Make sure you read the fine print. I was looking into cheap Thai insurance policies for that purpose and thought I'd found a good one l, until my partner noted you are liable for the first 1m baht expenses, although it does meet the Thai Government visa requirements apparently 😆

@Andy ****

Based on my experience with the Royal Thai Embassy in Australia it’s better to apply in Thailand as others have recommended. I think the Life Partner being referred to is what is classified as a ‘defacto relationship’ in Australia. Has very similar legal implications as formal marriage there but not in Thailand.

After a 20 year long distance relationship, i just married my Thai partner in Australia -much easier than in Thailand. However, I’m not going to bother with the marriage visa in Thailand, just going with the non O retirement visa.

@Dan *******

That's the path I'm taking, wasn't impressed with the advice I got from the Embassy in Canberra. Currently, in Thailand on 90 day tourist visa. Don’t need health insurance. (Although I have comprehensive travel insurance anyhow). Don't need proof of income either, only admin hassle is to get bank statement from my Thai bank to show minimum 800k baht a/c balance, which I've had since mid 2023.

I'm with Krungthai and very happy with the service and the app.

@Peter ********

if you’ve lived here before you may already have a Thai bank account but if not that’s probably more of an issue for you. In my case it was very easy but I’ve read on various forums that it can be a hassle, depending on which bank you approach and the bank’s location.

@Peter ********

Wise transfer Thai baht to your Thai bank once they’ve converted your home currency. I’ve used Wise for years now for large, up to the maximum allowed single transfer and for regular living expenses transfers. It takes seconds to transfer from my Wise account in Australia to my Khrungthai Next account.