Extension.

[Roymac]

Hello, I was issued with a NON-IMM ``O`` visa on the 20th February, 2021. I think this is what is referred to as a 90 day STV.

The visa was issued bearing in mind that my local Medical Insurance covers me for 90 days from the day of my departure. 

I intend to travel to Thailand and arrive on the 1st March. 

My concern is that I will be compelled to purchase local Thai Medical cover when I apply for an extension of stay. My intention is to stay no longer than 90 days in total. Am I able to request an extension of stay for only the time remaining to complete the 90 days from my arrival date ?

Any suggestions welcomed. Thank you, Roy.

[Upnotover]

20th February 2021 has not arrived yet.

 

A non-O is not an STV.  On what basis did you get the non-O?  Marriage?  Retirement? 

 

You mention "90 days in total".  What do you mean, are you intending to leave Thailand and return?  Not easy to do at this time.  If not intending to leave then you wont need any extension as your non-O gives you a 90 day entry.

 

[Roymac]

Sorry Upnotover, the visa was issued on the 20th January. I lost my NON-IMM ``O-A`` visa based on retirement due to the pandemic and have been issued the 90 day visa instead. The visa commences 90 days from day of issue. I intend to stay 90 days and return later in the year for a further 3 to 4 months. THANK YOU.

[DrJack54]

4 minutes ago, Roymac said:

Sorry Upnotover, the visa was issued on the 20th January. I lost my NON-IMM ``O-A`` visa based on retirement due to the pandemic and have been issued the 90 day visa instead. The visa commences 90 days from day of issue. I intend to stay 90 days and return later in the year for a further 3 to 4 months. THANK YOU.

Sounds like you obtained a non O based on retirement. That gives you 90 day permission of stay upon entry to Thailand. That will require you spend 15 days in quarantine along with all the other requirements, COE etc.

Then you intend to repeat that process later in the year. At that time most likely nothing will have changed re quarantine etc.

Your plan imo is crazy.

[Upnotover]

Well, the first trip is not an issue, the visa does not "commence" 90 days from date of issue (the visa commenced on 20 January), your 90 day entry starts the day you arrive within the validity of the visa, i.e. before the "enter before" date.

 

What can be done for an extension might be more tricky.  You could get a full 12 month extension with THB800k in the bank but that seems pointless if you intend to leave and come back later.  You might just as well repeat the whole process later in the year with a new visa or perhaps a new OA and forget about extending on the first trip.

[Roymac]

DrJack, thank you for your reply. If  the 90 days start upon entry into Thailand then I will be good to go. The Embassy here said that it was effective upon issue. I guess it is all a little crazy, perhaps I should delay and come later for 4 or 5 months. 

[DrJack54]

2 minutes ago, Roymac said:

DrJack, thank you for your reply. If  the 90 days start upon entry into Thailand then I will be good to go. The Embassy here said that it was effective upon issue. I guess it is all a little crazy, perhaps I should delay and come later for 4 or 5 months. 

When you obtain a visa that is valid until a certain date, that enables you to enter Thailand prior to that date. Upon entry you will be given a stamp with an "admitted untill" date. In the case of a non O that would be 90 days from entry. 

Your post sounds like the visit is holiday. Postponing for 5 months will change nothing.

[Tanoshi]

6 minutes ago, Roymac said:

DrJack, thank you for your reply. If  the 90 days start upon entry into Thailand then I will be good to go. The Embassy here said that it was effective upon issue. I guess it is all a little crazy, perhaps I should delay and come later for 4 or 5 months. 

Visa validity is different from the period of stay.

Visa validity is the period during which a visa can be used to enter Thailand. The validity of a visa is granted with discretion by the Royal Thai Embassy or Royal Thai Consulate-General and is displayed on the visa sticker.

 

The period of stay is granted by an immigration officer upon arrival at the port of entry and in accordance with the type of visa. In your case the Non O allows a stay of 90 days from entry. The period of stay granted by the immigration officer is displayed on the arrival stamp. Travellers who wish to stay longer than such period may apply for extensions of stay at offices of the Immigration Bureau located in the provinces.

[Roymac]

Thank you Upnotover, I have been travelling in and out of Thailand on my NON-IMM ``OA``  for 10 years now staying for 3 to 6 months at a time. I meet all the criteria for the ``OA`` but the Thai Embassy insists on having an International or Thai medical insurance policy to cover me for a year. In the past I would use up my 90 days medical cover and top up with travel insurance for the remainder.

I am 74 years old and after 75 no one will insure me. So I need to decide soon if I want to live in Thailand full time.

[Roymac]

DrJack, indeed it is for holiday purposes and a delay of a few months may be prudent. One last thing will I be able to extend the visa beyond 90 days when in Thailand do you think?

???? Thank you.

[DrJack54]

6 hours ago, Roymac said:

DrJack, indeed it is for holiday purposes and a delay of a few months may be prudent. One last thing will I be able to extend the visa beyond 90 days when in Thailand do you think?

???? Thank you.

It's only my opinion re the non O-A.

Thinking in the past with your visits to Thailand that the non O-A was a very good visa for you. Personally I'm thinking that the non o (retirement) might be better option especially if you decide to retire to Thailand. Note...the extensions to non O do not require the nonsense Thai insurance.

This guy @Peter Denis can advise.

[ubonjoe]

6 hours ago, Roymac said:

One last thing will I be able to extend the visa beyond 90 days when in Thailand do you think?

A 90 day non-o visa entry can only be extended for one year if that is what you have.

At this time you may be able to apply for a 60 day covid 19 extension.

[Peter Denis]

7 hours ago, Roymac said:

... I have been travelling in and out of Thailand on my NON-IMM ``OA``  for 10 years now staying for 3 to 6 months at a time. I meet all the criteria for the ``OA`` but the Thai Embassy insists on having an International or Thai medical insurance policy to cover me for a year. In the past I would use up my 90 days medical cover and top up with travel insurance for the remainder.

I am 74 years old and after 75 no one will insure me. So I need to decide soon if I want to live in Thailand full time.

Meeting the mandatory IO-approved health-insurance requirement when applying for a Non Imm O-A Visa at the Thai Embassy/Consulate in your home-country is neither difficult nor expensive.

When you have foreign international insurance and your insurer is willing to fill-in/sign the Foreign Insurance Certificate, there will be no costs involved.

Alternatively you can opt for the cheapest Thai 'throw-away' insurance policy, being the LMG Plan-1 insurance (with 200K deductible).  You can subscribe to that insurance when you are not over 75 years of age, and the annual premium for a 74 year old is 11.400 THB.  That LMG insurance policy has the additional benefit that it does not require a medical to subscribe to it (any pre-existing conditions you tick on the application form will simply be excluded from the policy conditions).

>> I did sent you 2 comprehensive Guideline documents, the first with options on how to meet that mandatory health-insurance requirement, and the second one on how to apply for the LMG Plan-1 insurance (in case your foreign insurer is not willing/able to fill in/sign the FIC).

To access your PM messages just click the letter-icon next to your profile when logged in to the Forum.

[Peter Denis]

7 hours ago, Roymac said:

..., indeed it is for holiday purposes and a delay of a few months may be prudent. One last thing will I be able to extend the visa beyond 90 days when in Thailand do you think?

???? Thank you.

When you only intend to stay a couple of months in Thailand, you could - instead of going to the trouble of applying for the Non Imm O  or O-A Visa in your home-country - simply enter Thailand VisaExempt or on a 60-day Tourist Visa.  This will provide you with a 45 days or 60 days permission to stay on entry, and both of these can be extended without any hassle for a one-time 30 days at any local IO.

Currently there is also the option to apply for a 60-day covid-19 extension (it is as good as certain that these covid-19 extensions will be prolonged every 2 months - the current one being valid till end of March 2021).

It is only when you intend to stay really long-term in Thailand, that applying for a Non Imm O-A Visa in your home-country, or applying for the Non Imm O Visa once you are in Thailand, would be worth considering.