Do I have to use an agency every year to extend my Non-O visa in Thailand?

@John *********

i have in the past used 2 years immigration but agency less hassle, and why i need £20,000 in my bank just to please immigration is beyond me and never used to be like that

@John *********

if monthly income increased, or savings did where combined to meet the 800k they would

@Stuart ********

technically, maybe am not an immig att.

Have found most IO are there to help, not obstruct.

But if they sence you're conning them.....don't.

They've seen it all !

@Stuart ********

now you are scaring me 😟 We had help from an accountant for the first extension (based on non-O retirement visa) last year just to save time, but we had all the necessary docs and met the requirements we could open bank account and immediately transferred the required 800k from our foreign account, we had to make a CoR, pictures of house, map showing where we live and went to the bank ourselves to collect statememt and letter. The agency just saved us a lot of time by collecting all our docs and passport and went to IO and 2 days later we had our EoS mult. entry. After several months we now know exactly what it needs and now we have more time to prepare. We will try next extension ourselves, why shouldn‘t this work for us without an agent?

@Stuart ********

don't think so Stuart in Chiangmai it's quite easy.

If changing in same province I can't assure, but 2 friends went from agent in pattaya to O in CM, recently

@Michael ************

then unless your embassy offers income verification, you'll never be able to get off the agent train once you start because you'll never be able to show you had 800,000 in the bank for 3 months after your previous extension and never let your balance drop below 400,000 the rest of the year, even if you're trying to do the monthly transfer method.

@John ********

That is good enough reason to use an agent. I see people all the time saying why pay an agent. Well three reasons. One it saves you all the hassle of doing it. Two, as you suggest maybe he doesn't have or want to have 800k sat in a bank account with no interest. Three also that 800k with the new tax laws could be liable for 20% tax, 16,000 baht. Hypotheticaly if say you paid an agent say 25,000 a year, that works out at 68 baht a day, hardly going to break the bank.