New Non-Imm O-A Visa Application From UK: Financial evidence showing monthly income of not less than 65,000 THB (approx. £1,625)

[Carrbhoy]

20 hours ago, Tanoshi said:

Read the terms and conditions of your UK banker.

You need to have a registered UK address to open an account in the UK, however there is usually no conditions from maintaining that account when living abroad.

I'm with Nationwide, no such issues.

 

Just looking into the UK banking further.

Extract from Nationwide FlexBasic Account T&Cs below:

Closing The Account

60. We may close your account by telling you in writing at least 2 months before we close it where: a) there have been no transactions on your account for at least 24 consecutive months; or b) you are no longer legally resident in the EEA;

 

What Current account do you have with Nationwide?

 

[Tanoshi]

4 hours ago, stuandjulie said:

A tad pedantic, permission to stay, extension, in effect it has the same result, I didn't use an agent at all, presumption and pedantry in one sentence ????

Only the Non Imm O ME would permit the possibility to stay 15 months.

Permission of stay is what you are granted on entry and that is what you extend.

An extension of your permission of stay - nothing pedantic in that.

 

[Tanoshi]

3 hours ago, Carrbhoy said:

What Current account do you have with Nationwide?

FlexDirect, but I use a UK address.

[UKresonant]

On 3/5/2021 at 9:24 PM, Carrbhoy said:

 

Thanks for your reply and your generous offer to take the time to visit the bank on Monday.

 

Note your suggestion - it is complicated my end - need to balance potential monthly rental income v. keeping an empty property for the purposes of having a UK address. Despite the issues and risks not having a UK address would cause down the line, I think I will need to manage those Risks in due course.

 

Look forward to hearing from you next week. Any clarification on the bank account queries will be greatly appreciated.

 

 

"....monthly rental income v. keeping an empty property for the purposes of having a UK address...."

 

Could a property be a rent a room, just you are out a lot ????. If you can find a reliable renter.

 

....The Rent a Room Scheme lets you earn up to a threshold of £7,500 per year tax-free from letting out furnished accommodation in your home....

[smylee52]

On 3/4/2021 at 10:51 PM, Tanoshi said:

 

As far as financial evidence for the Thai Embassy is concerned, a statement from your Pension provider detailing your monthly income should be sufficient. 

 

To be perfectly frank, based on your future intentions, I wouldn't embark on a plan yet but keep all possible options open for the time being, and re-examine the situation again beginning of August.

 

Personally I'm not an advocate for the Non O-A Visa since they introduced the mandatory Health Insurance requirement, which is also required for applying for annual extensions based on retirement.

My preference if you intend to stay long term/permanently in Thailand would be the Non O Visa which does not require the mandatory Health Insurance for future extensions of stay in Thailand.

 

The Non O-A can only be applied for in a Country where you have citizenship or permanent residency status.

The Non O can be obtained in your home Country, a Thai Embassy/Consulate in a neighbouring Country to Thailand, or from Thai Immigration if entering VE or on a TV.

 

I have been on the Non O for several years and qualify with pension income accompanied with  embassy

letter . New wrinkle this year at Jomtien immigration was I also had to provide a copy of my previous years

tax return . Thankfully I was able to print off of the internet so no big hardship just another minor annoyance honest people endure because of the shady characters .

[Carrbhoy]

6 hours ago, smylee52 said:

I have been on the Non O for several years and qualify with pension income accompanied with  embassy

letter . New wrinkle this year at Jomtien immigration was I also had to provide a copy of my previous years

tax return . Thankfully I was able to print off of the internet so no big hardship just another minor annoyance honest people endure because of the shady characters .

 

Thanks for sharing. Good to know. I'll print off a copy of my last Tax Return just in case. The figures will tie up - no issues.

 

I'm probably going to go down the same route but will be using the Pension Income accompanied with the Pension statement from the provider (I understand for UK the embassy letter is now no longer available).

 

Re monthly transfers, I've been advised to keep my UK bank account and transfer min. of 65000 THB each month. To ensure these transfers meet the Foreign Income Source, what wording do you use eg 'UK Pension Non Imm 0 Monthly Transfer'? Also, do you use TransferWise / Other?

CB

 

[Carrbhoy]

11 hours ago, UKresonant said:

 

"....monthly rental income v. keeping an empty property for the purposes of having a UK address...."

 

Could a property be a rent a room, just you are out a lot ????. If you can find a reliable renter.

 

....The Rent a Room Scheme lets you earn up to a threshold of £7,500 per year tax-free from letting out furnished accommodation in your home....

 

Good suggestion - thanks. Something for me to think about as an alternative.

 

[Carrbhoy]

19 hours ago, Tanoshi said:

FlexDirect, but I use a UK address.

 

Thanks for clarifying. I'll read more T&Cs for the other big banks and building societies and see if I can find an account that fits my requirements.

 

[Guest jonzboy]

On 3/5/2021 at 5:53 PM, Carrbhoy said:

 

I'm with Intelligent Finance - just checked the T&Cs and unfortunately they will close my account if they (when they) find out I have moved abroad.

 

I'll move to Nationwide! Added to the key items to complete.

 

It's wise to research this further.  A few years ago I was moving from UK to Hong Kong (I'm now back in UK).  I wanted to keep my bank account open (HSBC - no problem) but holding investments wherever they may be in UK can be problematic.  I contacted Hargreaves and Lansdowne about this, basically you can open and hold an investment account if you are UK resident, but once you leave you cannot add to the account (as I recall).  Gov.uk advice is the same for all ISA vehicles.

[Carrbhoy]

12 minutes ago, jonzboy said:

It's wise to research this further.  A few years ago I was moving from UK to Hong Kong (I'm now back in UK).  I wanted to keep my bank account open (HSBC - no problem) but holding investments wherever they may be in UK can be problematic.  I contacted Hargreaves and Lansdowne about this, basically you can open and hold an investment account if you are UK resident, but once you leave you cannot add to the account (as I recall).  Gov.uk advice is the same for all ISA vehicles.

 

Thanks for sharing - I'll take a look at HSBC for my bank account. I did check First Direct (an HSBC sub.) and their T&Cs said no for outside EEA (or UK).

 

I will check out the other main Investment players - I suspect Vanguard UK, Interactive Investor etc will be the same as H&L. I actually thought it would be close account rather than Hold so at least that is some good news.

 

[treetops]

1 hour ago, Carrbhoy said:

To ensure these transfers meet the Foreign Income Source, what wording do you use eg 'UK Pension Non Imm 0 Monthly Transfer'? Also, do you use TransferWise / Other?

 

If you do a SWIFT transfer it'll automatically show as an international transfer which is what you want.

 

If you use Transferwise to a Bangkok Bank account select Funds for long term stay in Thailand (or words to that effect) as the reason for transfer.  It's the last choice in the pull down menu.

 

If your using Transferwise to another Thai bank it's still possible but needs a bit more work.

[Tanoshi]

2 hours ago, Carrbhoy said:

Re monthly transfers, I've been advised to keep my UK bank account and transfer min. of 65000 THB each month. To ensure these transfers meet the Foreign Income Source, what wording do you use eg 'UK Pension Non Imm 0 Monthly Transfer'? Also, do you use TransferWise / Other?

Thai bank branches don't have a SWIFT code, only the HQ's of the banks, therefore all transfers go to the HQ of the bank, who then transfer to your branch. The first 3 digits of your Thai bank account number identify the branch.

 

Indeed, most use Transferwise (or Wise) being their new name.

Wise have just 3 banking partners in Thailand these being Bangkok, Kasikorn and TMB banks.

When selecting the reason of transfer, as @treetops advised, use the very last option 'funds for long term stay in Thailand'. Wise will then pay through their corresponding matching partner.

i.e. BKK > BKK, KK > KK, TMB > TMB.

 

Bangkok Bank however are the only bank that notify the branch of the source of the transfer, hence it is coded FTT (Foreign Telex Transfer) in the Passbook and International on local statements.

Online banking or branch statements are limited to 6 months statements.

For 12 month statements they must be ordered from the HQ branch.

 

In the cases of Kasikorn and TMB, the HQ's do not notify the branch of the source of the transfer, hence coded as 'local' transfers in the Passbook and local statements. In this case you need to request a 'credit advice' receipt from the branch as proof of an overseas transfer. Alternatively a 12 month statement from the HQ will provide the required 'International' transfer coding.

 

If you bank with any other bank than the above 3 mentioned, using Wise, the transfers will always be paid through either their BKK, KK, or TMB partners, again coded as 'local' transfers.

In this case, where the bank it's transferred through, is different to the bank you have an account with, you need to request a 'Foreign transaction' form from the the receiving Thai bank that made the transfer, which will always be either BKK, KK, or TMB.

 

In the words of the Meerkat, Aleksandr Orlov 'Simples'.

 

 

[Carrbhoy]

9 hours ago, treetops said:

 

If you do a SWIFT transfer it'll automatically show as an international transfer which is what you want.

 

If you use Transferwise to a Bangkok Bank account select Funds for long term stay in Thailand (or words to that effect) as the reason for transfer.  It's the last choice in the pull down menu.

 

If your using Transferwise to another Thai bank it's still possible but needs a bit more work.

 

Thanks Treetops - I'll try to open an account with Bangkok post and follow the Option you have referred to. Another part of the process understood. 

[Carrbhoy]

7 hours ago, Tanoshi said:

Thai bank branches don't have a SWIFT code, only the HQ's of the banks, therefore all transfers go to the HQ of the bank, who then transfer to your branch. The first 3 digits of your Thai bank account number identify the branch.

 

Indeed, most use Transferwise (or Wise) being their new name.

Wise have just 3 banking partners in Thailand these being Bangkok, Kasikorn and TMB banks.

When selecting the reason of transfer, as @treetops advised, use the very last option 'funds for long term stay in Thailand'. Wise will then pay through their corresponding matching partner.

i.e. BKK > BKK, KK > KK, TMB > TMB.

 

Bangkok Bank however are the only bank that notify the branch of the source of the transfer, hence it is coded FTT (Foreign Telex Transfer) in the Passbook and International on local statements.

Online banking or branch statements are limited to 6 months statements.

For 12 month statements they must be ordered from the HQ branch.

 

In the cases of Kasikorn and TMB, the HQ's do not notify the branch of the source of the transfer, hence coded as 'local' transfers in the Passbook and local statements. In this case you need to request a 'credit advice' receipt from the branch as proof of an overseas transfer. Alternatively a 12 month statement from the HQ will provide the required 'International' transfer coding.

 

If you bank with any other bank than the above 3 mentioned, using Wise, the transfers will always be paid through either their BKK, KK, or TMB partners, again coded as 'local' transfers.

In this case, where the bank it's transferred through, is different to the bank you have an account with, you need to request a 'Foreign transaction' form from the the receiving Thai bank that made the transfer, which will always be either BKK, KK, or TMB.

 

In the words of the Meerkat, Aleksandr Orlov 'Simples'.

 

 

 

As always Tanoshi - thank you for the detailed response. Much appreciated.

 

I'll go with Bangkok Bank and have noted the intricacies re 12 month statement for future reference.

 

Another part of the Visa and Money Transfer processes understood. I'm trying to stay calm and break it down into byte size pieces. My attempt at keeping it 'Simples'. Has Thailand ever heard of Six Sigma? I'd happily do a Process Improvement consultancy role for 6 months (or Years!) and sort this End To End debacle out for them!!

 

  

 

[Peter Denis]

3 hours ago, Carrbhoy said:

... I'll try to open an account with Bangkok post and follow the Option you have referred to. Another part of the process understood.

Since you are considering to enter Thailand VisaExempt or on 60-day Tourist Visa, you will not have the privilege of being 'picky' about which branch of Thai Bank would be willing to open an account for you.  I do agree that BangkokBank or KasikornBank would be the choice of preference (mainly because these two are PartnerBanks of WISE, and that they have a large network of branches).

But as Treetops correctly stated ANY Thai bank-branch will do, but it would require more effort from you when you need to meet the Imm office requirement of having to provide evidence of the foreign origin of the transfers you made.  By the way: that is only required once when using the Funds-in-Bank method for your initial 90-day Non Imm O Visa for reason of retirement application and not anymore after that.  However, when using the Monthly Income Transfer Method you would be confronted with that foreign origin requirement for each and every of the monthly transfers you would be doing (as well as providing evidence when requested of the SOURCE of those funds).

And it would not even be sure that you would be able to make use of that Monthly Income Transfer Method as some Imm Offices now require at least 12 months of such foreign-origin proven transfers at the moment of application for the Non Imm O Visa or the very first 1-year extension based on such Visa.  Obviously a ridiculous and impossible requirement for a first-time application,

but this is Thailand and Immigration logic works in mysterious ways...

[Peter Denis]

3 hours ago, Carrbhoy said:

... Has Thailand ever heard of Six Sigma? I'd happily do a Process Improvement consultancy role for 6 months (or Years!) and sort this End To End debacle out for them!!

As a former Business Excellence and Quality Management consultant, I can assure you that the concept of business process modelling and improvement (let alone SixSigma or Kaizen) is totally alien for Thai Immigration.

[pagan1]

3 hours ago, Peter Denis said:

As a former Business Excellence and Quality Management consultant, I can assure you that the concept of business process modelling and improvement (let alone SixSigma or Kaizen) is totally alien for Thai Immigration.

 

In my experience the Thai Immigration offices I have dealt with have been very efficient. My last two marriage extensions have been completed in 30 mins, cost very little and have been easy. Compare that with the shambles that is the UK Home Office ............perhaps they spent too much money on Business Excellence and Quality Management Consultants !!!

Just a thought .....(ex AMIQA, 6-Sigma, QM, LA etc,)