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Do I need to cancel my Non-O Retirement visa before applying for a Non-B visa?

Non-B Visa Non-O Retirement Visa Visa Application Process Immigration Procedures Thailand Immigration Office

Aug 8, 2025

2 months ago

Jerry *******

ORIGINAL POSTER

I have learnt from this forum that if one wants to get a new Non-B, one has to cancel the Non-O Retirement at the office of issue (in my case, Chiangmai). But yesterday I queried this with the IO at the CNX immigration office, and he said that Non-O retirement cannot be cancelled like other visas. What one needs to do is just leave the country from any exit port, then get a new Non-B (in my case, the Royal Thai Embassy in Kuala Lumpur). So now I am confused. Do I need to cancel the existing Non-O retirement in Chiangmai, or simply let it lapse, and then apply for a new Non-B through the e-Visa portal in Kuala Lumpur? Please advise. Thank you.

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TLDR : Answer Summary

The user is confused about the process of switching from a Non-O Retirement visa to a Non-B visa. They learned that one would typically need to cancel the Non-O visa at the issuing office, but an immigration officer advised simply leaving the country and reapplying. Advice from community members suggests that if the user is on an extension based on retirement, they do not need to officially cancel the Non-O visa. Instead, leaving the country would suffice before applying for the Non-B visa, particularly at the Royal Thai Embassy in Kuala Lumpur.

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Tod *********

I'd wager you're not on any Non-O VISA and instead are on a year extension of stay based on retirement.

Those don't need to be cancelled, leaving the country and stamping out on it is sufficient when you go to get a new visa at a thai consulate, so just leave and go apply for the Non-B

Keep in mind since the thai consulates in Malaysia went to eVisa online all three (KL, Penang and Kota Bharu) became really NOT user friendly and you need to be prepared to hang out in Malaysia until that visa is approved or denied on the eVisa system once you apply.

There are certainly far more user friendly and faster processing time thai consulates (Vientiane or Savannakhet) to use

2 months ago

Jerry *******

ORIGINAL POSTER

@Tod ********

Thanks for the information. I have technically a retirement visa, so I will just leave as advised. BTW, I am a Malaysian citizen, working as an academic here for 30 years at a university with 12 years in Riyadh, and living in Thailand for 45 years. All my degrees are local (from AU, Sasin, and AIT), and I am 65 now, but have been approached to work with a long-established private university, with an official letter from the university, and also with a police clearance (meeting all documentary evidence). So if I do go to the Thai Embassy in KL, will it be easier? Or should I just opt for maybe Vientiane or Suwannaket as recommended?

2 months ago

Tod *********

@Jerry ******

I𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗮, 𝘀𝗼 𝗜 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗱. one final time, you don't have ANY visa and if you looked at your passport you'd see the stamp in it says "extension of stay permitted until" and has a date <- that is NOT a visa 🙂

Be that as it may

My advice about Penang, KL and Kota Bharu stands, since they went to the eVisa online web portal (like every thai embassy in the world did) they got to be not that fast in processing.

As long as you know you stay in Malaysia until your visa is approved, go to KL upload your application, pay online and wait for it to be approved.

ALL the consulates require the same documentation to get the visa and I only pointed out that both Vientiane and Savannakhet are faster processing time

2 months ago

Jerry *******

ORIGINAL POSTER

@Tod ********

thank you very much for the very best guidance

2 months ago

Tod *********

@Jerry ******

right after Malaysia switched over to eVisas they had REALLY fast processing then for some reason it just got longer and longer and no one could figure out why 🙁

For regular Non-Imm visas (Non-O, Non-B, Non-ED) Vientiane and Savannakhet are about 3-5 business day processing from the day you pay for the visa At those two consulates you apply online, submit the application, get the confirmation, then go to the consulate to pay in person in cash).

Who knows? Maybe you'll luck out and have fast processing thru the consulate in KL..

I'm only relating what people who used that consulate were saying about the processing time

2 months ago

Jerry *******

ORIGINAL POSTER

Thank you so much for the insights

2 months ago

Reply to

Jerry *******

Adam *******

@Tod ********

provided of course that he didn't already get a multiple reentry stamp...

2 months ago

Tod *********

@Adam ******

still no issue going out, buying a new Non-B visa even if you have a year extension w/a multiple re-entry stamp.

You just print the PDF from the new visa you applied for and tell them that's what you want to stamp in on when you come back

Thousands of people have extensions w/re-entry, go get DTV's and come back in on it, without issue

You can't have a valid VISA and apply for another visa, you CAN have a still valid extension of stay w/re-entry and go get a new VISA at a consulate though

2 months ago

Reply to

Tod *********

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