CrazyExpat Posted January 6, 2010 Report Share Posted January 6, 2010 Ordinary expats in Thailand wishing to extend their stay in the kingdom may find it difficult fitting themselves in the various Thai visas offered by the Thai government. However, those who are married to Thai locals have got little to worry about. Marriage Visa in Thailand Immigration privileges are among the countless benefits of being married to a Thai. A foreign spouse of a Thai national is entitled to apply for a Thai marriage visa aka Non Immigrant Category O visa. This particular Thai visa can be applied for immediately after marriage, subsequently allowing the foreign spouse a renewable yearly stay in Thailand. Fortunately, the process for the Thai Marriage Visa application is rather straightforward and the requirements are quite minimal. The most important requirements when applying for a marriage visa to Thailand are; you are married to a Thai national and you or your Thai spouse is financially capable of supporting your stay in Thailand. To prove your on-going marital relationship with your Thai spouse, you have to show the original of your marriage certificate and have your Thai spouse accompany you when submitting the visa application as the visa officer will be interviewing her about your marriage. This is especially required when doing the visa application inside Thailand. On a positive note, medical certificate and police record are no more required when Thai Marriage Visa application is done in Thailand. Financial Requirements As far as the financial requirements for marriage visa in Thailand are concerned, there are two ways to meet them. One is to open a bank account, deposit 400,000 Baht into it and then wait for at least two months prior to making the Thai marriage visa application. The 2nd option is to show a proof of 40,000 Baht monthly /pension income. To do this, you need to obtain a pension/ employment letter stating your job or source of your pension and monthly income. This you bring to your embassy in Thailand for verification. Your embassy in turn will provide you an affidavit of income which you use for the visa application. In addition to this document, you may be required of your income tax and latest bank statements by the Visa officer. In case you don't qualify for the income requirement but your Thai spouse is, she can just as well handle the financial requirements. She just needs to present employment letter and income tax if she's employed and business registration certificate, balance sheet and business tax if she's self-employed. Application Process The actual application procedure is simple. An applicant who has 21 days left in his/her current visa can apply a 90 day visa initially then have this visa converted into One year Marriage visa before it expires. Those who have non immigrant Thai visa can proceed to visa conversion directly as soon as their visa is due to its expiration. You and your Thai spouse can go to the nearest Thai immigration with your documents to proceed with the visa application. Those who are not qualified to do the Marriage visa application in Thailand because of their invalid current visas can go to bordering countries to secure new entry visas and then apply marriage visa in Thailand as appropriate. Summary Obtaining the Thai marriage visa can be accomplished by following the guidelines outlined above. If you have yet to marry your Thai fiancee you should research the laws and procedures for Marriage Registration in Thailand for your respective nationality. George M. Londob works as a Business Correspondent for Siam Legal International, Thailand's largest legal service network with offices in Bangkok, Phuket, Pattaya, Hua Hin, Chiang Mai and Samui. The firm has international locations in London and Los Angeles. Siam Legal is a full-service law firm and provides a wide range of legal and visa services. Reach Siam Legal at +(66) 2-253-8100, or info@siam-legal.com. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rucus7 Posted January 6, 2010 Report Share Posted January 6, 2010 My first visa in Thailand was the marriage variety. At the time of my first extension, it was suggested by immigration that I change to retirement. I have had a retirement visa since Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
patong Posted January 6, 2010 Report Share Posted January 6, 2010 My first visa in Thailand was the marriage variety. At the time of my first extension, it was suggested by immigration that I change to retirement. I have had a retirement visa since That's Ok if you have the 800,000 baht in bank, or a certified pension of 65,00 baht/month. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rucus7 Posted January 7, 2010 Report Share Posted January 7, 2010 My first visa in Thailand was the marriage variety. At the time of my first extension, it was suggested by immigration that I change to retirement. I have had a retirement visa since Also there was not a 90 day wait for the visa application to be processed. Maybe things have tightened up since then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts