For several years I have extended my retirement visa based on the 800,000/400,000 bhat bank deposit amounts. I want to change to the 65,000 bhat/ month deposit into my thai bank. The applicable paragraphs of the retirement extension requirements published by the Phuket immigration office state: "Either a letter and statement signed and stamped by the bank of a monthly transfer of at least THB 65,000 a month as income from abroad. And a copy of your bank book with the first page, and in case of proof of income by the bank, a copy of the last 2 months (one year by monthly proof of income)."
My question is, must I show both monthly income AND 800,000/400,000 in my bank statements for 1 year in order to switch the basis of financial requirements OR must I show only 2 months of monthly income and 800,000 before applying for my next extension?
Thanks in advance for your experienced answers.
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TLDR : Answer Summary
A user seeks guidance on transitioning from using an 800,000/400,000 baht bank balance for their Thai retirement visa extension to a monthly income of 65,000 baht. They inquire whether they need to prove both the previous bank balance and the monthly income for one year or just the last two months of income to qualify for the next extension. Responses clarify that they must maintain the 800,000/400,000 baht requirements during the transition, and must show consistent monthly deposits as evidence without dropping below the required amounts.
NON-O RETIREMENT VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES
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Just as an FYI, the Phuket IO I had didn't want to switch me to the income method. I had to insist, gently. I just kept saying "income" and pointing out the 12 monthly transactions on my bank statements.
Did you meet the full terms of your current extension based on 800k i.e. have the 800,000 baht for 3 months after receiving your extension and never dropping below 400,000 baht for the remainder of the 12 months?
When switching to the 65k per month you must not have your balance go below 400k for the remainder of the past years extension period. It’s also possibly an idea to put it back to 800k two months prior to applying - just in case something doesn’t work for the 65k method then you still qualify for the 800k banked money.
Where are you from? If your embassy provides an income affidavit then you have to use that for monthly income, if it doesn't you can use the 65k baht each and every month for a full 12 months prior to applying for an extension using that method. For the 12 months you are building up the required transfers you must also honour the terms of the current extension.
When you use the money in the bank method you have the 800,000 baht for 2 months before you apply for your extension and 3 months after, then it can never drop below 400,000 baht. These are the requirements for the 1 year extension and you must abide by these rules while you are waiting for your 1 year of monthly transfers. When you go to apply for the extension based on monthly transfers they will check your bank statements from the previous 12 months to make sure you meet the transfer requirement and also to make sure you never broke the requirements from your previous extension. If you let the account drop below 800,000 in the 3 months after your extension or below 400,000 during the rest of the year leading up to your new application, your application will be denied since you didn't meet the requirements of your previous extension.
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