Applying for extension of stay without a bankbook or ATM access

[johnatong]

Seriously why do you bother even going to CW. You have received sound info from this thread and wish to waste a day at CW. They will tell you what has been advised. I think some folk are hoping you go to CW to "discuss" stuff.

Good luck with that.

Next thread will be about non imm O from Vientiane

The OP is a person who is determined to "win friends and influence people" within the Immigration service.

I am sure he will be able to arrange things as he would like them to be.

Let us await the OP's report of his success.

We might all learn something !

[aronp1]

Accounts which do not allow instant access to cash will not be accepted by immigration.

You must place the 400K in an accessible account.

You will need a bankbook + Bank letter to satisfy immigration.

What visa do you have now ?

and money must be in a Thai bank.

[hyperdimension]

and money must be in a Thai bank.

Police Order 327/2557 section 2.18 states "bank account in Thailand":

2.18 In the case of being a family member of a Thai national (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children):

Each permission shall be granted for no more than 1 year.

(1) The alien must hold a Non-immigrant visa.

(2) The alien must have proof of relationship.

(3) In the case of spouse, the relationship must be de jure and defacto-, or

(4) In the case of children, adopted children, or spouse’s children, said children, adopted children, or spouse's children must not be married, must live with the alien as part of the family, and must not be over 20 years of age, except, in case of person hereof is illness or disability and cannot live without support of father and mother; or

(5) In the case of parents, the father or mother must maintain an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month throughout the year or must have deposited funds of no less than Baht 400,000 to cover expenses for 1 year.

In case of father or mother requests to be under supported of children, the age of father or mother must be 50 years of age or over.

For other necessity cases, the Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner of Immigration Bureau is granted the authority to make decisions regarding approval on a case-by-case basis.

(6) In the case of marriage to a Thai woman, the alien husband must earn an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month or must have no less than Baht 400,000 in a bank account in Thailand for the past two months to cover expenses for 1 year.

A bank account at Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) Public Company Limited therefore should qualify.

Also note in paragraph 6 above that the police order explicitly states that the funds are "to cover expenses for 1 year". Therefore there is some expectation that there would be activity (withdrawals from the account) throughout the year. In my case, my eSaver account has had a lot of activity throughout the past year (and prior) as I truly use it to cover my living expenses. Contrast this with a term deposit account that has been untouched all year and it then appears that my eSaver account complies more closely with the spirit of the police order.

[BritTim]

and money must be in a Thai bank.

Police Order 327/2557 section 2.18 states "bank account in Thailand":

2.18 In the case of being a family member of a Thai national (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children):

Each permission shall be granted for no more than 1 year.

(1) The alien must hold a Non-immigrant visa.

(2) The alien must have proof of relationship.

(3) In the case of spouse, the relationship must be de jure and defacto-, or

(4) In the case of children, adopted children, or spouse’s children, said children, adopted children, or spouse's children must not be married, must live with the alien as part of the family, and must not be over 20 years of age, except, in case of person hereof is illness or disability and cannot live without support of father and mother; or

(5) In the case of parents, the father or mother must maintain an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month throughout the year or must have deposited funds of no less than Baht 400,000 to cover expenses for 1 year.

In case of father or mother requests to be under supported of children, the age of father or mother must be 50 years of age or over.

For other necessity cases, the Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner of Immigration Bureau is granted the authority to make decisions regarding approval on a case-by-case basis.

(6) In the case of marriage to a Thai woman, the alien husband must earn an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month or must have no less than Baht 400,000 in a bank account in Thailand for the past two months to cover expenses for 1 year.

A bank account at Standard Chartered Bank (Thai) Public Company Limited therefore should qualify.

Also note in paragraph 6 above that the police order explicitly states that the funds are "to cover expenses for 1 year". Therefore there is some expectation that there would be activity (withdrawals from the account) throughout the year. In my case, my eSaver account has had a lot of activity throughout the past year (and prior) as I truly use it to cover my living expenses. Contrast this with a term deposit account that has been untouched all year and it then appears that my eSaver account complies more closely with the spirit of the police order.

We look forward to your feedback on whether immigration has the same interpretation as you. In general, immigration tends to have a pretty inflexible idea of which kinds of account qualify (unlike consulates outside Thailand) but it will be good to know if they will accept an eSaver account.

[hyperdimension]

Sorry for the late response. My attempt to apply for the extension of stay without a bank book or ATM card did actually work.

The most inconvenient part of the process was obtaining the official bank statement. You need to fill a form in person at a Standard Chartered branch, then return to the branch in 5 days to collect the statement. During that time it's good to make some transactions each day so that when you collect the statement it will show the most recent transaction possible.

I applied for the extension on the same day of statement collection, so had to collect in the morning and go quickly to immigration.

The great thing is that I can now keep the funds all year long in the high-interest account, and the money is not locked like a term deposit.