LTR Visa is Now available for Long Term Residency

[Lacrimas]

BTW do they give work permits to the pensioners too? What's the age requirement for that category?

[Misty]

6 minutes ago, Lacrimas said:

just operate it with a business extension and work permit then, what's the problem? 

Done that past 15 years. this is obviously better, for those who qualify.  What problem do you have with it?

[sawademe]

For the work-from-thailand OR highly skilled professional options, do we get a 10 year visa if we meet all the initial hurdles posted? Or will there be periodic checks of income/employment/taxes/etc which may allow the visa to be revoked?

I would like to work from thailand with my current employer if I don't have to burden my employer with lots of paperwork to fill out on it, or I could leave my current job to take several months off in thailand while sharpening my skillset and keeping an eye out for a future online job at my own leisure. Maybe language school or thai elite are the best options for that still.

Edited August 24, 2022 by sawademe

[DodgerRodger]

15 hours ago, sawademe said:

For the work-from-thailand OR highly skilled professional options, do we get a 10 year visa if we meet all the initial hurdles posted? Or will there be periodic checks of income/employment/taxes/etc which may allow the visa to be revoked?

 

I emailed BOI on this very question just over a week ago.  No reply as yet, although another question I asked was responded to in about 4 days.  I'll post any reply I get.

[howerde]

20 minutes ago, DodgerRodger said:

I emailed BOI on this very question just over a week ago.  No reply as yet, although another question I asked was responded to in about 4 days.  I'll post any reply I get.

Poster mudcat posted on the 6 Aug, some info some of it shows

An LTR will initially be granted for not more than five years, but may be extended for an additional five years. However, to extend the visa, the LTR holder must reapply for a COQ.  

[DodgerRodger]

1 hour ago, howerde said:

Poster mudcat posted on the 6 Aug, some info some of it shows

An LTR will initially be granted for not more than five years, but may be extended for an additional five years. However, to extend the visa, the LTR holder must reapply for a COQ.  

Thanks, yes, I saw that, but the source of the information was I believe from a private enterprise called BDO (bdo.th),  Hence I wrote to BOI about it to confirm frequency of reviews, whether the visa applicant has to be in Thailand at the time of the review, and also if there is any minimum annual residency requirement.

[pepper402]

I submitted my pre-screening request on Aug 19 and haven't heard back.  Should I send them an email asking to confirm that they received it and for a status update?  I don't want be a pest. It would be nice if they sent an email confirming receipt.  It would also be nice if pre-screening doesn't find any issues with the application that the "official" review also doesn't find any issues. 

[Boomer6969]

8 hours ago, pepper402 said:

I submitted my pre-screening request on Aug 19 and haven't heard back.  Should I send them an email asking to confirm that they received it and for a status update?  I don't want be a pest. It would be nice if they sent an email confirming receipt.  It would also be nice if pre-screening doesn't find any issues with the application that the "official" review also doesn't find any issues. 

Did exactly the same, and same result. Promising.

[pepper402]

3 hours ago, Boomer6969 said:

Did exactly the same, and same result. Promising.

Dear BOI: 

Below is an email you could send to everyone who submits an LTR application for pre-screening.  It takes 5 seconds to send and doesn’t require personalization (Dear Sir/Madam). 

 

You spent millions of Dollars on the Elite Visa program which has been in place for many years and attracted less than 9,000 applicants in total (program was introduced in 2003!).  Small things like receipt acknowledgement, consistent practices and policies, timely review and replies, reduced paperwork burden, etc. will help make this new program a success.  

----

Dear Sir/Madam,

Thank you for submitting your Long-Term Resident application for a pre-screening.  We will review your application and get back to you with any errors that need to be corrected, or requirements for additional documentation. 

Thailand Board of Investment

[Lacrimas]

On 8/23/2022 at 2:24 PM, Misty said:

Done that past 15 years. this is obviously better, for those who qualify.  What problem do you have with it?

I just don't like that this is called 'change' when it appeals only to a miniscule part of expats, but like I said... suit yourself

[Misty]

8 minutes ago, Lacrimas said:

I just don't like that this is called 'change' when it appeals only to a miniscule part of expats, but like I said... suit yourself

You bet.  All the other programs seem to be still in place, travesties that some of those are.  So you can suit yourself too.

 

[Lacrimas]

37 minutes ago, Misty said:

You bet.  All the other programs seem to be still in place, travesties that some of those are.  So you can suit yourself too.

 

no hard feelings Olenna! I hope it works for you, personally I'm <deleted> because the idea is good but the execution is poor as usual limiting it to a few elites in a period of time that needs expat more than ever(pattern seen over and over) but if you are in that group good for you.

[ThailandRyan]

1 hour ago, pepper402 said:

Dear BOI: 

Below is an email you could send to everyone who submits an LTR application for pre-screening.  It takes 5 seconds to send and doesn’t require personalization (Dear Sir/Madam). 

 

You spent millions of Dollars on the Elite Visa program which has been in place for many years and attracted less than 9,000 applicants in total (program was introduced in 2003!).  Small things like receipt acknowledgement, consistent practices and policies, timely review and replies, reduced paperwork burden, etc. will help make this new program a success.  

----

Dear Sir/Madam,

Thank you for submitting your Long-Term Resident application for a pre-screening.  We will review your application and get back to you with any errors that need to be corrected, or requirements for additional documentation. 

Thailand Board of Investment

Sorry to hear you did not get a return email like I did and posted here in the OP on Monday 

[Boomer6969]

On 8/22/2022 at 4:33 PM, ThailandRyan said:

Please be informed that most of them are acceptable. However, for your health insurance you need to provide it with a remaining coverage period of at least 10 months as of the date of the letter of qualification endorsement issuance. 

Well this means that I cannot use my existing UN ASHI health cover, even though could show funds over 100 KUSD, but not in Thailand.

 

But unfortunately, this leads me to think that the yearly checks will require a lot more proof and paperwork than a mere 90 days report. If that was true LTR would hardly be of any benefit, as far as I am concerned. 

 

In any case, I'll probably renew my "Thai wife"  extension early next year, get a new passport by the end of 2023 and make a decision based on what I'll read here.

[ThailandRyan]

7 minutes ago, Boomer6969 said:

Well this means that I cannot use my existing UN ASHI health cover, even though could show funds over 100 KUSD, but not in Thailand.

 

But unfortunately, this leads me to think that the yearly checks will require a lot more proof and paperwork than a mere 90 days report. If that was true LTR would hardly be of any benefit, as far as I am concerned. 

 

In any case, I'll probably renew my "Thai wife"  extension early next year, get a new passport by the end of 2023 and make a decision based on what I'll read here.

I am sure that they will be able to check the insurance through the carrier portal here in Thailand, or through contacting your carrier elsewhere, who will then will have to submit a new evidence of coverage, not really a hard issue.....

[DodgerRodger]

Got a reply to my questions, copied below (Q1 has been misunderstood by BOI)

 

Please see the answers to your questions below.   1.May I please ask if the 10-year LTR visa has any restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year?   Answer: There is no restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year prior to the LTR Visa application.  2.Also, will there be an annual or periodic review of qualification for the LTR Visa, and will the visa holder be required to be physically present in Thailand at that time?   Answer: There is no  annual or periodic review of qualification for the LTR Visa holders. However, if the holder are living continuously in Thailand for a period of 1 year, they are required to make 1-year report to the Immigration (in case of re-entering Thailand, the report will be due 1 year counting from the latest arrival date into the Kingdom).    Please be informed that the LTR visa period is 10 year (5 years + 5 years staying permission) which means that you will get a 5-year visa stamp first. Your qualification and criteria (for example, your investment) will be evaluated again after the first 5 years of the visa. If your qualification and criteria do not meet the requirement e.g. the value of investments is less than USD500,000 (because you sold your property), then you will not get approval for the rest of the 5 years of the visa.

 

Edited August 26, 2022 by DodgerRodger
amended

[Misty]

6 hours ago, Lacrimas said:

no hard feelings Olenna! I hope it works for you, personally I'm <deleted> because the idea is good but the execution is poor as usual limiting it to a few elites in a period of time that needs expat more than ever(pattern seen over and over) but if you are in that group good for you.

No hard feelings. It's a case of choosing your poison, as it were.  The NonB/work permit system for small business owners has become increasingly dysfunctional over the years.  In comparison this new system is relatively painless.

[stat]

Are the requirements for the LTR Visa as a wealthy citiziens cummulative or is it enough to fulfill one criteria i.e. 1 M in assets? Price is 50K Baht for the LTR? Then indeed OA would be on a par or an even better option at around 7500 Baht at least if you do not know how long you will stay or if they close the country because of Covid 23. You can get 2 years out of 1 OA Visa. Thanks!

Edited August 26, 2022 by stat

[pepper402]

6 hours ago, DodgerRodger said:

Got a reply to my questions, copied below (Q1 has been misunderstood by BOI)

 

1.May I please ask if the 10-year LTR visa has any restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year?   Answer: There is no restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year prior to the LTR Visa application.

 

I have the same question.  If they had just left this part off "in one year prior to the LTR Visa application."...

[sawademe]

6 hours ago, DodgerRodger said:

Answer: There is no  annual or periodic review of qualification for the LTR Visa holders. However, if the holder are living continuously in Thailand for a period of 1 year, they are required to make 1-year report to the Immigration (in case of re-entering Thailand, the report will be due 1 year counting from the latest arrival date into the Kingdom).

 

Very interesting, thanks for sharing. So no periodic review for 5 years and annual reporting in to immigration. This actually sounds really good, I'm cautiously optimistic.

 

I'll have to flesh out the legal differences between the work-from-thailand and the highly skilled professional visas to determine which is more advantageous. on the surface they seem very similar.

[Misty]

On 8/22/2022 at 4:33 PM, ThailandRyan said:

Just recieved an E-Mail back from the LTR unit

 

Dear xxxxxccc,

Received your email with thank you. We have just reviewed the attachments in your previous email. Please be informed that most of them are acceptable. However, for your health insurance you need to provide it with a remaining coverage period of at least 10 months as of the date of the letter of qualification endorsement issuance.    Nevertheless, please be informed that we are able to confirm only when the LTR initiative is officially launched. This is just a pre-application review.  At the beginning of September, please note that you will have to fill out an online application and upload supporting documents as well through our online application system. So, there is no need to send those to us again via email.

Kind regards, LTR Visa Unit

Some good news - I received a similar email yesterday saying the pre-screening documents are acceptable, and to submit them online on 1 Sep. 

 

 

[DodgerRodger]

On 8/26/2022 at 10:49 AM, DodgerRodger said:

Got a reply to my questions, copied below (Q1 has been misunderstood by BOI)

 

Please see the answers to your questions below.   1.May I please ask if the 10-year LTR visa has any restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year?   Answer: There is no restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year prior to the LTR Visa application.

 

I have just received further clarification from BOI, which reads,

 

After received LTR visa, you would like to leave Thailand, your visa permit will be remain. However, for the Work-from-Thailand Professional and Highly-Skilled Professional categories, your visa will be terminated if your quit the job from the endorsed company.

Kind regards, LTR Visa Unit

[DjChris28]

On 8/26/2022 at 7:49 PM, DodgerRodger said:

Answer: There is no restriction on the number of days the visa holder is required to be resident inside Thailand in one year prior to the LTR Visa application. 

This is important as beware that you can be taxed after residing in thailand for more than 180 days of whatever money you bring into the country in the same year it was earned.

 

The only thing stopping me now with my employer is the burdon of paperwork. They don't like the audited reports and having to go to the ceo/director level to get all of this documentation. 

Edited August 29, 2022 by DjChris28

[voltore]

Hey all, I'm new here. Been following the discussion around the "working-in-Thailand" path. I'm in a similar-ish position to DjChris and a couple others. Ish.

 

So I'm currently perm employed in UK (software dev, earning over $80k) but am considering leaving as they don't allow working abroad which my wife & I would like to experience.

I've been wondering about taking UK contracts (generally 6 month contracts on a daily rate) and working from Thailand.

 

I understand this falls foul of the "employed full time by a private company earning $150m+ over 3 years rule" and from previous posts it looks like an individual's own company would be considered the employer. 

 

However, does anyone have an idea of how it would be viewed if contracts were to go via an 'umbrella' company? IE the companies often used by UK contractors to deal with the recent IR35 rules. 

In this case the umbrella company (established, not owned by me) would be considered the employer, and me the employee. 

 

I understand these visa options are quite new/vague, but does anyone with more experience of the Thai visa process than I have any thoughts on this?

 

Cheers,

Michael

[sawademe]

6 hours ago, DodgerRodger said:

After received LTR visa, you would like to leave Thailand, your visa permit will be remain. However, for the Work-from-Thailand Professional and Highly-Skilled Professional categories, your visa will be terminated if your quit the job from the endorsed company.

Curious to know how they will audit this unless they are counting on self-reporting from visa holders and/or the 5 year evaluation.

[anrcaccount]

14 hours ago, DodgerRodger said:

I have just received further clarification from BOI, which reads,

 

After received LTR visa, you would like to leave Thailand, your visa permit will be remain. However, for the Work-from-Thailand Professional and Highly-Skilled Professional categories, your visa will be terminated if your quit the job from the endorsed company.

Kind regards, LTR Visa Unit

So based on your two responses from the BOI, taking example of 'Work from Thailand Professional Category', do you think this is a fair summary? 

 

If you are granted the visa after application, it is valid for 5 years multiple entry.

There is a 1 year address reporting requirement which could be avoided altogether if the holder leaves the country at least once per year.

The BOI will do no checking or validation of the visa conditions or your continued employment status during that 5 years.

Immigration will do no checking or validation of the visa conditions or your continued employment status during that 5 years.

If you decide to self declare that your employment has ended, your visa will be terminated. 

 

Be interested to check if there are any penalties in that case above, or just a visa termination? 

 

 

 

[JimGant]

14 hours ago, DjChris28 said:

This is important as beware that you can be taxed after residing in thailand for more than 180 days of whatever money you bring into the country in the same year it was earned.

Not if it's exempted by tax treaty, like government pensions.

[ThailandRyan]

Just now, JimGant said:

Not if it's exempted by tax treaty, like government pensions.

+1 what @JimGantsaid as quoted above.  Since all of my money was earned prior to retirement and it is a define benefit pension, I owe no taxes on any money.  Wonder if the 10 million Thb I just transferred and bought a house with will constitute an investment, even though under the Wealthy Pensioner scheme it does not say it is needed. 

[gamb00ler]

15 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

  Since all of my money was earned prior to retirement and it is a define benefit pension, I owe no taxes on any money.

Some AN members are using a Bangkok based tax firm that claims IRA, 401(k) withdrawals are exempted in the US-Thai tax treaty for residents of Thailand.

 

That theory may fly for a while, but the landing could be rough.  Best be prepared for that if your exemption from Thai taxation is based on that interpretation of the treaty.

 

In case you missed the previous discussion on US taxes in Thailand:

https://aseannow.com/topic/1008555-tax-specialist-in-chiang-mai/

 

[ThailandRyan]

12 minutes ago, gamb00ler said:

Some AN members are using a Bangkok based tax firm that claims IRA, 401(k) withdrawals are exempted in the US-Thai tax treaty for residents of Thailand.

 

That theory may fly for a while, but the landing could be rough.  Best be prepared for that if your exemption from Thai taxation is based on that interpretation of the treaty.

 

In case you missed the previous discussion on US taxes in Thailand:

https://aseannow.com/topic/1008555-tax-specialist-in-chiang-mai/

 

If my pension was issued from an IRA, or 401K then I would understand what you have written.  All of my funds in my retirement pension were earned and paid into the Defined Benefit pension account years ago by myself and the State I retired from, of course the money earns interest and is used by the pension program to buy stocks which increase their holdings. However, I have not paid into the account for years, and pay taxes on what is disbursed in monthly payments to both the State and Feds.  It would be a travesty if one in my position had to pay taxes as you say her in Thailand.  My money is deposited into my US account through the pension fund and I transfer it as needed, basically I only transfer twice a year.