Did the immigration officer give me a birthday present?

[easyas]

I first entered Thailand on my brand new Non-Immigrant O-A (M) retirement visa on December 10 via Phuket.
I was given permission to stay until December 9, 2011.
I left Thailand for a visit to Australia on 8 March, 2011.
I returned, this time via Samui, very late on 4 April, 2011.
The very charming Immigration Officer wished me a happy birthday (it still was, just!) and stamped my passport with a permission to stay until 3 or 5 (take your choice) April 2012.
Since then Hua Hin Immigration Office has issued a Receipt of 90 Day Notification, annotated "VISA EXP 5 Apr 2012".

5 April, 2012 to be relied on?

Best advice?

[lomuamart]

Edit: I'm really not with it today. Apologies and I've deleted my initial reply.
It would help if you could scan the visa itself because the important date is it's "valid until" one. I'm guessing, but reckon the visa will expire at some point before the 10th December 2011. Your permitted to stay dates are correct but that annotation from HH Imm should be reading that your permitted to stay stamp expires on 3/5th April 2012, not the visa.
As you may be aware, if you do a border run again (maybe just to Ranong and over to Burma) and you do so BEFORE THE VISA EXPIRES, then you'll get another year's stamp.
So, if your visa expires on 3rd Dec 2011 and you re-enter from Burma on November 30 2011, you'll be stamped in until November 29 2012. You will need a re-entry permit to keep the stamp alive after 3rd Dec 2011 if you leave the country.
If you saw my first reply, dismiss it. I got the dates all mixed up.

[Takiap]

Am I missing something here? If you go out just before the visa ends, you get a one year stamp when returning? Why bother then with extensions that require embassy letters and etc?

Also, this obviously doesn't apply to Non O (marriage) visas since I have only ever got 90 days?

[easyas]

Edit: I'm really not with it today. Apologies and I've deleted my initial reply.
It would help if you could scan the visa itself because the important date is it's "valid until" one. I'm guessing, but reckon the visa will expire at some point before the 10th December 2011. Your permitted to stay dates are correct but that annotation from HH Imm should be reading that your permitted to stay stamp expires on 3/5th April 2012, not the visa.
As you may be aware, if you do a border run again (maybe just to Ranong and over to Burma) and you do so BEFORE THE VISA EXPIRES, then you'll get another year's stamp.
So, if your visa expires on 3rd Dec 2011 and you re-enter from Burma on November 30 2011, you'll be stamped in until November 29 2012. You will need a re-entry permit to keep the stamp alive after 3rd Dec 2011 if you leave the country.
If you saw my first reply, dismiss it. I got the dates all mixed up.

There's no expiry date on my visa - it has a "Date of Issue" (2 Nov 2010) and a ""Enter Before" (1 Nov 2011).
Personally, I think my visa expires on 9/12/2011 as per the first entry stamp and that the delightful young lady in Samui misinterpreted my arrival there as being my first use of my visa. But who knows, she put her stamp exactly under the first entry stamp. Perhaps I get a fresh 12 months visa every time I leave and return up to 1 Nov 2011?

If you want to see a copy of my visa I'll pm it to you.

[wpcoe]

Takiap: That is correct, but only for a Non-Immigrant O-A multiple-entry visa, which can only be obtained in your home country. In theory, anybody with such a visa after the end of a two-year period in/out/in Thailand can return to their home country to get another Non-Immigration O-A multiple-entry visa, but (a) most of us are happy to just jump through the necessary hoops to get a one-year extension at our local Thai Immigrations office (in Thailand), and (b) I believe *some* overseas Thai Embassies will not issue a subsequent (second, third, etc) Non-Immigrant O-A visa.

The locations where one can get the Non-Immigrant O-A visas are not as plentiful as before. In the fairly recent past, one could get them at honorary consuls in the USA and regular consulates in other countries (such as in Hull, UK), but in the USA now only the Embassy in Washington and the full service official consulates, and in the UK only the Embassy in London, will issue Non-Immigrant O-A visas.

n.b. There are a couple extra hoops for getting a Non-Immigrant O-A visa: Medical certificate (which can be quite expensive if the doctor takes to heart that s/he must actually complete the diagnostic tests to verify none of the listed ailments are present) and police clearance.

[wpcoe]

There's no expiry date on my visa - it has a "Date of Issue" (2 Nov 2010) and a ""Enter Before" (1 Nov 2011).

The "Enter Before" date is the de facto "expiration" date of the visa -- it indicates the last date (31 Oct 2011) that you can enter Thailand using that visa.

Separate from the "expiration date" of the visa is the "permission to stay" date, which will be calculated to be one year from each entry date before 1 Nov 2011.

e.g. Your visa was issued on 2 Nov 2010, which results in the 1 Nov 2011 "enter before" date. (Hmmm. I wonder if that should technically be 2 Nov 2011, or should say "entry by," which would permit entry into Thailand on 1 Nov 2011, but let's not dwell on that...)

You entered Thailand on 10 Dec 2010, so were given a permission to stay until 9 Dec 2011.
You entered Thailand on 4 Apr 2011, so were given a permission to stay until 3 Apr 2012.

You can exit and re-enter Thailand on 31 Oct 2011 and receive a permission to stay until 30 Oct 2012.

HOWEVER, if you re-enter any time after the "expiration date" of 1 Nov 2011, you need to obtain a re-entry permit BEFORE departing Thailand again, since without a re-entry permit, your permission to stay is voided when you depart Thailand, and you can no longer enter on your "expired" O-A visa. HOWEVER, if you DO have a re-entry permit, you can retain the permission to stay that was current when you departed Thailand. That's why it's called a re-entry permit.

In the first two actual examples, your returns on 10 Dec 2010 and 4 Apr 2011, your permissions to stay were actually voided when you left Thailand. What enabled you to re-enter Thailand was your still-valid O-A visa.

Clear as mud?

[edited to correct some dates -- twice! I get confused in the new millenium. ]

[lomuamart]

The info from wpcoe is correct.
The visa will expire on 1st November 2011 so if the OP wants another year's permitted to stay stamp he needs to exit and re-enter before that date. By doing a border run the OP will be able to stretch out another 7 months here - from 5th April 2012 (current permitted to stay stamp) to approximately 30/31st October 2012.

[easyas]

There's no expiry date on my visa - it has a "Date of Issue" (2 Nov 2010) and a ""Enter Before" (1 Nov 2011).

The "Enter Before" date is the de facto "expiration" date of the visa -- it indicates the last date (31 Oct 2011) that you can enter Thailand using that visa.

Separate from the "expiration date" of the visa is the "permission to stay" date, which will be calculated to be one year from each entry date before 1 Nov 2011.

e.g. Your visa was issued on 2 Nov 2010, which results in the 1 Nov 2011 "enter before" date. (Hmmm. I wonder if that should technically be 2 Nov 2011, or should say "entry by," which would permit entry into Thailand on 1 Nov 2011, but let's not dwell on that...)

You entered Thailand on 10 Dec 2010, so were given a permission to stay until 9 Dec 2010.
You entered Thailand on 4 Apr 2010, so were given a permission to stay until 3 Apr 2010.

You can exit and re-enter Thailand on 31 Oct 2011 and receive a permission to stay until 30 Oct 2012.

HOWEVER, if you re-enter any time after the "expiration date" of 1 Nov 2011, you need to obtain a re-entry permit BEFORE departing Thailand again, since without a re-entry permit, your permission to stay is voided when you depart Thailand, and you can no longer enter on your "expired" O-A visa. HOWEVER, if you DO have a re-entry permit, you can retain the permission to stay that was current when you departed Thailand. That's why it's called a re-entry permit.

In the first two actual examples, your returns on 10 Dec 2010 and 4 Apr 2010, your permissions to stay were actually voided when you left Thailand. What enabled you to re-enter Thailand was your still-valid O-A visa.

Clear as mud?

Murky indeed!

First, the 10 December date was that of my first entry, not of a return. The Thai Embassy in Australia told me that the visa was valid for 12 months from the date of first entry if activated before its ""entry by" date.

I was also told by the Thai Embassy in Australia that I could renew my Non-Immigrant O-A Visa in Thailand for a further 12 months without having to leave the country. I merely had to prove I had appropriate financial resources.

I had to do that in Australia, of course, in order to get the visa I currently have, but, here's the rub, was NOT required to have the funds in Thailand. Funds in Australia were fine and they could stay there.

I believe, however, that I will need to have the funds in Thailand for an in-Thailand renewal (not so, if I return to Australia!) and that these funds should have been lodged some 3 months prior to such a renewal. On a December 9 date I'm running very tight, on a November 1 date I've been left at the gate.

Any comments?

[lomuamart]

The Emb in Aus misinformed you. Your visa starts running from the day it's printed off and stuck in your passport. With the OA, that's a year from then. Your 1 year permitted to stay stamp runs from date of entry. It's a matter of terminology that has obviously got lost in translation but proves why it's important to be precise with wording.
You can extend your OA annually on the basis of retirement but you need 800K in a Thai bank account or 65K minimum overseas income (dosn't need to be in Thailand but you should be prepared to show that you're living off it) or a combination of the two as long as the total is 800K+ over the year.
You've got plenty of time if you play the OA visa correctly. If you look back at the other posts, you'll see that if you do a border run before your visa expires/utilise before date/enter before date, you'll get another year here. I think we've established that that cut off date will be 1st November. Just get yourself down to Ranong or anywhere else out of the country and make sure you re-enter before the 1st November. I'd advise going a week before.
Then you're sorted out, time wise, to get your finances ready. The only drawback will possible be that you won't be able to apply for the annual extension before there's 30 days or less still on your entry stamp/permitted to stay stamp. However, that's not a problem as you'll be legal here and doing no more the 90 day reports that everyone has to do.

[easyas]

The Emb in Aus misinformed you. Your visa starts running from the day it's printed off and stuck in your passport. With the OA, that's a year from then. Your 1 year permitted to stay stamp runs from date of entry. It's a matter of terminology that has obviously got lost in translation but proves why it's important to be precise with wording.
You can extend your OA annually on the basis of retirement but you need 800K in a Thai bank account or 65K minimum overseas income (dosn't need to be in Thailand but you should be prepared to show that you're living off it) or a combination of the two as long as the total is 800K+ over the year.
You've got plenty of time if you play the OA visa correctly. If you look back at the other posts, you'll see that if you do a border run before your visa expires/utilise before date/enter before date, you'll get another year here. I think we've established that that cut off date will be 1st November. Just get yourself down to Ranong or anywhere else out of the country and make sure you re-enter before the 1st November. I'd advise going a week before.
Then you're sorted out, time wise, to get your finances ready. The only drawback will possible be that you won't be able to apply for the annual extension before there's 30 days or less still on your entry stamp/permitted to stay stamp. However, that's not a problem as you'll be legal here and doing no more the 90 day reports that everyone has to do.

OK - get to Ranong (where's that! - just joking .... I think ....!) come back - I don't need a new visa at the border, my current one is still valid, I just need a fresh permission to stay for 12 months - that it?
That then buys me time for financial matters.
With the Aus $ being so strong at present I meet the 65K minimum income mark pretty well each month anyway - say I could prove the 65K would I still have to move money over here, do you think?

[lomuamart]

If you want to use the savings method for your retirement extension then it seems that a jaunt to Ranong would be best to give you time.
If you rely on the income method, then you'll need a letter of some sort from the Aus Embassy confirming your income there. I'm not sure what your Embassy will require in the way of proof as it changes from Emb to Emb. I don't believe that the Aus Emb are too stringent though. Best to contact them and ask direct unless we have a member who's been through the process recently.
No need to bring any income in to Thailand. No need for seasoning. The letter will suffice together with the other bits and pieces.
Imm normally like applications to be made within the last 30 days of your permitted to stay stamp so you have plenty of time.
I recently redid my retirement extension and the whole process took about 20 mins.
You should be fine for the extension whichever avenue you decide to use.