Hello,

 

I am a Canadian who is going to Thailand in March.  I am 53 years old, and would like to apply for a retirement visa.  I have 2 questions:

 

1.   Is it possible to go to Thailand, from Canada, on a 6 month Tourist Visa, then convert it to a retirement visa once I am in Thailand?  

 

2.  If I can convert this in Thailand, what exactly do I need to do?  

 

Thank you very much.

 

You can apply for a change of visa status to obtain a 90 day non immigrant visa (category O) entry at a immigration office during any of the 60 day entries from the tourist visa up to the last 15 days of it or the 30 day extension of it. You would need 800k baht in a Thai bank on the date you apply or proof of 65k baht income or a combination ot the 2 two totaling 800k baht.

Then during the last 30 days of the 90 entry entry from the visa you could apply for a extension of stay based upon retirement at immigration. You would need to show the same financial proof as needed for the visa but the 800k baht will need to be in the bank for 60 days on the date your apply.

The best option would be to get a single entry non-o visa from one of the honorary consulates in Edmonton, Toronto or Montreal instead of the tourist visa. Contact info for the honorary  consulates (Vancouver is not one) is here. http://www.thaiembassy.ca/en/visiting-thailand/visas/obtaining-visa-canada  Then during the last 30 days of the 90 day entry from the non-o visa you could apply for the extension of stay.

Annual applications of extensions of stay based on retirement (not a Visa) are issued by local Immigration offices.

You must hold a Non Imm type Visa to obtain these extensions.

 

If you enter on a TV, there is a conversion process available to issue a Non Imm O as a prelude to obtaining an extension.

How easy this is will depend on your location in Thailand.

Entering on a Non Imm O SE Visa could save a lot of hassle.

 

You will need to show funds deposited in a Thai bank account of 800,000 baht, or proof of income of 65,000 baht per month.

You can use a combination of the two methods to meet the financial requirements.

The 800,000 must be in a Thai bank account for 2 months prior to your very first application, 3 months for subsequent applications.