BREAKING NEWS Thai immigration reveals new requirements for retirement, marriage extensions (visas)

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

9 minutes ago, mikosan said:

Seems reasonably staightforward to me.  P60 from the UK showing pension income.  12 months worth of Transferwise receipts showing the monthly transfer of the GBP equivalent of 65K THB from the UK to my Thai bank account and dependent on how long your bank keeps statements available, in my case two 6 month statements from my Thai bank, showing the money being transferred in.  That'll do for me, thanks.  Let's see what happens when I try to extend in August, but I am hopeful and there are a few months between now and then to determine whether this will suffice.

 

As I've posted several times already here, some Thai banks currently code Transferwise transfers as foreign transfers. Others do not, at least on the surface. It remains to be seen, on a bank to bank basis, whether all Thai banks are going to automatically recognize TFW transfers as foreign ones.

 

[Justin Side]

2 hours ago, Estrada said:

The problem seems to be that they are asking for evidence of a pension being paid monthly into your Thai bank account. The British Pension is paid only every 3 months. I also have an annual payment and a bi-annual payment, but no monthly payment. I hope I can still use the B800,000 in the bank method.

The UK State Pension can be paid into your Thai Bank every 28 days.

This means that one month you will get 2 payments.

[mfd101]

48 minutes ago, Poppin said:

Does anyone know for definite that the 400,000 and 800,000 is still available for long term visa.

it is just crazy to send your money monthly as it obviously incurs transfer costs and a poor exchange rate from your bank if you have to send the money in Thai Baht.

would greatly appreciate a definite answer or somewhere to get it

You DON'T have to send the money in baht. You send it in your home currency & the receiving bank changes it into baht. You just have to make sure that, with moving xrates, you send enough of your home currency to ensure change to 65K+ in Thailand.

[ubonjoe]

37 minutes ago, kokesaat said:

Question for the old-timers......those who have been here since 1998 and is over age 60:  Has anyone successfully used the 200k in the bank or 20k monthly income?  I've been here since 1996....consecutively (although used many reentry stamps), but I've always provided either the embassy letter or 800k in the bank.  For a variety of reasons (not financial), I've chosen to use the income letter for the past several years rather than 800k.  But I wouldn't have any objection to putting 200k in an account for 3 months.

Has anyone actually done this?

Were you 60 years old in October of 1998 and already on an extension of stay based upon retirement and have been on continuous extensions since then?

 

[dick dasterdly]

1 minute ago, animatic said:

I asked SCB to print my entire deposit history for a dozen years. I got it.

SCB also accepts transfers in dollars to a dollar account and automatically converts to your thai baht savings account. But will ask for you to agree to exchange rate for larger transfers. 65,000 baht would be automatically done.

I always transfer sterling to my Thai bank account, as I get a better exchange rate.  But it is routed via somewhere else (SCB main office?) and arrives in my Thai bank account in bht, but it doesn't show on my bank account as a foreign transfer.

 

Fortunately, I'm not particularly worried about this as I'm sure that they will come up with a method over the next year to provide a letter confirming that it came from abroad.

Edited January 6, 2019 by dick dasterdly

[Jim7777]

4 hours ago, JLCrab said:

At this point I would presume the word "transfer" indicates an international transaction and not from domestic KrungThai Bank to domestic Kasikorn bank

Exactly it says transfer.  "Evidence of a pension. Letter of certification from a Thai bank supported by bank statements showing a pension being transferred to the pensioner’s bank account every month for at least 12 months."

 

"Evidence of annual income that equates to no less than B40,000 per month of alien father, mother or spouse such as."

 

I think people might be reading a little too much into it.  

[4MyEgo]

5 minutes ago, Suradit69 said:

So you're choosing to stick to the "per month" and "pension", but ignoring the "evidence of average monthly income of B65,000" statement that refers to "average" and "monthly income," but no reference to "pension?"

2.       Evidence of a pension. Letter of certification from a Thai bank supported by bank statements showing a pension being transferred to the pensioner’s bank account every month for at least 12 months. Exceptions are allowed for those who have been retired for less than one year – example given.

 

I am choosing to stick to what I said, i.e. pensioners who are married 40,000 baht per month, retirees 65,000 baht per month.

 

The above said, there are other provisions that cover those working and supporting Thai families, but I was correcting what was said by the other poster, i.e. depositing 200,000 baht x 4 averaged out over a year = 66,000 baht has nothing to do with a pensioner, as far as I saw it, he was referring to the 800,000 baht retirement extension.

 

If you are over 50 and retired, you can opt for the marriage or retirement extension, i.e. 400,000 or 800,000 annually, this part has nothing to do with pensioners, that is unless they want to say hey, Mr IO, I am retired and will place 400,000 baht in the bank per annum as I am married to a Thai, or I am going to deposit 800,000 baht per annum based on retirement, one of the prerequisite is that you are over 50 years of age.

[Pib]

 

I think what TI means in terms of "pension" is best translated as "funds from an overseas source" as described in below closed thread basically talking the new requirements which supposedly come from a police colonel in TI.

 

[KiChakayan]

1 hour ago, Easy Come Easy Go said:

I'm not on a retirement visa as I am only 30, but do other neighbouring countries such as Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia make it this difficult for elderly expats to stay for a long duration? The money in the bank, transactions etc, seems like a lot of hoops to be jumping through 

No worries mate, believe me it is a real piece of cake. Thai requirements are lenient compared to other places but, as all things Thai, their implementation is messy, sometimes fuzzy. But geezers love to whinge.. In fact Thai immigration, as it seems, has just made everything easier for the people using the yearly income method by saving to yearly trips to their embassies, and see what happens... 

[wobalt]

Bank statements will show that the deposit is an international transfer.  It would be much more complicated to specify the source of the transfer.  If the word "pension" is the sticking point, pensions come from all kinds or sources, not only government pensions.

If you are self-employed you usually don’t get any pension.
If you invested in Thailand for that reason the deposit can’t be international


Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[zydeco]

I still think the key ambiguity is the word "average" that appears in the OP. If the order means an "average of deposits from abroad for 12 months," that is one thing. But if it means an "average of deposits made each and every month," that is something different. As I said in another topic, if you have American Social Security and that is the basis for your retirement, then last August you received two Social Security deposits into your Bangkok Bank account and ZERO for September, which would mean you DO NOT qualify for an extension, because you didn't deposit the 65,000 in EACH AND EVERY month.

Edited January 6, 2019 by zydeco

[dick dasterdly]

1 minute ago, Jim7777 said:

Exactly it says transfer.  "Evidence of a pension. Letter of certification from a Thai bank supported by bank statements showing a pension being transferred to the pensioner’s bank account every month for at least 12 months."

 

"Evidence of annual income that equates to no less than B40,000 per month of alien father, mother or spouse such as."

 

I think people might be reading a little too much into it.  

I suspect, but obviously don't know, that the wording will remain the same - and it will be down to each Immigration office how they 'determine the rules'?

[dave moir]

4 hours ago, Eligius said:

On the face of it, this looks EXTREMELY worrying for British retirees here. The irresponsible action of the British embassy in not confirming a retiree's income flow could be the death knell for many Brits here. Also, as far as I understand it, the British Government will not send pensions into a Thai bank account (only into a British one), and not every British bank will automatically forward a pension to a bank account in Thailand every month. Maybe I am wrong. 

 

Perhaps it is not as bad as I fear. What do other members think?

 

 

 

 

You understand wrong! My state pension goes straight to my Thai bank account

[MikeN]

3 hours ago, overherebc said:

As they haven't stated the 400,000 or 800,000 deposit no longer applies then obviously it still applies.

The new rules clearly apply to proof of monthly/yearly income.

But it does say “updated requirements” and then details the monthly payments required. That implys the monthly income is the one and only option, so the OP is badly written if indeed the money in the bank option is still available but not mentioned.

[jimmyyy]

Well at least they put something out.  I am doing my next extension of stay on Tuesday, i have my embassy letter for this year, i will talk to them and see what they want me to do next year.  Transferring every month is easy enough i guess, i hate to pull out 15K USD out of one of my 401's if i don't need to.  I get 3500 from the VA every month, i never will understand why the Embassy can't log into the VA payment system or SSI for that matter and say yes this person is getting this.  Either way i will figure it out.  Wanted to thank UD Joe for taking the time to provide us with all this information.  Happy hour approaches in Issan, have a great day everyone.

[inwardglee]

I see people worrying so much that the faster I read the more comments I see, it is not even possible to follow reading. 

 

I have decided to not worry. It is never useful to worry before a difficult situation has happened already. It is early enough to be angry or sad when the bad event has happened, but not just expecting it. 

 

And even if an unpleasant situation has occurred, no use to get mad. Just accept and adapt and do the next swing in life. 

Edited January 6, 2019 by inwardglee

[Suradit69]

31 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

depositing 200,000 baht x 4 averaged out over a year = 66,000 baht has nothing to do with a pensioner, as far as I saw it, he was referring to the 800,000 baht retirement extension.

Which would be over the average of Baht 65,000 a month and could very well be sourced from a pension being paid into the individual's bank in his home country and which he chooses to transfer to a Thai bank account less often than once a month.

 

Putting amounts into a Thai bank over the course of a year for living expenses is not the same as holding Baht 800,000 for three months in a Thai bank account.

 

While the use of terms may be open to interpretation, and undoubtedly will be, the person you quoted and you made condescending comments about was making a legitimate comment about what may or may not satisfy the requirement that someone using the income method, whether or not from pensions, has evidence of paying at least 65,000 a month ON AVERAGE, into a Thai bank account.

 

Someone who is retired but not a pensioner can still qualify for a retirement extension based on monthly deposits to a Thai bank. If the amount happens to total Baht 800,000, that does not mean he's using the baht 800,000 in a bank method.

 

You dwell on the words pensioner and pension as if they were sacrosanct and not simply being substituted for retiree with sufficient income. If you've ever read through any English translation of immigrations regulations you would realize they are pretty free and easy with word choice.

 

Choosing one quote and ignoring another is cherry picking.

 

Quote

For retirement extensions of no more than 1 year evidence of average monthly income of B65,000 is required.

If you put Baht 200,000 in a Thai bank quarterly, that is evidence of average monthly income of more than Baht 65,000 a month and has nothing to do with keeping Baht 800,000 in a Thai bank. Whether or not "average" really means average is open to debate.

 

Edited January 6, 2019 by Suradit69

[overherebc]

22 minutes ago, Pib said:

 

I think what TI means in terms of "pension" is best translated as "funds from an overseas source" as described in below closed thread basically talking the new requirements which supposedly come from a police colonel in TI.

 

Yep, thank goodness no-one used the word annuity.

[David Walden]

One would think that the if a change to requirements for pensions is the only mentioned change and no other information is published.  Then all other requirements will remain as is present. like getting a visa in your home country, the combo system part pension in bank part cash in a bank a/c etc. etc. 

[Kasane]

So there are two requirements for extension of retirement visa. Deposit In Thai bank

1. Pension 65K/mo

2. Balance of 800k baht.

 

So this is more strict than just the requirement of 800K baht in Thai bank for retirement visa extension.

[overherebc]

3 minutes ago, MikeN said:

But it does say “updated requirements” and then details the monthly payments required. That implys the monthly income is the one and only option, so the OP is badly written if indeed the money in the bank option is still available but not mentioned.

So if I have 5,000,000 in the bank they will refuse me an extension because I can't show 40/65,000 income a month.

Think about it.

[mfd101]

47 minutes ago, uwe_rayong said:

That is an important question. 
If I transfer money I use most times a provider like transferwise.com as it is cheaper, faster and the conversion rate is often also a little bit more.
The difference is, if I receive a direct deposit from the EU it is declared as a "foreign currency deposit", if the transfer is made by transferwise it looks like a domestic transfer.

So I doubt that immigration will accept the domestic transfers, as otherwise it would be pointless.

If they would accept a domestic transfer, I could just give a 3rd person the amount in Thailand to deposit it into my account..????

 

So the questionis :


Does the monthly transfer have to originate from outside of Thailand?

 

 

YES.

If you want to use TW for the transfers (as I do), use BKK Bank.

[geoffbezoz]

28 minutes ago, 4MyEgo said:

2.       Evidence of a pension. Letter of certification from a Thai bank supported by bank statements showing a pension being transferred to the pensioner’s bank account every month for at least 12 months. Exceptions are allowed for those who have been retired for less than one year – example given.

 

I am choosing to stick to what I said, i.e. pensioners who are married 40,000 baht per month, retirees 65,000 baht per month.

 

The above said, there are other provisions that cover those working and supporting Thai families, but I was correcting what was said by the other poster, i.e. depositing 200,000 baht x 4 averaged out over a year = 66,000 baht has nothing to do with a pensioner, as far as I saw it, he was referring to the 800,000 baht retirement extension.

 

If you are over 50 and retired, you can opt for the marriage or retirement extension, i.e. 400,000 or 800,000 annually, this part has nothing to do with pensioners, that is unless they want to say hey, Mr IO, I am retired and will place 400,000 baht in the bank per annum as I am married to a Thai, or I am going to deposit 800,000 baht per annum based on retirement, one of the prerequisite is that you are over 50 years of age.

You can apply for an extension of stay based on being married to a Thai, or having a Thai child, irrespective of your age I was advised.  You do not have to be 50 years or older to apply for an extension on this basis.. Perhaps Ubonjoe can confirm. Therefore the relationship to a "pension" is, what has repeatedly

said, a mute point and open to question.

Edited January 6, 2019 by geoffbezoz

[sometimewoodworker]

3 hours ago, Estrada said:

The British Pension is paid only every 3 months

That was your choice, mine is paid every 4 weeks so you can choose that if you want

[4MyEgo]

2 minutes ago, geoffbezoz said:

You can apply for an extension of stay based on being married to a Thai, or havinf a Thai child, irrespective of your age I was advised.  You do not have to be 50 years or older to apply for an extension on this basis.. Perhaps Ubonjoe can confirm

Yes you can as long as you have the funds in the bank.

[geoffbezoz]

Just now, 4MyEgo said:

Yes you can as long as you have the funds in the bank.

or income ?

 

[mfd101]

48 minutes ago, Justin Side said:

The UK State Pension is paid into my Thai bank every 28 days.

Not monthly.

One month a year there is 2 payments.

So? You'll be ahead of the game!

[DPKANKAN]

42 minutes ago, Spidey said:

Hasn't been a minimum of 42 years for quite a while. The Labour government dropped it to 30 years, only for the Tory government to push it back up to 35 years, where it currently stands.

Did not say it was a minimum or maximum. I said that I had paid in for 42 years and what little I get in return

[Eligius]

3 minutes ago, Kasane said:

So there are two requirements for extension of retirement visa. Deposit In Thai bank

1. Pension 65K/mo

2. Balance of 800k baht.

 

So this is more strict than just the requirement of 800K baht in Thai bank for retirement visa extension.

That is how it seems to read to me, too, Kasane. It does not say 'Either 1 .... Or 2'. If this is the new rule (that both 400,000/800,000 in bank PLUS 65k/mo income are required), it will sink many of us. But perhaps we are misreading something that is rather ambiguous in the first place. Logically it would seem highly unlikely to me that such a radical change would have been introduced. But -  this is Thailand ....

[ubonjoe]

10 minutes ago, MikeN said:

But it does say “updated requirements” and then details the monthly payments required. That implys the monthly income is the one and only option, so the OP is badly written if indeed the money in the bank option is still available but not mentioned.

Updated requirements for the income option only.

The amendment does not include the money in the bank or combination options because it has not been changed.