Retirement Visa

[tamsin]

Has anyone any direct experience with Phuket Immigration regarding the showing of proof of 800,000 THB recently? Are they insisting it be in the bank in THB three months before. Or is it still depending on which miserable sod you get when you turn up.

[Kimera]

Has anyone any direct experience with Phuket Immigration regarding the showing of proof of 800,000 THB recently? Are they insisting it be in the bank in THB three months before. Or is it still depending on which miserable sod you get when you turn up.

Oh dear maybe a bad approach, are you in Thailand if not the details will be available at your local Thai embassy.

[tamsin]

Here we go again. I ASKED IF ANYONE HAD VISITED THE LOCAL IMMIGRATION OFFICE IN PHUKET RECENTLY. Those who are unable to answer my very specific question need not bother to reply.

[Lotusbluete]

Here we go again. I ASKED IF ANYONE HAD VISITED THE LOCAL IMMIGRATION OFFICE IN PHUKET RECENTLY. Those who are unable to answer my very specific question need not bother to reply.

Hallo, I have not been personally at the Immigration recently but a friend of mine has been. At early October last year she was told that there was no problem with the 3 month holding of the money.

This time (about a week ago) she was told that a.) the money MUST be in for 3 months and b.) the money must be in a savings account, i.e. not in any form of capital investment.

I also heard from another reliable source that the Immigration quite rudely returned the bank book because the money was not in for 3 months.

[kasi]

Has anyone any direct experience with Phuket Immigration regarding the showing of proof of 800,000 THB recently? Are they insisting it be in the bank in THB three months before. Or is it still depending on which miserable sod you get when you turn up.

You will need a letter from the bank along with your bank book. Do it all the same day and you shouldn't have a problem.

[jitagon]

Has anyone any direct experience with Phuket Immigration regarding the showing of proof of 800,000 THB recently? Are they insisting it be in the bank in THB three months before. Or is it still depending on which miserable sod you get when you turn up.

You will need a letter from the bank along with your bank book. Do it all the same day and you shouldn't have a problem.

Not quite with you, I understand that a letter must be produced along with the bank book, although God knows why, can't they bloody read the dates in the bank book? But are you saying that now you must produce a letter from the bank DATED 3 months BEFORE the application for renewal? And why? Lot can happen in three months. They can see from the book you had 800k 3 months before and not just borrowed overnight? Also had problems transferring from FCA today, as now of course, more difficulties in transferring in excess of 20K USD. Don't the government, bank and immigration liaise over this? Or do they only want those that are not Thai nationals with 800k or more just lying around in Thai bank accounts on the offchance govt may wish to see it from time to time -meaning very wealthy foreigners.

Please extend my sympathies to your friend. Bitter ignorant bloody lot at Immigration. They did have a purge last year and put up a sign saying 'any complaints, please refer within', which has all gone by the wayside. They ought to sack the bloody lot of them, same same faces every year, and get some more tolerant, educated staff in.

[kasi]

Not quite with you, I understand that a letter must be produced along with the bank book, although God knows why, can't they bloody read the dates in the bank book? But are you saying that now you must produce a letter from the bank DATED 3 months BEFORE the application for renewal? And why? Lot can happen in three months. They can see from the book you had 800k 3 months before and not just borrowed overnight? Also had problems transferring from FCA today, as now of course, more difficulties in transferring in excess of 20K USD. Don't the government, bank and immigration liaise over this? Or do they only want those that are not Thai nationals with 800k or more just lying around in Thai bank accounts on the offchance govt may wish to see it from time to time -meaning very wealthy foreigners.

Please extend my sympathies to your friend. Bitter ignorant bloody lot at Immigration. They did have a purge last year and put up a sign saying 'any complaints, please refer within', which has all gone by the wayside. They ought to sack the bloody lot of them, same same faces every year, and get some more tolerant, educated staff in.

As far as I know they have always asked for the letter from the bank verifying your account.

I'm not sure what the letter says exactly but it gets the job done. My friend who just went though this was also showing 1.5 million in her account and they still wanted the <deleted> letter. Go figure. It's easier just to comply with their requests than to fight with them. No one said it had to make sense.

I'm not sure why they are the PITAs they are here.

I'm told renewing the O-A visa in Chiang Mai is a piece of cake compared to Phuket Immigration.