oldcpu

I found it an interesting read that a ticket (leaving Thailand) was needed for a COVID extension, as it reads counter intuitive to me. I guess if such is a firm requirement, then ideally a ticket where one can change the departure date either for free, or for some nominal fee would be best (assuming one plans to use such a ticket sometime in the future). If one has no such plans, then buying a possibly expensive (changeable) one-way ticket may not be so desirable. For totally different reasons (than this thread topic) I recently purchased a totally valid (and usable) oneway ticket to depart Thailand in November for only 740 Thai baht. It was an Air Asia flight from Krabi to Kalua Lumpur. I don't plan to use that ticket (leaving Thailand) other than to show to Thai Airways staff in Germany, when I to to board a Thai Airways flight to fly from Germany to Thailand on a one-way ticket , where I will have no Thai visa, but instead have an intention to enter Thailand Visa-Exempt. If one needs to buy a ticket, and if one is concerned the slightly cheaper 'throw-away tickets' advertised on the web may not be accepted, then with some shopping around, it may be possible to purchase a not too expensive legitimate airline ticket to leave Thailand, that is not too expensive. Just check the various departure airports in Thailand which have international departures ... Where I qualify that "'not too expensive" wording by saying 740 Thai baht is not too expensive in my financial assessment. .

I hope to change from a type-OA to a Type-O in October this year, and this is a concern of mine. I've had the 800K required amount in a Bangkok Bank fixed account since 2019 (when it was brought into Thailand from abroad via another Bangkok Bank account) and that 800K has subsequently been accepted for my Type-OA extensions. I recently opened a separate 800K account with Krungsri, and when I apply for the Type-O (after leaving and returning to Thailand in October Visa Exempt) I hope to use the 800K Krungsri account. But proving it came from abroad would have a bit of a complex paper trail (as the funds came from abroad to Bangkok Bank and then to Krungsri bank). I also still have the old original 800K still in a Bangkok Bank fixed account (which immigration accepted for the Type-OA extensions), which I plan to keep until the 800K Krungsri account amount is accepted. Of course my worry is neither will be accepted and worst case I would have to bring yet another 800K into Thailand from abroad in a hurry. Something I prefer not to do. I have my fingers crossed here.

I was recently able to purchase a 740 Thai baht (real - not throw away) one-way ticket with Air Asia flying from Krabi to Kuala Lumpur. Its a real ticket (I could use it if I wished, albeit it is the most basic economy with no check-in luggage - and I have no plan to visit KL). But its 100% legitimate so there will be no worries that some 'throw away ticket' company's ticket could be rejected when checked, when boarding a flight outside of Thailand to fly to Thailand. .

I finally had my 1st successful online 90-day report with the new system. I've been trying for over 2 years to do the online (I must have attempted over 3 dozen times the past few years) and finally this time (a few days ago) with the new software reporting system I succeeded. Its nice to see an improvement. My speculation is that in addition to making this easier for me, it also makes it easier for immigration.

Some of us who easily meet the 80K range don't obtain it all from one source, but from multiple sources - each source under 80K and each source may have a different means of proof available where the proof of one or more of the sources may or may not be acceptable for immigration under the LTR. If all sources not acceptable then the lower range may need to be considered. So if a combination of sources for 80K not accepted, one might then look at the 250K option. Some of us may be massively over the 250K in total assets in Thailand, but no one asset exceeds the 250K. So again it comes down to the implementation, and will a combination of different ways of meeting the 250K be acceptable? Detail/clarifications would be helpful. I agree clarifications are needed ... and also more detail required. Overall, I suspect the implementation of the Health Insurance requirement could be the main blocker for this being popular, unless the implementation is carefully implemented , and NOT implemented by using the Type-OA Health Insurance requirement implementation as a model example.

Thanks. Interesting. Note item-4: Copy of Health Insurance ... where "the stamp and signature of the insurance company are mandatory". I suspect this "stamp" and "signature" are most likely on a custom Thai immigration form, and MANY foreign insurance companies will refuse to sign/stamp such. For the "valid social security benefits" the PDF does not specify what will be accepted as "evidence". My fear is it could be an embassy letter and that many embassies will refuse to provide such. For the "bank statement for the last 12 months showing a deposit of no less than 100,000 USD" ... This is encouraging for me, although I wonder, does this have to be in a Thai bank? I suspect so. I also suspect many don't have this amount, although this LTR is for a "wealthy pensioner" and not an "average pensioner". Item-5: This $250,000 USD in assets in Thailand, I wonder if it can be from a combination of Thai bonds + condominium unit purchase/ownership to equal the $250,000 USD equivalent, or if it must be only one (and not a combination to achieve the amount)? Item-14/15: As pointed out already, the financial evidence showing an income in current year ... Again, this gets fuzzy ! Item-16: A no-criminal record proof requirement. More detail here would be useful. Is this required only the 1st time, or is it needed again in x-years when the LTR permission to stay is renewed again? Like many I am curious to read how this is finally implemented (including the smallest details).

Yes - one can obtain a re-entry permit on one's permission to stay in Thailand (where the permission to stay is based on an underlying Type-OA and also if on an underlying Type-O visa). One has a choice of a single re-entry permit for each time one leaves Thailand (to return later prior to permission to stay expiring), or one can obtain a multiple re-entry permit for the entire duration of one's permission to stay.

I am most curious to find out if this Corporate Cigna plan will be accepted by Thailand when the details of the LTR are implemented. I have an excellent European Cigna health insurance plan (provided by my former employer as part of my pension) and it is NOT accepted by Thailand for the Type-OA health insurance. Further this European Cigna refuses to fill in any Thai immigration forms for Health Insurance. Now there is a Thai branch of Cigna from which one can buy Health insurance to meet the Thai immigration requirements. However the Thai branch refuses to fill in the Thai immigration database for the European Cigna plan (that I have) and will not do the required Thai immigration paperwork for the European Cigna. I asked the Thai Cigna branch how much money they wanted in order to fill in the requirements for the European Cigna, and they flat out stated, buy double Health Insurance from their Thai Cigna branch (and if i wished dump the superior former employer provided Cigna Health Insurance to avoid double health insurance). My European Cigna Health Insurance is both cheaper (as it is subsidized by my former employer) and far superior. So good luck, and best of wishes to you, with your Corporate Cigna plan being accepted by Thai immigration - but to say I have serious doubts that this will work for you would be a major understatement.

With respect, I have a large degree of skepticism as to how the details of this Health Insurance requirement for the LTR will be implemented for retirees. If the Type-OA visa Health requirements is any indication, the Health Insurance requirement, of $USD 50,000 coverage (or social security benefits) is the 'catch'. Call me a cynic, but I don't believe Thailand will implement a $100,000 US (self insurance) requirement without putting some additional constraint on it making it unpalatable or impractical for most Expats <<< for me this is the main concern. As for the $USD 50,000 coverage from an insurance company, my speculation is Thailand will require foreign insurance companies to fill-in and sign a form which will be unpalatable to them, and that most foreign insurance companies will refuse to do such. I believe this will force expats to either give up likely superior foreign Health Insurance (and buy the inferior Thai health insurance branch Health Insurance) or buy double Health Insurance. That is the case for me (for a Type-OA visa) which is why my last extension on my Type-OA was done for reason of marriage to a Thai, and not for reason of "retirement". Further, as for the "social security benefits", my speculation is Thailand will require a letter from one's Embassy (or some letter similar from one's foreign government) stating one has that "social security benefit" coverage and further I speculate that the Embassy's or Foreign governments will refuse to meet the exact specified Thai standards due to some Thai requirement detail unpalatable to them. In summary, my fear is this new Thai visa has not been thought through sufficiently in the detail of its implementation to ensure it can be met by the majority of expats who otherwise would easily meet such a requirement.

The posts about people stating no proof of health insurance needed for Phuket immagration are misleading at best and honestly, FLAT WRONG for anyone with a more recent Type-OA visa. Almost everyone who has posted no health insurance needed in Phuket for a Type-OA visa never posted when they obtained their original type-OA visa. I can no longer recall the exact 'cut off date', but I do know that for my Type-OA visa, for an extension based on retirement, Phuket immigration require Health Insurance from the limited Thai list of Insurance company branches. I know this for a fact as i was refused by Phuket immigration an extension based on retirement - and they would not accept my superior foreign insurance. For that one extension, I ended up buying double insurance with a basically throw-away Thai insurance (worthless because of its massive deduction). My Type-OA visa was issued on 28-March-2019, and was valid until 27-March-2020. I left Thailand in February-2020 and I returned on 29-February-2020 which gave me an extension to stay until 27-February-2021. In late January-2021/early-February-2021 (last year) Phuket immigration refused to give me an extension based on retirement without Health Insurance from the limited Thai list. Hence this year (in February-2022) I went for an extension based on marriage to a Thai, to avoid once again having to purchase double health insurance. However that extension based on marriage has downsides. It has a lot more paperwork (in order to prove marriage still valid), it requires my wife and I go go to City Hall to have our marriage document updated (every year), it requires my wife to accompany me to immigration, and it took over 5 weeks to be approved once applied for - while an extension based on retirement is nominally MUCH quicker ( a few days or less for approval). Those expats in Phuket, with type-OA visas, who do not need to prove Health Insurance, have been here for a long time, longer than myself, and hence that is why they do not need to prove the Health Insurance. There is a specific cut off date (for the Phuket immigration office) for a Type-OA visa issue (and one's last entry to Thailand) where Health Insurance is not required. I don't recall that date, but I do know that I do not meet that requirement. You are correct, if the requirement for Health Insurance is extended to those with an underlying type-O visa then changing to a type-O from the type-OA would make no difference. However that possible change is no more than speculation at this time. Perhaps speculation based on an excellent view, but speculation never the less. I was already planing to leave Thailand for two months ... so why not let my Type-OA Visa expire? I live a 10-minute car drive from Phuket immigration. So what this means with my letting my Visa expire is I need to go to Immigration a few times. I return to Thailand (planning on a Visa Exempt entry) in early-October. I go to immigration once to apply for the 90-day Type-O visa in October. Again a few weeks later to get my passport stamped with the 90-day Type-0 visa. Then in December go to to immigration to apply for the 1 year extension based on retirement and presumably return to Immigration a couple of days later take my passport to get that extension stamped in the passport. The amount of money immigration ask for the 90-day Type-O and the 1-year retirement extension on the Type-O are insignificant compared to the amount of money required for double health insurance for someone my age. Also the extra trips to immigration are less of an annoyance than the trip to City Hall (which is 3x the distance from my place compared to the distance to immigration office). It all boils down to .... what are the odds that this year, there will be a change that requires all Type-O visa holders to obtain Health Insurance from a Thai approved list of Thai branches of insurance companies to stay in Thailand ?

My view is likely a Condominium Juristic Person Manager would need co-owner approval. Why? I suspect this varies depending on each Condominium complex and the rules they have in place. I further suspect nominally there will be a limit as to how much money the "Juristic Committee" can spend without co-owner approval ... and I further suspect the amount in which a Condominium Juristic Person Manager would cost could exceed that 'limit'. Hence co-owner approval would be needed. Further, I think co-owners would want confidence that the "Juristic Committee" just did not pick "any manager" but rather checked the 'market' to see what was available for management ... I think as well a "Juristic Committee" would be interested in knowing what is available, to help them choose, the "Juristic Manager" to recommend to co-owners for approval. Hence the "Juristic Committee" would listen to and consider suggestions from 'co-owners'.

Thanks for the reply. Well done in finding the "right" lady to manage your condo complex and be the Condominium Juristic Person Manager (CJPM). I think here the word "right" is the operative word as it is difficult to find such a person ... To properly manage a condo complex, a lot of knowledge is needed, which is typically obtained only by experience. Further the location of one's condo complex often means one is restricted to find a person who lives nominally close to the condominium complex and is willing to drive to/from the complex. To emphasize the point about knowledge, 'off the top of my head' , ... my trying now for first time, I think one needs a CJPM that: (a) can manage security staff, manage gardeners, manage an on-site technician / handyman. They could be direct hires also or they could be contractors, where if contractors there is the extra work of managing contract (and changing contractors where necessary). If changing contractors one needs to know which contractors are in the 'business' of doing the activity one wants done. Easier said than done. (b) supervising work of those contractors, where security staff could require extra work if needed to be involved in co-owner disputes that go bad (c) supervising swimming pool maintenance which typically requires a lot of extra work. ie daily cleaning, equipment/pumps/filter maintenance, every x-number of years do massive pool cleaning overhaul. Plus ensure pool furniture maintained, ... (d) supervising cleaning of beach in front of condo if a beach front condo (e) supervising maintenance of condominium electrical and water supply, where on occasion there could be 'after hours' problems that need an immediate fix, (f) obtaining annual condominium insurance, including getting proposals and awarding contracts (g) liaising with Condominium Committee (of co-owners) for any contracts above some TBD amount of money (h) maintaining parking lot and managing any parking disputes amongst co-owners/guests/contractors ... (i) supervise contractor accountant who produces monthly financial summary (and obtaining annual bids to either keep same accountant or obtain new accountant) (j) monitor fund expenditures in bank account and conduct the banking for the condo complex, which includes paying contractors and depositing co-owner annual (or monthly) payments (j) co-ordinate, follow-up in collection of condominium fees and any extra "sinking fund" fees (if any) (k) co-ordinate collection of utility payments for electricity and water if it goes via a central condominium complex control, and then in a timely manner pay such to the central Phuket authority (l) liaise with police if/when they may show up (m) monitor any large co-owner maintenance activities and/or moving some condo/co-owner planned activities to ensure it does not infringe on other co-owners (n) arrange/coordinate the Annual General meeting (AGM) of co-owners, which has a lot of work, from writing an agenda, preparing a budget for the next year, possibly preparing a 5 or 10 year plan of future work on the condo, preparing an annual report of previous year, write the minutes after meeting, and take minutes of AGM to the Land Office and possibly have to modify minutes based on Land Office observations. (o) monitor and help enforce condominium rules (p) liaise with co-owners and co-owner Committee and many adhoc issues, maintaining a good polite attitude (this is harder to find than one might imaging - it amazes me how some CJPM will 'bit the hand' that feeds them. ... I am sure there are dozen of things I did not list. When it comes to contracts that the CJPM administers, unfortunately its not uncommon for the CJPM to add a "hidden" 5% or more on top of what the contractor bids, and the co-owners can unknowing play this extra 5% fee (which the CJPM silent pockets/keeps). So its desirable to find a CJPM who does not do this unethical practice. Trying to find 1 "right" person is not an easy thing, and this is (in my opinion) why some companies specialize in providing this activity, where the 'depth' of the company experience can significantly assist an on-site Manager of the condo. Further some contractors will "behave better" when they know they are dealing with a larger company, that can potentially give them more (different contracts) while a single CJPM of no company, does not have that leverage. So WELL DONE in finding one person who can do all this without the experience of a larger company behind them, giving them guidance if/and as appropriate. Hence my hope others might chime in on this thread and note some of the companies in Phuket that they know of that do the CJPM job. My thanks in advance to any who post.

With the end of the year not far off, the time is coming for the contract with our Condominium's management (CJPM) to be renewed, or another company hired to manage the upkeep of the condominium complex where I live. I am looking for suggestions for CJPM experienced companies that already have a Phuket presence. I found an old thread on this topic here ... but it doesn't list companies (except for mentioning QPM) but rather it talks in general of the need. The above thread is also not in a Phuket specific area (of the forum) although it does have a "Phuket title". Our co-owners in our condo complex are not interested in a company that does not have other complexes in Phuket that they also manage. For example I have heard of TW (The Works) but best I can determine they have no management projects in Phuket at this time. Some companies I know of with a Phuket presence are Greenhill, CBRE, KnightFrank, and QPM. Can anyone suggest any other companies worth considering for decent condo management? Our condo is a relatively small luxury condo complex, so it may be too small for some companies, hence we likely need to explore the CJPM possibility with many companies to find a 'match'. Thanks for any suggestions. and for the forum mods, if my starting a new thread here in the Phuket area is not desired, feel free to move or delete my post.

I share the feeling of trepidation in letting a permission to stay (based on a perfectly good O-A visa) be invalidated deliberately leaving the country without a re-entry permit. I obtain some confidence by my planning to do this soon, by others also having successfully done this before me (ie leaving Thailand without a re-entry permit, invalidating their Type-OA visa (and associated permission to stay) and re-entering Visa Exempt, followed by applying for a 90-day Type-O Visa and then applying for a one-year permission to stay on the Type-O for reasons of retirement. I feel there is a lot that can go wrong in changing the underlying Visa - but others have successfully done this, so I plan to give it a try - leaving Thailand in August without a re-entry permit (on a previously planned 2 month visit to Europe), and return 7-October visa-exempt. I think that will give me a permission to stay until 6-November, so on 10-October I plan to head to immigration and apply for the Type-O 90-day Visa. I suspect there will be some risk in (my coming into Thailand VisaExempt and applying for a Type-O) could mess up my attending a wedding on 7-Nov in a separate Thai province, as I don't know the timing as to how long it will take to have the Type-O 90-day visa approved. The wedding will clearly be just after my 30-day visa exempt status expires, and I will feel nervous about traveling about in Thailand (far from Phuket immigration) until my permission to stay past ~6-November is updated by obtaining a Type-O 90-day visa. I read somewhere worst case time needed for Visa approval could be as much as 30-days ... I think it was implemented because there were many cases of foreigners without Heath Insurance, running up large bills in Thailand hospitals and not paying. I know of one such case of a a friend who sadly ended up doing such - where the hospital was initially short money due to him running up a massive medical bill. So Type-OA was chosen for a "trial". I believe (albeit I am not sure) that the Type-OA health insurance was intended to be a trial - so to see if this might work for a broader application. Hence there is speculation other Visas could eventually sadly have such applied also - although we all hope that will not be the case and for CERTAIN that is cynical speculation. I wish thou the limited list of Insurance companies was not so restrictive. It would be nice if someone with lots of money could self insure themselves for health insurance by showing a LOT of money in a Thai bank. I also wish a superior method existed for non-Thai Health Insurance to be recognized.

I also have a Krungsri account (in addition to Bangkok Bank). My Thai wife has been pushing me to shift my proof of financial funds (where I keep 800K THB) from Bangkok Bank to Krungsri as she claims that Krungsri will issue the paperwork required (to prove the 800K present for 1 year continuous) on the spot, and not make one wait one week like Bangkok Bank. Your post confirms what my wife noted. I may indeed consider doing this change of banks for proof of the funds. The Bangkok Bank requirement to wait a week adds an extra visit to the Bank which would be nice to avoid (the extra trip).

I went to Patong Hospital yesterday (Wednesday) for a walk in vaccine jab. Research the day prior indicated that one day a week (on Wednesdays) Patong Hospital will provide a walk in jab (of Pfizer) to the 1st 50 people who show up. Vaccinations start around 08:30am , although obviously the hospital is open 24hrs/day. So my wife and I got up early (in the far south of Phuket) and drove to Patong, arriving at the hospital at around 8am. At that time there was lots of space in the car park (later when we left at around 09:30am the parking lot was overflowing). We were not the 1st there (I believe a couple of dozen people were there prior to us) but we did make it into the 1st 50 group and we did obtain our Pfizer jabs. My wife is Thai so she did all the talking with the nurses as we went from location to location (while we did all the paperwork, test, etc ... ). - First step was a nurse gives one a blue piece of paper with a number on it. The nurse told my wife we should be in the 1st 50. - The second step was to fill in an A4 piece of paper about allergies and such, entering one's name, passport info ... etc - The third step was to stand in line to do a self administered blood pressure test ... where they have 2 machines, where one sits down, sticks one's arm into the machine, press a start button, and it then proceeds to measure one's blood pressure (it takes about a minute). If flashes the blood pressure on the machine and spits out a small rectangular white piece of paper with the blood pressure info, where one MUST be certain to take that paper. I almost missed that step. - The fourth step was a short stand in line to sit down in front of a row of Thai people who take the blue piece of paper, the white blood piece of paper, and the initial A4 sized paper, one's passport, and enter one's data into a database. They then hand back the passport and the blue piece of paper that has the number. - The fifth step was a wait (where they had about 30 chairs) for one's blue paper number or one's name to be called, where one then sits in front of a nurse, who asks some questions about previous vaccinations, one's height, one's weight. For foreigners she gives the foreigner an invoice paper, where the foreigner has to take that to the cashier and pay 200 Thai baht (Thai people don't have to pay this). The cashier hands back a paper, which one takes back to the above nurse. - One then waits in another small area (less than 10 chairs) waiting for one's name (or number) to be called. - After one's name is called, one goes into a small room and immediately receives the Pfizer jab. ... My having received both AstraZeneca and Moderna in the past, I have to say the actual 'getting jabbed' part was incredibly quick. One is then done. They did not ask us to hang around afterward, which surprised me. But my wife and I, instead of leaving went to the Information desk and made certain our vaccination information made it into the Mor Prom app. It was fortunate we did this, as my wife's information made it ok, but there was an issue with mine (some mistake made re: the passport # entry) and it did not show up as me being vaccinated. So between the "information desk" and the "fourth step line of people enter data into a database" we had that sorted, and my Pfizer jab now shows up in the Mor Prom app. We were out of there by 09:30. ... So in total we were at the hospital for 90 minutes to get the Pfizer jab. As for side effects? I am 68 years old. Last night I had the chills and I was waking up constantly. I have a mild 'caffeine withdrawal' type headache today, despite having 3 cups of coffee. I also feel a bit fatigued today. This is the same sort of fatigue and headache I had after the Astra Zeneca jab, but no where near as bad as the strong symptoms I had from the Moderna jab, where the Moderna jab practically knocked me off me feet for almost two days with mild flu symptoms. My wife and I have two months of solid traveling in Europe and North America planned starting in a months time, so we decided to go for this Pfizer as a booster jab. Hopefully it will help us not get as sick if we catch COVID during our travels. .

Given 740 THB is not much money ... I went ahead and booked that flight. (of course it has no luggage, no advance seat reservation, no food ..but given its highly unlikely I will use this legitimate ticket, its not a bad deal). Of the 740 THB, I note 400 THB is airport fee, 250 THB is a fuel surcharge, 35 THB is an advance passenger processing fee, and 15 THB is international departure and arrival fee (Thailand). ... The actual ticket, minus the fees, is only 40 THB. ... Incredible.

Further to this, I have read that if one has come into Thailand on a '30-day Visa Exempt', that it is common that the Airline in the departing country to go to Thaland (in my case this will be Germany) will ask to see proof via an airline ticket, how one plans to leave Thailand. So if I leave Thailand in August, invalidate my permission to stay (and non-immigrant OA visa) I will be returning 30-day Visa exempt in October. Likely I will need to show a departure ticket from Thailand for early November ... Along these lines, I note AirAsia has a sale on right now, and I may purchase a Krabi to Kuala Lumpur one-way ticket, which is reasonably priced at about 740 Thai baht. ... I highly doubt I will use that ticket, so it will basically be a throwaway ticket.

Unfortunately, according to Thaiger news, the two Thai maintained Tsunami buoys in the Andaman sea are not at present functioning and they won't be functioning until November this year. So its nice the warning towers are fully operational, but from where will they get their warning if the Tsunami buoys are not functioning? Every time there is an earth quake at some TBD size do they put out a warning? Cause an evacuation with no confirmation from a Buoy? Or does India have Tsunami buoys far from their area of concern in the Andaman sea? I seriously doubt that Myanmar has operational Tsunami buoys. Given there is typically only 20-to-30-minutes warning from a Tsunami buoy, even if India has some, how long will it take them to notify Thailand so that Thailand can act? My hope the above has all been considered and appropriate measures in place, but thus far other than notes that Tsunami buoys not working, but the warning towers are functional, does not provide me that much confidence. I wish more detail was provided on link from earth quake to the actual warning (to give confidence that the Tsunami buoys were not needed).

That's true about the Health Insurance (from a limited Thai list) not being required for the Type-OA non-immigrant visa (for marriage extensions) and I took advantage of that myself in a recent renewal when at renewal of my annual 'permission to stay' extension, I changed from 'retirement' to 'marriage' . Still, I plan to switch to a Type-O in the future even thou married to a Thai. Why ? My views: (1) a Type-O (retirement extension) has significantly less paperwork than a Type OA (marriage extension) - I won't spam the forum with all the details (maps , pictures of one and one's wife in home .. etc ... ), and (2) an extra trip to City Hall to get the Kor-22 marriage certificate renewed is NOT required for a Type-O (retirement extension) but it is required for a Type-OA (marriage extension), Dependent on the City Hall this can be quick or be a long wait at City Hall, and (3) the wife is NOT required to go to immigration for a Type-O (retirement extension) but she is required at immigration for a Type-OA ( marriage extension), and (4) a Type-O (retirement extension) can be done in a couple of days (possibly on the same day for some) where a Type-OA (marriage extension) in my case took over 5-weeks [and for a while, when waiting these 5-weeks, any one looking at my passport would think I was on an 'over stay' in Thailand - even thou I wasn't ], and (5) no need on a Type-O (retirement extension) for an immigration officer to visit one's place, but in some cases for a Type-OA (marriage extension) the Immigration want to visit one's place. For some of us (like myself) we don't care whether its 400k or 800k in the bank. We are lucky that the 400k difference doesn't matter. Perhaps the money is the driving issue for some. How tight is one's money, and is the 400k additional Thai baht an issue? If the 400k Thai baht not an issue, and if one has already a plan in place (for different reasons) to leave Thailand and return, why not change from a non-immigrant-OA to a non-immigrant-O ? I am hoping later this year to change from a Type-OA to a Type-O non-immigrant visa, for the reasons noted above.

Strange. I was able to open an account with Bangkok Bank on a 30-day Visa exempt (here in Phuket). The day after I arrived in Phuket, I went to Phuket immigration, and obtained a 1 page letter (with a passport sized photo on it) stating my residence in Thailand (for the 30-days). I told immigration I needed the letter to open a Bank account. They had seen this before so this was nothing new to them. I had to provide the photo to immigration. It cost some nominal small amount of money to get the letter. I already had the passport sized photo to provide immigration. Armed with that letter, and my passport, Bangkok Bank opened an account for me. They asked me why I wanted the account, and I told them (1) for retirement so I could go for a non-immigrant visa, and (2) so to transfer money to Thailand to buy real estate. The 'key' was that letter from immigration. I also tried Kaskiorn and UOB and they would not let me open an account even with that letter from immigration.

Thanks for the reply. I agree absolutely about moving to a Type-O visa ... I am on a marriage extension at present (for my Type-OA) but given putting 800k (vs 400k) in a Thai bank is not an issue for me, I would prefer a Type-O on retirement extensions (over marriage extensions) which as you note, and which I fully agree, has far less paperwork hassle for me , less paperwork hassle for the Thai immigration, and its quicker for me. I already have 800k in a fixed account in a Thai bank (and have had for a few years). I also already have superb health insurance, which Thai immigration does not accept (but that Thai hospitals love) and so going for a 'retirement' extension on a Type-OA visa is something I wish to avoid (as I hate paying for unnecessary double health insurance). I agree, except the timing worries me - or at least it did until I read your post and I looked at the calendar once again. If I come back on 7-October on a 30-day Visa-Exempt, and immediately apply for a 90-day Type-O Visa, say apply on Monday 10-Oct-2022 ... that would give me a permission to stay until about 9-January-2023 (assuming the Type-O visa starts the day I apply and not the last day of my visa exempt permission to stay). Assuming then I have a Type-O non-immigrant visa, then a few weeks prior to my 3-or-4-January-2023 departure ... about 19-December-2022, I could apply for a 1-year extension on the permission to stay in Thailand based on retirement ... If the one year retirement extension is given immediately no problem (immediately followed by my obtaining a re-entry permit) ... but if the extension is slow, then my 3 or 4 January-2023 departure will cause me some stress. Thou now, after reading your post, I realize I am stuck in a western mindset where in the west everything mostly shuts down from a few day before Christmas until after New Years. But Thailand is NOT the west. Thailand is of course different, and immigration should mostly be open during that Christmas/western-New Years period. Hence the timing between ~19-December-2022 and 3-January-2023 should be more than adequate to get a retirement extension (for 1-year) on a Type-O Visa.

Thanks. I agree stick with single re-entry permits for maximum flexibility, especially given changing from an OA to an O visa is something constantly on my mind. As for an agent? ... I confess ... I am not a person who likes going to an 'agent' and paying them my money. I prefer to use the money I save from an agent to buy 'toys', buy nice 'dinners' and buy other things. Having typed that, I have friends who swear by using an agent to make things easier for them. So each to their own I guess.

A further thought to my above post, would be the following (going only for a Single re-entry permit on original permission to stay (extension) on original Type-OA visa and then after re-entry in February changing to a new non-immigrant Type-O Visa and apply for a re-entry permit on that for the March-April trip). i.e. : 1A. Single Re-entry Permit idea on 2 different Visas (permissions to stay): - go now to immigration and obtain single re-entry permit on my current permission to stay, so to be able to return to Thailand after upcoming Aug-to-October-2022 travel - return to Thailand on 7-Oct-2022 with current permission to stay on type-OA visa still valid. - depart Thailand 4-January-2023 (with no re-entry permit) which invalidates permission to stay on Type-OA visa. - return Thailand 20-January-2023 on 30-day tourist visa exempt (should allow staying in Thailand until ~18-February-2023 or so). - around 30-January-2023 apply for a 3-month Type-O Visa based on retirement, and - assuming succesfully obtain a 3-month Type-O Visa (with permission to stay to around 30-April-2023) then in Jan/Feb-2023 immediately apply for re-entry permit on that 3-month Type-O - depart Thailand 17-Mar to 17-April-2023. - return to Thailand on 17-April-2023 on type-O visa (still valid) and immediately apply for a 1 year extension on Type-O permission to stay based on 'retirement' The timing between "17-April" (return to Thailand) and "30-April" (end of permission to stay) is a bit tight for obtaining a 1-year extension on the 'permission to stay' but I think it doable < unsure >

I tried that (Thai Drivers License) in Phuket once, when checking into a Thai hotel. They advised me to go to a different hotel. They refused to accept a Thai driver's license.