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Thanks for the information. Sorry, but really a retiree, the government agency has the obligation to provide health care to a retiree on the grounds of humantarian protocols.. somehow, I don't think that flys.

Sorry, really, just trying to understand, this.. which is probably not wise, but why again to they set 65K a month for a retiree.. I mean for BKK that seem reason, but on the the village level, or in the rural provinces, certainly a retiree can get by on less.

The classic reason, is the minute boost to banking deposits, and of course, sometime ago, someone PO someone who was responsible for all thess regulations..

Retirement is set at 800k or 65k income or combination which can be one person or family. Thai wife extension is set at 400k or 40k income which is only one person. Changes are made occasionally to these requirements. If married the retirement extension does not become 400k if that is what you are asking.

Retirement is set at 800k or 65k income or combination which can be one person or family. Thai wife extension is set at 400k or 40k income which is only one person. Changes are made occasionally to these requirements. If married the retirement extension does not become 400k if that is what you are asking.

Confusing, thus, if you wish to retire and are marriage to a Thai, the cost now is 400k in the bank?

Governments which do offer retirement visa programs do it for understandable national interest reasons not because they love foreign old people. Yes, money and jobs. The money brought in, banked, and yes SPENT is free money to the host country and it has an attractive multiplier effect. Also of course most foreign retirees represent a new household formation which is a classic economic stimulator. Years ago I read a study from the Philippines (similar financial requirements as Thailand) that each foreign retiree creates about TEN local jobs.

Edited December 31, 201213 yr by Jingthing

J THANG..

Concur..

J THANG

However, is the 800 K requirement now reduced to 400k if you are married to a Thai and plane on retirement in LOS?

If married the retirement extension does not become 400k if that is what you are asking.

Don't know how I can make it any more clear. If you extend for retirement it does not matter what your marriage status is - the requirement is 800k/65k or combination as I said. If you want to extend for Thai wife then that requirement would be 400k/40k but that would not be a retirement extension of stay but an extension for Thai wife under a different provision of police order 777/2551.

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Thanks for the information. Sorry, but really a retiree, the government agency has the obligation to provide health care to a retiree on the grounds of humantarian protocols.. somehow, I don't think that flys.

Sorry, really, just trying to understand, this.. which is probably not wise, but why again to they set 65K a month for a retiree.. I mean for BKK that seem reason, but on the the village level, or in the rural provinces, certainly a retiree can get by on less.

The classic reason, is the minute boost to banking deposits, and of course, sometime ago, someone PO someone who was responsible for all thess regulations..

Actually, yes, the big regional government medical centers have a humanitarian obligation to provide EMERGENCY health care. For example, here in Chaing Mai, anyone who shows up in the emergency room of a private hospital and claims he has no money is transferred to Suan Dok hospital, the large government medical center associated with Chiang Mai University. There, they will provide basic lifesaving care without regard to a patient's ability to pay. Believe me, they put much pressure on whomeever brought the person in, anyone who visits and that person's consulate to try to work out a payment plan. They won't provide things like a toothbrush or wash cloth, but they'll see that the person receives medical care. When the patient is deemed to be "stable", they are discharged without any concern if the patient can care for himself, has help at home or even has a place to go. If patients refuse to leave, then they call the tourist police who have been known to take discharged patients to drop off unannounced at their consulates

Every year Suan Dok has dozens of unpaid bills from foreigners -- sometimes in excess of a million baht. When I've asked why they don't hold on to passports until payment is received (like the private hospitals usually do), I've been told that it violates some UN charter and they have a "humanitarian" obligation to provide emergency care.

This doesn't mean that they have a humanitarian obligation to provide ALL care, just acute emergency care, and they're left holding the bag for several 100 million baht from unpaid foreigners each year.

Edited December 31, 201213 yr by NancyL

Informative Nancy L.. Thanks.

OP maybe I have missed something here in you asking about retirement extension after a suitable visa is obtained but if your wife is Thai and you are legally married what is wrong with getting a marrage extension. 400.000 baht and paperwork etc half the price.

In addition I believe it is possible to obtain a work permit with a marriage extension, unlike with a retirement extension.

Correct my wife works and has to pay 300 baht a year income tax and she is furious about that and of course I agree.

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

This is the first time I hear that ThaiVisa has a "proper term" for this. Where did you get that notion?

Sent from my Nexus S using Thaivisa Connect App

Insurance in Thailand

Insurance in Thailand

Your link does not lead to page with a declaration of ThaiVisa that "self-insured" is the proper term to be used on ThaiVisa for a person who has no insurance.

You could start here: http://www.thaivisa....rance-option/

-- your notion that I somehow said that someone at TV officially proclaimed as to how those who decide not to buy health insurance but rely on their own reserves should be referred is just that -- Your notion.

Self-insured in the insurance world generally refers to the retention of the initial exposure with the purchase of some excess or catastrophic risk exposure -- it does not generally refer to the retention of 100% of any risk.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by JLCrab

Actually the statement was "anyone who shows up in the emergency room of a private hospital and claims he has no money is transferred to Suan Dok hospital" to which you responded "Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured"".

Self-insured as used on this forum does not mean "no money" but not having formal insurance as it is formally defined

Web definitions

(self-insurance) insuring yourself by setting aside money to cover possible losses rather than by purchasing an insurance policy.

wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

from Gallagher Bassett Services (Australia):

Self insurance is the term used to describe a situation whereby a company opts to retain

some

of its potential financial risks, rather than to transfer those risks to a third party like an insurance company.

Note the word "some" -- on the ThaiVisa Insurance pages 'self insured' can often refer to "all" potential risks -- in the example on the link I provided above the OP gentlemen with the 1M baht reserve has essentially insured himself for one major lifetime incident whereas BUPA Platinum can cover any number of major incidents per year up to 5M baht EACH.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by JLCrab

There is definitely a difference between "having no money" and being "self-insured".

The private hospitals ask for a deposit before beginning treatment -- a self-insured person is able to meet that request. If the person is unable to communicate, a wallet autospy by the hospital social worker will often reveal if the person is "self-insured" or "has no money". They look for things like a hospital card, credit cards, ATM card, next-of-kin contact information, copy of a passport, cash, etc. If a unconscious person arrives without a wallet, then they'll consider the circumstances of the admission and how the person is dressed and groomed.

The private hospitals don't want to transfer someone who is likely to be a "paying customer", but they're not in the business of accepting charity cases, either, and will transfer someone to Suan Dok hospital in Chiang Mai -- especially if the patient is putting up a fuss about having to make a deposit and claims not to have any money.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by NancyL

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

I took this comment to be SARCASTIC.

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

I took this comment to be SARCASTIC.

Thank you.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by JLCrab

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

I took this comment to be SARCASTIC.

Yeah, when retired foreigners tell me they're "self-insured", I usually say "I hope you've got at least 300,000 baht or more that's readily accessible NOW to give to a hospital at a moment's notice and you're prepared to replenish this account several times during the course of your retirement in Thailand. Otherwise, you're just tempting fate and it's not a good fate to an old, sick foreigner."

Hello NancyL -- The proper ThaiVisa term for those who show up at the hospital emergency room claiming that they have no money is "self-insured".

I took this comment to be SARCASTIC.

I took it to be unnecessary, uncalled-for, perhaps even off-topic, and in the meantime it has turned out that is was even false, as there is no "proper ThaiVisa term", ie no such term has ever been declared by ThaiVisa to be the correct term to be used on ThaiVisa. The definition of "self-insured", about which JLCrab continues to argue, is an entirely different subject and equally off-topic, since nobody used this term in this topic until he did. One more post about and I shall delete them all for being off topic.

OK then this would be my answer to the query Why 65K per month?: Because that is roughly the cost of one year's premium for any decent Health Insurance in Thailand for someone aged 50+ -- and if you are not providing yourself with such coverage then you are just playing games with the odds that YOU could be one of those unfortunate enough to have some major medical problem while in LOS.

OK then this would be my answer to the query Why 65K per month?: Because that is roughly the cost of one year's premium for any decent Health Insurance in Thailand for someone aged 50+ -- and if you are not providing yourself with such coverage then you are just playing games with the odds that YOU could be one of those unfortunate enough to have some major medical problem while in LOS.

Cmon – For 65k a year a 50+ year can buy a full cover from Bupa, rising till some 90k at the age of 61-65.

The problem with health insurance is, that some companies kick you out when you are 65+ or 70+ y.o. and you may need to be self insured, meaning you may need an available amount of cash – which is always advisable in Thailand, as there may be situations where you are not (fully) covered.

The answers to question about 65k/m (800k/y) are still, that it is an amount set by the Thai authorities and that it fits quite well with an average life-style for a retired foreigner, including a health insurance or savings for self-insurance. You do not need to spend 65k/m or 800k/y, just prove that amount is available. Some can live for less and some uses a lot more.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by khunPer

When you sign up for an insurance policy, you can ask if they will "kick you out" at age 65 or 70. In reality, most don't -- it's just that their rates go up because someone has entered a higher age band and they somehow take that as a personal invitation to leave. The age bands and percent increases are also something that's included in a policy. Oh yeah -- it pays to plow thru the language in an insurance policy and refuse to buy if it's not in your language.

Last year Bangkok Bank's nice customer service reps were pushing their accident insurance policy and we signed up, even though they said the English language versions of the policy were coming "next month". I kept asking every month and also asked thru other channels. When it came time to renew this year, I said "no -- you want my business, then you have to give me a policy in English". I know how to read the Thai language at about the 6th grade level and I saw some exclusions of concern in the policy -- nothing mentioned on their concise one-page English language summary of the policy.

But, more importantly, JL Crab is right in that 65,000 baht should be enough to buy an elderly expat a health insurance policy that will cover major events.

Edited January 2, 201313 yr by NancyL

Must be really nice to be allowed to purchase health insurance by private health insurance companies.

And all of which is not germane to the thread - 65k retirement income is not designed to pay for health insurance and that has nothing to do with proving the 65k income. There is a dedicated forum area for both health and insurance where such discussion would be more on-topic.

I just turned 60 and have had a retirement visa here since I was 50. I've never had to report anything to the US embassy. The 800,000 baht requirement just means the money has to be in the bank for four months prior to when you go to apply for another year extension. In your case, why bother with the complication? It might just be easier to keep a regular visa and travel out of the country every three months.

I just turned 60 and have had a retirement visa here since I was 50. I've never had to report anything to the US embassy. The 800,000 baht requirement just means the money has to be in the bank for four months prior to when you go to apply for another year extension. In your case, why bother with the complication? It might just be easier to keep a regular visa and travel out of the country every three months.

Three months. (Two months the first time.)

One could also say why bother with the complication of all that paperwork from the banks? If you indeed have the 65K baht per month income, the US Consular outreach makes one or two visits each year to most of the major cities. One does not now even have to travel to the US Embassy in BKK to obtain the required income affidavit.