Is it a good idea to switch from a Retirement Visa to a DTV in Thailand?

@Luit ****************

true if people are honest and take classes as they should. From what i have read here most people just want to get the visa and than could care less about classes or requirements. I really feel the soft options will encounter problem with people “ being out of status” from an immigration standpoint. Someone last week got approved with one month of gym classes they can potentially stay in thailand for 5 years which really does not make anysense. There will be checks for those i anticipate 🙏

@Guillermo ********

Indeed a lot of people here obviously plan to abuse the visa once they got approved. That might also be the reason a lot of people do care if there are checks implemented at entry of the country. Legal applicants will have no problems with checks.

@Luit ****************

Im 100 % there will be checks. Than you will see people here tell you not to travel outside thailand and so on . I did my application as a business owner and plan to hold the business for 5 years. Yes my application required more paperwork but those that marely provided a gym class for a month will also get to do more things once they make the changes . I really hope to be wrong but it will be difficult to control all these people with no checks. Remember covid times … QR codes green line etc 🙏

@Guillermo ********

maybe, but then on flip side if its not what intended then the medical path makes absolutely zero sense as no one is doing 5 years or medical or dental treatment, even one year would be pushing it in 99.99% of cases

Anonymous participant 314 and to further show it makes no sense existing, there is already a different medical visa that covers however long you needed, with no limits of stay, so if people really had multi year needs and if really need to keep up the "activity " to be still eligble, DTV would be just an inferior copy. Nearly same with Mauy Thai

Anonymous participant 314 true i really feel whoever made this visa really did not anticipate the demand and amount of fraud misuse etc. Why would someone open a company now or pay for the expensive priviledge visa . They open the tunnel and i dont see this ending well for other visa categories as nobody would apply for those anymore . This is what i think could be wrong but i dont see this visa staying in its current form unless THEY DO MAJOR CHANGES 🙏

@Guillermo ********

Don't think the creators (foriegn office) really care that much about your concerns. They know elite/privilege market is pretty much tapped out, but they want part of the growing digital nomad/remote worker market (as a lot of countrys do). Thai economy is in trouble and they will take foriegn cash injections from wherever they can get it to keep things flowing. Only see crack down coming if one of two things happen, they start finding lots of people on DTV illegally working in country (and if that happens we just know its going to Chinese or Burmese) or immigration (who hate DTV as costing them tea money and side buisness income) manage to raise above the foriegn office in the power struggle (which currently doubt will happen due to the economy argument, but the people working ilegally would strengthen immigration)

Anonymous participant 314 im with you on the Thai Economy but before the DTV it was farely difficult to find a visa here without paying top dollars. We look into opening a business and all of those things and it was around 5k to even start the process with. no guarantees . Having a visa that basically allows you to stay in thailand for 5 years for 340 usd is TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE IN MY WORLD so i anticipate someone is loosing in this game. I dont know if you follow the lounges at bkk. Priority Pass used to be widely available in maybe 8-9 lounges. Just last month this all change and all suddently there is only 1 type of lounge that allows the card . This all change overnight i guess some ABUSE WAS HAPPENING AT OTHER LOUNGES AND THEY WENT FROM 100 to 0. Mark my words this visa will not stay alive in its current form. I really hope to be wrong but i dont see it any other way unfortunaltely for us 🙏

@Wannikea ********

cash tying up is not a requirement

@Luit ****************

I'm talking about non O

@Wannikea ********

non-o does not need tying money to a bank, DTV does tie 500K

@Luit ****************

you have no idea what you're talking about, unless you're doing it illegally, suggest you read the requirements for a non O based on being over 50

@Wannikea ********

It is you that don't know the rules and then think others don't know what they are talking about. you should read the requirements yourself before you put misinformation here and are rude to others!

Non o based on being over 50 is definitely possible without having money on a Thai bank account, you can also use the option of monthly income.

Anonymous participant 314 you can jump from a tourist type stamp to another visa, but for others you can't

@John *********

to say you save nothing over 5 years with the annual cost of renewal and the multi entry permit is of course incorrect.

I personally travel every couple of months outside of Thailand and historically had to plan to be inside Thailand to renew. The DTV allows me to do as I wish for 5 years without ever having to visit immigration, which again is another cost in both time and expenses. So for me the DTV has many benefits over the retirement visa

@Ray ****

you don't need to visit immigration but once a year on a retirement visa. Everything else can be done online

@John *********

fair enough but retirement with multiple entry stamp over 5 years is still more expensive than DTV and no need to visit immigration ever if you travel as I do

@Ray ****

How do you take the continuous soft power expenses in your calculation? Or are you not retired an have a remote job?

@Luit ****************

I'm coming out of retirement. Hence the major reason to change