Arrive, show your visa and the TDAC, and get stamped in for a 90-days stay permit.

*** immediately meet the agent.

*** first, rent the condo.

With the agent and the rental contract, visit Immigration and register your name in the premises per TM30

*** get a “certificate of residence” from Immigration. Get a Thai mobile SIM-card and number.

***visit a bank (preferably Kasikorn, SCB or Bangkok Bank) and get your bank account opened. If you meet incompetent and unwilling staff, use an agent to get the bank account opened.

In Pattaya this service costs around 5000 THB. I don’t know about Hat Yai, maybe your condo agent can help

***once your account is opened, transfer a minimum of 800,000 THB onto it from your home bank. You can use a direct transfer or use WISE or Revolut for this transfer.

***visit Immigration and ask them for the handout list of requirements needed for the “extension of temporary stay permit based on retirement”

*** once the money has “seasoned” in your account for 2 months, and you are in the last 30 days of your 90-days stay permit, you can apply for the “1-year Extension of the Stay Permit based on Retirement” (EOS). The fee is 1900 THB.

Always buy a single re-entry permit for 1000 THB on top of the 1-year EOS

You will need the “bank letter of guarantee” – a statement that the deposit has been in your account for the required 2 months. A freshly updated bankbook, a fresh receipt from a small withdrawal at an ATM from the same day. Some passport pictures (some Immigrations do them digitally). Your passport, filled out forms for the applications (can be had at the Immigration office) Have all documents listed on the handout list of requirements ready

Good Luck and happy days in Thailand

for your own safety I would say keep the 800,000 THB in your account from up to 2 months before you next application. After you have switched to the 12-months transfers method and been issued the next 1-year extension, you are safe to take the money out

if you use WISE, you can send in one swoop up to 2 million Baht to a Bangkok Bank and a Kasikorn account, and 1.5 million Baht to a SCB account. To all other bank accounts (only 4 others left if you use WISE) the maximum for one swoop is 500,000 THB

@Dieter *********

We already exchanged each other in another group.

***you cannot get a Thai bank account opened on a touristic entry, and the DTV is a “tourist visa-class”

*** you cannot do the “change of visa type” from a DTV to a 90-days Non-Imm-O Visa.

The DTV is a multi-entry 5-year visa. It needs to get cancelled before you will be able to apply for another visa or the “change of visa type”. You cannot apply for a new visa as long as you are on a still valid visa. And since the DTV is a multi-entry visa type, you just cannot invalidate it by exiting Thailand without a re-entry permit.

***you will need to ask the embassy that issued your DTV if they are willing to invalidate it

*** You have you can use the 5-years DTV fully up, make a border bounce every 180 days, and just let the visa validity expire, before you apply for a 90-days Non-Imm-O visa either anywhere in the World, or inside Thailand on Immigration by applying for the “change of visa type”

@Stuart ********

the agent I know was doing it under the preamples of said joint service, of doing the change to a Non-O and the extension. But two weeks ago this window eventually closed on him. I doubt if Thai Visa Centre can still do it, maybe your info is obsolete, maybe I am wrong and TVC still has their fingers on a corrupt official both inside the bank and inside Immigration

@Graham *****

It doesn't matter if he didn't have a certificate of residence. Overall, the possibility of being able to get a bank account opened on a touristic entry, got stalled by February 2025, and it was briefly possible afterwards if you applied for the "change of visa type" to the 90-days Non-Imm-O visa. But a couple of weeks ago, this window of opportunity also closed. . . . at the moment there is no agent who can get around it

@Matts ************

how long ago was that? That possibility got stalled by February 2025, and it was briefly possible afterwards if you applied for the "change of visa type" to the 90-days Non-Imm-O visa. But a couple of weeks ago, this window of opportunity also closed

@Stuart ********

mate, it is not possible any more, not even with the help of an agent. . . . . maybe some day in the future, another window of corruption will open, but that's just speculation. At the moment we speak, there is no agent in the whole of Thailand who now can open a bank account for somebody who did a touristic entry

@James ******

not possible any more, not even through an agent

@Ayoub *********

on a touristic entry, you cannot get a Thai bank account opened any more, since February 2025. It was briefly possible with the help of an agent, if you bought their service to apply for the "change of visa type" from the tourist entry to a 90-days Non-Imm-O Retirement Visa, but about 2 weeks ago an agent informed me that this possibilty got discontinued. So it is not possible any more even if you try an agent. Maybe a window will open, again ? Corruption is rampant.