I lived in Thailand for several years on retirement extensions of a non-immigrant visa.  I left Thailand in June 2017, have been in the UK since then, but now want to return very soon to Thailand, and resume retirement status there.  As I was out of the country at the time when I would have needed to obtain another visa extension, I have lost my status as retiree and must make application for a new non-immigrant visa as soon as I can after arrival.  I still have my bank account in Thailand, and can fund it quickly for the income requirement of 800k baht for the year.

 

My plan is to arrive on a one-way air ticket, receive permission to stay for 30 days as a visitor without a visa, and obtain a 90-day non-immigrant visa well before the end of those 30 days, and then extend that for a year.  This is exactly what I did about 5 years ago, and there were no problems then - all went according to plan.  My question is this;  have there been any changes to the system which could present a problem for me now which I did not face in 2013?  All advice would be gratefully received.

You gonna need a ticket out of Thailand within these 30 days VISA-FREE stay that you will obtain.. Otherwise you run the risk to be refused boarding the plane in England..

 

glegolo

You will get a 30 day visa exempt entry (a visa on arrival is only for 15 days for those that qualify for it). You may need a ticket out of the country within 30 days of arrival to board your flight. 

You must have 15 days remaining on your entry or the 30 day extension of it to apply for the 90 day non immigrant visa (category O) entry.

General requirements are here: https://www.immigration.go.th/content/service_80 (click Eng at the top of the page for English version)

I suggest you apply for a single entry tourist visa that will allow a 60 day entry and would not require a out of the country to board your flight.

Thanks for that information about boarding with a one-way ticket.  I had not thought of that.  I just called Thai Airways in London to ask about their policy in this matter, and was assured that there would be no problem with boarding at Heathrow on Thai Airways.  The agent actually said "not on Thai Airways" so perhaps some other airlines would deny boarding, but I am assured that Thai will not. 

Why not get an O-A visa from UK to give 2 years hassle free stay and take all the pressure off.