Which foreign health insurance companies are accepted for Non-Immigrant Visa “O-A” (Long Stay)

[VIPinLanna]

Can I use my existing USA Health insurance policy to get an O-A Visa next year? Currently with AETNA

I called but could not get a human being to answer within 15 minutes hold. It is a comprehensive policy

with no limits

 

Has anybody done it ? 

[jacko45k]

10 hours ago, oslooskar said:

Okay, I live in the province of Rayong and I have an O-A visa that is valid until February 4, 2020. How, exactly, do I convert my O-A visa to an O visa?

You stay until Feb 4th without a care in the world...actually up until the Permission of Stay stamp. Then leave Thailand and either obtain a Non-Imm-O at a nearby consulate, or return Visa Exempt, and convert it to a Non-Imm-O entry.  

[Langsuan Man]

3 hours ago, VIPinLanna said:

Can I use my existing USA Health insurance policy to get an O-A Visa next year? Currently with AETNA

I called but could not get a human being to answer within 15 minutes hold. It is a comprehensive policy

with no limits

 

Has anybody done it ? 

If you read through all these threads you will find that it is so new, no one has tried it yet

 

But if you look at what the Thai authorities are saying, no it will not be accepted unless AETNA ,USA, has been qualified and placed on the list.  They don't seem to really care what coverage you have, so long as it is provided by a Thai insurance company, and AETNA in Thailand is like Blue Cross, just a franchise and I doubt if approved

 

I certainly would not count on it 

[ubonjoe]

12 hours ago, oslooskar said:

Okay, I live in the province of Rayong and I have an O-A visa that is valid until February 4, 2020. How, exactly, do I convert my O-A visa to an O visa?

Is it your OA visa that is expiring or your permit to stay from it.

If it is your OA visa that is expiring you can leave and re-enter the country and get a new one year entry.

[Sheryl]

6 hours ago, gk10002000 said:

That is not correct.  The police order and forms say that if a foreign policy is certified by that form it can be used.

the police order sdys nothing either way.

 

the tgia website -- which is not an official government source but is being treated as such by default -- says it can be used for the first year only.

[Sheryl]

1 hour ago, Langsuan Man said:

If you read through all these threads you will find that it is so new, no one has tried it yet

 

But if you look at what the Thai authorities are saying, no it will not be accepted unless AETNA ,USA, has been qualified and placed on the list.  They don't seem to really care what coverage you have, so long as it is provided by a Thai insurance company, and AETNA in Thailand is like Blue Cross, just a franchise and I doubt if approved

 

I certainly would not count on it 

 

This is not correct as regards original visa application and first year of entry. Foreign policies CAN be used if they include at least 40k of outpatient cover, and of course cover you in Thailand. And people have done this.

 

There is a downloadable form on the longstay.tgia website that you are supposed to get you insurer to sign and then submit with your visa application and, often, copy of the policy documents.

 

It is difficult to impossible to get insurers to sign this form because of how it is worded...in the case of US insurers I would say almost certainly impossible.  Some Embassies/Consulates have, in that situation, accepted policy documents alone.

 

I suggest you contact the Embassy or Consulate where you are applying for the visa, explain your situation and inability to get the "form" signed and ask if you can send them copy of policy instead. Ultimately it is up to the Embassy/Consulate issuing the visa what they will accept as proof of insurance, but they definitely are not restricted to Thai policies for that. If they accept your proof of insurance they are supposed to make a notation on the visa itself which the Immigration Officer will check at entry. It needs to include the date through which the insurance is in effect as the Imm officers  need that in order to know how long to stamp you in for.

 

Note that if accepted and the visa is issued with the required notation, it will suffice for the first year only i.e. you will not be able to get 2 years out of this visa unless you buy a local policy for the second year. In addition, if your insurance has less than a year to go before renewal, you will only get as much time as is left on the policy so need to synchronize this or see if you can do an early renewal.

 

As you can see this is all rather complicated and difficult. You might like to consider getting a Multiple Entry Tourist visa instead of a non-OA if your purpose is just longer visits in Thailand. Or Elite Visa if you feel sure you want to do this for at least the next 5 years (don't invest in one of you are still new to Thailand, you may change your mind).

 

If your purpose is to require here permanently you would be well advised to either get an Elite Visa (5 or 20 years -- same caveat) or  try to get an non-O visa rather than O-A and then extend it in-country; you will have to show money in a Thai bank account for the extension.

 

No Immigration requirement for insurance on any of those alternative  approaches at this time.

[andre47]

2 minutes ago, Sheryl said:

No Immigration requirement for insurance on any of those alternative  approaches at this time.

"at this time' - this is the point. You cannot rely on this. Everything here is changing quickly. You always should be prepared that you cannot stay here anymore. Don't invest here, don't buy any real estate, don't make any private plans here for long term.

[oslooskar]

1 hour ago, ubonjoe said:

Is it your OA visa that is expiring or your permit to stay from it.

If it is your OA visa that is expiring you can leave and re-enter the country and get a new one year entry.

It says, "valid until 04 FEB 2020" Regarding leaving the country and reentering it and getting a new one year entry; Sheryl wrote, "you will not be able to get 2 years out of this visa unless you buy a local policy for the second year."

 

So I am going to have to either get an "O" visa or come with 81,000 baht. (Note: Thai immigration has already informed me they will not accept my Kaiser Health Plan---which covers me in every country in the world.)

[ubonjoe]

38 minutes ago, oslooskar said:

It says, "valid until 04 FEB 2020" Regarding leaving the country and reentering it and getting a new one year entry; Sheryl wrote, "you will not be able to get 2 years out of this visa unless you buy a local policy for the second year."

So I am going to have to either get an "O" visa or come with 81,000 baht. (Note: Thai immigration has already informed me they will not accept my Kaiser Health Plan---which covers me in every country in the world.)

Not sure insurance will be required for the 2nd entry for a OA visa issued prior to October 31st. They are allowing people to enter the country without insurance now using a OA visa issued prior to the 31st of October.

[Methuselah]

Why,if Thai hospitals are happy to accept overseas health insurance,does the Thai government insist on a Thai policy?

As most of those Thai health insurance policies are less than useful,I suspect that hospital management and owners will be amongst the first to complain to the Thai Government.

[oslooskar]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

Not sure insurance will be required for the 2nd entry for a OA visa issued prior to October 31st. They are allowing people to enter the country without insurance now using a OA visa issued prior to the 31st of October.

I'm sure I could go over to Cambodia for a day or three and reenter Thailand without a problem. However, as far as I know, the Thai immigration authorities are not going to grant me an extension of my O-A visa unless I buy health insurance from the Thai insurance companies they have referenced. 

[Sheryl]

On 11/19/2019 at 10:33 PM, Methuselah said:

Why,if Thai hospitals are happy to accept overseas health insurance,does the Thai government insist on a Thai policy?

As most of those Thai health insurance policies are less than useful,I suspect that hospital management and owners will be amongst the first to complain to the Thai Government.

 

I don't think they are aware of it yet.

 

They didn't have a seat at the (already crowded) table on this.

 

Also I'm not sure that it will have a noticeable effect on private hospitals, at least not while limited to OA visas.  And everyone I've heard from who has a foreign policy has the sense to keep it, regardless of how they decide to deal with the Imm requirement. Some are switching to Os, some are getting high deductible PC policies. Some are waiting it out to see where things stand once the dust settles, if they have enough time before their extensions are due.  I haven't heard anyone say they'll drop their high value foreign policy in favor of a  local one. Anyone who understood enough about insurance and risks to have gotten a foreign policy, not likely to do this.

 

 

[Sheryl]

On 11/19/2019 at 7:37 PM, oslooskar said:

It says, "valid until 04 FEB 2020" Regarding leaving the country and reentering it and getting a new one year entry; Sheryl wrote, "you will not be able to get 2 years out of this visa unless you buy a local policy for the second year."

 

So I am going to have to either get an "O" visa or come with 81,000 baht. (Note: Thai immigration has already informed me they will not accept my Kaiser Health Plan---which covers me in every country in the world.)

 

That was referring to OAs issued after the effective date of 31 October 2019. For these new OAs, as things currently stand, a foreign policy can be used only for the first year i.e. for initial visa applications. 

 

If your visa is valid until Feb 2020 (or for that matter your permission to stay) then it was issued before this date.

 

Reports seem to be mixed  on people re-entering on OAs issued before the effective date but at least some are being let in without any mention of insurance.

 

 

[sathornlover]

On 11/25/2019 at 9:15 AM, Sheryl said:

That was referring to OAs issued after the effective date of 31 October 2019. For these new OAs, as things currently stand, a foreign policy can be used only for the first year i.e. for initial visa applications. 

What about those who enter the second year with R-Entry permit?
Do they only get this permit if they prove a worthless TGIA compulsory insurance?

[sathornlover]

On 11/18/2019 at 2:50 AM, Sheryl said:

There was indeed a report from someone with a German insurance policy that agreed to sign the certificate. I think company name began with an H? I'll see if I can find it.

A first hint is given in this forum, that HanseMerkur in Germany delivers the Certcicate, signed in original by mail.

 

I followed this hint and asked HansMerkur and got the following answer yesterday.

 

Quote

We will gladly confirm in advance that the desired form can be filled out and then sent by email and post (to the German address). 

 

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, sathornlover said:

What about those who enter the second year with R-Entry permit?
Do they only get this permit if they prove a worthless TGIA compulsory insurance?

To my understanding on any subsequent entries on still valid OA you can be stamped in up to the date of your policy. After the original policy used to get your visa (which could have been either foreign or local policy) ends the original visa notation no longer suffice and you will have to show Imm a certificate which must be (as it stands now) one of the "approved" Thai companies.

 

Since most insurers issue only 1 year policy at a time this will usually mean you can only use a foreign policyfor the first year (or even less if policy dates don't match with entry date). However if you were able to get a policy issued for say 2 years at time of initial visa issuance then could use longer.

[sathornlover]

3 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Since most insurers issue only 1 year policy at a time this will usually mean you can only use a foreign policyfor the first year (or even less if policy dates don't match with entry date). However if you were able to get a policy issued for say 2 years at time of initial visa issuance then could use longer.

Thank you for your comprehensible explanation! In Germany there are some insurers who insure for more than one year. The HanseMerkur e.g. up to 5 years. 

We will probably not get so much feedback on my question.
The applications for OA should move due to the considerably more difficult conditions since 31.10 in the range of OX, if not more insurers are willing to deliver the required certificate ...

 

[Sheryl]

5 minutes ago, sathornlover said:

Thank you for your comprehensible explanation! In Germany there are some insurers who insure for more than one year. The HanseMerkur e.g. up to 5 years. 

We will probably not get so much feedback on my question.
The applications for OA should move due to the considerably more difficult conditions since 31.10 in the range of OX, if not more insurers are willing to deliver the required certificate ...

 

If you have it for 5 years and this is noted by the Embassy on your visa you should be OK for entries under that visa. However if you try to do an incountry extension of stay after the visa has expired, local Imm officers   will require proof of a Thai policy.  You might do better to just return home and apply for a new OA thete and never do incountry extension, at least not until things change.

[rexall]

On 11/18/2019 at 7:58 AM, CMBob said:

The Thai Embassy site in the US (consistent with a letter sent out by the US State Department) clearly states that the long-stay health insurance requirement for an O-A visa can be satisfied by coverage from a Thai or foreign insurance company so long as the insurance company signs the form that the required coverage (400 k in-patient, 40k out-patient) has been provided for the stay time period.  You can read the clear requirements (see specifically Sections 8, 8.1, and 8.2) here:  OA Visa Requirements  

 

So, yes, at least in the US (I didn't research other Thai embassies' requirements), a foreign insurer not on the so-called "approved list" is acceptable.  The new long-stay health insurance requirements are rather minimal and I would think (hope?) that the same coverage provided by a foreign insurer would be cheaper than what's being charged by the approved Thai companies.

A little off-topic, but just for the record, I have had BOOOPA in Thailand the past 10 years. B500,000 cover, inpatient only. I pay B72K for that. I recently asked them would it would cost to add B40K in outpatient. No can do. Only B75K provided, and it would add approximately another B50K (!!!!) to my premium.  What a crappy deal! B50K to get a maximum of $B75K.  If they used the same math, it would cost B28K to get B40K in coverage. It's a joke!  In my case it is a double joke as it is highly unlikely I would use outpatient as in the vast majority of cases, I would prefer to get outpatient stuff taken care of by a "doc in the box" rather than having to go to the hospital, wait all day, and inhale everyone's germs!

[ThaiBunny]

On 11/17/2019 at 11:29 PM, stat said:

Main reason for sticking with longstay is that I do not need to do visa runs that take a full day each and cost additional money.

Cheaper than health insurance!

[rexall]

3 hours ago, ThaiBunny said:

Cheaper than health insurance!

"Cheaper than health insurance!"  So, far.  However, many suspect that the insurance requirement will sooner or later apply to all long-stays.  It is not even a bad idea, in my opinion, so long as the coverage is affordable and realistic.  

[Sheryl]

51 minutes ago, rexall said:

 It is not even a bad idea, in my opinion, so long as the coverage is affordable and realistic.  

However it is neither.

 

Nor is it available to all or even, arguably, most retirees. Yet it is still required. 

 

And I very much doubt any system that is based on private health insurance from a Thai provider will ever be better. The way it is reflects the state and normative practices of the local healrh insurance sector.

[stat]

On 12/8/2019 at 7:14 AM, ThaiBunny said:

Cheaper than health insurance!

If you consider 4 days of your lifetime worthless or each day worth 100€ you are certainly right ????

Visa runs cost time and money...  However if you enjoy traveling it gives a different picture.

Edited December 14, 2019 by stat

[stat]

On 11/29/2019 at 9:24 AM, Sheryl said:

If you have it for 5 years and this is noted by the Embassy on your visa you should be OK for entries under that visa. However if you try to do an incountry extension of stay after the visa has expired, local Imm officers   will require proof of a Thai policy.  You might do better to just return home and apply for a new OA thete and never do incountry extension, at least not until things change.

 

Has anyone ever achieved the above i.e. on reentry got a full 365 days?

[Tounge Thaied]

Here's a matix...ThaiOAvisaInsurances.xlsx

[Sheryl]

11 hours ago, stat said:

 

Has anyone ever achieved the above i.e. on reentry got a full 365 days?

If you mean has anyone with an OA visa issued after October 31 left and re entered with an insurance notation that showed insurance was still valid for another year I doubt there has been a single case of such an entry. We are still in early days of people making initial entry on OA visa issued after 31 October and very, very few would already have entered, left and re entered.  And very, very few people have insurance policies that expire more than 12 months from date of issuance.

 

Add to this that uptake of new OA visas has likely declined in the wake of the new requirement.

 

If you mean re-entry on an OA visa issued before 31 October but still valid,  yes people have done that and been stamped in for another year.

 

If you mean re-entry on a re-entry permit after an OA visa has  expired,  many have done that and no problem but in that case one does not receive additional time, one is stamped back in through the same time as on the prior stamp.

 

Maybe clarify what exactly you mean.

[stat]

8 hours ago, Sheryl said:

If you mean has anyone with an OA visa issued after October 31 left and re entered with an insurance notation that showed insurance was still valid for another year I doubt there has been a single case of such an entry. We are still in early days of people making initial entry on OA visa issued after 31 October and very, very few would already have entered, left and re entered.  And very, very few people have insurance policies that expire more than 12 months from date of issuance.

 

Add to this that uptake of new OA visas has likely declined in the wake of the new requirement.

 

If you mean re-entry on an OA visa issued before 31 October but still valid,  yes people have done that and been stamped in for another year.

 

If you mean re-entry on a re-entry permit after an OA visa has  expired,  many have done that and no problem but in that case one does not receive additional time, one is stamped back in through the same time as on the prior stamp.

 

Maybe clarify what exactly you mean.

Sorry if i expressed myself unclear!

 

I was referring to:

 

OA visa issued after October 31 left and re entered with an insurance notation that showed insurance was still valid for another year.

 

There are companies from which I can buy health insurance with open end or 5 years running time that I can cancel every year. Not sure how immigration/embassy will handle these.

 

I guess you are right not that many will have tried this up to now.

[Sheryl]

People have only just begun entering on OAs issued post 31 October and we have had just a few reports on them. None on people entering and alreading leaving and re-entering.

 

It would certainly be advantageous if getting an OA based on foreign insurance (not easy to do but some have succeeded) to have the policy's expiration date go up to one year past the visa expiry as that way you could get the full 2 years out of the OA

 

There is no advantage to having it go past that time as you cannot get an in-country extension of stay based on  a foreign policy,  as things  currently stand. So at that point if wanting to stay in Thailand you would either have to get a local policy or return to your home country for a new visa (or get a different visa type in a neighboring country).

 

Any insurance policy that you pay for yourself has an expiration date equivalent to the time period through which you have alredy paid the premium,   even though lifetime renewal may be guaranteed.

 

 

[stat]

15 hours ago, Sheryl said:

People have only just begun entering on OAs issued post 31 October and we have had just a few reports on them. None on people entering and alreading leaving and re-entering.

 

It would certainly be advantageous if getting an OA based on foreign insurance (not easy to do but some have succeeded) to have the policy's expiration date go up to one year past the visa expiry as that way you could get the full 2 years out of the OA

 

There is no advantage to having it go past that time as you cannot get an in-country extension of stay based on  a foreign policy,  as things  currently stand. So at that point if wanting to stay in Thailand you would either have to get a local policy or return to your home country for a new visa (or get a different visa type in a neighboring country).

 

Any insurance policy that you pay for yourself has an expiration date equivalent to the time period through which you have alredy paid the premium,   even though lifetime renewal may be guaranteed.

 

 

Ahem sorry to disagree but in Germany you buy general health insurance with no expiration date and no maximum cover. Usually you pay one month in advance and that's that, no end date specified but you can cancel at any time. Another option for long time travel is insurance up to 5 years and if you cut your travel short you do get your money back. Only limit 5 years cause its travel related.

 

PS: I never understood why the rest of the world buys health insurance with a max cover. If I run up bills like half a million euros for heart surgery or cancer treatment that's when I need my insurance. I myself pay everything under 5000€ myself and only above my health insurance kicks in (About 200€ per month). Under these scenarios the Thai insurances are a complete waste of money IMHO but needed for extension.

Edited December 16, 2019 by stat

[Sheryl]

On 11/29/2019 at 9:43 AM, sathornlover said:

What about those who enter the second year with R-Entry permit?
Do they only get this permit if they prove a worthless TGIA compulsory insurance?

No. Entries on a re-entry permit do not generate a new permission to stay nor any additional time so no requirement. But if after your period of stay ends you seek an in-country extension or go back to your own country for a new OA visa, in both cases insurance will be required. The difference between the 2 being that it must be one of the listed Thai companies for in-country extension whereas you may be able to apply for new visa back home using a foreign policy.