On 2 June 20022, the Ministry of Interior – the ministry responsible for the implementation of immigration laws – published an announcement concerning regulations for long term resident visas (“LTR”) in the Royal Gazette (the “Announcement”). In summary, those regulations provide:
- The following types of foreigners (non-Thais) are eligible for an LTR visa:
(a) Wealthy persons (see definition below)
(b) Retired persons
(c) People who desire to work from Thailand
(d) People with special skills (we can provide details once they become available)
2. A qualified applicant must obtain a certificate of eligibility to apply for the LTR visa. Application can be filed electronically. If an application cannot be filed electronically, an application can be submitted to a Board of Investment Office or any Thai Embassy.
3. Once the certificate of eligibility is issued, the applicant can apply for an LTR visa at an Immigration Office or Thai Embassy within 60 days from the date the certificate of eligibility is issued.
4. The LTR visa is valid for five years and a visa holder can renew it for another five years before its expiration date.
5. The government fee for the LTR visa application is THB 50,000 (slightly more than US $1,400 at June 2022 exchange rates).
6. The LTR visa includes multiple re-entry permits. In other words, a holder of an LTR visa can leave and re-enter Thailand without having to apply for a multiple re-entry permit from the Immigration Department.
7. An LTR visa holder who wishes to perform work in Thailand must apply for and obtain a work permit.
The new LTR visa scheme shall become effective within 90 days after 2 June 2022.
A wealthy person under item 1(a) is defined as a person with an income of no less than US $80,000 per year for two consecutive years before the application is submitted. While the requirements for categories 1(b) though (d) are not available yet, it is likely that the regulation on 1(c) and 1(d) will require an applicant to have experience in science or technology.
15 June 2022
Mr. Nat Uawithya and Ms. Deena Goodman