Transcript of the above video:

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing insurance in the context of Thai Retirement Visas. Now this is a topic that comes up quite often; we discuss Retirement Visas with a number of clients pretty much frequently; we do a ton of Thai Retirement Visas, we assist people with them. Insurance is something that, depending on the subcategory of Retirement Visa, O-A versus O, may or may not be a requirement. Presently, O-A Retirement Visas require insurance; O Retirement Visa extensions or just the O Retirement Visa generally does not presently have an insurance component required. So understand presently that's not the case.

I thought of making this video though after reading a recent article in the Pattaya Mail, that is pattayamail.com, the article is titled: Reviewing the five Visa options for retirement in Thailand. Good information in there but I urge those to go check that article out but quoting directly: "The biggest unknown is the future of medical insurance as a compulsory element in applications. At present, the most popular routes for retirees aged over 50 - the Non-Immigrant O and Elite choices - have no such requirement." So again, the O Retirement Visa doesn't have the medical requirement, nor does Thailand Elite. Quoting further: "If that policy was changed and enforced, the proverbial cat would certainly appear amongst the pigeons. Older retirees are the expats whom insurance companies most want to avoid." 

Now to be clear, I am not making this video to say that this has happened but we have discussed this before, it is a possibility that insurance could become a requirement associated with for example for O Retirement Visa status. I am not saying it has happened, I not saying it's a foregone conclusion, it just could; meanwhile, they are talking about making possible changes to the Thailand Elite Visa. As we have discussed in other videos, the former Head of Thai Immigration, Surachate "Big Joke" Hakparn has commented directly that he would like to see changes in the Immigration Laws and has specifically cited aspects of the Retirement Visa category itself where he feels that there are insufficient requirements associated with maintaining that visa; I urge you to go check out some of the videos we have done in the past week regarding that topic specifically. But the thing to take away from this video is yes it would have an impact on folks who are in O Retirement Visa status. My thinking on it is and it may be wishful thinking, first off, again no changes have occurred; it does not look like it is going to be imminent as in like immediately in the next few days or weeks or even months, but the fact that this is being talked about at the level it is being talked about by the person who is talking about it, leads me to believe we should be looking at possible changes on the horizon. A little bit further out but changes on the horizon nonetheless. 

The thing to understand and to take away from this video is yes they could make Insurance a new requirement. I tend to doubt it in the O retiree category for precisely the reason brought up in that article, which again I urge you to read, again because there are folks that just basically age out of being able to get insurance and I expect Thai Immigration probably wants to find a place to put those people and the O Retirement category is probably a good place to put them. Another way to look at this is we may end up with a grandfathering scenario on our hands where they basically say "look, okay new people coming in that want to get Retirement Visas, you have got to get insurance. You folks that got into status, you are already in status, we are just going to let you go ahead and maintain your status under the terms under which you initially got your visas, we are going to basically maintain that status on an ongoing basis thereafter." Based on prior history where we saw financial requirements change in the Retirement Visa category back in the '90s, that's what happened. They actually grandfathered in those folks who came in under prior terms and just said as long as you maintain your status, you can do so under those terms. Now that makes it very, very important to continue maintaining one's status but I think that there may be sort of a pressure release valve if you will associated with any possible changes to insurance policy on Retirement Visas as they may very well just sort of grandfather in the folks that were already in that status.