Topic:- Information |
Application for Temporary Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand. Applying for a Retirement Visa |
Application made at Chiang Mai Immigration Department Thailand - 22 April 2008 The following are personal notes and do not constitute or imply any official rules or procedures. The notes are written for information only, individual circumstances may be different according to status. We were informed that a computerized system with facilities for taking photographs would shortly be installed. Displayed at the immigration office waiting area is a very large board written in English listing types of available visas for extending ones stay in the Kingdom. Various options are also shown as to ways of meeting these requirements. Thailand offers a one-year retirement visa for anyone over 50 years of age. Basic requirement is a current passport containing a non-immigration "O" visa issued by a Thailand embassy outside of Thailand. Our applications in the past have been by proof of a Thai bank balance of not less than 800,000 Baht (Approximately £12,000). This amount is required to be shown every year and must be in the bank three months prior to the annual renewal date. However there are now alternatives which breaks down the 800,000 Bht requirement. In previous years we did not qualify due to our age for a UK state pension, but this year we do, also not wishing to deposit the 800,000 Bhts, we opted for the alternative pension rough. This states that a person or married couple should show a combined income plus pension, equivalent to 800,000 Bhts. It does not state in what ratio, or in which country the capital should reside. Our approach to this situation was to gather sufficient documentation to support our UK pension plus our Thai bank balance that totaled 800,000 Bhts. We obtained a letter from the British council stating our combined monthly income including pension. You may be required to provide to the British council a copy of your monthly bank statements in order to support this claim. We have in past years obtained a yearly Thai bank statement and a letter from the Bank stating our current bank balance. Confident that we had all ends covered we made our application. Our interview with the immigration officer required the original British embassy document. As our UK combined income shown on the document including pension exceeded 800,000 Baht no additional proof of support was asked for. However, there was a hitch and our application became pending when we were requested to state how much of our combined UK income was my wife's. We had heard from the day before about dependant and independent wives, but no definition of either. Our line to the immigration officer was that it was our combined total shown on our British council document. Fortunately I had prepared an income break down, as shown on our UK monthly bank statement. In producing this list to the immigration officer I was very much relieved to find it was acceptable. We do not know in which proportion he attributed my wife's income, only that he past on our application for further processing. There was no request at any time to see our Thai bank book. The letter issued by the British council was center to our application, so be sure to have a break down list of monthly income according to your UK bank statements handy. Procedure of submitting an application is not difficult, please dress politely, listen carefully to questions and be respectful at all times. Immigration offices are immaculately dressed and most speak English. Never loose your temper, raise your voice, point fingers or be impatient. The application in recent years has been streamlined. From start to finish it all took us only two hours, and we walked out with our passports containing all the required approvals and stamps for the next twelve months. The following describes the current requirements when applying for a retirement visa: Photographs: One per applicant of a reasonable sized photo. Some Kodak shops in town make a sheet of four, which are too large, or a sheet of six, which are too small. The noodle shop behind the immigration office process the correct Polaroid size, and it's convenient. Passport: One copy of your current passport per person, including back pages(personal details), and all pages showing immigration stamps and previous visas. It is important to copy the white arrival slip separately irrespective of when you last entered. Immigration officers highlight in yellow those pages showing last years visa approval. British Consulate letter: This letter states your residential address, and good standing as a British subject. This is a standard letter and you can request them to incorporate a statement of your monthly or yearly income, which is shown in Thai Baht Marriage certificate: It is essential to have the marriage certificate notarized by the British Consulate. This is a one time task, copies being accepted thereafter. It does not go amiss to show the original each year. The aim is to prove that you are married, other wise you will be required to show two separate lots of income support.
Application Form: Forms are obtained from the immigration counters. Ample seating and writing space is provided in pleasant surroundings. This is a very simple single sided form, questions are written in both Thai and English. It is useful to have your full address handy and telephone numbers. All pages of your application, after scrutiny by the receiving officer are required to be personally signed. The officer then submits the package to a senior officer for final checking. This is done very carefully and it is unlikely that any inconsistencies will go undetected. Visas are approved on the spot, as opposed to in the past were applications were submitted to Bangkok for final approval. Costs associated with obtaining a one year retirement visa per person: One Photograph I hope that the above information is useful and serves as a guide for applicants. |