New Regulations For Extensions Of Non-immigrant Visas

[rayw]

Im not sure how the new 15 day rule will help,

Ive read a number of poster say its a good thing as people should get proper visa,

This is my brother situation,

Hes less than 50 years old , doesnt have a thai wife, but has a income from the UK so doesnt work nor make any income from Thailand.

He was doing the 2 month tourist visa then the 3 * 30 days visa runs, I cannot see how hes taking advantage of the 30 day rule he was basically following the rules,am I missing something?

all he does is spend his money from the UK, he doesnt have another option for a visa, know its just been made harder for him,which in my view doesnt make any sense.Im sure theres plenty of other people in the same boat.

So am I missing something why the great need for the change?

my feelings exactly and my situation. hate to see this, political problems all summer, the airport, and now visa changes... should i be considering Cambodia?

Indeed that is one big area that is wrong here and would benefit Thailand for sure. There should be an under 50's "early retirement" visa with say a requirement of what would seem a reasonable 2 million Baht annual foreign income plus/or capital. Sure someone under 50 to retire should have enough pension and capital to last them a long time and it is likely they will require a lot more income to retire at say 40 than most retirees over and well over 50 do.

[Mario2008]

In my opinion this is a big improvement for Men with Thai Wives.

agreed

Agreed Agreed.

In the case of married to a Thai according to 2.18 is there any age requirement for the one requesting extension of stay or can this be accepted also for those under 50 yrs age?

No age requirement, as long as you are legaly and de facto married you qualify.

[Phil Conners]

WOW....over 900 people reading this thread at the moment.

Anyway, with the new 400,000 Baht rule for husband of Thai lady, I assume one can still get a work permit on that visa????????????

This would be good as it would remove the "leverage" a business has in threatening to cancel your Non-imm B and make you border run or get 7 day extension immediately.

Regards,

Yes you can still get a work permit with a non-o visa based on marriage. This law is about visa extensions, not about work permits.

[Lite Beer]

Unfortunately they did not re-introduce the 3 million Baht investment extension.

They only confirm that aliens who have been on that investment extension from before October 1st 2006 will be able to keep extending.

The 400,000 Baht for married persons is a good thing though!

Well, for many it was easier getting 40k family income than 400k laying around...especially with wives that like to spend. So I'm not sure how this will improve it for them...

It is not clear but reading between the lines they may still be able to do this.

Not if they haven't received it before.

I'm for instance receiving extension based on my work, even though I am on Non-O, due to some special BOI-one-stop-Visa-service. But if a person like me would alter job to a normal company one cannot use any grandfathering as one wasn't using it before...

Yep. Fair point.

[Kerryd]

Im not sure how the new 15 day rule will help,

Ive read a number of poster say its a good thing as people should get proper visa,

This is my brother situation,

Hes less than 50 years old , doesnt have a thai wife, but has a income from the UK so doesnt work nor make any income from Thailand.

He was doing the 2 month tourist visa then the 3 * 30 days visa runs, I cannot see how hes taking advantage of the 30 day rule he was basically following the rules,am I missing something?

all he does is spend his money from the UK, he doesnt have another option for a visa, know its just been made harder for him,which in my view doesnt make any sense.Im sure theres plenty of other people in the same boat.

So am I missing something why the great need for the change?

I don't think your brother was very high on their consideration list when they decided to make these changes. Unmarried people under 50 (like myself) are considered too young to retire.

And he does have another option. More than one. Why get a single 2 month Tourist Visa ? Some places you can get a Triple Entry, or maybe just a double entry. When that's up a long time down the road, get another one.

Or enrol in a language school and get a Non-Immigrant-Ed visa. (Yes, it costs money to enrol in a school).

Becoming a monk is probably not in the cards, so there are other options, but not a lot.

General Comment:

Remember that Thailand has absolutely no obligation to cater to foreigners personal desires when it comes to making changes to Thai law.

I'm pretty sure most people here would get righteously indignant if foreigners in their home country were continuously bitching and moaning about the laws of that country.

Funny how that old "double standard" thing works eh ?

[Lite Beer]

In my opinion this is a big improvement for Men with Thai Wives.

agreed

Agreed Agreed.

In the case of married to a Thai according to 2.18 is there any age requirement for the one requesting extension of stay or can this be accepted also for those under 50 yrs age?

You mean Farangs under 50 marry Thai Ladies?

Only kidding. No age restrictions.

[DegenFarang]

This thread is massive. Can somebody tell me if there are any changes to the typical 60+30 visa's you can get prior to entry in HK or Singapore etc?

[Geekfreaklover]

If I understand this right, to qualify for a Business visa, Europeans, Australians, North Americans and Japanese have to prove a monthly income of 50,000 baht (or more).

Meanwhile, people from South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan and Hong Kong only have to have an income of 45,000/month. Other countries it's down to 35,000/month except for African countries (except South Africa), Cambodia, Myanmar, Laos and Vietnam, where the monthly requirement is down to just 25,000.

And the "business" must have submitted 2 years of certified financial statements (showing a sound financial condition and an ongoing active business).

I recently changed povinces and had to apply for a new work permit. I submitted docs for 45k. I think 40k is the benchmark.

[Lite Beer]

This thread is massive. Can somebody tell me if there are any changes to the typical 60+30 visa's you can get prior to entry in HK or Singapore etc?

No change to Tourist Visas.

[monkeytunes]

Although I benefit from the changes, its means I just need the 400k in the bank, so no hassle with proof of icome. but I think its a shame that they have changed the income requirement for visa based on marriage to just the husband, once again I cannot see the benefit, i know a few married men that just fall short of the 40K requirement but with the wifes salary meet the requirements, 40K is allot anyway when you consider what local people can earn, and if your married surely it make sense for both icomes (the family income) to be taken into account.

[monkie13]

My interpretation (thanks Issan Legal) for those on a non O-A visa ( for the purposes of retirement) is very little change.

After you get a non O-A in your home country, if you play your cards right there is no need to apply for an extension until just before the end of the second year of your O-A.

At this time, previously you needed 800k in a Thai bank for 3 months prior to the extension application (or pension, or combination). Now it seems the 800k must be in the Thai bank for 60 days for the first extension application, and 3 months for every year after that.

If my interpretation is correct, this is in fact a slight relaxation of the current policy, which requires 800k for 3 months prior to the first extension application.

I am happy to be corrected, given that my interpretation has been Leo-assisted

You should also be aware that if you have an income from your home country and use this as part of the 800K retirement visa requirement ( for most folks their pension is usually not enough to meet the 800K PA figure unless you have a very good pension indeed and especially now with the weak pound) then you only need the balance in your Thai bank account on the day you renew your annual OA Visa (retirement). This has not changed and is often misquoted and confused with when you use 800K banked money exclusively when the 60 or 90 day ruling does apply. i.e. if you have say a pension from your home country that equates to 500K Baht p.a. ( a fairly average pension for a UK retiree) then you also need to show 300K Baht in your Thai bank account just on the day you extend your visa there is absolutely no 60 day or 90 day requirement in such a case. I know this is fact as I do not keep too much here in Baht and my income is about 530K pa (was about 650K a short while back when the pound was strong) so I transfer some of my capital from my UK bank account just a week or two before my visa extension is due so my annual pension and Thai bank account add up to over 800K Baht. This has never been a problem and is a fact as confirmed by my local Thai immigration office too. So anyone with a pension (and certainly all UK citizens over 65 on a state pension) can do it this way you just need the usual letter from the UK Consular office here to confirm your pension after you show them the proof. The money I transfer over at the annual visa renewal time I can then use afterwards to make annual household purchases or for my next few months living costs so very easy and friendly. If you can meet the fairly straight forward immigration laws here it is really not a problem and very user friendly, so anyone planning on living here on a "permanent" temporary basis should check the rules carefully beforehand and ensure they can comply.

so if i am reading everything correctly them we have no problem at all.

we are a family of 3 dutchman (me my husband and our doughter) not 50 or older( and not work here). and have a income from netherland of 80.000-90.000 bath a month (depent of the euro versus bath). every year we fly to netherland for our visa and we go every 90 days to the border.

[OldenAtwoody]

"Parents of a Thai Child are eligible for a 12 month extension with 400,000 in the bank or 40,000 Monthly income. No mention of having to be 50 years old."

And if I claim a child as an UNMARRIED parent may I stll obtain a Thai visa?

[Nielselise]

Trying to find more info on Police Order 777/2551 I googled around, but only found this forum mentioning it (besides it also being part of some US phone number...). Isn't it crazy (or just 3 times hurray for the Thaivisa people... ...) that it is not (first) mentioned on any Government site like www,immigration,go,th (I know, comma's instead of dots, the forum does not accept URL's), properly introduced an then discussed???

Kind regards,

Niels

Edited December 4, 2008 by Nielselise

[Foggy Bottom]

Looks to me like they've wiped out the salary requirements waiver for Non-Imm(M) visas (Press and Media, including authors)

There was a waiver introduced early in the Thaksin regime that all media only needed 20K per month income/salary

Looks like that's now been ditched and it's back to salary based on nationality.

Anyone read it any differently?

---------------

For the people kicking up attitude about the need for farangs to have income many times the national average for a Thai -

Immigration have explained this in the past as being due to various factors related to the "comfort" of farangs' lifestyles (accustomed luxuries etc) as well as to things like not being eligible for the 30 Baht health scene (unless employed with work permit, tax card and PAYING the social security contribution - which very few bother doing).

Yes it's possible for a farang to live here on 6,000 a month - but it sure as hel_l ain't comfortable and I wouldn't want to do it again

Gaz

[Lite Beer]

"Parents of a Thai Child are eligible for a 12 month extension with 400,000 in the bank or 40,000 Monthly income. No mention of having to be 50 years old."

And if I claim a child as an UNMARRIED parent may I stll obtain a 12 month extension

That is the way it reads.

[Mario2008]

so if i am reading everything correctly them we have no problem at all.

we are a family of 3 dutchman (me my husband and our doughter) not 50 or older( and not work here). and have a income from netherland of 80.000-90.000 bath a month (depent of the euro versus bath). every year we fly to netherland for our visa and we go every 90 days to the border.

You are not on an extension of stay, so this does not relate to you. You can still get a multiple non-immigrant and get 90 days at the border.

[Goldenballs]

This is confusing the hel_l out of me... OK guys laymans terms please, heres my situation:

We are a british couple and ive bought a condo in Pattaya. At the moment im still working overseas and at best would only spend 1 month at a time in the country before leaving again so no probelm there. So lets look at worse case, I find myself out of work, im only 45 so no retirement visa option and I dont want to return to the UK to support Alistair Darlings retriement fund...

So to live in Thailand for a whole year (or 5 year if they are still available) , what visa do I apply for and how much do i need in the bank... thats it pure and simple.

Nidge

[tominchaam]

Lite Beer - What is Farang? Your hard work is very much appreciated!

[monkie13]

so if i am reading everything correctly them we have no problem at all.

we are a family of 3 dutchman (me my husband and our doughter) not 50 or older( and not work here). and have a income from netherland of 80.000-90.000 bath a month (depent of the euro versus bath). every year we fly to netherland for our visa and we go every 90 days to the border.

You are not on an extension of stay, so this does not relate to you. You can still get a multiple non-immigrant and get 90 days at the border.

tnkx for your qiuck reply

[Mario2008]

Rule 2.4 might mean that people on a tourist visa now can get a maximum of three 30 day extensions. Any opinions on that?

Edit:

hmm. At second thought no. But it might mean that a tourist visa plus extension is limited to 90 days.

Edited December 4, 2008 by Mario2008

[whitfield]

Not sure that I understand any of this. I am here on a Non Imm O Visa, Multiple Entry. I have always left within the 3 months.

I have a Thai wife and children.

I arrived the last time on 5th Oct and I am not due to leave until 27th Jan so I booked a flight to go to Singapore last week to renew my visa and of course couldn't leave.

I can show both 50,000 + per month and 400,000 + in my bank.

Does this mean that I can now stay up to a year without having to leave. Do I not have to go out of the country before 5th Jan now.

Just a quick visit to immigartion office on Hua Hin to get an extension??

Be really grateful for a clear answer. Many thanks

[monkie13]

This is confusing the hel_l out of me... OK guys laymans terms please, heres my situation:

We are a british couple and ive bought a condo in Pattaya. At the moment im still working overseas and at best would only spend 1 month at a time in the country before leaving again so no probelm there. So lets look at worse case, I find myself out of work, im only 45 so no retirement visa option and I dont want to return to the UK to support Alistair Darlings retriement fund...

So to live in Thailand for a whole year (or 5 year if they are still available) , what visa do I apply for and how much do i need in the bank... thats it pure and simple.

Nidge

you do just the same as us.

we go every year to our homecountry for a non immigrant multiple entry visa. we egt it on base of our income and we own (by my compagnie) a house and land. that is the netherlands enough to get your visa

[monkeytunes]

This is confusing the hel_l out of me... OK guys laymans terms please, heres my situation:

We are a british couple and ive bought a condo in Pattaya. At the moment im still working overseas and at best would only spend 1 month at a time in the country before leaving again so no probelm there. So lets look at worse case, I find myself out of work, im only 45 so no retirement visa option and I dont want to return to the UK to support Alistair Darlings retriement fund...

So to live in Thailand for a whole year (or 5 year if they are still available) , what visa do I apply for and how much do i need in the bank... thats it pure and simple.

Nidge

Youll more or less in the same situation as my brother,

from what hes told me, he will need to do the 60 day tourist visa which he does from KL, then do 15 *6 border runs then start the process again, apart from marrying a thai lady he hasnt any other options as there are no visas from what I know of for non worker under 50 not married to a thai.

[Lite Beer]

Lite Beer - What is Farang?

You and me. Westerner.

[thaibreaker]

Im not sure how the new 15 day rule will help,

Ive read a number of poster say its a good thing as people should get proper visa,

This is my brother situation,

Hes less than 50 years old , doesnt have a thai wife, but has a income from the UK so doesnt work nor make any income from Thailand.

He was doing the 2 month tourist visa then the 3 * 30 days visa runs, I cannot see how hes taking advantage of the 30 day rule he was basically following the rules,am I missing something?

all he does is spend his money from the UK, he doesnt have another option for a visa, know its just been made harder for him,which in my view doesnt make any sense.Im sure theres plenty of other people in the same boat.

So am I missing something why the great need for the change?

my feelings exactly and my situation. hate to see this, political problems all summer, the airport, and now visa changes... should i be considering Cambodia?

My situation too.

I am fed up, and will try out Malaysia for a while.

[monkie13]

This is confusing the hel_l out of me... OK guys laymans terms please, heres my situation:

We are a british couple and ive bought a condo in Pattaya. At the moment im still working overseas and at best would only spend 1 month at a time in the country before leaving again so no probelm there. So lets look at worse case, I find myself out of work, im only 45 so no retirement visa option and I dont want to return to the UK to support Alistair Darlings retriement fund...

So to live in Thailand for a whole year (or 5 year if they are still available) , what visa do I apply for and how much do i need in the bank... thats it pure and simple.

Nidge

Youll more or less in the same situation as my brother,

from what hes told me, he will need to do the 60 day tourist visa which he does from KL, then do 15 *6 border runs then start the process again, apart from marrying a thai lady he hasnt any other options as there are no visas from what I know of for non worker under 50 not married to a thai.

if he get from anyone a paper with in that a agree for rent then he can aply for a 1 year visa multiple entry

[Mario2008]

Not sure that I understand any of this. I am here on a Non Imm O Visa, Multiple Entry. I have always left within the 3 months.

I have a Thai wife and children.

I arrived the last time on 5th Oct and I am not due to leave until 27th Jan so I booked a flight to go to Singapore last week to renew my visa and of course couldn't leave.

I can show both 50,000 + per month and 400,000 + in my bank.

Does this mean that I can now stay up to a year without having to leave. Do I not have to go out of the country before 5th Jan now.

Just a quick visit to immigartion office on Hua Hin to get an extension??

Be really grateful for a clear answer. Many thanks

Yes, you meet the requirements for a one year extension.

[monkie13]

Not sure that I understand any of this. I am here on a Non Imm O Visa, Multiple Entry. I have always left within the 3 months.

I have a Thai wife and children.

I arrived the last time on 5th Oct and I am not due to leave until 27th Jan so I booked a flight to go to Singapore last week to renew my visa and of course couldn't leave.

I can show both 50,000 + per month and 400,000 + in my bank.

Does this mean that I can now stay up to a year without having to leave. Do I not have to go out of the country before 5th Jan now.

Just a quick visit to immigartion office on Hua Hin to get an extension??

Be really grateful for a clear answer. Many thanks

Yes, you meet the requirements for a one year extension.

so if i read this right we do not have to leave thailand anymore every 90 days? non immigrant o visa multiple entry we have.we are not married with a thai

Edited December 4, 2008 by monkie13

[Lite Beer]

Not sure that I understand any of this. I am here on a Non Imm O Visa, Multiple Entry. I have always left within the 3 months.

I have a Thai wife and children.

I arrived the last time on 5th Oct and I am not due to leave until 27th Jan so I booked a flight to go to Singapore last week to renew my visa and of course couldn't leave.

I can show both 50,000 + per month and 400,000 + in my bank.

Does this mean that I can now stay up to a year without having to leave. Do I not have to go out of the country before 5th Jan now.

Just a quick visit to immigartion office on Hua Hin to get an extension??

Be really grateful for a clear answer. Many thanks

Basically you can get a 12 month extension of stay . Meaning you do not have to leave the country. You do however have to report your address to Immigration every 90 days.

There are a few other requirements, but yes you can do.

You could have done this before the new rules.

[Pappiklon]

On the issue of an investment visa, when it says if you buy a condominium over 3m baht from an Agency or State Agency, or where it refers to bringing in money into the country, does this mean that I as the purchaser of a condominium in excess of 3M baht (but from what was a limited company not a state agency), or having done a transfer of over 10m baht into the country can apply for an Investment Visa?