Visas Options And Extension Not In Person On Medical Grounds?

[mccw]

Hello TV ; Any advice or sharing of experience be great please.

My parents will be moving to Thailand to enjoy a better life and certainly better stand of care for my father who has MS and needs live in help. It seems retirement visa would be easy enough but I wonder if my mother or an agent can extend it for the old man since it would be a bit much hanging around all day in the hot and busy little office; maybe if signed off by a doctor another can do it on his behalf? Any experience of this through Chiang Mai immigration/ how accommodating are they? Some big tip and a bottle of scotch welcoming a home visit perhaps?

Also on a more general note. A single entry visa you can not leave without needing to get a new visa from outside before coming back? or can you get a re entry permit of some kind? Or a multi entry? But then you must leave and come back every 90days or not?

Thanks you for your time.

[elektrified]

You can make the annual appointment for your father's extension of stay on-line. That way, he arrives, his name is called, and out in less than an hour. I don't think anyone else can go in place of him.

Re-entry permits are available; single-entry for 1000 THB, multiple-entry 3800 THB. He can get it at the same time he gets his extension each year. Add 20-30 minutes more time. Your father would not have to leave every 90 days if he has a retirement visa.

[NancyL]

It would help to know the current country of residence and citizenship of your parents. Also, if they plan to "support" retirement visas with bank accounts in Thailand or Income Letters from their consulates.

I've assisted several elderly people at CM Immigration and found them to be very accomodating. A visa agent, like Assist Thai Visa, can help. No need to buy anyone a bottle of scotch -- except maybe for you to celebrate after you get everything in order.

A third party, like your mother, could handle extensions -- she'll need a limited power of attorney signed by your Dad with a few "official" witness signatures, like nurses in a hospital. The more stamps the better for that document. Also, she'll need a doctor's letter that Dad can't come to Immigration (more stamps, embossing and ribbons really impress) and photos of Dad surrounded by nurses (in those cool hats and uniforms, of course), looking ill and pale and not at all excited by all the female beauty around him.

Or you can just bring Dad to Immigration, leave him in the car with the aircon on and the Immigration officials will come out to the parking lot to take a look when you or your Mom explain why he isn't there to toddle up to the desk.

[mccw]

Re-entry permits are available; single-entry for 1000 THB, multiple-entry 3800 THB. He can get it at the same time he gets his extension each year. Add 20-30 minutes more time. Your father would not have to leave every 90 days if he has a retirement visa.

Thanks for reply.

Do you know about re entry on an O visa? I was on this a few years ago but obtained it in UK as a 1 year multi entry, but on arrival just stamped for 90 days so needed to still go in and out to extend; bit of a pain since only want to have option to go holiday as and when it suits.

[mccw]

It would help to know the current country of residence and citizenship of your parents. Also, if they plan to "support" retirement visas with bank accounts in Thailand or Income Letters from their consulates.

I've assisted several elderly people at CM Immigration and found them to be very accomodating. A visa agent, like Assist Thai Visa, can help. No need to buy anyone a bottle of scotch -- except maybe for you to celebrate after you get everything in order.

A third party, like your mother, could handle extensions -- she'll need a limited power of attorney signed by your Dad with a few "official" witness signatures, like nurses in a hospital. The more stamps the better for that document. Also, she'll need a doctor's letter that Dad can't come to Immigration (more stamps, embossing and ribbons really impress) and photos of Dad surrounded by nurses (in those cool hats and uniforms, of course), looking ill and pale and not at all excited by all the female beauty around him.

Or you can just bring Dad to Immigration, leave him in the car with the aircon on and the Immigration officials will come out to the parking lot to take a look when you or your Mom explain why he isn't there to toddle up to the desk.

That's great info thanks.

One is from the Lebanon but resident UK 20+ years, the other is UK citizen born and bred.

[dave2]

re.

A visa agent, like Assist Thai Visa, can help.

shes right ! ..... and their office is in chiang mai land : )

dave2

[mccw]

Cheers for jogging my realisation! The old man hasn't travelled in quite a while; not sure he's even got a passport anymore. I'd think he'd be entitled to a British one after all this time if the Lebanese is make it too difficult.

[NancyL]

If the OP's parents can each have British passports, then they could enter the country on 30-day visa exempt status and go thru the "two step" process to obtain long-term permission to stay. First, they'd apply for a 90 day O visa during that initial 30-day period. Then, once the 90-day visa had just 30 days remaining, they'd be able to extend their permission to stay for 12 months based on retirement.

They'd need to demonstrate financial worth, either with 800,000 baht bank accounts in Thailand or an Income Letter from the CM British Consulate, or a combination of Income Letter and Thai bank account if their monthly income is less than 65,000 baht.

One could "piggy back" on the other as a spouse, but if it's not a financial hardship, consider each having their own visa so that if something happened to the visa holder, the dependent wouldn't have to leave Thailand and start the process again.

All this could be done with your parents never leaving Thailand once they enter on their 30 day visa exempt status.

Don't know if citizens of Lebanon can enter on the same 30 day visa-exempt status.

All this can be done as a "do-it-yourself" project, but given the age and physical condition of the OP's parents, it might make more sense to pay a visa agent, like Assist Thai Visa to do all the handholding. OP will probably be involved in many other tasks to get the parents settled here.

It seems that the OP's previous experience was with a multi-entry O visa, obtained outside Thailand. With those visas, the maximum permission to remain is 90 days, creating the need for border runs every 90 days. With a single-entry O visa, obtained in Thailand, the visa is only valid for 90 days, but a retiree can extend the permission to remain for 12 months, every year, and never have to leave. If a retiree wants to leave, all they do is purchase a re-entry permit at Immigration to keep the permission to remain alive.

[NancyL]

Another suggestion -- retirement extensions are much easier to maintain than medical extensions -- so avoid having a parent overstay their permission to remain because a retirement extension can't be "re-instated" once the person is on overstay. At least that's been my recent experience in Chiang Mai, although other provinces have been known to "re-instate" retirement extensions.

Medical extensions are valid for a maximum of 90 days and some doctors are reluctant to write up the necessary forms correctly or state anything more than 30 days. Each medical extension costs 1900 baht -- same amount as the 12-month retirement extension.

Makes sense for someone with medical or memory issues to use a company like Assist Thai Visa to maintain 90-day reports and remind of due dates for retirement extensions -- because often visa due dates are the last thing family members think about for a loved one in the hospital.

[hellodolly]

I got my retirement visa in the consulate in Vancouver BC before I came over here.

For the 90 day they can mail it in.

When booking on line beware people talk about it but forget to tell the reality. They only book 10 a day and you are allowed to book 100 days prior to going in for it.

They handle 30 to 40 a day so you have to be sharp on booking it.

They used to let you book a lot farther in advance and it was easy to do now you have to keep a sharp eye on it starting 100 days before you need to go in.

[mccw]

How much would a service like assist thai visa be costing then? It does sound like something we/ they would be interested in. You can PM me if you prefer.

[mccw]

Maybe nobody saw this post of mine from my other topic over in another forum so I post here as it would be Chiang Mai where we intend to stay and make some business:

"

I intend to buy a portfolio of properties for rental income purposes. Looking at condos and houses. I am married with kids and do not need the warnings about wife's name etc. I am wondering from a tax and legal perspective would I be better off buying condos in my sole name and land plus house in my wife's, or setting up a company to run it all through?

My wife thinks no company and no tax on income unless working for or running a registered business is standard practice and never looked in to. But as a foreigner I'd worry one day they could come and sting me hard. Say 10 years later fines every year plus interest and all the rest of it, nightmare.

If a company how are the costs , taxes etc? We can transfer funds from our joint account in UK to a joint / business account in Thailand maybe so less risk of accusations of her being just nominee.

From a visa point of view a non O visa would seem to be easiest route and then no need for biz; but I don't fancy to have to go back UK every year, can this be extended in country? Alternative would be biz or investment visa and then I'd need a work permit also? I'd like to aim for permanent residence so not sure which way might stand me the best chance when considering the 100 py limit.

I'm not quite 30 yet so I'm looking at the very long term; one day maybe I even come to be Thai citizen

I will study and involve in charity.

At first my portfolio may only yield about 100k bht pm so not sure if all the bother of company is worth it.

I'm also thinking about holiday rentals of my own and possibly starting an agency/ management service; so would involve more work and justify taking on some staff etc. "

Thank you for your time

[NancyL]

How much would a service like assist thai visa be costing then? It does sound like something we/ they would be interested in. You can PM me if you prefer.

Please contact them directly. I don't think there is a "standard fee" for obtaining a new retirement visa because every case is different and they'll want to understand the situation before quoting a number. I do know that people who have used them have been pleased and commented that the fee was much lower than other quotes they received.