Fredh

4 hours ago, Jingthing said:

Reading between the lines here, I'm wondering if a visa agent told the OP that he needs to show the amount of income he is claiming FLOWING into Thailand as a way of proving the income on top of the income letter. That could be something to do with current enforcement at his local office. As I said before just showing an embassy income letter is supposed to be enough, but specific enforcement rules can vary over time and office. 

Under the written rules based on income applications, there is no written requirement to actually import those claimed funds, but written rules and current enforcement can vary.

Has the OP been using a visa agent year after year not realizing the rules in the first place? 

What constitutes an "income letter"?  I am American if it matters.

5 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

To apply for the extension the only proof of income accepted by immigration is a income letter from your embassy. If you can show the equivalent of 65k baht income on one immigration will accept your application.

Right but how do I get the embassy to do this?  Surely some form of income besides a pension/social security is acceptable right?  What document(s) do I need?  Can a business owner in another country just give me a letter saying I'm employed and that will be good enough?

5 minutes ago, elviajero said:

And for several years, all the major offices, have not been applying the criteria you are quoting as they received additional orders to ensure the funds for combination applications were seasoned for the full 60 days/3 months. My local office confirmed to me that they can (discretionary) accept applications if the cash has been in for less time if the amount is small.

 

The additional orders occurred due to people abusing the spirit of the original rule, which was to cater for exchange rate changes or small shortfalls in the income requirement. Under the rules as written it is possible to have 799K in the bank and a 1K pa income, and not have to 'season' the funds as someone with 800K and no income would. That loophole was shut down.

This is what I'm worried about, I really don't want to put the funds in Thailand anyway but even if I do I could still get screwed.  So it seems like the best bet is to get a proof of income. But I'm not sure how.

3 minutes ago, allane said:

To my knowledge there have been no recent changes. You state that you are doing a renewal. Why can't you do the same as whatever you did a year ago ?

 

Last year I didn't do anything, they didn't check the bank balance.

What are my options for proving additional income?  What constitutes "proof"?  Can I just get a friend that owns a business to sign a letter regarding employment and salary?  What qualifies besides social security?

Can anybody help me understand my options?  I need to renew my visa. My visa agency is telling me something has changed and they're really strict about what they will accept for income and/or having 800K in the bank.  When I search online I see conflicting info.  Some sites say the money has to be in the bank 3 months before renewal (if that's true, I'm screwed! https://assistthaivisa.com/retirement-visa-chiangmai/).  Some sites say it's 800K per year of income OR 800K in the bank (http://www.chiangmaivisaservice.com/services/retirement-visa/).  Others say it can be a combination like 400K of income and 400K in the bank (http://www.thaiembassy.com/retire/retire.php https://assistthaivisa.com/retirement-visa-chiangmai/).  

I have about 450K of social security income.  I would like to "prove" the rest of the income somehow without having to put money in the bank in Thailand. I could, but I'd rather not if it can be avoided because it would require liquidating assets I don't want to liquidate.  Also, I don't have 3 months in advance to put the money in the bank.

Does anybody have any info or advice?  I have a 30 year usurfruct on a home so I have no problem proving I have a place to stay. 

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.