Pib

13 hours ago, gk10012001 said:

 

So I went to the local SSA office in Palm beach.  On a side note I hear more english spoken at the Thailand immigration office than at this Palm Beach office.  Anyway.  Surprisingly the reduction in IRMAA will NOT and can NOT be for this year regardless of any proof.  The SS 44 form is so poorly constructed.  All it will do, is reduce the IRMAA for 2026, which normally would be based on the MAGI from 2024 (2024 is still a high MAGI year).  So they only give you one year relief basically.  So while they recognize that you should pay a proper premium based on your MAGI, they on the other hand stick to the rule that they initially base the IRMAA on the tax year MAGI from two years earlier.  

 

  So say you made 300 k in 2023, and 300k in 2024, retired in December 2024.  In 2025 you are stuck paying the big IRMAA no matter what form you file as they will base that on 2023 MAGI.  In 2026 you would normally be still paying big IRMAA based on 2024 but the SS 44 form will let you estimate your 2025 income, and they will then use that to calculate your IRMAA for 2026, instead of using that big MAGI from 2024.  Why one can't get the immediate reduction makes no sense to me and seems grossly unfair to the whole idea that IRMAA should be based on income for a given year.  Any look back initial rates is just used for convenience as that is the tax forms they have automatically in front of them.  Why we can reduce one year based on an estimate you supply but not the actual year....

 

  So stuck with a high IRMAA for one year.  Well its better than two, but the form and agents in no way explained how that works and why one can't get a low IRMAA for the year you are now retired.

 

  What was interesting is that absolutely could not get clear answer on what happens if you under pay your IRMAA.  Say you under paid based on your income estimate you submit, it seems they will bill you later to collect that.  Also, if one somehow overpays IRMAA, it was not clear at all the process to get that either refunded or credited.  The SSA website mentions some policy documents but following the links gives no actionable intelligence as we say in the military.

 

 

From SSA POMS website.  POMS are the regulations/instructions that the SSA follows in administration of the SSA/Medicare program.

https://secure.ssa.gov/poms.nsf/lnx/0601101050

On 7/1/2025 at 2:35 PM, Pib said:

 

Yes, she had to submit both since both were being renewed...both were expiring at the same time.   Now if a person's passport book and card have different expiration dates....like maybe numerous years apart, the Embassy instructions are unclear to me as to if a person only needs to say renew their passport card, do they also need to include their passport book to get the card renewed OR do they only need to include their passport card if only needing to renew the card.   I have queried the embassy for clarification because I don't want to include my passport book and be without it for 1 to 2 months just to renew my passport card.   My passport book and card are out of sync by "years" right now....if I have to send in both book and card to only renew the card I'll probably just let the current card expire and then wait until my passport needs renewal "still years down the road" and then get a new passport card....that way I get the book and card expiration dates synced-up.

I got an answer form the US Embassy-Bangkok few days ago.  Basically if renewing your passport book "and" passport card at the same time you must include both your book and card in the renewal package.   If renewing your book "only," then you only need to include the book.  If "only" renewing your card you only need to include the card.

So, if  you have a passport book and passport card which expire at different times....like maybe years apart like my book and card.... if your card is say expiring next year (like mine) but your book does not expire for numerous more years (like mine) then when your renew your card you only need to mail in card--no requirement to include the book.   That's good as I wouldn't want to be without my passport book for a month or two just because I need to renew my passport card.

Vice versa if your card is still good for many more years but your book is expiring soon then you only need to mail in your book if only renewing the book.   

However, if your passport book and card have expiration years apart because you got them at different times you can renew both "at any time" like renewing both at the same time and when the renewed book and card are issued their dates will now be synced.  For that renewal you will need to include both your current book and card. 

1 hour ago, bamnutsak said:

Is the ThaiPost Mart Courier Pass Back envelope delivered, from the Embassy to your home, via EMS? Or regular surface mail?

 

For 100 baht, it seems like it should be via EMS?

 

And if it is via EMS, IME, I have to sign a handheld terminal upon receipt.

 

And I can track the delivery. Once it is scanned into the system by ThaiPost upon receipt (at the Embassy), or other entities IME.

 

Who files the police report if the passport (new and old) never gets delivered? The EMS driver?

 

From some googling on this subject/some of your questions the "Thai Postal Courier Pass Back Service/Envelope" does include EMS tracking.   Below is a picture I googled-up...found it on a Facebook page.   The Thai and English text I circled says: " German Embassy Passport Delivery Service" in Thai (according to Google Translate) and then in English "Courier Pass Back Service."   Don't know why they show a Thai passport laying on the envelope...and notice the EMS sticker/tracking number.  

And then below the picture is a Google AI description.  And please note the Courier Pass Back Service is just not just for the US Embassy related docs but the Courier Pass Back Service can apparently be bought for other purposes/for most any organization/person that needs to provide a return mailing envelope. 

Snapshot from a Facebook page.

Google AI Overview

2 hours ago, jeffandgop said:

In my case the Thai Post tracking number I was given at the time I placed the order NEVER appeared on their tracking system & I was checking daily.  I received my new passport in the Thai Post envelope without knowing that it was coming.  Yes, the tracking number on the envelope was the same provided at the time I placed my order......

54 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

That was certainly an annoying glitch. Hopefully such a situation is rare but there is no way of knowing.

In my recent experience, I was feeling the journey from the embassy to the citizen was the weakest link in the entire process. Also consider once the embassy passes it to Thai Post whether they scanned it into their tracking system or not, if there's a problem the embassy will legitimately say it's not their responsibility.

Regarding the ThaiPostal tracking number for the return mailer (i.e., when the embassy mails the renewed passport back to you), while the "tracking number" is contained within your order for the mailer when your passport arrived back in the mailer how did the tracking number appear on that mailer?     

Was it on a separate sticker with bar code and number like when using EMS.....was it just a number maybe with a bar code on a preprinted address label.....or was it XYZ?   Just wondering how easy or hard it might be for the ThaiPostal "not" to do scans on the mailer based on how the tracking number appears on the mailer. 

I can sure see that if the tracking number does not get scanned when it begins its trek on its way to you that it will not appear in the ThaiPostal tracking system as it will continue to show as "data not found" in the tracking system.    When a person uses EMS like mailing from the post office the clerk sticks an EMS tracking label containing a number & bar code on the envelope and then scans it which loads that tracking number into their system as being received/mailed from that post office.  And you can see such within the ThaiPostal online tracking within a few hours and sometimes immediately.    That separate EMS label kinda stands out and acts as an attention getter for the postal carrier to do scans along the way.  But if this return mailed does not have a separate tracking label maybe that sets the stage for scans not to be done....doesn't catch the attention of the postal carrier to do a scan.

Well, I'l get a chance to personally see how the tracking numbers appears (or doesn't appear) on the mailer around the end of next week when the wife's renewed passport should have arrived back from the US passport center to the Bangkok Embassy and the embassy remails it to her in the mailer.   I'll continue to do daily checks of the ThaiPostal tracking system to see if tracking data appears..  Time will tell.

15 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

Yes but keep in mind that number will be seen as NOT FOUND until the time Thai Post picks up the envelope at the embassy.

Yeap...understand.  That's why a person would need to check the tracking number daily at the ThaiPostal web site or using their mobile app.  

I use their mobile app.  It's just one of a half dozen shipment tracking mobile apps like DHL, USPS, etc., I have on my phone.  

I already have the wife's return mailer tracking number loaded the ThaiPostal app that supposedly will give me an automatic notification once the embassy remails the passport. But I won't solely rely on the automatic notification and just try to remember to check daily.  Literally just takes 10 seconds or so to check using the mobile app.

Now if the embassy don't use the mailer that was bought for some reason and instead uses another mailer then I expect the current tracking number will be useless for tracking.

22 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

When I paid the 100 Baht I did not get a tracking number. I got a confirmation of payment number.  The Tracking number was on the address label of the envelope that had my two passports. 

But you could have tracked the item by getting the tracking number from your ThaiPostalMart online account when you placed the Bt100 remailer order.  There it shows your order number "and the tracking number."

I don't know why the tracking number is not shown on the order confirmation/notice....but as mentioned the tracking number is shown in the online order transaction info.

22 minutes ago, sqwakvfr said:

Mine was 29 total days.  1) It took 13 days to get the "application in progess" email from state. 2) 6 days later I gto the "passport mailed" email message. 3) Then I found the Thai Post envelope in front of the managers office of my apartment 9 days later..  Never got any kind of status message from the BKK Embassy,  Overall the Passport Center did a great job.  

I expect the Embassy expects the person to track the Bt100 mailer tracking number as that would tell when they mailed it.  Did you use that return mailer tracking number (not to be confused with the order number)?   

When looking at other embassy websites in other countries and even the State Dept general instructions they say to use the return/prepaid mailer tracking number.   I expect the State Dept/embassy figure by telling folks to use the return mailer tracking number then that's one less task they need to accomplish....save a few minutes/X-amount of manhours of work I guess. 

1 hour ago, bamnutsak said:

 

Did your wife have submit her "old/current" passport card when applying for a renewal of both passport and passport card?

 

Is one Thai Post mailer acceptable for passport and passport card renewals?

 

 

Is the Thai Post EMS "return remailer" tracking code available from the ThaiPost Mart transaction/receipt? 

 

 

Yes, she had to submit both since both were being renewed...both were expiring at the same time.   Now if a person's passport book and card have different expiration dates....like maybe numerous years apart, the Embassy instructions are unclear to me as to if a person only needs to say renew their passport card, do they also need to include their passport book to get the card renewed OR do they only need to include their passport card if only needing to renew the card.   I have queried the embassy for clarification because I don't want to include my passport book and be without it for 1 to 2 months just to renew my passport card.   My passport book and card are out of sync by "years" right now....if I have to send in both book and card to only renew the card I'll probably just let the current card expire and then wait until my passport needs renewal "still years down the road" and then get a new passport card....that way I get the book and card expiration dates synced-up.

And Yes, just "one" order covers both.   The passport book will supposedly come back in the mailer you ordered and "if" the passport card comes in a separate mail it will just be in a standard 1st class type envelope.   From past renewal of book & card for both the wife and I the cards arrived several weeks later in separate, simple 1st class USPS envelopes....and back then you also only provided "one" prepaid envelope for return mailing just like now.

Now the status update notice the wife got said both the passport book and card were mailed.  To me that could imply both would be coming back at the same time and maybe in the same package.  HOWEVER, that same update notice then goes on to say the book, card, and any supporting docs are mailed in separate packages.   See partial quote below.   Will have to wait and see if book and card arrive in same mailer or if it occurs like in past renewals where the book arrives in the pre-paid mailer but the card shows up weeks later in a 1st class USPS envelope. 

Regarding the ThaiPostal mailer, the parcel tracking number and purchase order number are different.   The parcel tracking number did "not" appear on any purchase order correspondence I got...only the order number appeared which is "not" a tracking number.   However, if you log onto your ThaiPostalMart account where you ordered the mailer, click your User ID, select My Account, then select My Purchases, when you look at the mailer order details it will show the order number "and the 13 digit tracking number."   The tracking number is the typical 13 digit number that start with two letters, then 9 numbers, and then ends with two letters (typically letters TH for Thailand).   

Quote

 

Application Status: Mailed

The U.S. Department of State has mailed your passport book and card on 06/30/2025.

 

We sent your passport book and card to you using Prepaid Delivery.

 

Your new passport book, passport card, and supporting documents are mailed in separate packages at different times. You should expect three separate mailings: one with your new passport book, one with your new passport card, and one with your supporting documents. We will provide another status update on the date we mail your supporting documents. This update will not include the tracking number for your passport.

 

 

1 hour ago, sqwakvfr said:

Yes. The only thing I knew was that the US State had sent the new passport out to the BKK Embassy on June 16, After that no other updates were posted on State or the BKK Embassy website.  It does not appear the BKK Embassy notifies applicants that the new passports were mailed out through Thai Post.  This type of update would have been nice to have so I could have looked for the envelope. I did track the progress of the delivery from BKK to me in CNX after I got the envelope because the Thai Post tracking # was only on the address label.  My expectations of the BKK Embassy is really low and this time they did not disappoint.  The real credit goes to State for such a fast turnaround.  

Thanks.

 Just checked on the status of the wife's passport again at 11:15am/1 July Thailand time and the US State Dept passport status webpage now shows her passport book and card were "mailed" 30 June.   This is a status change because when the wife checked a few hours earlier it still showed "in process."     And while writing this post at 11:33am/1Jul she got an email update from the US State Dept repeating the info found on their passport update website.   

Based on the updates provided when her renewal application was received by the passport center and when they mailed the new passport back these passport status updates appear to reflect status from 1 or 2 days earlier because in both cases the status was always reflected "as of" a day or two earlier.

As posted earlier the passport status webpage earlier showed the passport center received her renewal application from the US Embassy on 24 June.   So, as mentioned the new passport was mailed back 30 June....a 6 day turnaround time "at a US passport center" which was apparently in the wife's case National Passport Center in New Hampshire vs one of the 30 or so possible passport centers/agencies in the US.  I expect all passport applications sent from the US Embassy Bangkok go to the NH passport center which probably has responsibility for applications from outside the U.S....just my guess. 

Now it's just a matter of waiting for the passport to get from New Hampshire to US Embassy-Bangkok (that comes via the US Postal System) and then the embassy remailing it to the wife here in Bangkok.  It took 8 days to reach the passport center when initially mailing the renewal application (i.e., our home to Bangkok Embassy via EMS and then the embassy mailing it to the passport center vis USPS assuming it was snail mailed vs electronically sent). 

So, I'm expecting the return mailing time will be in the 8 to 10 days ballpark which takes in account the embassy remailing it via that Thai Postal prepaid Bt100 envelope once the embassy receives the renewed passport.  I'll start watching the Thai Postal tracking number for that Bt100 return envelope since buying the envelope which supposedly ThaiPostal send to the US Embassy - Bangkok.   That tracking number still shows "data not found."  I don't expect it will show anything until the embassy actually remails the new passport assuming they did get the Bt100 envelope and that same envelope is used to mail the passport from the embassy to our home.  

 Time will tell but it looks like the wife may get her passport back in less than 30 days from the date the renewal application was mailed from our local Bangkok post office.  But I expect the passport card will show up a few weeks later in a separate envelope based on US State Dept info and previous experience.

Cheers.

On 6/28/2025 at 3:36 PM, sqwakvfr said:

Got my new passport today but a little annoyed at both Thai Post and of course the managment office of my building.

 

1. Sent out my renewal application to BKK Embassy on May 28 2025.

2. BKK Embassy mailed my new passport and old passport to me in CNX on June 24.  It was received by the apartment management office on June 25. 

3. Never got an email, text or Line message from anyone that the Thai Courier Pass Book had been delievered.  Instead it was hidden under boxes that had been delieverd to other tenants in front of the management office.  

It's a good thing that today I rummaged throught the boxes and found my enevelope. This is the way my apartment handles mail and parcels: They just dump them in small boxes labeled by floor number and all boxes and parcels are stacked on the floor in front of the managment office.  Not too secure but I keep reminidng myself "TIT". 

 

Overall I was actually impressed by the turnaround time.  It was 29 days from start to finish.  The new passport definitely looks different than the old passport.  It actually looks like there are more security features imbedded into the passport book. 

Thanks for the update. 

Did you do any status checking of the passport completion/return mailing at the the U.S. State Dept Passport Application Status tracking website which shows when the passport center in the U.S. received your application from the Bangkok Embassy and also returned mailed it to the embassy?   Thanks.

https://passportstatus.state.gov/

Seems like the key may be providing proof you are now "retired" like some documentation from your former employer saying you retired from your job.   Otherwise you may may have to wait until you file a tax return proving your reduced MAGI for the year the IRMAA is being charged...and then hope that might also qualify for a refund for the IRMAA.  Yea...seems the key may be in proving you are truly retired now and making a lower income.   Good luck...hope it works out. 

It's my understanding that an IRMAA refund is automatic "only when you qualify under one of the life changing events on the SSA-44 form" (see snapshot below)  which you said you submitted but it was disapproved.  High income/jackpot winnings is not one of the accepted life changing events for IRMAA reduction....if anything, it just means you are more able to pay a higher rate.   

Unless you can get a a SSA-44 approved you have "not been overcharged" based on an accepted life changing event which would then require a refund....the refunded would be automatic with the SSA-44 approval for one of the accepted life changing events.

Now regarding the lowering/removal of IRMAS when you MAGI changes that is automatic but it does not result in the SSA refunding those tax years when your MAGI triggered IRMAA.   With the automatic change your IRMAA requirement either decreases (maybe to zero) or increases....all depends on MAGI for the tax year being looked at for IRMAA determination purposes.

So, unless you can get a SSA-44 approved for the IRMAA years you will not get a refund for those years.

8 hours ago, racyrick said:

No need to call. I went to a few social security websites in other countries, and they said that this year, the form 7162 will be mailed in June or July and NOT in May or June like in the past, so that means we should start to get them very soon.

 

Also, your benefits are not stopped until February if your form is not received.

Yeap....for example a partial snapshot from the US Embassy in Trinidad & Tobago talking the 7161/8162 forms....talks the mailing will occur in June and July 2025. 

https://tt.usembassy.gov/update-social-security-administration-ssa-benefit-payments/

U.S. Embassy in Trinidad & Tobago

13 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

That's great but I think what people REALLY want to know now is WHY it appears NOBODY in Thailand has received their form THIS YEAR! It's really quite bizarre and indeed concerning.

The SSA instruction states the form is  mailed in May/June.    June is not even over yet....got a few more days.  Let's assume SSA mails them on 30 June this means it will be around 10-15 July before they start showing up in Thailand.  I looked back thru copies of some of my old 7162 documentation as I knew I sometimes wrote down on the SSA envelope when I received it here at my home in Bangkok.  For 2022 it was 8 July.  Now most years the form has arrived in mid to late June....but some years it's been in July.  

When the wife got the status update today from the US State Dept regarding status of her passport renewal it included a 9 digit Application Number Status number...and the first 2 digits of that number reflect the US passport center/agency that's processing the application.  The first 2 digits for of her status locator number was 47.  

So, I do some googling in trying to figure out which passport agency/center had a locator designator of 47 and where it's located.  The State Dept webpage Q&A below didn't list a number 47....closest number was a 46 which was the National Passport Center in New Hampshire. 

Figuring the State Dept webpage might not reflect all location designation codes I then did some more googling and Google said passport status locator designation code 47 was the National Passport Center in NH....see snapshot at bottom.   

So, I guess passport applications from Thailand get sent all the way to the New Hampshire for processing/approval.  "Maybe" all applications sent from embassies go to New Hampshire for processing.   

Now based on the graphic in my earlier post and some more googling it appears passports are "printed" at the Arkansas and Tucson passport printing centers.   So, after the passport center in New Hampshire approves the wife's passport renewal it appears it will be "electronically" sent to the Arkansas/Tucson center for printing and mail-back to Thailand.  

https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/passports/get-fast/passport-agencies.html

I was on an OA Visa Marriage extension when I transitioned to an LTR -P Visa.   The LTR immigration office cancelled this OA visa and wrote a couple of lines in my passport with an immigration officer signature saying the OA visa had been cancelled due to issue of the LTR visa.  Then my LTR-P visa/Stay Permit was stamped into my passport. 

Yea...don't expect to see something saying/stamped "cancelled"....it could be as simple as a few lines of handwritten Thai with a signature saying one visa was cancelled and replaced by another.   

57 minutes ago, bamnutsak said:

 

What was the date of "day 1"? June 17?

Yeap...17.

On 6/17/2025 at 8:43 PM, Pib said:

 

I think the way the passport processing "and printing" occurs now is the US Embassy receives/reviews your renewal package and if all is well it's "electronically" transmitted to a Passport Center in the US who does some blessing and then it's electronically sent to one of two passport "printing" centers in the lower 48.  Once printed it's mailed back to the submitting embassy which in turns remails it to the individual in that Bt100 return envelope.   

 

The potential chokepoint in this process is the US passport processing center and printing center back in the US; not your local embassy.  

 

Now a local embassy can issue an "emergency" passport/travel document that's good up to 1 year....I think it's like a 5 page skinny/special passport which supposedly some countries may not accept for entry.  This is not to be confused with issue of an initial or renewed regular passport which involves passport processing and printing centers in the US.

I'm adjusting my thinking (and guess) on how your passport application gets from the Bangkok Embassy to a US Passport Agency/Center in the US.   So far in the wife's passport renewal it took 1 day via EMS mail to get from our Bangkok home to the Bangkok Embassy across town.   Let's call that Day 1.

Then the following day (let's call that Day 2 from mailing) she gets an email from the US Embassy saying her passport renewal application was well-received...an email just like the one that @marin posted above on 28 May.    

This morning the wife gets an email from the US State Dept (see snapshot) saying her application was  received on 24 June which is 8 days from the time it was mailed from our Bangkok home to the US Embassy Bangkok who in turn passed it on to a US Passport Agency/Center in the US.  Let call this Day 8 although it was two days later (let's call that Day 10) before the State Dept sent the update email saying such...maybe update notices are sent out in batch style every few days. 

You can check passport status at below State Dept website and once entering some basic info and the site responds with a status (a status which will be "no available status" until the center receives/in-processes your application.   It will then ask you if your want to subscribe to automatic passport status updates which the wife did...and today/26 June she got an update via email which said the center received her application 24 June.    And when checking the site today it now shows an "In Process" status as of 24 June although with the statement their processing time can take 4-6 weeks.  Hopefully it will not take that long....time will tell.

For passport application update status: https://passportstatus.state.gov/

I would think if the embassy had sent the package "electronically" like I thought (guessed) earlier it would have arrived/been processed in the US Passport Agency/Center much sooner than 24 June...but then again maybe it was sent electronically but just set in the passport center "inbox" waiting to be initially processed in....who really knows.   But with that being said I'll now shift my thinking (guess) that the Embassy mails renewals packages to the US passport center versus the package being sent electronically.  Once again, just my guess how the embassy relays the your application to a US Passport Agency/Center. 

It's my understanding the Part B penalty is based on "12 month periods (i.e., full year) " not enrolled; it's not based on fractional years.   So it would not be prorated.

Say for example you enrolled 12 months late during an authorized enrollment period....that's a 10% penalty.  If enrolling 24 months late then 20%.   But what about some period between 12 and 24 (or any fractional year period)?  Well, if by some Medicare enrollment provision that you could enroll/reenroll 13 to 23 months late since that did not equal the next "whole 12 month" period of 24 months" then the late enrollment fee would be 10% for only a 12 month/1 year period.

See calculators below for some examples.   And preaching to choir I'm sure when I say a person can only enroll/rerolled under during certain times/under certain conditions.  It's not like someone who is at least 65 wakes up one day and decides to enroll and calls up Medicare or visit a SSA office to enroll hoping they will be enrolled effective the beginning of the upcoming month....nope, when a person will be able to enroll/reenroll will depends on the open season/special enrollment period which would apply to the person which means he might not get enrolled until numerous months later which might effect the penalty percentage since it based on date the enrollment become effective vs the day someone applied for enrollment. 

https://themedicarefamily.com/calculators/part-b-penalty/

https://www.resourcemedicare.com/medicare-tools/penalty-calculators

I don't expect the leap from the typical  120KW or 150KW DC charger in Thailand to 1000KW (1MW) chargers like starting to be be installed in China (such as five hundred 1MW chargers in Apr 2025...see link below) to occur anytime soon in Thailand.   

Significant numbers of 1MW DC chargers will not start to occur in Thailand until there are quite a few EVs on Thailand roads that can charger super fast.   This super fast charging technology is definitely needed technology to improve EV usage, but it will take years to implement on a large scale---but time does seem to fly by!!!   

And even when these 1MW DC chargers arrive in Thailand in significant numbers along with EVs that can take advantage of them little ol' Pib will still be using his measly 7KW AC home wall charger for the great, great, great majority of his EV charging even after he swaps his current BYD Atto for some future brand/model with super fast charging capability.  😜😜   

More details on BYD rollout of 1000KW super fast chargers in China

https://carnewschina.com/2025/03/26/byd-to-roll-out-first-500-ultrafast-1000-kw-charging-stations-in-april-4000-set-for-china/#:~:text=BYD will soon start deploying,400 km in 5 minutes.

Wow....what I find as somewhat surprising is "1 in 4" cars registered in category RY1 was a BEV!!!!!  Definitely getting to be a major percentage. 

Quote

 

 

Total car registrations in the 100% electric vehicle group (BEV: Battery Electric Vehicle) in May 2025 total 12,034 cars (accounting for 25.6% of the total car registrations in Thailand, R.Y.1, totaling 47,054 cars)

 

1 hour ago, johng said:

I haven't updated my Android phone

this one typing here....since

yee olde 2015 !  

That's the basic Android system software last update which was the Android 5 (Lollipop) version.  Whenever your phone was "new" which would have been 2015 or earlier it would have stopped getting "basic system software" updates probably a year or two after you bought it.  HOWEVER, any apps on the phone would continue to update via Google Play.   

Summary:  correct....no updates to your basic Android 5 software since 7 Dec 2015, but the apps on the phone would continue to update unless you turned off Google Play updates which I doubt you did as a lot of apps on the phone would have stopped working after a year or two due to being too old.