First Time Retirement Visa And 3months Not Touching Money Rules?!

[mrfreezier]

Hi all,

I would be appreciated if you guys chould shed some light for me.

I need some clarification on this 3 months term money in the Thai Bank account.. my partner has successfully changed his visa from Tourist visa to Non-Immigrant A-O in early September. I used the method of the retirement monthly income plus my money 80,000 baht in Thai Bank so it's make up to Thb800,000. he is going to apply for an extension of retirement visa next month. As following the advises from you all from this forum earlier.

Now the question is, he has been using his thai bank account to withdraw and deposit money in the meantime as it incurrs no charge as his Australian bank does for withdrawals on overseas/different bank. On visiting the Thai immigration office today to make sure everything is in correct order for next month, he was told in very stern terms that because he has been using that money from Thai Bank account and would now be refused the extension 12 month visa or whatever the terms they usually extended for. and would have to leave the country and reapply again even though the amount needed will be in the bank when he will have his final interview. This seems ludricrous to me, has anyone had this sort of problem before and /or can anyone advise me if he has been given correct information about this from the immigration office.? He has not been told that he is not allowed to touch that money either.

Any thought or same experience would like to share? or do you have alternative ways for me to be able to obtain this retirement extension of visa without leaving Thailand?

Thanks very much for your assistance in advance. and hope to hear some great advise as usual soon

Best regards,

Mrfreezier.

[lopburi3]

I am having a hard time understanding your post as you say a his, he, I and me in reference to the applicant.

The visa issued was a non immigrant O and it is expected to be extended before the ends of its 90 day allowed stay. As the money was a requirement for change do not know if that makes the bank deposit untouchable until extension of stay is granted or not but it appears that this is what is being said.

[Jingthing]

Hmmm.

Anyway, the most confusing thing to me about this question is that I was under the clear impression that if using pension income or a combo of pension and bank account, the three month money seasoning rule does NOT apply. Maybe it does apply if going for the FIRST annual extension?

[lopburi3]

He, or his friend, has changed a visa using the money so that might enter into the equation.

[Jingthing]

I love the description of the rules as ludicrous. This is just immigration's special way of making you understand who is in charge.

[Sophon]

I am having a hard time understanding your post as you say a his, he, I and me in reference to the applicant.

The visa issued was a non immigrant O and it is expected to be extended before the ends of its 90 day allowed stay. As the money was a requirement for change do not know if that makes the bank deposit untouchable until extension of stay is granted or not but it appears that this is what is being said.

I believe the OP is saying that he himself got the extension using a combination of income and bank deposit. Now his partner is also applying for an extension but probably based solely on bank deposit (although that part is not completely clear from the post).

The partner has been told that he will not get his extension because he have been drawing on the funds. I believe this is according to the rules if indeed the extension is based solely on bank deposit and if the balance has dropped below THB 800,000 at some point.

I am guessing a bit here, I agree the post is quite confusing because it's mixing the OP's own extension experience with that of his partners.

Sophon

[samuijack]

Hi all,

I would be appreciated if you guys chould shed some light for me.

I need some clarification on this 3 months term money in the Thai Bank account.. my partner has successfully changed his visa from Tourist visa to Non-Immigrant A-O in early September. I used the method of the retirement monthly income plus my money 80,000 baht in Thai Bank so it's make up to Thb800,000. he is going to apply for an extension of retirement visa next month. As following the advises from you all from this forum earlier.

Now the question is, he has been using his thai bank account to withdraw and deposit money in the meantime as it incurrs no charge as his Australian bank does for withdrawals on overseas/different bank. On visiting the Thai immigration office today to make sure everything is in correct order for next month, he was told in very stern terms that because he has been using that money from Thai Bank account and would now be refused the extension 12 month visa or whatever the terms they usually extended for. and would have to leave the country and reapply again even though the amount needed will be in the bank when he will have his final interview. This seems ludricrous to me, has anyone had this sort of problem before and /or can anyone advise me if he has been given correct information about this from the immigration office.? He has not been told that he is not allowed to touch that money either.

Any thought or same experience would like to share? or do you have alternative ways for me to be able to obtain this retirement extension of visa without leaving Thailand?

Thanks very much for your assistance in advance. and hope to hear some great advise as usual soon

Best regards,

Mrfreezier.

The rules for retirement visas are, that you must have 800,000 baht in a Thai bank account for at least 3 months before applying for your visa. This rule has been enforced to stop applicants borrowing the funds from their friends a few days before the application and repaying it having obtaining it

[naka]

I think if Mr Freezier wants an answer then he needs to explain again ... his current post is clear as mud.

I also think he is confused as to what a Non-Immigrant A-O is.

Naka.

[mrfreezier]

Hi guys,

Sorry for all the confusion. basically I post the topic on behalf of my partner. There is nothing to do with me.. So basically, he has obtained tourist visa before he got here in Thailand. Then he applied a new visa, its changed from Tourist to Non-Immigrant A-O (or O-A whatever) which will be expired on the 3 of December 2007. He used the method of combo (Retirement income + Thai money in the Thai bank = THB800,000)

So now he need to get an extension which will be based of Retirement condition. He met all the criterias, except he has been using his money in Thai Bank Account whilst living here. Then he went to immigration and been told that he IS NOT allowed to touch that money in Thai bank otherwise, he will be refused for an extension.

Is this clear enough?

Can you guys please share your thought or advise?

I want him to be prepared before going in next month (a month earlier before current visa expired)

thanks again. very appreciated.

I think if Mr Freezier wants an answer then he needs to explain again ... his current post is clear as mud.

I also think he is confused as to what a Non-Immigrant A-O is.

Naka.

[Gary A]

You must have the 800,000 baht in your Thai bank account three months prior to when the visa expires. After the visa is extended the money can be used for living expenses then topped back up to the 800,000 three months before the next extension. I have done that and had no problems. If the entire 800,000 were taken out quickly, there may be some questions asked.

[mrfreezier]

Ta Gary,

thanks for the reply. However, I know that after he obtained the extension, of course he can use the money. But the problem is, will he be refused getting another extension this time even though he will top up the money in Thai bank and will NOT touch it til the application submitted sometime mid November 2007?

Basically, is it too late to top up his money TODAY. then is that mean the three months rule is start from Today?

Cheers,

Mrfreezier.

You must have the 800,000 baht in your Thai bank account three months prior to when the visa expires. After the visa is extended the money can be used for living expenses then topped back up to the 800,000 three months before the next extension. I have done that and had no problems. If the entire 800,000 were taken out quickly, there may be some questions asked.

[begsaresponse]

Ta Gary,

thanks for the reply. However, I know that after he obtained the extension, of course he can use the money. But the problem is, will he be refused getting another extension this time even though he will top up the money in Thai bank and will NOT touch it til the application submitted sometime mid November 2007?

Basically, is it too late to top up his money TODAY. then is that mean the three months rule is start from Today?

Cheers,

Mrfreezier.

You must have the 800,000 baht in your Thai bank account three months prior to when the visa expires. After the visa is extended the money can be used for living expenses then topped back up to the 800,000 three months before the next extension. I have done that and had no problems. If the entire 800,000 were taken out quickly, there may be some questions asked.

I would suggest that you need to anticipate living costs between now and mid November and add that to the 800,000 level you require. So that when you get to mid November you still have the 800,000 in the bank and it hasn't been eaten away with cost of living!

They do want to see the account being used as your means of supporting yourself whilst here. Money in money out.

begs

[lopburi3]

He obtained the change of visa exactly how? Money in bank? Letter from Embassy of pension? Both? How much was in the bank? How much was the pension? How low has the account gone?

He intends to extend his stay (you say "another extension" but don't believe he has had anything but a visa change yet?) using what exactly?

[brahmburgers]

I would suggest topping it up to 800,000 now, going in a day before December 3rd - dressing smartly, no stubble, bushy tailed. Thai imm is quite subjective. Appearances and attitide account for much when applying. It wouldn't hurt to have a respectible middle aged Thai person (a lawyer, perhaps) accompany the applicant. Show some gold, baby.

I wrote in last April lamenting loudly that my i-year retirement type-O visa wasn't extended for the expected 90 days. (There were two visa exp dates in my passport, and I referred to the wrong one, the other was smudged an illegible) - so I wound up one day late instead of 2 days early as I had planned).

When I was first informed of my mistake, I went straight away to Mae Sai imm office. It was late afternoon, I was red-faced and sweaty and not inclined to be the ideal waiing tourist. Not surprisingly, my reception was cold and unhelpful.

a month later I went in there expecting to start the whole 1 year visa process again from scratch. This time it was mid-morning, I was debonair, and they actually gave me the 3 month extension on my previous visa - that I didn't even ask for or expect! I wound up getting a one year type O (I call it retirement) visa with no sweat.

So, I'm thoroughly convinced that appearances and attitude are major components of playing the game.

[Jingthing]

Well, two things.

There is no such thing as an O-A or an A-O visa obtainable in Thailand. You can only get these in certain countries outside Thailand. He could have converted his tourist visa to a regular O visa here in Thailand, which I think he did.

Another poster said you cannot spend your money while in the waiting period for a one year extension based on retirement. That literally is not true. You just can't spend down to under the required amount, which is why most people simply put in much more so they can spend the overage during the waiting period.

Edited October 23, 2007 by Jingthing

[ProThaiExpat]

I re-read Mrfrezier's second to last post that clearly says that his friend will be going for a pension + extension. As long as the requisite amount of money is in the bank account on the day the application is made, he is fine, regardless of the ins and outs of the money before that date.

To be safe, he should use a conversion rate a baht less than what is the public stated rate at the time of the application, as immigration does round off downward when they are figuring out how much must be in the bank account on the day of application, that when added to the pension letter amount annualized, equals 800k. No wonder people get confused when people post information about the 800K in the bank for three months which is an entirely different method of qualifying financially from the pension + method.

[Jingthing]

Pro, you would think so about the 3 month rule not applying here, but the poster clearly says an immigration person said differently.

[ProThaiExpat]

Jingthing: We both monitor these retirement threads and note so much bad information, even tho well intentioned. The most unreliable information seems to me comes from double hearsay, when someone goes to an immigration office and "asks" about something. Not only is there a language barrier but no official action is taken upon which we can rely on as official action taken by an individual officer. Terminology is often a culprit as well.

While I am at it, I might as well post my "reliability scale", which I use to determine if I should rely on the information or not. These are in inverse order from lowest reliability to highest.

1. "Announcements" reported as "I read" or "I read".

2. Second hand reports of what happened to a friend.

3. Visits to immigration for the purpose of learning what might be done in a specific situation someday in the future.

4. Threads that start out with the bold announcement "New Immigration Rules".

5. Posts that can't distinguish between visas and extensions.

6. Actual experiences at immigration offices accurately reported by substantial members.

7. Actual experiences at immigration offices reported to have happened at more than one office.

8. Pronouncements by lopburi3

9. Nation Police Orders accurately reproduced that can be taken to immigration to support your position.

10. My actual experiences.

Your welcome to expand the list.

As an aside, a first time extension friend, who just hit 50, was coached extensively prior to his first visit to immigration to assuage the accumulated fears, mis-information and confusion gained by reading all the posts in Thaivisa. Right off, his passport was returned to him and he was told that he was illegal and he had better go straighten things out at CNX immigration, the agency who gave him a entry permit not properly completed in his passport.

Off he ran to CNX Immigration, where a supervisor showed him that there was a proper entry stamp elsewhere in his passport and had he noted the improperly filled out one was abandoned by the initial processing officer before he re-stamped it elsewhere, he would have avoided the drama. Experienced travelers know to check all entries in one's passport before leaving the processing station.

Anyway, back to immigration and he got his extension without further ado. What gratified me was after re-telling the story to me, he added, tongue in cheek, "What I should do now is go on Thaivisa and start a thread on how stupid immigration officers are and how difficult and confusing it is to get a extension".

My last extension a month ago was completed in 15 minutes, but I had to wait an hour for a re-entry permit. During the waiting time, I had the annual opportunity to see what dregs of the world show up at immigration, how clueless and rude they are and how insultingly dressed these applicants can be. I am always amazed as to how pleasant the immigration officers are, on the whole, when dealing with this type of abuse all day and when they do get curt and dictatorial, I want to stand and applaud, as it is usually, abundantly justified.

[PadThaiGuy]

I saw a man in there a while ago wearing flip flops, shorts and no shirt.

Can you imagine going to immigration with no shirt?

I felt like smacking the guy.

[moe666]

ProThaiExpat, great post there is so much misinformation and moaning and groaning on this forum. I read for the intertainment factor more than info.