On 10/11/2020 at 7:14 PM, DrJack54 said:

Do not be confused by the poor choice of the word Elite. It's a tourist visa. 

It's actually a Privelege Entry (PE) visa (though the TE website says it is a tourist visa) which is once again being used to get COE's and all the rest so Elite Visa holders stuck outside can return to Thailand.  TR (tourist) visa holders are not now eligible to come to Thailand.

Edited October 13, 20205 yr by Kelsall

On 10/10/2020 at 4:31 PM, digger70 said:

Yea, they don't get too many takers so they have to put up the Fee to make more money.

True to the point of the Thai business model.  Raise the prices when your short customers to make up for the loss in customers.

On 10/12/2020 at 10:38 AM, thaiclan said:

There is a fair amount of ill-will towards Elite visa from many members here, and so I'll throw in another view.

Firstly I think the name itself just rubs people up the wrong way, but the visa itself is a brilliant problem-solver for people under 50 who do not want to marry or work in Thailand.  It has been brilliant for my own family, even my (at the time) 7 year old had one because she was home-schooled and therefore not eligible to stay in the country without an education visa.

As for the current problem with returning home, it isn't Elite's fault. The hold up is with MFA.  Like someone here posted, it isn't really a visa for 'Elite' it is just another tourist visa albeit for 5 years and some other things.  Retirement visa holders also cannot return at the moment which is ridiculous.  

 

As for the recent increase in price, whilst I'm not going to enjoy shelling out more money when mine expires I still think its great value and I can also understand why they have put prices up.  The demand HAS increased -especially from the Chinese (and Hong Kongers).  One of the things Covid-19 has done is encourage people to look at other places to live.  Many people for the first time have seen that Thailand offers EV's and makes it hassle free to live here or hop in and out of here.
I know several people in Singapore (where I work) who have heard via Covid-19 articles about the Thai Elite visa and they are keen to get one because their lives are changing and no need to work at an office or maybe just take early retirement or a few years out.  Many reasons.  If you are earning in HK, Singapore and other expensive places then 100k a year for a hassle-free visa is not such a stretch.

Whilst from inside Thailand we have all peaked behind the veneer and have our various gripes, it is still a wonderful place to live and Elite will have no shortage of new members, however like most of the tourists to Thailand they are now more Asian faces than Caucasian.

Don't forget too that when Elite first came out it was 1 million baht and stayed that price for a few years, they then launched the 500k Easy Access Elite which removes the trappings but still provides a hassle-free visa.

 

So all in all I do understand Elite raising their prices. It makes sense from a business perspective as they have no competition in the under 50 bracket, demand has increased and in general people have more money than ever before (especially the Chinese). Thailand still holds a good image from the view of those looking in from the outside - especially the Chinese.

 

Maybe they should re-name it to a Chinese word though ????

If the new price is 600k for 5 years, why not shell out an extra 400k and get 20 years with the Elite Superiority Extension?

13 hours ago, Kelsall said:

It's actually a Privelege Entry (PE) visa (though the TE website says it is a tourist visa) which is once again being used to get COE's and all the rest so Elite Visa holders stuck outside can return to Thailand.  TR (tourist) visa holders are not now eligible to come to Thailand.

I'm 45.  What do you think is the best visa to get?

13 hours ago, Kelsall said:

It's actually a Privelege Entry (PE) visa (though the TE website says it is a tourist visa) which is once again being used to get COE's and all the rest so Elite Visa holders stuck outside can return to Thailand.  TR (tourist) visa holders are not now eligible to come to Thailand.

 

2 minutes ago, ExpatOK said:

I'm 45.  What do you think is the best visa to get?

Well, that depends on a lot of things: Your financial situation, how much you like Thailand, if you're ready to make a comimitment to Thailand, the virus, etc.  If you want to come to Thailand for a long time and don't want to wait until 2022 or later, I'd go with one of the Thailand Elite visas, depending again on your financial situation.  If you're not sure or have limited resources, I'd just hold off and see how things go.  If I were 45 and making good money online I'd go for the 20 year Elite Superiority Extension for 1M THB, jump through all the hoops to get in line, and come here.  Once in there would be little to no hassle for 20 years.  But that's just me.  Everyone has to decide for themselves.