From our recent applicants, we’ve seen some approvals in Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines even when the THB 500,000 had only been in the account for a few weeks. These three countries tend to be more lenient.

That said, visa policies can change anytime, so it’s always safer to hold the funds longer if you can.

Other factors like having funds in excess of 500k or showing some regular income can also help strengthen the application.

The most important requirement is having at least THB 500,000 in your personal bank account held for 3 months before the application. This applies across all DTV application types.

While there’s no officially stated minimum income, if you’re applying under the freelancer category and your documents don’t make strong sense and income is lower at the moment, it may affect the approval chance when they question how you can support yourself in the long term.

From our experience working with some other content creators, the embassy often looks for:

1. How much money you make through YouTube or your content platform

2. What kind of content will you be creating in Thailand? e.g. filming daily life, showing low cost of living, and why Thailand is your chosen base

It’s helpful to include a cover letter explaining these two points as well as a link to your channel just to make it easy for the approving officer to view the application at a glance.

If you're open to other options, applying under the Thai Soft Power track (e.g. certified cooking school or cultural program) can be more straightforward. Your current income level wouldn’t be an issue under this route — in fact, your creator background will even help strengthen your case!

Thank you for taking the time and sharing your experience despite meeting with unkind responses in past posts. It takes courage to share and help others sharing these firsthand insights!

Congratulations on the approval! 🎉

A few additional tips:

- Please ensure you print out your supporting documents, especially your e-visa, when you enter Thailand.

- Double-check your passport stamp when passing through immigration. There have been cases where the officer mistakenly issued the -day visit visa instead of the 180-day DTV stamp.

- It’s also helpful to be mentally prepared in case you’re asked any questions regarding your intentions in Thailand and how you plan to support yourself. While this doesn't happen often, it's always good to be ready.

Your answers should align with your intentions, such as your remote work as business owners!

If you’re applying under the dependent route, you’ll need to first get approval for the main applicant before submitting for dependents. The financial requirement is 500,000 THB per dependent — this needs to be clearly shown in a bank account for at least 3 months at the time of application.

For applications in Dubai, the 500k THB must usually be held in a UAE bank account for 3 full months.

Hope this helps! We support soft power DTV applications regularly and are happy to share what we’ve seen work for others

It depends on the country of application, and your nationality can also play a role.

From our experience, the embassy will look at the overall financial profile. Applicants with funds in excess of the minimum THB 500,000 or those showing consistent monthly income tend to have a smoother approval process, even with slightly shorter bank statement durations.

We’ve seen several of our applicants get approved for the DTV visa from Vietnam, Indonesia, and the Philippines, even with bank statements covering less than 3 months in some cases.

Here’s some clarification based on our experience assisting other DTV applicants:

180-day rule: Yes, with the DTV visa, you can stay up to 180 days in a calendar year. If you’d like to stay longer, the recommended approach is to exit and re-enter Thailand — even a short trip (e.g., 1 day) is usually fine. This allows you to get a new entry stamp for the following calendar year.

Visa extension: While it’s technically possible to apply for an extension at a Thai immigration office, we don’t recommend this. Your entire case will be reviewed again and often under greater scrutiny, which increases the risk of delays or rejection. A border run is much simpler and more predictable.

90-day report: Yes, if you stay in Thailand for 90 consecutive days, you’ll need to submit a TM47 form. This needs to be done in person each time you re-enter Thailand, there are several agencies that assist to do this reporting for you so you don't have to spend half a day waiting there.

Tax clarification: You are only taxed on foreign income remitted into Thailand. If you don't transfer money into Thai banks or use it in-country, it may not be taxed — but always best to seek advice depending on your setup.

Happy to share that we’ve assisted over 100+ DTV applicants so are quite familiar with the process. Feel free to ask anymore questions you have.

Thanks for sharing, Samgan! Yes, we’ve heard similar feedback .. the Hanoi consulate has been a bit stricter recently, with more document checks and slower processing times. Your one-year stay shouldn’t be a problem as long as your documents (entry stamp, bank proof, and employment evidence) are ok.

As for applying under the Workation category vs Thai Soft Power (like Muay Thai or Cooking School), both are valid, and your choice should depend on which documentation is easier for you to provide. Most applicants take the Thai Soft Power route if they don’t have clear employment contracts or freelance invoices. Thai Soft Power route has generally had an easier time getting approval as well compared to Workation category.

You don’t necessarily need an agent, but it helps if you're unsure about how to present your case. We’ve worked with several visa agencies and helped over 120 successful applicants through our cooking school so we are quite familiar with the process. Happy to share more if you'd like guidance or a second opinion.

Wishing you the best whichever path you take!

Thanks for sharing your experience Roman! It’s very helpful, especially for applicants going through non-standard financial setups liked fixed deposit accounts.

From what we’ve seen helping over 100+ DTV applicants (including many business owners), it’s quite common for embassies to request a clear 3-month continuous statement showing the required THB 500,000 balance. Even if the money is moved around for interest purposes, they usually want to see that the funds are consistently available and traceable.

Cover letters explaining deposit activity (as both you and Frederick mentioned) will normally clear things up with the embassies.

As of now, there’s no official announcement about how long the DTV program will remain active — it’s still quite new and evolving, and policies may change depending on the Thai government. So if you’re eligible and interested, we’d recommend applying sooner rather than waiting until 2026, as there’s no guarantee the program will still be available in the same form.

Also, keep in mind that different embassies have different processing styles. Some only require proof of funds at the time of application, while others are becoming stricter — for example, asking for 3 or 6 month bank statements or proof that the applicant is physically in the country (like entry stamps or local receipts).

Another important update: some embassies that previously accepted 3-month programs now only approve DTV visas for 6-month or longer programs. We're not sure if the minimum course duration or criteria will change again in the future — another reason to consider applying sooner if possible.

Congratulations! That is indeed very quick and thank you for sharing your experience with the community.

- Do print out your supporting documents especially your e-visa when coming into Thailand.

- Check your passport stamp when passing the immigration as there has been cases that the officer mistakenly uses the day visit visa instead of 180 days DTV stamp.

- Will be good to mentally prepare the small chance that they ask some questions about your intention in Thailand and how you will support yourself. It doesn't happen often but it's good to be prepared if it comes to that.