dtaai-maai wrote:Why doesn't everyone simply provide evidence of 65k income per month? What's the advantage of the 800k route?
I understand that there may be a few people who don't want to reveal their source of income for various reasons, but I'm talking about the majority of retirees with overseas (from Thailand) savings and pensions.
The advantage is exactly that you do not have to reveal the source of your income!
I for one, do not get a pension, and it is a difficult thing to try and prove an income from investments, or savings for that matter. But then I never was one of the majority!
May you be in heaven half an hour before the devil know`s you`re dead!
Big Boy wrote:
I thought that was the route I was going to take, but when I read how much it would cost, and the bother of getting the letter from the Embassy each year .....
Hi BB,
Can you clarify about how much it would cost please?
As far as I'm aware, the only cost is 1900 baht for the visa extension.
Ok, I've got to go out now, but I'm sure it's about £65 each year. I found it on the British Embassy website. Will find it for you when I get home later today.
Just looking at your post again - I'm talking about cost for the letter confirming your income. I agree with the 1,900 baht for the extension.
I did a 3 month renewal last month and went to the bank for a letter to prove I had over 800,000 which cost me 200 Baht as that is what I was told I needed when I first applied for retirement visa. Went to immigration with the letter and my bank book and the girl at the front desk outside the main door said they were no longer needed. Went in and got my renewal in less than 5 minutes without showing any banking material.
So what is the ruling on proving you have the funds in the bank ?
Bernard wrote:I did a 3 month renewal last month and went to the bank for a letter to prove I had over 800,000 which cost me 200 Baht as that is what I was told I needed when I first applied for retirement visa. Went to immigration with the letter and my bank book and the girl at the front desk outside the main door said they were no longer needed. Went in and got my renewal in less than 5 minutes without showing any banking material.
So what is the ruling on proving you have the funds in the bank ?
What exactly did you "renew"? The money requirement has nothing to do with 3 months, or 90 days.
There is absolutely NO way that you got a 1 year extension of stay in 5 minutes!
May you be in heaven half an hour before the devil know`s you`re dead!
The cost of a letter from The British Embassy is 2,250THB, I think (so about 45 GBP). Going tomorrow to get one, so if different, I'll post again.
Bernard,
Did you get a 90 or 60 day extension? Any extension costs 1,900THB. The only time you need to show proof of savings/income with an extension is when applying for an annual one.
I've never heard of a 90 day extension, although it's been a long day and I could just be being forgetful.
Bernard wrote:I did a 90 day renewal of my retirement visa.
Firstly, there is no such thing as a "retirement visa", and secondly there is no 90 day renewal of any visa, only extensions.
I suspect that what you have done is a 90 day "reporting" which is NOT a visa, and does not involve money, either in the bank, or at Immigration.
May you be in heaven half an hour before the devil know`s you`re dead!
lomuamart wrote:The cost of a letter from The British Embassy is 2,250THB, I think (so about 45 GBP). Going tomorrow to get one, so if different, I'll post again.
Bernard,
Did you get a 90 or 60 day extension? Any extension costs 1,900THB. The only time you need to show proof of savings/income with an extension is when applying for an annual one.
I've never heard of a 90 day extension, although it's been a long day and I could just be being forgetful.
Can savings be used instead of the 800K in the bank? (Savings in the UK that is)
Diplomacy is the ability to tell a man to go to hell so that he looks forward to making the trip
JG,
As above. Thai bank only.
Don't know whether it might help, but remember that there's also the option of a combination route with a retirement extension. Ie, combination of savings (Thai bank) and income. So, 400K in the bank and income of 33,333 THB a month.
Strictly speaking, with the combination route, the savings portion dosn't have to seasoned but I'm not sure if local Imm would buy that.
Big Boy wrote:Ok, I've got to go out now, but I'm sure it's about £65 each year. I found it on the British Embassy website. Will find it for you when I get home later today.
barrys,
Lomu has already answered this one for you, and will confirm next week when he applies for his own letter.
If you look at he embassy link, you will see the cost of the letter is actually 2,250 per annum,
lomuamart wrote:The cost of a letter from The British Embassy is 2,250THB, I think (so about 45 GBP). Going tomorrow to get one, so if different, I'll post again.
Bernard,
Did you get a 90 or 60 day extension? Any extension costs 1,900THB. The only time you need to show proof of savings/income with an extension is when applying for an annual one.
I've never heard of a 90 day extension, although it's been a long day and I could just be being forgetful.
Lomu
I now realise that it was a 90 reporting that I was doing so my apologies if I misled or confused you.
Having been to the Brit Embassy today, just thought I'd clarify a couple of points that have arisen on this thread.
Cost of the income letter is 2,250THB. Submit everything and pay between 8.30-11.00am. Collect same day between 2-3pm.
Pete raised the spectre of The Embassy saying they don't validate the income any more. This is not correct - I appreciate that you're not a Brit, Pete, and so have had this information 3rd hand.
In fact the letter is marginally more detailed this year than it has been for the past four I've had.
Ie, previously it would have said something along the lines of - "Lomu has provided evidence to show he gets xyz rental income a month". This year, there's that but they re-iterate the point, with the amount (so twice), and state what evidence I supplied. That's fair enough for me as it actually seems to make the British Embassy's letter even more watertight. Needless to say, I'll be taking the evidence I produced today along to Imm as well but won't volunteer it unless asked for.
Thanks for that clarification. I've read that it can be obtained by post. Do you have any idea how long that takes? I guess you have to chance all of the evidence, plus the letter to the Thai postal service as well.
