Integrity Legal

During the month of October 2015, it came to this blogger’s attention that the Thai government began to heavily enforce regulations against those overstaying their Thai visa and those utilizing nominees in order to control companies in Thailand. In a recent article on the Khaosod English website it was noted that more than 9000 people were arrested and detained pending deportation for overstaying their visas. The article went on to note:

The penalties announced Sunday are identical to regulations announced by the immigration bureau last year that have been in effect since Aug. 17, 2014. Foreign nationals who remain in the country more than 90 days after their visa expires are to be banned for one year. Those who overstay for one year, three years or five years are forbidden from re-entering the country for three years, five years and 10 years respectively. If they don’t turn themselves in and are instead caught by police, those who have overstayed less than a year would be blacklisted for five years while those with over a year face a 10-year ban…

The penalties referred to above were apparently applied to those detained in the aforementioned roundup and it would appear that such measures are likely to be applied to overstayers in the future. For this reason it is strongly recommended that those wishing to stay in Thailand obtain a visa and leave within the specified period of validity unless a Thai visa extension is obtained. There are many types of Thai visa categories including business visas, retirement visas, O visas for family members of Thai nationals, and the greatly anticipated long stay tourist visa which is set to begin being issued in mid-November.

Meanwhile, Thai officials in the Ministry of Commerce seem to be implementing stricter enforcement of rules regarding the use of nominee shareholders in Thai companies. Under the Foreign Business Act, foreign nationals are not permitted to use Thai nominee shareholders in order to circumvent the restrictions on foreign ownership of Thai companies. Those caught violating this law can face fines or possible imprisonment. Apparently, officials with the Department of Business Development will be investigating certain companies to determine if nominees are in use. To quote directly from The Nation:

The 10 sectors to be inspected are food and beverage, tourism, property rental, the property trade, car rental, spa, handicraft and souvenir retail, Internet retailing, direct sales, and education consultants. Chainarong said that those sectors would be targeted because it was believed that a high proportion of their businesses were foreign controlled through the use of Thai nominees…

Clearly Thai regulators are becoming increasingly serious regarding the enforcement of Thai law in both the realm of immigration and business. It should be noted that American Citizens are permitted to own 100% of certain types of Thai corporations pursuant to the provisions of the US-Thai Treaty of Amity.

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With recent changes to Thai Immigration regulations, it has become clear that many long term travelers or prospective expatriates should get their status regularized either in the Kingdom or prior to arrival. While in the past it was possible to remain in Thailand in what were otherwise ostensibly short term Thai tourist visas or thirty day exemption stamps, now it seems that obtaining a long term visa extension is going to be necessary. For those under 50 years of age, this would mean obtaining a Thai marriage visa, a Thai business visa, or a Thai Education visa. However, for those over 50, the Thai retirement visa (often referred to as the O-A visa) could prove to be an effective way of remaining in the Kingdom. One reason this is the case, a retiree in Thailand does not need (and legally cannot get) a work permit in Thailand. The work permit process can be difficult and document-intensive. Meanwhile, a retirement visa, unlike and education visa, does not require that the visa holder attend any type of schooling. Also, for those not married to a Thai the retirement visa is generally a good option since such a visa does not require marriage to a Thai unlike a marriage visa. Retirement visa extensions are issued in one-year intervals and so long as the visa holder has the requisite pension or savings, then the process of obtaining such a visa is rather straightforward. Like any other type of Thai visa, it is expected that the retirement visa holder continually check in ever 90 days to inform immigration of their place of residence. However, for those who leave prior to 90 days, this is not necessary. However, it should be noted that in order to maintain visa status while outside of Thailand, the visa holder would need to obtain a reentry permit.

For those over 50 who work in industries such as the offshore oil business, which only requires the employee to work in given intervals, the retirement could prove to be a substantially better visa option compared to other types of temporary Thai visas as a retirement visa allows the bearer to remain in the Kingdom for a year as well as enter and exit as necessary provided the reentry permits are in order. Those looking at this as an option should bear in mind that the retirement visa holder cannot work in Thailand, but if working outside of Thailand there would really not be any issue as to immigration status in the Kingdom.

When dealing with Thai business visas, the holder of such an extension generally needs to have corporate sponsorship as well as a Thai work permit. Meanwhile, those remaining in Thailand on a marriage visa must be married to a Thai national. Finally, those staying in the Kingdom on an Education visa must be attending a course of study approved by the Ministry of Education. For many, the retirement visa is a much less difficult type of visa to obtain and also does not require a great deal of supporting documentation other than proving the financial ability to support oneself long term while present in the Kingdom.

Tags: O-A visa Thailand, Retirement visa, Retirement Visa Thailand, Retirement visas, Thai Business Visa, Thai Education Visa, Thai Marriage Visa, Thai O-A visa, Thai Retirement Visa, Thai Visa Extension, Thailand O-A visa, Thailand Retirement Visa
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