What are the best visa options for a couple planning to move to Thailand with one working remotely and the other retired?

@Scott ********

Luckily most men are not like you.

@Tony *********

non-o is legal as long as she works for an us company and has nothing to do with Thailand workers right?

@Greg **********

the wife could enter on Non O (retirement) and after first extension based on over 50 could/maybe change to based on being a dependant

@Jack ****

both of them are over 50 years old, so they will most probably have to do the financial proof EACH on their own. Many embassies won't issue a dependent Non-O visa for the wife. This is the big question they must ask the processing Thai embassy before they start to apply online

@Jack ****

The very first thing you need to do is find out if the embassy or consulate you'll be using allows applications for a "trailing spouse" visa based on you having a retirement or longstay visa.

Many Thai embassies have discontinued issuing this visa.

If they do allow it then you would apply for a non-O or non-OA retirement visa, depending on where you want to show your proof of funds. You would also apply for your wife's non-O trailing spouse visa right after you got issued your O or O/A visa

If they do not allow it, then you're not going to be retiring in Thailand until your wife turns 50 as well.

This is because your wife will have to qualify for a visa on her own and she won't be able to qualify for retirement visa until she's 50.

She could stay in Thailand on another visa type, like a Non-Imm-ED studying Thai language or on a DTV, until she hits the age when she can get her own “retirement visa”.

You cannot get a trailing spouse visa inside Thailand, and no other embassy in SE Asia offers this any longer.