I have a few questions about whether I meet the requirements to apply for the residency permit.

I have a Non-Immigrant "ED" visa that has been un-broken for 3 years (I have 3 yearly extension stamps and will extend for 1 more year next week). Do I qualify to apply?

Next, if I apply and meet the requirements am I guaranteed to eventually get the residency permit? If I am not successful in getting the permit the first time, do I go on to a waiting list to receive the permit or would I need to apply again?

If I qualify, can I apply even if Im no longer on the "ED" visa? For example, if I am now on a working visa but still have the passport with the "ED" visa and the 3 yearlly extensions could I still apply?

FInally, if my application is succesful and I dont have the money to pay for the residency permit, will they allow to pay in installments or is there a due date that must be met before the offer is revoked?

Thanks in advance

You do nt qualify for permanent residency, as that would require working in Thailand with a work permit, among others.

There is a thread on PR here, with lots of information: http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/74654-cameratas-guide-to-the-permanent-residence-process/

I was looking at http://www.thaivisa.com/300.0.html and it says

Qualifications of an applicant:

1. An applicant must have received permission for yearly stays in Thailand on a non-immigrant visa for at least of three years prior to the submission of an application for permanent residency. Holders of multiple NON-Immigrant visas can not apply. You must have 3 un-broken yearly extensions in order to qualify.

2. An applicant must be holding a non-immigrant visa at the time of submitting an application.

So it cant be an "ED" visa? and there are more qualifications required to apply?

That is a basic requirement to be allowed to apply - it would not allow approval and applications can only be made when announced (were none last year) normally in December for a couple of weeks. A basic expectation is a job with income in the 80k range for most applicants - as said read the pinned item for more background information.

ok, thanks for the info