If you are married to a Thai citizen then you would need to apply for a marriage visa also called an “O” visa to live long term in Phuket with your wife. Our solicitors in Phuket will be able to assist you will all the papaerwork needed to obtain the marriage visa.
There are options with regards to the visa so speak to our solicitor in Phuket about these options. Once you have registered your marriage in Thailand you will have the option of obtaining all the documents for your initial application in Thailand before starting the process. The initial application can be done from your home country or any of the countries around Thailand where there is a Thai Embassy. Here you have to apply for the marriage visa and it usually takes 24 hours before they issue you with a visa.
This visa is usually only good for 3 months. This meaning that once you enter Thailand you are allowed to stay in Thailand for 3 months. During this three months you will need to apply for an extension of this visa. There are financial requirements that need to be met and it is best to speak to our solicitor in Phuket about this as the amounts required do change from time to time. With these financial requirements you have two options. You could either have a lump sum invested in Thailand in your name to show your ability to support yourself and your Thai wife or you could show that you have the income from a pension. They do however allow you to show a combination of the two however this needs to be calculated for you by our staff in Phuket. At last application you needed to show at least 40,000 Baht a month in income. If this came from a pension in your home country you will neeed to obtain the documents from your embassy confirming this. The deposit is that of 400,000 Baht which needs to be in a Thai bank account.
You will also need a medical exam to show that you do not have any contagious illnesses and that you do not have a criminal record in your home country. This however comes back to what is viewed as a criminal record. Many from the US would have a DUI from home and view this as being a criminal record. Speak to our solicitor to see what Thai immigration will allow and which crimes they will not allow.
If you are looking at settling down in Thailand, then speak to our solicitors about buying or renting property in Phuket and how best to obtain a long term marriage visa.
