Retirement Visa Renewal

[Listener]

My retirement Visa is due for renewal in May but I will be going out of country for three months from 3rd of March. My question is how soon can I apply for renewal. Or, do I have to allow my visa to expire and reapply on return.

[Lite Beer]

Generally it is within the final 30 days.

However they have been known to do early if you have a good reason.

You will have to ask them.

[Maestro]

You apply for a visa at a Thai consulate, ie outside Thailand. You apply for an extension of stay at your local immigration, ie inside Thailand. Which of the two do you intend to "renew", ie get a new one?

[mistakurtz]

I've been told at Chiang Mai immigration that if I provide copy of Air ticket out and in, they will process early. good luck.

[Jingthing]

Two months early at Jomtien without excuse, at least nobody has reported recently that they have changed this enforcement policy.

[Postmaster]

Well, these comments hardly help anyone with routine annual renewal of retirement visa enquiries. Now, I do not claim to have the answers but my annual retirement visa finishes on 31st january, 2011, and I will be presenting myself at the UK Honorary Consul office in Soi 5 Jomtien Beach, Pattaya next door to the Thai Immigration Office.

I will have with me, my passport, spare passport photo, my residency letter (from my Condo Office) a letter from Bangkok Bank (to prove I have an account with them) my Bangkok Bank Pass Book, my last three months bank statements ( from my UK Bank) to prove my income. I will also have my former occupational pension P60 Annual statement, to show my income from that source and finally my UK Pension letter which shows my award of State Old Age Pension, even though I don't feel old aged, showing how much monthly pension goes into my account.

I probably have more than is required and someone can tell me if this is so, however I believe this detail is alot better than has been stated so far on the subject . From the Postmaster

[Lite Beer]

Every answer so far has been spot on. There is no definitive answer as every Immigration Office will have different ways of working.

[jazzbo]

As per Kuhn LB's post #7, it is a discretion call by each individual office ... I would suggest rather than the many queries about mailing-in the 90-day reports, that one can use those 90-day reports to visit the office so that -- at least in some of the smaller venues -- the IMM Officers can get to know you a bit especially when such special consideration as the OP's requests becomes the issue.