I am a retired 60 year old American and wish to be able to travel freely in Thailand. However, I have no intention to rent or buy a condo as I prefer to stay in hotels year around. I would probably stay in Thailand 6 to 8 months per year with occasional trips outside of Thailand. I’ve been doing this the last 5 years utilizing the visa on arrival, but would now like not to travel so much.
Will I be able to obtain a multiple entry retirement visa without a permanent address in Thailand? I have no problem meeting the financial requirements.
One of the requirements when applying for the one year extension of stay based on retirement is the proof of permanent residence in Thailand. Documents such as purchase agreement and lease contract are needed during the application. While some immigration offices accepts a 3-month condominium or apartment lease period, a longer contract may be required in other provinces.
An option for those who do not want to rent or buy a house or place to live in is to have someone in Thailand (can be a local or a foreigner) who can provide sponsorship for his accommodation. The sponsor will just need to write a letter to attest that he is permitting the foreigner to stay in his place. Along with the letter, a valid passport or Thai ID must be provided as well.
Once the one year extension is obtained, the 90-day reporting of address in Thailand (as a requirement for retirement visa holders) can be done online. Basically, the holder of the visa just needs to fill out the online visa reporting application form and he then gets a confirmation on the details of his next reporting date a few days later. No document as proof of the address will be required to be presented during this process and, therefore, the foreigner will be able to do the reporting even if he is in a different province.
See more questions and answers on the Frequently Asked Questions page of this website
6 Responses
Are there any age restrictions on a foreigner obtaining a work permit?
Hi Steven,
There is no specified age restriction set by the Labour Office as long as the applicant is above 20 years old. There might be some employers who have age restriction when they are hiring employees but that is up to the employer.
I am a man from Algeria. I have Algerian passport. I am retired. I plan to visit Thailand (Bangkok and Phuket) on January 2017. But there is no Thai embassy in Algeria. What should I do to get tourist visa? And which Thai embassy?
You may apply for a Thai tourist visa from the Thai embassy in Rabat in Morocco or in Cairo, Egypt.
Enquiry on NON-IMMIGRANT VISA-O-A (LONG STAY/retirement)
Application form for visa to Thailand is generic.
1) Is “the Name, telephone number and address of Guarantor in Thailand” in their Application form and” the name and telephone number of reference person in Thailand” in their Additional Application Form (please see the files in the following link: http://www.thaiembassy.sg/visa-matters-/-consular/visa-requirements/non-immigrant-visa-o-a-long-stay) relevant to an applicant who would like to apply for 1 year Non-Immigrant Visa “O-A”?
2) Similarly, is “the Name, telephone number and address of Guarantor in Thailand” in their Application form relevant to a tourist?
Is it because a retiree/tourist doesn’t need a guarantor to retire 1 year nor tour in Thailand and how can he/she possibly know a guarantor in Thailand?
Please advise.
Thank you,
Lim
Please contact the Thai Embassy in Singapore for information regarding your concerns.