26 minutes ago, BusyB said:

Truth is if they pull that on me (my embassy also still confirms pension income) it will alter my long term LOS plans drastically for the same reasons as Daejung

The OP, spends part of the year in Thailand.

Often referred to as snowbirds.

How much of the year do you spend in Thailand.

There are other options than annual extensions.

In reality the embassy letter is bit of a scam.

Think some embassies actually require some sort of proof of pension/income.

Others the "letter" is simply an affidavit, statutory declaration etc.

Not worth the paper it's written on

11 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

The OP, spends part of the year in Thailand.

Often referred to as snowbirds.

How much of the year do you spend in Thailand.

There are other options than annual extensions.

In reality the embassy letter is bit of a scam.

Think some embassies actually require some sort of proof of pension/income.

Others the "letter" is simply an affidavit, statutory declaration etc.

Not worth the paper it's written on

Spent various lengths of time up to a year in recent years. All a breeze with a one year extension and reentry permits. Haven't had an extension for a year now and out of country right now. Next trip I'm planning 2-5 years depending. I prefer Thailand and I'm most familiar and still very much at home there. Makes a good base for regional tourism as well. I did over 20 years as a snowbird because as a well paid freelancer I could simply take the winter off most years.

German embassy issues a really neat, official, crispy certificate with stamp etc. confirming exact income in THB at current rates, but only after seeing proof of pension, dividends or whatever as issued by the appropriate authority back home. It's not remotely like the old US/UK scams based on personal lies, sorry - claims. That's why the Thais still accept it. Needs verification stamp by MFA on the back however.

The call by one or two (so far) individual immigration offices/officers for monthly 65k transfers besides the embassy certificate is a totally different ball game. Basically they are insisting on someone like me spending that much money in Thailand each month like it or not. I don't accept that. My privilege, their greed. It's OK for you being permanently based in Thailand, I see that. Even on a steady two year stay though I'd be out for 4-8 weeks at a time from time to time. Tax doesn't come into it. Under the Thai-German DTA German public funded pensions are taxed in Germany only.

METV might cover things but quite honestly I don't like the idea of offering up 3 month bank statements like that. I've not had an METV since they wanted to see 3 months of my personal banking records. In some respects I'm still very old school.

I have official proof of income enough to see me live more than comfortably in Thailand. That's been enough so far - why change it now? All the while they're letting a torrent of millions into the country with no financial checks, barely a cursory glance and without keeping tabs on them.

28 minutes ago, BusyB said:

I did over 20 years as a snowbird because as a well paid freelancer I could simply take the winter off most years

If you have digital freelancer background you could/should look into DTV as an option.

https://www.thaiembassy.com/thailand-visa/dtv-visa-thailand#

13 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

If you have digital freelancer background you could/should look into DTV as an option.

https://www.thaiembassy.com/thailand-visa/dtv-visa-thailand#

Don't think that'll work without a clear income stream based on my profession as opposed to a pension which I draw now. And I have no intention of going back to the grind ;D

1 hour ago, BusyB said:

Needs verification stamp by MFA on the back however.

How easy (or difficult) is it to obtain this stamp in practice? And for those living in Nakhon Nowhere it would presumably necessitate a potentially time-consuming trip to the MFA's offices in Bangkok? Or is it possible to deal with the MFA for this purpose by snail mail?

3 minutes ago, OJAS said:

How easy (or difficult) is it to obtain this stamp in practice? And for those living in Nakhon Nowhere it would presumably necessitate a potentially time-consuming trip to the MFA's offices in Bangkok? Or is it possible to deal with the MFA for this purpose by snail mail?

If you present the certificate, they'll sign and stamp it at MFA. I have no idea about sending it in via mail. I made an appointment with them online. I did once pay to have them mail the verified certificate to me after they accepted it for processing, and they had it back to me in a few days. But the last couple of times I made an in person express appointment and was given it back the same day. Went pretty fast I recall.

I have no idea if you can get the whole process done via mail from Nakhon Somewhere. I've only ever been to the embassy and MFA in person so I can't offer much info I'm afraid.

3 hours ago, BusyB said:

German embassy issues a really neat, official, crispy certificate with stamp etc. confirming exact income in THB at current rates, but only after seeing proof of pension, dividends or whatever as issued by the appropriate authority back home. It's not remotely like the old US/UK scams based on personal lies, sorry - claims.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but to obtain the Income letter from the British Embassy, just as the German Embassy, you had to supply proof of pension(s) via statements from the Pension providors. The issue was that Immigration request 'certified' letters in written orders, but in meetings with the Embassies they requested 'verification' of said pensions.

Due to data protection laws, it's impossible to verifiy said incomes.

On 1/21/2026 at 5:21 PM, BusyB said:

Truth is if they pull that on me (my embassy also still confirms pension income) it will alter my long term LOS plans drastically for the same reasons as Daejung.

The best agent-fee / minimal-hassle alternative is to park 800K in the bank, and buy a condo. Then, you always have all the documents they want. 2nd best is the 800K + a very cooperative landlord.

If not willing/able to do that, just pay an agent 13K-15K Baht, and continue with 1-year extensions. That is what all this rigamarole is designed to force - requiring long-term leases, not accepting income-affidavits, increasing deposit seasoning-times, etc - all "requirements" which magically disappear, if you do what immigration wants, and use their agent-partners.

On 1/22/2026 at 12:07 PM, Liquorice said:

Sorry to burst your bubble, but to obtain the Income letter from the British Embassy, just as the German Embassy, you had to supply proof of pension(s) via statements from the Pension providors. The issue was that Immigration request 'certified' letters in written orders, but in meetings with the Embassies they requested 'verification' of said pensions.

Due to data protection laws, it's impossible to verifiy said incomes.

Their due diligence was not great either. Any documentation submitted was taken at face value and it was, effectively, a self-certification exercise.

Widely abused, apparently.

2 hours ago, Rob Browder said:

The best agent-fee / minimal-hassle alternative is to park 800K in the bank, and buy a condo. Then, you always have all the documents they want. 2nd best is the 800K + a very cooperative landlord.

If not willing/able to do that, just pay an agent 13K-15K Baht, and continue with 1-year extensions. That is what all this rigamarole is designed to force - requiring long-term leases, not accepting income-affidavits, increasing deposit seasoning-times, etc - all "requirements" which magically disappear, if you do what immigration wants, and use their agent-partners.

Yeah thanks for the tips. Well buying an apartment is beyond my budget 555. As for the rest I've always had great landlords and ladies who even repaid my deposits. Thai and Russian. Amazing Thailand ;))

I'm quite aware of the 'agent' side channel. But I wouldn't want that kind of thing going on with illegal migrants in my countries and don't really want to be funneled into one here.

Again, thanks. I'll see how it plays out. It sounds like a couple of extremely keen new bosses or the such like trying to make a mark. Nothing official so far. I want to see more of Malaysia as well - lovely place where they even stop at traffic lights.

I can understand that an Airbnb receipt is not regarded as either a lease agreement or other proof of owning or renting a permanent residence.

It is a bit like presenting a parking ticket as proof that you own a car!

On 1/21/2026 at 5:53 PM, DrJack54 said:

The OP, spends part of the year in Thailand.

Often referred to as snowbirds.

How much of the year do you spend in Thailand.

There are other options than annual extensions.

In reality the embassy letter is bit of a scam.

Think some embassies actually require some sort of proof of pension/income.

Others the "letter" is simply an affidavit, statutory declaration etc.

Not worth the paper it's written on

With all due respect Drjack54 I think you are a little out of your area of expertise by lumping all embassies together and calling income verification a disgrace. Some embassies have full access to income information for citizens who apply for income verification, where a citizen cannot just raise their hand and swear that they have income. You can also look at this from another angle; hasn't it always been about verifying income of 65,000 baht by income verification or 800,000 in a Thai bank? There has never been any talk of a law that you have to spend 65,000 baht a month or 800,000 baht a year. By the way, 800,000 baht in a Thai bank that is just "sitting there" could be agent money, black money and not least from those who are best known for buying them in, criminals. Similar with 65k monthly without a verification that its income, my sister could send me that. Is that my income the when the <deleted> hits the fan. I hope it's not the case, and a country shouldn't be that amoralistic, but it may look like another desperate attempt by the authorities to get more money into the treasury, and then foreigners are an easy target.

Felt

54 minutes ago, Felt 35 said:

Some embassies have full access to income information for citizens who apply for income verification, where a citizen cannot just raise their hand and swear that they have income.

Which Embassies, certainly not European, as Data Protection prevents disclosure of personal information.

5 hours ago, Felt 35 said:

You can also look at this from another angle; hasn't it always been about verifying income of 65,000 baht by income verification or 800,000 in a Thai bank?

No it hasn't.

For income countries such as Australia just used a statutory declaration. Or eg USA an affidavit.

Basically you state that your income is 65k+ per month.

The embassy just affirms you made that statement.

Zero verification.

There are many explanations provided even AI has clear reasons.

Here, is link to Canadian Embassy reasoning. Suggest more countries will stop providing "income letters",

https://www.facebook.com/share/19oDDe8FVH/

Nothing to do with money in bank method.

Those funds are verified by 12 month bank statement + bank letter etc.

My guess is that immigration will gradually move towards requiring Thai bank records for folk using income method including those whose embassies provide the "Letter".

Agent dodging that is another matter.

For those wanting to use income method then just transfer the funds each month. Not difficult.

I don't have embassy letter. Don't need it as I have bank records showing the transfers.

I just transfer the funds each month.

Easy peasy.

Troll post removed

@Toby1947

Off topic post removed

On 1/15/2026 at 12:41 PM, daejung said:

I will produce a lease which my host sent me via LINE. I have a very good contact with him. I am not sure another host would provide it.

I will produce it after Chaengwattana lunch break along with the ID of the owner which they asked too. I hope they will accept it.

I will not use the income method nor deposit 800 000 bahts on my bank account. I will just reduce my stay here from 6 months to 1 month or 2

Let me chime in please, if you use the Lease Agreement, you not only need to show your actual lease agreement, you also need the Lease owner ID card as well as the Leaseholder to appear as well. Physically!

On 1/15/2026 at 3:02 PM, Liquorice said:

Immigration has also realised that many expats supplying Embassy income letters are not transferring those incomes to meet the financial requirements, which they previously assumed they were. The writings been on the wall for Immigration to cease accepting Embassy Income letters and revert to evidence being overseas monthly transfers of 40/65K to close what they now see as a loophole in meeting the income method.

Quite. In the case of the UK Embassy, the letter indicated gross income. By default transfers are an indication of net income, a bit more definitive.

On 1/15/2026 at 12:41 PM, daejung said:

I will produce a lease which my host sent me via LINE. I have a very good contact with him. I am not sure another host would provide it.

I will produce it after Chaengwattana lunch break along with the ID of the owner which they asked too. I hope they will accept it.

I will not use the income method nor deposit 800 000 bahts on my bank account. I will just reduce my stay here from 6 months to 1 month or 2

I thought air bnb was illegal in Thailand

4 hours ago, Snowbird 7 said:

Let me chime in please, if you use the Lease Agreement, you not only need to show your actual lease agreement, you also need the Lease owner ID card as well as the Leaseholder to appear as well. Physically!

Fact is each region has its own rules, and they also change over time as well.

PKK Immi accepted the owner's yellow book or whatever (title deed) copies, copy of the owner ID, and the lease agreement of their real estate agent/facility manager with the Airbnb printout. Noone had to show in person but that was a couple of years ago.

Didn't renew my last extension and it's been a while (doing a penguin this year and next rather than a snowbird). Next year I'll arrive with a 90 day Non-O based on retirement. Then check in person with the local office to find out exactly what they want for an extension and take it from there.

1 hour ago, CFCol said:

I thought air bnb was illegal in Thailand

For contracts under 30 days I believe, but not illegal per se.

On 1/15/2026 at 12:41 PM, daejung said:

I will produce a lease which my host sent me via LINE. I have a very good contact with him. I am not sure another host would provide it.

I will produce it after Chaengwattana lunch break along with the ID of the owner which they asked too. I hope they will accept it.

I will not use the income method nor deposit 800 000 bahts on my bank account. I will just reduce my stay here from 6 months to 1 month or 2

Why don't you look at getting a DTV? It lasts for 5 years with minimal dealings with immigration (one 90-day report every visit, assuming you stay 90 days), and you get to stay for 6 months each visit. You don't need to keep any money in Thailand.

On 1/15/2026 at 12:05 PM, DrJack54 said:

So which document did you produce? ... A Lease?

Thinking that this change was almost predictable.

Nationals such as UK, USA, AU, CANADA etc do Not have embassy income letter option.

For income method they need to show 12 monthly international transfers of 65k.

So yes for yourself you would need to make transfers even months when not in Thailand.

If you do not want that then you have the "funds in bank method" option.

Thailand have Many visa options.

I'm on extension retirement and until recently used money in bank and now use income method. No embassy letter. Easy Peasy

Thanks. Do they care where the funds are transferred from i.e. from a foreign bank account, trading platform, WISE etc.? I am referring to 65k for pensioners and 40k for married people.

1 hour ago, WebGuy said:

Thanks. Do they care where the funds are transferred from i.e. from a foreign bank account, trading platform, WISE etc.? I am referring to 65k for pensioners and 40k for married people.

You just need to show the 12 monthly transfers.

I use WISE to transfer from my Oz bank to my Thai bank.

14th of every month.

Must be shown as international transfer.

Request 12 month statement from bank in Thai language.

Highlight each transfer.

Note: you use the word pensioners.

It's, income method. You do not have to receive a pension.

You don't even have have to be retired.

A condition is no work in Thailand.

2 hours ago, WebGuy said:

Thanks. Do they care where the funds are transferred from i.e. from a foreign bank account, trading platform, WISE etc.? I am referring to 65k for pensioners and 40k for married people.

That may well depend on the office. When I first used the transfer income method some years ago they did ask to see the source of the funds.

20 hours ago, CFCol said:

I thought air bnb was illegal in Thailand

A narrative that some condo owners like to promote.

The court ruled that regarding condo blocks all rooms need to be taken into account which means that the owner of a single condo needs a hotel licence to rent it out for less than 30 days.

It is the owners that act illegally not Airbnb.