Retired foreigners with a foreign spouse..

[bapak]

Reportedly the Thai Immigration Bureau has announced that the foreign wives of expats with a one-year retirement visa will in future need their own separate pension income or cash in a Thai bank. Have not seen an official announcement of this but no doubt we will be the last to know.

[oakdale160]

One more reason to leave them back home.

[Big Boy]

Any idea if those already here under the current rules will be 'grandfathered'? If not, that's going to put a lot of retirees in serious trouble.

[lomuamart]

Don't think there are any further details yet. Grandfathering is normal in these types of situation but we'll have to wait and see.

[T.I.G.R.]

I just read about this on another forum......I wonder how many Thais immigrating to the U.S. have over $50K laying around for when they have their (non-existent) annual pilgrimage to the old immigration department.

I'll tell you what.......that's enough for me. They can kiss my u-know-what. We aren't wanted in Thailand anyway so I'll be happy to take my money, and my wife's money, which are and have always been in jointly held accounts......to somewhere where I don't feel like an unwanted foreigner everywhere i go.

We've got a couple of very nice properties for sale Immediately.......Hawaii is sounding pretty good to me right now!

[oakdale160]

Should that be grandmothered, rather than grand fathered

[bapak]

Reportedly the Thai Immigration Bureau has announced that the foreign wives of expats with a one-year retirement visa will in future need their own separate pension income or cash in a Thai bank. Have not seen an official announcement of this but no doubt we will be the last to know.

In the first line .... foreign wives should read foreign spouse

[jingjoe]

you can still share the same 800 000bht qualifier just have slightly more than 3months between visas..and switch money to the others account...beat them at their own game!!

[jingjoe]

what if your spouse is under 50??
,did they qualify before and now don't...theres probably a lot of guys here with younger filipino wives as well as farang wives

[oakdale160]

Filipinos are farang, they are not Thai. It will be interesting to see if and when AEC regulations are implemented they will be in different situation..

[Bristolian]

Filipinos are farang, they are not Thai. It will be interesting to see if and when AEC regulations are implemented they will be in different situation..

Farang (Thai: ฝรั่ง [faràŋ]) is a generic Thai word for someone of European ancestry, no matter where they may come from.

A Filipino may be a foreigner but is never a farang.

In the Thai language there is one term which refers to all (non Thai) "foreigners." The transliteration is: khon tang chat.

However, of course a Filipino spouse will be classed as a foreigner. I agree that it will be interesting to see what happens if and when Thailand adopts AEC regulations.

[caller]

I saw this elsewhere as well, I guess this is the source?

http://pattayatoday.net/news/latest-edi ... d-couples/

[T.I.G.R.]

Today I read a more detailed version of this item, from where I don't think I'm allowed to say, but here is the end of the article:

"The misunderstandings may stem from the way the regulation is worded, Lt Col Napat said.

“The rule uses the phrase ‘50 per cent per person’ to refer to the amount in the bank account, and this may have led people to believe that each person needed only 400,000 baht,” Lt Col Napat said.

“In fact, they must each show evidence of 800,000 baht in the bank. That means that if they have a joint account, it must show a balance of at least 1.6 million baht,” he explained.

An alternative is to show a regular pension or investment income of at least 65,000 baht a month, he said. Applicants must show proof of this income for the three months prior to submitting the application.

Lt Col Napat noted that foreign retirees who are married to Thais may opt to apply for a marriage visa instead of a retirement visa. For this visa, the applicant must show evidence of 400,000 baht in a Thai bank account.

I don't know the rules for a marriage visa....what is the difference between that and a retirement visa? If your wife comes and goes on an American passort (even thought she is Thai) are they going to consider her Thai now or American?

[Dannie Boy]

Today I read a more detailed version of this item, from where I don't think I'm allowed to say, but here is the end of the article:

"The misunderstandings may stem from the way the regulation is worded, Lt Col Napat said.

“The rule uses the phrase ‘50 per cent per person’ to refer to the amount in the bank account, and this may have led people to believe that each person needed only 400,000 baht,” Lt Col Napat said.

“In fact, they must each show evidence of 800,000 baht in the bank. That means that if they have a joint account, it must show a balance of at least 1.6 million baht,” he explained.

An alternative is to show a regular pension or investment income of at least 65,000 baht a month, he said. Applicants must show proof of this income for the three months prior to submitting the application.

Lt Col Napat noted that foreign retirees who are married to Thais may opt to apply for a marriage visa instead of a retirement visa. For this visa, the applicant must show evidence of 400,000 baht in a Thai bank account.

I don't know the rules for a marriage visa....what is the difference between that and a retirement visa? If your wife comes and goes on an American passort (even thought she is Thai) are they going to consider her Thai now or American?

If your wife uses her American passport to live here (i.e. Reports to Imm every 90 days) then she will not be considered as a Thai.

[hhfarang]

I think the main difference between a retirement visa and a marriage visa (beside the financial requirements) is that extensions have to be approved in Bangkok. You don't have to go but the paperwork does, therefore, it is more work for immigration and they don't like them. They would prefer you to be on a retirement visa... just an opinion from what I've heard from others using the marriage option.