Converting Visa on Arrival to Non-O (retirement-based) in Nan Province

[Sheryl]

On 7/27/2023 at 4:11 PM, Fore Man said:

Dear fellow posters,

 

I have looked into applying for a visa through the Thai Consulate website in Washington, DC.  It looks like a straightforward effort to complete the online application, albeit a stilted experience in mastering the site's peculiarities.  But I could not find any reference to a Type 0 Non-immigrant visa.  The only choice that I could see germane to my situation was the type 0-X visa...pertaining to a non-immigrant married to a Thai spouse.  So I dutifully began the electronic application leading to this type of visa.  Is this the correct visa for my situation?  I am a year away from our anticipated departure from the USA so cannot complete the entire application at this time....have no airline booked yet because we don't really know exactly when we will be ready to fly.  Does anyone know how long the site will retain my information before deleting it from inactivity?

Thanks in advance for all responses.

You do NOT want an O-X visa, it requires useless health insurance from a Thai company among other things.

 

Non-O visa  is available through the website.  On the opening page, under Purpose of visa, scroll down to  "Non Immigrant visa" and under that you will see "retirement (pensioner aged 50 or above..."), it comes much later than the "long term stay" visas as it is listed alphabetically.   This will take you to a listing of requirements though on that page, it refers only to "Family of a Thai national (Immediate family includes spouse and children)" not retirement (but can be issued for both purposes). Anyhow you qualify as a spouse.

 

I can't walk you through the actual application process as I have never done it, but others have and definitely you can get a non-O that way.  There is a downloadable user manual which I attach here. Your account dashboard should show a Manage Application menu where you can edit your incomplete application or simply delete it.  Since you are a year away from coming, I would just delete it and make new application when within 3 months of travel as the visa must be used within 3 months.

 

Entering on a non-O, you will get 90 day permission to stay before that is up yo ugo to immigration for a one year extension making sure you have the required funds in the bank. Opening a bank account will be easier with the non-O entry than it would be coming in visa exempt.

 

You can do the one year extension either on basis of marriage (requires only 400k in the bank and no limits on spending it once the extension is granted) or retirement (requires 800k in the bank and spending is restricted). Marriage is certainly better in terms of financial requirements/restrictions but process takes longer and there is an "under consideration" wait period.

 

English-Manual(4).pdf

[Red Phoenix]

1 hour ago, Fore Man said:

Dear fellow posters,

 

I have looked into applying for a visa through the Thai Consulate website in Washington, DC.  It looks like a straightforward effort to complete the online application, albeit a stilted experience in mastering the site's peculiarities.  But I could not find any reference to a Type 0 Non-immigrant visa.  The only choice that I could see germane to my situation was the type 0-X visa...pertaining to a non-immigrant married to a Thai spouse.  So I dutifully began the electronic application leading to this type of visa.  Is this the correct visa for my situation?  I am a year away from our anticipated departure from the USA so cannot complete the entire application at this time....have no airline booked yet because we don't really know exactly when we will be ready to fly.  Does anyone know how long the site will retain my information before deleting it from inactivity?

Thanks in advance for all responses.

The on-line Visa application website is not very transparent (to use a euphemism), but applying for a Type O Non-ImmIgrant Visa is definitely possible on the website, and many people have done this already.

However, in your case with already a personal Thai bank-account opened in Nan - the province where you would apply - it would be far easier to simply enter Thailand VisaExempt (without a Visa) and apply at your local Imm Office in Nan for the Non Imm O Visa from such VisaExempt entry. 

NOTE that there is one possible snag: there are indeed a few rogue Imm Offices that refuse to do the 'change of Visa' process as such application is called.  One of them being Chiang Rai, that Office then refers applicants to get hold of the 90-day Non Imm O Visa at the Vientiane Thai Embassy! 

So it would be wise to get confirmation that the Nan Imm Office is not one of those rogue offices that refuse your legit application for a 90-day Non Imm O Visa.  And if that should be the case, you could indeed apply for the 90-day Non Imm O Visa using the eVisa website and that needs to be done when you are still in your home-country.

 

Edited July 27, 2023 by Red Phoenix

[BritTim]

4 hours ago, Fore Man said:

Dear fellow posters,

 

I have looked into applying for a visa through the Thai Consulate website in Washington, DC.  It looks like a straightforward effort to complete the online application, albeit a stilted experience in mastering the site's peculiarities.  But I could not find any reference to a Type 0 Non-immigrant visa.  The only choice that I could see germane to my situation was the type 0-X visa...pertaining to a non-immigrant married to a Thai spouse.  So I dutifully began the electronic application leading to this type of visa.  Is this the correct visa for my situation?  I am a year away from our anticipated departure from the USA so cannot complete the entire application at this time....have no airline booked yet because we don't really know exactly when we will be ready to fly.  Does anyone know how long the site will retain my information before deleting it from inactivity?

Thanks in advance for all responses.

No! Stay away from the Non O-A and Non O-X visas. See this page for all relevant visas for retirees that the Washington embassy claims to allow: https://thaiembdc.org/2020/09/30/nonimmigrantoaox/. You need to figure out how to make the application for a Non O (retirement) through the e-visa system.

 

Note that instructions implying that health insurance is necessary should no longer be true for a Non O (retirement) visa. That was only a requirement during Covid.