CanadaJoe

Thanks again to all who replied and shared their knowledge and experiences. It's been very beneficial and I am now fully aware of what I need to do next year to cancel my OA and apply for the O. Thank you all.

Yeah, I'm not eligible for the LTR.

Thanks. Yeah, I now have the extension on my OA and will leave the country next year to kill it off. Yep, the bureaucracy is a bit frustrating, especially when you have to fork out hard-earned money for nothing. But as you say, it's just part of living in Thailand. I experienced the same thing in Mexico when I lived there for a couple of years. Lots of stuff that didn't make any sense at all, but just the way things were done there. I believe that initially I got poor advice from the consulate in Vancouver, but that's water under the bridge now. I'm looking forward to another year in the Land of Smiles.

Thanks for the tip. Yep, that's an option, but the cost of the agent significantly exceeds the price of the throwaway policy. Wherever possible I like to do the paperwork myself so I know exactly what's going on and can repeat the process in subsequent years.

I would say all or most of the companies on the list. I'm sure they are laughing all the way to the bank.

Cheers 👍🏻

I got the list from the Thai consulate website in Vancouver. longstay.tgia.org

Sweet! Glad it all worked out 👍🏻

To get my original OA visa and to get my extension, I needed a health insurance policy of at lease 4,000,000 TBaht. My previous policy covered me for $10,000,000 USD so exponentially more than required. However, the Thai government requires holders of any non-Thai policies to have a letter signed by the insurance company stating that they sold you the policy. Sounds straightforward and simple enough, but every company I contacted for insurance would not sign such a letter. So, despite being covered by my existing policy for $10,000,000 USD, I had to fork out (throw away) $350 on one of the “approved” Thai insurance policies. These Thai policies do not require a signed letter. The Thai policy covers me for the minimum 4,000,000 baht required for the visa, but has a 300,000 Baht deductible, making it virtually useless for anything but the most serious cases. So basically, insurance companies sell them to people like me, who are forced to buy them in order to get a visa. When I transition to a regular O visa, there is no such requirement from the Thai government.

Great 👍🏻 Looking forward to ditching the OA

Sweet thanks. Appreciate all the info. 👍🏻

Great thanks 🙏🏻

Great thanks. I got my original OA in Canada last January and bought the throw away Thai insurance (needed for the visa) with a march start date, which was my intended arrival date. My trip was delayed so didn’t arrive in Thailand until July. Was only granted a stay until March of this year because that was when my insurance expired. Took a short trip to Singapore in August and then returned to Thailand. Got an extension this morning of my OA until March 2026, but needed to purchase another throw away Thai insurance policy. Not sure of my travel plans for next year, but sounds like I will need to plan a trip to coincide with the expiration of my OA so I can then transition to the O.

Thanks for the info. Would probably exit to another nearby country rather than returning to Canada.

Got it, thanks for the info. When I leave Thailand, is it best to do so just before my current OA visa expires, so that it's already expired when I return? If I leave while my OA visa is still valid and try to re-enter on a visa exemption or a 90-day O visa, could that cause any issues?

I went back to Immigration this morning after purchasing a throw-away insurance policy and waving goodbye to $350. Next year I will leave Thailand, return on a 90-day O or visa exempt and transition off the OA so I don't have to pay these rip-off insurance fees ever again. Thanks to everyone who responded for your advice and information, it was much appreciated.

Thanks the link, I'll go through it.

I'm currently in Thailand and have no plans to return to Canada in the near future. When I went to Phuket immigration last week to check on the requirements for the visa, the Immigration officer told me I needed to have photos of me standing outside my Phuket condo, with the unit number clearly visible. I complied with this requirement, but they didn't like the fact that the photos were in landscape orientation on the page when they were printed.

Olay thanks for the clarification. I guess I didn't understand renewing a visa and extending my stay were different beasts. Yeah as a Canadian I believe I can enter Visa exempt for 60 days. I have all my paperwork and bank account stuff prepared for the O visa already so hopefully once back in Thailand it would be a fairly simple process to get the O visa.

Okay, thanks. Yes, that's an option.

I contacted the Thai consulate in Canada numerous times before applying for my original visa. Each time, they told me my only option (from within Canada) was the OA visa. I was informed the O visa could only be applied for from within Thailand. In hindsight perhaps I should have originally entered on a tourist visa and applied from within Thailand for the O visa, but I followed the advice of the Thai consulate in Canada. But yes, I believe there is also a lot of unnecessary bureaucracy here in Thailand, despite the number of visa options available. For example, today they refused to accept the photos of me standing outside my condo because they were printed in landscape orientation and they insisted on portrait orientation. I had specifically visited the immigration office last week to double-check everything I needed, but there was no mention of the orientation requirements for the photos. Also, what does a photo of me standing outside a condo prove? I could easily go and stand outside ANY condo and take a photo, it's not valid proof of anything.

Thanks. Yes, the plan is to stay here in Thailand long-term. I'd prefer not to have to purchase throw-away insurance each year, so it seems transitioning over to the O visa is the only way around that. How is it possible to stay for 2 years on an OA?

Thanks for the advice. It's just frustrating having to leave the country to do all of this. Gotta love government bureaucracy!

Thanks. Yeah, I didn't think it was possible to renew an OA from within Thailand and don't really want to do that anyway. I wanted to just transition over to the O which I was under the impression I could do. I already have the 800,000 in a Thai bank and comprehensive health insurance with another company. When I got my original OA in Canada I again had to waste $350 CDN on a throw-away policy because it seemed like no insurance company would sign the "Foreign Insurance Certificate" that This government insists on. Is it just me, or is it crazy that the Thai government was the insurance company to sign a letter saying they have sold you a policy when you can show the policy itself? Doesn't make any sense to me. Anyway, thanks for your advice.

Thanks. I hope we can find something as well. Thanks for the advice.