Does a Retirement visa mean I'm a legal resident?

[Tahoma 2,292]

My buddy has lived in Thailand for several years on what he describes as a "Retirement Visa."  We are wondering if this makes him a legal resident of Thailand.

 

Also, he's planning to do a Direct Consular Filing for his wife's CR-1.  

 

He would appreciate any info.  Thanks.

[Loren Y 2,756]

I'm planning on retirement in Thailand, just got married to my Thai spouse, and in 5-6 years after she gets us citizenship, I plan to move there, but I will come in on a spousal Visa, live 3 years, then get my Thai "green card" or residence. If your friend is over 50, and had about 25,000 US dollars in a Thai bank for 6 months before he moved there, then he could be there on a retirement Visa. But to my knowledge that is all it is is for retirement, you can't work, and you can't become a permanent resident on a retirement Visa. I think maybe you can apply after like 5 years, then wait for approval, but last time I checked it was a 10 year wait to get residence from a retirement Visa because Thailand only grants like 1000 of them a year, and the wait list is over 10,000 plus applicants. He would know if he was a resident really easy. Does he have a Thai ID card? If not he is not a resident yet, and unless he has been there over 10 years, I doubt he has residence. It's a lengthy process including becoming fluent in the Thai language, and singing the Kings song in front of a magistrate to get residence. He would know if he was a resident I'm pretty sure.

[Cyberfx1024 7,980]

1 hour ago, Tahoma said:

My buddy has lived in Thailand for several years on what he describes as a "Retirement Visa."  We are wondering if this makes him a legal resident of Thailand.

Also, he's planning to do a Direct Consular Filing for his wife's CR-1.  

He would appreciate any info.  Thanks.

Yes, that would make him a legal resident of Thailand. The retirement visas are a big thing for Expats in Thailand and the Philippines.

[accumbyte 149]

1 hour ago, Tahoma said:

My buddy has lived in Thailand for several years on what he describes as a "Retirement Visa."

Seems your friend is eligible: https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/international-offices/thailand-uscis-bangkok-field-office It's best for him to ask the USCIS Bangkok office directly: https://www.uscis.gov/about-us/find-uscis-office/international-offices/contact-us-uscis-bangkok-field-office

[John951 54]

7 hours ago, Tahoma said:

My buddy has lived in Thailand for several years on what he describes as a "Retirement Visa."  We are wondering if this makes him a legal resident of Thailand.

 

Also, he's planning to do a Direct Consular Filing for his wife's CR-1.  

 

He would appreciate any info.  Thanks.

So is he moving back to the U.S. ?

[Tahoma 2,292]

Thanks everyone for your replies.  I'll try to find out more information from my friend regarding his retirement visa.  

 

He's been living in Thailand for about 20 years, but has been married only a short time.  He wants to use Direct Consular Filing to file for a CR-1 visa.  After getting the visa, their plan is to live in the U.S.

 

Does anyone have a link to a VJ thread which has a good discussion of the DCF process at the U.S. Embassy Bangkok?

[DanielPlainview 368]

there are some exceptionally smart guys on the O-A (Retiree) Thai visa on thaivisa.com forums.    Ubonjoe has been there forever, and helped me considerably.