Retirement Visa - Thb65,000/Month Income Option

[UbonOz]

I have made enquiries with the Australian Embassy in Bangkok regarding the THB65,000/month income option as an alternative to having THB800,000 in the bank for three months prior to renewing my annual Thai retirement visa.

After contacting the embassy by email they replied by email saying all I need to do is to get a statutory declaration witnessed by the embassy stating that I have a minimum income of THB65,000/month. This will be accepted by Thai immigration offices.

Could anybody using the same option give me more information. Specifically, do they need to see a bank account with the income being transferred each month. With the THB800,000 in the bank for three months they can physically see how long it has been in the bank. When going to renew the visa with the THB65,000/month option there is nothing to see until the end of the year.

I am a little confused how it works.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[Jingthing]

With ANY method

bank account, income, or combination

there is NO requirement to import any amount of money in any given year.

Yes, for the bank account and combo methods, the money must be shown, but that doesn't mean there is a requirement to import a specific amount.

Obviously, for example, for those using the bank method, typically they will be importing over 800K that first year, and typically people "top up" their accounts for subsequent years.

So yes you could qualify with a letter from your embassy showing 65K per month and never have to show any import of funds.

That said, I do recommend all expats open at least one Thai bank account.

Cheers.

Edited February 19, 2012 by Jingthing

[UbonOz]

Thank you for the info. I do have a Thai bank account and I have held THB800,000 for three months prior to renewing my retirement visa in previous years, I want to change as I can get a better return on my funds outside of Thailand by just doing a funds transfer when needed.

[Jingthing]

Well, you're in luck. Like I said, get the extensions with the income method and import as little or as much as you want. Life is good (sometimes).

[NancyL]

Yes, indeed, you don't need to have 65,000 baht per month flowing into a Thai bank account (and frankly most single people living in Thailand don't NEED that amount of funds.) In our case, Hubby has two sources of retirement income, but only one flows into our Thai bank account (and that's less than 65,000 baht per month) The non-Thai-based income goes into a U.S. based account where we use it to pay our U.S.-based bills. (Incidentally, I agree with Jingthing that all long-term expats should keep a bank account in their home country and I especially encourage retirement-aged Americans to have an account with a credit union ...... but I digress....that's probably another thread for another forum)

Anyway, to get back on target, the 65,000 baht/month requirement doesn't specify where the funds should flow -- only that they're flowing.

Now, personally, I'd like to know where you can get a better return on your 800,000 baht and have it be as convenient as walking across the street to the Bangkok Bank branch. They're paying better than our credit union (although there's no FDIC insurance.) Especially if you can parlay an 800,000 baht investment into an income stream of 65,000 baht per month today! You see, Hubby uses the "income letter" method to maintain his retirement visa while I use the 800,000 baht bank account method.

Edited February 19, 2012 by NancyL

[UbonOz]

Thank you NancyL. My major concern is not doing the right thing in their eyes, ie. Thai Immigration, and being refused the visa. It is nice to get other people's first hand knowledge if you have not used that option before. Regarding return on my funds, I have a good company overseas that provides a far superior return than a Thai bank account..

[TerryLH]

"You see, Hubby uses the "income letter" method to maintain his retirement visa while I use the 800,000 baht bank account method."

I think you've explained your reasoning for that, but I've forgotten what it is. Why are you doing that when you don't have to?

Terry

[UbonOz]

"You see, Hubby uses the "income letter" method to maintain his retirement visa while I use the 800,000 baht bank account method."

I think you've explained your reasoning for that, but I've forgotten what it is. Why are you doing that when you don't have to?

Terry

I thought same but never asked

[NancyL]

Oopsie, sorry, I missed this thread and didn't realize that a question had been directed at me.

Hubby has retirement income of over 65,000 baht per month, so he gets an income letter from the consulate each year to extend his visa. I don't have an retirement income stream in my name (not yet -- I was a child bride and married an older man), so I have to have 800,000 baht deposited in Thailand. Yes, I know I could "piggy back" on his visa and extension, but don't want to. It's not a hardship for us to have 800,000 baht here in Thailand, earning over twice what our U.S. credit union pays in interest. Plus, I feel that it's safer to maintain your own visa extension, rather than having to rely on the continued existence and competency of a educational instituation, employer or spouse.

Edited February 23, 2012 by NancyL

[moe666]

You may need proof of your 65,000baht income at your embassy, not sure. We americans just make a statement to that fact but the immigration office can ask for proof of what you have stated.

[UbonOz]

You may need proof of your 65,000baht income at your embassy, not sure. We americans just make a statement to that fact but the immigration office can ask for proof of what you have stated.

Not according to the email I received from the Oz Embassy. Only want to see my passport.

Here is the text of the email:

Thank you for your enquiry. The proof of income letter that Thai Immigration refers to is actually a Statutory Declaration, on which you attest to your income etc. This may be completed and witnessed at the Australian Embassy Bangkok. You will need to bring your passport so that we can verify your identity and signature.

As I'm sure you would appreciate, the Embassy cannot actually verify a person's income or their ability to transfer funds etc, however as Thai Immigration insist that people have a document from the Embassy, we use the Statutory Declaration format which is accepted by Thai Immigration authorities. While we do not need to see them, Thai Immigration may also want to see your bank documents and may want these "certified" at the Embassy (you would need to check this with Thai Immigration I'm afraid as this requirement seems to differ from one immigration office to the next).

Unfortunately we have to charge a fee for such notarial services. The fee for witnessing the Statutory Declaration is currently THB640 although this does vary with exchange rate fluctuations. If you need any documents certified, the fee for making a certified copy is THB 960 per document.

The Australian Embassy is located at 37 South Sathorn Rd, Bangkok and the Consular Services Section is open from 0830 - 1630 Monday to Friday. No appointment is necessary.

[moe666]

You may need proof of your 65,000baht income at your embassy, not sure. We americans just make a statement to that fact but the immigration office can ask for proof of what you have stated.

Not according to the email I received from the Oz Embassy. Only want to see my passport.

Here is the text of the email:

Thank you for your enquiry. The proof of income letter that Thai Immigration refers to is actually a Statutory Declaration, on which you attest to your income etc. This may be completed and witnessed at the Australian Embassy Bangkok. You will need to bring your passport so that we can verify your identity and signature.

As I'm sure you would appreciate, the Embassy cannot actually verify a person's income or their ability to transfer funds etc, however as Thai Immigration insist that people have a document from the Embassy, we use the Statutory Declaration format which is accepted by Thai Immigration authorities. While we do not need to see them, Thai Immigration may also want to see your bank documents and may want these "certified" at the Embassy (you would need to check this with Thai Immigration I'm afraid as this requirement seems to differ from one immigration office to the next).

Unfortunately we have to charge a fee for such notarial services. The fee for witnessing the Statutory Declaration is currently THB640 although this does vary with exchange rate fluctuations. If you need any documents certified, the fee for making a certified copy is THB 960 per document.

The Australian Embassy is located at 37 South Sathorn Rd, Bangkok and the Consular Services Section is open from 0830 - 1630 Monday to Friday. No appointment is necessary.

Please read my post I said not sure about your situation as some countries require proof of income, I was not sure about Oz requirements.

[rizla]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

[UbonOz]

You may need proof of your 65,000baht income at your embassy, not sure. We americans just make a statement to that fact but the immigration office can ask for proof of what you have stated.

Not according to the email I received from the Oz Embassy. Only want to see my passport.

Here is the text of the email:

Thank you for your enquiry. The proof of income letter that Thai Immigration refers to is actually a Statutory Declaration, on which you attest to your income etc. This may be completed and witnessed at the Australian Embassy Bangkok. You will need to bring your passport so that we can verify your identity and signature.

As I'm sure you would appreciate, the Embassy cannot actually verify a person's income or their ability to transfer funds etc, however as Thai Immigration insist that people have a document from the Embassy, we use the Statutory Declaration format which is accepted by Thai Immigration authorities. While we do not need to see them, Thai Immigration may also want to see your bank documents and may want these "certified" at the Embassy (you would need to check this with Thai Immigration I'm afraid as this requirement seems to differ from one immigration office to the next).

Unfortunately we have to charge a fee for such notarial services. The fee for witnessing the Statutory Declaration is currently THB640 although this does vary with exchange rate fluctuations. If you need any documents certified, the fee for making a certified copy is THB 960 per document.

The Australian Embassy is located at 37 South Sathorn Rd, Bangkok and the Consular Services Section is open from 0830 - 1630 Monday to Friday. No appointment is necessary.

Please read my post I said not sure about your situation as some countries require proof of income, I was not sure about Oz requirements.

I wasn't having a shot at you, I was just giving you the information that was given to me.

Just wanted to show the actual reply in case others, especially Australians wanted to use the option.

Apologies if it did not come across as intended.

[UbonOz]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

Probably the best thing would be enquire with the British Embassy as to their view on the requirement.

I think, not sure, that different countries have different arrangements to satisfy the Thai Immigration laws.

I always thought the 800K had to be seasoned for three months prior to renewal.

[moe666]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

if you are using the 800,000baht in the bank it has to be in a Thai bank for qualification of a extension to stay. If you have proof of 65,000baht a month income then you can use this method and it really doesn't matter where the income comes from.

[UbonOz]

I am still a little confused regarding the whole thing.

I will do the statutory declaration option and see what happens when I go to Immigration at the end of March.

[rizla]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

if you are using the 800,000baht in the bank it has to be in a Thai bank for qualification of a extension to stay. If you have proof of 65,000baht a month income then you can use this method and it really doesn't matter where the income comes from.

So lets say the income comes from your savings account ( with a substanial amount deposited for years) and has regular payments in, (monthly from pension, but not the full 65,000bhat/month)...why can`t they just accept that savings account balance every year, (certified), showing transfers to your thai bank (kasikorn, eg) and obviously the money is seasoned in the said account for longer than 3 months...thoughts please.

[UbonOz]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

if you are using the 800,000baht in the bank it has to be in a Thai bank for qualification of a extension to stay. If you have proof of 65,000baht a month income then you can use this method and it really doesn't matter where the income comes from.

So lets say the income comes from your savings account ( with a substanial amount deposited for years) and has regular payments in, (monthly from pension, but not the full 65,000bhat/month)...why can`t they just accept that savings account balance every year, (certified), showing transfers to your thai bank (kasikorn, eg) and obviously the money is seasoned in the said account for longer than 3 months...thoughts please.

In earlier posts they say you do have to have 65k/mth flowing in.

I interpret that to say their is nothing to show immigration, just the stat dec from the embassy.

Please correct me if I am wrong.

[UbonOz]

Interesting reading, i use the part and part method at the moment as i don`t want 800.000 bhat in my thai account for fear of a banking collapse here..

My money resides in a UK offshore account, how and what would i need to please thai immigration that i have the funds to meet the 800,000 bhat target ? can i just get my bank account ( offshore)certified with the UK consulate and provide this as to meet and extend my extension based on retirement here .

The only transfers i make out of this account are to here (thailand), and these are on my statements online and in paper form...

What do you think ? thxs

P,S just to let you know i use the dreaded Korat office for extensions, and they WILL NOT ACCEPT the 2 month seasoning of funds THEY INSIST ON 3 months every year for the money part....

if you are using the 800,000baht in the bank it has to be in a Thai bank for qualification of a extension to stay. If you have proof of 65,000baht a month income then you can use this method and it really doesn't matter where the income comes from.

So lets say the income comes from your savings account ( with a substanial amount deposited for years) and has regular payments in, (monthly from pension, but not the full 65,000bhat/month)...why can`t they just accept that savings account balance every year, (certified), showing transfers to your thai bank (kasikorn, eg) and obviously the money is seasoned in the said account for longer than 3 months...thoughts please.

In earlier posts they say you do have to have 65k/mth flowing in.

I interpret that to say their is nothing to show immigration, just the stat dec from the embassy.

Please correct me if I am wrong.

Sorry, typo there

It should be you do NOT have to show 65K/mth flowing in.

[TaoNow]

I think that people get confused about the financial requirements for a retirement extension because there is no official clarity as to the reason for the funds and the amounts specified.

As I have said before, IMHO, the purpose of the 800K/65k per month/or combo is probably to ensure that the retiree is viable financially in case s/he gets into a mess during the year. Thailand does not want foreign debtors fleeing the country with unpaid bills -- something which must have happened in the past with ex-pats on retirement extensions.

To this end, IMMO has determined that 800K baht for one year (or equivalent in a monthly pension) is an appropriate amount to separate the viable from the non-viable ex-pat retirees.

Thus, at least at IMMO/CW, they do not care how much you spend in a given year. They just want assurances on an annual basis that you could cover a sudden, unexpected, financial obligation (court fine, hospital bill, etc) of 800,000 baht.

This is simply my hypothesis based on observation of IMMO behavior and reports to this forum.

That said, I'll admit that one senior Immo offical at Suan Plu said that they would like to see some flow of funds into the country if you use the 65K baht/month method. But that was three years ago and she didn't say what amount of flow was expected, or how to show the flow.

If anyone has any recent experience on this "flow" issue, please report.

[moe666]

When I applied for my extension of stay in Jan. I recieved a letter from my Consulate here in Chiang Mai. I stated the amt. of income that is deposited in my credit union back in the states on a monthly basis: Social Security, Navy Retirement, and Pension from job. I then made copies of 3 months worth of credit union statements and highlighted the deposits, my deposits were the exact same amount that appeared on my consulate statement a sum more than the required 65,000baht,

When I went to immigration I presented all of the required documentation along with copies. The officer didn't ask me for any varification of my consulate letter and he calculated the exchange rate.Even though the info from credit union was not asked for I have it every year as well as atm withdrawal slips to prove importation of money into the country if it is ever asked for.

Rizal you are beating a dead horse here with the use of a savings account outside Thailand. If you want to do the 800,000baht amount it has to be in a Thai bank account that is the rule, as TaoNow explained the reason in his post. You can use income on a monthly basis that comes from interest, dividends, and rent as long as it is 65,000baht a month.

[Tafia]

I will do the statutory declaration option and see what happens when I go to Immigration at the end of March.

From what I understand from some Aussie mates you won't have a problem at the Embassy, just be prepared to be able to back the letter up at immigration should they ask for evidence to support the letter. (it has been known).

At the UK Embassy we have to produce evidence to get the letter.

[Tafia]

In earlier posts they say you do have to have 65k/mth flowing in.

I interpret that to say their is nothing to show immigration, just the stat dec from the embassy.

Please correct me if I am wrong.

It isn't necessary to have 65000 a month flowing into Thailand, however it is a good idea to have some coming in or they may well ask you what you live on and could assume you are working, it all depends on the officer on the day.

Edited February 24, 2012 by Tafia

[UbonOz]

In earlier posts they say you do have to have 65k/mth flowing in.

I interpret that to say their is nothing to show immigration, just the stat dec from the embassy.

Please correct me if I am wrong.

It isn't necessary to have 65000 a month flowing into Thailand, however it is a good idea to have some coming in or they may well ask you what you live on and could assume you are working, it all depends on the officer on the day.

I will still be transferring funds, when needed.

I just don't want 800K lump sitting in a Thai account for three months as I have in the past, I prefer to keep my dosh outside of Thailand.

Sent from my iPad using ThaiVisa app

God gave man a penis and a brain, unfortunately, did not give sufficient blood supply to run both at the same time.

[Tafia]

I will still be transferring funds, when needed.

I just don't want 800K lump sitting in a Thai account for three months as I have in the past, I prefer to keep my dosh outside of Thailand.

That will suffice just take along your bank book in case they ask.

[moe666]

Why keep all of your money out I invest in the Set and have a very good return over the last year. DTAC paid a 16baht a share dividend a 25 percent payout. But each to his own.

[UbonOz]

Why keep all of your money out I invest in the Set and have a very good return over the last year. DTAC paid a 16baht a share dividend a 25 percent payout. But each to his own.

I have averaged 4%/month on my funds in the past 2.5 years outside of Thailand.

[DocTom]

I see that someone in this discussion was enquiring about the situation re. the British Embassy.

I have got a visa extension for the last 8 years, based on retirement here.

The UK Embassy will provide a "proof of income" document bearing the Embassy embossed stamp, at the princely sum of about 2400 B, plus 100 B for EMS postage if you elect to use post. This document is all that the Thai Immigration (at Mae Sod) require, other than passport and completed application form with photos, and fee.

The Embassy requires proof of income, as shown by 3 months of bank account receipts into the Thai bank, the amount equating to the 65000 B per month or more, before they will create the document. They also require copies of passport pages. These can be provided by post. The details are on the Embassy website; I seem to recall that they are in the section on notary services.

(I understand in contrast the US Embassy require no proof of income, merely the applicant's testimony.)

Hope this helps.