Red Phoenix

It is not impossible (I have done it some years ago) to make a generic Guidance document for each of the 4 most common application scenario's at a Thai Immigration Office: - Application for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement; - Application for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of marriage; - Application for 1-year extension of stay from a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement; - Application for 1-year extension of stay from a 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of marriage. However, as @DrJack54 correctly states, each Guidance document would become a very long and almost unreadable document, when it has to address all the possible options. This because every Thai Imm Office has slightly (or sometimes even major) different requirements as well as pertaining to the specific evidence that Immi Office requires from the applicant to meets those requirements. And on top of that, the Imm Office requirements are not 'cast in stone' but at some Imm Offices are frequently changed/amended (e.g. a New boss wanting it 'his way').. So to provide fully correct and applicant-specific advice, this means that in practice the applicant would 1 - First have to provide all the necessary details of his personal situation (age, nationality, marriage, Thai children, date of Permission to stay, etc.) 2 - Have to get hold of and provide the requirements document for the scenario (Visa-application / 1-year extension + purpose < marriage / retirement / other >) he will be applying for at the Imm Office where he resides. And in cases where the Imm Office does not have such a requirements document, it would be a matter of getting in touch with others that have applied for the same scenario at that same Imm Office. Note: And of course when browsing the Forum for advice or posting a thread to get hold of the relevant information, you will often be put on the 'wrong leg' by some of the well-meant advice of posters, that are not aware that the local Imm Office requirements of THEIR Imm Office pertaining to THEIR specific situation, are not universal. In view of the above, it is only natural that the SAME questions and requests for information pop-up time and again on the Visa sub-forum, as each applicant's situation is different and each Imm Office has its own requirements.

# Fargo (all 4 seasons are great, but the first season is absolutely epic) # After Life (by and with Ricky Gervais - hilarious and at same time deeply human and touching) # True Detective (with Woody Harrelson, say no more)

Your first 2 questions = YES. As good as all Hotels/Guesthouses did register their premises on the on-line TM30 website, which allows them to notify local immigration of any foreigners staying at their premises (as required by Thai law). That website does allow the Hotel/Guesthouse to make a print out of the TM-30 notification they did, as their guests tha need an Immigration service have to present to the local Imm Office evidence of the place where they are staying. = = = Note that when you are not staying at the Hotel anymore at the time of application for your 90-day Non Imm O Visa application, and are now renting/leasing an apartment, that you would need now a TM-30 of you staying at that new place. And on top of a copy of the TM-30 notification (done on-line or a signed paper-copy), you will also need a copy of the rental agreement and a signed front/back copy of the Thai ID-card of the owner/landlord of those premises.

Hi likerdup1. As I wrote earlier: Yes, there have been several reports that CW does accept a statement from the Hotel where you are currently staying, that you will be staying there longer term while you are searching for a long-term residence in the Bangkok area. But indeed when applying for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa at CW you should ON TOP of the above statement ALSO bring a copy of the on-line TM-30 notification with you, that your Hotel did when you checked-in there stating that you - a foreigner - is residing at their premises. On simple request from your part, your Hotel will be able to provide you with a copy of that TM-30 notification.

Here you go > downloaded from https://www.immigration.go.th/en/?page_id=3202 TM 86 - Application for change of Visa - 19.คำขอเปลี่ยนประเภทการตรวจลงตรา-ตม.86.doc

Check out Loei (and ChiangKhan) and NongBua Lamphu, they are on the way from Chiang-Rai to Udon Thani, and personally I like them more than Udon...

From later posts it seems that the OP is not limiting his search for a nice rural place in Thailand close to a big-city. So yes, he could also consider North Thailand with several very nice places. Mae Hong Song and Nan are both in a rural setting and very beautiful. One thing to take into consideration when opting for North-Thailand is the dreadful burning season in months January to March, with record-breaking Air-pollution which makes life almost unbearable in Chiang-Rai, Chiang Mai and even some lower laying provinces .

All brown and dusty???? Most of the cities yes, but the OP is looking to stay in a rural place, with a near-by city.

Beware that most and certainly the larger Thai cities are 'concrete jungle' except when you are staying in the 'old part' of town. But as you would be living outside the city in a rural environment, and only want a large city near-by for shopping and occasional visits, you actually have a much larger choice depending on the max distance to a large city and region of your liking. Instead of the 4 Isaan Biggies (Udon, KK, Korat & Ubon) you could imo also consider Surin, Nakhon Phanom, Mukdahan, Roi Et, Loei and NongBua Lamphu. I would recommend that before making a choice, that you do the Grand Tour of Isaan (would take you some 1-2 months) and get the flavor of each place. A tour could be starting in Khorat, then Eastwards to Buriram, Surin and Ubon Ratchathani. Then going North upstream the Mekhong to Mukdahan, Nakhon Phanom and NongKai. Then West again to Udon Thani, NongBua Lamphu, Loei (and ChiangKhan). Finally going down again to KhonKaen and RoiEt. And you will find that each part of Isaan has its distinct flavor and charm. Success in finding it out!

Chiang Mai is in Northern Thailand, and not in Isaan (NorthEast). But you will indeed find that Chiang-Mai has many english-speaking locals, because of the large expat community there.

Originally I wrote Rambuttri Road, but the Google map posted by 2long with directions to the Bookstore referred to it as Ram buttri Aly (and hence I updated my post). And it should be Rambuttri Alley...

I think that you are referring to the large and fine Used book store on Rambuttri Ally. Just google Rambuttri Village Hotel for directions. When you come from Khao San road and you head towards Chao Praya river, you have to cross the busy Samsen Road, and then you are in Rambuttri road (the Wat Chana Songkram temple grounds are on your left when having crossed the street. The first part of that pedestrian road (closest to Khao San road) is quite busy but its worth walking that road as it is less crowded the farther you walk it and it has nice restaurants and shops. I prefer Rambuttri over KhaoSan road as it has the same atmosphere but far less crowded. The Used bookstore is approx 100-150 meter when walking into Rambuttri road coming from Khao San road and it's on your right-side. Actually ALL restaurants, hotels, shops there are on your right side as the left side of Rambuttri Ally is the wall to the large temple complex of Wat Chana Songkram. I always buy one or more used books when I am at that bookstore. Note: 2long just posted the map to that bookstore.

Yes, there have been several reports that CW does accept a statement from the Hotel where you are currently staying, that you will be staying there longer term while you are searching for a longer-term residence in the Bangkok area. Note that once you moved to a new location, that the local Imm Office needs to be notified within 24 hours of your arrival that you are staying there > TM-30 notification with accompagning evidence (e.g. rental agreement, owner/landlord-signed copy of the housebook, and signed front/back copy of the owner/landlord's Thai ID-card). Although most Imm Offices are lenient with the '24 hours' rule (which is meant mainly for hotels/guesthouses), it is recommended that you do it in first week after having moved, and best to do it in person to avoid any hick-ups with that official change of address.

I entered Thailand on a new home-country acquired passport end of July 2023. I showed both my new passport, as well as the old - corner-clipped and invalidated - passport which contained the Re-Entry Permit protecting my Non Imm O Visa based Permission to stay. Border-immigration simply re-stamped the protected end of December 2023 Permission to stay in my new Passport. Took less than 2 minutes. Next time I go to my local Imm Office, I will take both passports, and my local Imm Office will transfer the information (that I had a valid Non Imm O Visa) to my new passport, as it currently only contains that end of December Permission to stay stamp provided by border-immigration. Note that since I entered on a new passport that I will have to do my 90-day report in person somewhere end of October (90 days after re-entering Thailand). And I will make use of the occasion to have the 'stamp transfer' done at same time.

The application needs to be done when you still have at least 15 days left on your Permission to stay of the 60-days you were stamped when you entered Thailand on your Tourist Visa. Note that when using the 'funds-in-bank' method that the +800.000 THB on your personal Thai Bank-account (with foreign origins proven), only needs to be there at moment of application. Feel free to ask questions on aspects which are not clear for you re he application process, and on which you like to receive additional information for your situation.

To apply for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement at the Imm Office of the province where you are residing. Note that you can only do such 'change of Visa' when having entered Thailand VisaExempt or on a Tourist Visa. The requirements can be accessed on this website: https://www.immigration.go.th/en/?page_id=2537 And I have attached the current version of doing such 90-day Non Imm O Visa application for reason of RETIREMENT (which simply means that you need to be 50 years of age or older). 9.FOR-RETIREMENT-PURPOSES-50-YEARS-OLD-NON-O.pdf

Yep, I fixed the article quote for you as you blindly accepted it because it came from a 'trusted source'.

Mark Crispin MILLER's daily overview of people that "died suddenly" all over the world, ONLY consists of re-posting the announcements as published in regional/national newspaper and obituaries. He refrains from making any comments, and just lists them by country. Are all the tens of thousands of obituaries addressing that plague of 'died suddenly and unexpectedly' mis-information?

Support for NOT “doing your own research” (and blindly accepting what the MSM feed you) is associated with COVID-19 misperceptions and misplaced scientific trust > There, I fixed it for you...

As I wrote > Check out Mark Crispin MILLER's daily overview of people that "died suddenly" all over the world, consisting of the announcements as published in regional/national newspaper and obituaries. The common denominator of all these 'sudden deaths' is indeed that they were entrapped (or forced) by a cult. But it is totally different cult than the one you are referring to.

Your definition of 'research' limits the scope considerably, when it is confined to the 'edge of knowledge'. And not even addressing how the 'genuine researchers' arrived at that edge. "Do your own research" does not mean that you need to become a content-matter expert exploring the latest developments in your field of choice. It simply means having an open critical mind, that keeps questioning (and searching) and does not blindly accept any information it is fed. Stating that 'the science is settled' and that there is no need to question it, is the most unscientific approach possible.

OK, so if I put on a white lab-coat and do a Google (or preferably a less biased search-engine) query while in my lab, then it suddenly becomes 'research'? Ridiculous nonsense.

Wow, you found a December 2021 newspaper article! TIP: Check out Mark Crispin MILLER's daily overview of people that "died suddenly" all over the world, consisting of the announcements as published in regional/national newspaper and orbituaries.

You are correct! I did not re-read the full thread again (where I previously posted options for the OP's case). Sorry for any confusion my last post might cause for the OP.

Many people opt to enter Thailand VisaExempt (without a Visa) or on a Tourist Visa, and then when they still have at least 15 days left on the Permission to stay they received on entry, apply for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa (either for reason of marriage or for reason of retirement) at the Imm Office of the province where they plan to reside. There are however 2 caveats when taking that route: #1 - When you do not already have a Thai bank-account on your personal name, it will be very difficult (but not impossible) to open such an account, because contrary to Western countries where banks are welcoming new customers, Thai banks impose (sometimes impossible) requirements for foreign customers to open an account with them. And in order to meet the financial requirement for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa application, you need to show evidence of having the required funds on your personal Thai bank-account at the moment of application. #2 - There are a couple of rogue Imm Offices that refuse to do the 'change of Visa' process (i.e. applying for a Non Imm O Visa from a VE or Tourist Visa entry), hence drJack's question where you intend to reside in Thailand, as it is at the Imm Office of that province that you need to make the application. = = = So in order to avoid such trouble, you could apply for the 90-day Non Imm O eVisa in your home-country. When you enter Thailand on such Visa you will then get a 90-day Permission to stay stamp from day of entry. And you could then during the last month of those 90-days apply for the 1-year extension of stay based on your Non Imm O Visa at the Imm Office of the province where you are residing. Note that you still need to open a personal Thai bank-account, as for such 1-year extension application, you need to provide evidence that the required funds are already at least 2 months seasoned on a personal Thai bank-account at moment of application for the 1-year extension. But with a Non Imm O Visa, it will be easier to open a personal Thai bank-account than having entered VisaExempt or on a Tourist Visa (although some banks will still turn you away or have requirements that are impossible to be met). = = = For transferring the required funds from your Greek bank-account to the personal Thai bank-account you opened, it is recommended that you already open a (free) WISE-account while still in Greece. As that will allow you to easily transfer the funds from your Greek bank-account to your Thai bank-account. In almost all cases WISE is not only the cheapest way to do so, but also the quickest and most transparent (you will know exactly how much THB you will receive on your Thai bank-account when clicking GO). And note that you could already transfer the funds to a 'borderless account' while still in Greece, which would allow you once you are in Thailand to do the transfer in seconds from that Wise account to your Thai bank-account.