Fore Man

Thanks, Dr Jack54. It’s possible we didn’t bring up this distinction with the IO. We lived in Chiang Mai for 16 years previously under annual extensions of stay based on retirement. I considered converting to an extension based on marriage during that period but then saw an elderly close friend and golf partner lose his Thai wife due to heart failure, and he had to leap through hoops to convert his extension from marriage to retirement-based. But if this is the only way to avoid the hassles of applying for the Non-O at an overseas Thai consulate then I suppose it’s worthwhile. Unlike my friend, my wife is also considerably younger and healthier which probably improves the odds that she will outlive me, making an extension based on marriage more attractive.

While visiting Thailand recently with my Thai wife, we visited Nan Immigration to obtain a 30-day extension to my original 30-day visa on arrival. That was no problem. My wife also has an excellent relationship with this particular office. But when she asked the IO if I could convert to a Non-O if I desired, the female officer on duty at this small office explained that this was not possible there and advised us that I’d need to apply for the Non-O back at a Thai consulate in the USA where we live. To do so requires a very costly trip to our nearest consulate which is In Washington, DC (we live 400:miles away in South Carolina). I was really hoping to avoid that scenario by converting to the Non-O in Thailand. We have the requisite bank account already set up and ready to make the required international transfer of THB 800K into it. This may or may not be legitimate but that’s what we were told. Any sage advice would be appreciated.