Early retirement visa, how I did it 2019

[HarryAbel]

1. I applied for a tourist visa from the Thai embassy in my country.
2. Once in Thailand, I got a copy of my passport stamped by my embassy in Thailand (required by the bank).
3. I also needed a TM30 from the immigration office, and used my condo rental contract to prove my address (and a copy of my landlords id-card and blue book).
4. Opened a bank account in a Thai bank, with the stamped passport document and the TM30. I told the bank I where applying for a retirement visa, and that I needed an account to deposit 800K baht.
5. Sent 800.000 baht from my country to the account, and made sure to get the document that showed the transfer (had to be printed at the same branch/office where the account where opened (they could not explain me why)).
6. Once the money was in my account, I got a stamped statement of the balance (had to be done the same day I applied for the retirement visa).
7. Took the bank statement, the TM30, the transfer document, my updated bank book, my passport, the rental contract, the TM6, a map showing my address and a few pass photos and went to the immigration office. Had copies of all my documents, all signed. Also brought the originals.
8. Filled in the required forms at the immigration office, handed in the application and paid 2000 baht. Got a retirement visa for three monts.
9. After two months I took all the documents, and an updated statement from the bank, showing the 800k, and applied for a visa extension for one year.
10. I could apply for a single- or a multiple re-entry permit (1000 or 3700 baht) and got a multiple re-entry permit.

 

It was useful to have copies of everything, like the pages in my passport with relevant stamps, and the TM6.

 

I used the Government Complex in Bangkok, and I must say I am impressed by the staff, they where both friendly and effective, despite the pressure and conditions they where working under. 

 

 

[worgeordie]

First off,you are going to get multiple replies that it's not a retirement VISA,

but they all know what  you mean....good on you and without an Agent  to hold

your hand, others will find your post  helpful

regards Worgeordie

[soi3eddie]

Well planned and explained. Hope you are enjoying your "retirement". Now for the yellow book and pink id card? 

[WhatupThailand]

Also don't forget, Everything is up to the IO, where if he/she does not like your face.

You gotta provide hand drawn map to your Residence, Photos of you in Front of your house,

many more copies of anything all signed, along with a moon rock, ect.

Bottom line is that it's all about the MONEY.

[HarryAbel]

10 hours ago, worgeordie said:

First off,you are going to get multiple replies that it's not a retirement VISA,

but they all know what  you mean....good on you and without an Agent  to hold

your hand, others will find your post  helpful

regards Worgeordie

Thanks, the visa-stamp in my passport says RETIREMENT, and the re-entry stamp says NON-IMM, what should I call my visa to be correct?

 

9 hours ago, soi3eddie said:

Well planned and explained. Hope you are enjoying your "retirement". Now for the yellow book and pink id card? 

Thanks, I went to the ampoe in my neighborhood to get a yellow book, but they did not accept my rental contract. If I change address to my girlfriends condo, I can have a yellow book at her ampoe, but I won’t do that.

7 hours ago, WhatupThailand said:

Also don't forget, Everything is up to the IO, where if he/she does not like your face.

You gotta provide hand drawn map to your Residence, Photos of you in Front of your house,

many more copies of anything all signed, along with a moon rock, ect.

Bottom line is that it's all about the MONEY.

Did not have any photos of me in front of the condo, nor was it requested

[mahjongguy]

" the visa-stamp in my passport says RETIREMENT, and the re-entry stamp says NON-IMM, what should I call my visa to be correct? "

 

The visa is stamped USED. It is no longer valid. The active stamps are now the Permission To Stay (your extension) and the Re-Entry Permit associated with the Permission To Stay.

[Peter Denis]

Hi HarryAbel,

I am just curious for the reason that you did not apply for a Non Imm OA Visa in your home-country

That's a much simpler route than what you did (applying for a Tourist Visa in your home-country and converting it in Thailand to a Permission to Stay as retiree), and it has several additional benefits (like no need for parking 800.000/400.000 THB in a Thai bank-account).

But seeing how meticulously you went through the complex process, there must for sure be a reason you opted for that route.

 

 

[HarryAbel]

13 minutes ago, mahjongguy said:

" the visa-stamp in my passport says RETIREMENT, and the re-entry stamp says NON-IMM, what should I call my visa to be correct? "

 

The visa is stamped USED. It is no longer valid. The active stamps are now the Permission To Stay (your extension) and the Re-Entry Permit associated with the Permission To Stay.

Ok, thanks, got it. 

[HarryAbel]

8 minutes ago, Peter Denis said:

Hi HarryAbel,

I am just curious for the reason that you did not apply for a Non Imm OA Visa in your home-country

That's a much simpler route than what you did (applying for a Tourist Visa in your home-country and converting it in Thailand to a Permission to Stay as retiree), and it has several additional benefits (like no need for parking 800.000/400.000 THB in a Thai bank-account).

But seeing how meticulously you went through the complex process, there must for sure be a reason you opted for that route.

 

 

Probably because of inexperience, ignorance and stupidity. You are telling me I could have a one year visa ... err permission to stay, without showing the 800k? I am not married.

 

Edit: I remember I had to meet up in person at the embassy to apply for a retirement visa, and that was a no-go, because of distance and time. Only option available through snail mail was the tourist visa.

Edited September 25, 2019 by HarryAbel

[ubonjoe]

1 minute ago, HarryAbel said:

Probably because of inexperience, ignorance and stupidity. You are telling me I could have a one year visa ... err permission to stay, without showing the 800k? I am not married.

He is writing about getting a OA long stay visa (NON-OA) at a embassy or official consulate in your home country.

You have to show the financial proof when you apply for it there and show the money in a bank there.

See: http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15385-Non-Immigrant-Visa-"O-A"-(Long-Stay).html

[Peter Denis]

Just now, HarryAbel said:

Probably because of inexperience, ignorance and stupidity. You are telling me I could have a one year visa ... err permission to stay, without showing the 800k? I am not married.

Yes, but don't feel stupid that you were not aware of that option.  The thai Visa jungle is difficult to navigate, and I admire how you managed it.

But indeed with a Non Imm OA retiree Visa there is no need for up to 2 years to park 800.000 THB in a thai bank-account.

And after that time you can simply re-apply for such a Visa in your home-country, so there will never be a need for the money-in-bank method or the complex proof-of-income method. 

An additional minor advantage is that with such a Visa, there is also no need for re-entry permits during the 1 year validity of the original Visa.

Maybe something to consider when you make a trip to your home-country?

[Peter Denis]

6 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

He is writing about getting a OA long stay visa (NON-OA) at a embassy or official consulate in your home country.

You have to show the financial proof when you apply for it there and show the money in a bank there.

See: http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15385-Non-Immigrant-Visa-"O-A"-(Long-Stay).html

Hi ubonjoe,

Of course you are correct.  Indeed he would have had to show on application in his home-country that he had the equivalent of 800.000 THB in his bank-account for a period of 3 months.  But once the Visa approved, he would have been free to use that money as he pleases.

Harry also wrote that he transfered 800.000 THB from his home-country to Thailand, so the financial requirement for a Non Imm OA retiree Visa would not have been a problem. 

[HarryAbel]

15 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

He is writing about getting a OA long stay visa (NON-OA) at a embassy or official consulate in your home country.

You have to show the financial proof when you apply for it there and show the money in a bank there.

See: http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15385-Non-Immigrant-Visa-"O-A"-(Long-Stay).html

Those requirements are not exactly the same as those I had to follow. For instance, I had to submit documentation for a hotel booking that covered my entire stay in Thailand, and I did not have that.

[BritTim]

58 minutes ago, HarryAbel said:

Thanks, the visa-stamp in my passport says RETIREMENT, and the re-entry stamp says NON-IMM, what should I call my visa to be correct?

Right now, you are on a long term extension of a non immigrant permission to stay on the basis of retirement (retirement extension for short). You technically did have a retirement visa for a very short period when you did not have the passport in your possession. This was part of a procedure to convert your tourist entry into a 90-day non immigrant permission to stay. 

 

It is definitely worth understanding the difference between a visa and a permission to stay. Right now, the important point is that you are on a permission to stay which will be terminated when you leave Thailand unless you have a re-entry permit.

[HarryAbel]

17 minutes ago, Peter Denis said:

Yes, but don't feel stupid that you were not aware of that option.  The thai Visa jungle is difficult to navigate, and I admire how you managed it.

But indeed with a Non Imm OA retiree Visa there is no need for up to 2 years to park 800.000 THB in a thai bank-account.

And after that time you can simply re-apply for such a Visa in your home-country, so there will never be a need for the money-in-bank method or the complex proof-of-income method. 

An additional minor advantage is that with such a Visa, there is also no need for re-entry permits during the 1 year validity of the original Visa.

Maybe something to consider when you make a trip to your home-country?

I asked if I had to document the money again, but the IO told me that everything was finished, and no need to show any money again - until/if I apply for another extension, I guess. I might try your suggestion.

[HarryAbel]

8 minutes ago, BritTim said:

Right now, you are on a long term extension of a non immigrant permission to stay on the basis of retirement (retirement extension for short). You technically did have a retirement visa for a very short period when you did not have the passport in your possession. This was part of a procedure to convert your tourist entry into a 90-day non immigrant permission to stay. 

 

It is definitely worth understanding the difference between a visa and a permission to stay. Right now, the important point is that you are on a permission to stay which will be terminated when you leave Thailand unless you have a re-entry permit.

Thanks, I have a vague understanding that the terminology is important, I hope to get to grasp with it. I have the re-entry permit, and I am happy I did that right away.

[sfokevin]

It would be helpful if the OP could expand on step #8... As many have reported this part being a nightmare if not impossible at their local immigration office

Edited September 25, 2019 by sfokevin

[Peter Denis]

5 minutes ago, HarryAbel said:

Those requirements are not exactly the same as those I had to follow. For instance, I had to submit documentation for a hotel booking that covered my entire stay in Thailand, and I did not have that.

When I applied for my Non Imm OA Visa (4 months ago in Belgium), the requirements were not very clear on the point you mention.  So with my application I submitted a hotel-booking for the first 3 days of my arrival (which I would cancel right after the Visa would be approved, as I am living in my girlfriends house).  My application was indeed turned down because that hotel-booking was not sufficient, and had to cover a longer - or maybe even full - period.  However, the Embassy staff provided me with a form to be filled in by my girlfriend stating that I would be staying in her place, and that form had to be accompanied with a copy of the house-book and a front-back cover of her ID-card as owner. So when I got those 3 documents e-mailed by my girlfriend, I re-applied and my Non Imm OA Visa was approved.

For sure, there must also be other ways to demonstrate were you will be staying in Thailand.

A Hotel booking for a full year would be crazy.

But if you have friends in Thailand, they might provide you with the 3 documents like my girlfriend sent me, and that would solve the problem.

Obviously, this is Figs after Easter, but might be useful if you make a trip to your home-country and consider to re-apply for a Non Imm OA Visa.

 

[Peter Denis]

18 minutes ago, HarryAbel said:

I asked if I had to document the money again, but the IO told me that everything was finished, and no need to show any money again - until/if I apply for another extension, I guess. I might try your suggestion.

With your present Permission to Stay long-term retiree status, you will need to keep the money in your thai bank-account (= minimum 800.000 THB, 2 months before till 3 months after application for extension of stay, and rest of the time not under 400.000 THB even once).

If you want to 'free' the money, you could consider my suggestion i.e. applying for a Non Imm OA retiree Visa when you are in your home-country.  As mentioned in earlier post, that would a.o. require to have an equivalent of 800.000 THB in your home bank-account for a period of 3 months, before your application.  And of course documenting your place of stay (which would probably easy to solve, now that you are staying in Thailand).

Note: Feel free to PM me if you would like to receive a copy of the full Non Imm OA Visa application I made, and which was approved.

[Krupps]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

He is writing about getting a OA long stay visa (NON-OA) at a embassy or official consulate in your home country.

You have to show the financial proof when you apply for it there and show the money in a bank there.

See: http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15385-Non-Immigrant-Visa-"O-A"-(Long-Stay).html

Thanks for the hyperlink 

it says I can get the Non Immigrant OA visa done in my home country or in Bangkok.

 

I remember if I apply for Extension of Stay within the country then there is no need for medical certificate and police report. 

So I assume the same applies to Non Immigrant OA application 

when done in BAngkok.

 

So i could do it in BAngkok, show them my bank statements with the assets abroad, and the only significant difference to extension of stay ( aka as retirement visa ) is that  I must leave the country from time to time .

 

Is my understanding correct ?

 

 

[HarryAbel]

1 hour ago, sfokevin said:

It would be helpful if the OP could expand on step #8... As many have reported this part being a nightmare if not impossible at their local immigration office

Not much to expand upon as far as I remember, and not difficult - it was a typical form, maybe the TM7, with a passport photo. I filled it in before I got a queue number. The IO went quickly through my documents and I had to sign some extra documents, all in thai script, that I guess makes me accountable for any misconduct. I got a receipt with my next appointment date stamped on it, ca 15 days. When back at that date I got my passport stamped, with a permission to stay for 3 months, while the 800K was in the bank.

 

Edit, sorry for not remembering the form name, I just explained my purpose to the information peeps, and they handed me the form.

Edited September 25, 2019 by HarryAbel

[phuketrichard]

Quote

Early retirement visa....

this confused me, as you got a retirement extension and as your over 50, its not really an EARLY  xxxx

which to me would have meant ur not yet 50

[mlkik]

2 hours ago, Peter Denis said:

Hi HarryAbel,

I am just curious for the reason that you did not apply for a Non Imm OA Visa in your home-country

That's a much simpler route than what you did (applying for a Tourist Visa in your home-country and converting it in Thailand to a Permission to Stay as retiree), and it has several additional benefits (like no need for parking 800.000/400.000 THB in a Thai bank-account).

But seeing how meticulously you went through the complex process, there must for sure be a reason you opted for that route.

 

 

I thought It is only a much simpler route if you are old enough to qualify. Correct me if I am wrong but when I did the same thing as the OP it was the only way to get the Non O and extention based on retirement as I was only 50 years old and not in receipt of my UK state pension.

Please could someone confirm as this could confuse things for people not yet in receipt of a pension.

[Peter Denis]

23 minutes ago, Krupps said:

Thanks for the hyperlink 

it says I can get the Non Immigrant OA visa done in my home country or in Bangkok.

Indeed, the link to the MFA webpage < http://www.mfa.go.th/main/en/services/4908/15385-Non-Immigrant-Visa-"O-A"-(Long-Stay).html > states that the application can be done in your home-country but also in Bangkok.  

That you could also do it is Bangkok is new for me.

 

27 minutes ago, Krupps said:

I remember if I apply for Extension of Stay within the country then there is no need for medical certificate and police report. 

So I assume the same applies to Non Immigrant OA application when done in BAngkok.

 No, the requirements in the link clearly state that you need both a medical certificate and police clearance FROM YOUR HOME-COUNTRY.

 

29 minutes ago, Krupps said:

So i could do it in BAngkok, show them my bank statements with the assets abroad, and the only significant difference to extension of stay ( aka as retirement visa ) is that  I must leave the country from time to time .

Yes to first part.

But the difference between a Non Imm  OA Visa and and extension of stay for retirement, is not that you must leave the country from time to time.  With a Non Imm OA Visa and later extensions you can stay in Thailand continuously provided your do your 90 day reports after each consecutive 90 days of stay in the Kingdom. 

Another difference is that during the 1 year validity of the Non Imm OA Visa you can enter/leave the country as often as you wish without a need for re-entry permits.

 

 

 

 

[Peter Denis]

13 minutes ago, mlkik said:

I thought It is only a much simpler route if you are old enough to qualify. Correct me if I am wrong but when I did the same thing as the OP it was the only way to get the Non O and extention based on retirement as I was only 50 years old and not in receipt of my UK state pension.

Please could someone confirm as this could confuse things for people not yet in receipt of a pension.

It is indeed possible that in UK when you do not yet have your pension yet, that the Non Imm OA Visa - retiree route is blocked.

But Thai Embassies in different countries have differing requirements, and enforcement could be different too.

I am from Belgium, and when I applied for a Non Imm OA retiree Visa I was +50 years of age, but not yet on pension (will go on early retirement in course of next year).  But I did have (much) more than the equivalent of 800.000 THB on my savings-account.

As I simply quit my job, I did not have any other source of income than that big savings-account, so indeed - normally I would not have met the requirements.

However, when I quit my job before my pension, I made my own 1-man company as that allowed me to be fully covered by Belgian social security.  And that proved to be very helpful because this allowed me in the 3 months before my application for a Non Imm OA Visa to send the equivalent of +65.000 THB from my own 1-man company to my personal account.  So that demonstrated that I had a steady income-stream, and luckily there was no requirement that it had to come from pension.  And that last requirement could be the crux in other countries.

Actually I do not know whether that income approach I used was really required/enforced, because there was also some confusion in the requirements whether that was needed above the +800.000 THB in the bank.

Anyway, I am surely not complaining because I managed to get the Non Imm OA - retiree Visa in my home country before being officially retired with pension-income.

So once again, it are slightly different requirements and their enforcement, that could mean the difference between being eligible or not.

Edited September 25, 2019 by Peter Denis

[ubonjoe]

57 minutes ago, Krupps said:

it says I can get the Non Immigrant OA visa done in my home country or in Bangkok.

 

That is incorrect info. You can only apply for it in your home country or one where you have legal residence.

It should of been written that you can apply for a extension at immigration,

[dotpoom]

14 hours ago, worgeordie said:

 

Can't get rid of the above...don't know how it got there...

   Anyway, to my point...I'm confused as to why you say you got the extention "early".....You waited two months after the money was lodged in the bank...that is the same amount of time as it takes everybody...not any earlier than others can do it?

[HarryAbel]

5 minutes ago, dotpoom said:

Can't get rid of the above...don't know how it got there...

   Anyway, to my point...I'm confused as to why you say you got the extention "early".....You waited two months after the money was lodged in the bank...that is the same amount of time as it takes everybody...not any earlier than others can do it?

Early - as in “not old enough to receive a monthly pension”.

[HarryAbel]

2 hours ago, Peter Denis said:

With your present Permission to Stay long-term retiree status, you will need to keep the money in your thai bank-account (= minimum 800.000 THB, 2 months before till 3 months after application for extension of stay, and rest of the time not under 400.000 THB even once).

I got the impression by what the IO told me that there where no need to keep any money at any bank account, once the extension was approved, I even asked about this specifically. Of course, I do not have this in writing. 

[seancbk]

4 hours ago, HarryAbel said:

Thanks, the visa-stamp in my passport says RETIREMENT, and the re-entry stamp says NON-IMM, what should I call my visa to be correct?

 

You have a Non-Immigrant Visa and an extension of stay based on retirement.