@Stuart ********

there is no such thing as a retirement Visa. You get a retirement extension to a Visa. An OA Visa is applied for in your home country and involves insurance, a background check and proof of funds. A non o Visa is applied for from within Thailand and is for 90 days to give you time to get the required funds seasoned in a thai bank. You then get a 12 month extension. There is no background check or insurance requirement. If that has changed then it has only done so quite recently. Its easier to get to Thailand on whatever and apply for non O in country.

@Stuart ********

it's a non O OR an OA all of which can be based on a number of situations.

@Tod ********

Nakhon Phanom. In the end I didnt even require the seasoning for the 12 month extension once I had flown to Bangkok! Got the 15 months all in one go and a week in Phuket as well. The bank was helpful. Next time I went to NP for 90 day my passport was inspected with great care and interest but no problems.

@Tod ********

sorry Todd but that was not my personal experience. On first application I was told that I had to show 0 baht in Thai account for 2 months for them to process the 90 day Visa leading to 12 month extension. As I did not have 2 months before my current extension expired they told me I had a problem. I had to go away and find a way around the problem. The same problem is approaching but I hope I have found an alternative and cheaper way around it this time.

It us possible that things have changed. I now believe it is possible to apply for the non o Visa in your home country but have no need to put that to the test.

@Justin ********

yes. 0 baht must be in Thai bank account for at least 2 months in order to get the retirement extension. You will need a certificate from the bank. After that you should always have a balance of at least 0 baht but mine has never been checked on 90 day reporting.

@Justin ********

you apply for 90 day non o which gives you time to line up the ducks then you get a 12 month extension for 1900 baht. That was how it was this time last year anyway.

@Todd ********

I lost no time as I had a great week in Bangkok unless you count the two hours it took at immigration but that was an interesting experience too.

@Todd ********

not now, I was last week. Back in Nakhon Phanom now.

@Todd ********

it was a bit more than that for me but I got a bank account as well. The whole lot took 2 hours and I got my passport back the next day. Very good service.

@Todd ********

I think they will come up with something too but I could not face another drama like the last one as we approached August 1st!