Integrity Legal - Law Firm in Bangkok | Bangkok Lawyer | Legal Services Thailand Back to
Integrity Legal

Legal Services & Resources 

Up to date legal information pertaining to Thai, American, & International Law.

Contact us: +66 2-266 3698

info@integrity-legal.com

ResourcesVisa & Immigration LawThailand Immigration LawPolicy for Those Too Old for Thai Retirement Visa Insurance

Policy for Those Too Old for Thai Retirement Visa Insurance

Transcript of the above video:

Ask the title of this video suggests we are discussing the Thai Retirement Visa yet again. We are specifically discussing Health Insurance within that context and since the promulgation of the new policy that requires health insurance for those wishing to stay in Thailand in Thai retiree status, I have had a lot of people contact me regarding "What if I am too old? What if an insurance provider simply will not cover me?" 

Well first things first. For those who are not at that level yet, it is probably a good idea to go ahead and get in the system and then once in the system, it is my understanding many insurance providers will provide coverage for quite a long period of time frankly and it may go even past 70 or 75, if you are already in their system.

That being said, there are still folks that are over the ages that coverage may be possible, and as I have stated in other videos, I think that the regulatory structure is open for Immigration to use their discretion to allow for Retirement Extension or Retirement Visa issuance notwithstanding the age and notwithstanding not having Insurance under certain circumstances. 

It recently came to my attention via a viewer of this channel and we thank that viewer very much, to this Executive Summary.  Quoting directly, "Executive Summary – the Compulsory Health Insurance for aliens to apply for Non-immigrant Visa type O-A period not exceeding 1 year." and this is from the International Health Division, the Department of Health Service Support on 9th October 2019. That is the Thai Health Department basically. In this, there is a subheading within this Executive Summary, and I quote: "The essence of the purposes for amending regulation; and this is where the policy “rubber meets the road” if you will, on this overall scheme.  Under regulations offered to amend subsection 3 - I quote: "in case of applicants who have a high health risk so cannot purchase the insurance but allowed to apply the Visa, the Immigration Bureau should set the additional conditions e.g. the provision of the larger amount of deposit. Reason- the foreign elderly have the adequate amount of money for medical fee and others." 

So the thing to take away from this video is they have some policies out there to deal with folks who cannot obtain the requisite Insurance in order to maintain their status here in Thailand so they are not wholly unreasonable when it comes to the issue of people that just can't meet the requirements as stipulated October 31st, 2019. I think reading that in line with the kind of discretionary nature or the discretion that is implied in the regulations themselves, I think we could see officers starting to require elderly folks, people who are older who can't get insurance, basically say look if you can show x amount more Baht in a bank account, we will go ahead and allow that to offset the lack of insurance and allow you to go ahead and either obtain or extend your Retirement Visa here in the Kingdom of Thailand