Extension based on retirement

[jwest10]

On 6/10/2025 at 1:00 PM, steve187 said:

the simple thing is that the requirements are the same as last year, no changes, if the IO staff are  nice and friendly, ask them as  they are the only people that are 100% up on the requirements in that office. 

 as an aside people that ask a simple question on here, that have an attitude to a poster helping them are in class of their own

Stevem agree with your post and yes 100% the last sentence and there is good and bad everywhere on this planet

[Kerryd]

MOST Immigration offices have similar requirements. Some have more, some will let you slide with less - sometimes.

You should always plan ahead, give yourself extra time (i.e. don't wait until the afternoon of the last day before your Extension expires), do your paperwork BEFORE you go and THINK about when you are going (as in, try not to go on a Monday, or a Friday, especially if it's a holiday weekend). Check the weather as well. I find if it looks like rain, or is raining lightly, a lot of people will stay home, meaning shorter lines at the Immigration office.

I have a file folder I keep my Extension paperwork in and have a list of the paperwork needed as well as extra passport photos and photocopies.

Generally, you always need:
Your passport.
TM.7 Extension of Temporary Stay form. https://www.immigration.go.th/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/4.คำขออนุญาตเพื่ออยู่ในราชอาณาจักรเป็นการชั่วคราวต่อไป-ตม.7.pdf
(Bookmark that or download the form and save it to your computer.)

Photocopies of:

• the Facepage of your passport,
• if you've transferred stamps from an old passport to a new one - a photocopy of that page,
• the page showing the last Entry (into Thailand) stamp,
• the page showing your last Extension of Stay stamp.
• photocopy of (both sides) of your last TM.6 (Arrival Card) - if you have one. (Not sure what they'll want now that the TM.6 is done online. But if you have a TM.6 from your last entry to Thailand then you'd better photocopy it and include that with the rest of your paperwork.)

Photocopy of (both sides) of your THAI driver's license if you have one.
Or a copy of your lease/rental agreement.
POSSIBLY a copy of the (blue) House book and owner's ID card (not required at every place).

(Previously I used photocopies of recent utility bills that showed my name and address. Once I got a Thai driver's license, they accepted a photocopy of that instead.)

Bank Letter.
If you are using the "800k in an account" method then you will need a photocopy of the first page of your bankbook (that shows your name and account number) as well as a photocopy of the UPDATED page showing the current balance.
In some places that has to have been updated within the last 3 days.
Some places may expect it to be updated on the day you make your application. (Yes, you can go to a bank branch that has a passbook update machine before you go to Immigration even if the bank itself isn't open yet, assuming you got the bank letter beforehand.)

(Note: if your updated balance is on a fresh page, photocopy the page before that as well. They want to confirm your balance didn't go below the minimum over the last year. Take your bank book with you just in case.)

IF you are using the "monthly transfer of 65k" then you will need the Bank Letter and photocopies of the bank book page(s) for the last year to show every transfer for the last year. EVERY transfer. (Don't bother trying to argue the point with Immigration. Either you can show 12 months of transfers above the minimum or you can't.)

(And don't bother trying to argue on here that you are a special snowflake that shouldn't have to show 12 transfers because of that time Jupiter aligned with Mars and that caused a change in the exchange rates one month and your transfer was less than the minimum required. No one cares.)

Additionally you will need a passport sized recent photograph and the 1,900 baht fee of course.

In Jomtien for example, they expect EVERY photocopy to be signed - but you can sign them ahead of time.

And on the TM.7 form they want your phone number written below your signature (on both sides of the form).

And in Jomtien they have 2 additional forms they expect you to sign. 
One is an Acknowledgement of the Terms and Conditions of the Extension of Temporary Stay and notes why it could be cancelled.
The other is an Acknowledgement of the penalties for overstaying your Temporary Stay.

I don't know if that is a requirement everywhere though as those aren't "official" forms.

That is why it pays to go a few days/week early, in case the office you deal with has different requirements.

And once you know what the office you deal with wants - make a list. It's NOT that hard to do. 

Sheesh, aside from the bank letter, TM.7 and updated bank book, I've got pretty much all my paperwork for next year already done. (That was more to get it done while the cartridges in the printer were still fresh though.)

And if you end up with a photocopy of something they don't want it's not a big deal. They'll either ignore it or hand it back to you.

It takes me 15-20 minutes a year to get all my paperwork printed/signed, another 15-20 minutes at the bank (sometimes) and I'm ready to go.

I show up at Immigration early, often being #1 or 2 for the Extension Desk.

And in most cases, I'm done and out the door in 4-5 minutes. 

Like I said, it's not that hard - if you think about it and prepare ahead of time.

But hey, what do I know right ? I've just done my 13th straight Extension of Stay with no problems. 

Pro-tip - SHOWER and put on CLEAN clothes before you go. Be POLITE. Do NOT try to argue with the Immigration Officer(s).

I've seen - and stood in front of - people that REEKED of body odour and looked like they'd woken up on a bar floor, grabbed their passport and went to Immigration. And people who get to the desk, hand the IO their passport and then expect the IO to fill out the paperwork and make the photocopies for them. Or they didn't update their bank book and try to con the IO into just letting it pass "this time".

That's one of the reasons I like to show up early. Less chance of having to put up with people like that - and less chance the IO's will already be in a bad mood from already having to deal with people like that. 

But again - each Immigration office can have slightly different requirements and it's up to YOU to find out what the office YOU are dealing with expects.






 

[DrJack54]

1 hour ago, Kerryd said:

(Note: if your updated balance is on a fresh page, photocopy the page before that as well. They want to confirm your balance didn't go below the minimum over the last year. Take your bank book with you just in case.

Don't follow your advice for using money in bank method. 

Immigration at very least will want photocopies of all pages of bank book back to the two months prior to last extension. 

 

Some offices will even require a 12 month bank statement. 

This especially if you use a dedicated bank account and possibly have a month with zero activity. 

The bank letter and bank statement are valid for 7 days. 

 

Note some offices may want a TM30 even if you have a lease. 

 

For income method make sure the transfers are shown to be international. 

Credit Advice may be required. 

 

[Kerryd]

Just now, DrJack54 said:

Don't follow your advice for using money in bank method. 

Immigration at very least will want photocopies of all pages of bank book to two months prior to last extension. 

Some offices will even require a 12 month bank statement. 

This especially if you use a dedicated bank account and possibly have a month with zero activity. 

The bank letter and bank statement are valid for 7 days. 

 

Note some offices may want a TM30 even if you have a lease. 

 

For income method make sure the transfers are shown to be international. 

Credit Advice may be required. 

 

As I said - every Immigration Office has it's own requirements that may not be the same as any other office.

At Jomtien, I have never had to show more than the bank book balance from the time of the previous Extension application, nor been asked to provide a 12 month statement, for using the 800k in an account method. All they want to see is that my balance didn't drop below the 800k/400k minimums during the previous year.

And that is a Fixed Term account that generally has 2 transactions per year. One when my annual interest payment is deposited and one when I update the balance.

It used to be - in some places - in the "old days" - that they wanted the money to be in a Savings Account and they wanted to see transactions on the account to prove you were actually using that money to fund your stay in Thailand.

But at Jomtien they have no problem with people keeping that money in a much safer Fixed Term account that has almost no transactions on it at all. Makes their job much easier in fact as they don't have to wade through pages and pages and pages of photocopies to see if your balance ever dropped below the minimum 800k - in the first 3 months since your last Extension - or below 400k over the next 7 months, or below 800k again for the last 2 months before your current application.

And yes, some offices may want additional information which is why I said it is important for the person doing the Extension application to find out for themselves what the office they are dealing with wants.

I've only had to submit a TM.30 once and that was when they (Jomtien) changed the way they were doing 90 Day reports. They demanded people "verify their address" first (I'm guessing to give work to the new "Address Notification" desk they'd set up next to the "90 Day Report" desk in the new annex they built a couple years ago).

Once they verified your address, they stapled a "Receipt of Notification" in your passport, which you then need to photocopy and add to the stack of paperwork they now expect people to do every time they do a 90 day report. 
But that "Receipt" isn't good enough (at Jomtien at least) to prove your residence when you are doing an Extension. Which is a head scratcher in itself.

And who knows. Maybe when I go to do my Application next year, there will be different requirements - for things that other offices don't expect. 
But I always go in 2 weeks early just so I'm prepared in case there are changes.

You can (in some/most places) submit your annual Extension Application up to a month in advance of your due date.
Regardless of when you submit it, they won't change your due date though. 

For example. Say your "due date" is 30 June 2025. You decide to go into Immigration on 17 June and your get your passport back on 18 June. Your new "due date" will be 30 June 2026.
You don't gain, or lose, any days by waiting longer or going earlier.

Going earlier gives you the ability to change your schedule (in the event of holidays or bad weather or riots or border closures) and react to any changes.

But we know what happens if you go a day late, don't we ?