O Visa Requirements Pattaya Immigration

[1]

Hoping someone has recently being two Pattaya immigration to apply for an O Visa and can just share what is required. 

 

Personally I don't need the obvious stuff like proof of money in the bank or copies of the main page etc of your passport. But rather the less obvious stuff. But for the sake of others who may read this topic if you're happy to mention everything that would be great.

 

Also any tips and tricks you may have discovered along the way always appreciated.

 

Thanks

[johng]

Sorry, but  do you mean to got to Jomtien immigration to ask for extension of  your permission to stay   with an O visa  because of retirement, marriage or some other reason ?

 

Dress nicely, try not to be hung over and dishevelled and no swearing..no matter how much runaround they give you ????

[1]

2 hours ago, johng said:

Sorry, but  do you mean to got to Jomtien immigration to ask for extension of  your permission to stay   with an O visa  because of retirement, marriage or some other reason ?

No I mean making application for an O Visa from a visa-free entry into Thailand.

[johng]

1 hour ago, 1 said:

No I mean making application for an O Visa from a visa-free entry into Thailand.

I think you will ned to do that in Bangkok.   best to ask @ubonjoe

[jacko45k]

58 minutes ago, johng said:

I think you will ned to do that in Bangkok.   best to ask @ubonjoe

He can do it where he lives... Pattaya can certainly do one.

[1]

I guess I should have broadened the question to ask for OA Visa requirements also as I guess they are the same. doh!

[Andrew Dwyer]

1 minute ago, 1 said:

I guess I should have broadened the question to ask for OA Visa requirements also as I guess they are the same. doh!

OA is only available from your home country ( or a country you have residence ).

Stick with the O, far better option now with Health insurance mandatory for the OA.

[1]

1 minute ago, Andrew Dwyer said:

OA is only available from your home country ( or a country you have residence ).

Stick with the O, far better option now with Health insurance mandatory for the OA.

Thanks for that it had been bothering me how it was that I would get to choose this option of the O Visa.

[soisanuk]

You can apply for a Non-Immigrant O Visa in Pattaya at Jomtien Immigration Office. Fee is 2,000 baht. If using 800,000 in Thai bank, you will need to show it came from outside of Thailand.  You will also need a minimum of 15 days remaining on your current permission to stay - if not already done, a one time extension of the initial permission to 30 days can be obtained - fee 1,900 baht. They have to send to Bangkok for approval and Bangkok Immigration requires the 15 days to process.

 

In addition to photo and passport page copies, you will need documents to show your current residence such Rental Agreement, Housebook, Company documents if Company owned, etc.   Copies of your Thai bank book identity page and pages showing 800,000 on deposit. Also a letter from your Thai bank verifying the account and the balance.

[1]

2 hours ago, soisanuk said:

You can apply for a Non-Immigrant O Visa in Pattaya at Jomtien Immigration Office. Fee is 2,000 baht. If using 800,000 in Thai bank,

Thanks thanks for that information.

 

I'm using the 65 thousand a month method. Not sure if you have anything to offer it with regards to that?

 

I'm not sure if that presents any more problems. I gather I will have to use a bank letter to prove its origins which appears to be the case all the way along.

 

My main concern is if they ask for proof of income in my home country because it's not a pension but rather dividends and Rental income which can be a bit sporadic.

[Max69xl]

On 2/27/2020 at 1:45 PM, johng said:

I think you will ned to do that in Bangkok.   best to ask @ubonjoe

He's talking about a conversion from a 30 days Visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O Visa. Any local immigration office will work.

Edited February 28, 2020 by Max69xl

[Max69xl]

1 hour ago, 1 said:

Thanks thanks for that information.

 

I'm using the 65 thousand a month method. Not sure if you have anything to offer it with regards to that?

 

I'm not sure if that presents any more problems. I gather I will have to use a bank letter to prove its origins which appears to be the case all the way along.

 

My main concern is if they ask for proof of income in my home country because it's not a pension but rather dividends and Rental income which can be a bit sporadic.

What country do you come from? 

There are different requirements if you can get an income letter from your embassy or not. 

[1]

24 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

What country do you come from? 

There are different requirements if you can get an income letter from your embassy or not. 

Thanks I'm Australian.

 

That's the reason I'm exploring these things now because that option was taken away from me last year.

[jimn]

15 minutes ago, 1 said:

Thanks I'm Australian.

 

That's the reason I'm exploring these things now because that option was taken away from me last year.

Mods. This thread needs to be moved to the Visa section so @ubonjoe can advise the OP.

[1]

3 minutes ago, jimn said:

Mods. This thread needs to be moved to the Visa section so @ubonjoe can advise the OP.

Sorry I am familiar with his expertise but I thought it more relevant to bring it to the Pattaya forum as I'm specifically after information pertaining to the Pattaya office.

 

But if they're the rules here no problem.

[jimn]

5 hours ago, 1 said:

Sorry I am familiar with his expertise but I thought it more relevant to bring it to the Pattaya forum as I'm specifically after information pertaining to the Pattaya office.

 

But if they're the rules here no problem.

You are not getting the best advice in this section. I am assuming you are wishing to get a retirement extension as you mentioned 65k. As far as I know you need 800k on the day you apply for the Non O in a Thai bank account with proof of funds from overseas and fee 2,000 baht, you will not get the transfer to non O via the 65k method. When you wish to convert to an extension of stay you can use the 65k method but it has to come from overseas and you need it transferred into a Thai bank account monthly for 12 months although I assume as its your first extension only a few transfers could be accepted. You will need proof of this from the Thai bank. As I said you are selling yourself short, I have made a stab at it but UJ is your man or Peter Denis.

[Max69xl]

15 hours ago, 1 said:

Sorry I am familiar with his expertise but I thought it more relevant to bring it to the Pattaya forum as I'm specifically after information pertaining to the Pattaya office.

 

But if they're the rules here no problem.

Your problem when converting a visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O based on retirement will be the non existent income letter. You need proof of your pension incl the amount/month (at least 65k) from your pension provider.  That certificate has to be stamped and signed and on top of that you need it to be certified in Bangkok. Without this certified letter you won't be able to use the 65k/month method for the conversion. 

[Peter Denis]

47 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

Your problem when converting a visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O based on retirement will be the non existent income letter. You need proof of your pension incl the amount/month (at least 65k) from your pension provider.  That certificate has to be stamped and signed and on top of that you need it to be certified in Bangkok. Without this certified letter you won't be able to use the 65k/month method for the conversion. 

Hi Max, afaik what you write is not correct.

When opting to use the monthly-fund-transfer method (sometimes referred to as income method) there is no need for the embassy certified income letter (which as an Australian citizen he cannot get anyway). 

But indeed, when he shows monthly transfers of at least 65.000 THB with foreign origins proven, his local IO can always ask for the source of that income.

However that does not necessarily have to come from a pension. 

The Police Order states:

The key word is 'income' but that income can come from any source and not limited to the examples cited in the Police Order.

So in actual practice it would not matter, as long as the monthly transfers of minimum 65.000 THB came from foreign origin.  And when queried about the origins you could show some source of income (e.g. a large savings account on your name).

 

Edited February 29, 2020 by Peter Denis

[soisanuk]

18 hours ago, 1 said:

Thanks thanks for that information.

 

I'm using the 65 thousand a month method. Not sure if you have anything to offer it with regards to that?

 

I'm not sure if that presents any more problems. I gather I will have to use a bank letter to prove its origins which appears to be the case all the way along.

 

My main concern is if they ask for proof of income in my home country because it's not a pension but rather dividends and Rental income which can be a bit sporadic.

I'm not sure you can use the 65k per month for getting a Non-O Visa unless you have an income certification letter from your Embassy, which is not available for Australians (or folks from UK & USA).  Perhaps someone else may know more about that.

 

For getting the one year extension after you have the Non-O, you can show a transfer of 65k per month from outside of Thailand into your Thai bank for a couple of months for initial (first time application for the extension).  Although under the rules, Dividend income, etc. is a an acceptable source, Jomtien Immigration has been known to ask for evidence of pension - but I can't speak to what happens if you don't have one (I provided one as part of my last extension package). They also required in addition to the bank letter verifying the account, another bank letter listing the foreign transfers into my Thai bank account - in my case, needed the full preceding 12 months as it was a renewal, not a first time application.

[scubascuba3]

8 minutes ago, soisanuk said:

I'm not sure you can use the 65k per month for getting a Non-O Visa unless you have an income certification letter from your Embassy, which is not available for Australians (or folks from UK & USA).  Perhaps someone else may know more about that.

 

 

This is what Jomtien indicated to me (UK) last year but people may have more recent experience

Edited February 29, 2020 by scubascuba3

[Peter Denis]

8 minutes ago, soisanuk said:

..

Although under the rules, Dividend income, etc. is a an acceptable source, Jomtien Immigration has been known to ask for evidence of pension - but I can't speak to what happens if you don't have one (I provided one as part of my last extension package).

...

Thanks for clarification. 

Good to know that Jomtien immigration asks for evidence of pension when applying for a Non Imm O Visa using the monthly-income-transfer method. 

But would be interesting to know whether also other sources of income are accepted (as stipulated in the Police Order).

[soisanuk]

2 hours ago, Peter Denis said:

Thanks for clarification. 

Good to know that Jomtien immigration asks for evidence of pension when applying for a Non Imm O Visa using the monthly-income-transfer method. 

But would be interesting to know whether also other sources of income are accepted (as stipulated in the Police Order).

Agree - but so far, the fellow expats I have heard from re their renewal of extension at Jomtien using the monthly income method, they all had a document from their pension provider.  It will be of interest to hear from anyone that received or were denied an extension due to not having such a document.

[1]

Just found this on the Pattaya City Expats website. But not a 100% sure what it adds.

 

 

 

Link to doc Page 13

https://www.pattayacityexpatsclub.com/expats/docs/EnteringThailand.pdf

Edited February 29, 2020 by 1

[Max69xl]

On 2/29/2020 at 4:31 PM, 1 said:

Just found this on the Pattaya City Expats website. But not a 100% sure what it adds.

 

 

 

Link to doc Page 13

https://www.pattayacityexpatsclub.com/expats/docs/EnteringThailand.pdf

That doc is about the 1 year extension. Those requirements differs a bit compared to the conversion from a 30 days visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O Visa. Desk 7 at Jomtien Immigration which handles the conversions are very strict regarding the requirements. The two ladies working there are not very friendly sometime. There is a document checklist available at the front desk. 

[soisanuk]

12 hours ago, Max69xl said:

That doc is about the 1 year extension. Those requirements differs a bit compared to the conversion from a 30 days visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O Visa. Desk 7 at Jomtien Immigration which handles the conversions are very strict regarding the requirements. The two ladies working there are not very friendly sometime. There is a document checklist available at the front desk. 

That document mentions going to their Extension of Stay section for more information (http://www.pattayacityexpatsclub.com/expats/docs/ExtendingStay.pdf) - On the page that comes up, select from contents: Extension for the Purpose of Retirement or Being the Spouse of the Retiree

You will see the following:

Quote

NOTE: If you entered Thailand on Visa Exempt status or with a Tourist Visa, you can apply for a Non-Immigrant “O” Visa at the  Thai  Immigration  Office  for  the  geographical  area  of  your  residence PROVIDED you  meet the  age  and financial resource requirements (See  the information on the  Two-Step  Process  for Visa  and  Extension  below).   Chonburi  (Pattaya)  Immigration  will  take  your application  and  documents for  a  Non-Immigrant  O  Visa and  senditto  Bangkok  Immigration  for processing and return to Pattaya Immigration Office. (Emphasis added)

 

[1]

18 hours ago, Max69xl said:

That doc is about the 1 year extension. Those requirements differs a bit compared to the conversion from a 30 days visa exempt to a 90 days Non-immigrant O Visa. Desk 7 at Jomtien Immigration which handles the conversions are very strict regarding the requirements. The two ladies working there are not very friendly sometime. There is a document checklist available at the front desk. 

I don't think that's the case at all as it seems to be referring specifically to the O Visa in that section that I have shown. 

 

Having said that I have just returned from Chonburi immigration I was told that to change from a tourist exempt Visa to an O Visa I could only use the 800 000 in the bank method and not the monthly method. 

 

 

[1]

Okay so I thought I'd do something unusual and I went to the actual Thailand immigration website and I think I have found the information I am looking for with regards to the proof of income.

https://www.immigration.go.th/content/service_80

 

I have included a screenshot below and highlighted a section. You can see that it is listed under the wrong heading like most of them are.

 

So from my reading of this unless you are from a country that the Embassy still provides proof of income documents you need 800000 in the bank.

 

I'm just tagging you @Peter Denis Because I think this pertains to your road map though I will be happily corrected.

 

 

 

 

[ubonjoe]

16 minutes ago, 1 said:

So from my reading of this unless you are from a country that the Embassy still provides proof of income documents you need 800000 in the bank.

The website has not been updated to show the option of transferring funds into the country to prove your income.

It is allowed but not shown.

This one from another immigration website does not mention it either.

 https://division1.immigration.go.th/download/1551323081128.pdf

[1]

37 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

The website has not been updated to show the option of transferring funds into the country to prove your income.

It is allowed but not shown.

This one from another immigration website does not mention it either.

 https://division1.immigration.go.th/download/1551323081128.pdf

Thanks I had seen that information. 

 

But my concern is that the verbal information that I received today from Pattaya immigration said that only 800,000 was acceptable. 65000 per month was not when coming from Visa exempt Status.

[ubonjoe]

13 minutes ago, 1 said:

But my concern is that the verbal information that I received today from Pattaya immigration said that only 800,000 was acceptable. 65000 per month was not when coming from Visa exempt Status.

Pattaya/Jomtien immigration are known for making it difficult to apply for a non immigrant visa.

The even make it difficult if you have proof from your embassy. They have asked for the signature on them to verified by Department of Consular Affairs in Bangkok. 

Also the 800k baht in the bank for 2 or 3 months.

The proof of income by way of transfers into the country is shown in a police order so it should be accepted for a visa application.

How many months of transfers did you have to show?