Retirement Visa

[YangYaiEric]

Hello All.

As a newbie to Thaivisa.com forum, I'd like to find out what I need to do in order to retire in Thailand.

I'm a 51 yr. old British male I.T Consultant, married to a Thai national for over 20 years, with 2 teenaged daughters. We have substantial real-estate holdings in Thailand( 10 Rai fruit farm, Large family home on 3 Rai plot, 2 Town houses and a Mini-Mart) All of which is of course controlled by my wife under our joint family name. We now intend to develop a group of 30 bungalows/houses for rent with supporting shop/restuarant/internet/office building to cater to the prospective clients.

I intend to retire within the next 5 years, joining my wife and children in Thailand.

What I'd like to know is what type of visa I should be looking at getting, and the length of time I can stay in Thailand without the need to leave the country to re-new my visa.

I'd love to hear from anyone out there with suggestions or experience of getting a Retirement visa .

Cheers.

YangYaiEric.

[lopburi3]

Retirement extensions of stay (one year at a time) are obtain from immigration inside Thailand and never require travel outside to renew. For retirement you need to show/prove 800k in Thai bank account or 65k pension/income of a combination of the two. The money must be from outside Thailand and this extension can be renewed each year.

Being married you could also use 40k monthly family income as proven by tax receipts. It sounds as if you wife could qualify you for that (if she is filing tax returns). Almost same procedure as retirement but wife also has to visit immigration and a few more papers will be involved.

We assume your children also have Thai nationality/passports so will not require visas.

[YangYaiEric]

Retirement extensions of stay (one year at a time) are obtain from immigration inside Thailand and never require travel outside to renew. For retirement you need to show/prove 800k in Thai bank account or 65k pension/income of a combination of the two. The money must be from outside Thailand and this extension can be renewed each year.

Being married you could also use 40k monthly family income as proven by tax receipts. It sounds as if you wife could qualify you for that (if she is filing tax returns). Almost same procedure as retirement but wife also has to visit immigration and a few more papers will be involved.

We assume your children also have Thai nationality/passports so will not require visas.

Thanks Lopburi3.

So, all I need to do before applying for a retirement visa is to deposit a minimum of 800K Bath in my Thai bank account? Sounds quite easy then! I am presently based in Saudi Arabia, btw. Also, both my daughters hold British Passports, and are attending school in Thailand at present. My youngest was born in Thailand and so has no problems obtaining a Thai ID. card, but my eldest was born in the UK. Will she(the eldest daughter) need to undergo special visa-run procedures in future?

Cheers.

[lopburi3]

If she has a Thai mother she can be Thai so you should take care of that and get her onto home register/id card made. Believe it is usually easier to do overseas as Embassies are more used to foreign birth certificates but expect someone will know the step-by-steps and post.

If you use the bank deposit method the money will have to be at or above 800k for a period of three months prior to your application for extension and should be a wire transfer as you then have proof of foreign origin.

[YangYaiEric]

If she has a Thai mother she can be Thai so you should take care of that and get her onto home register/id card made. Believe it is usually easier to do overseas as Embassies are more used to foreign birth certificates but expect someone will know the step-by-steps and post.

If you use the bank deposit method the money will have to be at or above 800k for a period of three months prior to your application for extension and should be a wire transfer as you then have proof of foreign origin.

Thanks Lopburi3!

The information you provided was extremely helpful!

Cheers!

[Sojourner]

Hello All.

As a newbie to Thaivisa.com forum, I'd like to find out what I need to do in order to retire in Thailand.

I'm a 51 yr. old British male I.T Consultant, married to a Thai national for over 20 years, with 2 teenaged daughters. We have substantial real-estate holdings in Thailand( 10 Rai fruit farm, Large family home on 3 Rai plot, 2 Town houses and a Mini-Mart) All of which is of course controlled by my wife under our joint family name. We now intend to develop a group of 30 bungalows/houses for rent with supporting shop/restuarant/internet/office building to cater to the prospective clients.

I intend to retire within the next 5 years, joining my wife and children in Thailand.

What I'd like to know is what type of visa I should be looking at getting, and the length of time I can stay in Thailand without the need to leave the country to re-new my visa.

I'd love to hear from anyone out there with suggestions or experience of getting a Retirement visa .

Cheers.

YangYaiEric.

One thing not mentioned, and Lopburi can confirm this, is with a retirement extension on your Non O visa you will not be able to work in Thailand. With an extension based on marriage, I believe you can get a work permit. Looking at all you want to do with your "oil money" I suspect you will be behind the counter once in a while and you don't want to be without a WP.

[lopburi3]

You currently can not obtain a work permit if on a retirement extension of stay. But he made no mention of working - putting the wife and kids to work and him retiring sounds like the plan.

In any case a work permit can be obtained on a family extension of stay but employment would have to meet work permit rules (which are rather restrictive and would probably entail a lot more legal paperwork than planned for most family business).

[YangYaiEric]

You currently can not obtain a work permit if on a retirement extension of stay. But he made no mention of working - putting the wife and kids to work and him retiring sounds like the plan.

In any case a work permit can be obtained on a family extension of stay but employment would have to meet work permit rules (which are rather restrictive and would probably entail a lot more legal paperwork than planned for most family business).

Hello Lopburi3.

I do plan on assisting my wife with the running of the business, if only in a 'behind-the-scenes' sort of way. I'm not the sort of chap that intends to laze around the house while my wife and kids run the family business! In this regard, what sort of 'assistance' can I give to my wife in the running of the family business without violating my retirement visa? Can I, for example, assist in the buying and selling of stock for the mini-mart? Helping with the cultivation of our fruit-farm? Or am I 'doomed' to a life of martini-drinking and lounging around for the rest of my days?

[lopburi3]

It is not a case of violation of your retirement extension of stay. It is a case of you can not work in Thailand without a work permit and a work permit will not be issued, under current policy, for those on a retirement extension of stay.

So no work is the rule. Many people do help out behind the scenes without a problem but technically it would not be legal. Working in cultivation would be especially risky I suspect.

[Lite Beer]

Enjoy the Martini`s

Edited September 25, 2007 by Lite Beer

[gzu88bv]

Or am I 'doomed' to a life of martini-drinking and lounging around for the rest of my days?

If you look it at that way, yes that is it what retirement is all about. ...... and there is far more to it than martini-drinking……. Maybe you are/were not ready for retirement (as you initially posted) and it seems that it is hard for you to acknowledge the success of your wife and children.

[YangYaiEric]

Or am I 'doomed' to a life of martini-drinking and lounging around for the rest of my days?

If you look it at that way, yes that is it what retirement is all about. ...... and there is far more to it than martini-drinking……. Maybe you are/were not ready for retirement (as you initially posted) and it seems that it is hard for you to acknowledge the success of your wife and children.

You could be right about the retiring part, but certainly NOT about 'acknowledging the success of my wife & kids...' On the contrary, old chap, my success empowers my wife and children to succeed in their own right...

With regards to retiring, being the sort of chap that is physically in excellent shape, never smoked, moderate drinker, eats moderately etc., 55 does seem a tad early to retire, me thinks. But retirement does inevitably arrive, and it is wise to look ahead and plan accordingly.

[Artisi]

You currently can not obtain a work permit if on a retirement extension of stay. But he made no mention of working - putting the wife and kids to work and him retiring sounds like the plan.

In any case a work permit can be obtained on a family extension of stay but employment would have to meet work permit rules (which are rather restrictive and would probably entail a lot more legal paperwork than planned for most family business).

This is good advice and looking into the legalities ( use an experienced legal firm for this review) of a work permit based on your wife's "business" might be the way to go initially. You can change to retirement later as and if the need arises.

The " retirement " option is too restrictive with your wife in business and you run the risk if working of running foul of the law if you "help-out" - this could also make any further visa application a little more difficult. The best rule to apply in Thailand in my view is "don't make waves".