov 15 2018." So I'm planning a visit to CM in September. Other than that "enter before" deadline, just want to make sure there are no other complications I'm unaware of, especially related to having stayed in the U.S. for months after getting the visa. Anything to look out for? 

2 hours ago, SpokaneAl said:

 

Make sure you add the standard notary language to your letter before visiting the notary.

http://www.ispgroupinc.com/contracts/notary_form.html


Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

 

Thanks...also just found this:

http://notary.cdn.sos.ca.gov/forms/notary-jurat.pdf

and this:

http://www.totallynotary.net/images/2015_jurat.pdf

Thanks sqwakvfr and SpokaneAl; that helps! 

The L.A. Thai Consulate says that the police clearance letter, medical clearance letter, and proof of funds in the bank must be notarized. I went to a notary who said that since I haven't signed any of those docs, I must write a statement on each one stating that they are true, and then sign them...which seems kind of nonsensical; in the case of the medical form, it's the Dr. who signed and is saying I'm healthy, and the police dept. that is proving that my record is clear (not to mention that each doc costs $15 to notarize). 

Anyone have any thoughts on getting these notarized...is it really necessary, and if so, does that make sense that I should write a statement on each doc stating that it's true and sign it?

2 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

From the opening post I don't quite understand the intention.

You travel to Thailand mid December.

And then?

Do you want to stay for an indefinite time from then on?

Yes, plan to stay for a  year or more. 

2 hours ago, KhunBENQ said:

 

The Non O-A (available only at Thai consulate in the US) has it's advantages in certain situations/intensions.

 

BUT: it seems you are willing and capable to deposit 800k Baht at a Thai bank account (after arriving).

In this case just apply for an ordinary single entry Non-O at the LA consulate (much less effort).

After arriving, open bank account, deposit/transfer money.

60 days later you can apply for a one year extension to stay at the Thai immigration office.

No police check, no health certificate at very most offices.

And even if required it's a farce.

(simplified description)

 

One advantage of the Non O-A: no need to deposit money at Thai bank account.

Yeah, that sounds easier. 

Thanks JingThing and sqwakvfr. 

sqwakvfr, glad to hear it went smoothly in your experience. 

1. Did you have a letter from the bank as specified on the L.A. consulate site, or just a bank statement?
2.  Where do you get police background check?

I did find the requirements at the consulate:
http://www.thaiconsulatela.org/service_visa_detail.aspx?link_id=48

I've found several threads here regarding the O-A "retirement" visa, and done some research so I understand the basics, but still have a couple questions: 

1. I'm in Los Angeles now, and would like to travel to Chiang Mai in mid or late December. I'm wondering if it would be better to start the process here, with the Thai Consulate in L.A., or in Bangkok or Chiang Mai.
2. I was in Thailand last month (October 20 arrival) for a week, without visa; not sure if that complicates things at all.
3. I can deposit 800k baht in a Thai bank, but other than that, I don't have proof of income or proof of retirement in U.S. I am over 50.

Thanks.

Thanks folks. One more question: are there better or worse days of the week to take a bus to Mai Sai? Less crowded, smaller lines on a weekday for example?

"Yes, outside Thailand, like the one you got in Chicago. That 60 day stay could have been extended another 30 days for 1900 Baht."

Well I left Thailand a bit before my tourist visa expired, and spent a couple months in other countries. Came back here a few weeks ago and wasn't sure how long I wanted to stay, until now.

You came in/(and have) a 30 day exemption.

Immigration - can get (1) 7 day extension for 1900B

Border run - get 30 days

Best for you to do a border run.

Thanks for the reply. I'm confused because I've seen posts here that say you can get 30 day renewals at the immigration office...but maybe that's renewing a different visa than I have?

30 Day extensions (at Immigration offices) are only for Tourist Visas (which you can get at a Thai Consulate or Embassy), and as you are on a 30 Day Exempt , you only will get 7 days at Immigration

Ps: Removed Incorrect Info

"Tourist Visas (which you can get at a Thai Consulate or Embassy)..." Meaning only outside of Thailand, right?

So Mae Sai is the closest border run destination, right?

You came in/(and have) a 30 day exemption.

Immigration - can get (1) 7 day extension for 1900B

Border run - get 30 days

Best for you to do a border run.

Thanks for the reply. I'm confused because I've seen posts here that say you can get 30 day renewals at the immigration office...but maybe that's renewing a different visa than I have?

30 Day extensions (at Immigration offices) are only for Tourist Visas (which you can get at a Thai Consulate or Embassy), and as you are on a 30 Day Exempt , you only will get 7 days at Immigration or 15 days at a Border or 30 Days when you fly out (to a neighboring country) and come back.

OK, that makes sense, thanks.

You came in/(and have) a 30 day exemption.

Immigration - can get (1) 7 day extension for 1900B

Border run - get 30 days

Best for you to do a border run.

Thanks for the reply. I'm confused because I've seen posts here that say you can get 30 day renewals at the immigration office...but maybe that's renewing a different visa than I have?

I've read this FAQ and other posts and articles here and elsewhere, but am still not entirely clear about this. If there's a FAQ I missed, please point me to it.

I have a 30 day tourist visa expiring March 3rd. I'd like to stay in Thailand until March 17th. Do I need to do a border run, or can I renew at the immigration office? I'm a U.S. citizen in Chiang Mai. My 30 day visa is stamped in my passport; on this trip I came to Thailand from Malaysia. I was also in Thailand in October/November, with a 60 day tourist visa I got in Chicago.