43 year old male coming next week visa and related questions

[Summerviking]

Hello Forum!!! 

 

I have enjoyed the in depth information on this site for a month or so now, and just want  a down and dirty answer.....

 

I'm 43 have retirement/disability from US ARMY and can produce a letter for that stating 3200$ per month...Should i bring this letter or am i too young to apply for retirement visa....?  Again it is for disability, not retirement necessarily.

 

Also, I was planning on just showing up at airport and getting initial 30 day visa as I was planning to fly to cambodia/vietnam/etc.......Maybe I should just do that?  I mean if i wanted to stay long term my only option is to fly out of country and back, or possibly qualify for retirement visa????(i think u have to be 50yrs. old for that?)

 

I suppose i could go to Thai Language school and apply for visa that way?  Is that a thing?  

 

I am open to suggestions....:)  

 

Thanks!  

[ubonjoe]

You have to be 50 or over to apply for a visa or extension stay based upon retirement. Until you turn 50 there are not many options for you.

I suggest you try to get a multiple entry tourist visa (METV) before starting at the Thai embassy in DC or one of the official consulates in Los Angeles, Chicago or New York in person or by mail. The visa allows unlimited 60 day entries for 6 months from the date of issue and can allow almost 9 months of total stay by doing an entry before it expires and a 30 day extension of it.

Requirements for the METV is here on embassy website. http://thaiembdc.org/tourist-visa-category-tr-multiple-metv/  One of the requirements is a letter from an employer but I am certain they will accept proof of your disability income instead of that.

Attending a language school to stay is an option but that would only give you a total stay of a about 1 and half years under current rules and you only get 90 day extensions.

If you have the funds available you might want to consider the Thai Elite membership that has options of 5 or 10 year memberships. See: http://www.thailandelite.com/glimpse.php

 

[ubonjoe]

A off topic post has been removed.

[BritTim]

If your budget will accommodate it, consider getting a visa through the Thailand Elite program. It involves a hefty up-front investment, but solves your Thai immigration worries for several years. The alternative is going to involve jumping through a lot of hoops on a continuing basis. Another option, if you have a stable Thai girlfriend might be marriage, allowing a marriage visa or extension of stay on the basis of marriage. Personally, I would be cautious of going down that road, though.

[jvs]

I would not opt for the Thai Elite program,travel around first and see how you like it.

Ubonjoe is right,that way you can go to other countries and come back easily

Just keep your eyes open and learn to say no.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

On 11/20/2016 at 9:42 AM, ubonjoe said:

Requirements for the METV is here on embassy website. http://thaiembdc.org/tourist-visa-category-tr-multiple-metv/  One of the requirements is a letter from an employer but I am certain they will accept proof of your disability income instead of that.

 

 

Joe, does that mean you'd also believe the U.S. Embassy/Consulates would also accept a retiree's pension letter in lieu of an employer's letter, and have there been any reports confirming that?

 

I ask because, the employer letter requirement of the METV has always seemed self-defeating to me. When I was working, I NEVER would have had enough vacation time to use more than a single tourist visa. Now that I'm retired, I have enough free time for a METV, but no longer have an employer. Catch 22.

 

[ubonjoe]

9 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

 

Joe, does that mean you'd also believe the U.S. Embassy/Consulates would also accept a retiree's pension letter in lieu of an employer's letter, and have there been any reports confirming that?

 

I ask because, the employer letter requirement of the METV has always seemed self-defeating to me. When I was working, I NEVER would have had enough vacation time to use more than a single tourist visa. Now that I'm retired, I have enough free time for a METV, but no longer have an employer. Catch 22.

 

If under 50 I think they would. They have done it at other places for early retirees. Contact them or try for it.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

And if over 50?  Why should that make a difference in this context?

 

Someone retired and living in their home country and wanting to do extended tourist travel in Thailand isn't the same profile as someone who wants to move to Thailand "permanently" and stay on an O-A visa or retirement extension.

Edited November 24, 2016 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[ubonjoe]

6 minutes ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

And if over 50?  Why should that make a difference in this context?

That was more of a suggestion than a certainty. I suspect they would try and push a person to get the OA visa instead.

[Suradit69]

2 hours ago, TallGuyJohninBKK said:

And if over 50?  Why should that make a difference in this context?

 

Someone retired and living in their home country and wanting to do extended tourist travel in Thailand isn't the same profile as someone who wants to move to Thailand "permanently" and stay on an O-A visa or retirement extension.

If you're over 50, you could still get the O-A or a non-imm O based on the assumed intention, in either case, of eventually getting an extension of stay based on retirement. In the case of the O-A, it can easily get you up to a two year stay. Even if you actually have no intention of settling here, that isn't a problem. Some people go the retirement extension route coupled with re-entry permits and spend only a few months each year in Thailand.

 

There's no obligation in either case for you to establish a home in Thailand or to actually ever obtain an extension based on retirement. And, despite the reference to "retirement," there's no requirement that you have formally retired (as long as you don't work in Thailand).

 

While it's probably true that most people who follow either route described above do intend to stay in Thailand long term (i.e. the profile of an expat retiree), as long as you meet the requirements for either visa and possibly the extension, your actual stay in Thailand could be no more than a few months. I'm sure some people who think they want to retire long term in Thailand change their minds and pull out after staying here less time than some "tourists." No problem. 

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Yes, you're right. Getting the O-A doesn't in any way obligate one to actually "permanently" move to Thailand.

 

The only thing I'd note is, while the O-A visa has a longer duration as you point out, up to 2 years, it also has a bunch of more onerous application requirements, such as getting police and medical clearances in one's home country.

 

The METV, although of shorter duration, has none of the police and medical stuff, and the financial proof of bank deposits requirement is also considerably less than the O-A

 

In my case, it would be no problem either way. But for folks reading here, good to understand the differences between the two.

 

And of course, the METV is available to any age person. Whereas the O-A is only available to the 50-plus set. So it wouldn't work in the OPs case.

 

PS - After my exchange with Joe above, I figured I'd check, so I sent an email to the L.A. consulate asking, for a U.S. citizen with substantial assets but no "employer," would they accept any other form of documentation in lieu of an "employer" letter in support of an METV application.

 

If I get any response from them, I'll post it here.

 

 

 

Edited November 24, 2016 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[Grubster]

Summerviking:  Just a suggestion here, I wouldn't announce your disability amount to freely as jealousy runs rampant.  Good luck.