Hi all! Any Canadians in the room? I'm a retired man from Montreal now living in Thailand but still on visa exemptions because filling the form is complicated, more than I thought.
Last week, I was in Laos, in order to get the 3 month retirement visa. After weeks of gathering all the documents, I felt it would go smoothly.
I had the photos, I had proof of health insurance, and certifications about my retirement incomes, both from my personnal pension plan (the canadian embassy in Thailand does no longer provide proof of income) and also from the Québec pension plan. I am above the required 65 000 bahts monthly.
I had a big surprise though : I needed to get a criminal record clearance from the RCMP. Never had I heard about such a requirement for the thai visa. Afterall, my finger prints were taken each time I arrived at Suvarnabhumi airport and I never had a problem there.
So here I was in Vientiane, stuck with this obstacle. How do I get such a clearance? I learned that I needed my fingerprints taken by the local police, send them to Canada for an RCMP approved firm to digitalize them and transfer the results to the RCMP. This process would take weeks, especially since the postal service is not at full gear in Canada.
The thing is that the way the questionnaire is built, you don't know all the requirements in advance because if you are missing a document, you cannot move forward to the next page. So I am wondering what the next surprise will be.
Seriously considering hiring an agency to get the visa quickly but finding one at a decent price is quite a challenge. It would cost somewhere between 50 and 60 k$.
Any brilliant advice would be greatly appreciated at this point.
Thanks in advance folks.
TLDR : Answer Summary
A retired Canadian expat living in Thailand faces challenges while attempting to secure a retirement visa. He discovered unexpected requirements like a criminal record clearance from the RCMP, which he was unaware of when applying for his visa. He learns that he applied for the wrong visa, which contributed to his difficulties. Community members suggest that he should have applied for a Non-O visa instead, which has simpler requirements. They advise hiring an agency for assistance in the process, highlighting alternatives that exist for a smoother application.
NON-O RETIREMENT VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES
- Go to the Retirement Visa Section for information on requirements, including age restrictions, financial requirements, and necessary documentation.
- For immediate assistance, contact Thai Visa Centre directly via LINE at @ThaiVisaCentre or Email them.
- Explore recent discussions by using the Non-O Retirement Visa tag in the search box at the top of the page.
- Join the Thai Visa Advice Facebook Group to ask your questions, and get advice from others.
