A Year ago next month my friend, who moved out here to live with his Thai wife, made a mess up of his application for Extension of Stay Based on Marriage. He mistook the expiry date of his visa as being the date from which he had to get an extension, whereas that expiry date was the date by which he had to trigger the 90 days of the visa based on marriage by landing in the Kingdom. 

 

As a result he effectively over-stayed by some time and got fined, chucked out and a stamp in his passport banning him from coming back within a year. Knowing the year was nearly up I messaged him in the UK asking him when he expected to be back to be with his wife and family. This is the answer he gave me:-

 

It should be July 27 th but visa rules have changed a lot you have to have 15,000 £ in an English bank account in my name only and i am not sure how much in Thailand you need . Everything has to be signed by a solicitor or somebody in high authority I went up to the embassy in April but they said they cannot even talk to me until I have been here exactly one year money could be a problem if it is my wife says she will come back to eng to work. I don't know much yet.

 

So my question is can anyone shed any light on this? I understand how the Royal Thai Embassy won't talk to him until the year is up, but what rules have changed? He is married to a Thai, they have home and family here and I thought all you needed was a 3 month (multiple entry preferably) visa based on marriage to a Thai  to be allowed to come here, and then 400,000 baht in your own name in a valid Thai bank account for at least 2 months in order to be able to apply for the one year extension? 

 

That is how I came, and how I obtain my annual extensions of stay. If they change the rules and increase the Bank money I might as well cut my wrists because I'd have no chance, everything has gone on the house, the car, the family and sending my young wife to UNI. So I'm hoping my friend, who is "a few sticks short of a bundle" at times has once again got the wrong end of one of those sticks. No one queried how much I had in my UK bank when I got my Thai Visa 3 years ago and it seems wrong somehow.

 

I'm hoping Ubon Joe can answer this as well as he seems right on top of all the visa rules.

I think the silly old sod has applied for a Non Imm O-A retirement visa when he has a Thai Wife and should have asked for a Multiple Entry Non Imm O based on marriage.

 

That is why they want to see more money in the bank, but for the 3 month Non Imm O based on Marriage to a Thai they would only ask for 20000 cash on arrival as the 1 year extension is applied for in Thailand.

a multi entry non imm 'O' married to a Thai national visa should be available from London with no financials, also available from Savannakhet, Laos, also with no financials. could be obtained if he arrives on a tourist visa.

The financial proof and other required documents mentioned is for a OA long stay visa application.

He should apply for a non-o visa based upon marriage. They will do a single or multiple entry non-o visa with no financial proof. If he plans on applying for a extension of stay based upon marriage he only needs a single entry visa.

Thanks guys. The 20,000 baht on arrival is now on the Royal Thai Embassy London's visa requirements page so that does add some flesh to the previous rumours about it.

 

He is such a duffer that I told him very strongly to get a multiple entry visa, Ubon Joe, which is what I was advised on this very forum three years ago. I'm glad I did because I knew nothing of the onerous paperwork, translations, copies, certifications etc associated with living here.  The worst and hardest of these once in Thailand is the Apostille Marriage Certificate for those married elsewhere (in the UK in my case.) That can only come from one's own country and is only accepted here once translated and certified.

 

Apart from the cost of doing it from here the papers have to go to Royal Thai Embassy London to be stamped BEFORE being translated here in Thailand - it is so much easier to do that before coming here if one only knew!

 

So we had to exit Thailand as we ran out of time and I was so glad I had that multiple entry visa, return day trip to Changi in Singapore - we'd never been there, and voila - another 90 days to sort out all the paperwork. In fact I had so much time to spare that I was able to get Thai driving licences for motorbike and car, get a yellow tabien baan, and an identity card. My silly friend was once my employee so I don't sell him short - he is daft! One has to beat him over the head with a shovel to get his full attention!

If your pal is in receipt of the State Pension he could also apply for a non-O visa from the London Embassy on those grounds (as an alternative to marriage).

31 minutes ago, cliveshep said:

The worst and hardest of these once in Thailand is the Apostille Marriage Certificate for those married elsewhere (in the UK in my case.) That can only come from one's own country and is only accepted here once translated and certified.

If he needs that he should get it done before leaving the UK. Much easier than doing it from here.

The UK may be one of worst cases for getting it done. 

They will also accept a statement or affidavit done at a embassy that it is true and correct. At one time that was done at the UK embassy but they stopped doing them which means going through the process of getting it done in the UK.