On 3/28/2025 at 1:54 PM, Serenity_Now said:

When changing visa to new passport (retirement) does one have to show the bank book with 800k balance ?

It's referred to as "transferring stamps" 

Visa information is also entered into new passport. 

Regarding the bank book showing financial compliance....yes, that is required at CW and no doubt some other offices.

Photocopies of pages back to current extension along with updated bank account.

This is a new requirement. 

On 3/28/2025 at 11:48 AM, GreasyFingers said:

Maybe I would prefer that the government does not know I have a Thai address.

 

Are you a little paranoid? 

 

If you're an Aussie pensioner the Oz gov't know your outside of Oz (or inside oz) through their 24/7 online access to immigration records (continuous automatic scrutiny of arrivals and departure passport numbers).

 

If your passport number is spotted (out or in) the details are automatically added to your CLink file. 

4 hours ago, scorecard said:

If you're an Aussie pensioner

They rejected my application.

You can have a Thai address but you cannot apply for the OAP whilst outside Australia

On 5/8/2025 at 11:15 AM, GreasyFingers said:

They rejected my application.

Why did they reject your application? 

Ive done mine twice flled out online one or two nights  in bangkok photos done where they recommend made an appointment its very easy not cheap but easy treat it like a holiday i don't think agents can do ozz passport

On 5/9/2025 at 10:09 PM, KhunHeineken said:

Why did they reject your application? 

It was quite simple really. I had been paying my taxes every year for 45 years, and still paying them at the time of application as my money and investments were in Australia. The taxes I paid in some years were enough to retire on as I had a good business. But some Einstein bureaucrat wrote a rule that you must be resident in Australia for the 2 years before applying for the pension. As I had provided for myself to retire early much of that 2 years was spent in Thailand.

On 5/11/2025 at 10:19 AM, GreasyFingers said:

It was quite simple really. I had been paying my taxes every year for 45 years, and still paying them at the time of application as my money and investments were in Australia. The taxes I paid in some years were enough to retire on as I had a good business. But some Einstein bureaucrat wrote a rule that you must be resident in Australia for the 2 years before applying for the pension. As I had provided for myself to retire early much of that 2 years was spent in Thailand.

I thought you meant a rejected application for a new passport. 

 

The re-establishing residency rule has been around for years, and well discussed on this forum. 

 

Apart from being outside of Australia, do you even qualify for the pension?  Would you pass the asset test?  If you qualify, will you return to Australia to do your 2 years? 

3 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

I thought you meant a rejected application for a new passport. 

 

The re-establishing residency rule has been around for years, and well discussed on this forum. 

 

Apart from being outside of Australia, do you even qualify for the pension?  Would you pass the asset test?  If you qualify, will you return to Australia to do your 2 years? 

If you want more information on me here it is: I knew about the 2 year rule so 18 months before I went to the local Centrelink to discuss it with them. The local staff were unsure so they made a phone call to someone higher up whose opinion was I would be okay as I was not living permanently in Thailand and I still used my car and caravan in Australia. Unfortunately the higher up was wrong.

Yes I did qualify for the OAP but my income at the time meant that I would only get beer money from it. My point was to just get on the system in case everything went wrong (as in the crash in 2008). Fortunately that has not happened.

No desire to live in Australia just for beer money but even as it was only $50 per week it would now amount to $25000 since they denied the application.

On 5/13/2025 at 10:27 AM, GreasyFingers said:

Yes I did qualify for the OAP but my income at the time meant that I would only get beer money from it.

It's my understanding that most people with a similar situation don't care even if they qualify only for $1 a fortnight of pension money, reason is, it unlocks a lot of other benefits. 

8 hours ago, KhunHeineken said:

It's my understanding that most people with a similar situation don't care even if they qualify only for $1 a fortnight of pension money, reason is, it unlocks a lot of other benefits. 

As I said it was only to get into the system. I now live in Thailand so there are no other benefits.

On 5/20/2025 at 10:25 AM, GreasyFingers said:

As I said it was only to get into the system. I now live in Thailand so there are no other benefits.

I was speaking in general, and not to your specific case.