Mau Morris . . .

I suggest you enter this area of Bangkok (Sathon) into the search mask of the website 9apartment dot com. However I reckon you won't find anything for 5000 THB within this area, it is a prime living district

@Ian *********

Did you happen to alter your previous text ?

Why do you worry about the low interest for bank deposits in Thailand?

The 800,000 THB deposit in your Thai bank account enables you to get the "1-year parking ticket" for a country where everything costs less than half the price than in your home country.

Why would you ignore this advantage?

Are people really pleased at throwing money away to agents who feed the corruption at the Immigration office?

And, by the way, I receive 1.25% interest per year for my SCB savings account. This pays for the Debit Card fee and leaves me with a profit of something like 3000 Baht. Better than nothing.

@Jim ******

. . . . WHERE did I say that the tenant has to register himself?? . . . . . "after having entered Thailand, you need to get registered in your accommodation per TM30 within 24 hours of arrival in the premises. If you rent or live in a friend’s accommodation, the landlord or the friend has to register you.

Immigration will only service you if you are properly registered in your accommodation by the TM30.

Every landlord, friend or hotel needs to register you within 24 hours of your arrival in the premises. While hotels do this automatically online, many landlords and friends are not aware of this or haven’t registered their house or rooms in the system. It is your responsibility to ensure that you get properly TM30 registered." . . . . . . . . If you did not understand the meaning, then the reason is your low level of intelligence

@Jim ******

of course it is your responsibility to ensure that the landlord registered you by TM30. . . .and btw, all my texts are my own make. I never use AI. I got over 300 ready made texts for my FB visa advice group, readily texted by myself, ready to reply to the always same questions. Just PO !

@Jim ******

it's the responsibility of the landlord or owner of the premises. I have NEVER said that it is the tenant's responsibility . .you are an idi..t who cannot read

@Jim ******

no, these bank accounts opened by agents, if you have a legit Non-Imm-Visa type, will not get frozen. These bank accounts get opened by agents on fully LEGIT terms. And when you move to a different location, you get registered by TM30, obtain the certificate of residency from Immigration, visit the bank branch in your new location and "move" your branch to your new location

Thai bank account opening MINIMUM pre-requisites:

*** have a longterm visa, like a 90-days Non-Imm-visa type, an LTR or Non-O/A

*** be properly registered per TM30 Online System at your accommodation

*** visit Immigration and get the “certificate of residence”. Immigration in this document will ask the bank explicitly to open a bank account for the applicant

*** have a Thai mobile number and the SIM-card registered to your name and passport number

*** your passport as a valid document of identification

(some banks have started to ask you for another piece of identification, like your home country driver’s license)

*** a work permit (only if applicable – it is NOT a mandatory requirement!)

Here a list of NOT commonly NECESSARY pre-requisites, but which CAN get asked from (incompetent!!) bank staff:

*** a rental contract - actually irrelevant- but it is okay if you got one, or if you got a blue housebook indicating ownership of a condo.

*** a third piece of identification (check above)

*** a mandatory life-insurance or accident insurance the bank offers you for yearly 5000 Baht (they love to earn a sidekick)

*** your foreign Tax-number or Social Security number (which would be okay so far, why not)

Try several branches of different banks, you might find one that opens an account for you under the minimal requirements. Sometimes it takes a day or two of running around until you find a bank willing to help you.

I don’t recommend Bangkok Bank. Better get a Kasikorn or Siam Commercial Bank Plc. Account. Other good banks are Khrungthai and Khrungsri

In case you consistently meet bank staff who resist and pull out of their noses random requirements, use the service of an agent. In Pattaya for example, you can get your Thai bank account opened for 5000 THB.

After having entered Thailand, you need to get registered in your accommodation per TM30 within 24 hours of arrival in the premises. If you rent or live in a friend’s accommodation, the landlord or the friend has to register you.

Immigration will only service you if you are properly registered in your accommodation by the TM30.

Every landlord, friend or hotel needs to register you within 24 hours of your arrival in the premises. While hotels do this automatically online, many landlords and friends are not aware of this or haven’t registered their house or rooms in the system. It is your responsibility to ensure that you get properly TM30 registered.

Within this 90-days stay permit period, you have plenty of time to arrange for the application to the “1-year extended stay permit based on retirement” (which people wrongly refer to as a “retirement visa”- actually, this thing is not a visa. It is an extended stay permit)

In order to apply for the “90-days single entry Non-Imm-O retirement visa” through the online E-visa system at the Royal Thai Embassy of your home country, you can use the proof of income of a monthly minimum of equivalent of 65,000 THB, by using your original pension statements or other income documentation.

Or you use a deposit of a minimum of 800,000 THB or the equivalent in your home country currency, or on your home bank account, or on a Thai bank, or just anywhere in the World – as long as the account is in your sole name

However, for the application inside Thailand for the “1-year extension of stay permit” out of the 90-days Non-Imm-O retirement visa, if you are a citizen of a country, whose embassy in Thailand does not issue the “income affidavit” any more (which are the embassies of the USA, UK and Australia, Norway and Canada - AFAIK)

you would need proof by a “12 months bank statement”, showing that for the past 12 months, you have been transferring from abroad to your Thai bank account, month for month, not missing one single month, a minimum of 65,000 THB. The transfers must be coded in your bankbook as foreign transfers coming in from abroad

If your embassy still issues a legalized affidavit of income, you can use this method for the financial proof, as long as you can show a monthly income or pension of a minimum of 65,000 THB. And some Immigrations have started to require that you at least have a Thai bank account and SOME money gets transferred into it from abroad – and they might also ask you for the source of the income.

For above mentioned citizens, in the first year there is no other way around than depositing a minimum of 800,000 THB in your Thai bank account and use this deposit for the financial proof.

For the application to the “one year extension of stay permit based on being over 50/retired” you need to show a minimum of 800,000 THB in your account, and on the day you apply, the funds must have been sitting in the account for a minimum of 2 months, and you got the “bank letter of guarantee” that confirms this.

NOTE: It is income method OR deposit method.

And there is a third method, called the “combination method”:

A combination, a mix of income and deposit.

Some immigrations don’t allow the combination method in the first year. And some Immigration want the deposit part to exceed 400,000 THB. The combination method means that the sum of the deposit AND the monthly income exceeds 800,000 THB in one year.

But let’s continue with the “normal method” (visa issued in your home country, followed by the application to the Extension inside Thailand):

On the day of application to the 1-year extension, the 800,000 THB must have “seasoned” in your account for two months, and this has to be proven with the “bank letter of guarantee” (rab roong thanakan).

What else do you need on Immigration?

*** Immigration might ask you to present your updated bankbook, and a receipt of a small sum withdrawal at an ATM of the same day.

*** a copy (and original) of your passport detail page signed in blue ink

*** a copy (and original) of the .pdf visa document signed in blue ink

*** a copy (and original) of the printed TDAC (if applicable) signed in blue ink

*** 1900 THB in cash

*** the TM7 form you can fill out at the Immigration

*** Immigration will ask you to sing several “exclusion of responsibility” forms (STM)

You should visit Immigration asap after you entered and ask them for the handout list of requirements. Some Immigrations use an individual approach to the official rules.

After been issued the “1-year Extension of Stay”, the 800,000 THB need to remain in the account for 3 more months. After these 3 months, the deposit shall never go under 400,000 THB. And before your application for the next “1-year Extension of Stay”, a minimum of 800,000 THB must have seasoned in the account for two months, again

When you get issued the “1-year extension of stay”, you should always buy a re-entry permit for it.

A re-entry permit will keep your 1-year stay permit alive in case you exit Thailand before the expiry of the 1-year stay permit.

A single re-entry permit is 1000 THB on Immigration. A multi re-entry is 3800 THB.

With a multi re-entry permit, you can exit and re-enter as many times as you wish during the whole 1-year stay permit period.