USA Citizen wants to get Retirement Visa - some advice please

[Negita43]

I am a UK citizen, about 12 years ago I came to Thailand on a retirement visa which I obtained in the UK - as far as I recall that did not require the 800,000 Baht in a Thai bank account to obtain it (only when I extended it).

But that was 12 years ago and things change.

He has already tried to open a bank account in Thailand and been refused because he only had a tourist visa so he feels that he is in a catch 22 (no visa no bank account no bank account no visa).

He has more tha sufficient funds to support himself here but what is his best route to get a retirement visa (he is over 50) - is i possible to get one in the USA without the 800,000 Baht and then come and open a bank account and then do a visa extensions subsequently over here?.

Thanks

[DrJack54]

9 minutes ago, Negita43 said:

is i possible to get one in the USA without the 800,000 Baht and then come and open a bank account and then do a visa extensions subsequently over here?.

Yes it is.

You are asking about a non O based on retirement. 

That can also be obtained in Thailand with visa exempt or tourist visa entry.

 

You are correct in that opening Thai bank account in your name only is a catch 22.

However an agent can assist with that.

Any ideas where you wish to live in Thailand 

[Negita43]

Just now, DrJack54 said:

Yes it is.

You are asking about a non O based on retirement. 

Without the 800K baht?

[DrJack54]

5 minutes ago, Negita43 said:

Without the 800K baht?

The important thing is it does not have to be in Thai bank.

Having a non O to enter Thailand would assist on opening bank account in Thailand.

 

Using an agent is also an option ~4k if you decide to obtain non O retirement in Thailand 

[zzzzz]

800,000 OR "equivalent" needs be in a bank to get a Non O visa, in the states, Laos or even Cambodia 
than transfer it to a Thai bank  to get ur 1 year extension at least 2 months before you apply
800,000 needs be in ur thai account 2 months on day you apply for extension.

Once u have a NON O , get a certificate of residence from immigration and shop around till you find a bank that will open an account for you,

Edited January 23 by zzzzz

[DrJack54]

17 minutes ago, zzzzz said:

Once u have a NON O , get a certificate of residence from immigration and shop around till you find a bank that will open an account for you

You won't obtain a COR at CW without a TM47 

[MPoll]

12 hours ago, Negita43 said:

is i possible to get one in the USA without the 800,000 Baht and then come and open a bank account and then do a visa extensions subsequently over here?.

Thanks

 

There is another answer to this question and that is to get an OA visa in the USA. I am an American who came to Thailand on an OA visa in 2017. In 2019 the Thai government added a health insurance requirement so I am not necessarily recommending this visa now but it is something a US citizen is going to see on the Thai consulate website in the US. He can get this visa using funds in his US bank accounts. It is a one year visa and the other features are a bit complicated. If the insurance requirement, for both the visa and subsequent extensions, doesn't bother him then it is an option that is out there. I had an OA and extensions for 6 years and then switch to a pensioner LTR visa and the Thai insurance I used for my OA visa also qualified me for the LTR. It would be a bit of a chore but he could switch to an O visa without the insurance requirement sometime in the future.

 

So . . . I am not recommending the OA over the O but he should be aware of the two visas. I got my OA visa and all my subsequent extensions myself so I am not really recommending agents either but (before everyone jumps on me for this comment) lots of people use agents and swear by them. 

[Hakuna Matata]

If you don't want to have any unexpected problems later, you should only apply for Non O-A Retirement visa at the Royal Thai Consulate in the United States.

 

It is strongly recommended to avoid any visa agents in Thailand.

[yankyoakum]

Due to having wifes container arriving early, I came on 60 day tourist visa, used a service and changed to Non O immigrant visa, opened and dumped 800K in account Nov then received the Non O extension of stay in Feb.. 2020.  Not sure what I paid but was cheaper than going back to USA and fussing with Thai embassy that was not close to my US residence..   Good luck with your endeavors 

[zzzzz]

6 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

You won't obtain a COR at CW without a TM47 

but u will in Phuket  :-)

 

Quote

It is strongly recommended to avoid any visa agents in Thailand.

why?  many do and I for one, an very happy with it 

Edited January 23 by zzzzz

[newbee2022]

18 hours ago, Negita43 said:

I am a UK citizen, about 12 years ago I came to Thailand on a retirement visa which I obtained in the UK - as far as I recall that did not require the 800,000 Baht in a Thai bank account to obtain it (only when I extended it).

But that was 12 years ago and things change.

He has already tried to open a bank account in Thailand and been refused because he only had a tourist visa so he feels that he is in a catch 22 (no visa no bank account no bank account no visa).

He has more tha sufficient funds to support himself here but what is his best route to get a retirement visa (he is over 50) - is i possible to get one in the USA without the 800,000 Baht and then come and open a bank account and then do a visa extensions subsequently over here?.

Thanks

I wonder why people can't inform themselves on the embassy's website before asking silly questions when they are here already instead prior to departure.

And now they get advice about all illegal things to do. I hope one day that Agent-business will be stopped and participants convicted.🙏

[Negita43]

32 minutes ago, newbee2022 said:

wonder why people can't inform themselves on the embassy's website before asking silly questions when they are here already instead prior to departure.

And now they get advice about all illegal things to do. I hope one day that Agent-business will be stopped and participants convicted.🙏

What Websites say and what happens in real life can be two entirely different things. Nothing like asking (politely) for the experiences of those that have actually done it

[buick]

your friend should try to get the Non O (90 Days) versus the Non O-A.  i looked at the website for the thai consulate in los angeles and it shows the Non O - retirement as an option.  show more than $30,000 in a US bank to obtain that.  then once in thailand, open bank account, transfer the money from USA, and obtain the one year extension of stay. 

 

that said, i've heard conflicting reports over the years about the Non O's being available from consulates in USA.  i know i tried to get one in LA in 2016 and they said 'only NON O-A'.

[rwill]

If you get the original visa in the USA the funds do not have to be in a Thai bank.  They can be in a US bank.  But after that to extend your stay in Thailand the funds need to be in a Thai bank, at least 2 months before applying for the extension of stay.

 

I would recommend applying for this regular non-0 visa with a 90 day stay.  Once in Thailand open a Thai bank account as soon as possible.  Then the last month of the 90 day apply for the 1 year extension.  (This avoids having to do the medical insurance certification every extension.)

 

non-immigrtant type O retirement

 

It is also possible to enter Thailand visa exempt then apply at immigration for the 90 day non-o.  But maybe a bit harder to open a Thai bank account without having the non-o first.

Edited January 23 by rwill

[newbee2022]

2 hours ago, Negita43 said:

What Websites say and what happens in real life can be two entirely different things. Nothing like asking (politely) for the experiences of those that have actually done it

I'm talking about the embassy's website (read) which is updated when necessary. The 800.000 Baht thing is of course mentioned there. I think OP is just too lazy to inform himself at first hand.🙏

[818Pilot]

I’m from the US, retired last year and I’ll share what I did to open my primary bank account so I could deposit the 800k to get my Non-O.

 

As you know since you’ve lived here longer than me, things change weekly.

 

I arrived Visa Exempt and purposely booked an AirBnb for over a month. I made sure when booking that the host would file a TM30, which they did. I then got the TM30 slip and to make life easy I paid 500b to have an agent get me a residence certificate. I actually had them get me two, 1 for banking and 1 for my drivers license.

 

With the residence certificate in hand I went to Kbank in Chiang Mai, dressed nicely (no shorts or flip flops, although I’m not sure it matters) had a nice conversation with the manager explaining that I retired, was applying for my non-o visa but to do so I needed to open an account so I can fund it. 
 

About 30 minutes later and 300 signatures later (lol) I left with a new account, online access and debit card. 
 

Hope this helps
 

 

 

[Negita43]

2 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

I'm talking about the embassy's website (read) which is updated when necessary. The 800.000 Baht thing is of course mentioned there. I think OP is just too lazy to inform himself at first hand.🙏

So am I - your handle says it all - forums are for exchanging information not really for slagging people off (although many like you do).THE END

[DrJack54]

6 hours ago, newbee2022 said:

I wonder why people can't inform themselves on the embassy's website before asking silly questions when they are here already instead prior to departure

Not one of your posts have provided positive information.

Contribute advice for the OP. 

[LikeItHot]

Tell the bank you want to buy some accident insurance from them and then suddenly they can't wait to open a bank account for you.  I wonder why that is 🤔.

[Gknrd]

Best advice is go to the Philippines. Skip Thailand. 

[JimTripper]

8 hours ago, Hakuna Matata said:

If you don't want to have any unexpected problems later, you should only apply for Non O-A Retirement visa at the Royal Thai Consulate in the United States.

 

It is strongly recommended to avoid any visa agents in Thailand.

Interesting. If they cracked down on using agents at some point, maybe due to the new tax regulations and needing to tax money in your account, it would cause a lot of problems. 

Edited January 23 by JimTripper

[newbee2022]

11 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Not one of your posts have provided positive information.

Contribute advice for the OP. 

You're not in any position to order me to do what you think is right. If you can't read I can't help you.