Jump to content
IGNORED

Going rate for non imm O and retirement visa


az89

Recommended Posts

13 hours ago, englishman said:

I see the 25K cost thrown around a bit..I've inquired at a couple of places and costs seem to be closer to 40K, like many I don't have the required 800K, I do have a Bank account but not Bangkok bank

Yeah i've been quoted close to the 40,000 mark

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I was charged 25k with Maneerat last September, but I guess it may have gone up since then, I don't know.

Be scene and not herd.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, Laawman said:

I was charged 25k with Maneerat last September, but I guess it may have gone up since then, I don't know.

I plan on going and having a chat with these guys , Maneerat..heard some good reviews about them

If God hadn't meant you to eat it , he wouldn't have made it look like a taco !

 

 

I'd rather burn out than rust away !

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 minutes ago, englishman said:

I plan on going and having a chat with these guys , Maneerat..heard some good reviews about them

They've been going since the Noughties so you should be in experienced hands.

  • Like 2

Be scene and not herd.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, englishman said:

plan on going and having a chat with these guys , Maneerat..heard some good reviews about them

Probably the best agency around. Let us know how everything goes. 

image.png.6eb5df3c4b99a4189996c2a21d8f14af.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Today i applied for te Non-O visa (retirement) and 1 year extension. I was asked my passport and the TM30(?) form. The agent took me a pic. He asked me 23.900 THB, plus 3.900 for opening a bank account. Total, 27.800

Then, i was taken to the bank, in Pattaya Klang, where another person from the agency was waiting for me. I waited 5 minutes and then i signed a few papers. Also another pic of me was taken. At the end, i had a bank account (with 500 THB left) and a atm card. 

Then i left and i went to Immigration, on my own. I walked down until Buakhao, took a baht bus until Pattaya Tai, then another one to Jomtien. Outside the office, lots of farangs. At least, 3 different queues. Some "controled confusion". Another member of the agency was wating for me (and for several other farang clients). I was expecting someone else, as i was told at the agency, so i was next to him for about 15  minutes, not knowing he as the right guy, until he showed me a copy of my passport, asking it it was me....

  After that, he took me inside (no waiting queue for us), where someone took another pic of me (the third, in this process) and a pic of the passport copy...and that was it. one minute and a half inside.

I arrived the agency in Buakhao at 11.00 and i left the immigration office around 1.20pm

Now i have to wait 3-4 weeks until the vissa is issued (longer, because it is my first time)

My impressions: this agency is very efficient, it is like a machine working, with it's pieces working together, some at the agency itself, some at the bank, some inside the immigration. If it was not Thailand, i would say maybe some bribes would be going on. But TIT, so of course not.

  • Like 1
  • Thanks 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

2 hours ago, filipef said:

Today i applied for te Non-O visa (retirement) and 1 year extension. I was asked my passport and the TM30(?) form. The agent took me a pic. He asked me 23.900 THB, plus 3.900 for opening a bank account. Total, 27.800

You did well, on Feb 15, my agent charged me B24,500 for the visa and B4,500 to open a bank account, so B1,200 more. Like you, the opening fee included B500 in my account.

I got a quote from another agent of B27,000 for the visa and B4,000 for the bank account. 

Edited by Billy Baht
  • Like 2

image.png.6eb5df3c4b99a4189996c2a21d8f14af.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

54 minutes ago, Billy Baht said:

You did well, on Feb 15, my agent charged me B24,500 for the visa and B4,500 to open a bank account, so B1,200 more. Like you, the opening fee included B500 in my account.

I got a quote from another agent of B27,000 for the visa and B4,000 for the bank account. 

Maybe the secret was who called the agency on the phone and went with me to the agency was a thai lady. I am not sure the price would be the same if I just walked in and asked the price.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

21 minutes ago, filipef said:

Maybe the secret was who called the agency on the phone and went with me to the agency was a thai lady. I am not sure the price would be the same if I just walked in and asked the price.

I have no ideal, but one poster said he paid paid 40k for a visa, bank account and multiple reentry permit.

From what I've read on this forum, you have paid the lowest price

I will do a single reentry permit myself; it costs 1k 

Edited by Billy Baht
  • Like 2

image.png.6eb5df3c4b99a4189996c2a21d8f14af.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 6 months later...

Maneerat have not changed the price for the various services for over a year.

Brilliant and fast service.

The foreign run visa agents seem to be a far higher in price, presumably the Thai agents have better,cheaper contacts.

I have noticed that foreign agents are saying that a 12 month rental agreement is needed if you apply for an 12 month extension based  on retirement, something that Thai agents don’t require from you.

Recently done the whole process, non imm O, 12 month extension, bank account etc Passport back in hand and 15 months good to go all done in 13 working days👌

 

 

 

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Odd info and recommendations on this thread.

I entered Thailand on 4/1/2023 with a 30 day visa on arrival. I went to immigration on 4/7/2023 and got a 90 day exstention from the 4/1/2023. I went to Bangkok bank to open an account, they were hesitant to open one as something about reporting interest dividends to the IRS. US citizen here. I walked accross the street to Kasikorn bank and opened an account no problem. I now have a non imm O visa and expecting my marriage visa on Sept 29. Why pay an agent? Thai immigration will guide you through prosses, You will still need to go to immigration in person for each step in the process. You will still need to go to the bank to open an account. There is nothing that an agent can do for you except take your money. Thai immigration is not an enemy, they are friendly , helpful and has people that speak English.

My rant, don"t know that it will help.

Good Luck

Ray

  • Haha 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 minutes ago, zxray said:

Why pay an agent?
You will still need to go to immigration in person for each step in the process. You will still need to go to the bank to open an account. There is nothing that an agent can do for you except take your money.

When you come to extend for another year you can do so without having kept 800k baht in your account for 6 of the previous 12 months and a minimum of 400k for the other 6 months. 
I used to keep the 800k in my account (at tiny interest) all year and do the extension myself. Now I invest that money at a minimum 5% interest earning myself 40k baht. Deduct the cost of the extension and re-entry permit at 13.5k and I’m at least 26.5k baht ahead. 
I also do not not need to go to immigration. My photo is taken in the Maneerat office when ai drop off my passport. 
When I got my original retirement visa many years ago I did that myself. Immigration basically kept putting obstacles in my way until I agreed a fee of 20k for their help in making things smooth for me. 

Edited by Geordie59
Link to comment
Share on other sites

3 minutes ago, zxray said:

Odd info and recommendations on this thread.

I entered Thailand on 4/1/2023 with a 30 day visa on arrival. I went to immigration on 4/7/2023 and got a 90 day exstention from the 4/1/2023. I went to Bangkok bank to open an account, they were hesitant to open one as something about reporting interest dividends to the IRS. US citizen here. I walked accross the street to Kasikorn bank and opened an account no problem. I now have a non imm O visa and expecting my marriage visa on Sept 29. Why pay an agent? Thai immigration will guide you through prosses, You will still need to go to immigration in person for each step in the process. You will still need to go to the bank to open an account. There is nothing that an agent can do for you except take your money. Thai immigration is not an enemy, they are friendly , helpful and has people that speak English.

My rant, don"t know that it will help.

Good Luck

Ray

1. You didn’t enter on a Visa on Arrival. You entered without a visa - known as a Visa Exempt entry.

2. You didn’t get a 90-day extension, there’s no such thing. It sounds as if you got your entry converted to a Non O at immigration office, though the dates don’t make sense. You haven’t said which Immigration Office you dealt with? They can vary enormously in what they require and how helpful they are. You were very lucky if they did it as easily as you say. Usually a lot of paperwork is required 

3. You will not be getting a ‘marriage visa’ on Sept 29 as there’s no such thing. You will be getting your first annual Extension of Stay based on marriage. The visa you have is a Non O, it is the only visa you’ll have, you don’t change to another visa or renew the visa. You can use this visa to stay in Thailand permanently by getting your permission to stay Extended each year based on being married to a Thai.

4. You say you got the Non O on 7 April (I’m assuming you’re using USA date format?) It’s a 90-day visa so will have expired on 5 July. Unless you have mistyped the dates, and put ‘1’ instead of ‘7’ and you entered in July then you are currently illegal. 

Sorry, very little in the post makes sense at all. 
 

As for the point about agents. I’ve made it very clear more than once that it is perfectly possible to do everything yourself, as many people do. However, for many reasons, some people prefer to use an agent and it’s an option for those that want it. It’s especially common to use an agent in Pattaya as the Jomtien Immigration Office is very busy and has a reputation for being less than helpful at times.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 05/09/2023 at 15:11, davidge said:

1. You didn’t enter on a Visa on Arrival. You entered without a visa - known as a Visa Exempt entry.

2. You didn’t get a 90-day extension, there’s no such thing. It sounds as if you got your entry converted to a Non O at immigration office, though the dates don’t make sense. You haven’t said which Immigration Office you dealt with? They can vary enormously in what they require and how helpful they are. You were very lucky if they did it as easily as you say. Usually a lot of paperwork is required 

3. You will not be getting a ‘marriage visa’ on Sept 29 as there’s no such thing. You will be getting your first annual Extension of Stay based on marriage. The visa you have is a Non O, it is the only visa you’ll have, you don’t change to another visa or renew the visa. You can use this visa to stay in Thailand permanently by getting your permission to stay Extended each year based on being married to a Thai.

4. You say you got the Non O on 7 April (I’m assuming you’re using USA date format?) It’s a 90-day visa so will have expired on 5 July. Unless you have mistyped the dates, and put ‘1’ instead of ‘7’ and you entered in July then you are currently illegal. 

Sorry, very little in the post makes sense at all. 
 

As for the point about agents. I’ve made it very clear more than once that it is perfectly possible to do everything yourself, as many people do. However, for many reasons, some people prefer to use an agent and it’s an option for those that want it. It’s especially common to use an agent in Pattaya as the Jomtien Immigration Office is very busy and has a reputation for being less than helpful at times.

I delt with the Korat office. And looking at my passport on 4/7/2023 I received an extension of stay until 6/29/2023. I received the Non O on 6/2/2023. My point is that it was very simple and immigration was very helpful. I don't understand needing an agent.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

18 minutes ago, zxray said:

I delt with the Korat office. And looking at my passport on 4/7/2023 I received an extension of stay until 6/29/2023. I received the Non O on 6/2/2023. My point is that it was very simple and immigration was very helpful. I don't understand needing an agent.

Thanks for clarifying. 

Yes, some immigration offices are easier to deal with than others. 

What happened was you entered Visa Exempt (30 days) and they then gave you a 60-day Extension based on you having a Thai wife. It’s 30 days if you don’t have family but 60 days in your case.
They then converted your stay to a Non O visa. Many offices require a lot of paperwork for this - one BM posted his experience at the Jomtien office and it took 4 or 5 visits because they kept asking for more information. It sounds like Korat were much more helpful. They usually have to send the passport to Bangkok for this, they do from Jomtien.

At the end of the 90 days of the Non O you can then get your annual Extension of Stay based on marriage. Just FYI any future extension can be done the same way or (assuming you’re over 50) you can get an Extension based on Retirement instead.

If Korat continue to be easy to deal with then I guess you can just continue with the Marriage reason but some offices can be very difficult and insist on witnesses, home visits etc etc for an Extension. Sounds like you’re lucky you’re dealing with Korat :)

 

I know this probably doesn’t make much difference to you as you’ll get your stamps anyway, but it’s worth the clarification just in case others are in a similar situation in the future.

"Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans."

So remember to “Enjoy every sandwich”

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 05/09/2023 at 15:09, Geordie59 said:

I used to keep the 800k in my account (at tiny interest) all year and do the extension myself. Now I invest that money at a minimum 5% interest earning myself 40k baht. Deduct the cost of the extension and re-entry permit at 13.5k and I’m at least 26.5k baht ahead. 

That's why I used an agent this time. It was going to cost cost me money either way- the agent's fee or lost interest in a Thai bank account.

  • Like 2

image.png.6eb5df3c4b99a4189996c2a21d8f14af.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 06/09/2023 at 21:03, zxray said:

I delt with the Korat office. And looking at my passport on 4/7/2023 I received an extension of stay until 6/29/2023. I received the Non O on 6/2/2023. My point is that it was very simple and immigration was very helpful. I don't understand needing an agent.

How much interest are you getting on your 800k / 400k a year in a Thai bank?

 

I was talking to an Irish guy yesterday that has been here 6 year and does the Visa extension himself, he  has the funds in the bank, he said the last time he did it at Jomtien 3 months ago they made it has hard as possible and seemed a bit annoyed he was doing it himself with fund’s deposited. He was of the opinion they were not happy  that an agent wouldn’t be buying them a coffee.

Edited by az89
Link to comment
Share on other sites

13 hours ago, az89 said:

How much interest are you getting on your 800k / 400k a year in a Thai bank?

My Bangkok Bank savings account is now 1.5%; up from 0.5% when I opened it Feb 2023. BKK Bank also withholds Thai tax, about 15% from my last quartely payment. I can get 5.25% from Money Market accounts in the USA.

14 hours ago, az89 said:

I was talking to an Irish guy yesterday that has been here 6 year and does the Visa extension himself, he  has the funds in the bank, he said the last time he did it at Jomtien 3 months ago they made it has hard as possible and seemed a bit annoyed he was doing it himself with fund’s deposited.

From 2003 to 2014 I did extensions myself, at Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai. Pattaya Immigration was always the most problamatic, always making me get one or two unneeded photo copies, just to show me who was the boss, 555!

image.png.6eb5df3c4b99a4189996c2a21d8f14af.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 hour ago, Billy Baht said:

My Bangkok Bank savings account is now 1.5%; up from 0.5% when I opened it Feb 2023. BKK Bank also withholds Thai tax, about 15% from my last quartely payment. I can get 5.25% from Money Market accounts in the USA.

From 2003 to 2014 I did extensions myself, at Bangkok, Pattaya and Chiang Mai. Pattaya Immigration was always the most problamatic, always making me get one or two unneeded photo copies, just to show me who was the boss, 555!

He said exactly the same, even made him redo all the forms since they were in black ink and not blue or visa versa😂😂😂😂.

He was adamant that Jomtien are trying to do everything to push people down the agent route.

And when you can get over 6% on your cash in the UK it’s a no brainer.

 

 

 

Edited by az89
Link to comment
Share on other sites

33 minutes ago, az89 said:

And when you can get over 6% on your cash in the UK it’s a no brainer.

Its by no means a no brainer. In 2 years you'll get 3% and if we're at 40b to £ you've lost +10%

Sudden trip to a hospital and no thai baht to show anyone?? Having negligible funds here because of a bit of interest is ludicrous IMO.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

😂😂  3% in 2 years  ?  not if you are on a 5 year fix so you are immediately wrong , and we are talking about conditions now not your future crystal ball guesses.

40 baht to the £ ? What if it’s 48 then I’ve  made another 10% and you lost 10% or are you another currency exchange billionaire that knows the market better than the rest of the world, we all meet the likes of you on soi buckhao chugging away on their Chang😂.

Anyway, none of us know the future not even Warren Buffett AKA Taylor 1975, and yes in current conditions it is a no brainer and I have plenty of access to immediate funds and insurance thank you so your again wrong.

In years to come conditions may change and we can adapt if and when the do, until then I’ll stick with the profitable way, why you have money holed up earning next to nothing  .😂😂

Edited by az89
Link to comment
Share on other sites

8 minutes ago, az89 said:

😂😂  until then I’ll stick with the profitable way, why you have money holed up earning next to fuck all.

Because 1.3m in the thai account is "fuck all". So it can earn fuck all. Its purpose is fast accessibility. I'm on elite visa, i don't need to keep any baht in a thai account.

There is no long term real growth on deposits. 5 years is not long term at my age. 35 years is long term, thats why i have most of my assets in equity funds.

Deposits are fine now at 6% in UK but will become a sharp thorn in my side in a few years.

If you are sensitive to worrying about a bit of interest on £20k or whatever, then you may need to expand your thinking about risk and when movements go against you.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, taylor1975 said:

Because 1.3m in the thai account is "fuck all". So it can earn fuck all. Its purpose is fast accessibility. I'm on elite visa, i don't need to keep any baht in a thai account.

There is no long term real growth on deposits. 5 years is not long term at my age. 35 years is long term, thats why i have most of my assets in equity funds.

Deposits are fine now at 6% in UK but will become a sharp thorn in my side in a few years.

If you are sensitive to worrying about a bit of interest on £20k or whatever, then you may need to expand your thinking about risk and when movements go against you.

Thats the wrong way to look at all your capital...compound interest is still key to growing your investments, so leaving £20k in a Thai bank account long term will still hurt after 20 years.

I am getting 6% from Atom Bank in the UK with immediate access...I can transfer using Wise in less than an hour.

Why would I need to keep funds here in Thailand?

Makes no sense...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I believe the 800k has to be in your Thai bank for a total of 6 months  each year to keep applying.  3 months before and 3 months after 
 

so that’s just 6 months interest your losing  each year in uk 

have I got this right ? 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

42 minutes ago, taylor1975 said:

Because 1.3m in the thai account is "fuck all". So it can earn fuck all. Its purpose is fast accessibility. I'm on elite visa, i don't need to keep any baht in a thai account.

There is no long term real growth on deposits. 5 years is not long term at my age. 35 years is long term, thats why i have most of my assets in equity funds.

Deposits are fine now at 6% in UK but will become a sharp thorn in my side in a few years.

If you are sensitive to worrying about a bit of interest on £20k or whatever, then you may need to expand your thinking about risk and when movements go against you.

Stick to the topic please,

 Going rate for non imm O and retirement visa

Just because you’ve been shown to be wrong on your earlier posts regarding the thread subject you do not need to smokescreen being wrong with your £1.3 million of investments be it in equity funds or whatever no one here really cares about your BS, we’ve all meet your type in Pattaya and frankly you are boring.

When you are wrong it’s best to stop digging but obviously you are not able .

  • Like 2
  • Haha 1
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.