Do I need to cash my pension to apply for a retirement visa in Thailand?

My opinion:

1. There are MANY different types of pensions, and I'm not sure what different types exist in your country.

2 You need to find a visa to enter Thailand, and then once you enter, you can get an extension of stay

3. To get a visa, you DO NOT need money in a Thai bank account. You do need to show the appropriate money in your local bank account.

4. The Thai embassy of London can be found at , they would know if you need to cash out your pension before you qualify for a Non-O/ Non-OA visa. I do not know if the Non-O visa is being sold, but I believe the Non-OA visa is currently sold.

I believe this answers your question. For details on how to enter Thailand (i.e. the Certificate of Entry, Insurance requirements, Quarantine requirements, etc) search Facebook for one of the many "Farangs Stranded Abroad" groups, they can answer the entry related questions.

Problem is the easy to type name retirement visa.

It could be a Non Immigant O or O-A or O-X visa which you get from your local Thai Embassy before you make your way into Thailand or

the Extension of Stay based on being over 50 years of age, which you get from your local Immigration Office when you are in Thailand.

Without knowing the country, only advice is check the website of the Thai Embassy in your country for the requirements.

I'm deleting a bunch of comments. The OP is *NOT* inside Thailand, and is wanting to get an original Non-O / Non-OA visa to enter Thailand. Advice on getting an extension of stay is helpful, but not needed RIGHT NOW.

@Martin ****************

Based on my experience in the US you will not have to cash out when first acquiring the visa from within your country. That is what you are doing, right? I only showed proof that I had the funds in some form when applying. But after acquiring the visa and getting here then you will have to either get the 800k baht into a Thai account for your first extension or immediately start monthly transfers of 65k baht per month. So I think you have until late in your first year to get the 800k baht on deposit. 2 months before you extend? But using the 65k baht per month international deposit you will have to begin right away as they will want a year's worth of monthly deposits proven when you extend.

There is also a monthly income option. You can meet the requirements if you can show monthly income of 65,000 baht per month.

I don't believe you have to cash in your entire pension, depending on your circumstances.