LTR Visa is Now available for Long Term Residency

[Northwest87]

8 hours ago, Pib said:

I'm in a very similar boat with my application where I'm using a U.S. govt/military retiree policy which only shows an enrollment date from years ago (when I retired), has unlimited worldwide coverage, no annual expiration date, and will run my lifetime as long as I continue to pay the monthly premium.   Just excellent worldwide coverage but it's a govt/military type coverage that does not come with a commercial type policy.....all the info is on their websites about the coverage.

 

I submitted this medical coverage in my application hoping it will qualify under the social security-type coverage which does not make mention of any required expiration date.....hopefully because BOI knows that social security/government-type medical coverage routinely does not come with any end date like a typical commercial policy. 

 

I too thought about submitting my application with docs "also showing I had enough money to self-insure (IRA/401K type money)" but then the BOI might have just taken the easy way by approving (hopefully) the application based on being self-insured versus my medical policy.  I would rather be approved based on my insurance coverage/policy as that will be on autopilot to the day I die whereas going the self-insure method requires maintaining $100K in an acct (which some people would prefer to do) if going the insurance method is too complicated due to BOI rules.

 

If you are not in a time crunch you may want to consider submitting your application using your insurance policy with explanation that the policy does not have an annual expiration date because of XYZ reason(s)....and see if the BOI approves it.  If they don't they will then ask you to submit self-insure docs in lieu of the insurance....then submit the financial proof to self insure.  That's my approach.

 

Good luck to both of us.

 

 

I'm not exactly in a time crunch, and I suppose that if needed I could produce the 100K data as additional info if the need arises. I do not believe however that for the self-insure they ask you to maintain 100K for the duration of the visa: this is not like maintaining 800K THB for the traditional retirement visa (at least that's how I interpret it); only that at the time of the application you had maintained that amount in cash for at least a year. However, at the 5-years check, I suppose you would have to present that info again.

 

NW

Edited October 29, 2022 by Northwest87

[Northwest87]

7 hours ago, Pib said:

 

Additionally, why buy a close to useless and pricey (by age) Thai medical policy when my current U.S. govt policy (Tricare) provides my medical coverage worldwide (age doesn't change monthly premium).  Plus if I did buy another policy by law I would have to file my claim with that policy first....see if/what they pay....and then submit to Tricare for payment of the rest....an extended process.

 

For me, I prefer going the insurance route due to the type of insurance I have....going the self-insure would just be a Plan B if I had to resort to it.

 

My understanding is that choosing the 100K requirement in place of proof of medical insurance is not a self-insure situation in which you are compelled to purchase an alternative to what you already have: the 100K is purported to fulfill that need. Once your visa is issued, you don't have to prove continuing medical insurance that fits the BOI definition. I asked the BOI that question and as I mentioned in a previous post, the answer was:

 

However, there is also an option of providing a deposit balance of at least USD 100,000 in a bank account in Thailand or abroad retained for at least 12 months as of the date of application.

2. When you report to immigration bureau annually, you don't need to provide an evidence of your qualification at the moment such as health insurance but if at year 5, we will need to review your qualification again, it will be similar to when you are applying in online form so please prepare all the necessary documents by then.

 

NW

 

[mudcat]

I successfully substituted my U.S. IRAs (Individual Retirement Accounts) with my broker as demonstration of assets >$100,000 for medical expenses (Option 3).

 

I maintain Thai health insurance with Pacific Cross to protect my assets, not to qualify for a visa.  The Deposit option allows me to tailor my health insurance with the goal of protecting myself, my family, and my assets today and in the future.  I maintain other forms of insurance - Social Security Part B and long term care insurance should I return to the U.S., which I have no plans of doing, but the consequences of not maintaining this 'useless' insurance would be a cost I choose not to risk.   All insurance is a gamble - I have maintained auto insurance for >40-years without an at-fault claim, but pay my premiums every year.

 

I am off to Bangkok to collect my visa stamp(s) tomorrow. 

 

I will seek clarification on a number of lingering questions:

 

What forms of yearly notification are acceptable - electronic, snail mail via registered EMS, visit to a local immigration office, on-line video appointment - requiring travel to Bangkok is non-sensical.

 

Can I delete my application information from the BOI website now that the documents have been reviewed an visa has been issued or can BOI do it for me and other applicants who have their visas

 

What happens if, because of health issues, a visa holder cannot travel to Bangkok to extend for the second five-years after paperwork has been approved (for me this would be when I am 79-years old).

 

 

 

[pepper402]

19 hours ago, Pib said:

Interesting they asked for additional docs...but apparently docs you had already provided?  If it had been a snake it would have bit them?

Pib, I was also asked to provide documents that were already uploaded onto the BOI visa system.  Instead of pointing out  that the documents were already there, I thanked the analyst for bringing to my attention the missing documents and uploaded EXACTLY the same documents again.  They were subsequently approved.  Remember, this is Thailand and you are the one who wants a visa.   Good luck!

[anrcaccount]

19 hours ago, aublumberg said:

So this morning I arrived in Bangkok for the first time after receiving my LTR-T visa sticker at the Royal Thai Consulate in Hong Kong. Used the Fast Track channel, LTR is not specifically written on the signage but Smart Visa is. This is the same channel used by Air Crew and what I normally also use with the APEC card. No material difference in queueing time as it was fairly quiet today, but can be helpful if it’s busy.

 

The very charming immigration officer Khun Annie had never seen a LTR visa and had to ring her colleague on the phone first to clarify but then swiftly figured out the five year entry duration. Her supervisor walked by and she double confirmed with him again. She was quite curious and asked how long it took to get the visa. Most pleasant conversation. 

Congrats. Have you considered what occurs if your employment ceases? 

 

I am in a situation where have been approved for LTR-T , but am not comfortable with confirming and affixing visa,  given particular plans include ceasing employment within the 5 year mark. 

 

BOI clearly state if they (the BOI)  somehow come to understand you are no longer employed, your LTR-T Visa is not longer valid. 

 

However, BOI also clearly state validation of current employer, is a one time only check (until the 5 year mark), so personally feel uneasy basing immigration status around it. 

 

Someone who is more comfortable with risk, can easily get this as an alternative to say an Elite Visa, then decide to stop working. Provided they are currently employed as per the LTR-T requirements of course, which a large number of people around the world are. 

 

 

 

[aublumberg]

1 hour ago, anrcaccount said:

Congrats. Have you considered what occurs if your employment ceases? 

Thank you. At this stage l have every intention to continue working for the foreseeable future. Once I stop working then I would no longer comply with the LTR-T conditions and thus also lose the benefits eg tax exemption. I would then switch to a different type e.g. LTR retirement visa or ordinary retirement visa or whatever else may be suitable at the time.

 

So in your particular case you could use the LTR-T until you cease employment and then switch visa type. I assume you considered similar hence applying for LTR-T in the first place? As long as you meet the requirements why not use it? 

[Alotoftravel]

Aublumberg,

just curious ,did you get a note reminder that requires you to report to immigration in a year?

FYI, Ones that got the 5 years stamp from BKk BOi had a note in our passport that reminded us to do so to avoid the stiff fine . 

[Pib]

Just FYI for those who haven't started/submitted an LTR application.  Where various folks have been discussing the three medical insurance options below is what it looks like on the actual online application.  You can only select one option....like below where I selected Option 2.  Example: If I try to select "another" option like say Option 3 that will cause Option 2 to be unchecked and only Option 3 checked....if I then select Option 1 then Option 3 becomes unchecked.

 

 

 

Basically, for the application the BOI wants you to select one option, not two or possibly even three options if you're qualified under all options.  But although you can only select one option there is nothing preventing you from uploading a memo with supporting docs at the end of the application in the upload "16 Other" section or even in upload "3 Medical" section with your insurance policy where you could explain just in case your medical insurance doesn't meet requirements then here are financials docs proving I have at least 100K USD to self-insure.  

 

But IMO "if", repeat, if you really just wanted to present your medical insurance policy to meet the medical expenses requirement then also submitting financials docs to self-insure might negate you finding out if the BOI approved your application based on your insurance policy.  Or, did they not accept your policy and just used your self-insure proof/docs to approve your application.

 

You may be a person knowing you will have a certain medical insurance policy for life (like its a benefit from your former employer or the govt) but you may not have 100K USD to self insure to requalify at the 5 year point.  Or maybe said another way, you may be pension rich in receiving at least 80K USD per year in pensions but you simply don't have at least 100K USD in savings...you got bills or just like spending most of your money when you get it.  Each person is different in how they manage their money, and maybe more so in their older years.

 

And who knows at this point in time where the LTR program could still change/fine tune some rules in the future (kinda like how immigration changes it rules periodically) that come the LTR 5 year point to review your qualifications for the 2nd 5 years that BOI might end-up requiring proof you maintained accepted medical insurance/social security the coverage or 100K USD to self insure for each of the previous 5 years.   Hopefully, that will not happen but I noticed in northwest87's post around 5 posts up the BOI included a the phrase of "at the moment" which I unlined and implies to me things could change.

 

Yea....the situation and desires will vary for each individual as to whether they want to go the insurance policy route or self insure route.
 

Snapshot from northwest87's post

Quote

 

2. When you report to immigration bureau annually, you don't need to provide an evidence of your qualification at the moment such as health insurance but if at year 5, we will need to review your qualification again, it will be similar to when you are applying in online form so please prepare all the necessary documents by then.

 

 

 

[Boomer6969]

5 hours ago, mudcat said:

What forms of yearly notification are acceptable - electronic, snail mail via registered EMS, visit to a local immigration office, on-line video appointment - requiring travel to Bangkok is non-sensical.

Unfortunately "travel to Bangkok" is what will be required, according to the lady who issued my visa. But lets hope that BOI will become aware of the issue and offer mail-in or OL service, which would be  easy for them as the reside on the same floor as Immigration.

[aublumberg]

1 hour ago, Alotoftravel said:

did you get a note reminder that requires you to report to immigration in a year?

No such notice in my case. Only had this single stamp.

[ThailandRyan]

12 minutes ago, aublumberg said:

No such notice in my case. Only had this single stamp.

Possibly that it is only the Immigration on the same floor as the OSOS BOI Office that have these small slips like I posted in an earlier post as the whole system is new and the I/O at the airport had to ask about the Visa as he was probably the first one to enter the country on one, while those of us who received it are already in country.

[khunjeff]

On 10/29/2022 at 10:15 AM, K2938 said:

I would take this as a positive, not negative sign.  If there were major immediately obvious fatal flaws with your application, they would have told you by now.  So no news is good news at this point of time.  They are doing whatever needs to be doing.  No reason to worry.

I'm not worried, just overly eager ????

[Pib]

On 10/29/2022 at 10:03 AM, khunjeff said:

I submitted my application on October 7, and haven't seen any change at all as of now. There were three holidays during that period, though, so technically only about 12 business days have elapsed. 

I expect this coming week sometime which will be 4 weeks since submission that you are going to get some initial BOI feedback....hopefully approval.  

[keemapoot]

7 hours ago, Pib said:

Just FYI for those who haven't started/submitted an LTR application.  Where various folks have been discussing the three medical insurance options below is what it looks like on the actual online application.  You can only select one option....like below where I selected Option 2.  Example: If I try to select "another" option like say Option 3 that will cause Option 2 to be unchecked and only Option 3 checked....if I then select Option 1 then Option 3 becomes unchecked.

 

 

One concern I have regarding option 1, is that my health insurance policy will renew on January 1. It will be either for 12 months or maybe 24 months, I don't know yet. But if only 12 months, that means I will need 10 months coverage at "the time of application."

 

My question to any who have done this - is it wiser for me to start the application say first of December in a month, and then in January provide the proof of insurance, or am I required to wait until January 1 to apply? My concern is that the issuance might be close to the 60 days when the 10 months runs out end of February.

[ThailandRyan]

6 minutes ago, keemapoot said:

One concern I have regarding option 1, is that my health insurance policy will renew on January 1. It will be either for 12 months or maybe 24 months, I don't know yet. But if only 12 months, that means I will need 10 months coverage at "the time of application."

 

My question to any who have done this - is it wiser for me to start the application say first of December in a month, and then in January provide the proof of insurance, or am I required to wait until January 1 to apply? My concern is that the issuance might be close to the 60 days when the 10 months runs out end of February.

If you have overlapping policies, say this current one ends on December 31st and your new one starts January 1st, as long as you can get a certificate for the new years policy from the carrier you can submit both and in the Other section on the bottom of the uploads, upload a personal word document indicating this.  It is what I did with my PCH Policies as my new one started November 20th for the new 1 year period and my current one ended on that day as well at 16:30 hours.  I applied for my LTR Visa on September 2nd, and by The end of the month I had my new certificate for the next period which covered the requirement.  

[JimGant]

12 hours ago, mudcat said:

What happens if, because of health issues, a visa holder cannot travel to Bangkok to extend for the second five-years after paperwork has been approved (for me this would be when I am 79-years old)

Yes, great question. For whatever, if you can't go to BoI at five year anniversary -- ill, out of country, whatever -- you've got a ten year, 50k contract for your LTR. Don't know anything about Thai contract law, but can't believe they'd require you be in-country at the five year mark..... I guess they have a few years to ponder on this.

[bbi1]

On 7/9/2022 at 1:03 PM, ThailandRyan said:

Here is a link.  There is also another OP running on the subject.

 

https://www.huahintoday.com/thailand-news/10-year-long-term-resident-ltr-visa-to-make-living-in-thailand-easier-and-less-bureaucratic/

Wealthy Global Citizen - Is this $1mil in assets AND personal income of $80k AND Invest $500k here?

 

If it's $1mil assets OR personal income $80k OR invest $500k then it's not bad.

 

The problem is who would want to invest $500k here.

[ThailandRyan]

13 hours ago, bbi1 said:

Wealthy Global Citizen - Is this $1mil in assets AND personal income of $80k AND Invest $500k here?

 

If it's $1mil assets OR personal income $80k OR invest $500k then it's not bad.

 

The problem is who would want to invest $500k here.

You need to look at the LTR BOI website. If you make 80k USD a year on a pension you qualify for the LTRWP Visa, no investment in the country needed.

 

The 10 year LTR visas will be offered across four categories: Wealthy Global Citizens, Wealthy Pensioners, Work-from-Thailand Professionals, and Highly-Skilled Professionals.

[aublumberg]

13 hours ago, bbi1 said:

Wealthy Global Citizen - Is this $1mil in assets AND personal income of $80k AND Invest $500k here?

 

If it's $1mil assets OR personal income $80k OR invest $500k then it's not bad.

 

The problem is who would want to invest $500k here.

And.

 

[K2938]

4 hours ago, keemapoot said:

My question to any who have done this - is it wiser for me to start the application say first of December in a month, and then in January provide the proof of insurance, or am I required to wait until January 1 to apply? My concern is that the issuance might be close to the 60 days when the 10 months runs out end of February.

Definitely do the application first.  And do not worry about the details of the insurance at the time of application since you actually have an option there to submit later which you will see in the application form.

[Misty]

4 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

You need to look at the LTR BOI website. If you make 80k USD a year on a pension you qualify for the LTRWP Visa, no investment in the country needed.

 

The 10 year LTR visas will be offered across four categories: Wealthy Global Citizens, Wealthy Pensioners, Work-from-Thailand Professionals, and Highly-Skilled Professionals.

Further regarding the "Wealthy Pensioner" category, here it says it's for "Retirees aged 50 years and older who have an annual pension or stable income"  https://ltr.boi.go.th/#type

 

 

 

[Northwest87]

16 hours ago, Pib said:

Just FYI for those who haven't started/submitted an LTR application.  Where various folks have been discussing the three medical insurance options below is what it looks like on the actual online application.  You can only select one option....like below where I selected Option 2.  Example: If I try to select "another" option like say Option 3 that will cause Option 2 to be unchecked and only Option 3 checked....if I then select Option 1 then Option 3 becomes unchecked.

 

 

 

Basically, for the application the BOI wants you to select one option, not two or possibly even three options if you're qualified under all options.  But although you can only select one option there is nothing preventing you from uploading a memo with supporting docs at the end of the application in the upload "16 Other" section or even in upload "3 Medical" section with your insurance policy where you could explain just in case your medical insurance doesn't meet requirements then here are financials docs proving I have at least 100K USD to self-insure.  

 

But IMO "if", repeat, if you really just wanted to present your medical insurance policy to meet the medical expenses requirement then also submitting financials docs to self-insure might negate you finding out if the BOI approved your application based on your insurance policy.  Or, did they not accept your policy and just used your self-insure proof/docs to approve your application.

 

You may be a person knowing you will have a certain medical insurance policy for life (like its a benefit from your former employer or the govt) but you may not have 100K USD to self insure to requalify at the 5 year point.  Or maybe said another way, you may be pension rich in receiving at least 80K USD per year in pensions but you simply don't have at least 100K USD in savings...you got bills or just like spending most of your money when you get it.  Each person is different in how they manage their money, and maybe more so in their older years.

 

And who knows at this point in time where the LTR program could still change/fine tune some rules in the future (kinda like how immigration changes it rules periodically) that come the LTR 5 year point to review your qualifications for the 2nd 5 years that BOI might end-up requiring proof you maintained accepted medical insurance/social security the coverage or 100K USD to self insure for each of the previous 5 years.   Hopefully, that will not happen but I noticed in northwest87's post around 5 posts up the BOI included a the phrase of "at the moment" which I unlined and implies to me things could change.

 

Yea....the situation and desires will vary for each individual as to whether they want to go the insurance policy route or self insure route.
 

Snapshot from northwest87's post

 

This is good thinking. I can show from pay stubs that Uncle Sam pays the bulk of the premium on my health policy, and I pay the smaller portion of it; standard so-called "FEHB" fed employee benefit, and I take it into retirement, at which time my premium comes out of my Feds annuity. It's worth running an explanation by the BOI and see what comes out of it. I don't think it will slow down my application much, from what I have read in this thread, even if I have to come back with the 100K docs.

 

My prognostic is not optimistic; not because I doubt BOI employees ability to figure things out, but simply because as civil servants they are constrained by the "expiry date" thingy case that needs a check mark into it. I too work for the government ????

Edited October 30, 2022 by Northwest87

[Northwest87]

8 hours ago, keemapoot said:

One concern I have regarding option 1, is that my health insurance policy will renew on January 1. It will be either for 12 months or maybe 24 months, I don't know yet. But if only 12 months, that means I will need 10 months coverage at "the time of application."

 

My question to any who have done this - is it wiser for me to start the application say first of December in a month, and then in January provide the proof of insurance, or am I required to wait until January 1 to apply? My concern is that the issuance might be close to the 60 days when the 10 months runs out end of February.

I had exactly the same thinking at one point because I'm in the same situation, except that for me renewal is one year at a time so I already know the expiry date. However, while asking for a letter of coverage recently, I got the distinct impression that the carrier would be loath to put a firm "at least...expiry date" on paper even after January first; they would only certify "continuing", which from what we have seen from other posters may not be good enough for the BOI.  I don't know what country your insurance comes from, but if it's the US, run it by your insurance carrier first, simply because waiting may not be worth it if the carrier will not certify a firm expiry date anyway. As others have pointed out, you can always come up with additional docs later if required.

 

NW

Edited October 30, 2022 by Northwest87

[keemapoot]

6 minutes ago, Northwest87 said:

I had exactly the same thinking at one point because I'm in the same situation, except that for me renewal is one year at a time so I already know the expiry date. However, while asking for a letter of coverage recently, I got the distinct impression that the carrier would be loath to put a firm "at least...expiry date" on paper even after January first; they would only certify "continuing", which from what we have seen from other posters may not be good enough for the BOI.  I don't know what country your insurance comes from, but if it's the US, run it by your insurance carrier first, simply because waiting may not be worth it if the carrier will not certify a firm expiry date anyway.

 

NW

I just checked, and luckily, my Certificate of Insurance document from Cigna that expires 31 Dec. clearly states the start and expiry dates. So, I will start my application in about 30 days, submitting this current document if needed (with a note that I will provide the new Certificate for 2023 onward), or just wait until first of January to upload the new document or upload both as suggested by ThailandRyan.

[Northwest87]

1 hour ago, keemapoot said:

I just checked, and luckily, my Certificate of Insurance document from Cigna that expires 31 Dec. clearly states the start and expiry dates. So, I will start my application in about 30 days, submitting this current document if needed (with a note that I will provide the new Certificate for 2023 onward), or just wait until first of January to upload the new document or upload both as suggested by ThailandRyan.

Good deal! At my end, with an uncertain outcome, I'll put in my LTR application in the first or second week of Nov. I plan for around 5 or 6 weeks or processing, by which time either the BOI accepts my insurance as good enough, or my policy will have automatically been renewed (post-12 Dec end of "open season") and I can ping the insurer again to see if it is more amenable to issuing a firm date.

 

 

[Pib]

Here's a fresh Youtube video on the LTR (22 minutes long and less than a week old  as of today).   

 

A pretty good video because instead of just regurgitating snapshots from the BOI LTR website the majority of the video is a one-on-one interview with a BOI LTR rep, a Ms Kantarot Laoprad who is a BOI Senior Investment Promotion Officer.   Gets more into the details vs only a high level view.

 

 

 

[Pib]

And be sure to read the video comments/replies....some good info there made by some (in addition to some not-too-smart comments/replies by others). 

[Alotoftravel]

My takeaway comment from the video is that you can qualify With a portfolio of Us $800,000

, 10 years times $ 80,000 a year .

[Northwest87]

1 hour ago, Pib said:

And be sure to read the video comments/replies....some good info there made by some (in addition to some not-too-smart comments/replies by others). 

Oops!  The BOI lady clearly stated in the interview, talking about tax forms, that for the WP category, most income is acceptable **except** "wages and salary" because (she said a bit later) "we want to make sure you're already retired, so wages, salary, tips cannot be counted". This is all news to me; certainly not there in the requirements as disseminated previously...

 

When I submitted my pay stub as a test by email a few weeks ago, they said they were acceptable, and the requirement for WP is "80K income in the past year", which for me is salary and a few other items as I retire at the end of the year.

 

Anyhow, I'll file the paperwork and find out...

 

 

 

Edited October 31, 2022 by Northwest87

[Pib]

9 minutes ago, Northwest87 said:

Oops!  The BOI lady clearly stated in the interview, talking about tax forms, that for the WP category, most income is acceptable **except** "wages and salary". When I submitted my pay stub as a test by email a few weeks ago, they said they were acceptable, and the requirement for WP is "80K income in the past year", which for me is salary as I retire at the end of the year.

 

Anyhow, I'll file the paperwork and find out...

Sounds like you are kinda in no-man's land right now since you are "not" retired yet (but almost retired) and drawing pensions/have fixed income required for a Wealthy Pensioner.  Instead, you are still working, not drawing a pension and maybe don't have the required "fixed income" in lieu of a pension.    See below snapshot from BOI announcement regarding WP requirements....see the weblink for the full announcement which addresses requirements for all LTR categories like Wealthy Global Citizen.   

 

You might be better off waiting until you start drawing your pension(s) if wanting to apply for the WP category. 

 

But hey, all they can do if submitting an application is approve or disapprove....not like you can only submit an application once.
 

https://ltr.boi.go.th/documents/Announcement_of the Office of the Board of Investment No.2-2565 (EN).pdf