Hi everyone,

I’m an American currently in Thailand looking to apply for a Non-O Retirement Visa (age 65). I’m considering using an agency to assist with the process for peace of mind and to reduce stress.

Could anyone here share what the *average cost* should be for an agency to handle this process?

Thanks so much for any guidance! 🙏

Morning 👋

I would like to buy a car in Thailand

Can I get a residence certificate ( needed to purchase a car ) without a

Long term / retirement Visa ?

Thanks

Sharing a personal experience. Questions and thoughts welcome. Extending a 90 Day Non-O Visa for one year at Bangkok Immigration Division 1 on 27 January. This is directed at anyone doing this for the first time ever or someone seeking a refresher. It’ll be long and not very informative for the experienced. Please keep it in mind.

Getting there: I’m located near the Sukhumvit Road BTS aka the Green Line. Left residence at 10:35. Arrived @ Mo Chit Station 50 minutes later cost 62 baht. Taxi arrived at BKK Imm Div 1 main entrance 11:45. 105 baht on the meter. Paid 120.

Initial Entry: Show passport; guard scans it. Pass through security with bag going through detection machine. Straight to information desk to pick up forms for the extension. Proceded directly to queue area. Received queue ticket section L1 at ~11:55. 28 people ahead in the queue.

Bangkok Bank Information: Walked straight down to bank. 11 people ahead of me in the queue. Filled out TM7 & associated forms in the bank. Queue moved slowly. Had copies made in the meantime. Took 55 minutes for me to make it to a bank employee. I had 800,000 baht letter made and also ordered a six month printout of my account activity, each cost 100 baht. (As a test I ordered a one year activity letter (200 baht) which you cannot get same day. It arrives by email one day later. Estimated earliest arrival time by bank employee was 2:00 pm. Arrived 1:20 pm.) Walked out of the bank at ~1:05 pm.

Back to copy area to make duplicates of the banking information just in case. Always have extra copies made.

Arrived area L1 at ~1:10 pm.

Documents I brought with my to the L1 Area to be processed. 1) 12 month lease signed by me & owner with owner Thai ID attached. Each page initialed/signed by me and owner; witness page also signed by real estate pro. 2) TM30 online version completed by real estate pro. 3) Passport main page, most recent stamp page & Non-O Page. 4) Bank Letter 800K. 5) 6 month activity report from bank. 6) Same day update: bank account activity. 7) Passport Photo.

Area L1 wait: Line moved quickly. Called to Immigration Officer desk at ~2:25 pm. & presented docs. Approval process was pleasant and quick. Signed a few docs again in front of the IO, drew a map of the area in which my building is located & paid fee. IO applied stamps and stapled slip informing me of date to do first 90 day report which must be done in person. I briefly surrendered passport and bank book for supervisor final approval. IO officer says everything OK; please wait outside. It’s now 2:40 pm.

~2:50 pm: Intern/Trainee: “Mr. Michael” She has passport and bank book and bill in hand. One year retirement visa stamp in passport. I’m good in the Kingdom for 1 year. I walk out the door at 3:00 pm.

Getting home: This is for the 30 day extension group at Laksi. Lak Si IT Square is 3 km from Imm Div 1. Aircon Taxi cost usually 70 baht. The Dark Red train line run by State Railway of Thailand is adjacent the Mall. Laksi to Bang Sue main railway station is 20 baht. MRT Blue Line from Bang Sue to Sukhumvit (connect to Asok BTS) is 37 baht. Your cost from there will vary. It’s a bit of a roundabout way to travel (takes about 40 min to reach the BTS) but you can chow down or shop at Laksi & Asok. The MRT and BTS are separate companies so each have a different rider smart card.

General Thoughts:

*Train transport was free due to the Lunar New Year celebration gift from the companies to the public. I believe the real bonus was so many people were celebrating the new year fewer people were seeking immigration services. If you eliminate the lunch hour (12:00-13:00) I was in and out in less than two hours. I consider that a quick processing time.

*You can get an 800K bank letter ahead of time and update your bank book using automated machines in the government complex. My time in the bank was much longer than I anticipated.

*The one year account activity letter from cannot happen same day. One year renewals: keep this in mind!

*The copy shop in the complex I use knows what stamps you are required for the each visa that I’ve needed.

*Making an appointment is great. Allow a little extra time so you are ready with all your paperwork. If you aren’t fully prepared you have to get a new queue ticket.

*Thank you if you made this far and are still awake. I’ll reply to questions if anyone has them.

i am currently on a tourist extension with a married to a thai 60 days extension still to come,

is there any route i can go to end up with a married visa, i already have over 400.000 in bank over a year.

or does the process have to be started out of country

tia bob

Hello,

I've applied more than 10 working days ago and it seems like my application hasn't been processed yet. Would it be a good idea to just go at the Embassy physically and ask about it or could they get annoyed by this and reject my application? That way I could also answer any questions they might have on the spot but that may backfire so I'd rather ask first. Thank you

I'm doing my first 90 day report in Bangkok in person after converting my non-O visa into a one year retirement visa. I have the small slip the immigration office gave me and my stamped passport. Is the 14 day prior and 7 day after reporting day rule still in effect? What other items do I need or are recommended that I bring with me? Is there a form I can pick up at the information desk? What copies, if any, should I make before I enter the queue? Thank you in advance.

I've been to Thailand several times but taking advantage of the tourist visa from 30 to 60 GG. I am retired and from January I would like to stop a bit more, say 3 or 4 months. What are the available options? I read something on the embassy's website but some things were not clear .... thank you for accepting me and thank you for any advices

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Sono stato in Thailandia diverse volte ma sfruttando il visto turistico dai 30 ai60 GG. Sono in pensione e da gennaio vorrei fermarmi un po' di più diciamo 3 o4 mesi .quali sono le opzioni disponibili ? Ho letto qualcosa sul sito dell'ambasciata ma non mi sono chiare alcune cose ....grazie di avermi accettato e grazie per eventuali consigli

Hi everyone. I am planning on moving to Thailand shortly, marrying my girlfriend then living here on a marriage visa. Two questions.

Which visa should I enter Thailand on?

Would I have any problem entering on a one way plane ticket?

Thanks

I have been doing the 800000 in the bank since I got here but am send over well over well over 800000 a year to live but not always 650000 in a month obviously watching the exchange rates and send more over when hi and topping up when need. My bank statement will show this. Can this be used as the 650000 per month as I herd they add all amounts together and divide by 12. But also herd they take monthly amount and go on the lowest amount sent. Can anyone give my best options to get my monthy income cover my visa requirements rather than the 8000000

Hey, does anyone have relatively recent experience of applying for a 90 Day Trailing Spouse Non-Imm 'O' based on their partner's OA visa in the UK? I last did this in 2021 so I'd be interested to know what documents they currently ask for and how easy the process is?