What is the process and requirements for obtaining a 10-year LTR visa in Thailand as a Wealthy Pensioner?

LTR Visa Wealthy Pensioner Category Thailand Immigration Visa Requirements Health Insurance Income Requirements Expat Life in Thailand BOI Thailand

Dec 29, 2022

2 years ago

Natalie ********

ORIGINAL POSTER

My husband and I just received our 10 year LTR visas today at the BOI, in the Wealthy Pensioner category. We chose to have him as the primary and me as a dependant, assuming it make things easier with the paperwork (although in the end that made very little difference). 

As it’s a new visa, there is still very little talk about it in this group so I’m happy to answer any questions.  Here are a few thoughts based on our personal experience:

- it took 5 weeks from start to stamp

- we did not go through an agent and we don’t feel that would have been necessary at all

- the BOI website was extremely user friendly 

- there are way less documents to produce compared to the Non-OA which made this much easier for us (we had started the Non-OA process and felt quite frustrated by it for a variety of reasons - it’s not that the Non-OA or the Non-O are difficult per say, but that some of the requirements didn’t suit our particular situation, or required multiple complicated steps to obtain in our circumstance)

- you can call the BOI to ask questions or get an update and they always pick up… always! They were incredibly pleasant to work with and treated us like VIPs. It did not feel like we were communicating with bureaucracy at all. 

- that said, you will need to call the BOI to get the file moving at times… for example, my status as a dependant indicated “approved” yet I wasn’t receiving any emails indicating next steps; we called and within 20 minutes, we received an email and were rolling again

- unlike other visas requests, there is no fee to be paid until all is approved and you are minutes away from receiving the stamp in your passport (so no stress of being rejected and wasting money)

- the fact that there is no reporting makes this an amazing visa to have (exiting and reentering the country once a year counts as your reporting) 

- we needed to show health insurance but unlike the non-OA, it doesn’t have to be a Thai insurance company.  We used IMG Global. 

All in all, a fairly stress free process!  I’m happy to answer any questions. 😁

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TLDR : Answer Summary

This post shares a personal experience regarding the process of obtaining a 10-year Long-Term Resident (LTR) visa in Thailand under the Wealthy Pensioner category. The user highlights the advantages of this visa, such as minimal documentation required compared to other visa types (like Non-OA), and that it took about five weeks to receive approval. Important points include no upfront payments until the final approval stage, the ease of communication with BOI representatives, and favorable treatment regarding health insurance, which can be obtained from international providers, not just Thai companies. The discussions also cover income requirements, taxation considerations, and a variety of related questions and clarifications from the community.

OA RETIREMENT VISA RESOURCES / SERVICES

Go to the OA Retirement Visa Section for information on requirements, including age restrictions, financial requirements, and necessary documentation.
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Alex **********

Hey Natalie and group! I had a few specific questions. Aside from your tax returns, did any of you show one year of bank statements to comply with 100K minimum in the bank instead of providing proof of health insurance? If so, did you cross out your statement account number or didn’t care about disclosing that? Also, if you did submit proof of health insurance, does Thailand require it to be the health insurance that you will use in their country, or only proof of the current insurance that you’re on in your country with a minimum of 50K inpatient? Thanks

2 months ago

Todd *********

@Alex *********

I didn’t show any tax returns as they have no need to understand the bigger picture. You just need to show that you have the income which I did with pension and bank statements. To meet the insurance requirement I simply showed 12 consecutive banking statements with the minimum. Did not cross out the number.

2 months ago

Alex **********

@Todd ********

Thanks! That makes things much easier. I’m just getting started on this board. Has there been any consensus for finding good comprehensive insurance once you arrived to Thailand? From the few friends I have on LTR I’ve heard a mixed bag.

2 months ago

Todd *********

@Alex *********

no problem finding insurance in Thailand. There are small offices everywhere but they are sellers for large global insurers like Allianz or AXA. They already have insurance policies in place to comply with LTR requirements. Just tell them you have the visa. Or are applying for it

2 months ago

Alex **********

@Todd ********

Excellent, thank you

2 months ago

Reply to

Alex **********

Lucia *********

Hi Natalie, Thank you for the information. my 1st question is, I believe they require proof of residency? Are they looking for a rental agreement for your stay in Thailand prior to being approved? I hate to get into a rental agreement for a year only to find out I maybe rejected. 2nd question, do you know if there is a penalty or a time limit on how long you can be out of the country (Thailand) during a year, for example, if I wanted to visit and stay in another country for say 6 months, would that be a problem?

2 months ago

Giovanni ****************

I just got my LTR today. The whole process, after an initial misunderstanding on how to handle the dependent visa, took less than 3 weeks overall. BOI LTR office very helpful. I felt like a VIP… 😊can’t say the same for the “regular” retirement visa at the Division 1 office 😳

a year ago

Giovanni ****************

Hello Natalie I am at the stage you described as : - that said, you will need to call the BOI to get the file moving at times… for example, my status as a dependant indicated “approved” yet I wasn’t receiving any emails indicating next steps; we called and within 20 minutes, we received an email and were rolling again. ===================== What did you do exactly? My wife/dependant is showing: CONSIDERATION BY AGENCIES, while mine: APPOINTMENT (already have an appointment for me). I don't understand what I am supposed to do for my dependant. Can you pls shed some light on this subject?

a year ago

GL ******

Hi just got my LTR WP and wondering how the benefits of the program has been 8 mths on. Thx

a year ago

Michael ********

I have a few years before retiring but like others on this thread, I am hoping to get this visa in place upon retirement and am a little confused how to show passive retirement income at the time of retirement.

My job will provide a nice pension and I have rental income. With those alone I will easily meet the 80K requirement to be a considered a « wealthy pensioner » for purposes of this visa.

When I retire, I will be given a statement showing my monthly pension income. Will that be sufficient to show passive income to qualify? (I will have previous tax returns showing my rental and dividend income)

a year ago

Todd *********

@Michael *******

yes. Should be no problem

a year ago

Reply to

Todd *********

Andrew *********

Your comments are very helpful

a year ago

Ettie *********

@Natalie *******

,

I hope you are fully enjoying Thailand! 🌞✨

Finally figured out how to add me as a dependent under my husband’s LTR. 😅

I have one more question 🙏🏻

Did you have to authenticate your French Marriage Certificate in a Canadian Embassy, before translation and notary in English in Chang Mai?

a year ago

Todd *********

@Ettie ********

good question. And

@Natalie *******

- what did they require of you for documentation to prove the marriage? Only a marriage certificate?

a year ago

Natalie ********

ORIGINAL POSTER

@Todd ********

no, I just sent it to translation here in Thailand, and then sent both copies. No « authentification » with the embassy.

a year ago

Todd *********

@Natalie *******

thx very much

a year ago

Reply to

Todd *********

Ettie *********

I hope you are fully enjoying Thailand! 🌞✨

Did you have to authenticate your French Marriage Certificate, before translation and notary in English?

a year ago

Bob *******

@Ettie ********

I am British

a year ago

Bob *******

No worries

a year ago

Ettie *********

@Bob ******

oops! Wrong spot, I was trying to ask

@Natalie *******

🙏🏻

a year ago

Reply to

Ettie *********

Greatly appreciate your post and sharing your experience! 🙂 We also filed under my husband's name for WFTP Visa. It's been about 4+ weeks and still waiting on a response. I'm a little confused what they mean by dependent on the application. Are we also considered dependents, since it's files under the husband's name? Usually that's for kids, how did you guys fill out that section. Or just left it blank?