I doubt #1 will work. Inquired about the same last year with the General Consulate Frankfurt. They said this would only be accepted with a corresponding Thai Tax ID alongside the rental contract. Catch here: Hardly any Thai would have this. Went for an alternative visa solution then. But who knows … with Thai authorities nothing is ever predictable or applied in a unified manner. So asking the respective RTE in your country won’t hurt.

@Chris *******

Had you asked, they would have replied - and I quote from my own experience: „One original, one job.“ Tried to give the DLT a copy only - showing them the original to proof validity of the copy. Forget it. Bureaucratic mess - everything official in Thailand.

I am surprised they accepted a mere TM30 receipt to begin with. Usually, they insist on a a "Residence Certificate" from immigration, instead. Original only, of course.

@Brian *********

Ok. Lucky you, then. In my experience, their websites - if working at all - are notoriously outdated. Plus the fact that most immigration offices have deviating rules or additional local requirements.

@Brian *********

If only. Not in my experience.

@Garrett **********

Interesting. Allowed again? They rolled back on restricting COVID extensions to tourist visa and visa exemption holders only? Is that confimed?

No. No change to STV (or any other tourist visa) in-country. But they should not have asked for pre-paid proof for 9 months. They are within their rights to ask for 3 months proof though, for the STV. This is why it’s such an unattractive visa.

@Tod ********

There still are. Because the drive though is the only place to do 90 day at that immigration office.

You even can even (or rather have to) walk through it. At least in Chiang Mai for 90 day reports. Oh what a joy standing there in between running cars.

@Eti ********

That would be new to me. Not sure how credible this article is. Also, I doubt many Digital Nomands would have $1 million is assets.

When I contacted the BOI Smart Visa Unit about the requirements in early February, the following were the communicated requirements. The last requirement was the one that would equally exclude most of remote workers / digital nomands:

Qualifications and criteria:

- Personal income of no less than $80,000/year in the past two years before applying for the visa. In case of annual personal income below $80,000 but no less than $40,000 in the past two years, applicants must have a master's degree (or above), own intellectual property, or receive Series A funding

- Health insurance policy of no less than $50,000 coverage through the entire period of stay in Thailand or social security healthcare, which insures hospitalization treatment in Thailand.

- At least five years of working experience in the relevant field to the current employment.

- Current employer must have one of the following characteristics;

a) a public company listed on the stock exchange in any country

b) a private company that has been in operation for at least three years and has total combined revenue of more than $150 million in the last three years