Any advantages to retirement over marriage visa?

[brianthainess]

Just now, Liquorice said:

 2.

 

Two confused with my above post already that believe they extend their Non O visa each year at Immigration.
Never bothered to read the TM7 and STM2 forms they complete or maybe they just can't understand what they read.

While you are pedantically correct, Immigration officers ime always call it a Visa, Extension is just to hard for them to pronounce. One officer apparently asked a friend of mine once,

"How do you say Parsa-port in English ? "

[bubblegum]

1 hour ago, DrJack54 said:

What do you mean "So" 

Thought it was obvious. If you bother to read the OP it would appear that he has not been transferring monthly income. Does not even live in Thailand.

The income method requires 12 months of forward planning.

 

Just pointing out the fact that it is possible, don't have to crucify me. Money in the bank need to be there also for 5 months? Not sure. Im lucky that my embassy still provides us with a letter of income. So for me that's the easy way. Apparently the Brits don't do this. My fault I should have know this as a non Brit.

[Liquorice]

3 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

While you are pedantically correct, Immigration officers ime always call it a Visa,

Using the correct terminology and understanding the difference between a valid and non-valid visa and that an extension of stay is a permit, not a visa, is not being pedantic.

[Liquorice]

10 minutes ago, bubblegum said:

Money in the bank need to be there also for 5 months?

2 months to apply for either type of extension.

 

10 minutes ago, bubblegum said:

Apparently the Brits don't do this. My fault I should have know this as a non Brit.

Neither do the US nor Australian Embassies who were requested to 'verify' incomes.
Impossible due to date protection laws, but let's stay on topic.

Edited September 13 by Liquorice

[petedk]

13 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Surely that's a joke..

Almost weekly threads complaining about extensions based on marriage requirements.

If the financial requirements is not an issue then based on retirement is a no brainer.

OP..did not vaguely mention intention to work.

 

The under consideration period along with home visit would be a no go for some. Include myself.

From the OP ..,

"Thanks to all who have replied.  Retirement seems the best option then." 

 

 

I am on a marriage visa.

 

Yes, you need more documents, but surely you have them. Copy of wedding certificate, photos, bank statement and so on.

I have NEVER had a visit from immigration during the 1 month consideration period.

 

 

[Liquorice]

3 minutes ago, petedk said:

I am on a marriage visa.

No you're not!

Post an image of your stamp.

[brianthainess]

Another reason for me to keep to a Marriage extension, is the money in the bank, I am self funded for hospital treatment, house/car may need repairs, That is why I don't want  money locked up that I can't use.

[mokwit]

2 hours ago, bubblegum said:

As per usual you get your info from AN and refuse any other truth except yours. For non lazy people marriage is just as easy.

Misleading. Many have stated that it is not easy to arrange 2 witnesses hanging around all day to be present when IO's come. Not everybody lives in a village where everyone is related to their wife.

 

I can't imagine why someone would do a marriage extension if they qualified for a retirement extension, other than the 800k/400k was too much or they needed the eligibility to work option.

[Digitalbanana]

14 hours ago, Colonel_Mustard said:

or am I missing something?

As others mentioned a Non O with retirement extensions is far easier. Took me 20 minutes with online booking at CW and thats all it takes each year. Cost 1900THB. Wife doesn't need to waste time coming with you to immigration either. Only drawback I know of if you were offered work in Thailand you need to then change to another visa.

[DrJack54]

4 minutes ago, brianthainess said:

That is why I don't want  money locked up that I can't use.

Indeed, also the loss of interest from alternatives such as shares.

In addition to fact that funds need to be in bank account in your name only. 

[grain]

I'm not currently married but living defacto, years ago I was married and for a couple of years was on the marriage exts, I hated the disrespectful attitudes some of those IOs had towards my wife, and when doing their damn interrogations asking where she met the foreigner and how much does the foreigner pay her every month, and they were writing all this stuff down. If I got married again tomorrow I'd remain on retirement and keep my wife out of it. There's also the possibility if a marriage goes pear shape (it does happen) then your immigration status is not effected at all.  

[petedk]

39 minutes ago, Liquorice said:

No you're not!

Post an image of your stamp.

 

ok extension based on marriage

[brianthainess]

Still waiting for the OP reply WHAT Immigration Office ????????

[UWEB]

1 hour ago, Liquorice said:

 2.

 

Two confused with my above post already that believe they extend their Non O visa each year at Immigration.
Never bothered to read the TM7 and STM2 forms they complete or maybe they just can't understand what they read.

Why bothered, I take it as that the persons IQ is not high enough to understand what I have posted.

[DrJack54]

1 minute ago, brianthainess said:

Still waiting for the OP reply WHAT Immigration Office ????????

Profile indicates Phuket.

Would make things lot easier if OP,s stated their immigration office in first post. 

[brianthainess]

37 minutes ago, mokwit said:

Misleading. Many have stated that it is not easy to arrange 2 witnesses hanging around all day to be present when IO's come. Not everybody lives in a village where everyone is related to their wife.

 

I can't imagine why someone would do a marriage extension if they qualified for a retirement extension, other than the 800k/400k was too much or they needed the eligibility to work option.

Well IME Immigration call and tell you what time they are coming, so no need to hang around all day,  my wife has no relatives, we use direct neighbors  and never heard of 2 witnesses being wanted. One time we did use a Witness who lived miles away, they came early and had to wait for me to pick her up.

Edited September 13 by brianthainess

[Liverpool Lou]

"Any advantages to retirement over marriage visa?"

 

Yes, no bloody wife.

[TroubleandGrumpy]

IMO Marriage Visa offers a married person more advantages than a Retirement Visa.

Being married to a Thai means something more to Thais, than being retired (and implied a single).

If you are living where there are lots of others the same (Pattaya, Patong, Phuket,  etc) then no problems.

 

It is a little more complex for the annual extensions, but it is not too hard at all - never had a problem.

I have had both the Retired and Marriage Visa - is not that much more complicated to complete documents etc.

The main differences having the Marriage Visa I have found, is the following:-

Negatives -  Need for another Thai to confirm you are married (1st time), and a visit to the house/home (sometimes), and the waiting period after Extension Application.

Positives - 400K only and which you can spend after 2-3 months, and arrive at Swampy in the Thai queue (with Wife).

I have found that they seem to treat those with a Marriage Visa more 'positively' than those with a Retirement Visa.

But I have never extended/applied in the 'Tourist Provinces' so it is probably easier there where the majority are Retired.

 

They have been saying for a while that they are looking at making health insurance compulsory for O Retirement Visas.

It is already compulsory for O-A Retirement Visas, and I think it will one day be the same for O Retirement Visas/Extensions.

 

[Mason45]

15 hours ago, Upnotover said:

No.  Retirement "O" does not need those things.  That is for an "O-A".  As already stated the main difference between retirement and family is financial.  Marriage extensions have a lot of odd things asked for, photo's, witnesses, home visits, etc.  If you don't mind locking 800k in the bank retirement is the best option. 

I prefer the retirement "O" visa from an agent. It is more expensive upfront but as I'm on a fixed monthly income it suits me fine. My agent does everything for me including my 90 day reports. But be aware Immigration rules can change regularly, so the agent is aware of these changes as they occur. Before you do anything have a chat with a reputable visa agent and they will explain all your options. One that comes to mind is in Soi Post Office, another in Soi Buakaow 2/3 rds of the way heading to the Soi Buakaow Market.

[Colonel_Mustard]

2 hours ago, brianthainess said:

TWO important questions for you. What Immigration office will you use and did you marry in Thailand.

Yes, we married in Thailand 25 years ago.  We would be using the immigration office in Khorat.

[Scouse123]

The best advantage of retirement visa over Marriage visa is.....you don't need to be married to get one!

[DrJack54]

1 hour ago, Colonel_Mustard said:

Yes, we married in Thailand 25 years ago.  We would be using the immigration office in Khorat.

Hopefully someone doing extensions marriage using Korat can give you first hand knowledge re that immigration office.

Unrelated but here is thread that just discusses "photo requirements" 

Could make Monty Python sketch out of it.

https://aseannow.com/topic/1290005-photos-for-marriage-extension/ 

 

Here is ubonjoe list for extension based on marriage.

https://aseannow.com/applications/core/interface/file/attachment.php?id=843557&key=2caaa6b16bae18dd24e0a61253734932

[WDSmart]

I've lived in Thailand for about 20 years and have used both Marriage and Retirement requirements to extend my visa for another year. The only difference I've seen is that the one-year extension based on Marriage requires a lot more paperwork than one based on Retirement.

[spidermike007]

The upside to the marriage visa, is that only 400,000 is needed as a deposit, and it does not have to stay in the bank, once your visa is granted.

 

The downsides are:

The hurdles you need to jump over, in order to get a marriage visa are stupid, ridiculous, unnecessary, draconian, wasteful, and silly. I understand the need for them to verify that you are a legitimate couple. Upon the first application. But, the dumb requirements should not relate to renewals. You should not be required to show fresh images of the house each time, copies of the marriage papers, the house documents, either come with a local Thai witness, or bring a signed affidavit from a local Thai each time, provide new maps to the house, and dozens of other requirements.

 

I just do not even know what to say about the process. I felt like a street dog by the time I left. After hours of paperwork, copy after copy after copy, each page having to be signed, and then being grilling by the surly officer, I literally felt like a street dog. The level of disrespect that immigration shows married couples here, is totally uncalled for, beyond the pale, and inane. The copy woman, the guy sorting our papers, they were all nice. But, the officers? Such sourpusses.

 

The woman who was helping us was so difficult to work with, when she finally rejected us over the tiniest thing she did not like, after nearly an hour of reviewing every document with a microscope, so to speak, and said no, I responded by saying yes. YES, you are going to do this. Yes, you are going to do this right now. YES, you are going to stop saying NO to me right now. This ends now. She looked at me and did not know what to say. I asked for the manager. The top brass came over, and we had it sorted in 30 minutes. Took nearly 3 hours. And as usual, it will be a month, until I have final approval. Is it worth it? NO. It is my last marriage visa. I will go back to a retirement visa next year, or leave the country, before I subject myself to that abuse one more time.

 

Frankly, I think at least some of this comes from the rather extreme level of xenophobia and the toxic racism of the army. It filters down throughout the government. I do not think they want us here. And making these procedures difficult is one way of expressing that. 

 

Fortunately, I feel very little of that sentiment from the non governmental Thai people. 

I use only the retirement visa now. I realize that part of the aggravation that I felt in regard to living in Thailand was due to having to deal with immigration and by switching to the retirement visa I was able to rid myself of a lot of that aggravation. 

[Irish star]

I was sitting in Udon immigration , they hate the marriage visa too much paperwork 

[Colonel_Mustard]

Thanks for all of the replies.  It seems that experience of the marriage extension varies quite a lot.

 

It has certainly given me a lot of useful information to ponder.

[Jack1988]

I would definitely apply for a retirement visa, also because I'm not married. I already have the financial requirements but I'm still far from 50 yrs. I can just wait 

[sandyf]

6 hours ago, Liquorice said:

OP stated planning to return in the near future, which doesn't suggest he has time to make 12 x monthly overseas transfers.

Doesn't need to. The first extension he does can be done on a reduced number, 2 or 3 possibly depending on office. Would however need  to address the issue on arrival.

[sandyf]

4 hours ago, mokwit said:

Misleading. Many have stated that it is not easy to arrange 2 witnesses hanging around all day to be present when IO's come. Not everybody lives in a village where everyone is related to their wife.

 

I can't imagine why someone would do a marriage extension if they qualified for a retirement extension, other than the 800k/400k was too much or they needed the eligibility to work option.

I have had 5 home visits and no 2 have been the same,  witnesses only required once. Last time only one guy came with a tripod, just took a couple of photos with him included. Must have been here all of 10 minutes.

Your imagination has nothing to do with it, people are free to make whatever decision suits them best.

[sandyf]

25 minutes ago, Colonel_Mustard said:

Thanks for all of the replies.  It seems that experience of the marriage extension varies quite a lot.

 

It has certainly given me a lot of useful information to ponder.

I got married in 2008 and since then been in and out of the various visa scenarios. No big deal whichever way you decide to jump, really a question of what best suits your circumstances.

Last Oct i came back on a new visa and new passport so when i went for the marriage extension in the Dec did expect some questions, not so, probably the smoothest one ever, only at the desk about 20 minutes.