Like the title says, I have a "Non O" (support family). I have been extending my stay every year for 10+ years. I always use the 400,000+ baht in a Thai bank requirement.

I just finished with my latest renewal/extension. Now I have a question for those that do the other method- going to your embassy to get a paper that says you earn X amount of money.

The world economy is getting worse, and I want to send most of my money out of Thailand:

How hard is this other method (letter from embassy) compared to keeping a large amount of money in a Thai bank, and getting the certified letter from the bank branch?

How many day's can go by on the embassy letter before extension of stay application is made? (1 or 2 days?)

Can I switch back to the 400,000 baht rule later on again? (I thought I remember reading that you can't).

Please reply only if you have had experience with the above situation. Thanks.

Both methods take the same amount of time.

Just depends on how long the embassy takes to issue and at what price.

The letter is valid for 6 months so you will have to do it every year.

You can switch back to money in the bank anytime you want.

The extension application using the 40k baht income is easy. How difficult it is to get the letter depends upon your embassy.

A income letter will be accepted that is up to 6 months old at the majority of immigration offices.

You can switch back to 400k baht option whenever want to.

An Embassy letter certifying income is valid for 6 months from the date off issue. Individual Embassy's have different requirements/processes for issuing the letter so you need to check with your Embassy. Be aware that immigration can (and sometimes do) want to know the source/see proof of the income.

As far as applying for the extension is concerned there should not be any issue with providing a statement of income as apposed to a bank letter confirming funds.

Thanks