What Visa Is For Me ?

[blakegeee]

I am back in Canada at the moment selling products that I exported from Thailand previously.

I was previously in South East Asia for 2.5 years, most of that time being in Chiang Mai, Thailand. After travelling for about 6 months I settled down in Chiang Mai, and met a girl, blah blah blah. After a while I found some "made in thailand" products that I could sell online. I sold a lot till I finally decided to fill a container to send back to Canada. So I sent the container to Canada then came back myself to sell it here.

In a few months I want to go back to Thailand but this time I am planning on staying and only selling the goods direct from Thailand, no more containers. I will just sell one thing at a time to end-users. I was previously on "back to back 30 day entry stamps" for a long time! Then the rules changed so I left the country every 6 months to get tourist visas after that.

This time, I want to stay in Thailand a long time and I dont want to have to do 30 day stamps, then tourist visas all the time. I thought that one of the non-immigrant visas covered people that want to "research business" or something along those lines. I am not seeing that anymore, and I am not surprised with the rate these rules change. I have been looking at the visa types here; http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2492

All in all, what visa would be most suitable for me? If I have to do a visa extension run every 90 days that isn't a big problem, a good excuse to travel anyways. But it looks like all the non-immigrant visas require lots of info from the thai company you are doing business with. I basically do business with one company and I know he wouldn't be interested in giving me all his company info. He is high-so thai and he couldn't be bothered especially when it isn't directly benefitting him.

Another thing to consider is that I will be getting married within a few month of going back to Thailand. So after that, I could apply for another visa right, but I think I need to be on the appropriate visa to start with before applying for a marriage visa right???

Thanks for any info!

Visa-headaches!!!

[dr_Pat_Pong]

Once you are married to a Thai you can apply for a Non-Immigrant O visa and if you can show a combined income of 40,000 baht a month you can apply for a one year extension each year and

then there are no visa 'runs' at all. Just 90 day reporting to Immigration and that can be done by

registered mail. Get a tourist visa before you leave home, and for 2000 baht Immigration can

convert that visa into a Non-Immigrant visa.

[blakegeee]

Ok it looks like I can get a multi-entry tourist visa (1 year) from Vancouver, but Ottawa will only issue single or double entry tourist visas. So I will just have to mail my passport a little further. But that gives us one year to get married, then get the Non-Immigrant Visa.

Once I get the Non-Immigrant Visa, how does it work for paying taxes? If we show a combined income of 40,000b/month (mostly from my online sales), what percent tax do we have to pay on that? Do we just pay tax on the portion she earns in Thailand...wishful thinking I guess?

Also, what is an acceptable reason to apply for a 1 year multi entry tourist visa? If I say I have a fiance and we are going to get married than they will say I am not a tourist, right? Should I just say I am travelling for a year? Any ideas?

Thanks for the info!

[lopburi3]

1. To work in Thailand you require a work permit which you do not seem to have taken into consideration. So you are not going to be able to show local income. Your Thai wife will be taxed on world wide income but tax rates are not really that high.

2. There is no such thing as a one year tourist visa. You can not work on a tourist visa in any case. Probably the best you could hope for would be a two entry valid for six months (although 3-4 are sometimes available). A tourist visa is for tourist type activity.

3. You do not need any special visa to get married. Once you are married you can obtain non immigrant O visa and from some Consulates obtain the one year multi entry type.

[blakegeee]

1. To work in Thailand you require a work permit which you do not seem to have taken into consideration. So you are not going to be able to show local income. Your Thai wife will be taxed on world wide income but tax rates are not really that high.

2. There is no such thing as a one year tourist visa. You can not work on a tourist visa in any case. Probably the best you could hope for would be a two entry valid for six months (although 3-4 are sometimes available). A tourist visa is for tourist type activity.

3. You do not need any special visa to get married. Once you are married you can obtain non immigrant O visa and from some Consulates obtain the one year multi entry type.

Thanks for the info.

1. Can you explain "local income". Does both of our income have to be coming from "locally"??? If we get married, and she has an income from her local business, and I have an income from another country being deposited in my bank, isn't that ok?

2. In Vancouver, I can get a multi entry tourist visa. 4 entries, 3 months each entry equals 1 year right?

3. I know I don't need a special visa to get married. But to get the non-immigrant O visa once married, I cannot just be on a 30 day stamp right?. I just wanted to clarify that a tourist visa is all thats required to get the "non-imm O".

[Lite Beer]

1. To work in Thailand you require a work permit which you do not seem to have taken into consideration. So you are not going to be able to show local income. Your Thai wife will be taxed on world wide income but tax rates are not really that high.

2. There is no such thing as a one year tourist visa. You can not work on a tourist visa in any case. Probably the best you could hope for would be a two entry valid for six months (although 3-4 are sometimes available). A tourist visa is for tourist type activity.

3. You do not need any special visa to get married. Once you are married you can obtain non immigrant O visa and from some Consulates obtain the one year multi entry type.

Thanks for the info.

1. Can you explain "local income". Does both of our income have to be coming from "locally"??? If we get married, and she has an income from her local business, and I have an income from another country being deposited in my bank, isn't that ok?

2. In Vancouver, I can get a multi entry tourist visa. 4 entries, 3 months each entry equals 1 year right?

3. I know I don't need a special visa to get married. But to get the non-immigrant O visa once married, I cannot just be on a 30 day stamp right?. I just wanted to clarify that a tourist visa is all thats required to get the "non-imm O".

Yes you can combine your 2 incomes when married.

You will need a letter from your Embassy as proof of your income.

Your Wife will need records of her tax payments as proof of her income.

[lopburi3]

1. Income from outside must be verified by Embassy letter in most cases - and would also be subject to Thai income tax if brought into Thailand during the year earned. Local income must be verified by local tax receipts and would require a work permit if foreigners.

2. I seriously doubt Vancouver will issue you a four entry tourist visa but even if they did it would only be valid for entry during a six month period at most. Max use with extensions of less than nine months. ((edit: If you are known to them as a good guy your chance of 4 is probably much greater - but 3 is all you can fully use with extensions anyhow))

3. You can not obtain a non immigrant O visa in Thailand unless you qualify for extension of stay (40k family income). If you do qualify you can obtain from a visa exempt 30 day entry but application must be made with more than 21 days remaining on permitted to stay stamp.

[blakegeee]

Ok, I will not be earning any income locally anyways, I have a Canadian company and I run it online. I could show my bank statements to the embassy proving my income. My wife also has an income from her "local" business. For simplicity, maybe we shouldn't bother getting into that as my income is enough to cover the 40,000b anyways. Her business does not make much money, and she doesn't currently pay income tax. Just annual license fees and whatnot. Does anyone know the percent of income tax I would pay on a 40,000b/month income?

I was thinking, we are getting married within a few months of me getting back anyways so I don't need any more than 6 months on the tourist visas anyways. So a double entry should be fine.

So basically, if I have a tourist visa, and we get married, and have the embassy letter showing 40,000b/month income, and pay taxes on it, it should not be a problem to get a non immigrant O visa in Thailand, right?

[lopburi3]

Do not believe immigration will require you to pay tax on it if reported as your income from overseas and you have the Embassy letter paperwork. The catch 22 is that Thailand laws tax worldwide income and in practice that means money brought into Thailand in the year earned (subject to any tax treaties). At this point do not believe there would be any inter-agency check made and immigration is not the tax office.

Believe reports from member who work here or spouse works here are the normal Thai tax on that amount of income (earned in Thailand) runs in the 2-3,000 baht per month range (depending on deduction status).

[blakegeee]

Do not believe immigration will require you to pay tax on it if reported as your income from overseas and you have the Embassy letter paperwork. The catch 22 is that Thailand laws tax worldwide income and in practice that means money brought into Thailand in the year earned (subject to any tax treaties). At this point do not believe there would be any inter-agency check made and immigration is not the tax office.

Believe reports from member who work here or spouse works here are the normal Thai tax on that amount of income (earned in Thailand) runs in the 2-3,000 baht per month range (depending on deduction status).

Thanks a lot for the info everybody. I just talked to an English friend of mine who is married to a Thai. He recommends letting my wife carry the 40,000b+ income for simplicity. She has a business so we can just show she makes that much.