How To Stay In Thailand For Several Years, Without Working

[Andreas84]

Hi,

I am planning to stay in Thailand for a period of about 2-7 years. I will not have paid work there, but live off savings. I am 25 years old. I have a girlfriend there, whom I could marry and thus obtain an NON-immigrant visa type O. What kind of visa would be the most appropriate in this situation?

And in general, for people who are staying in Thailand for several years, without working or being retired or fitting into any other category, what kind of visa is appropriate? Is it realistic to stay in Thailand for several years, under these circumstances? I guess there is a limit to how many tourist visas one could have in a row?

Any suggestions and sharing of experiences is highly appreciated!

[Jingthing]

Your best bet, the ED visa to study Thai. You could easily stay 2 years on that one, 7 would be a stretch. You have to attend an approved school and study Thai, but the required hours are not many.

[thaiphoon]

ED visa is one option.

Or marry your Thai girlfriend and apply for extension of stay based on marriage if you meet the requirements; financial requirements being 400k in Thai bank account in your name for two months prior to application (3 months for renewals) OR 40k/month income (your income). In the case of income from abroad you will need to obtain an income letter from your embassy. If using the bank balance option you will need a letter from bank confirming the account balance and copies of bank book. Renew each year as long as meet the requirements. No need to do border runs; just report address to immigration every 90 days, and for most immigration offices that can be done by post.

Another option could be to obtain 12 month Non-O multiple entry visa from an honorary consulate such as Hull (believe you are in Europe) on the basis of visiting friends. You will receive 90 day permission to stay on each entry and will have to do border runs every 90 days. Do a final border run just your visa expires and get a new 90 day permission to stay, stretching your visa to 15 months. This visa is only available at only a handful of consulates worldwide; as to the future with recent tightening up of visa issuance at some consulates that issue, who knows. No financial requirements required. This may be your best option at the beginning until you decide what you want to do.

[Lite Beer]

The Thai Consulates in Stuttgarte and Amsterdam may also issue a Non Imm O Multi Entry.

[richieudon]

If you can send yourself more than 40,000 baht monthly and marry your Thai girlfriend which is pretty easy to do in any Amphur office, then you can get a Non Immigrant "O" Visa based on supporting your Thai wife.

You do need to get all your paperwork in order and some sort of official "looking" letter from "your employers" abroad that send you your money every month.

I don't know which country you're from but I send myself money from my UK bank monthly into my Thai account for the same reason. It's quite simple to set up a standing order "until further notice" but I had to do this before I left the UK. I cannot do it online or anything like that. I had to physically go in the bank myself and fill out the necessary forms. It costs me £28 per month for this service which is probably the same cost as it would be to take money from an ATM machine with my UK bank card.

You'd have to come here 1st, get married, then leave the country and go to Laos or somewhere to obtain a non immigrant "O" based on marriage. Then when you come back you need to go to your embassy with proof of income and get a letter from them to show to immigration. You need other paperwork and all the info is on Thaivisa.com but it is possible to get this yearly visa so you don't have to keep leaving the country every 3 months

Good luck!!!

[Mario2008]

The requirement is income, proofed with tax papers if from within Thailand and proofed with a letter from your embassy confirming your income when from abroad. Sending yourself money every month is not enough and isn't the same as income.

If people have a lot of money to spend, they can put up 400,000 in the bank.

[Artisi]

The simple solution, get married and deposit Bht400 000 into the bank 2 months before applying for your marriage visa / extension

[whatchamacallit]

Safe yourself the headache, time and money - just get a 12 month Non-O with multiple entries. No proof of income is necessary just a letter from your girlfriend and copy of her ID. Yes you have to do border runs every 90 days - if you leave and re-enter Thailand on/or before your visa expires, you'll get another 90 days.

If after 15 months of stay - you're still with your girlfriend - then go ahead and marry her

Edited December 29, 2009 by whatchamacallit

[richieudon]

The requirement is income, proofed with tax papers if from within Thailand and proofed with a letter from your embassy confirming your income when from abroad. Sending yourself money every month is not enough and isn't the same as income.

If people have a lot of money to spend, they can put up 400,000 in the bank.

Sending yourself money every month is fine as long as you can convince your embassy it is an income which is what I did

[Mario2008]

Another consular officer might not be persuaded to issue an embassy letter. It is a risk.

[Lite Beer]

Sending yourself money every month is fine as long as you can convince your embassy it is an income which is what I did

That must have been some convincing persuading with The British Embassy.

[richieudon]

Sending yourself money every month is fine as long as you can convince your embassy it is an income which is what I did

That must have been some convincing persuading with The British Embassy.

Maybe it was my blue eyes....?

[DegenFarang]

Your best bet, the ED visa to study Thai. You could easily stay 2 years on that one, 7 would be a stretch. You have to attend an approved school and study Thai, but the required hours are not many.

A month ago this would be the obvious answer whether you wanted to study Thai or not - however immigration has started informally testing some people's Thai language skills when they renew the visa (its renewable every 90 days indefinitely) so even though nothing is certain with the ED visa's future at this point, I would suggest at least finding a backup plan to this if you aren't willing or able to devote 4 hours a week to learn Thai (plus 20-30k Baht per year for your tuition).

If you have 10,000,000 baht to invest in Thailand you can get an indefinite investment visa, renewable every year.

Then there is always the 60-day tourist visa's that is extendable at immigration to 90 days, requiring you to leave the country every 90 days to get a new one. When I was doing these you could keep getting new ones (hypothetically) forever - though you may want to check up on the latest news with these as Thai's love crackdowns like they love spicy food.

[languageexpress]

As other posters have suggested, the Ed Visa is one way to do it. You need to enroll in a school approved by the Ministry of Education. Your initial application has to be made at a Thai embassy, (that is from outside Thailand) After that every 90 days you need an extension, which can be done at a local immigration office from inside Thailand.

There appears to be informal testing of some students on Ed Visas at a few local immigration branches outside Bangkok. The reports posted on this site indicate that when it occurs takes the form of a few basic questions about your name, where you live, when you’re studying etc. There are numerous posts on this topic on the thread “Ed Visa Crackdown?”

To my knowledge no one has reported being refused an extension. But if you do take the Ed Visa option, then play it safe and attend classes. The legal minimum is 4 hours per week, and if you’re planning to live here for an extended period speaking the language will come in handy.

[MacWalen]

If you were considering an ED visa then do consider Walen School in your list too, with 4 schools in Thailand and the greatest number of students on ED visas we are an undisputed leader among Thai schools. Also our method teaches the language much faster (for those who want to learn).

With non-O you still have to leave the country every 90 days ( if not based on marriage extension), making visa runs after a short time is pain in the butt, exhausting, plus expensive and also every year you need to figure out how to get a new one (non-O), sorry whatchamacallit but if he thinks about staying here long term this advice you give is not the best, ED visa is a much better option.

Walen School - No more visa problems.

www.thaiwalen.com (the best selling Thai school)

Edited December 30, 2009 by macwalen

[whatchamacallit]

With non-O you still have to leave the country every 90 days ( if not based on marriage extension), making visa runs after a short time is pain in the butt, exhausting, plus expensive and also every year you need to figure out how to get a new one (non-O), sorry whatchamacallit but if he thinks about staying here long term this advice you give is not the best, ED visa is a much better option.

I still think that the Non-O multi with 90 day border runs is his best option. I've been on this visa for the past 3 years. If you live near the border - doing visa runs every 90 days is NOT that bad - it beats having to go to school 2 to 3 times each week (remember when you get an ED Visa you MUST attend classes). And getting the ED visa (including the fee for the language school) ain't exactly free either (Sorry Macwalen )!!

Yes you have to get a new Non-O visa each year - so far a few consulates (Perth, Hull, etc) are still issuing this type of visa.

[Tod Daniels]

Mac, (we all know you have an extremely high opinion of both yourself and your methodology in teaching thai at your school ) BUT please don't bend the facts.

Unless I am greatly mistaken (when I'm sure you'll correct me if I'm wrong ) you have only had the thai language part of your school open for a little over 2 years when before that it was just "Callan Engrish". You actually have NO experience with people receiving a third, forth, fifth year ED visa to study the thai language, AT ALL. To the best of my knowledge, I know of not one school who has hard, hands on, practical experience in what actually happens after a second years Ed visa renewal for studying thai.

I for one would be very hesitant to brag that my school has issued the most ED visas in the country. Last time I checked "quantity" and "quality" are two completely different words carrying two completely dissimilar meanings as well.

The cost of a visa run from Metro Bangkok by any of the plethora of visa run companies is 2000baht. That's virtually the same as a 90 day in-country ED visa extension which are 1900baht (+ travel). Factoring in the time spent both at school and running to immigrations; makes it a wash time wise. This is also not even taking into consideration that you must do 90 day address reporting; which often times does NOT run concurrently with your 90 day extension, forcing you to make yet another trip out to immigrations.

There are enough user friendly thai consulates scattered throughout the various countries in the world where receiving a Multi Entry Non-Immigrant Type O visa for the purpose of visiting friends is still a viable way to stay.

Right now, even doing a rudimentary calculation shows it works out cheaper to go the Non-O Multi route than the ED visa which entails the following;

(1)-paying a years tuition up front, receiving the documentation

(2)-going to a neighboring country to secure a single entry 90 day ED visa

(3)-paying for a year's worth of 90 extensions (4X1900)

(4)-doing 90 day reporting as well.

It is especially so, if the people staying here have no drive and/or motivation to learn the language.

I am currerntly working on costing out an "all in travel expense" to secure a Non-O Multi from Oz and will report back with my data when I have it. Please do NOT confuse this with what you call a visa 'scam'. The figures I'm working on are gleaned using something called the "internet" and something else called "Google".

[thaiphoon]

Several off-topic/inflamatory posts have been deleted. The Op is asking for ways to stay in Thailand and will make his own decision on what best suits his own particular circumstances, and financial costs may not be the only consideration. Please stay focused on the topic.

[TheJalapenoKid]

you dont need to get married for a non-immigrant type O visa... save yourself a headache!

[whatchamacallit]

For the OP's consideration just in case money and time is a factor in trying to decide between ED and Non-O Multi visas.

I've been staying here for the past 3 years on Non-O with multi entries - doing visa runs every 90 days.

Below is a breakdown of my cost to stay here in Thailand for up to 15 months each time I renew my Non-O Visa:

My last Visa Trip from Bangkok to Perth.

Bangkok to KL round trip with Air Asia.......... 5,600 baht

KL to Perth round trip with Air Asia............... 6,500 baht

2 nights at Travellodge Perth...................... 3,900 baht (Actually I stayed at Crowne Plaza which is more expensive)

4 times visa runs @ 2000 baht.................... 8,000 baht

===========

Total 24,000 baht

Of course the above total cost of 24,000 baht may vary depending on airlines and hotel, etc.

The visa frees me up as I don't have to attend school, although if I want to I can. At this time in my life I don't want the responsibility of having to be any place 3 days a week every week. Therefore this Non-O visa suits my lifestyle much better.

Ooops... don't forget the Cost of the Visa itself charged by the Thai Consulate: $175 USD (?)

Edited December 31, 2009 by whatchamacallit

[amolmeta]

sorry to take a new thread in the OP topic but after seeing the reply to his queries from the members , i felt that the people reading and replying are really have a good knowledge about visa.

could anyone just tell me , to get a extension on NON-O marriage visa , what is the requirement...... 400 K in bank for 2-3 months before applying or 40 K / month salary or Both. i heard that for the new applicants it requires to meet both the conditions?

awaiting reply ..

[Mario2008]

it is 400,000 in the bank for 2 months OR 40,000 a month.

[lazygourmet]

Fly out/in every months... flights are cheap and the greater Mekong region and beyond is wonderful!

Don't considerate it as a visa run and enjoy once a month an escape out of Thailand

[Tod Daniels]

For the OP's consideration just in case money and time is a factor in trying to decide between ED and Non-O Multi visas.

Thanx for posting the info to show that by going the Multi-entry Non-Immigrant Type O visa route, even flying to Oz to secure it from a 'user friendly' consulate it's actually cheaper than going the ED visa route.

I know owners of some thai language schools are very vocal about their way being the 'best way to stay’ .

Believe me there are other options, especially for people who do not want to go to school for a year, (not that that means they're not interested in learning thai, because I feel it can only help a person live here in the long run), only that someone may want to pursue either private study or a more intensive class schedule.

Remember, at most private language schools you buy 180 lessons (not even hours really as lessons typically run 50 minutes or so) for the year. This means if you attend class more than 4 hours a week, you burn your available lessons up quicker. Even as it stands now, 180 lessons divided by 4 a week equals out to only 45 weeks of study. This leaves you dead in the proverbial water without any more lessons available to attend thai language class for the last 7 weeks of your years study.

I really have no idea why schools don't offer lessons in packages of, oh maybe say 208 lessons; which actually equals to 4 hours a week and would cover all 52 weeks of a year, instead of the 180 lesson ‘standard package’.

Thanx again for the info, Happy New Year. ..

[whatchamacallit]

I know owners of some thai language schools are very vocal about their way being the 'best way to stay' .

Can't really blame them. They're in a business to make money/profit - If I own a languange school, I would probably be doing the same thing.

Happy New Year.

[whatchamacallit]

Fly out/in every months... flights are cheap and the greater Mekong region and beyond is wonderful!

Don't considerate it as a visa run and enjoy once a month an escape out of Thailand

If you're on a one year Non-O with multi entry - you only need to do border run every 90 days (not every month).

Actually I kinda enjoy these visa runs (every 90 days) - as much as I love living here, you do need to get out once in a while.

[Somrak]

Safe yourself the headache, time and money - just get a 12 month Non-O with multiple entries. No proof of income is necessary just a letter from your girlfriend and copy of her ID. Yes you have to do border runs every 90 days - if you leave and re-enter Thailand on/or before your visa expires, you'll get another 90 days.

Sorry, i am not sure if this will work. For a Multible-O-Visa you have to be 50 years old, or married, or ..... and you have to proof money?

I only have firsthand expirience from Switzerland and they are very strict on this.

Do other countrys not look for this 50 years anymore?

[whatchamacallit]

Safe yourself the headache, time and money - just get a 12 month Non-O with multiple entries. No proof of income is necessary just a letter from your girlfriend and copy of her ID. Yes you have to do border runs every 90 days - if you leave and re-enter Thailand on/or before your visa expires, you'll get another 90 days.

Sorry, i am not sure if this will work. For a Multible-O-Visa you have to be 50 years old, or married, or ..... and you have to proof money?

I only have firsthand expirience from Switzerland and they are very strict on this.

Do other countrys not look for this 50 years anymore?

I think you're talking about Non-OA (or sometime called Retirement Visa) - applicant must be 50 years of age or over.

I'm under 50 and been on Non-O multi entry for the past 3 years based on visiting friends/relatives.

[amolmeta]

Safe yourself the headache, time and money - just get a 12 month Non-O with multiple entries. No proof of income is necessary just a letter from your girlfriend and copy of her ID. Yes you have to do border runs every 90 days - if you leave and re-enter Thailand on/or before your visa expires, you'll get another 90 days.

Sorry, i am not sure if this will work. For a Multible-O-Visa you have to be 50 years old, or married, or ..... and you have to proof money?

I only have firsthand expirience from Switzerland and they are very strict on this.

Do other countrys not look for this 50 years anymore?

I think you're talking about Non-OA (or sometime called Retirement Visa) - applicant must be 50 years of age or over.

I'm under 50 and been on Non-O multi entry for the past 3 years based on visiting friends/relatives.

hey , can i ask , where do you go to prefer for border runs? and which is accepatable by immigrtn ofc. i am from india and if i opt for wht you are doing what will be the cheapest way to do border runs with less time?

[whatchamacallit]

hey , can i ask , where do you go to prefer for border runs? and which is accepatable by immigrtn ofc. i am from india and if i opt for wht you are doing what will be the cheapest way to do border runs with less time?

I'm not sure what you mean by border runs which are acceptable by immigration - A border run is a border run is a border run.

I live in Pattaya - so the closest for me are Poipet or Aranya Prathet (Cambodia). About a 6 hrs round trip by Mini-Van cost 2000 baht inclusive of transportation, Cambodian Visa, and buffet Lunch.