Am I eligible for Thai citizenship?

[lomtalay]

I wonder if anyone would be kind enough to help with this question?

I've lived and worked in Thailand for nearly 30 years. I worked at an international school for 26 years and then left to work at my present school (completing my second year now). 

I read that applicants need to have worked for an uninterrupted period of at least 3 years - Is this on present contract?

NB: I've been married to a Thai lady for 4 years and we have a child. My Thai is pretty good in all 4 skills. I'm just about to apply for a yellow tabien bahn.

Any help or advice greatly received!

Thanks!

 

[problemfarang]

Hi,

im not sure if your work time is effecting your status to become a thai.

But i believe you should be marry at least 5 years with your wife to apply. Thats what i have been told few months ago and i was married for 8 years. Also your age can help too if your up 50. 

I think that 3 years of work is not for being a thai citizen. You can only apply for permanent residency with that which is really expensive (around 950K)

There are sections you need to do to become a thai citizen in the test and you will get scores from those things. If you can do 50 or up you can be a thai.

good luck

if i was wrong about any info you guys please correct me.

[DrJack54]

OP, there is a thread something like "story of my Thai citizenship" 244 pages. Guessing most of your answers/advice are in that thread.

[ubonjoe]

You have to be working paying taxes for 3 consecutive years if married to a Thai to apply for Thai nationality. The minimum salary is 40k baht.

 

[Neeranam]

3 years uninterrupted WP and tax receipts is essential.

If you have that, it's a fairly easy process which took me exactly 3 years.

https://www.thaicitizenship.com/

[lomtalay]

Thanks for your replies - much appreciated!

I skimmed parts of the citizen story thread & thought I'd try a shortcut...

From what I've gleaned, I should be able to amass enough points with the 2 stumbling blocks possibly being:

1) I moved from my previous school (after 26 years) to my present school (2 years in August) - but this was without any interruption or break (ie: work permit was just transferred from one school to another).

2) I've been married for 4.5 years (5 years in June so not really a problem).

I score pretty well on the other criteria.

 

[lomtalay]

4 minutes ago, Neeranam said:

3 years uninterrupted WP and tax receipts is essential.

If you have that, it's a fairly easy process which took me exactly 3 years.

https://www.thaicitizenship.com/

Thanks! That's all I really need to know. 

[BritTim]

If your salary over the last few years was at least 40k per month, your chances should be excellent.

[lomtalay]

I'm just wondering how pedantic the authorities might be.

At my previous school (where I worked for 26 years) I was earning well over 100k/month.

Then, I did supply work for them (I thought I was going to retire but a couple of months later my wife got pregnant...) for a year (same work permit - but some months 30k+ & others 40k+).

Now, at my present school (completing my second year) I'm on just over 100k.

Does anyone know if the couple of months I dipped under 30k during my supply year mean that I won't qualify? 

Thanks again!

[BritTim]

38 minutes ago, lomtalay said:

I'm just wondering how pedantic the authorities might be.

At my previous school (where I worked for 26 years) I was earning well over 100k/month.

Then, I did supply work for them (I thought I was going to retire but a couple of months later my wife got pregnant...) for a year (same work permit - but some months 30k+ & others 40k+).

Now, at my present school (completing my second year) I'm on just over 100k.

Does anyone know if the couple of months I dipped under 30k during my supply year mean that I won't qualify? 

Thanks again!

Most likely, they just look at your annual earnings and tax payments.

[lomtalay]

6 minutes ago, BritTim said:

Most likely, they just look at your annual earnings and tax payments.

Sorry to labour the point - but if I AVERAGE over 40k/month for the tax year I should be okay? I probably only dropped below 40k a couple of times & (because I was supply from Sept-Aug) my average monthly wage will be well over 40k for the 2 years that were affected by supply work. 

[problemfarang]

im not sure if related or will help you but this is what happened to me;

when i was doing my non-o extension i had to show 40K min. and when we arrived to IO she throwed the 1 year bank statement to me and asked me to show and highlight the 40K income every month and gave me a yellow marker. Well i did 3 or 4 and she said ok thats enough. (khon kaen immigration)

i have a feeling thats what they will do, just check the amount, im pretty sure they will pass that 2-3 months.. wont even notice. when they see 100K many times im pretty sure they will say ok. I wouldnt worry too much, worth the try nothing to lose. go for it all things seem good enough. 

tax time is from JAN to JAN

but start to memorize king's song. thats the hardest part. There will be 5-10 committee members and around 30 listeners. they will give you mic and ask to sing the song. it is 5 points to do. you can pass it but they will deduct your 5 points. Also thai national anthem, again 5 points you can pass but again will lose 5 pts. Total 10

Edited March 11, 2021 by problemfarang

[lomtalay]

2 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

im not sure if related or will help you but this is what happened to me;

when i was doing my non-o extension i had to show 40K min. and when we arrived to IO she throwed the 1 year bank statement to me and asked me to show and highlight the 40K income every month and gave me a yellow marker. Well i did 3 or 4 and she said ok thats enough. (khon kaen immigration)

i have a feeling thats what they will do, just check the amount, im pretty sure they will pass that 2-3 months.. wont even notice. when they see 100K many times im pretty sure they will say ok. I wouldnt worry too much, worth the try nothing to lose. go for it all things seem good enough. 

but start to memorize king's song. thats the hardest part. There will be 5-10 committee members and around 30 listeners. they will give you mic and ask to sing the song. it is 5 points to do. you can pass it but they will deduct your 5 points. Also thai national anthem, again 5 points you can pass but again will lose 5 pts. Total 10

Thanks for this. Might need a few beers for Dutch courage before the anthem rendition!

[problemfarang]

16 minutes ago, lomtalay said:

Thanks for this. Might need a few beers for Dutch courage before the anthem rendition!

hi again, well i found this for you and its currently like this:

https://www.thaicitizenship.com/thai-citizenship-application-process/

 

you can visit the website have many info in other pages too.

 

im not sure if i can post the link or not, if i cannot post a link im sorry

Edited March 11, 2021 by problemfarang

[lomtalay]

7 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

hi again, well i found this for you and its currently like this:

https://www.thaicitizenship.com/thai-citizenship-application-process/

 

you can visit the website have many info in other pages too.

 

im not sure if i can post the link or not, if i cannot post a link im sorry

Thanks - I suppose it'll come down to whether they want 40k+ for every individual month or if they'll accept a year which will show well above 40k/month...

[problemfarang]

3 minutes ago, lomtalay said:

Thanks - I suppose it'll come down to whether they want 40k+ for every individual month or if they'll accept a year which will show well above 40k/month...

 

3 minutes ago, lomtalay said:

Thanks - I suppose it'll come down to whether they want 40k+ for every individual month or if they'll accept a year which will show well above 40k/month...

it says 40K monthly... not say anything about how long for.. might be 3 years because it says 3 yrs working time for married man

i really think you have nothing to scare.. 

PS: or you might want to spend max 30K for a lawyer and no headaches.. 

Edited March 11, 2021 by problemfarang

[lomtalay]

16 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

 

it says 40K monthly... not say anything about how long for.. might be 3 years because it says 3 yrs working time for married man

i really think you have nothing to scare.. 

PS: or you might want to spend max 30K for a lawyer and no headaches.. 

Really appreciate your input. Cheers!

[jackdd]

16 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

PS: or you might want to spend max 30K for a lawyer and no headaches.. 

Or you just call them and ask, 30k easily saved.

[lomtalay]

2 hours ago, jackdd said:

Or you just call them and ask, 30k easily saved.

Yes, I'll do that. Do you - or does anyone else - know if the best place to call is my local district office? Or another place? Thanks

[jackdd]

4 minutes ago, lomtalay said:

Yes, I'll do that. Do you - or does anyone else - know if the best place to call is my local district office? Or another place? Thanks

I'm not 100% certain where to ask, thus I would suggest to try it at the general Thai government helpline 1111, in the past they have been quite helpful for me.

They can probably not directly answer your question, because it's too special, but they should be able to give you the phone number of the department who can answer your question.

[lomtalay]

4 minutes ago, jackdd said:

I'm not 100% certain where to ask, thus I would suggest to try it at the general Thai government helpline 1111, in the past they have been quite helpful for me.

They can probably not directly answer your question, because it's too special, but they should be able to give you the phone number of the department who can answer your question.

Good idea & useful number to have. Cheers!

[scorecard]

9 hours ago, problemfarang said:

Hi,

im not sure if your work time is effecting your status to become a thai.

But i believe you should be marry at least 5 years with your wife to apply. Thats what i have been told few months ago and i was married for 8 years. Also your age can help too if your up 50. 

I think that 3 years of work is not for being a thai citizen. You can only apply for permanent residency with that which is really expensive (around 950K)

There are sections you need to do to become a thai citizen in the test and you will get scores from those things. If you can do 50 or up you can be a thai.

good luck

if i was wrong about any info you guys please correct me.

PR cost is nowhere near 950,000Baht. 

 

 

               

 

 

[problemfarang]

Just now, scorecard said:

PR cost is nowhere near 950,000Baht. 

costed 900K to my friend last year. and he didnt use any lawyer or agency

 

Edited March 11, 2021 by problemfarang

[ubonjoe]

6 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

costed 900K to my friend last year. and he didnt use any lawyer or agency

 

Not sure how he spent that much. If not married to a Thai the total fees are about 200k baht.

[jackdd]

35 minutes ago, problemfarang said:

costed 900K to my friend last year. and he didnt use any lawyer or agency

 

If married to a Thai it's 95k or so, maybe somebody added a 0 too much.

[problemfarang]

32 minutes ago, jackdd said:

If married to a Thai it's 95k or so, maybe somebody added a 0 too much.

need to ask him again. Maybe he wrote wrong. but im sure he wrote 950K

[yankee99]

They take your gross and divide it by 12 to arrive at your monthly salary. 

 

Your last / latest return is what they base your point score on. 

 

You must have 3 years continuous certified returns to apply. 

 

You will need a bkk yellow book imho

[lomtalay]

10 minutes ago, yankee99 said:

They take your gross and divide it by 12 to arrive at your monthly salary. 

 

Your last / latest return is what they base your point score on. 

 

You must have 3 years continuous certified returns to apply. 

 

You will need a bkk yellow book imho

Cheers, Yankee. If they do that then I'm easily eligible. I'm in the process of applying for a yellow tabien bahn as the amphur also advised me to get this first. Thanks again!

[problemfarang]

12 hours ago, yankee99 said:

They take your gross and divide it by 12 to arrive at your monthly salary. 

 

Your last / latest return is what they base your point score on. 

 

You must have 3 years continuous certified returns to apply. 

 

You will need a bkk yellow book imho

hi. you dont need a yellow book. But to have it gives you points. if you have it for 5 years you get 5 points and if more you get more points. thats all about the yellow book. Well of course its a big plus having it.

[Neeranam]

1 hour ago, problemfarang said:

hi. you dont need a yellow book. But to have it gives you points. if you have it for 5 years you get 5 points and if more you get more points. thats all about the yellow book. Well of course its a big plus having it.

You absolutely do need a yellow book.