@Andi **********

What most people who use WISE do never understand:

If you wish to do a FAIR comparison between a WISE transfer and the exchange of CASH in the BKK Airport basement, is the fact that on the WISE website, you must look at the exchange rate for which the money arrives in the recipient's bank account.

You mustn't look at the exchange rate WISE gives you! Because this is not the “end-rate” you receive. WISE will deduct fees, and that’s what many people do not take into account in their calculations

I can rest assure you: exchanging cash in the airport basement will ALWAYS give you a better rate than the one you get with a WISE transfer.

@Ned ******

there is no GREEN Superrich in the airport basement. And further, the ORANGE Superrich will give you a BETTER exchange rate than the green Superrich

@Ronald ********

you are WRONG regarding a WISE transfer would give you more than one of the THREE money changers in the airport basement. If you wish to do a FAIR comparison, on the WISE transparent listing, you must look at the exchange rate for which the money arrives in the recipient's bank account. You mustn't look at the exchange rate WISE gives you! I can rest assure you: exchanging cash in the airport basement will ALWAYS give you a better rate than the one you get with a WISE transfer.

You can fill out and submit the TDAC (Thailand Digital Arrival Card) starting three days/72 hours before your planned entry; it only takes five minutes on your home computer, it takes a little bit longer on the smartphone

Every non-Thai citizen is required to have completed the TDAC, regardless of whether they have a visa or an existing stay permit.

It's important not to fall for fraudulent websites that charge a fee for the TDAC—they're all fake. The TDAC is free.

Open the official website and simply fill it out pro forma.

Create a note or a Word .doc document on your computer with the requested information, e.g., passport number, name and address in your home country, primary address in Thailand, and so on.

Then, starting three days/72 hours before your planned entry, you can copy and paste the information into the TDAC—it only takes two minutes!

NOTE: The "Visa Number" and "Departure" from Thailand are NOT required fields; you can leave them blank.

BUT: As soon as you click on one of these fields not marked with a red *asterisk or start typing, an error message will appear if you don't fill out anything else. Then you would have to cancel everything and start over.

The TDAC confirmation will reach your email inbox shortly after submitting the form. You should print out this email confirmation, as it contains a QR Code

If you don't have to present the printed TDAC at the immigration counter, it doesn't mean anything - the border official will see the TDAC you submitted on his/her computer screen as soon as they scan your passport, so they won't ask again

The TDAC is not a visa, it is only an information you give Thai authorities about your person, your arrival information and your place of stay.

Assuming you haven't completed a TDAC, they won't let you enter the country but will send you back to the terminals with a request to submit it.

Amanda Dada . . just be patient . . ."processing" is a good sign. Remember the high season is nearing and the Consulate HCMC might be a little busier than usual

the only proof of income would either be a certified income affidavit of your country's embassy in Bangkok, OR a bank statement of 12 months of consecutive transfers coded as coming from abroad of a minimum of 65,000 THB into your Thai bank account, month for month not missing one single month

@Steve *****

well, you can theoretically buy a re-entry permit for the 90-days stay permit which you get stamped upon entering Thailand on a 90-days Non-Imm-O Visa. However it doesn't make much sense as it doesn't buy you any extra time outside of the expiry of the 90-days stay permit. It is better to stay inside Thailand, open the bank account, tranfer the funds and as soon as the funds have been in the account for two months, apply for the 1-year extension of the stay permit based on retirement. When this 1-year stay permit gets issued on Immigration, you can buy a single or multiple re-entry permit for it. A multi re-entry permit for example will allow you unlimited exits and re-entries into Thailand for the duration of the whole 1-year of the stay permit. Nobody will force you to remain inside Thailand for the whole duration of your 1-year stay permit . . . . Then as soon as 30 days (on some Immigrations 45 days) are left on the "1-year stay permit", you will need to be in Thailand so you can apply for the next "1-year Extension of Stay Permit"

You should lay the groundwork for your plan while still in your home country. Submit the online e-visa application for the "90-Day Single Entry Non-Retirement Visa/Over 50 Visa."

The normal processing period is from 5 to 15 workdays on most embassies. Some embassies but are warning you on their websites that the approval can take up to 4 weeks. You need to check the website of the embassy/consulate you will use. You should not apply any longer than three months before your intended flight to Thailand.

For this visa, you must upload proof of EITHER three months of bank statements showing a minimum balance of 800,000 THB (approximately €21,600) in your bank account,

OR proof of a monthly income, pension, or retirement income of at least 65,000 THB (approximately €1,760).

With a Non-Retirement Visa based on "over 50 years old/retirement," which you applied for and received in your home country through the online e-visa system of the Thai embassies and consulates, you will receive a 90-day stay permit stamped upon arrival.

The "O" stands for "other." Some of the reasons for issuing this visa are:

- Marriage to a Thai national

- Raising a half-Thai child

- Raising a foreign child

- Being a dependent spouse

- Being over 50 years old

All Non-Immigrant O visa categories include a 90-day stay permit stamped upon entry.

The 90-day Non-Immigrant O visa categories are issued as "90-day single entry," meaning they can only be used once for entry.

After entry, the visa expires and is invalid! You are then in Thailand not "with a visa," but with a "stay permit."

*** No health insurance is required for the "90-day Non-Immigrant O Retirement/Over 50 Visa." But it is in your own interest to have one.

*** To stay beyond 90 days, you must apply for a one-year extension of stay.

Within the last 30 days of your 90-day stay permit (45 days at some immigration offices), you can apply for a "1-year extension of stay permit based on retirement/over 50" (in English, "extension of stay permit" or EOS).

The requirements for this application vary slightly from one immigration office to another, so you should visit the immigration office as soon as possible, ideally immediately after arrival, and ask for the "information sheet," which lists the requirements for applying for a "retirement visa extension."

For the application for a "1-year extension of stay permit," you must, among other things, provide proof of sufficient funds.

This is

*** EITHER using the "deposit method"—at least 800,000 THB must have been held in a Thai bank account in your sole name for at least two months prior to the application date.

If you wish to provide this proof, you must register your residence with the immigration office immediately after arrival using form TM30, obtain a residence certificate, and get a Thai mobile phone number registered in your name. You must open a Thai bank account as soon as possible and transfer at least 800,000 THB into it to meet the two-month "maturation period" requirement for the balance on the day you apply for the one-year extension.

*** OR using the income method – you will need a certificate from your country’s embassy in Bangkok or from a honorary consul confirming a monthly income/pension of at least 65,000 THB.

ATTENTION: citizens of countries, whose embassies have discontinued issuing certified income affidavits, can only chose the 800,000 THB deposit method in the first year. These countries are U.K., Australia, Canada, U.S.A., Norway and a few others.

*** To prove your funds and financial status using the deposit method, you must first obtain a "bank letter of guarantee" (in Thai: rab roong thanakan) from your Thai bank and show on immigration.

This letter certifies that at least 800,000 THB has been in the account for two months prior to the application date. ATTENTION: Some immigration offices require a three-month waiting period (which will force you into the fangs of agents).

As soon as the 1-year extension is granted, the 800,000 THB must remain in the account for another three months. During the remainder of the year, the account balance must not fall below 400,000 THB.

Then, two months before applying for the next annual extension, at least 800,000 THB must again be in the account, and the application process for the next 1-year EOS begins anew.

*** It's also important to know: The "retirement visa," which must be reapplied for annually, is a residence permit, not a visa.

It's called an "extension of stay permit" (permit = permission), but even immigration officials unfortunately refer to it incorrectly as a "visa extension," even though they are not extending a visa, but only the residence permit.

*** For this reason, many people in Facebook groups believe that the EOS is a "retirement visa" or a "one-year visa," which it is not.

When applying for a "one-year extension of your residence permit," it's best to purchase a re-entry permit at immigration on the same day, as you might need to leave the country quickly.

A re-entry permit keeps your one-year residence permit active and valid if you leave the country. If you leave without a re-entry permit, your residence permit expires!

A single re-entry permit costs 1,000 Baht at immigration and is valid for one re-entry.

A multi-entry permit costs 3,800 Baht and allows for unlimited entries and exits.

You must bring two passport photos to immigration for your application. A re-entry permit is valid for the same duration as the residence permit for which it was issued.

If you have any further questions, please ask them here in the group in your thread.

@Rene *****

the trick is, don't buy the first 30-days extension. Don't look like a "cheapskate" and buy the extension . . . Leave Thailand before the first 60 days expire. Stay in an neighbour country for 2-4 weeks. Re-enter Thailand visa-exempt for another 60 days, and then try your luck to extend by 30 more days. You will be looked upon as being a "real" tourist. You will be able to do this at least once within every 365 days period

Greg Alexander you are right, I have come upon this "rule of thumb" as well, in other groups reports are abundant. There is no fixed or official rule regarding the total number of visa-exempt entries or touristic stays, however Immigration when they see an extensive stamp history, they start to count backwards across a period of previous 365 days ( NOT within a calendar year) and if you exceed 180 days, they will pull you aside and interrogate