The non-immigrant multiple entry visa

[yooper]

Thank you very much BritTim for your informative comment quoted below from within another topic. Glad to understand now the 90 day reporting thing.

 

It is my understanding to date that my 1 yr visa should allow me to open a bank account at Bangkok Bank and easily transfer money via ach. (Otherwise how would I get the qualifying funds on deposit?)  This is a high priority after our arrival and we will deposit enough to buy a house if we decide to do so.  My wife will also open a baht account.  While a single 60 extension will be adequate for our upcoming visit,  I anticipate the next visit will need the one year extension.  Since the next visit will be before the 1 year date of my arrival in a couple weeks, apparently my current visa should still be good long enough to apply for the 1 yr extension.... would I be given 90 days permission to stay upon my next arrival?  

 

*********BritTim wrote:

"What you were given is not a multiple entry tourist visa, but a multiple entry Non O visa to visit family in Thailand.

 

With that visa, and until the Enter Before date stamped on the visa,  you can enter Thailand, and each time be granted a 90-day permission to stay. Each permission to stay can optionally be extended (only one time) for 60 days at your local immigration office. With 400,000 baht in a Thai bank account, and after satisfying a few other requirements, you could extend your permission to stay for one year.

 

Do not confuse 'reporting every 90 days' with only having a '90 day permission to stay'. Until you have a one-year extension granted in Thailand, 90-day reports are not required. However, unless you apply for the 60-day or one-year extension, you need to leave and reenter Thailand after 90 days.

 

If your wife has expired Thai passports, she can enter Thailand without a visa. She uses her US passport to leave the US, but shows check in the expired Thai passport as proof of her right to enter Thailand. On arrival in Thailand, the expired Thai passport is used. The downside of this is that she will need to get all her affairs in Thailand in order, allowing application for a new Thai passport, before she can leave Thailand again. Having used her Thai passport to enter Thailand, she would not be allowed to leave on the US passport."

 

[BritTim]

It seems all your planning makes sense. There are no flaws that I can see.

 

There are some details that you will need to address (presumably, no surprise). One to look out for (depending on where you end up living) is that the "house master" of the dwelling where you are staying is supposed to submit a TM30 notification (Alien staying in the house). In most areas (but not Bangkok) this will need to have been done before applying for an extension. While you are staying in a hotel, you can assume the TM30 has been filed. Otherwise, I suggest you contact the local immigration office promptly on your arrival about whether and when they require a TM30 and who must submit it. You will also want to check out the full requirements for the one-year extension, which tends to vary between offices. They will probably be grateful if you do a one-year extension on the basis of retirement (higher financial proof, but less work for them and probably for you) rather than living with your Thai spouse.

[yooper]

43 minutes ago, BritTim said:

It seems all your planning makes sense. There are no flaws that I can see.

 

There are some details that you will need to address (presumably, no surprise). One to look out for (depending on where you end up living) is that the "house master" of the dwelling where you are staying is supposed to submit a TM30 notification (Alien staying in the house). In most areas (but not Bangkok) this will need to have been done before applying for an extension. While you are staying in a hotel, you can assume the TM30 has been filed. Otherwise, I suggest you contact the local immigration office promptly on your arrival about whether and when they require a TM30 and who must submit it. You will also want to check out the full requirements for the one-year extension, which tends to vary between offices. They will probably be grateful if you do a one-year extension on the basis of retirement (higher financial proof, but less work for them and probably for you) rather than living with your Thai spouse.

Thanks again, so much. I know I'm getting a bit anal about all this, sorry for that. A 60 day extension is all I really need this trip as we have a return flight booked in mid march and I should get home to do my taxes and prepare for the next trip in early Oct 2018 on my multiple entry 1 yr visa which apparently will be valid until mid November 2018.

 

Her family registration (from the '70s) was in Phra Khanong. She went to the district office there last year to inquire about an ID card and was told she needed to show the old registration. I don't think they had 'books' then, but after returning home she found a couple pages with official stamps (image below), her name and the names of all family members which we presume is what she needs. Her sister and husband will go along to the district office and have her name added to their registration if necessary. Presumably this is all it will take for her to get a new ID card. 

 

Once she has the ID card and a bank account we will will look for a long term lease on a townhouse. This will be either in Phra Khanong or Prawet districts of Bangkok or possibly Bang Phli,  Mueang Samut Prakan, or  Phra Pradaeng districts of Samut Prakan. 

 

Once we have secured a lease I suppose either my wife or the landlord has to file the TM30 to report my new location, we can call immigration for guidance on that. Unknown is whether she has to change her house registration again or can let it continue at her sister's  for a while.  

 

Our intention is to secure an annual lease and have a brothers family live with us and take care of the place while we are away between seasons. They are currently living on 9Kbaht/month and do not own a house.  It absolutely blows my mind how happy they seem. Our beautiful 9yr old niece has top grades at her school and we are going to set up a college fund for her.  As far as my eventual visa extension I believe  the Immigration Bureau office on Sathorn Road in Bangkok will be the place I need to go if we rent in Phra Khanong ... or I see there is another immigration office in Samut Prakan if we end up leasing there.

 

It is getting difficult for me so sleep with the anticipation of seeing the family again in a couple weeks, nice to have a forum like this to help pass the time.

 

 

 

[BritTim]

On all the essential matters, you seem to have worked things out fine.

 

Just a couple of points that you would soon figure out anyway.

 

First, references to the 'Immigration Bureau office on Sathorn Road in Bangkok' are now out of date. Long ago, immigration services moved to the Government Center at Chaeng Wattana. It is a long way from Phrakhanong and Prawet. About all that is left at the old location is the Immigration Detention Center, and hopefully you will not need to avail yourself of their services! On the plus side, Bangkok does not currently enforce TM30 notifications.

 

On your niece, once she is older, it is worth looking into scholarships available to worthy students, specifically for Thai nationals from poor backgrounds. They exist, and some are very generous. Very, very few students who qualify are even aware of these scholarships. Note, however, that, if this is used to study abroad, extreme culture shock and isolation can be problems. Depending on personality, poor Thai students often find it difficult even to connect with other Thais who are almost always from wealthy backgrounds, having nothing in common. Thais are very class conscious.

[yooper]

13 hours ago, BritTim said:

On all the essential matters, you seem to have worked things out fine.

 

Just a couple of points that you would soon figure out anyway.

 

First, references to the 'Immigration Bureau office on Sathorn Road in Bangkok' are now out of date. Long ago, immigration services moved to the Government Center at Chaeng Wattana. It is a long way from Phrakhanong and Prawet. About all that is left at the old location is the Immigration Detention Center, and hopefully you will not need to avail yourself of their services! On the plus side, Bangkok does not currently enforce TM30 notifications.

 

On your niece, once she is older, it is worth looking into scholarships available to worthy students, specifically for Thai nationals from poor backgrounds. They exist, and some are very generous. Very, very few students who qualify are even aware of these scholarships. Note, however, that, if this is used to study abroad, extreme culture shock and isolation can be problems. Depending on personality, poor Thai students often find it difficult even to connect with other Thais who are almost always from wealthy backgrounds, having nothing in common. Thais are very class conscious.

Thanks again, I got the Immigration info off of google maps, will use their website for info once I need to apply for an extension, I suppose they will also have that info at the airport when I arrive.

 

The scholarship info is great news, we will follow up on that for sure.  It may be that her preference would be a vocational / trade school. I do not anticipate that going abroad will be a topic for discussion.  I will encourage the 3 brothers to try a trade school and subsidize their expenses as well... not sure how that will be viewed as they are all around 50yrs old +/- a few yrs.  One of them was in intensive care last year with a heart problem and not expected to survive, but when he learned his sister was coming to visit the next month he made a remarkable recovery and began working again after a few months and gained his weight back.  

 

The class consciousness is so depressing!  I could sense their uneasiness last year when we had them come to our serviced apartment for visits.  We will be much more low-key this time and after our daughter leaves we will look to lease a traditional townhouse.

 

[ubonjoe]

On 11/1/2017 at 2:08 AM, yooper said:

Once she has the ID card and a bank account we will will look for a long term lease on a townhouse. This will be either in Phra Khanong or Prawet districts of Bangkok or possibly Bang Phli,  Mueang Samut Prakan, or  Phra Pradaeng districts of Samut Prakan. 

There is a immigration in Samut Prakan province. That is the office you will have to use if living there.

[yooper]

trying to get a better grip on all the visa stuff...  if I went out of the country, and re-entered with my 1 yr multiple entry visa  would I get a new 60 or 90 days permission ?  I am tempted to visit Viet Nam again some day.... would that preclude the necessity to go thru the lines at immigration for a 60 day extension?

 

[ubonjoe]

6 hours ago, yooper said:

trying to get a better grip on all the visa stuff...  if I went out of the country, and re-entered with my 1 yr multiple entry visa  would I get a new 60 or 90 days permission ? 

You will get 90 days every time you enter the country up to the enter before date on your visa.

[yooper]

7 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

You will get 90 days every time you enter the country up to the enter before date on your visa.

I should have waited another month to get the visa, we got it in Sep and I see the enter before date is 9/20/18 . That is a month earlier than I want to return next year but I could reconsider. If I come back in early September I'd get get 90 days then I could apply for  a one year extension before the end of the 90 days... correct?

[ubonjoe]

You could enter in September of 2018 prior to the 20th and get a new 90 day entry and apply for an extension of stay during the last 30 days of it.

You could apply for the extension of stay during the last 30 days of any of the 90 day entries from your visa. You don't have to wait for your visa to expire to apply for an extension of stay.

[yooper]

A 90 day visa at the Chicago consulate costs $80 (plus having to mail in my passport) so getting a freebie 90 days if I re-enter back before Sep 20th mitigates the $200 I paid this year and avoids dealing with Chicago again so probably good enough reason to motivate me to return in Sep. 

 

After I've settled down in a couple months I may find reasons to get a 1 yr extension or even a retirement visa. 

 

A thought crossed my mind last night about one of the shirt tail relatives who has is own software company (Dev A Day) and is doing extremely well. He was just in Chicago last month for an Apple I-phone conference.  If he is allowed to hire 70+ yr old farangs he would likely give me a position if I asked for one.... is there any benefit to having a work visa vs the non-o ... after it expires?

 

[BritTim]

4 hours ago, yooper said:

A 90 day visa at the Chicago consulate costs $80 (plus having to mail in my passport) so getting a freebie 90 days if I re-enter back before Sep 20th mitigates the $200 I paid this year and avoids dealing with Chicago again so probably good enough reason to motivate me to return in Sep. 

 

After I've settled down in a couple months I may find reasons to get a 1 yr extension or even a retirement visa. 

 

A thought crossed my mind last night about one of the shirt tail relatives who has is own software company (Dev A Day) and is doing extremely well. He was just in Chicago last month for an Apple I-phone conference.  If he is allowed to hire 70+ yr old farangs he would likely give me a position if I asked for one.... is there any benefit to having a work visa vs the non-o ... after it expires?

 

For someone entitled to an extension of stay on the basis of retirement, there is really no need to look at other options. The extension of stay on the basis of working will require all kinds of paperwork, including paying tax on a minimum income of 50,000 baht per month. It could be done, but you really do not want to go there unless you want to work anyway.

[yooper]

22 minutes ago, BritTim said:

For someone entitled to an extension of stay on the basis of retirement, there is really no need to look at other options. The extension of stay on the basis of working will require all kinds of paperwork, including paying tax on a minimum income of 50,000 baht per month. It could be done, but you really do not want to go there unless you want to work anyway.

thanks, I don't want to work, just to find the easiest way through the paperwork maze.  I'll hope/wish that one of the relatives knows of a bureaucrat who can grease the skids.   

 

[ubonjoe]

8 hours ago, yooper said:

thanks, I don't want to work, just to find the easiest way through the paperwork maze.

If you can meet the financial requirements the there is nothing easier than getting an extension of stay based upon retirement. 

No sure why you think there is a "maze" of paperwork.

[yooper]

6 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

If you can meet the financial requirements the there is nothing easier than getting an extension of stay based upon retirement. 

No sure why you think there is a "maze" of paperwork.

I guess I'm reading too much into the comments of long lines,  2 day processing, etc... not so much a maze as tedium.  It is great to hear that it should be easy once we have the funds on deposit, thanks for your comment.

Edited November 4, 2017 by yooper
typo

[ubonjoe]

2 minutes ago, yooper said:

I guess I'm reading too much into the comments of long lines,  2 day processing, etc... not so much a maze as tedium.

It all depends upon where you apply.

Most offices do the extension on the same day you apply.

Many do not have long lines.

[yooper]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

It all depends upon where you apply.

Most offices do the extension on the same day you apply.

Many do not have long lines.

glad to hear... perhaps the Samut Prakan office has relatively short lines, we will be living near there.