Long term Visa options (Not 50 yet!)

[masterslayer169]

Does Thailand have any long term visa options for those who are not above 50? Right now I get a 60 day visa from my country, which can be extended to another 30 days without COVID. Is there really any good options?

• ED Visa: Not applicable for my passport
• Volunteer Visa: Feels a bit scammy and Im sure the government will crack down on it eventually. 
• Work Visa (find a local job) I freelance and discovered none of the local full-time jobs in my industry can bring me the same amount of money I make freelancing. 
• Work visa (without a local jobs) : Agencies can offer you employment, where you route your income. This is super expensive though since you end up paying local taxes, and the agencies. Comes to around 100-150K THB a year. But spoke to a couple of law offices and they said this is the safest way to stay in Thailand long term. Any experience with this?
• Set up a business: Again, no clue about this. I know friends who have businesses set up with very little activity in Dubai and Singapore for long term visas. Is similar stuff possible here in Thailand?
• Elite: Amazing visa. But 1 Million THB upfront is not small change for me and feels wasteful. I feel that much money invested somewhere would give better returns. Also I dont know if I really want a 20 year visa considering the 5 year elite is a terrible deal. 

[LASportsNut]

The only good option is the one that fits each individual wants and need.

I paid for the 20 year Elite Visa because if fit my wants and needs.

Expensive? Yes, but all the other options did not fit my wants and needs.

[Gonetothedogs]

1 hour ago, masterslayer169 said:

Does Thailand have any long term visa options for those who are not above 50? Right now I get a 60 day visa from my country, which can be extended to another 30 days without COVID. Is there really any good options?

• ED Visa: Not applicable for my passport
• Volunteer Visa: Feels a bit scammy and Im sure the government will crack down on it eventually. 
• Work Visa (find a local job) I freelance and discovered none of the local full-time jobs in my industry can bring me the same amount of money I make freelancing. 
• Work visa (without a local jobs) : Agencies can offer you employment, where you route your income. This is super expensive though since you end up paying local taxes, and the agencies. Comes to around 100-150K THB a year. But spoke to a couple of law offices and they said this is the safest way to stay in Thailand long term. Any experience with this?
• Set up a business: Again, no clue about this. I know friends who have businesses set up with very little activity in Dubai and Singapore for long term visas. Is similar stuff possible here in Thailand?
• Elite: Amazing visa. But 1 Million THB upfront is not small change for me and feels wasteful. I feel that much money invested somewhere would give better returns. Also I dont know if I really want a 20 year visa considering the 5 year elite is a terrible deal. 

I had a volunteer visas, cost 44,000 for 15 months and was happy with it. Of course it’s all a scam, but it was for me the most cost affective way to stay here. I heard they were harder to get now

 

setting up a business here costs a fortune and it hard to get your money back out of it. 
 

I

[Thomaz73]

1 hour ago, masterslayer169 said:

Also I dont know if I really want a 20 year visa considering the 5 year elite is a terrible deal

It's actually closer to 6 years. I have one and absolutely no complaints. Before going elite I lived here for years on tourist visas. As I'm not a minivan+hostels type, the cost was really not that much more. Throw in peace of mind, and I'm happy with the decision. 

[taylor1975]

Ok if you're a kid, but doing ed visa or volunteer visa to save £100 a month is not where most folks should be.

Elite is 600k baht for 5 years, but then the 15 year extension is ....400k?? So its just front loaded charges. 

£227 a month for the first 5 years. A lot less after that.

There is a digital nomad visa i think - but thailand didn't understand what that was and its useless. 

 

[Old Scratch]

17 minutes ago, taylor1975 said:

Ok if you're a kid, but doing ed visa or volunteer visa to save £100 a month is not where most folks should be.

Adults like to save money, too.

[taylor1975]

20 minutes ago, Old Scratch said:

Adults like to save money, too.

With blag visa's ...classy

[Old Scratch]

27 minutes ago, taylor1975 said:

With blag visa's ...classy

So first choosing a more expensive visa is an adult thing.  Now it's a classy thing.

Makes sense.  To have an elite visa requires an elitist attitude 😄

[Mick Pattaya]

If you are a digital freelance worker why not go for Edu visa. You mention something about being not applicable, didn't understand that. 

Proficiency in conversational Thai and having the ability to read Thai should serve you better if you indeed plan on staying long term. 

[masterslayer169]

14 hours ago, Old Scratch said:

Adults like to save money, too.

Im under 30 without any responsibilities for now. So I dont feel like spending 1 million THB upfront since I feel I might need it when I intend to get married. 

[masterslayer169]

13 hours ago, Mick Pattaya said:

If you are a digital freelance worker why not go for Edu visa. You mention something about being not applicable, didn't understand that. 

Proficiency in conversational Thai and having the ability to read Thai should serve you better if you indeed plan on staying long term. 

While I am legitimately interested in paying a premium for a good school and learn Thai, EDU visa is not available for people with Indian passport....

[masterslayer169]

15 hours ago, taylor1975 said:

There is a digital nomad visa i think - but thailand didn't understand what that was and its useless. 

 

Yup, the whole digital nomad visa and smart visas, are a joke. Not worth the hassle. 

[taylor1975]

8 hours ago, masterslayer169 said:

Im under 30 without any responsibilities for now. So I dont feel like spending 1 million THB upfront since I feel I might need it when I intend to get married. 

Its not 1m ...its 600k. Topic over then as you have no other choice. 

[masterslayer169]

13 hours ago, taylor1975 said:

Its not 1m ...its 600k. Topic over then as you have no other choice. 

Dont think I want to buy elite. 

With that said, if I were to buy one, might as well spend the extra 400K to get an additional 15 years. The 5 year version feels like a terrible deal. 

[biggles]

So with your 5 years Elite Visa do you only renew it after 5 years and do you still have to report to immig every 90 days? 

[freedom42]

5 hours ago, biggles said:

So with your 5 years Elite Visa do you only renew it after 5 years and do you still have to report to immig every 90 days? 

You have to get your annual stamp every year for 1900 baht. 90 day reports can be done online yourself, or you can take your passport to the designated agent in various cities and they will do it for you.

After 5 years, you must get a new visa.

[taylor1975]

9 hours ago, masterslayer169 said:

Dont think I want to buy elite. 

With that said, if I were to buy one, might as well spend the extra 400K to get an additional 15 years. The 5 year version feels like a terrible deal. 

You extend the 5 year one with a further 15 at any time during the 5 year one. Pretty obvious its not just a 5 year visa from my earlier post!

[pattayanubi19]

Im thinking of doing the 5 years visa because I’m going to move there in two years . I’ll be 45 and then I’ll switch to the retirement  visa . I’m lucky that my timing works out perfect .  That’s about $3000 a year,  or less then a business class ticket from the US 

[masterslayer169]

6 hours ago, pattayanubi19 said:

Im thinking of doing the 5 years visa because I’m going to move there in two years . I’ll be 45 and then I’ll switch to the retirement  visa . I’m lucky that my timing works out perfect .  That’s about $3000 a year,  or less then a business class ticket from the US 

I think its worth upgrading to the 20 year visa because its just 400K more and comes with a lot of convenience that you dont get with a retirement visa: No paperwork, no 90 day reporting, easy immigration, etc. 

[pattayanubi19]

17 hours ago, masterslayer169 said:

I think its worth upgrading to the 20 year visa because its just 400K more and comes with a lot of convenience that you dont get with a retirement visa: No paperwork, no 90 day reporting, easy immigration, etc. 

that’s an interesting point. Is having to report every 90 days a big pain in the ass ? 

[Ohyesuare]

23 hours ago, masterslayer169 said:

I think its worth upgrading to the 20 year visa because its just 400K more and comes with a lot of convenience that you dont get with a retirement visa: No paperwork, no 90 day reporting, easy immigration, etc. 

You still have to do 90 day reports on the Elite Visa.

5 hours ago, pattayanubi19 said:

that’s an interesting point. Is having to report every 90 days a big pain in the ass ? 

Not at all. You can even send an agent to do it for you for a small fee and then after that, you can do it online or they have an app now too. Like most things in Thailand, it doesn't always work 100% of the time but 90 day reports aren't a big deal.

[TripleIPA]

On 14/04/2022 at 10:51, masterslayer169 said:

Im under 30 without any responsibilities for now. So I dont feel like spending 1 million THB upfront since I feel I might need it when I intend to get married. 

if you're worried about money don't get married!

9 hours ago, Ohyesuare said:

You still have to do 90 day reports on the Elite Visa.

Not at all. You can even send an agent to do it for you for a small fee and then after that, you can do it online or they have an app now too. Like most things in Thailand, it doesn't always work 100% of the time but 90 day reports aren't a big deal.

I'm on year 5 of my elite visa. I've done a total of 1  90 day report and that was only because I needed the paperwork or stamp for a recent one for something else, can't remember what it was. I've been in and out of thailand, and also just stayed put for a year too. never had a single problem. 

 

On 23/04/2022 at 07:05, masterslayer169 said:

I think its worth upgrading to the 20 year visa because its just 400K more and comes with a lot of convenience that you dont get with a retirement visa: No paperwork, no 90 day reporting, easy immigration, etc. 

I have Thailand Elite and i didn't even know about this. guess i got a year to set aside 400k . 

[Ohyesuare]

8 minutes ago, TripleIPA said:

I'm on year 5 of my elite visa. I've done a total of 1  90 day report and that was only because I needed the paperwork or stamp for a recent one for something else, can't remember what it was. I've been in and out of thailand, and also just stayed put for a year too. never had a single problem. 

I'm on Thai Elite as well. They told me I have to do one every 90 continuous days I stay in the country and I have a slip in my passport telling me when I should do the next one by. They even have an office that does it for you for free in Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai. They can decide to fine you for not doing them when you go for an extension but if you never go to immigration during your stay and leave before your 1 year is up, I can see why you have got away without being fined. Pretty sure airport immigration doesn't deal with/care about 90 day reports when stamping you out.

And yes, the 400k upgrade for 20 years total is a good deal I'm considering but I'll wait until year 5 of mine probably.

Edited April 24, 2022 by Ohyesuare

[pattayanubi19]

Perhaps this is the wrong thread for this but since we are talking about non retirement visas . I’m 43 and have about $ 850,000 US in savings after I sell my house not including my 401k , is that enough to last 20 years comfortably in Thailand , not going crazy but having some fun a few times a week ?  

[dnaliaht]

46 minutes ago, pattayanubi19 said:

Perhaps this is the wrong thread for this but since we are talking about non retirement visas . I’m 43 and have about $ 850,000 US in savings after I sell my house not including my 401k , is that enough to last 20 years comfortably in Thailand , not going crazy but having some fun a few times a week ?  

Depends on what your “comfortable” spend actually ends up being. If you don’t want to touch the 401k early by doing backdoor roths, then the 850k should last at least 30 years with an inflation adjusted draw down of $34k a year. Can you live on 93k baht a month or less? This also assumes that 850k is invested in a total market fund or similar at a 60/40 or higher equity to bonds ratio and not in “savings” getting eaten away by inflation.  Go over to Firecalc and run the numbers, as it will show you your success rate at having retired at any point in the markets history.

Of course this all doesn’t take into account huge medical events or other situations that could change things, but we aren’t always guaranteed tomorrow anyways.