31 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

You are spot on mate. If one chooses to roll the dice, and go without health insurance to save money, that's their choice, but not having health insurance comes with some risks.

True. I've noticed that - often - "wealthy" people who self-insure are pretty risk-averse and conservative with their investments. Paradoxically they don't understand that without health insurance the financial risk is, in a worst health issue scenario, possibly unlimited with substantial financial impact even on a US$ multimillionaire's wealth.

9 hours ago, Yumthai said:

True. I've noticed that - often - "wealthy" people who self-insure are pretty risk-averse and conservative with their investments. Paradoxically they don't understand that without health insurance the financial risk is, in a worst health issue scenario, possibly unlimited with substantial financial impact even on a US$ multimillionaire's wealth.

Fully agree, for most people health insurance should be a good investment! Some people like myself have the option to go back to their homecountry in case of a severe health crisis like cancer, stroke etc. So if you have a "dormant" health insurace at home and can cover like 50K USD for 3 weeks in a thai hospital, self insurance can be a good option. If you leave Germany and have been covered with state health insurance (gesetzlich versichert) you can come back any time and resume your health insurace without having to pay anything for the time out of country. So if push comes to shove you always have the option of being covered.

 

It can be very difficult to get any health insurance once you are 80plus so for those folks self insurance could be a very good option as long as you have a backup option back home.

14 hours ago, Yumthai said:

As it's not a given to be able to get 12% in capital gains every single year on the S&P 500 without NAV erosion, there exist passive income ETFs that pay regular distributions. Such as SPYI, covered call ETF that yields about 12% p.a. (minus 15% WHT if non-US person residing in Thailand) with a slight NAV decay compared to the underlying SPY total return. With a bit more volatility, QQQI based on Nasdaq-100 yields about 14% p.a. before tax.

 

This reminded me that if comparing type-O/OA to LTR that DTAs are a factor.  DTAs are very important to those on a Type-O/OA, but not so much for those on an LTR-WP/WGC (unless of course, there is ever a change to global taxation -then DTAs will be relevant also to LTR-WP/WGC visa holders).

 

For an LTR-WP/WGC holder at present, it makes no difference (from a Thai taxation perspective) in regards to foreign capital gains nor interest/dividends if remitted to Thailand. There is no Thai taxation there for the LTR-WP/WGC visa holder. 

 

However Type-O/OA visa holders, instead,  have to pay close attention to the wording of the DTA associated with the source country of one's foreign dividend/interest/capital gains.

 

Both LTR and Type-O/OA visa holders thou, likely should also pay close attention to their source income country's tax law in regards to interest/Dividends/Capital gains.  I know for some countries, there is no foreign tax on one's capital gains from that same foreign source country IF one is not a tax resident of that foreign source country.   In such case then, if that is the foreign law (for a non-tax resident of that foreign country) then the capital gains can grow tax free.  

 

However it possible the same foreign country's may still tax dividends/interest on one's equities held in that foreign country, even thou one is not a resident.  

 

So in the case of an LTR-WP/WGC visa holder, for some countries, it may make less sense to go for equities that have high dividends, because those will taxed (in the foreign country, despite one not being a tax resident) while for the same country its possible equities with higher price trends is better to own, as there is no tax on capital gains. 

 

And with LTR-WP/WGC  visa at present, any capital gain from liquidating equities in the foreign country (given some, not all , DTAs wordings) may mean one actually legally pays no tax to either country, when one remits the capital gain,  to one's Thailand account. 

 

I believe it all depends on both the DTAs, and whether one has an LTR-WP/WGC.

On 9/15/2025 at 2:25 PM, JamesPhuket10 said:

Quite a few years ago I was visiting a friend of 30 years in CM, we went out one night and got back to 'his' house at 3am ,we had a great time, lots of beer involved, I had not seen him form many years at the time so we were celebrating. 

It is a massive house of 7000 sq ft internally, two rye of land and a full size swimming pool, massive lawns and flower beds, long driveway, not in the sticks but on a guarded gated development.

Driver, gardener, two full time conchais.

The next day in front of me his wife said to him, 'if you come home late again I will sell the house.'

He had also bought a house in Hua Hin used when the smoke season arrives in CM. Plus two houses in the UK rented out. 

I would never get myself into that position. His wife has never worked, it was all paid for by his hard work but he did not reply to her as he did not have a leg to stand on.

I live in a house in Phuket owned by my Thai partner which she bought herself.

The deal is I pay for all of the electricity bills, the food supplies and other such things, she cooks at home at she says it is heathy ,New Zealand beef/lamb etc,  this arrangement balances things out. 

We are just about to put the house in a will in my son's name as he has a British and Thai passport (he has a business in New Zealand), that way if she goes first I can not be kicked out of the house by her lazy family. 

If I go first then the will can be changed.

My property is rented in the UK together with other monies which are safe, thus we are financially independent of each other which is a healthy way to be.

Neither of us are human ATM's 😃

That is good thinking mate - something too many Expats do not do well - I have seen it happen a few times over the years. 

 

I recall one youtuber years ago talking about how some Mother nearby had sold her kid's house, paid for by an Expat, so she could pay some family debt (probably owed money lenders heaps).  He was talking about it and did not seem to understand that the same thing could easily happen to him. His channel stopped posting a year or so later, and then the vids were deleted - never heard from channel again. He might have died or something, but probably he was dudded by the family.  Maybe gone back home or scrounging around in a 20m2 flat somewhere.  Could be claiming to be a millionaire on an LTD Visa. 

2 hours ago, stat said:

Fully agree, for most people health insurance should be a good investment! Some people like myself have the option to go back to their homecountry in case of a severe health crisis like cancer, stroke etc. So if you have a "dormant" health insurace at home and can cover like 50K USD for 3 weeks in a thai hospital, self insurance can be a good option. If you leave Germany and have been covered with state health insurance (gesetzlich versichert) you can come back any time and resume your health insurace without having to pay anything for the time out of country. So if push comes to shove you always have the option of being covered.

 

It can be very difficult to get any health insurance once you are 80plus so for those folks self insurance could be a very good option as long as you have a backup option back home.

Good points - all depends on the person's situation. Because I am an Aussie Citizen (Wife is too) we will be returning back there when we get very old (or badly sick) because of the basically free health system. For those unaware, it is like the Thai system whereby it is very cheap for the Thais - but unlike the Thai public hospital system, the Aust hospitals are a 1st class system - and medicines are highly subsidised too.  It is true that something bad could happen that could cost a million or two - but we have car/bike accident insurance and general accident insurance. 

 

If anyone is aware of a Thai/Global medical insurance contract that will pay out 1-2 million for a reasonable fee, then feel free to let us all know.  I have car insurance that covers us for up to 1 million baht each, and it costs under 20K.  Medical insurance here has all sorts of exclusions and pre-existings and there are SFA consumer laws for Expats.  I can get private hospital insurance in Australia for under $900 a year for both of us (about 20K Baht).   We have house insurance here for up to 10 million baht and that costs less than 20K Baht.  Health insurance here is a massive rip-off.  I know hopuse and car insurance only covers 'big events' - but when I ask for that coverage only for medical - say a 500K excess and only for a serious hospital illness/accident - they so 'no hab'.    

On 9/15/2025 at 2:25 PM, JamesPhuket10 said:

The next day in front of me his wife said to him, 'if you come home late again I will sell the house.'

I would never get myself into that position. His wife has never worked, it was all paid for by his hard work but he did not reply to her as he did not have a leg to stand on.

Not exactly the same, but similar things happen in the US. It happened at my company with several of my colleagues. The husbands had great jobs, they paid for everything, then after their assets grew large enough, their wives filed for divorce. The wives were entitled to 1/2 of everything that the husbands paid for, the vehicles, houses, company pensions, 401ks, cash & investments. And, if they were married for 10 years, the wives qualified for US Social Security based on the husband's record even though they never worked. Pretty good deal for the wives, they never worked, then cashed out. The poor husbands had to keep working to build their wealth back up.

On 9/2/2025 at 8:02 AM, 1tent42 said:

I believe you can just put your planned itinerary and not necessarily your booked and reserved itinerary.  Pick a hotel in Bangkok for a night or week.  They didn't ask for proof that I paid for flights or hotels when I submitted my application.  They will require you to upload your LTR endorsement letter.  Once all the documents are uploaded you will be prompted to pay.  You can pay by credit card.  It took five working days to get my e-visa issued.  They didn't notify me though, I had to check my thaievisa account.

Thanks again.... I did load the letter on Sep 2... it still in Processing stage .... hopefully one soon :)

8 hours ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

It is true that something bad could happen that could cost a million or two - but we have car/bike accident insurance and general accident insurance. 

Health issues are not always a direct consequence of an accident, in that case accident insurances will not cover.

13 hours ago, JohnnyBD said:

Not exactly the same, but similar things happen in the US. It happened at my company with several of my colleagues. The husbands had great jobs, they paid for everything, then after their assets grew large enough, their wives filed for divorce. The wives were entitled to 1/2 of everything that the husbands paid for, the vehicles, houses, company pensions, 401ks, cash & investments. And, if they were married for 10 years, the wives qualified for US Social Security based on the husband's record even though they never worked. Pretty good deal for the wives, they never worked, then cashed out. The poor husbands had to keep working to build their wealth back up.

Same thing happens all the time in the West to naive/unlucky blokes - the change to the marriage laws has greatly advantaged 'bad' women. Many blokes (like me) had it done early to them, and many of us then built back our wealth and stayed single (I got a vasectomy to make sure). Many of us then retired early with enough money to be comfortable, and then looked for a partner in a country that does not give the wife half or more of what you own, if they quit. 

 

I recall once debating with a woke liberal bloke in Australia about how unfair it was that Greg Norman's wife got almost half of what he had earned though golf and business. He used the usual woke argument that she had contributed to his life and that had enabled him to be a successful sportsman and business millionaire. I then asked why the wife of Alan Bond was not also sent to jail when she had likewise contributed to his life and had enabled him to be a millionaire criminal. If looks could kill - I would not be here. 

 

That many of us 'screwed over' blokes from the west have done well and are AOK financially, and that our ex-wives are fat, lonely, in debt and depressed, while we are living with a beautiful slim wife who looks after us and we them, does not make us feel good at all - no no, not at all 🙂  

5 hours ago, Yumthai said:

Health issues are not always a direct consequence of an accident, in that case accident insurances will not cover.

True - both those insurances are reasonably priced.  And I have money in bank accounts as my self-insured fund - and access to much more within a few days from back home (where it is earning tax free good returns). 

5 hours ago, Yumthai said:

Health issues are not always a direct consequence of an accident, in that case accident insurances will not cover.

You are so right. Accidents are not the most common cause of health issues, that's why accident insurance is very inexpensive when compared to health insurance.

 

An expat friend in his late 60's, who lived in same condo as me in Bangkok passed away after a two-year illness. He found out he had bone cancer. He was in great shape. He swam every day, was a swimming coach, and taught classes. He didn't have any health insurance. I don't know how much he spent on doctors & hospital stays, but it had to be a lot over that two-year period.

 

Also, my brother passed away at age 63 in 2021 after a long illness that required several lengthy hospital stays. Luckily, he had health insurance from his job.

 

And, my sister's husband passed away at age 53 in 2023 from heart issues. Luckily, he had health insurance or his medical costs would have used up a lot of their savings.

 

I have US Medicare which doesn't cover outside the US, my company retiree insurance only covers outside of the US when traveling (they don't know I live in Thailand), and the LTR insurance that I have has a very high deductible, so basically it's a castastrophic policy. If I ever have a serious illness, I hope I will be able to go back to the US where I have the best insurance coverage.

3 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

You are so right. Accidents are not the most common cause of health issues, that's why accident insurance is very inexpensive when compared to health insurance.

 

An expat friend in his late 60's, who lived in same condo as me in Bangkok passed away after a two-year illness. He found out he had bone cancer. He was in great shape. He swam every day, was a swimming coach, and taught classes. He didn't have any health insurance. I don't know how much he spent on doctors & hospital stays, but it had to be a lot over his two-year illness.

 

Also, my brother passed away at age 63 in 2021 after a long illness that required several lengthy hospital stays. Luckily, he had health insurance from his job.

 

And, my sister's husband passed away at age 53 in 2023 from heart issues. Luckily, he had health insurance or his medical costs would have used up a lot of their savings.

 

I have US Medicare which doesn't cover outside the US, my company retiree insurance only covers outside of the US if I'm traveling (they dont' know I live in Thailand), and I also have the LTR insurance that has a very high deductible. Hopefully, if I ever get a serious illness, I will be able to go back to the US for treatment.

Very true - and in most of those cases the person was sick for a long time.  As someone experienced in medical issues (both parents in medical services) the vast majority of deaths in old age come on slowly and take years to do the deed so to speak.  Like you, I will return home if I am diagnosed with something like bone cancer or heart disease.

 

Those that actually 'drop down dead' after the age of 60 are about 10-15% of people. Those that die after 60 from an accident is a very small percentage, but a large percentage do pass away after a bad accident/fall - usually some years later.  The vast majority get sick and then pass away a few years later. I knew one bloke that was sick in March and passed in September - very few pass that quickly. The vast majority get old and start getting serious problems - it takes 2 to 5 years on average for them to pass away because of all the modern medical treatments available. It is all a matter of luck - good and bad.  

 

The key to when to return home, if that is an option for you, is something us self-insured have to calculate. If you are staying in Thailand until the day you die, then health insurance here may be a rip off, but the only alternative is a decent sized self-insurance fund.  Each person has to make their own decisions based on their own situations. 

1 hour ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

True - both those insurances are reasonably priced.  And I have money in bank accounts as my self-insured fund - and access to much more within a few days from back home (where it is earning tax free good returns). 

Have you roughly calculated how much would cost a proper healthcare in Thailand for the remaining years before you pass or go back home?

And compared this amount to potential and unpredictable various health issues that could cost 6/7 figures US$?

We are getting a bit off topic, but I guess since this pertains as to whether one should, or should not, go for the LTR visa (given Health Insurance requirements) , it is relevant.

 

On the topic of Health Insurance and in particular, in regards to immediately returning home upon discovering a serious illness, I note discovering such, if one is not paying for annual medical expenses, such illness may only be discovered in the past 3 to 6 months before one passes away.

 

Assuming one discovers the illness in time, If one can be immediately covered by one's home country Health Care system, that does create possibilities.  I believe thou, not all countries immediately provide Health Care upon return. Further for some, it might be provincial or state decision as to whether one is covered.

 

So for as to how long does it take (upon returning to one's home country after being a non-resident for many years), for some western countries,  my understanding is for the UK, New Zealand, and Australia, one is covered from the day they arrive provided they re-enrol in the Health Care system immediately.

 

Canada, however, is a bit more nuanced.

 

In Canada, if a Canadian (who is not a Canadian tax resident) returns to Canada, there is a waiting period for some months to qualify for Health care (some up to a 3 month wait), before Canadian health care will cover one depending on the province. Specifically:

• no waiting period: Ontario, Nova Scotia, Manitoba, Prince Edward Island, Newfoundland and Labrador
• 2 to 3 month waiting period: New Brunswick, British Columbia, Alberta, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Quebec, Saskatchewan, Yukon

If one shows up, with a serious disease, in some provinces, one has to foot the bill for the first 2 to 3 months, and in Canada, that is VERY expensive if no private Health Insurance.

 

I recommend Canadians take care and give thought to this, as showing up in the Canadian provinces that have a waiting time, could mean one will run into financial issues as one is not covered for the first 2 to 3 months.

 

Also, good health insurance will pay for an annual medical, to give early warning of a possible serious illness, such that care can be taken, to possible stop the progression before it comes deadly.

 

So any who choose to self insure (and i have friends who go that route) if they don't go for an annual medical , they are gambling. 

 

Also, my Health Insurance plan pretty much compels me to go for an annual medical, as the Bean Counters for the Health Insurance plan, did their numbers, and they figure it will save the Health Insurance company money, if a disease is caught in the early stages, by an annual medical, as opposed to finding out at the last minute.  ....  The Bean Counters are seeing this as a pure Insurance Company calculation, as to what is good for them, and THEY PAY FOR MY (and my wife's) annual medicals.   IF I don't go for the medical, they may drop my coverage.

 

So again, if self health insuring, give thought as to whether to gamble and not go for an annual medical , and also include the cost of the medical in one's calculations.

.

1 hour ago, oldcpu said:

We are getting a bit off topic, but I guess since this pertains as to whether one should, or should not, go for the LTR visa (given Health Insurance requirements) , it is relevant.

Yes, we have veered off topic with the insurance discussions. To get back on topic of LTR visas, the bottom line is one must meet the health insurance requirements set forth by BOI if one wishes to get a LTR-WP visa. The requirements are pretty straightforward.

4 hours ago, JohnnyBD said:

Yes, we have veered off topic with the insurance discussions. To get back on topic of LTR visas, the bottom line is one must meet the health insurance requirements set forth by BOI if one wishes to get a LTR-WP visa. The requirements are pretty straightforward.

 

Agree to that. I got AXA insurance.. Not a bad deal especially compared to insurance costs in the USA (health care in general is outrageous).    And my USA coverage does not cover me overseas.     

I did ask my agent if the AXA would cover me on a motorbike.. which she said 'yes'.    So when I insure my bike again when I get back. I do not need to add medical to it.

15 hours ago, Yumthai said:

Health issues are not always a direct consequence of an accident, in that case accident insurances will not cover.

If it is a "slow" disease there is ample time to return to your home country (with low cost or free health care), that was my point for the route to be self insured. Like Trouble and Grumpy pointed out accident insurance is great to have if you are self insured. To be honest I have no idea how to get a good health insurance if you are 80 or 90 plus and live in Thailand. I think for those folks self insurance via LTR is the only sensible option with the free backup of home health insurance. Mind you there are a lot of healthy 85 plus folks!

8 hours ago, Yumthai said:

Have you roughly calculated how much would cost a proper healthcare in Thailand for the remaining years before you pass or go back home?

And compared this amount to potential and unpredictable various health issues that could cost 6/7 figures US$?

Yes  and  Yes

1 hour ago, Dezmo said:

 

Agree to that. I got AXA insurance.. Not a bad deal especially compared to insurance costs in the USA (health care in general is outrageous).    And my USA coverage does not cover me overseas.     

I did ask my agent if the AXA would cover me on a motorbike.. which she said 'yes'.    So when I insure my bike again when I get back. I do not need to add medical to it.

Cannot disagree about that - USA health insurance are very high because hospital costs in general there are horrendous.  Speaking as an Aussie where it is very cost effective and mostly free for pensioners.

Be careful about the motorbike coverage - check the fine print - most bike coverage insurance has many gotchas and exclusions.  

 

 

 

1 hour ago, Dezmo said:

Agree to that. I got AXA insurance.. Not a bad deal especially compared to insurance costs in the USA (health care in general is outrageous).    And my USA coverage does not cover me overseas.   

 

Interesting. That puzzles me. Medical care anywhere else in the world is cheaper than the USA.  

 

One saves the insurance company money if one goes for treatment outside of the USA.   So why force people to spend money in the USA costing the Health Insurance company more money than elsewhere?  It makes no sense to me. There must be more to this.

 

My European global health insurance covers me as a resident anywhere in the world EXCEPT USA and EXCEPT Canada. Both those two countries simply outstrip every other country in the world for how much their medical treatment costs.   

 

My European global health insurance does thou cover me for about 6 weeks of travel in USA and in Canada per year.

 

And best of all my European global Health Insurance covers me in Thailand.  Now that one of the forum members was kind enough to share how they managed to get the same health insurance company to compose a letter to BoI (to meet LTR Health Insurance requirements), at the five year re-proof of finances point of my LTR-WP,  I plan to switch from being self insured to the Health Insurance that I have.  ... That will free up my $100k to buy a new car and buy some other things.

39 minutes ago, stat said:

If it is a "slow" disease there is ample time to return to your home country (with low cost or free health care), that was my point for the route to be self insured. Like Trouble and Grumpy pointed out accident insurance is great to have if you are self insured. To be honest I have no idea how to get a good health insurance if you are 80 or 90 plus and live in Thailand. I think for those folks self insurance via LTR is the only sensible option with the free backup of home health insurance. Mind you there are a lot of healthy 85 plus folks!

Yes indeed - happy to pay for reasonable insurance.  One major point about health insurance being discussed is the fact that you must maintain it for the 10 years of the LTR Visa. Over that period of time the premiums would be very expensive - I will be well into the 70s by then - and that is the period of time over which to make that cost/value judgement. Plus I know if I make a claim the premiums will increase a lot more too - another factor to consider.  But it is the income tax concerns that are a bigger factor - for me. 

Either way, as pointed out, the conditions are there and straightforward. But given the relative failure of the LTR Visa I would not be surprised to see them change a few things. ASfter all, how silly is it to demand insurance coverage for up to 50K USD each year, but then demand as the alternative that 100K USD be held as 'cash' in a savings account - for 10 years. 

57 minutes ago, oldcpu said:

 

Interesting. That puzzles me. Medical care anywhere else in the world is cheaper than the USA.  

 

One saves the insurance company money if one goes for treatment outside of the USA.   So why force people to spend money in the USA costing the Health Insurance company more money than elsewhere?  It makes no sense to me. There must be more to this.

 

My European global health insurance covers me as a resident anywhere in the world EXCEPT USA and EXCEPT Canada. Both those two countries simply outstrip every other country in the world for how much their medical treatment costs.   

 

My European global health insurance does thou cover me for about 6 weeks of travel in USA and in Canada per year.

........

Sad state here in the States. I worked in health care (insurance) for years. Most here are actually covered by their employer... the insurance company just gets paid for management.    The rise in obesity and diabetes has really stressed the long term care.....and employers are trying to incentivize employees to stay healthy....but it is hard... given the way the government supplements corn syrup, etc.     Steve Brill famous article and later book uncovers some truths..   "Bitter Pill: Why Medical Bills are Killing Us."

 

I have family members working in hospitals (RNs).... most hospitals now are run as non-profits - with a margin that Fortune 500 companies would kill for......many take overs and reduction of staff ...  so sad!

 

The demographics here also are horrible... more living longer and many more aging out of workforce. If you are Filpina RN, etc. you can easily get a nursing/caregiver job here...  😉

 

I'll be getting a crown done in Thailand later at 1/3 the cost here 🙂  

 

Sorry.. i may have gone to far.....

8 hours ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

17 hours ago, Yumthai said:

Have you roughly calculated how much would cost a proper healthcare in Thailand for the remaining years before you pass or go back home?

And compared this amount to potential and unpredictable various health issues that could cost 6/7 figures US$?

Yes  and  Yes

It seems you're younger than I thought. Don't forget that in case of a serious health issue then self-insurance will be a one-off event as the next health situation adding costs could definitely outweigh the price of a healthcare cover. Now, if your liquid net worth is 8+ digits US$ you can probably face any health expense at a waste.

 

IMHO self-insurance is worth it only if nothing really serious happens (that's unpredictable). If not, maths do not add up.

Apologies if this has already been covered but has anyone checked with the BOI as to what happens after the 10 years.

I presume if the program is still in existence one can simply reapply and start again, but has anyone checked this?

4 minutes ago, wordchild said:

Apologies if this has already been covered but has anyone checked with the BOI as to what happens after the 10 years.

I presume if the program is still in existence one can simply reapply and start again, but has anyone checked this?

 

They don't even know what will happen at the five year point, so there's no way they'll be able to say what will happen after ten years. Assuming the visa category still exists, though, there's no reason to think that we couldn't just apply for it again.

8 hours ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

Yes indeed - happy to pay for reasonable insurance.  One major point about health insurance being discussed is the fact that you must maintain it for the 10 years of the LTR Visa. Over that period of time the premiums would be very expensive - I will be well into the 70s by then - and that is the period of time over which to make that cost/value judgement. Plus I know if I make a claim the premiums will increase a lot more too - another factor to consider.  But it is the income tax concerns that are a bigger factor - for me. 

 

Either way, as pointed out, the conditions are there and straightforward. But given the relative failure of the LTR Visa I would not be surprised to see them change a few things. ASfter all, how silly is it to demand insurance coverage for up to 50K USD each year, but then demand as the alternative that 100K USD be held as 'cash' in a savings account - for 10 years. 

 

 

Regarding the health insurance self insure amount I expect Immigration  vs BOI has a bigger vote in what the self-insure amount will be although BOI has been able to provide an easier self-insure method and in the case of a dependent's self-insure amount much less.  See below for explanation.  

 

In Oct 2019 when Immigration changed the rules for a Non-OA Retirement visa they added the requirement of have a medical insurance for Bt40K patient and Bt400K inpatient....let's just combine those two amounts to say they required a policy of at least Bt440K (approx $14.7K USD when using a 30 exchange rate).   But two years later in Oct 2021 Immigration increased the requirement to Bt3M ($100K USD at @ 30 exchange rate) without defining a minimum amount amount for inpatient and outpatient coverage....simply Bt3M/$100K total coverage.     Also, the 10 year Non OX visa (10 years like a 10 year LTR visa) has a Bt3M/$100K medical insurance policy requirement.    Bottomline Immigration medical policy requirement of Bt3M/$100K. 

 

In USD terms HQ Immigration was firmly entrenched in requiring a $100K medical insurance policy.....they wanted $100K minumum coverage.   Now when this high coverage amount immediately became a problem for many of the older retirees who couldn't afford and/or even get a Thai insurance company to provide coverage (at any price especially for retirees over 75 who didn't already have a policy with the company) then Immigration and Ministry of Health did come out with an option for those applying for a Non OA "extension of stay" could self-insure with deposit of  Bt3M/$100K via money in a "Thailand"(not foreign) bank if they could also provide a certified/notarized documentation from an insurance company saying the company rejected the coverage for reason(s) XYZ.  If the powers in Thailand then approved the submitted documentation "of I can't get coverage" then the person could self insure for the one year extension---and then repeat that process every year when applying for an extension of stay.  

 

So, even by Oct 2021 which was before the LTR Visa program began Sep 2022 Immigration, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Health had basically set a $100K/Bt3M health insurance policy for Non OA and OX visas with practically no real-world option to self-insure as the self-insurance documentation process was horrendous.

 

But the LTR visa program only requires a $50K medical insurance policy or a "non-horrendous" process to self insure via having $100K in a bank account (foreign or Thai) for the primary LTR visa holders.  And for a Dependent's LTR Visa while the health insurance policy requirement is still $50K they have the option to self-insure instead with only $25K (vs $100K) in a foreign or Thai bank account.

 

 AFAIK very, very few people have a Non-OX visa due to its tough qualification requirements and less-&-less people are going for a Non-OA visa due to the medical coverage requirement.   Seems current OA holders are switching from Non OA to Non O visa whenever they get a chance or are basically forced to due to the medical policy requirement....and some OA folks who are married to a Thai switch to a OA marriage extension of stay vs OA retirement extension of stay.   

 

So, actually medical coverage LTR visa requirements can be easier to meet for some folks than Non OA and OX visa medical coverage requirements.  Easier to meet because of an easier self-insure requirement "if" the person has the required money in a foreign or Thai bank to self-insure.

 

 

 

 

36 minutes ago, wordchild said:

Apologies if this has already been covered but has anyone checked with the BOI as to what happens after the 10 years.

I presume if the program is still in existence one can simply reapply and start again, but has anyone checked this?

 

29 minutes ago, khunjeff said:

 

They don't even know what will happen at the five year point, so there's no way they'll be able to say what will happen after ten years. Assuming the visa category still exists, though, there's no reason to think that we couldn't just apply for it again.

 

Totally agree with @khunjeff.  No one knows if the LTR program will exist after 10 years, what stocks market valves will probably be, whether we have World War III, whether an asteroid wipes out life on Earth, etc....etc....etc.  

 

But IMO the LTR program will not be going away but continue its steady growth like I talk about in below post.  Heck, at its current growth rate after 10 years there will have been over 23,000 LTR visas issued.  

 

 

26 minutes ago, Pib said:

 

But the LTR visa program only requires a $50K medical insurance policy or a "non-horrendous" process to self insure via having $100K in a bank account (foreign or Thai) for the primary LTR visa holders.  And for a Dependent's LTR Visa while the health insurance policy requirement is still $50K they have the option to self-insure instead with only $25K (vs $100K) in a foreign or Thai bank account.

 

 

And just to expand on above comment a little an LTR visa could be an excellent option for foreign couples who want to retire to Thailand or just visit often for extended periods since only the primary LTR holder (say the husband just for discussion purposes) has to meet the income and insurance (policy or self-insure) requirement.  Then the foreigner wife could get an LTR Dependents Visa without having any income requirement with only the requirement of having a $50K policy "or" only $25K self-insure for medical coverage.  

28 minutes ago, Pib said:

But IMO the LTR program will not be going away but continue its steady growth like I talk about in below post.  Heck, at its current growth rate after 10 years there will have been over 23,000 LTR visas issued. 

I wish there was a way to break down the figures to see how many newly arriving expats received the LTR-WP visa versus those already living here. My guess is that most of the LTR-WP visas were issued to foreigners already living here on other types of visas, like me. I'm very happy they came up with this visa. I love not having to do the yearly renewals & 90-day reports. Also, the tax exemption saved me a lot of money this year.

2 minutes ago, JohnnyBD said:

I wish there was a way to break down the figures to see how many newly arriving expats received the LTR-WP visa versus those already living here. My guess is that most of the LTR-WP visas were issued to foreigners already living here on other types of visas, like me. I'm very happy they came up with this visa. I love not having to do the yearly renewals & 90-day reports.

Ii expect (guess) the majority of LTR-WP visas issued for the first year or maybe even two years were farangs already retired to Thailand.  But my guess would be the "great" majority over the last year or so has been newbie retirees moving to Thailand.