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As the title of this video suggests, we are asking the question "would Thailand phase out Retirement Visas?" I have been asked this a lot lately because there are a lot of expats who seem to be concerned that rules are getting more difficult, a new tax regime is coming in and honestly as I have said before, the vast majority of folks that are here are not going to be impacted by changes to Thai Tax Policy. Meanwhile, I do find it a little unnerving that so many who live here and enjoy this place and the benefits and utilize the infrastructure, are somehow aghast that they might have to pay some taxes. I mean I have been paying taxes in Thailand for the better part of two decades; it just sort of is what it is. Now I get it, if you are not working, I do get it. If you have already been taxed on your money that is one thing, but again just the whole attitude seems a little bit strange to me, I will put it that way. 

That being said, are they looking to phase out retirees? That seems to be a question on many minds. I don't see that. Now are Retirement Visa requirements possibly going to change in the future? Is it going to get more nettlesome to deal with these things? Possibly. As we have discussed in other videos, I think starting in 2025 there is a very real possibility that all Retirement Visa holders are probably going to have to file some form of tax return or have some kind of Tax ID when dealing with their retirement extension. That is not a foregone conclusion; that is speculation on my part but based on what we are seeing in terms of changes to Thai Tax policy, I think it is definitely possible. 

As we have discussed in other videos, yeah it is always sort of hanging around out there that they could make Medical Insurance mandatory for the O Retirement Visa Extension. For various reasons, I doubt that is going to happen; I have discussed that in many other videos, but it could. So I guess the thing to take away from this video is, no, do I think that Retirement Visas are going to be sort of phased out? Not exactly. But do I think that the requirements could change over time? Yeah absolutely.