oldcpu

Further to Thomas72 excellent post, and Liquorice further comment (after age-60 the pink card is valid for life - and I am over age-60), one further benefit I had by having a yellow book and a pink card, is a Bangkok Bank branch required such for me to purchase a Thai government savings bond. Without that, they were not going to let me buy a Thai government bond from their branch. That could very well be branch specific for all I know. Fortunately I had both yellow book and pink "ID" card. Let me also say I do NOT consider Thai government bonds a great investment (the one I bought only gives 3% interest). I had to buy some bonds to add to my existing amount (for a Thailand investment) to get an LTR-WP Visa. Another possible benefit < unsure > - by registering my name at the local city hall (via my yellow book) with my name against the condominium I own, I do not have to pay annual tax on my condo, as I live in the place full time. I think one is allowed to own a place up to 50-million THB (mine is worth far less) and not pay tax on the place, if it is one's principle residence. But legally it has to be registered in city hall against one's name. My wife walked me through the process at the city hall, and according to her, I could not have done this if I did not have a yellow book. I do NOT know if that is accurate. She has been wrong before. But for certain my having the yellow book made the house registration (so not to pay tax) easy. So maybe ... maybe ... it saved me having to pay annual tax on my condo. This is all very obscure, and I believe that both a yellow book and a pink ID are not needed for almost all expats - but every now and then, having such can come in handy.

I would recommend calling BoI for clarification on this. After all, the USD 100K is for self health insurance. It stands to reason it may dip below USD $100K at times, as one uses it to pay medical bills, and then one tops it up later. If I had to guess, BoI, in 5 year times AFTER one obtains the LTR visa, BoI may ask to see proof of USD $100K for only the last 2 years, before one renews the 'permission to stay' for the second 5 year period. Having to keep $100K USD equivalent in cash continually for 5 years is not an issue for me (for self health insurance), but I can clearly see it could be for some - hence its worth asking BoI. Hypothetically, lets say BoI wanted it the money proven the bank continually for 5 years ... and then lets say one takes the 500k out of the bank as soon as one gets the LTR visa. So lets say then in 5 years, BoI would deny the "automatic" for another 5-year permission to stay (as the money was not there for 5 years). But what happens at that point in time, if one pays another 50k THB and applies again for an LTR and shows $100k USD in the bank for the last two prior years? Are BoI going to turn down a new LTR application when one meets the new application requirement for an LTR-WP (as requirement, I think, is $100k equivalent only for two preceding years)? Based on that, my guess, is when 5years rolls around, one only show $100K USD in the bank (for self health insurance) for the 2 years prior to the 5-year permission to stay renewal. ... or saying it different: from the LTR approval point in time, to the 3 after approval point in time, one might not have to maintain the $100K USD in the bank for self health insurance. That is a guess thou. Emphasis on 'guess'. Again - if one is worried about that, its best IMHO to call BoI and hear what they plan.

Unfortunately, no. The paper work that European Cigna will provide is not succinct enough to meet BoI requirements for Health Insurance for the LTR-WP. ( BoI would be forced to go through a ~50 page document of the coverage to confirm it adequate which they do not want to do - and Cigna refuse to provide anything other than their standard forms which either say not enough information (a 1 page form) or say too much (a ~50 page document)). But fortunately for me, BoI will accept self health insurance. If one can show $100,000 US$ equivalent in cash in a bank account anywhere in the world (in any currency, but equivalent to 100k US$) one can claim self health insurance for the LTR-WP visa. I have such as part of my (much larger) portfolio, so instead I claimed self health insurance. I note thou, in that case of self health insurance, it can NOT be in an equity trading account, but rather it has to be $100k cash in a bank account that is not an equity/trading account. And they wanted proof that amount was in there for some period of time ( I can't recall if it was 1 year or 2 years - it was not an issue for me). Clearly that (having to have $100k cash in a non-equity account) would be a 100% show stopper for many many many expats (re self health insurance) but having such in a bank account was not, and is not, an issue for me.

Good to read it makes sense for you. In my case my European global health insurance from Cigna is subsidized as part of my pension. My European health insurance provides superior coverage to the Thai immigration requirements, and after the subsidy I get with my pension my European health insurance, my European insurance is cheaper (than the lower coverage insurance from Thailand). But my European health insurance is NOT accepted by Thai immigration. Further the Thailand Cigna branch would not (even for a nominal fee) provide Thai immigration assurances that this European Cigna coverage exceeded the Thai requirements. Instead Thai Cigna branch wanted me to buy (more expensive and NOT as good) health insurance from their branch. i.e. buy double health insurance, or dump my superior European health insurance and go only with the Thai branch of Cigna's insurance. There was no way I was going to dump my superior (and less expensive due to being subsidized) European health insurance. Hence my deciding the underlying Type-OA visa (if I wanted to go for extensions on my permission to stay based on 'retirement') did not make sense for me from a Health Insurance perspective. So after one year with double health insurance (on an extension to my permission to stay based on retirement), followed by one year with an extension based on marriage to a Thai (which requires no health insurance, but has massive paperwork), ... I eventually switched to the 90-day Type-O visa (followed by a 1-year extension on the permission to stay based on retirement with that underlying Type-O visa) ... and now finally I am on an LTR-WP visa. Its been a long haul for me getting what I believe is best for me. I suspect others would see this differently. Likely everyone is different, and we all need to decide what is best for ourselves.

YES - be careful thou to ensure the 'other requirements are met'. B800K has to be shown as having originated from outside of Thailand. And the Health Insurance requirement typically means Health Insurance from a Thai branch of a Health Insurance company. Most often than not (IMHO) Health Insurance from the branch of a Health Insurance outside of Thailand will not be accepted for a one year extension of one's permission to stay on a Type-OA. No. If I understand the question correctly. When (in 2 years) you apply for your one year extension, for reason of retirement, on the permission to stay on your Type-OA visa (where this could give you your 3rd year if you time this right) then you will need to prove Health insurance meeting the Thai immigration health insurance requirements, where most likely this health insurance has to come from the Thai branch of a health insurance company. I don't know the details of Laos/Vietnam and 90-day type-O visas. But note that if you wish to invalidate the permission to stay on a Type-OA visa) you will have to do so after the expiry date of the Type-OA visa and also be certain you do not have a re-entry permit associated with that permission to stay. If you have a re-entry permit, the permission to stay on the Type-OA won't be invalidated and the purpose of the hop will fail. In my case, I left Thailand when I was on a 1-year extension of my permission to stay (on a Type-OA visa) where I deliberately did NOT have a re-entry permit on that permission to stay. When I left Thailand, the Thai IO was kind enough to point out I did not have a re-entry permit. I politely told him I was leaving without the re-entry permit so I could invalidate my permission to stay. When I re-entered Thailand over a month later, I entered Visa-Exempt and I immediately, when inside Thailand, applied for a 90-day Type-O Visa. I already had the 800K in a Thai bank (from my previous Type-OA) and I had kept my records of that 800K coming into Thailand from outside of Thailand (although it would have been a PIA to produce had I been asked). Thankfully I was not asked (at Phuket immigration) to prove that 800k, possibly because it was clear from my records at the Phuket IO office that I had proven such in the past. But beware, that is a paperwork risk/complication. Another consideration - if flying out/in of Thailand, to invalidate the permission to stay on the Type-OA, if you return to Thailand by air, with an intention to enter visa exempt, then the airline might (and it might not) ask for proof of your leaving Thailand at the end of the visa exempt that you plan to enter on. Some of us, to meet that airline requirement (which may or may not happen) have purchased throw away tickets leaving Thailand. There are entire threads on this subject with massive differences in opinion. In my case, once I was in Thailand, on a 90-day Type-O visa permission to stay, long before it expired I successfully applied for a 1-year extension (for reason of retirement) on my permission to stay in Thailand. Also, be aware, if you should get married to a Thai, and try to switch to an extension of stay in Thailand based on marriage, you may have until you apply for your 2nd (one year) permission to stay in Thailand on the underlying Type-OA. I was initially on a Type-OA (based on retirement) and I tried (and failed in Phuket) to quickly switch a permission to stay based on marriage (on my 1st one year extension of my permission to stay in Thailand) and I was told I had to first do a 1-year extension on my permission to stay based on retirement, before I could do a 1 year extension of my permission to stay based on marriage. I know you didn't ask that, but its something to keep in mind in case the right lady comes along and marriage changes your perspective. It reads to be a doable plan - but "This is Thailand", so one never knows how things may change in the future. Note that Health Insurance expenses start getting larger and larger as you grow older and older. So 5k may be nothing now, but as you grow older health insurance costs could be larger (due to your age, or due to Thailand immigration increasing how much coverage they demand one be insured for). .... So I think your consideration of changing from Type-OA to Type-O (by leaving the country) sometime in the future is a good idea, as long as things don't change.

Interesting article - but I think at this stage, no one is quite sure how this will turn out. I note that Business Times article states: " What’s clear for now is that the tweaked tax ruling will go into effect on Jan 1, 2024, which means it applies to foreign income earned after Jan 1, 2023. " Could the Business Times article be wrong there? I ask that because of a Thai revenue department document that came out in November-2023. More precisely, Thailand Revenue Department orders No.P.162/2023 (unofficial translation of it) states: "The provisions of paragraph one shall not apply to assessable income arising before 1-January-2024". So Business Times stating income earned after Jan 1, 2023, appears to me to possibly be in contradiction to the 1-January-2024 date noted in the November-2023 Thai revenue department clarification document Thailand Revenue Department orders No.P.162/2023 (for assessable income) . But what is the actual case? I don't think any of us know just yet.

You might be best to ask BoI that question. In my case (and I think for others) BoI wanted to see an income tax return that proved what we claimed about our pension income. I ended providing both my Canadian Income tax return (and the Canadian government revenue department letter acknowledging my income) and provided a government document stating my pension income. I do not know if you will be asked for similar ... Possibly thou your 2024 income tax return (for year 2023) will have enough information on it to satisfy BoI. Again, maybe its best to ask them. You can send an email, or just phone them. They have many people who can speak very good English. My suspicion, is the best time to reply is when you have government proof of your 2023 tax return submission (submitted in early 2024) - but again, check with BoI. As you likely know, over a 10 year period, if you plan to leave Thailand multiple times/year, the LTR-WP visa is about the same cost as the OA visa (maybe a bit cheaper). In my case, the LTR-WP visa mean it was easier for me to prove "Health Insurance" (on LTR) than it was on Type-OA - which I believe, if that is also true for you, might be a good reason to apply as soon as applicable. While getting a tax exemption (that will hopefully come with an LTR visa for money brought it to Thailand) is desirable, even without that, I believe there are good reasons for applying for an LTR when you will have the required paperwork. .... Again, I suspect tax records (if asked for) could be the documents that may drive your application schedule.

This is puzzling. Did the OP mention their nationality? Would that make a difference? (ie could OP be from a country where Visa exempt on arrival is not provided, and the OP's previous entries to Thailand were with a Visa)? Or was that possibility covered and I missed some detail. Its puzzling.

An issue a number of us with Type-OA visa's faced when going for an extension based on retirement, is that we already had superb international health insurance from outside of Thailand, that greatly exceeded the Thailand requirements, but it was not accepted by Thai immigration. In the most part, Thai immigration would mostly only accept Health Insurance (for extensions based on the type-OA visa) from the Thai branch of a health insurance company. In my case, my European (from Cigna) health insurance was heavily subsidized as part of my pension, and it was superior to the Thai requirements, but it was not accepted by Thai immigration. The Thai branch of Cigna refused to provide Thai immigration the needed information for my European based International Health insurance, but instead advised I had to buy double health insurance from their Thai branch of Cigna, for them to provide the information to Thai immigration that I met the Thai health insurance requirements. There was no way I was going to (1) get rid of my superior subsidized international health insurance, nor was I going to (2) buy double health insurance. Initially I obtained an extension based on marriage to a Thai but the amount of paperwork, and slow processing of the 1year annual extension based on marriage was a bit tiresome for me ( I know - others feel different) . So on my next travel out of Thailand, I departed without a re-entry stamp so to invalidate my Type-OA visa extension, and I re-entered a month later visa exempt and applied for a Type-O visa. I obtained the Type-O, and then a couple of months later I applied for a 1 year extension based on retirement - no health insurance needed. I wish that the Type-OA visa accepted $100K US$ equivalent (anywhere in the world) in a bank account as Self Health Insurance ... (similar to what the LTR visa does) but that is not (as of yet) in the cards for the Type-OA visa extension (for reason of retirement) health insurance requirement.

I would agree with the 'unlikely' assessment ... and further, I wonder, if asked and one did not have such, what would immigration do? Tell one to go to the back of the immigration line and book a throw away ticket? In a large airport such as Bangkok, one can stay in the international area (before passing thru immigration) for a very long time with no issue (while one leisurely proceeds to get a throw away ticket). The issue, as many pointed out, is the danger of being denied boarding before flying to Thailand. Recently, when I invalidated a previous Type-OA visa (by leaving Thailand without a re-entry permit), I re-entered Thailand from Frankfurt, visa exempt. In Frankfurt, when checking-in "on-line" with Thai Airways I obtained a popup advising me that proof of departure from Thailand could be asked for at the airport. When I arrived at Frankfurt airport, I was not asked to show a departure ticket (at Thai airlines counter) when I checked in my luggage. However when at the gate, in the international area (I had already passed Frankfurt immigration) I was called to the counter and I was asked for my passport. I anticipated I would be asked to show a departure ticket (which I actually had, a cheap Krabi-to-KL on a discount airline, where I previously bought the ticket on sale). The people at the counter stared at my Type-OA visa (which in fact was invalid due to me departing without a re-entry permit), and waived me through, NOT asking to see my departure ticket from Thailand. My guess is they mistakenly thought my Type_OA visa was still valid. But when I arrived in Bangkok, visa exempt, I went through the Thai line with my Thai wife (I immediately followed her) , when unexpected to me, the immigration officer asked for my ticket. I asked myself, what ticket? I had no clue. I pulled out my boarding pass, and give it to the IO who appeared to me not satisfied (but maybe they were satisfied ), and I then proceeded to fumble throu my paperwork to find my 'throw away' ticket (which I never did show to the IO), when my wife said some things to the IO in Thai, and at that point the IO waved me through into Thailand. Later she said that she advised the IO we were married and I intended to apply for a Type-O visa. Regardless, being stopped in Bangkok at immigration and asked for a ticket leaving Thailand (which I believe must be incredibly rare) surely is very very easy to deal with. IF there is no departure flight to catch (ie unless a tight domestic connection somewhere) ... one has lots time to obtain a throw away ticket if such a very very VERY rare immigration request might happen. I would weigh odds most people are never asked by immigration for such. However prior to boarding, to fly to Thailand, is a different story (if on a one-way ticket). I know of a couple cases where friends were asked for such (and where they were prepared).

There may be more - this was just my experience I would not call that "hardship" ... As I posted elsewhere, most of the time I spent trying to get the LTR visa, was sitting on my condo balcony, over looking the sea (with my laptop PC on a balcony table), while I sipped a drink and enjoyed the ambience. Far from hardship - and further, most of the time when I was NOT on my balcony was simply waiting. I guess you and I have very different definitions of hardship. For the size of my portfolio, I would 100% agree re: USD $500K worth of Thai government bonds is not desirable. And unlike myself, not everyone is into buying a condo in Thailand (where one can easily find incredibly nice condos for that price in Phuket - with fabulous views). I FULLY understand that buying a condo is not something one may desire to do - ESPECIALLY if it is only being done to get a certain Visa. Fortunately Thailand has MANY other Visa options than just the LTR.

Two points - (1) my checks for health insurance to meet the requirements for my age required MORE than 17k to 25k THB. And (2) $100k US$ equivalent, even in an interesting bearing account, as small part of a very large diversified portfolio, is not unusual -and some (dependent portfolio size) might say prudent - and it can give a modest return (together with any larger prudently selected equity returns). As you state - each do what they are comfortable with. I am NOT comfortable putting all my liquid assets into equities. My diversified investment strategy for the past 40 years has worked well for me. Others clearly have different strategies ... I do note I have acquaintances who threw all their assets in equities, did NOT do well in some times - and they are still trying to recover. In my case, the cash was VERY useful for a very rapid rebound to buy when equities bottomed and just started to recover. Again - as you suggest - go with what one is comfortable with and what has worked for one..

Yes. I did similar with BRK with an equity account ... and I still hold more than $100K worth. Yes it has gone up nicely and I have greatly benefited. But as you note, that can NOT be used for Self Health insurance. An equity account will not be accepted for Self Insurance as I suspect BoI do NOT want to accept self health insurance where one is using their equity trading account to provide such, where stocks in an equity account go up and down. BoI do not want to have to judge the value of one stock. Still, I have a diversified portfolio and I do NOT put all my assets in one stock nor do I put all my assets in equities. I hold bonds and cash and other assets. Diversification is very important to me. If keeping $100K US aside for self health insurance stretches one finances, or takes away money that one dearly needs or wants to spend elsewhere, then clearly self health insurance is not suitable for one. But I already have excellent (superior to Thai requirements) Health Insurance which Thailand doesn't accept as my insurance company refuses to provide information in the format Thailand wants. And the $100k amount bearing a low return , which is needed for Self Health insurance was not an issue for me. Clearly those with less money will think otherwise. So that self health insurance works fine for myself. Obviously it is totally unsuitable for others. Clearly for others where not putting that money in equities is a very BIG DEAL then do NOT go the self insurance route. Each of us have different financial situations.

Further, I like the fact that the LTR visa specifically allows self health insurance. I concede that self health insurance is not for everyone (in fact likely not suitable for the vast majority), but for some of us, self health insurance fits well with our portfolio (and our existing insurance). I wish that the Type-OA visa would adopt the LTR visa approach, and allow self health insurance. Neither the Type-OA visa (nor the LTR visa for that matter) would accept my superior (and former employer subsidized) private Health Insurance with Cigna. .... However in the case of the LTR visa (and not in the Type-OA visa case) I was able to avoid paying for double health insurance, by simply pointing to an existing bank account that met the per-requsite for self health insurance. For the LTR Visa, the money for such self health insurance does not even need to be kept in a Thailand bank. .... I do note thou one constraint is such self health insurance can't be obtained from an equity trading account.

I think suggesting you go to the local immigration office before you leave the country was a good idea. As noted ask them (confirm they will accept the money already in your Thailand account that came from abroad and that you have been using with your type-OA for years as proof). A couple of years ago I switched from a Type-OA to Type-O visa , where the immigration office I go to is Phuket immigration. I had been on a Type-OA (with annual extensions) on this Type-OA since year 2019, .. I used the exact same fixed account for the Type-O as I had previously used for the Type-OA. They did not in my case ask for proof for the 'new' Type-O that my money came from abroad. If they had checked their records they would have seen it was the identical bank account. If asked, I probably could have dug up the proof (dating back to year ~2016) but it would have been a pain to dig up.

Investing in the Thai government bonds was one of the more difficult aspects for me to obtain the LTR-WP visa. I went (with my Thai wife) to a number of different banks to see if I could purchase bonds through them, and in the end, Bangkok Bank was the only one that would facilitate the selling of Thai government bonds to me, if I had the appropriate bank account with the necessary funds (for the bond purchase) in the account. We had to talk to the head manager of this specific branch of Bangkok Bank, who stated I could buy such a bond ONLY if I had a foreign "pink-ID" card and "yellow book", which I had. I do not know if such is nominally required but he insisted on it. So please do not shoot the messenger. So I transferred a couple of million THB into Bankgok Bank account (as the amount I transferred was all the additional amount (above the nominal amount I had in the bank) that I needed for the bonds to achieve the $250K US$ equiv investment in Thailand) ... and I waited for the next announcement of a sale of Thai government bonds, which came up in December of last year. Through Bangkok Bank I placed an order for the bonds, which took a lot of time at the counter to place said order. Possibly what took the most time at the counter was they wanted a Thai tax-ID to enter into the online bond purchase entry form. To the best of my knowledge I have no such number. The person at the counter started making noises that i could not likely then buy such a bond when I pointed out the bank regularly deducted tax money from interest in my account - so what do they do with that tax money they deduct? ... What number do they apply for that? The then went into a 'pow-wow' (a few employees puzzling over this question), when my wife broke the impasse by suggesting they enter the ID # from my pink ID into their system, and see if it is accepted as a tax #. IMHO it is likely it is NOT a tax # on the pink ID (although it IS the tax number on nominal Thai IDs), but the bank entered the number and the Bangkok Bank system accepted it. Go figure. A few weeks later, I received a phone call that my bond had been purchased and I was to come to the bank. I showed up, and they gave me a Thai bond bank book, but no bond certificate. According to the bank, only bonds with no certificate were issued now adays. Fine. So I submitted photo-copies of my bond book to BoI for my LTR-Visa application and they rejected it !! They insisted on getting a bond certificate (where a certificate typically provides more information on the specific bond, than information a bond bank book provides - such as the bond maturity date, the bond interest ... None of which is nominally in the bond book ). I went back to Bangkok bank, asked for a certificate, and after a long time (where the person at the counter made many phone calls asking how to do it), they had me fill in/sign a form, pay them a nominal (trivial) amount of money for a certificate, and stated they would call me when the certificate arrived. A week later no certificate. We phoned. No certificate. Two weeks later the same. Eventually after what seemed the longest time, I was asked to come in to the bank. They advised they would not issue a certificate, but instead gave me a letter simply stating I owned the bond. I almost went ballistic but my wife calmed me down, and I explained to them that would not likely be accepted by BoI as BoI had explained to us on the phone, they needed formal indication of bond maturity date and bond interest. So after a short pow-wow the Bank staff had an entry printed formally into the last page of my bond book, stating bond maturity and bond interest. I then scanned that, sent it to BoI and it was accepted. That was an adventure, and it was part of the delay in my LTR_WP visa application being accepted.

For the LTR visa, I think the reason why the BoI like to see a tax return, is because it provides a proof of income. I receive a German pension and Germany (Deutsche Rentenversicherung) does provide me a letter every year stating how much pension they provided for that year. I believe that official Deutsche Rentenversicherung letter to be pretty reasonable proof. Deutsche Rentenversicherung specifically provides this for taxation paperwork purposes. I did not provide that letter to BoI for proof of some of my income because (1) I did not want to bother obtaining an official translation from German into English, and (2) I had sufficient pension funds from elsewhere to meet the required > $40k US$/year for the LTR-WP ( and also used my condo in Thailand and some Thai government bonds to meet the $250K US equivalent investment). Still - I believe (speculate) that BoI would accept that Deutsche Rentenversicherung letter if I had needed it to show more income to meet the $40K US equivalent criteria.

Good point - I believe thou (as you found out) is that they won't accept an equity sale as the type of regular/consistent cash flow they are looking for. I speculate they have specific criteria for consistent/regular cash flow (ie income), and equity sales do not nominally satisfy them as being consistent enough - which is not to say its not cash flow - rather its just to say they won't accept such. Reference the 'willingness to spend' that applies to all the LTR visas even if one meets the requirements to their 100% satisfaction. One can be a billionaire, get the LTR visa, be able to prove an income of millions every month, and yet never spend a cent in Thailand. So they can only do their best and try to ensure one has the consistent incoming cash (and also other wealth) such that they are happy (based on their requirements) that one has the means to spend. They can not force one to spend one's money. When it comes to equities, it reads to me that they are very reluctant to accept very much associated with equities. Possibly dividends / interest may be an exception to their reluctance. It reminds me of my efforts to prove self insurance. One has to prove > $100K US$ equivalent in a bank account for self health insurance. I provided proof of an equity trading account that had such amount in cash and they refused to accept it, because it was an equity trading account. I then provided proof of a self directed (by me) registered government retirement savings plan, that also exceeded the >$100K US$ equivalent in cash, but because I was allowed to purchase equities within that registered retirement savings account, they would not accept that as meeting their >$100K US$ cash amount for self health insurance. They appear very reluctant to accept equity accounts for some of their self insurance and also reluctant to accept equity sales as income (ie as a consistent 'cash flow' ) for their requirements. They appear to me to be very cautious in their approval when it comes equities (or equity accounts) meeting some of their requirements. When one holds equities (as a stock) there can be good times and bad times to sell, and I guess they struggle to believe one will regularly sell equities to meet what they wish to see as a consistent income.

Its a good point - and my assumption is that they want proof of more than just wealth. They also want proof of cash flow. Its possible to be very wealthy but with cash flow so low (due to the type of investment/wealth that one has) that one has very little money to spend. So I speculate (and speculate is the 'operative word' ) that proof of one's cash flow is also very important in their criteria. They want the foreigner to spend money in Thailand, and if a foreigner can't access their wealth easily while at the same time the foreigner has small cash flow, it means that the foreigner will not be spending very much of their money in Thailand. For the Wealthy Pensioner LTR category, $80K US$ equivalent annual income, that full amount is not necessary if one has $250K US$ equivalent investment in Thailand (such as ownership in a foreign freehold condominium that is worth that amount), in which case $40K US$ equivalent annual income will suffice. But again, I suspect its not just proof of one's total wealth that they want - they also want proof of one's cash flow .... At least that is my speculation - and it being speculation means I could be wrong.

My speculation is they figure anyone over age-50 won't live as long as someone under age-50. Hence (if there is inflation) it is 'safer' for BoI to set a specific income/wealth that is lower for those age 50 and older than it is for such a limit for those who are younger. They likely believed, once they set a 'lower wealth' criteria for "Wealthy Pensioners", as opposed to a higher 'wealth criteria' for Wealthy Global Citizens, they then needed to select an age limit to assign as a demarcation. Since age-50 is used for other immigration visas, they possibly that that was a good age to select. Again that is just my speculation as to what they may have been considering. .

Thankyou for that document. I'll make a note to save it. .... I guess in case needed, I will have to dig around to get the exact Chamchuri Sq Immigration office address. I suspect I won't need such thou for some years. I'm age-69 but I hope to keep traveling out of the country for short visits once or twice a year for the next 5 years and possibly longer. Fortunately in setting up the LTR visa, BoI had the foresight to allow "the counter" for one's one-year report to be 'reset' each time one left Thailand and returned. I obtained my LTR in June-2023, but left the country in August-2023 and did not return to Thailand until the last day in September-2023. Hence my 'report' is not due until end-September-2024, and I am likely to exit/return to Thailand long before then. Given the 90-day on-line reporting rarely worked for myself, I find this 1-year reporting (and it being reset after each journey out/into Thailand) a bigger psychological benefit than I anticipated.

It must be locally in case of Cigna. My health insurance is from Europe and from Cigna. It is superior to Thai requirements but it was not accepted by Thai immigration. Cigna Europe also refused to sign any Thai forms for insurance. I contacted the Thai branch of Cigna and asked if they would indicate to immigration my insurance adequate ( for a nominal fee) and they refused. They insisted I buy new ( double ) insurance from them, which wasn't as good as my current insurance ( and was more expensive as my current insurance is subsidized as part of my pension). As pointed out, proof not required for extensions. But if you are on a Type-OA visa and have left the country and are applying for a Type-O ( to avoid health insurance from Thai branch proof requirements) you may have to prove money from abroad dependent on the immigration office. In my case, when I switched from Type-OA to Type-O, I used same account I used years earlier (with proof of money coming into Thailand) and I was not asked to provide the proof.

I thought your post (that I quoted) by itself could be misleading (for someone who does not read the entire thread) which is why I bothered. I agree with you that calling a visa a "Retirement Visa" can be misleading and not helpful if one is trying to help. As pointed out, there is no such visa that goes precisely by that name.

It depends .... (as has already been pointed out on this thread). You are correct that for an underlying Type-O visa, one does not need to show health insurance for a one year extension based on retirement. But its a different story for a Type-OA visa where one does need to show health insurance (that meets rather specific Thai requirements) for a one year extension based on retirement. Initially, when the Health Insurance requirement was implemented (when I was on a type-OA visa), to avoid go for worthless (double) health insurance from the Thai branch of a health insurance company, I switched from an extension for reason of retirement, to an extension for reason of marriage. But where money was not an issue, the paper work requirements (and time to get permission to stay in Thailand extension approved) were more of a 'bother' with the marriage justification, then with the 'retirement justification' for the extension. So a number of us on this forum (such as myself) on Type-OA visas, (despite having great health insurance and despite having a Thai spouse), left Thailand to invalidate our Type-OA visas, and re-entered Thailand successfully visa exempt, and applied for a Type-O visa. We did this because of the implementation of the Thailand immigration health insurance requirement on extensions on Type-OA visas and because retirement extensions had less paperwork and were quicker then marriage extensions for both Type-O and Type-OA. Perhaps a salient point in regards to the Health Insurance, is one pretty much has to obtain their health insurance (when on the Type-OA retirement extension) from the Thai branch of a Health Insurance company, and not from a branch outside of Thailand (even thou our insurance from outside Thailand was massively superior). (I wish the type-OA visa would follow the lead of the Long Term Resident Visa where one on the LTR visa is allowed to self insure with $100K US equivalent in a bank account anywhere in the world - but to date, the Type-OA visa has not implemented that). Hence I think the recommendation of many is to go for a Type-O visa, and further if money is not an issue, go for an extension for reason of Retirement. Possibly the 'elephant' in the room is the recent concern about taxation of money being brought into Thailand but that is not relevant to the question asked in this thread, and further that topic is being beaten to death in other threads and need not be discussed here.

As others have noted, I suspect you should have no problem going through the Thai immigration line with your Thai wife. I have a passport from an EU country, and I have been going through the Thai line at immigration, when accompanied by my Thai wife, for the past two decades in both Phuket and Bangkok airports, with no issues. .