athousand Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 (edited) I am trying to get the letter of income from the British Embassy for a Non-O Marriage (convert Tourist Visa and then Extension). I meet the requirements but my concern is that the British Embassy will only provide a letter of income for the retirement visa . I asked by email if they could confirm they provide an income letter for a marriage visa and received a reply stating that they could not. They would only provide a letter of income specifically for the retirement visa, and that I was welcome to try my luck and see if it is accepted for the marriage visa. They will not provide a letter proving income for a marriage visa! Has anybody used this letter successfully for the marriage extension of stay? I plan on applying at Chaeng Wattana, Bangkok. I'm surprised the British Embassy is so unhelpful and inflexible - surely there must be plenty of people requesting this and they are charging £50. If this is not acceptable to Thai Immigration at Chaeng Wattana are there any options other than the savings route, if I want to get the one year extension? Edited June 5, 2017 by athousand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glegolo Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 (edited) I am NOT an englishman, but I can say that much.. this smells missunderstanding a very long way... I do not understand in the first place why you even bother to ask that question to your embassy. They supply you with proof of income and that is that. You bring it to the immigration, and you are just fine.... I cant really think that the british embassy is like what you suggest. I am sorry but I think YOU are the problem here. Glegolo Edited June 5, 2017 by glegolo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabhand Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 My British Embassy income letter makes no mention of Retirement / Marriage or any other purpose for the letter, other than being addressed to Commissioner, Immigration Bureau and requesting their assistance.. It contains details of name / passport number / address / income total as provided to the Embassy. So, I see no reason for your stated concern.. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 (edited) The proof of income letter issued by the British Embassy is a simple affair that is addressed to the Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau and simply states the following three items. 1 Confirms name and nationality by passport. 2. States the Thai residential address you have provided. 3. States your income based on the provenance that you have provided. It also says it will be grateful for any assistance the Immigration office can provide. There's no specific mention of what the income statement is needed for, retirement, marriage or anything else. Whoever you communicated with at the British Embassy either made an erroneous statement regarding being specifically for retirement extension purposes or you misunderstood what they said. Since there is no such thing as a 'retirement visa' or a 'marriage visa', I suspect the latter. Edited June 5, 2017 by NanLaew 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenslegs Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 The British Embassy website does indeed entitle this letter ... "Consular Letter Confirming Pension/Income for Retirement Visa" See here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/573863/Pension_7_12_16.pdf ... which is confusing. However, there is no reference to "retirement visa" in either the application form or the letter itself. Just fill in the application and pay the fee - as many have done before, including myself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 1 minute ago, chickenslegs said: The British Embassy website does indeed entitle this letter ... "Consular Letter Confirming Pension/Income for Retirement Visa" See here: https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/573863/Pension_7_12_16.pdf ... which is confusing. However, there is no reference to "retirement visa" in either the application form or the letter itself. Just fill in the application and pay the fee - as many have done before, including myself. Good point. Maybe worthwhile suggesting to the wonks that they edit their website to say, "Consular Letter Confirming Pension/Income for Thai Immigration" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chickenslegs Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 Just now, NanLaew said: Good point. Maybe worthwhile suggesting to the wonks that they edit their website to say, "Consular Letter Confirming Pension/Income for Thai Immigration" I would, but they'd probably charge me 50 quid for writing to them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athousand Posted June 5, 2017 Author Share Posted June 5, 2017 (edited) Thanks for the info. I'll get the letter and use it. This was in the email I received when I asked them if I could use it for the marriage visa extension : " please be reminded the our service is provided specifically for a retirement visa if you will use our document to apply for a marriage visa, please get the confirmation from the Immigration that it will accepted." As I haven't used a letter like this before, I assumed that it would mention retirement. Edited June 5, 2017 by athousand Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vogie Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 I renewed my marriage extention with the proof of income from the British Embassy in March, no problems. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 5, 2017 Share Posted June 5, 2017 (edited) 5 minutes ago, athousand said: Thanks for the info. I'll get the letter and use it. This was in the email I received when I asked them if I could use it for the marriage visa extension : " please be reminded the our service is provided specifically for a retirement visa if you will use our document to apply for a marriage visa, please get the confirmation from the Immigration that it will accepted." As I haven't used a letter like this before, I assumed that it would mention retirement. Yup, sounds like they were quoting from what they read on their own web page but not the reality of what the letters are actually issued for. Easy to see now how you thought you had a problem. 2 minutes ago, vogie said: I renewed my marriage extention with the proof of income from the British Embassy in March, no problems. There you go, confirmation. They don't do these letters in person anymore. It's a download, print, fill in, add documentation, mail in and mail back job. If in Bangkok and using EMS, a Monday submission should be back in your hand by Thursday. Edited June 5, 2017 by NanLaew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athousand Posted June 5, 2017 Author Share Posted June 5, 2017 My concern was this email was direct from the Consul and not from the usual generic address. Thanks for all the reports - that was what I was hoping to hear and why I posted! Will report back to confirm in a few weeks when I apply at Chaeng Wattana. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IsaanAndy Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 I have been getting a proof of income letter from the UK embassy for the last 9 years for my 1 year extn to my marriage Non O so you should have no problems unless there has been a change of policy since Jan 2017. The letter only states that the embassy has confirmed your income as stated on the form you filled in and sent them with supporting document(s) e.g annual pension staement, it does not say it is for any particular status you may be applying for e.g extn of stay, retirement visa as that is a matter for the Thai authorities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glegolo Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 (edited) I would like to apologize to the thread-starter, because I told him that HE was the problem..... But I really think after reading the posts here, that ignorance of the employees of your embassy is the big problem here.. I mean have a website saying THAT and on top of that an consul who writes a so completely stupid email like that.... Thank good I have my swedish embassy to lean on.. But I suggest,, hit them hard guys... Glegolo Edited June 6, 2017 by glegolo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebell Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 10 hours ago, NanLaew said: Yup, sounds like they were quoting from what they read on their own web page but not the reality of what the letters are actually issued for. Easy to see now how you thought you had a problem. There you go, confirmation. They don't do these letters in person anymore. It's a download, print, fill in, add documentation, mail in and mail back job. If in Bangkok and using EMS, a Monday submission should be back in your hand by Thursday. I use Key Visa company. Pay the letter fee + 300 baht (I think) and get it back the following week. While we're at it the fee for a standard letter is outrageous; they don't do any checking/research but merely insert your name. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 3 minutes ago, mikebell said: I use Key Visa company. Pay the letter fee + 300 baht (I think) and get it back the following week. While we're at it the fee for a standard letter is outrageous; they don't do any checking/research but merely insert your name. Did you get all the supporting paperwork back from Key Visa? Bank statements, etc.? It could be much, much worse... like not providing the service at all. There's also the disclaimer across the bottom of the income letter... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vogie Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 20 minutes ago, NanLaew said: Did you get all the supporting paperwork back from Key Visa? Bank statements, etc.? It could be much, much worse... like not providing the service at all. There's also the disclaimer across the bottom of the income letter... If you go down the 'proof of income route' you do not need bank statements. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 8 minutes ago, vogie said: If you go down the 'proof of income route' you do not need bank statements. If you are retired in Thailand (50 and over) but NOT retired in the UK (65 and over) or don't otherwise have the government issued 'pension slips', bank statements are pretty much the only acceptable way to show income. Pictures of a cash stuffed mattress aren't acceptable apparently. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vogie Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 1 minute ago, NanLaew said: If you are retired in Thailand (50 and over) but NOT retired in the UK (65 and over) or don't otherwise have the government issued 'pension slips', bank statements are pretty much the only acceptable way to show income. Pictures of a cash stuffed mattress aren't acceptable apparently. The topic is about letter of income from British Embassy, but thanks for the sarcastic reply anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dabhand Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 1 hour ago, mikebell said: I use Key Visa company. Pay the letter fee + 300 baht (I think) and get it back the following week. While we're at it the fee for a standard letter is outrageous; they don't do any checking/research but merely insert your name. The charge used to be Bt300 on top of the cost of the Income Letter. But they raised their charge a couple of years back and now charge Bt3,500 in total (Embassy letter + service fee). The original charge was good value but their current uplift - over Bt1,000 - is a bit excessive. As some are uncertain about what docs may be required I would say an initial request via the agent (bottom out what docs are acceptable) then postal application thereafter would be best bet. Yes, I would certainly agree that the Embassy charge is a total rip-off. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NanLaew Posted June 6, 2017 Share Posted June 6, 2017 1 hour ago, vogie said: The topic is about letter of income from British Embassy, but thanks for the sarcastic reply anyway. So why did you contribute... 1 hour ago, vogie said: If you go down the 'proof of income route' you do not need bank statements. You may not be right but I am for certain not wrong as I have supplied bank statements that both the British Embassy and two different Immigration offices have happily accepted for the past 10 years or so for both marriage extensions and retirement extensions. Sometimes being younger is a real bitch. It wasn't sarcasm BTW. Surely you are aware of the joke about keeping your cash in a mattress, no? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebell Posted June 7, 2017 Share Posted June 7, 2017 22 hours ago, NanLaew said: Did you get all the supporting paperwork back from Key Visa? Bank statements, etc.? It could be much, much worse... like not providing the service at all. There's also the disclaimer across the bottom of the income letter... I only got the letter back. I sent copies of my last 3 months' bank statements + PP copy so I wasn't really bothered. You are right about the disclaimer. Why is it so expensive if it isn't a legal document? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
athousand Posted June 12, 2017 Author Share Posted June 12, 2017 Just to confirm the helpful info above - I received the letter and no mention was made of what visa it can be used for. The top right of the page has the British Embassy info, the left has a date, a reference number, and is addressed to 'The Immigration Bureau'. The rest of the letter makes no mention of any visa - it just states the income. Despite the confusing email and website information, the British Embassy was very helpful in that they replied to several emails very quickly, and the turnaround was very fast. I didn't have to post anything - all the docs were sent via email as pdf. They returned via EMS the letter and color printouts of all the docs (bank statements). The turnaround time was impressive - the letter was sent to me the day after I submitted the docs. I was away the day after, but assumed it arrived the next day. Their stated 10 working days is a little misleading for those in a rush as it in fact took just 3. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evadgib Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 On 6/6/2017 at 9:09 AM, glegolo said: I would like to apologize to the thread-starter, because I told him that HE was the problem..... But I really think after reading the posts here, that ignorance of the employees of your embassy is the big problem here.. I mean have a website saying THAT and on top of that an consul who writes a so completely stupid email like that.... Thank good I have my swedish embassy to lean on.. But I suggest,, hit them hard guys... Glegolo You might first spare a thought for the wording of the initial enquiry from the OP and couple it with the hoards of nonsense they have to wade through every day in order to work out what exactly each enquirer is asking about and whether or not it falls within their remit.... http://www.goodhousekeeping.co.uk/news/foreign-office-weird-requests I doubt if the swedes have more than 20% of the traffic & nor are they any better at delivering it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evadgib Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 (edited) On 6/7/2017 at 8:02 AM, mikebell said: Why is it so expensive if it isn't a legal document? Fees are set by the Govt and applied worldwide. These letters are NOT a requirement of the sending Govt and serve no other purpose than to tie up manpower that could be better used elsewhere. The requesting authority could just as well do this some other way. Edited June 12, 2017 by evadgib Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ratcatcher Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 On 2017-6-6 at 9:10 AM, mikebell said: I use Key Visa company. Pay the letter fee + 300 baht (I think) and get it back the following week. While we're at it the fee for a standard letter is outrageous; they don't do any checking/research but merely insert your name. They don't call it rip-off Britain for nothing. The British Embassy charges B2200 (50 pounds) for an income letter, while my country, Canada, comes in at a more reasonable B1500. There is no checking or research to do, you are swearing an affidavit that what you present is true and accurate. In the case of Canadians and I assume Americans, it is necessary to attend in person to face a notary and swear an oath., Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eff1n2ret Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 2 hours ago, evadgib said: Fees are set by the Govt and applied worldwide. These letters are NOT a requirement of the sending Govt and serve no other purpose than to tie up manpower that could be better used elsewhere. The requesting authority could just as well do this some other way. The service as far as it goes is ok, and from the point of view of Thai Immigration it gives them the best assurance they can have that an applicant has the income that they claim. Whether they "could just as well do this some other way" is questionable. But I think the charge is a little excessive and I resent it. Thinking about the services offered by the British Embassy, I guess if you're in custody/prison/hospital and they come and visit you, you don't get a bill? - So the criminal, the stupid, and, of course, the unlucky have the beneficence of our caring Foreign Office bestowed upon them, while those of us who live peacefully, generally look after ourselves and ask for very little are there to be gouged for every penny they can make. It probably takes a low-paid minor employee 5 minutes to knock out the letter. A government department shouldn't be looking to make a profit out of its own citizens. Doing so for issuing visas to foreigners is a different matter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glegolo Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 35 minutes ago, ratcatcher said: They don't call it rip-off Britain for nothing. The British Embassy charges B2200 (50 pounds) for an income letter, while my country, Canada, comes in at a more reasonable B1500. There is no checking or research to do, you are swearing an affidavit that what you present is true and accurate. In the case of Canadians and I assume Americans, it is necessary to attend in person to face a notary and swear an oath., And to put even more wood in the fire. My country Sweden debit 550baht for the very same letter.. Glegolo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evadgib Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 From #23: Quote I doubt if the swedes have more than 20% of the traffic & nor are they any better at delivering it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
glegolo Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 (edited) 9 minutes ago, evadgib said: From #23: Quote I doubt if the swedes have more than 20% of the traffic & nor are they any better at delivering it. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- You know that we are better in delivering stuff,,,, and we have cheaper prices for a single automatic damn letter.... So convert to swedenism, change nationality and be happy for the rest of your life......5555 Glegolo Edited June 12, 2017 by glegolo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evadgib Posted June 12, 2017 Share Posted June 12, 2017 5 minutes ago, glegolo said: You have spectacularly missed my point but i'll leave it at that so as not to drift too far off topic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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