Non-immigrant "O" based on Thai Child - Beware Chaengwattana

[ubonjoe]

2 hours ago, Hugh Cow said:

What is the opinion of you visa gurus out there? Is it easier to obtain than the marriage or "retirement" visa in regards to paperwork, requirements etc? Paperwork was never my strong point. The deposit criteria is not a problem.

Some people will say it is easier to do a extension based upon retirement. In my opinion the deciding factor is whether you want to have 400k baht on the bank or 800k baht baht in the bank on the day you apply and then for 3 months after and 400k baht after for the rest of the year.

I chose the the extension based upon marriage since I could qualify for the 40k baht income option with proof from my embassy. Another reason then was I could work and get a work permit with that extension instead of retirement if I wanted to

I have applied for 15 extensions based upon marriage and have not experienced the problems people state they have. For the current and previous 3 extensions I have used the income option by showing over 40k baht foreign transfers into my account after my embassy stopped doing proof of income.

 

2 hours ago, Hugh Cow said:

Also is it worth using an agent? They seem to charge around 40K baht to do it. Some have said that they can set up a bank account and I dont even need to deposit the 400K or 800K into the account. How can that work as it suggests something dodgy to me. Are any of these agents licensed by the government or just all freelancers?

Paying 40k baht for the visa/extension is way over the top. I don't approve of people using agents to get around having the money in the bank.

There is no licensing for agents. The agents only use offices that they have a arrangement they have with to get around the financial proof.

[ubonjoe]

3 minutes ago, scottyp1980 said:

Thanks for the useful info again. All I can do is try I suppose and if it hasn’t been approved before the 60 days I’ll just have to wait.

Unless planning a trip out of the country the extra time to get the extension result is not really problem.

I do my extension about 2 weeks early or less so it is only 45 days or less. I have done 15 extensions and all of the 30 days have started from the end of my current extension.

[Digitalbanana]

On 10/27/2022 at 10:43 PM, Lite Beer said:

5) In the case of parents, the father or mother must maintain an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month throughout the year or must have deposited funds of no less than Baht 400,000 to cover expenses for one year.

I wasn't aware of this. So a foreign parent happily married to a Thai can deposit 400000 on day of extension based on supporting their Thai child and let the balance drop to zero after approval and repeat same next extension? So less money needed kept in bank than marriage method.

[ubonjoe]

1 hour ago, Digitalbanana said:

I wasn't aware of this. So a foreign parent happily married to a Thai can deposit 400000 on day of extension based on supporting their Thai child and let the balance drop to zero after approval and repeat same next extension? So less money needed kept in bank than marriage method.

That would depend upon the office where you apply. Some offices could insist on using marriage as the reason for your extension.

The intent of number 5 in clause 2.18 is to allow a unmarried or divorced parent to apply for the one year extension.