do i need to go to canada embassy in bkk to get bank statement re:retirement visa extension?

[wrbc]

this is my first extension of my thai retirement visa and i cant find a list of requred documents except on pataya site, where it says i have to have an original statement from my embassy for my monthly income. is this true in cm? im notw in bkk but expected to return to cm tomorrow. i can put off return if this is necessary. also, will i have trouble completing my renewal by april 23? if not, what, go to jail?

[onthedarkside]

Let's move this to the Visa Forum

[ubonjoe]

If you going to use the 65k baht income option to apply for an extension of stay (it is not a visa) based upon retirement you will need a statutory declaration from the embassy or the consulate in Chiang Mai. http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/thailand-thailande/consular_services_consulaires/consul_thailand-thailande.aspx?lang=eng#ChiangMai

If you don't get your extension done by the 23rd you won't go to jail but you will be on overstay that costs 500 baht a day.

[wrbc]

thank you for the answer. i am soo nervous! :-) i am using the monthly income way on the report, so do i still need the embassy letter or just a photocopy of my bank statement?

[wrbc]

and also thanks for the info that there is a canadian embassy in cm and the address! i appreciate it!

[ubonjoe]

No reason to be nervous.

Immigration will only accept the income letter (in your case it is statutory declaration) from the embassy or consulate. Just a bank statement will not be accepted.

[mikebike]

I would strongly suggest a trip or phone call to the CM immigration office to confirm exactly what you need as all offices have slightly different requirements. To obtain your statutory declaration you must attend the consulate (BKK or CM) OR mail a notarized copy of your declaration to the BKK consular office (call them for details, they do it all the time!).

[ThaiHerbs]

For my first annual renewel/extension I printed down (from Internet) my most recent 3 bank statements that showed monthly pension deposits to my bank account and gave them to the lady at the Canadian Consulate. The description on the bank entry (deposit) was clearly a pension payment, if your entries are not clearly described as a monthly pension payment I suggest you also provide other supporting documents (email correspondence etc). I now only provide the latest bank statement when seeking my annual letter from the Consulate.

Doug

[NancyL]

This really should go back to the Chiang Mai forum so the OP can learn if the Hon. Canadian Consul in Chiang Mai can issue income letters. Not every Hon. Consul is able to do so. Seems that he is planning to use the income method and a copy of bank statements showing income isn't going to be sufficient for CM Immgiration.

The OP may want to put off his return to CM by a day to go to the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok to get an income letter. Embassies can definitely issue income letters, but they may not offer citizen's services every day. This information should be posted on their website.

OP -- if you're not using the Income Method to justify your extension, but instead are using the method of showing a bank account in Thailand (800,000 baht, solely in your name) then you don't need a letter from your Embassy/Consulate at all.

[TerryLH]

Is an appointment for CM Immigration still needed?

[techno]

The Canadian Consulate in Chiangmai will issue a pension income statement but check with them as to what documentation they require

[ubonjoe]

This really should go back to the Chiang Mai forum so the OP can learn if the Hon. Canadian Consul in Chiang Mai can issue income letters. Not every Hon. Consul is able to do so. Seems that he is planning to use the income method and a copy of bank statements showing income isn't going to be sufficient for CM Immgiration.

The OP may want to put off his return to CM by a day to go to the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok to get an income letter. Embassies can definitely issue income letters, but they may not offer citizen's services every day. This information should be posted on their website.

OP -- if you're not using the Income Method to justify your extension, but instead are using the method of showing a bank account in Thailand (800,000 baht, solely in your name) then you don't need a letter from your Embassy/Consulate at all.

It is a official consulate not an honorary consulate.

[hml367]

This really should go back to the Chiang Mai forum so the OP can learn if the Hon. Canadian Consul in Chiang Mai can issue income letters. Not every Hon. Consul is able to do so. Seems that he is planning to use the income method and a copy of bank statements showing income isn't going to be sufficient for CM Immgiration.

The OP may want to put off his return to CM by a day to go to the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok to get an income letter. Embassies can definitely issue income letters, but they may not offer citizen's services every day. This information should be posted on their website.

OP -- if you're not using the Income Method to justify your extension, but instead are using the method of showing a bank account in Thailand (800,000 baht, solely in your name) then you don't need a letter from your Embassy/Consulate at all.

Since some people do want to be pedantic, the US Embassy (I believe the Consular Section actually) cannot issue an income letter. The US Consulate in Chiang Mai will notarize an affidavit from a US citizen, as will the Consular Section of the Embassy in Bangkok.

To get a verified income letter, it would have to go through the US State Department's Office of Authentications http://travel.state.gov/content/travel/english/legal-considerations/judicial/authentication-of-documents/office-of-authentications.html , where income verification is specifically listed as a general document. However, it is so tedious and time consuming that an agreement was made between Thai Immigration and the US government to accept the affidavits to fulfill visa related requirements (visa related would include extensions of permission to stay). This agreement was made before most of the people posting on ThaiVisa arrived in Chiang Mai.

Further, I don't know about now, but in the past, the affidavit from the US Consulate would not suffice for converting to a Non-Immigrant O visa. of whichever type it takes to stay for "retirement", which in the past was called, "to spend the rest of life in Thailand". So it was almost imperative at that time for a US citizen to have 800,000 THB in a Thai bank account to make the conversion. At that time, if a US citizen wanted to use income to support the requirements for the long stay extension, they would almost have to go to a Thai Consulate in the US to get the original visa.

This practice of getting visas in the home countries, including the US, caused many problems because people were mailing their passports with the paperwork to Thai Consulates, and more specifically, to Honorable Thai Consulates, which were more lax and in time were admonished and sometimes prevented from issuing those types visas.

Still further, there was no seasoning of bank accounts required at that time, so people would borrow the money for the bank account requirement for one day (or less) to get a bank letter, get the visa, then give the money back to whomever they got it from.

Edited April 16, 2014 by hml367

[hml367]

This really should go back to the Chiang Mai forum so the OP can learn if the Hon. Canadian Consul in Chiang Mai can issue income letters. Not every Hon. Consul is able to do so. Seems that he is planning to use the income method and a copy of bank statements showing income isn't going to be sufficient for CM Immgiration.

The OP may want to put off his return to CM by a day to go to the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok to get an income letter. Embassies can definitely issue income letters, but they may not offer citizen's services every day. This information should be posted on their website.

OP -- if you're not using the Income Method to justify your extension, but instead are using the method of showing a bank account in Thailand (800,000 baht, solely in your name) then you don't need a letter from your Embassy/Consulate at all.

It is a official consulate not an honorary consulate.

Maybe NancyL is referring to a person rather than the office?

[NancyL]

The OP is Canadian, not from the U.S.

Didn't know the Canadian Consulate in Chiang Mai is an official consulate, not an honorary one. Thanks for the correction. I think the position of Consul is honorary, much like with the British, but there are paid staff who are employees of the Canadian gov't -- again much like the British Consulate in Chiang Mai.

You do not "need" an appointment with Chiang Mai Immigration. It's nice if you can get an appointment with their cumbersome on-line system, but the appointment slots fill up about 90 days in advance, so the OP is going to have to show up at CM Immigration between 6:00 - 6:30 am and join the morning scrum for his queue number. Or employ a visa agent if he has a spare 5000 baht. He'll still have do the running around to get the income letter, but a visa agent could give him the piece-of-mind that he has all the right documents and get him into CM immigration without the fun of pushing and shoving with the unwashed masses in the predawn hours. (personally, I think that's a rite-of-passage that all Chiang Mai retirees must do, however!)

[ubonjoe]

The OP is Canadian, not from the U.S.

Didn't know the Canadian Consulate in Chiang Mai is an official consulate, not an honorary one. Thanks for the correction. I think the position of Consul is honorary, much like with the British, but there are paid staff who are employees of the Canadian gov't -- again much like the British Consulate in Chiang Mai.

You do not "need" an appointment with Chiang Mai Immigration. It's nice if you can get an appointment with their cumbersome on-line system, but the appointment slots fill up about 90 days in advance, so the OP is going to have to show up at CM Immigration between 6:00 - 6:30 am and join the morning scrum for his queue number. Or employ a visa agent if he has a spare 5000 baht. He'll still have do the running around to get the income letter, but a visa agent could give him the piece-of-mind that he has all the right documents and get him into CM immigration without the fun of pushing and shoving with the unwashed masses in the predawn hours. (personally, I think that's a rite-of-passage that all Chiang Mai retirees must do, however!)

When it is an honorary consulate it will state it in the name of the consulate that it is an honorary consulate.

As far as a I know the UK consulate is also an official consulate. https://www.gov.uk/government/world/organisations/british-embassy-bangkok

[hml367]

The OP is Canadian, not from the U.S.

Didn't know the Canadian Consulate in Chiang Mai is an official consulate, not an honorary one. Thanks for the correction. I think the position of Consul is honorary, much like with the British, but there are paid staff who are employees of the Canadian gov't -- again much like the British Consulate in Chiang Mai.

You do not "need" an appointment with Chiang Mai Immigration. It's nice if you can get an appointment with their cumbersome on-line system, but the appointment slots fill up about 90 days in advance, so the OP is going to have to show up at CM Immigration between 6:00 - 6:30 am and join the morning scrum for his queue number. Or employ a visa agent if he has a spare 5000 baht. He'll still have do the running around to get the income letter, but a visa agent could give him the piece-of-mind that he has all the right documents and get him into CM immigration without the fun of pushing and shoving with the unwashed masses in the predawn hours. (personally, I think that's a rite-of-passage that all Chiang Mai retirees must do, however!)

When it is an honorary consulate it will state it in the name of the consulate that it is an honorary consulate.

As far as a I know the UK consulate is also an official consulate. https://www.gov.uk/government/world/organisations/british-embassy-bangkok

I have never heard of an Honorary ConsulATE. Anyway, I sent you a PM rather than wasting the forum on this.

I appreciate any corrections you can give me.

[northernjohn]

This really should go back to the Chiang Mai forum so the OP can learn if the Hon. Canadian Consul in Chiang Mai can issue income letters. Not every Hon. Consul is able to do so. Seems that he is planning to use the income method and a copy of bank statements showing income isn't going to be sufficient for CM Immgiration.

The OP may want to put off his return to CM by a day to go to the Canadian Embassy in Bangkok to get an income letter. Embassies can definitely issue income letters, but they may not offer citizen's services every day. This information should be posted on their website.

OP -- if you're not using the Income Method to justify your extension, but instead are using the method of showing a bank account in Thailand (800,000 baht, solely in your name) then you don't need a letter from your Embassy/Consulate at all.

Since some people do want to be pedantic, the US Embassy (I believe the Consular Section actually) cannot issue an income letter. The US Consulate in Chiang Mai will notarize an affidavit from a US citizen, as will the Consular Section of the Embassy in Bangkok.

To get a verified income letter, it would have to go through the US State Department's Office of Authentications http://travel.state.gov/content/travel/english/legal-considerations/judicial/authentication-of-documents/office-of-authentications.html , where income verification is specifically listed as a general document. However, it is so tedious and time consuming that an agreement was made between Thai Immigration and the US government to accept the affidavits to fulfill visa related requirements (visa related would include extensions of permission to stay). This agreement was made before most of the people posting on ThaiVisa arrived in Chiang Mai.

Further, I don't know about now, but in the past, the affidavit from the US Consulate would not suffice for converting to a Non-Immigrant O visa. of whichever type it takes to stay for "retirement", which in the past was called, "to spend the rest of life in Thailand". So it was almost imperative at that time for a US citizen to have 800,000 THB in a Thai bank account to make the conversion. At that time, if a US citizen wanted to use income to support the requirements for the long stay extension, they would almost have to go to a Thai Consulate in the US to get the original visa.

This practice of getting visas in the home countries, including the US, caused many problems because people were mailing their passports with the paperwork to Thai Consulates, and more specifically, to Honorable Thai Consulates, which were more lax and in time were admonished and sometimes prevented from issuing those types visas.

Still further, there was no seasoning of bank accounts required at that time, so people would borrow the money for the bank account requirement for one day (or less) to get a bank letter, get the visa, then give the money back to whomever they got it from.

Good point.

I went into the Thai consulate in Vancouver and got my original retirement visa or for the puritans what ever you want to call it. I left my passport with them for three days and returned and picked it up with the Visa in it, No problem. I had downloaded all the paper work needed and had a doctor's report. I believe there is a pinned site up on the top of the Chiang Mai forum that tells you all the paper work you need along with any other question.

Here in Chiang Mai you do not need an appointment to get an extension. If you can get one you are indeed fortunate as there is only 10 a day and they service 50 clients a day. Best to get there at 6:00 in the morning to get a number. Do not be surprised if they tell you to come back in the afternoon.

I was late once and I was fined 1,000 baht a day. They did how ever start my new year on the date I went in.

You can also post on the Chiang Mai forum asking for companies that will do the paper work for you set a time for you to go in and go with you. Not cheap I have heard 5,000 baht.

[Dante99]

If you going to use the 65k baht income option to apply for an extension of stay (it is not a visa) based upon retirement you will need a statutory declaration from the embassy or the consulate in Chiang Mai. http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/thailand-thailande/consular_services_consulaires/consul_thailand-thailande.aspx?lang=eng#ChiangMai

If you don't get your extension done by the 23rd you won't go to jail but you will be on overstay that costs 500 baht a day.

If on overstay, have not paid the fine yet, and police or government official see the passport, jail is the next step, isn't it?

[NancyL]

You're right hml367, there isn't such a thing as an honorary consulate, but I have heard of some of the honorary consuls (people) in Chiang Mai signing income letters. Didn't know if that was the situations with the Canadians.

[hml367]

Hello, Nancy.

I was not trying to correct you on anything... as I said .... pedantic for those that may want to argue the point.

The way I understand it, an Honorary Consul can do almost everything a Consul General can do. One is paid by the government as an employee, the other most likely receives no or minimal pay.

In your earlier post you put, "Hon. Consul...."... That, to me, would be the proper way to address a sending state sponsored representative, but not an office. Hence, my post saying that maybe you were referring to the person (as you indicated in a more recent post) and not an office as Ubonjoe posted.

As you can see in my somewhat lengthy post, I also mistakenly wrote, "Honorable Thai Consulate".

Edited April 16, 2014 by hml367

[Issangeorge]

To get an income letter from the Canadian Embassy you have to swear out an affidavit that you have an income of at least ฿65,000 a month and show proof. I supply copies of my T4a slips. I also take these slips with me to immigration. The Canadian Embassy will also allow you to fill swear out the affidavit, in front of a notary and get he/she to sign it and stamp it and supply a copy of their ID card. You then send this to the embassy with a money order of ฿1,500 (last year's price) and copies of all the pages in your passport and they will send you the letter. Email then for all the info.

Sent from my i-mobile IQ 6 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[elgordo38]

Hi

You need a copy of your bank statement in Canada showing your name at the top and your pension income. You also need your up to date passport. The Canadian consulate is a little out of the way for taxi's. You will have no problem getting there (make sure you have the consulates phone number in case the taxi gets lost) but hailing a taxi to return is a SOB. Having your own transportation is better. The lady there is very nice fluent in English. I would phone ahead to make sure she is in the office as its a long haul out there. The letter fee is 1500 bahts cash.

[wrbc]

thanks for all the advice! it was very helpful. took a taxi to embassy this morning, got the letter, went to immigration and was told i was a month overdue on reporting, even though id been out of country in january and i have a multiple entry from canada, but got off withe 2000 baht fine. but then couldnt get the extension cuz, after being (politely) fhuffled back and forth between desks several times, i was told that i had a year from january before i had to extend, if i dont leave the country, but will then have to pay the $50 embassy letter again, making this one useless, or i can leave the country before may 23 and then i can use it. im beginning to think i am not smart enough to live in thailand! :-)

[ubonjoe]

That tells me you have a OA visa that gives you a one year entry. What is the expiration date of your visa?

After the expiration date you have to get a re-entry permit it you want to travel or you will loose your current permit to stay date and will only get a 30 day entry.

If your visa is is still valid you can do an entry and get another year.

Just wait until January and get a new letter. And do your extension of stay then.

[ataloss]

If you have an OA Visa you can leave the country a couple of days (just to be on the safe side) or even one day (if you enjoy the wild side) prior to your visa-expiry-date, by walking across the border into Burma at Mae Sai, north of Chiang Rai. Pay them B500 or U$10; and immediately return to get stamped at Thai Border Immigration with a 3 months extension.

Note: You will need to pay beforehand for a re-entry permit (ฺB1000) otherwise you must redo all your paperwork outside Thailand to reapply for a new OA Visa.

If you've no bank statement showing the required amount in the bank for at least 2 months from the date you are applying at Immigration, sometimes they'll accept a Bank Letter (B100+) two days before; then you'll need a statutory declaration from the Canadian Consulate. You must bring documentary proof of income (CRA: T4_NR4, CPP, OAS statements etc), not simply your word. Signed copies are kept on record at the consulate for possible Thai Immigration audit.

The Canadian Consulate is open between 0900 and 1200 for the purpose of providing Immigration with a letter of your statutory declaration; recent cost was B1500. Best confirm that the Assistant to the Honorary Consul will be there on the date you require as she occasionally may be at the Cdn Embassy in Bangkok.

Phone number, address and map are on Google, here:

http://www.canadainternational.gc.ca/thailand-thailande/offices-bureaux/consul_chiang-ma.aspx?lang=eng

Their site advises using email at [email protected]

It's a bit of a ways out of CMai on the Hwy to Bkk, within the Raming Tea compound. The immediate overpass 300m to the north(CMai-side) of the Consulate is the junction directly across town to Thai Immigration which is somewhat convenient.

Edited April 21, 2014 by ataloss

[thepool]

ataloss

There is so much error in that post that members should just disregard it.