MPoll

I got my OA in 2017. They added the health insurance requirement in 2019 and there was no grandfathering of previous OA visa holders. We suddenly got the new requirement no matter how long ago we got our OA. So my confidence in grandfathering is pretty low.

That would be logical and fair. I’m not sure how we would lose the LTR but going back to your previous visa makes sense. Note that the OA was the only visa I’ve had in Thailand. Also the LTR has an insurance requirement. The insurance I used for my OA qualified me for the LTR. As for the Thai insurance being worthless - I purchased my Thai insurance 10 million baht policy in 2018 before there was an OA insurance requirement. It costs me less than my previous US insurance.

Five years is a long way off. I doubt the BOI knows what the procedure will be. They are just quoting today’s procedures.

LTR transfer experience I transferred my pensioner LTR to a new passport - my experience For the Americans out there - I sent in my old passport to the American embassy in Bangkok in June 2023. I sent it from Sisaket province. It was returned to Sisaket province 4 weeks and 3 days later. I got my original LTR stamped into my passport on 4 January, 2023. Today I arrived at the BOI office on the 18th floor at Chimchuri Square, when the office opened at 8:30am. I gave them My old & new passports My form to transfer my visa to a new passport My BOI LTR endorsement letter The BOI asked me for the new passport linkage letter. I told them that the American embassy doesn’t provide those anymore. That apparently was acceptable. The BOI made all the required copies of pages in my passports. They then gave me the package of documents and an immigration queue number Across the hall, at Immigration section E, I waited 30 minutes to turn in my documents. They were returned to me 1 hr 10 minutes later. I checked my stamps and also went back to the BOI office to ask if I had all the proper stamps. A total of 2 hrs and all went smoothly. My stamps Two stamps showing that I arrived in Thailand in 2017 on an OA visa Another showing I got my LTR in January with an initial permission to stay until 2024, the date my previous passport expired. The next stamp is my LTR visa until December 2032. That appears to be the date the visa was approved. I didn’t come in to get the stamp in my passport until the next month, January, 2023. Another page of permission to stay stamps 2024 and 2028 Next and final page is a permission to stay stamp from 7 Aug (today) until 4 Jan, 2028 I’m not sure what is going on with the Dec and Jan dates. When I get close to those dates I will ask some questions.

#1 This is a little unclear to me. Read my next post about transferring my LTR to a new passport #2 Just a guess but I wouldn’t expect a refund.

Wow! Got it. Thanks.

I told them I didn’t know what #10 was and they basically didn’t answer. I will look at my past documents and on the website. Thanks. They were helpful when I got my visa so if there is a document as you describe then I will ask someone in the BOI office to help me download it.

I asked them about #3 and #10 on the list. They said some embassies provide these and some don’t. I decided to go to with what I have and work it out from there.

Sure. I can tell you right now that they said I do not need an appointment. I plan to go to the BOI office early Monday morning to figure out what to do. They also have a list of forms & documents/copies needed.

4 weeks 3 days I got my new passport through the US embassy in Bangkok.

I got my LTR in January and my new US passport a couple of days ago. I'm planning to go to BOI to get the LTR transferred to the new passport and I am expecting that I will get a permission to stay stamp to 5 years from January.

Just use Google maps to find a photo shop near you. Many do passport photos. I used a photo shop here in Sisaket province. It took a couple of minutes. I just received my new US passport a couple of days ago.

I arrived in Bangkok in 2017 with an OA visa. After Thailand implemented the health insurance requirement for OA visas I was required to have health insurance for my yearly extensions. I extended in the Bangkok Immigration office. I had purchased Thai insurance before the health insurance requirement which qualified for the requirement so there was no practical change for me other than having to sync the dates of my insurance and extentions. This year I got an LTR visa and my insurance met that requirement as well.

When looking at the LTR visa I couldn't help but also consider all the times I had to file my 90 day report in person. Pre-Covid the flaky online system worked for me 2x. During Covid it didn't work for me at all. Finally the new system seemed to be better but I only got to use it once before I got my LTR. At least psychologically, not having to do 90 day reports is a bit of a relief for me.

Really? Maybe because Thailand is a great place to be. I’ve lived here 6 years and I got my pensioner LTR IN January. There have been well over 3000 LTR’s approved. I know plenty of “wealthy” expats that have chosen to live here. I always find it amazing the number of people that think Thailand is some sort of hardship post for people at the lower end of the income spectrum who seemingly have nowhere else to go.

I had a similar issue when I applied last October and they started processing in December. I think originally I just uploaded the data page. Then they ask for the entry stamp from my last entry. My last entry was Sep 2019. I finally figured out that they were thinking that I may have made some exit/entries during the Covid years. I decided to give them a copy of all the pages of my passport from Sep 2019 to the end of my passport including the remaining 4 blank pages. That satisfied them. So I would consider sending them every page of your passport.

I eventually decided that the LTR was a little more expensive than the OA but not by much. Now that I have it I have to say that psychologically it really feels good to not have the reporting or bank requirements. I already had the insurance covered because of my previous OA. I also believe in insurance regardless of whether it is an OA or O but not having your visa tied to your insurance seems to me give people a little more flexibility. My insurance strategy is to have a high level of coverage and a high deductible. I only plan to use the insurance for something serious. My costs are a little less than what I was paying in the US. If someone is going to worry about Thailand changing visa requirements in the future then you might as well worry about all the visa categories. Western countries change immigration policies as well.. We all accept that risk when we move overseas.

The only difference between an O and OA extension is the insurance certificate. Consider looking into the 10 year LTR if you qualify. It requires insurance but if you are already on an OA you’ve got that covered.

Way back in 2017 I submitted documents that showed I met both criteria. I don’t know which they used or both but I got my visa with no questions asked.

All throughout Covid, for about 2 years, I was unable to do my 90-day report online. The system wouldn't let me do it. I kept a PDF of the TM47. I changed the dates and printed it out and Immigration took it and processed it. So I would say that if you file in person print out the form otherwise do it online. The new system, after Covid, seems to be more reliable. Another thing though . . . why even ask the question? Just print out the form with current information. How hard can it be? You have it if you need it. No harm and little cost if you don't.

Regarding what happens in 5 years I am saving tax forms and insurance certificates for the first 5 years with the expectation that they may ask whether I met the initial terms throughout the first 5 years. When I applied in Oct I only needed to supply my most recent tax return. My understanding is that applicants now have to supply the 2 previous year tax returns. In 5 years will they ask for the previous 5 years tax returns? I remember asking them if they will check whether I have insurance and they said no at the time but will they check to see if I maintained my insurance? I don't have to worry about my pension income. That won't change.

For those of us over 60 we started working during a time when pensions were more common. If you stuck with a company or industry for 30+ years it is reasonable to expect that a work pension or work pension + Social Security (US citizens) can be above $80k/year. Particularly for those have rose to management level positions.

I am curious to see what they ask for in 5 years. I'm preparing to keep my tax and insurance records handy just in case they ask to see if my pension income remained above $80,000/year and that I kept up with my insurance policies. There is no reason for my pension to decrease and I will keep copies of my tax returns available. I will also keep each year of insurance certificates. I will also be getting a new passport so I will make sure I have the old passport. When I applied for the LTR I needed to give them copies of half my passport pages to satisfy the immigration official. I do love my pensioner LTR though. It seems a little silly but the psychological relief of not doing 90 reports and future yearly extensions or thinking about my 800k bank account is nice. I just returned from the US last week and I loved using the FastTrack lane at immigration.

The website seems to say yes but I have no intention of working anywhere so I have not looked into this.

I switched from an OA visa extension to a pensioner LTR this past January, Once you have the LTR visa you are not required to keep any money in the bank. When you are approved you make an appointment with the BOI office. The Immigration office across the hall handles the switch from the OA to the LTR. They do check, in the LTR application process, that all your immigration requirements for the OA visa have been met. Then you get approved. On the day of the transfer you do pay a non-refundable fee of 50,000 baht. The insurance required for my OA visa extensions satisfied the LTR health insurance requirement but note that I think you have to have 10 months remaining on the policy. They stamped canceled on my most recent 90-day report receipt. If you remain inside Thailand for a full year then you have to check in with the BOI office. I don't know what that entails but I can guess that it is the equivalent of a 90-day report. I am visiting the US next week so I won't have to do this 1 year report until a year after I return from the US. One of the LTR benefits is that I don't need re-entry permits to travel out/in of Thailand. I just moved to Sisaket province and as a courtesy I checked in with the Sisiket Immigration office to let them know I was here and that I had an LTR visa. They had never seen one before.