Retirement Visa (Non-O, Initial Application) - Phuket Immigration Office vs. Bangkok

[Asymmetricinfo]

I am in Phuket now (having already completed the "Phuket Sandbox" program), and have already prepared all the necessary paperwork for a Retirement Visa (Non-O), however my understanding is that for the initial application for Retirement Visa (i.e. the 1st time you apply), the application must submitted at the Main Immigration Office in Bangkok (i.e. cannot be processed at a Phuket Immigration Office) - is that correct?  Would I be able to submit/process the initial application for a Retirement Visa at the Phuket Immigration Office?  At the current moment, because of increasing COVID cases, it is virtually impossible to travel to Bangkok, so if the Bangkok Immigration Office is the only option for the initial application, I would not be able to process.  Thank you in advance for your input, comments and/or recommendations!

[DrJack54]

OP, you can obtain your non O (retirement) in Phuket.

However you then would be applying for your 12 month extension in Phuket.

What are your longer term plans. 

You could obtain a 30 day extension to your current entry stamp to give you extra time to obtain non O (RT). Note for clarity it's not a "retirement visa"

Did you enter visa exempt or......?

 

[ubonjoe]

You can do it at Phuket immigration. Requirements for the non-o visa application is here. 

https://bangkok.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/8-1.pdf

The non-o visa application and the extension of stay application based upon retirement have to be done at the same office. If not staying in Phuket you will have to wait until you get to where you will be living.

[skatewash]

Here's the guidance from the Phuket Immigration Volunteers for applying for the Non-O visa in Phuket:

http://piv-phuket.com/long-stay-extensions/non-o-visa/

Note: that would have to do your first extension of stay in Phuket within 3 months of being granted your Non-O.  Thereafter you could move out of Phuket and do your future immigration business with your local immigration office elsewhere in Thailand.

[Asymmetricinfo]

Dear @DrJack54, @ubonjoe & @skatewash,

 

Thank you very much for the excellent input!  I will review your comments & the resources provided in depth.  If I should have any additional questions after that, I may seek your wise counsel, again.  Thank you very much! 

[Asymmetricinfo]

Dear @DrJack54, @ubonjoe & @skatewash, 

 

Thank you very much for the excellent input & resources you provided in your previous responses!  After having reviewed your input and the links provided, I have one follow-up question which is not entirely clear to me.  In the link application link provided by @ubonjoe (see above), Point 8 in the application requirement says "Rental Agreement between the Applicant and the Landlord ; A copy of house registration. Location map of the house and a rental receipt Past three months."  See attachment at bottom for the extract from the application.

Is this rental agreement & rental receipts for the past 3 months required for the initial Non-O application for 90 days, or, is it only relevant for the 1-year Extension of Stay later?  I am currently in Thailand on a Visa Exempt Status (45-days), so obviously there would be no way satisfy this requirement in advance of submitting the application.  Am I missing something, or confusing different requirements?

 

Thank you very much for your input!  There is clearly a lot of collective experience & wisdom on this forum!

 

Best Regards,

 

Matthew

[ubonjoe]

11 minutes ago, Asymmetricinfo said:

Is this rental agreement & rental receipts for the past 3 months required for the initial Non-O application for 90 days, or, is it only relevant for the 1-year Extension of Stay later?  I am currently in Thailand on a Visa Exempt Status (45-days), so obviously there would be no way satisfy this requirement in advance of submitting the application.  Am I missing something, or confusing different requirements?

It is for the non-o visa application.

If you have a rental agreement that will normally be enough. They would not expect somebody that just arrived to show the past 3 months of rental agreements.

That is mostly a Bangkok immigration requirement they put into the clause to prevent people from other parts of the country traveling to there to apply for the visa.