Early Retirement In Thailand

[astral]

Astral: Yes, it seems odd that Thailand also has the second home thing. Apparently, it's supposed to be a new scheme from Thailand Long Stay Co. This is the site: http://www.thailongstay.co.th/vip/

I have emailed them but they have not replied. Even my phone calls to them were unsuccessful. I have doubts about this program.

Do not believe all that you read on the web.

There is no official Second Home Scheme in Thailand.

The link you quote is for a private company.

Their lack of a reply to your e-mail speaks volumes.

[JetsetBkk]

I have been a Thailand Elite member for over 2 yrs and am very happy with the service and value for money. The visa is valid for 5 yrs and then renewable in 5 yr increments for the rest of your life. You can stay in the country for 90 days and then either leave or go to immigration and pay for another 90 day extension..I think it costs baht 1000.

If I had paid 1 million baht for a TE card, I think I would know how the system works better than you do. You can stay in Thailand for the entrire 5 years without leaving or needing to get an extension. You are only required to make 90 day reports to immigration which are free.

Er...well as another 2 year TE member, I can tell you that he was correct and you are not (unless something has changed since I last came in 2 months ago). You only get a 90 day stamp in your passport each time you enter the country and so are required to get another 90 day stamp if you don't leave before then. Cost per stamp is 1,900 THB.

So what's the real story? Don't we have enough TE Card holders on the forum to get to the facts?

[jstumbo]

If I had paid 1 million baht for a TE card, I think I would know how the system works better than you do. You can stay in Thailand for the entrire 5 years without leaving or needing to get an extension. You are only required to make 90 day reports to immigration which are free.

Er...well as another 2 year TE member, I can tell you that he was correct and you are not (unless something has changed since I last came in 2 months ago). You only get a 90 day stamp in your passport each time you enter the country and so are required to get another 90 day stamp if you don't leave before then. Cost per stamp is 1,900 THB.

Maybe I am wrong then. In all the discussions on the board about the TE card, I have never heard anyone saying that they needed to pay 1900 baht every 3 months for an extension of stay. Seems like it would be more cost effective to just go to Hull once every 15 months for a multi non-O, or get a multi non-B from the US every 15 months.

[Meerkat]

Maybe I am wrong then. In all the discussions on the board about the TE card, I have never heard anyone saying that they needed to pay 1900 baht every 3 months for an extension of stay.

Odd seeing as you even participated in this thread here on TV less than 2 months ago in which I again stated that you had to get 1,900 THB extensions every 90 days. It has also been mentioned in other threads here on the subject. Extensively.

As you said here though, if one were spending a million baht on the visa (now 1.5 mil), you'd kind of want to know the rules...

[KKK]

Just like to add my pennys worth.

Why should you have to be 50 to retire. I retired, financially independant, at 30 and had to wait 20 years to get my retirement visa. So much money that could have been spent in Thailand was used in unwanted visa trips outside of Thailand. I know some people who have never worked a day in their lives and would like to stay in Thailand and spend their inheritances here. But the rules don't easily allow it. Where's the rule that says a Thai can't retire until he/she's 50. Any rule/law placed upon an alien should also apply to a Thai citizen. This goes for retirement as well as land ownership. If the law makers consider it fair to treat aliens in a certain way then it should also be fair to treat their own citizens the same way. Otherwise the law is discriminatory and biased and constitutionally incorrect. All people are the same regardless of race, sex etc. and should be treated so.

[jfchandler]

Nice idea... Noble thought.....

What country are you living in???? Surely not Thailand!!!!

If the law makers consider it fair to treat aliens in a certain way then it should also be fair to treat their own citizens the same way. Otherwise the law is discriminatory and biased and constitutionally incorrect. All people are the same regardless of race, sex etc. and should be treated so.

[jackspratt]

Nice idea... Noble thought.....

What country are you living in???? Surely not Thailand!!!!

Cloud Cuckoo Land maybe

[JetsetBkk]

Just like to add my pennys worth.

Why should you have to be 50 to retire. I retired, financially independant, at 30 and had to wait 20 years to get my retirement visa. So much money that could have been spent in Thailand was used in unwanted visa trips outside of Thailand. I know some people who have never worked a day in their lives and would like to stay in Thailand and spend their inheritances here. But the rules don't easily allow it. Where's the rule that says a Thai can't retire until he/she's 50. Any rule/law placed upon an alien should also apply to a Thai citizen. This goes for retirement as well as land ownership. If the law makers consider it fair to treat aliens in a certain way then it should also be fair to treat their own citizens the same way. Otherwise the law is discriminatory and biased and constitutionally incorrect. All people are the same regardless of race, sex etc. and should be treated so.

First of all, I sympathise and know that a lot of others sub-50 year olds think the same. But that is the age requirement in Thailand for foreigners wanting a "retirement" visa.

There is another way for young rich people to stay here permanently, and that is to invest a lot of money - I think 40,000,000 baht - in specific institutions. That certainly used to be the case, but don't know if it still is. Immigration did have a 3,000,000 baht investment visa some years ago but I'm sure that one has been withdrawn.

Putting it in perspective, you could try asking your own government for your state pension at 30 or 40 and see what they say.

[engrin]

Sign up for a Thai course, I think thats good for 3 years

[thecatman]

I early retired in Thailand, I was 39 year old, i use a consulate in my city who offer me one year multi entry visa O, after two year the only visa they could give me was 3*3 entries.

I approached a friendlier consulate and from the last 5 years I have a 1 year multi entry visa O, need to do a visa run every three months.

I presume you must be financial secure if you want to retired early..

Here Here, I'd go along with simcity and say that the multi entry Non Imm-0 is a sound, cheap, option here, especially as the OP mentioned he'd be leaving Thailand 4-6 times a year for holidays, therefore, with a little careful planning the 3 monthly 'visa run' wouldn't be an issue.

[EmptyMind]

I have been a Thailand Elite member for over 2 yrs and am very happy with the service and value for money. The visa is valid for 5 yrs and then renewable in 5 yr increments for the rest of your life. You can stay in the country for 90 days and then either leave or go to immigration and pay for another 90 day extension..I think it costs baht 1000. I'm not hear to beat a drum for the program but my first hand experience is positive.

Not sure how you can only think that the extension is only 1000 Baht if you have been using it for 2 years, anyway.

If the card stays as it is, here again is the mythbusting truth.

1. You get a 5 year unlimited entry Visa and you get a 90 day stamp, If you don't want to leave after the 90 days you can simply get another 90 days for the usual fee and do the same for 5 years without leaving the country.

2. At the end of the 5 Years you get another Visa for 5 years (without having to pay) and you keep going until either the scheme is pulled or you die.

I did read some stuff about them refunding a certain % of the fee if they pull the scheme but I cant really see them doing that since they are getting 1.5M from each customer, Why would they stop doing it.

(90 day reporting still has to be done)

[keith68]

Hi all,

Thanks very much for the many ideas and suggestions. I have found most of your information very useful, leading me to ask questions and explore alternatives. I will digest what is said and make a decision on how to live in Thailand for a good period of time without having to go through too much hassle in the visa department. At the end of the day, most of us want some certainty when we uproot from one culture and lifestyle and plunge ourselves into another. Let's hope all of us get some of that. I am really grateful to everyone who participated in this discussion.

Keith

[CobraSnakeNecktie]

If you have got that kind of money and are not a sex tourist

why not live in Malaysia on their legitimate longstay programme. You get 10 year visa renewal for an investment of about 50k baht

check it on google

I am seriously considering relocating there - forget what you here about muslim terrorists and what you read in the press. Life is very civilised there but definately not for the playboy

50K baht? Try 50K $