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Can I switch my retirement extension stamp to my new passport after returning to Thailand?
Feb 2, 2026
3 months ago
Authentic*********
ORIGINAL POSTERHi group. I will get a passport renewal in Thailand. My old retirement extension visa stamp is in old passport, and will be returned. I need to get stamps switched over I know. But. Can I go to immigration later or need do before I fly? My flight will be very close to the time I get my passport back and i wish to do after my arrival back in the country.. any advice appreciated. Tnx in advance
TLDR : Answer Summary
The user is looking for advice on whether they can transfer their retirement extension visa stamp from their old passport to a new passport after returning to Thailand, given the tight timeline before their flight. Comments from the community suggest that this transfer must be done at immigration before leaving Thailand to avoid complications with their visa status. Key points include the necessity of obtaining a re-entry permit and ensuring that both passports are presented to immigration for the transfer to occur.
NON-O RETIREMENT VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES
- Go to the Retirement Visa Section for information on requirements, including age restrictions, financial requirements, and necessary documentation.
- For immediate assistance, contact Thai Visa Centre directly via LINE at @ThaiVisaCentre or Email them.
- Explore recent discussions by using the Non-O Retirement Visa tag in the search box at the top of the page.
- Join the Thai Visa Advice Facebook Group to ask your questions, and get advice from others.
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Gregory *********
People in this group give poor answers that need distilling. To my knowledge you need to get the visa moved only at immigration and it cannot be done at airport. People in this group should stop berating others for terminological inexactitudes about visas as it is irrekevant to what the op needs to do. Go to immigration with both passports before you leave and transfer the stamps.
Nongnuch ********
Gregory Kleiman your explanation is poor, incorrect and full of flaws . . . . Immigration does not move any visa from the old passport to the new passport. Immigration only moves their own stamps. A visa is not issued by Immigration, it is neither a stamp nor a sticker. The visa is an email, converted to a .pdf printed paper document, and gets issued by a Thai embassy. A visa cannot get transferred. Immigration only can move a permission to stay stamp and the re-entry stamp, and in case the new passport got issued inside Thailand, they will transfer the most recent entry stamp from the old passport as well. . . . "you should stop berating others for terminological inexactitudes" is the worst advice you could give, as YOU USING WRONG TERMINOLOGY is ALWAYS the reason for misunderstandings
Gregory *********
Nongnuch Kamdee please explain this image and what it says in thai as these are the stamps of a transfer of visa into a new passport.
Gregory *********
Nongnuch Kamdee actually i have a friend whose visa was transferred and i looked at his passport today. Show me a picture of when you had it done?
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Gregory *********
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Ian **********
Gregory Kleiman Wrong! I took both passports with me to the airport and went to the immigration desk to ask about a re-entry permit. He transferred the permission to stay stamp into my new passport and then directed me to the re-entry permit desk. I also think the correct terminology is important, as using the wrong terms confuses newbies
Authentic*********
ORIGINAL POSTERIan Morrison Hi. Do you mean I can do at airport? At a special airport immigration office or just at normal departure counter? Which airport pls, Don Mueang or Sawanaphumi? Tnx..
Gregory *********
Ian Morrison excellent news
Nongnuch ********
Gregory Kleiman there is NO VISA inside a passport anymore, since the last Thai embassies world over went to the online E-Visa system by early 2024. Stop handing out false advice
Gregory *********
Nongnuch Kamdee but in common usage you and i have a visa stamp in our passports. The rest of your attitude is petty pedantic and unhelpful to the questions at hand.
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Gregory *********
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Nongnuch ********
you must do the transfer ASAP , before you fly, or your EOS becomes invalid if you leave on an empty new passport
Nongnuch ********
AuthenticAlpaca833 you visit Immigration with your old and new passport and ask them to transfer the stamps. That's what is to it
Brandon ************
AuthenticAlpaca833 Immigration are the ones who do a certificate of residence. Why on earth would you need that to get something FROM immigration? No. No one EVER says anywhere that you need a CoR to move your stamps. Just take both your passports to immigration and fill out whatever they ask you to. It's not complicated. I'm not sure where you got this idea about a certificate of residence having to do with it.
Authentic*********
ORIGINAL POSTER@Brandon ***********
Do you know if I can exit Thailand with both passports and re enter having not yet switched stamps yet? Anyone done It? I'm a but pressured for time. However. I don't won't to void stamp and need to restart all over again. Tnx.Brandon ************
AuthenticAlpaca833 why even bother risking losing your extension. You have to get it moved anyways. Just do it
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Brandon ************
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Nongnuch ********
there is no retirement visa in your old passport. Immigration will only transfer their OWN stamps: your last entry stamp, and the stamp of your most recent 1-year stay permit extension based on retirement. And a valid re-entry stamp if you already bought one. . . . . .That "retirement visa" you got is a .pdf paper document issued by an embassy, it is not inside your passport and cannot get transferred
Wolfgang ********
Nongnuch Kamdee , That's right, visas used to be glued into the passport.
Nongnuch ********
Wolfgang Trenck the last person I know who got a visa-sticker in their passports is a Filipina/German couple who both got a DTV in Phnom Penh by December 2024. On January 1, 2025 the Thai embassy in Cambodia switched to the e-visa system
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Nongnuch ********
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Patrick *********
You will need to get it switched to your new passport before you leave the country, otherwise you will have to start the process all over again. Make sure you get a re-entry permit before you leave the country so that your visa is still valid when you land back into Thailand
Steve *******
Patrick Kearney Incorrect, just keep both passports
Authentic*********
ORIGINAL POSTERSteve Greir Hi. What do you mean, can you please elaborate? Tnx..
Patrick *********
Steve Greir I know he has to keep both passports as I have kept both of mine
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Patrick *********
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Nongnuch ********
Patrick Kearney he does not have any visa. He got a one-year stay permit. And he might already have a re-entry permit for his one-year extended stay permit
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Nongnuch ********
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