Hi, I have a non immigrant, "O" visa which expires on the 30th June 2014. I just called Samui immigration and they told me that I cannot apply for a retirement extension until the visa expires. Is this really the case?

If you have a multiple entry visa you can do the extension during the last 30 day of any of the 90 entries you get. They may of thought you already had an extension.

So, the fact that I just came back from England (on 5 Dec) means that I can't apply until 30days before my next exit date (4 Mar 2014)?

That is correct.

Ok thanks Joe.

... and FYI, when you extend they will use the expiry date of your then current 90 day period as the date to fix the end date of your one year extension (one year further on of course), rather than the date you go into immigration. You therefore do not lose out by extending as early as you can. At least, that is what happened when I went in to Sisaket immigration last week.

Edited December 10, 201312 yr by SantiSuk

So, the fact that I just came back from England (on 5 Dec) means that I can't apply until 30days before my next exit date (4 Mar 2014)?

.. To which Ubonjoe replied that is correct.

So out of interest UJ, what happens if he wants to go back to the UK on 4 January and will not be coming back until after his non-O has expired? Assume say that he entered Thailand on 5 December and his multiple non-O expires (for new entries) on 10 December. A family death or something less dramatic requires him to go back on 4 January. He is not within 30 days of the expiry of his current entry on 4 March, so cannot get an extension of stay? Does that mean he has to purchase another non-O or tourist visa or rely on a 30 day visa exempt status to then get back into Thailand, converting to a one year extension of stay at some later date?

So, the fact that I just came back from England (on 5 Dec) means that I can't apply until 30days before my next exit date (4 Mar 2014)?

.. To which Ubonjoe replied that is correct.

So out of interest UJ, what happens if he wants to go back to the UK on 4 January and will not be coming back until after his non-O has expired? Assume say that he entered Thailand on 5 December and his multiple non-O expires (for new entries) on 10 December. A family death or something less dramatic requires him to go back on 4 January. He is not within 30 days of the expiry of his current entry on 4 March, so cannot get an extension of stay? Does that mean he has to purchase another non-O or tourist visa or rely on a 30 day visa exempt status to then get back into Thailand, converting to a one year extension of stay at some later date?

How long of a stay are you thinking? He has a Non-Immigrant "O" that doesn't expire until June 30, 2014, if he enters before that date, he will get another 90 day stay, then can start the waiting process again.

Hello, I’m a newbie too. If I understand correctly, once you re-enter Thailand on a one-year multiple entry retirement visa, the re-entry into Thailand day starts as day 1 of the 90 day stay, so you don’t go back to immigration on the day of the ‘old’ specified 90^th day that you would have done had you stayed in Thailand. Am I correct, and is my question clear?

Also, is there a time limit as to how long you can stay out of Thailand before returning on your one-year retirement visa as long as you come back before the visa expires? In other words, I don’t have to be in Thailand to clock in every 90 days if I am out of the country.

Hello, I’m a newbie too. If I understand correctly, once you re-enter Thailand on a one-year multiple entry retirement visa, the re-entry into Thailand day starts as day 1 of the 90 day stay, so you don’t go back to immigration on the day of the ‘old’ specified 90^th day that you would have done had you stayed in Thailand. Am I correct, and is my question clear?

Also, is there a time limit as to how long you can stay out of Thailand before returning on your one-year retirement visa as long as you come back before the visa expires? In other words, I don’t have to be in Thailand to clock in every 90 days if I am out of the country.

If you have multiple entry visa you have to leave the country every 90 days unless it is a OA visa.

But I suspect you have an extension of stay based upon retirement with a multiple re-entry permit.

You do not need to report if you are not in the country for 90 days. Leaving the country stops the 90 day count. When you re-enter the country the 90 day starts again on the date you enter.

You can stay out the country as many days as you want but you must be here when your extension runs out.