How to apply for the Thai retirement visa? Qualifying for extension based on the 800,000 THB in a Thai Bank: The lump sum of 800,000 THB should be deposited in a Thai bank account 2 months prior the retirement extension. Also, the 800,000 THB should be kept deposited for an additional 3 months after the extension of stay is granted, in which afterwards, a minimum of 400,000 THB should remain deposited in the account and not let the account fall below 400,000 THB. If anytime the amount deposited in the Thai bank falls below the required amount to be maintained, the application for extension would probably be denied.
Thai Retirement Visa
In short, foreigners should be able to show that they have 800,000 THB in a Thai bank a couple of months before the application and three months following for their initial extension, and maintain a base amount of 400,000 THB for the retirement visa to stay relevant and active.
The guidelines for this are as follows:
· Applicant should have been granted a non-immigrant visa (Non-O);
· Applicant should be 50 years old or over;
· Applicant should have met the financial requirements;
The new requirement to maintain the amount of 400,000THB in the Thai bank after the retirement visa is granted was initiated on March 2019. These changes in the procedure are part of a comprehensive overhaul to all the areas under the Immigration Division. Illegal practices in the past have plagued the Immigration Division such as falsifying income for visa purposes, and are now being dealt with accordingly. The new Head of Immigration has moved quickly to put an end to the practice of visa agents falsifying the bank statements of foreign applicants who fail to meet the financial requirements needed for a Retirement visa in Thailand.
Late 2018, the newly appointed Head of Immigration vowed to crackdown on these visa agents who assist foreigners in their visa applications and extension of stays by falsifying their bank statements. With this effort, Thailand Immigration Officials began applying the new requirements regardless of the dismay of many applicants over the previous months. The unstable rules and regulations concerning visas, work permits and extensions have been now made more challenging for those who are applying.