What are the options for opening a bank account on a tourist visa in Thailand and pursuing long-term residency?

Seek an agent who will sort it all for you. You don't need the 800k in a bank.

use an agent

I just got the new DTV Visa - 180 days on a single entry and extendable by another 180 days at the local immigration office - it is a 5 year multiple entry visa all you have to show is you have money in your overseas account.. THB 500k for the last 3 months - costs circa 10,000 THB

You could apply for a Non OA 2 years or OX 5 year from the UK might be easier But you will need to have the correct insurance for either of those visa

sorry cannot help

I need more INFO For The Work From US visa! Got The Job! But confused by The Visa!

Netty helped me get a Bangkok Ac

I only had 1 month left on my tourist visa

Chat to Sylvia Corey on FBook

can get visa for .

I can only say from my experience of living in Thailand, is the Thai's change the rules on a regular basis! I would never retire in Thailand because of the constant changes, but I would love to spend more time in Thailand! Yes, I don't have the information you are asking for!

Get an agent

We are talking about the most common and persisting misunderstandings regarding the rules that come with applying for the “retirement visa” and the subsequent “one-year extension of stay permit based on retirement”

In order to apply for the “90-days Non-Imm-O retirement visa” through the online E-visa system at the Royal Thai Embassy of your home country,

You can use the proof of income of a monthly minimum of 65.000.- THB, by using your pension letters. Or you use a deposit of a minimum of 800.000.- THB or the equivalent in your home country, or on your bank account in your home country or anywhere in the World

However, for the application inside Thailand, for the “1-year extension of stay permit” out of the 90-days Non-Imm-O retirement visa, if you are a citizen of a country, whose embassy in Thailand does not issue the “income affidavit any more (these are the embassies of USA, UK and Australia)

you would need proof by a “12 months bank statement”, showing that for the past 12 months, you have been transferring from abroad to your Thai bank account a minimum of 65.000.- THB, consecutively month for month

If your embassy still issues an affidavit of income, you can use this method for the financial proof, which needs a monthly income or pension of a minimum of 65.000.- THB

For British, Australian and U.S. citizens, in the first year there is no other way around, than depositing a minimum of 800.000.- THB in your Thai bank account and use this deposit for the financial proof which is required for the application to the “one year extension of stay permit based on being over 50/retired”

The alternative would be, if you don’t have that kind of money or are not willing to deposit in a Thai Bank account is, paying an agent a hefty sum (mostly in the range of 30.000.- THB) to “arrange” the requirements (which means bribing an Immigration officer to look the other way)

The downside is, you will get stuck with the agent for a while. You will have to pay to get an agent to help with bank account.

Then you will need an agent to fix your 800k issue. You will be trapped on the agent wheel.

To qualify you will need the 800k by the agent the first year and simultaneously deposit 65k per month for 12 months without fail, to qualify the 2nd year for income method.

If you use an agent you will not qualify for the 2nd year as you did not have the money in the first year . . . . So will use an agent, again and again.

The only way to escpe the agent’s wheel is:

As soon as you have accumulated the 12 consecutive months of 65.000.- THB transfers (and this will be some time during the second "agent-year") all you need to do is exit Thailand without a re-entry permit. This will kick the agent from the plate.

By this you will invalidate the current "1-year extended stay permit". And once you re-enter Thailand "visa-exempt", you will get stamped in for 60 days. You can then immediately apply for the "change of visa type" from the "exempt entry" to the "90-days Non-imm-O retirement visa" all by yourself, using the bank statement proof of income of 12 months transfers.

This application costs a 2000.- THB fee and you can theoretically do it all by yourself, or accept the help of an agent for the simplified- legal! - service.

NOTE: it is income OR deposit. And there is a third method, called the “combination method”: a combination mix of income and deposit. Some immigrations don’t allow the combination method in the first year.

On the day of application, the 800.000.- THB need to have “seasoned” in your account for two months, and this has to be proven with the “bank letter of guarantee” (rab roong thanakan).

After been issued the “Extension”, the 800K need to remain in the account for 3 more months. After these 3 months, the deposit shall never go under 400.000.- THB. And two months before your application for the next “one-year Extension of Stay”, the minimum of 800.000.- THB have to sit in the account, again

When you get issued the “1-year extension of stay permit”, you should buy a re-entry permit. A re-entry permit will keep your stay permit alive if you exit Thailand before the expiry of the 1-year stay permit.

A single re-entry permit is 1000.- THB on Immigration. A multi re-entry is 3800.- THB, with this one you could exit and re-enter as many times as you wish during the stay permit period.

ATTN:

There is another road to the “1-year ‘Extension of Stay based on retirement”

You can arrive visa-exempt or on a 60 days single-entry Tourist Visa, you will get stamped in for 60 days.

You visit Immigration and show them a bankbook with proof you got 800.000.- THB in your bank account, and a proof that this money came from abroad.

You apply for the “change of visa type” from the touristic entry to a “90-days Non-Imm-O retirement visa”

To be allowed to apply you need a minimum of 15 days left on your stay permit stamp. And you need a rental contract.

They will issue the visa for 14 days “under consideration”

After this period, you pick up the 90-days Non-Imm-O visa stay permit stamp

From up to 30 days (in some places 45 days) before the 90-days stay permit expires, you can apply to the “1-year extension of stay based on retirement”

The requirements are the same as explained above. You can find them when you google for “change of visa type immigration Thailand” and click on number 9

Good Luck and a great time in Thailand

I got bankaccount in Bangkok Bank on a 30 days touristvisa using the adress for my hotel .

Bangkok bank between Sukhumvit soi 12 and 14

Account with tourist visa should be no problem

Just buy property here. Gets you residency with which you can get a bank account! Forget all these 'agents' theyll just take your money.

The agent for visa said I needed a phone to download app for the retirement visa I’m applying for .

Is it possible to open a bank account without a Thai mobile ? Do all banks need apps , I would prefer just to have an account with a card to withdraw/ deposit and pay for goods. I’m not keen on online banking. Very old fashioned I know before I get stick from members. I have uk phone and someone said just to get a Thai sim and put it in. I want to keep uk phone for my other contacts , so where can I get a Thai smart phone reasonably priced and a network sim which I could use separately from my uk phone.

@Ian *******

messages

@Khun ***************

Agent will open bank account and arrange visa. Unless your embassy in Thailand will provide an affidavit confirming your income, I think you have gew other options. Shop around. In Pattaya it's possible to find an agent to do this for 12,500 but some will quote many thousands more

Agents are not needed for any Visa.

just put the money in a Thai bank, they do not care how you get it. Alternatively use an agent to circumvent things.

800k is what $23.000 US. take out a loan in your home country on the strength of your 65k income, deposit in Thai bank and in the second year use your income of 65k to meet requirements. I won’t get offended if you say I’m wrong 😑

First thing to say is that without having the 800k to put in the bank your not going to be able to do it yourself whether you have a bank account or not. That means your only option is to use an agent to both open the account and seed it with money, and yes you will have problems trying to extend it yourself the following year so will likely be stuck with an agent.

Retirement visa. No deposit needed.

I went to few banks in Chiang Mai to open an account and I was informed that I should enter Thailand on a Non O Visa if I need to open a bank account.

Then I went to Thai Consulate in Sydney to apply for a Non O Visa and they informed me that I must have a bank account to apply for a Non O Visa?

I’m confused???

If you're willing to travel to Hua Hin, I know a very reliable and honest agent that will do it for you. 2,000 baht is her charge. Pay after you get the account so there is little risk

Reading your info and assuming you are in Thailand and want to stay there the easiest solution would be to use an agent for first year, get your 800k sorted to use next year, leave without reentry permit to get off that 'agent' job, turn around come back in visa exempt, apply for Non Imm O in country. You've got the bank account with 800k in it now, you'll need to use that for the first year, then for following years you can use the 65k monthly transfers to meet bank requirements. Don't think you're stuck with an agent forever but given your situation that might be the way to go.

By your own account you do

not have the 800k and will not be able to qualify on your own.

You will.have to pay to get an agent to help with bank account.

Then you will need an agent to fix your 800k issue.

You will be trapped on the agent wheel.

The UK embassies do not endorse income, so you cannot use that method to get your visa.

To qualify you will need the 800k the first year and simultaneously deposit 65k per month for 12 months without fail to qualify the 2nd year for income method.

If you use an agent you will not qualify for the 2nd year as you did not have the money in the first place.

So will use an agent, again and again.

I tried to do it for ed but as i was over 50 could not

I got the 12 month retirement visa

@Ian *******

Agents in Pattaya start @฿4,200 for a Bangkok bank account. That will make everything easier. Once everythings completed shift the account up to your home province at ฿400,000 per transfer.

Good luck.

very easy to open bank account using an agent

Agents used to be able to open a bank account up for-I’m not sure if this has changed or how much it would costs. Hopefully this is still an option for you and someone can recommend a reliable agent

Just find an agent to open the bank account. You don't need them to do the 800,000 as well, just the bank account. You can do the rest.

Most banks will not open accounts for ED visa, so that's not an option either. Or you go to a Thai embassy outside of Thailand and apply for the non-O retirement visa, which is what you should have done from the beginning.