[Extension of stay Samut Prakan - Retirement]

Also, be aware that Samut Prakan Immigration insists that the 800,000 baht be lodged in the bank for 3 (three) months before applying for a retirement extension for the second year and all subsequent years.

Officials there only accept the 800k on deposit for 2 months in the case of FIRST TIME applicants.

I had personal experience of this anomaly, to my cost, in May this year.

[samut prakan immigration]

There is absolutely no need to feel sorry for staff at Samut Prakan Immigration; some of them are very rude, needlessly intrusive and aggressive and woefully ignorant of updates in their own Bureau's regulations.

 

I was refused a retirement extension there in late May this year, by a loud and bellicose female desk officer, on the basis that I only had the 800k in my account for two months prior to applying for renewal of my extension.

 

When I protested that I was only following the recently updated Immigration rules, she dismissed me with a wave of her hand and pointed me towards her male superior, sitting at a desk a few metres behind the public counter.

 

(This dismissal came only after she first tried to refer me back to the IO in the province where I used to live -- she had to back down when I showed her that I had already officially registered my address with Immigration as being in Samut Prakan -- and then asked intrusive personal questions of my Thai partner, ending with "why doesn't the farang own a house; why is he only renting?". This last delivered with a patronising sneer. I was given no time to explain that I have, in fact, built a house upcountry, but that I cannot claim to own it because of current Thai legislation regarding land ownership.

This harridan then went on to ask, in a harsh, accusatory voice, why I had retirement extensions granted by IOs in so many other provinces -- there have actually only been 2 other offices involved -- and, not giving me any time to respond, then accused me of using an agent -- and, by implication, trickery -- to obtain these previous extensions.)

 

Her male superior later backed up what his subordinate had said, declaring that the 2-months-money-in-the-bank rule was only for first-time applicants and that 3 months' seasoning was required for extension renewals like mine.

He began to get visibly angry when I pointed out that Chaeng Wattana and all other IOs I had read about were accepting the new 2-months-prior rule. He waved a Thai-language booklet (presumably bearing the updated regulations) at me and asked why I would believe "some website" as opposed to an IO whose duty it is to know the regulations.

He then exposed his total ignorance of the updated regulations by telling me that I could withdraw 400k immediately after receiving a retirement extension and the other 400k 3 months later.

 

So I have had to go to all the unnecessary expense of leaving the country, getting a new non-immigrant "o" visa in Penang and restarting the process from scratch.

 

I see from reading the OP, that Samut Prakan IO has rapidly educated itself in the interim regarding some aspects of the updated regulations (witness the pre-prepared note the OP was given when he enquired about how long the 800k had to remain on deposit).

 

However, let all would-be retirement-extension applicants be aware of the interpretation this IO is putting on the period the 800k needs to be in the bank prior to applying: the IOs may still be sticking to the old 3-months rule.

 

Also, reserve your compassion for those who truly deserve it!

[Retirement: 800k for 2 mths not long enough?]

Samut Prakan Immigration has just rejected my application to extend my stay in Thailand for another year (retirement, 800k bank deposit method).

 

I opted for early retirement from my job a few years back (lump-sum payment; no pension) after having worked in Thailand legally (back-to-back work visas) since 1989. This would have been my 4th retirement extension, but it was my first attempt to extend in Samut Prakan. I only moved to this province a few months ago, but duly registered my new address with local Immigration.

 

I had seasoned the 800k for only 2 months, since this was my understanding of the new rules after reading posts from many people on this forum, but the Samut Prakan IO insisted, earlier today, that I had to have the 800k in the bank for 3 months prior to the application. He said the 2-month seasoning was only for first-time applicants for the retirement extension and that there was a 3-month minimum for second and subsequent extensions. I politely pointed out that what he had just outlined was the old regulation, but that it had been superceded by the new rules. He stuck to his guns, however. His superior officer, sitting alongside him, backed him up. For second and subsequent retirement extensions, I was told, the new rule is 800k in the bank for a minimum of 3 months before application and then 400k in the bank for 3 months after a one-year extension is granted.

 

I was told that I would have to start the process again by leaving the country, getting a new non-immigrant "o" visa, returning and applying for a retirement extension from scratch after at least 90 days have elapsed.

 

It seems to me that these 2 IOs are grossly misinterpreting the new rules. I asked for and was granted a 7-day extension (1,900 baht fee) to allow me time to make travel arrangements. In the interim, do I have any recourse, any means of appealing against what seems to me to be a decision based on an

Incorrect understanding of the new rules? What say you Ubon Joe? Or should I just meekly accept the situation, fly to Penang and restart the process?

 

P.S. For a successful non-immigrant "o" application, will the Penang consulate need to see a bank letter plus an updated bank book showing 800k, or will a lesser amount do? Any other requirements?

 

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[Choosing right application form for non-O visa]

Thanks UbonJoe, you're a treasure! That info has saved me lots of time.

Perhaps one of the moderators could add that website to the templates file.

[Choosing right application form for non-O visa]

I will be applying for a non-immigrant "O" visa (single entry for purpose of retirement extension) in Penang next week.

On the file of visa-form templates pinned to the top of this forum, TM.87 (Application For Visa) seems to be the most appropriate for that task. But several of the questions on it ("kind of visa", "arrived by mode of transportation"; "port of arrival") suggest that this might be a form for applying for a non-immigrant visa once one has actually arrived in Thailand. Will TM.87 also be acceptable for my purposes in Penang?

[SRT alcohol sale/consumption ban still in force?]

I'm preparing for the overnight train trip from Bangkok to Butterworth to apply for a new visa in Penang. Does anyone know whether the SRT ban on alcohol sales is still in force? Is discreet tippling of own beer supplies possible?

[Update needed on non-imm O hurdles in Penang]

Thanks for all the replies, people.

To Terry LH and big116: yes, one's work permit is indeed "supposed to be" cancelled very soon after one leaves a job, but in this case my employer agreed to delay things until the end of Feb to allow me time to meet the bank-deposit requirements for a extension based on retirement. In the interim, I tested the water by applying for a re-entry permit for a short visit (sightseeing) to Laos in January. The permit was granted and I re-entered Thailand a week later without any hassles. I suppose that, technically, I am guilty of overstaying, but because my WP and the permission to stay stamped in my passport both run until much later this year (and have not yet been cancelled by my employer), the officials busily peering at their computers are none the wiser.

To paz: I will ultimately have to deal with the Immigration office in Nakhon Sawan vis a vis the retirement extension. I spoke to a female official there recently by phone and was informed, firmly but politely, that it would be impossible to apply for a retirement extension there without having a non-imm 'O' visa. "You can't apply for a retirement extension on the visa you currently hold," she explained very patiently, "because that visa is a non-imm 'B' only issued to people who are working in Thailand and you are no longer working here."

The same official also listed the other documents I would need in addition to my passport/non-imm 'O' visa and photos:

1. a letter from my bank confirming the 800k deposit for two months;

2. a "bank statement" ( I will need to seek clarification from her about whether an updated bank book will suffice for this purpose);

3. a copy of the house registration book (tabien baan) for the place I will be residing upcountry.

I asked whether I would also need to bring along a letter from the local village headman (pooyai baan) confirming my living arrangements, but she said that that would unnecessary.

To Ubonjoe: thanks for your very definitive info about Penang. And, yes, you are right about some Immigration offices refusing to change the reason for extension of stay from work to retirement (see my reply to paz above).

To stuurman: thanks for the on-the-ground reassurance about the situation in Penang (re visa applicants needing to be merely over the age of 50 and not 55) and the new info about a 3-month deposit of 800k qualifying one for a multiple-entry non-imm 'O'.

So I'll be heading down to Penang soon. Will report back on developments there.

[Update needed on non-imm O hurdles in Penang]

Thanks Paz. I am still here on the original work permit which my employer has agreed not to cancel until the end of Feb. But have been advised by an immigration lawyer that because I resigned on November 1, the only way I can avoid a trip abroad for this non-imm O visa is if I can get my employer to pretend that I paid tax for Nov, Dec and Jan (i.e. push forward my resignation date to Feb 1). That may be a tall order indeed!

[Update needed on non-imm O hurdles in Penang]

Hi all. I'm 54, unmarried, have been employed legally in Thailand for 20 years (back-to-back work permits) and recently resigned from my job. I have had 800k deposited in a Thai bank for the required two months, but have no pension or other provable source of income (I will be living upcountry on income generated by my long-term Thai partner).

I realise I need to leave the country and get a non-immigrant O visa to start the process of getting an extension of stay based on retirement. Since I have no pension or other provable source of income, I am trying to decide on the most hassle-free embassy/consulate to apply for this.

A recent post by Ubonjoe recommended the Thai embassy in Vientiane as the best nearby location to apply for a non-immigrant O visa for reasons of retirement.

But I would prefer to do this in Penang if at all possible. Some (perhaps dated) info online suggests that the Penang consulate requires the non-imm O applicant to be at least 55 years of age and to be able to show evidence of a pension in addition to the 800k in the bank. Does anyone have any recent information on the situation there in this regard? Or as a pension-less 54-year-old am I better off heading for Vientiane?