documents required for annual renewal of retirement visa

[notrub]

I am about to go for my first retirement visa renewal and will be grateful for any comments and/or advice.  (am sure this topic is covered but cannot find it).  I got a Non 'O' visa in Suratthani and coverted it to retirement in Koh Samui.  With some difficulty.  I had 1,000,000 THB in the bank at the time.  Now I have spent some of that money building a house and have only about 500,000 in the bank now.

 

 have a document from the British Embassy in BKK known as a Consular Letter Confirming Pension/Income for Retirement Visa.  First, does this letter work?  It seems too easy somehow.  It shows income in Euros and GBP which, combined is more than enough for the income part.  Does this letter need to be translated?  

 

I have moved to Buriram Province and am now registered at the immigration office in Buriram City.  I have built a house and have mail addressed to me here but no blue or yellow book.  I had registered with the local police but now my address has changed slightly.  To 186 Moo 6 from 114 Moo 6  but the rest is the same (villiage postal code etc)  Should I re register?

 

Any other info I should take along?  New Photos?  Anything else?

 

I had such a difficult time before that I am very nervous that this renewal goes through without problems that I could avoid by being prepared.

 

Thank you very much  

[ubonjoe]

It seems you are wanting to a apply for a new extension of stay (it is not a visa) based upon retirement at immigration.

You income letter that proves a minimum income of 65k baht will be accepted at immigration. Since it is in English it will not need to be translated.

If immigration has your current address you should not need to do a change of address. You will though need proof residence when you apply for the extension.

Whose name is on the deed for the property your house is and in whose name is on a house book it.

No need for photos other than a 4 X 6 cm photo for the TM7 application form when applying for an extension based upon retirement.

 

[frodo77]

Hi Ubonjoe,

     Just need to confirm. I am staying in a condo which is in my Thai partner's name. For proof of residence, I just need a letter stating this, with the Thai ID?

[ubonjoe]

4 minutes ago, frodo77 said:

Hi Ubonjoe,

     Just need to confirm. I am staying in a condo which is in my Thai partner's name. For proof of residence, I just need a letter stating this, with the Thai ID?

Along with the statement and ID card their house book to prove ownership would be needed.

[OJAS]

OP - did you (or rather your Thai partner) provide a completed TM30 when you registered at Buriram Immigration?

[thaifoodruns]

..

[thaifoodruns]

Along with the statement and ID card their house book to prove ownership would be needed.

Hi UbonJoe,

Besides the required documents, I would like to find out if there are any application forms that can be downloaded online for yearly retirement visa renewal? Or do we have fill them out on the day at immigration? 
 
We are based in Bangkok




Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[ubonjoe]

16 minutes ago, thaifoodruns said:

Sorry a bit late on here, I would like to find out if there are any application forms that can be downloaded online for yearly retirement visa renewal?

About every thing you will need is here.

Package of fillable forms linked together. Fill out one and it will complete the others. BlankFillableFormsPackageTM7-Overstay-TM8-TM47-TM30 (1).pdf

[vistana]

When I applied for a new extension of stay  based upon retirement last year at Hua Hin Immigration I had to have the embassy letter confirming my pension income certified by the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs at Chang Wattana in Bangkok.... any one know if this is still a requirement?  Last year was the first time I had used this method and I had to also have the British Embassy letter confirming my pension income translated into Thai.... as well as then getting it certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However this year the translation is apparently not required..... 

 

A trip to Hua Hin Immigration is required I think!!!!

[TerryLH]

"Along with the statement and ID card their house book to prove ownership would be needed."

 

Is the house book proving ownership new?

[thaifoodruns]

About every thing you will need is here.
Package of fillable forms linked together. Fill out one and it will complete the others. BlankFillableFormsPackageTM7-Overstay-TM8-TM47-TM30 (1).pdf

Thanks UbonJoe


Sent from my iPhone using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[Evilbaz]

The TM7 form above for me is neither blank nor fillable.

What's the trick UJ?

[ubonjoe]

10 minutes ago, Evilbaz said:

The TM7 form above for me is neither blank nor fillable.

What's the trick UJ?

It has samples of what goes on the lines. Just click on those and back space them out and put your own info. I opened it and changed some of sample info and the changes appear on every form.

FYI I downloaded it and opened it on my Chrome browser.

[BritTim]

21 minutes ago, Evilbaz said:

The TM7 form above for me is neither blank nor fillable.

What's the trick UJ?

When you open the PDF file, it probably opened in the Microsoft Edge browser. Unfortunately, that does not handle fillable forms correctly. Open the PDF file with something else (such as Chrome, suggested by @ubonjoe, or Adobe).

[Evilbaz]

Thanks.

[jojothai]

On 10/27/2017 at 7:45 PM, ubonjoe said:

About every thing you will need is here.

Package of fillable forms linked together. Fill out one and it will complete the others. BlankFillableFormsPackageTM7-Overstay-TM8-TM47-TM30 (1).pdf

Hi Ubonjoe

 

I am going into ChaengWattana to renew retirement extension in a few weeks time

Money etc is all ok,

 

For renewal do you know if they have been asking for a TM30 for last arrival?

I come and go regularly, and have not had to do any 90 day reporting the last year.

From what I see previously I dont recall seeing any comments on it being required at ChaengWattana.

 

I am staying at same address as previously stated - no change

 

Thanks for any info.

 

Edited November 24, 2017 by jojothai
additional line comment

[ubonjoe]

14 minutes ago, jojothai said:

For renewal do you know if they have been asking for a TM30 for last arrival?

They do not request TM30 forms be done at Chaeng Wattana.

[poanoi]

On 10/27/2017 at 8:54 PM, vistana said:

When I applied for a new extension of stay  based upon retirement last year at Hua Hin Immigration I had to have the embassy letter confirming my pension income certified by the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs at Chang Wattana in Bangkok.... any one know if this is still a requirement?  Last year was the first time I had used this method and I had to also have the British Embassy letter confirming my pension income translated into Thai.... as well as then getting it certified by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. However this year the translation is apparently not required..... 

 

A trip to Hua Hin Immigration is required I think!!!!

i also want to know if there's any risk at all i have to do that shit ?

 

[OJAS]

13 hours ago, poanoi said:

i also want to know if there's any risk at all i have to do that shit ?

 

Only if your office is Hua Hin or a handful around Bangkok.

[RocketDog]

I apologize if this post is in the wrong forum.

My question pertains to renewal of the extension of stay based on retirement, so it seemed appropriate and UbonJoe is most certainly informed!

I completed my third and final 90 day report at the Thayang (Phetchaburi) IO  and the extremely helpful and friendly officer seemed to be telling me that if I left Thailand for a few days before my current retirement extension expired that I would be 'automatically' approved for the new one. Her English was better than my Thai but she was very busy so I refined from further questions.

At least one other American expat told me this was true but I didn't get the details at that time.

I have studied and experienced all the requirements for the retirement extension I now have. There is every reason to believe I meet all the requirements for renewal.

My question is whether I should assemble the entire suite of documents that I did when I obtained the first extension through the Thai embassy in San Francisco. This included the criminal background check, bank account letter, proof of monthly income, etc.

I currently have a signed lease on a rental house, certificate of residency, Thai Bank account with more than sufficient funds, current letter from Social security website verifying monthly payment, Thai drivers license, Thai motorcycle license, passport photos, etc.

What is likely to be the minimum document package required for a renewal at the Thayang IO? Does leaving the country for a few days gain me anything to ease the process?

Thank you very kindly for your help.

[Swimman]

2 hours ago, RocketDog said:

I left Thailand for a few days before my current retirement extension expired that I would be 'automatically' approved for the new one.

It is important you establish exactly what you have in your passport.  Extensions are not automatically approved at border crossings/airports. If you have a multiple entry VISA then a new permission to stay will be granted if the visa is valid. 

[RocketDog]

Thank you Swimman. 

To be clear : yes I have a multiple entry retirement extension at the present time. My question regards renewing it for another year. My current non-profit expires at the end of June. 

On essence, will it be easier to leave and return or just go to immigration here with the entire pack I assembled when I applied a year ago in America. 

? 

Specifically do I need things like the US Criminal background check letter, a letter from my American bank etc. 

The implication from my local IO is that by leaving for a few days the process and documentation requirements will be eased to get another 1 year extension. 

 

Thanks for your help

[Swimman]

23 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

To be clear : yes I have a multiple entry retirement extension at the present time. My question regards renewing it for another year. My current non-profit expires at the end of June

Sorry but this does not help -- Perhaps you could scan and post a picture of what you have in the passport. 

[Phuket Man]

34 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

Thank you Swimman. 

To be clear : yes I have a multiple entry retirement extension at the present time.

There is no such thing.

 

Maybe you have a 12 month extension based on retirement.

And a multi re entry permit.

Edited April 21, 2018 by Phuket Man

[RocketDog]

Yes. I used shorthand. I have an extension of stay based on retirement that was issued on June 1 2017, type O-A. No. of Entry = M.. 

I want to renew it and can leave before it expires of it makes renewal easier as the Thayang IO officer implied. 

If it doesn't make or easier then I'll just go to immigration with as many documents as I can and go through the process as many times as necessary to get it right. I was hoping to understand this possible easier process before I started. 

Thank you. 

[ubonjoe]

3 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

Yes. I used shorthand. I have an extension of stay based on retirement that was issued on June 1 2017, type O-A. No. of Entry = M.. 

You have a one year entry from your OA visa not an extension of stay. Extensions are only issued at immigration.

You should not need to do an extension of stay until next year. All you need to do is leave and re-enter the country on or before June 1st (enter before date) of this year to get a new one year entry. Then get a re-entry permit after that date if you want to travel to keep that last entry valid.

[RocketDog]

3 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

You have a one year entry from your OA visa not an extension of stay. Extensions are only issued at immigration.

You should not need to do an extension of stay until next year. All you need to do is leave and re-enter the country on or before June 1st (enter before date) of this year to get a new one year entry. Then get a re-entry permit after that date if you want to travel to keep that last entry valid.

UbonJoe , thank you. I just realized that I had a fundamental misunderstanding of the whole process. Getting the initial visa was a starting point from I continue to get extensions to stay based on that. Correct? 

So as long as I leave AND RE-ENTER BEFORE June 1 2018 I  get another 1 year extension before I have to repeat the procedure. Still doing the same 90 day report thing starting from re-entry date, etc. 

 

I think I'm still confused though. Does the O-A visa not expire per se but one simply has to continue extending the 'enter before' date by leaving and re-entering the country and each time going to immigration and submitting an extension form.? 

I think I am making the process too complicated compared to the reality of it. 

 

UbonJoe, I understand your advice until the last sentence where you said "Then get a re-entry permit after that date if you want to travel to keep that last entry valid." 

Could you please clarify that last part? When I return I fill the re-entry permit form at the airport as part of this approach to keep the new 'enter before' date valid? 

 

Sorry for being so dull and annoying..

I am just being very careful to do everything precisely as required so I can stay here. I am putting down roots here and don't want to foul anything up. 

Thanks to all repliers for your indulgence. 

[ubonjoe]

4 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

UbonJoe , thank you. I just realized that I had a fundamental misunderstanding of the whole process. Getting the initial visa was a starting point from I continue to get extensions to stay based on that. Correct? 

So as long as I leave AND RE-ENTER BEFORE June 1 2018 I  get another 1 year extension before I have to repeat the procedure. Still doing the same 90 day report thing starting from re-entry date, etc. 

Not correct. You are not getting extensions when you enter the country using your visa. You are getting a new one year permit to stay.

If you enter before the enter before date on your visa you will get a new one year permit to stay every time.

You will always need to do the report if you stay in the country longer than 90 consecutive days.

 

7 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

I think I'm still confused though. Does the O-A visa not expire per se but one simply has to continue extending the 'enter before' date by leaving and re-entering the country and each time going to immigration and submitting an extension form.? 

I think I am making the process too complicated compared to the reality of it. 

You OA visa expires on June 1st of this year after that date if you enter the country you would get a 30 day visa exempt entry unless you have a re-entry permit to keep the last one year permit to stay date you got from your visa valid.

 

7 minutes ago, RocketDog said:

UbonJoe, I understand your advice until the last sentence where you said "Then get a re-entry permit after that date if you want to travel to keep that last entry valid." 

Could you please clarify that last part? When I return I fill the re-entry permit form at the airport as part of this approach to keep the new 'enter before' date valid? 

You will apply for the re-entry permit at a immigration office. The fee is 1000 baht for a single re-entry permit and 3800 baht for a multiple.

As I wrote before the re-entry permit will keep the last one year permit to stay valid when you enter the country. You will be stamped into the country to the date shown on the entry stamp for your last one year entry.

[RocketDog]

OK UbonJoe, that finally makes sense to me. I really was confused. 

Thanks so much for your patience. 

I hope my ignorance will benefit others here. 

12 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Not correct. You are not getting extensions when you enter the country using your visa. You are getting a new one year permit to stay.

If you enter before the enter before date on your visa you will get a new one year permit to stay every time.

You will always need to do the report if you stay in the country longer than 90 consecutive days.

 

You OA visa expires on June 1st of this year after that date if you enter the country you would get a 30 day visa exempt entry unless you have a re-entry permit to keep the last one year permit to stay date you got from your visa valid.

 

You will apply for the re-entry permit at a immigration office. The fee is 1000 baht for a single re-entry permit and 3800 baht for a multiple.

As I wrote before the re-entry permit will keep the last one year permit to stay valid when you enter the country. You will be stamped into the country to the date shown on the entry stamp for your last one year entry.