@Tod ********

Correct, I was not on an extension then. I was either on a METV or an old 1 year Non-Imm O issued in the US when they still issued those. They transferred my "walk-in" stamp from Mae Sai when I left from BKK.

Also correct, the US Embassy doesn't really care but I still have never seen anywhere where it says you have to transfer the stamps immediately. Like the OP, I'm curious if I need to make a special trip to Immigration since I'm now on a yearly extension and will be getting a new passport later this year.

@Ellie ******

can you point out where it says stamps must be transferred "immediately". I'm on my third passport here and both previous times had the transfer done at BKK when leaving the country. I just checked the US Embassy website and all they have to say is:

"Thai immigration law requires entry/exit stamps and Thai visas be transferred into new passports. After receiving your new passport, please visit any Thai immigration office to have the visa transferred. The letter to facilitate visa transfers comes standard with all passport renewals and is provided without fee."

@Tod ********

None of the above. I killed my O-A by leaving without a reentry permit. returned visa exempt. Got a 90 day Non-O. Went back about 60 days later for an Extension based on retirement. They added on about 360 days, not a full year as I expected too. Photos if you really want them.

That's the way I assumed it would work but I did my first 1 year extension of a Non-Imm O visa (issued in Chiang Mai) earlier this year and lost about 5 days. Not a big deal but they did not give me a full year from when my 90 day extension was to expire.

It depends on how easy it is to get the TV. If that's easy, do that. If getting the TV is a pain, then come visa exempt, and get an extension at Immigration for an additional 30 days. Buy the train ticket ahead of time to prove you're leaving within the allowed 30+30 days.

if you flew in and got your first 30 day Visa Exempt Entry at the airport, you can leave by land twice and get 30 days each time and extend each one for another 30 days for a total of almost 180 days if you time it perfectly.

@Joe **********

that would make sense only if English wasn't your first language and you failed logic.

I assume he knows what he wrote and it was written in clear English.

He never said he moved the funds into one account. And if he did it would not have been there for 90 days.

Until the new rules went into effect there was no reason to have a second account so it would never have come up during your first 4 years of monitoring all those thousands of posts.

The comment above said

John Blackie Two extensions ago at CM I used two accounts with a single letter from the bank. The IO said that I should have had two letters and that the money should be in one account. The extension was granted. I use a Fixed account for the 800k.

Thanks for all the help.

To summarize the thread:

I acknowledge that most replies were meant to be helpful.

The replies basically fell into these categories:

1. Suggestions that my wife or I change visas.

2. I shouldn't ask at Thai Visa Advice. I should ask at Immigration.

3. A tangential debate as to whether fixed accounts are acceptable. Maybe some aren't. My wife's has always been accepted. That wasn't the question.

Thanks to

@Ivan ***********

who not only understood what and why I was asking, but his suggestion is even better than what I was trying to accomplish.

Because everyone has been so helpful, I'd like to pay that back with two suggestions:

1. Everyone using the 800k method should have their funds in a time deposit. if you don't you're leaving over 10,000 baht on the table. that more than pays for your next extension. Or a lot of beer. You're welcome.

2. If you plan your travel right, you should think about changing your visas. In 15 years I've never been to Immigration except for Certificates of Residency. No extensions, no 90 day reports, no TM 30's, no need for a Thai bank account.