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As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing banking in the context of Thai Retirement Visas. Yeah I've done a number of videos on this topic over the years but about every quarter I like to do a video kind of as a roundup on Retirement Visas just sort of generally because I know we get new people kind of coming into Thailand in sort of these cycles; things that I have talked about for years or even more recently, just newer folks just aren't aware of them. 

The catch-22 if you will that is the Bank Account versus Retirement Visa process is one of those things that can be very nettlesome to many new would be expats who are looking to retire here in Thailand. Again one of the things we often assist with when we assist retirees with both their Retirement Visa and getting into the system is also getting them a Bank Accounts because again it's kind of a catch-22 because you need the Bank Account in order to meet financial requirements associated with the Retirement Visa, but you need the Retirement Visa oftentimes to get the Bank Account because many banks have their own internal policies regarding not opening Bank Accounts for folks that aren't on a Non-Immigrant Visa, so again it can end up  being this catch-22 thing. We have a number of different solutions for foreigners here in Thailand to be able to assist again would be retirees in both getting into proper Retirement Visa status, although now there are more options, so depending on your situation, contact us, we may be able to find you a specifically narrowly tailored sort of option for you that's the most reasonably priced and get you the most benefits depending on your circumstances.

But also part of that is also setting up the Bank Account and that process is kind of cumbersome in and of itself especially if you're a foreigner here because you are dealing with a lot of documentation that's in the Thai language. Again if you are an American, there's extra documentation associated with setting up a Bank Account here. We've set up many Bank Accounts for a number of American retirees here in Thailand, so there are a number of options, but it is something to bear in mind. And for those who are looking at retiring in Thailand especially if you are abroad, probably a good idea to contact us to come up with the best method and the best protocol if you will for coming into Thailand, getting into status, getting your banking facilities set up in the most streamlined processed manner possible here in the Kingdom of Thailand. 

I'm going to do a quick bumper for a lot of these immigration videos that we are going to be doing moving forward because there are a number of options that have come up here recently and unfortunately there has just been a lot of nonsensical talk throughout the ether of the internet as well as in even like the mainstream press; the print press has been talking a lot about Immigration and quite honestly, not all of the conclusions that they are drawing are correct. So the point of this bumper if you will, is for me to just kind of remind people, it is not a terrible idea to contact a legal professional who deals with Immigration on a regular basis because there are a number of options now available for foreigners looking to be in Thailand long- term. Some of them are going to be more optimal than others depending on your own circumstances.