Expat insurance

[CampariO]

I signed my health insurance with an agent from APG Co., Ltd Insurance Broker who I call my friend.

Reading some of the posts here I feel that many don't have a clue about the pitfalls of health insurance and just go by hearsay or some post from Vloggers. 

Unfortunaltely this thread is in VIP, but in case this community is really interested in some real informations, I could ask my friend to sign up  and maybe the mods can bump him to VIP. Of course he is interested in selling, but the information he could give to all of you free of charge might be worth to consider?

Or you can rely on the words of some consultant you met in a beer bar in Tree town.

Edited June 4, 2022 by CampariO

[Britboy]

3 hours ago, Jambo said:

The elephant in the room is that just when one is most likely to need medical services the cost of insurance has become prohibitive to the point where one may come to the conclusion that it is no longer worth paying the annual cost. My medical insurance was with BUPA but the cost was extortionate for the level of cover it provided.

On the other hand, the cost of treatment in Thailand at private hospitals is equally extortionate and they seem to be all too ready to have one in for treatment. Can one trust the diagnosis at a hospital where income comes first and patient care second?

I had some medical issues that needed investigation. The hospital concerned wanted 250K baht up front just to arrive at a prognosis. Any subsequent treatment was like giving them an open ended cheque.

250k just to arrive at a diagnosis? Christ, that's just ridiculous.

I guess it's all a lottery really as nobody knows what's going to happen health wise in the future. I may live another 25 years and drop dead one day or get something terminal in a few months.

As I'm in good health with no pre-existing conditions I'm of a mind to just get the minimum possible to obtain then renew a retirement visa, banking on not having a stroke that totally incapacitates me. That's my worry. If I get badly sick, as long as I'm fit enough to get on a plane, the NHS can sort me out (or put me down . . 🤣). I've paid my taxes all my life yet haven't used it since I broke my leg when I was 18 (though I guess Covid jabs too) so they owe me . . 🤣

[AJSP]

Interested in this thread. I’m very much in the camp to save spending money where I can but I do feel, for me, that I would ensure that I was appropriately covered should / when I move overseas and on that point, I would 100% have an ex Pat policy in place.

if that required re jigging finances ( less booze, meals out etc) to cover a robust policy then so be it. I would do that. 

[forcebwithu]

16 hours ago, Derek Dangleberries said:

Totally agree with every word!

But will the time come when Health Insurance becomes part of a "retirement" visa?

Thankfully "Big Joke" has moved on to pastures new after rattling too many cages .... but you never know when a "new joke" will appear on the scene. Given how Thailand is desperate for farang money I am damned sure that things will get more difficult for expats to get a long term visa because doing the opposite of what seems logical seems to be the way with this Government. (Sorry to slither into politics there!)

It would be great if the Thai govt came up with an affordable insurance plan for expats that would at least cover us for medical care at their public hospitals.

[forcebwithu]

8 hours ago, CampariO said:

I signed my health insurance with an agent from APG Co., Ltd Insurance Broker who I would call my friend.

Reading some of the posts here I feel that many don't have a clue about the pitfalls of health insurance and just go by hearsay or some post from Vloggers. 

Unfortunaltely this thread is in VIP, but in case this community is really interested in some real informations, I could ask my friend to sign up  and maybe the mods can bump him to VIP. Of course he is interested in selling, but the information he could give to all of you free of charge might be worth to consider?

Or you can rely on the words of some consultant you met in a beer bar in Tree town.

I hadn't noticed the topic was in VIP. Perhaps @Britboy could request the topic moved to the general area. More topics like this in the general area could help encourage more people to join 247.

[Britboy]

5 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

I hadn't noticed the topic was in VIP. Perhaps @Britboy could request the topic moved to the general area. More topics like this in the general area could help encourage more people to join 247.

No problem with moving it to the general section. I just thought most expats would be vip, but @john luke or another mod can perhaps move the thread to general topics?

[john luke]

1 minute ago, Britboy said:

No problem with moving it to the general section. I just thought most expats would be vip, but @john luke or another mod can perhaps move the thread to general topics?

Done - as requested.

[Britboy]

1 minute ago, john luke said:

Done - as requested.

You're quick off the mark this morning John . . 😁

[Britboy]

As mentioned in a previous post I emailed the Agent I used to get me the retirement visa in 2019, which expired in August 2020. They confirmed they can handle getting a new retirement visa (though it's a slightly different method now, I can go into specifics on this if anyone is interested - plus the price has gone up).

I also asked about insurance and from their non reply about this point I can only assume their contacts at immigration allow them to "ignore" it.

If that's the case, I'll get a travel insurance policy to cover 50 or 100 days and when I'm on the ground in Patts do some real digging to find something for an ex-pat.

[Britboy]

6 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

It would be great if the Thai govt came up with an affordable insurance plan for expats that would at least cover us for medical care at their public hospitals.

That's a great point FBWU.

It only needs a little bit of a commercial mindset to realise that it could be a fantastic revenue stream for healthcare in Thailand. When you get to late 60's, 70's and beyond the pricing is just ridiculous, especially for people like myself with zero pre-existing conditions.

If they thought it through I'm sure overall it would be a money maker. I would think the vast majority of expats, if they got progressively sick, might get diagnosed in Thailand but if it was serious/terminal they'd more than likely leg it back to their home country for treatment anyway.

[forcebwithu]

1 hour ago, Britboy said:

As mentioned in a previous post I emailed the Agent I used to get me the retirement visa in 2019, which expired in August 2020. They confirmed they can handle getting a new retirement visa (though it's a slightly different method now, I can go into specifics on this if anyone is interested - plus the price has gone up).

I also asked about insurance and from their non reply about this point I can only assume their contacts at immigration allow them to "ignore" it.

If that's the case, I'll get a travel insurance policy to cover 50 or 100 days and when I'm on the ground in Patts do some real digging to find something for an ex-pat.

If you convert your tourist visa or exempt on arrival to a Non-O while in Thailand, there currently is no insurance requirement for that type of visa. It's the Non-OA you get outside of Thailand that requires health insurance. The Non-O is the much better route to take.

Having an agent handle it should cost around 25k, less if you have the 800k on deposit. Extensions to stay then cost 12,500k when using the agent, and I heard quoted 8,000B if you have the 800k on deposit.

I've been using Manareet on Soi P.O. to handle the extension to stay paperwork ever since Thailand stopped accepting the income affidavit from the US Embassy. While doing the paperwork yourself is easy enough to do, it's the money on deposit earning diddly is why I use an agent. The money I make keeping the 800k invested in my home country more than covers the agent's fee.

[Painter]

21 minutes ago, forcebwithu said:

If you convert your tourist visa or exempt on arrival to a Non-O while in Thailand, there currently is no insurance requirement for that type of visa. It's the Non-OA you get outside of Thailand that requires health insurance. The Non-O is the much better route to take.

Having an agent handle it should cost around 25k, less if you have the 800k on deposit. Extensions to stay then cost 12,500k when using the agent, and I heard quoted 8,000B if you have the 800k on deposit.

I've been using Manareet on Soi P.O. to handle the extension to stay paperwork ever since Thailand stopped accepting the income affidavit from the US Embassy. While doing the paperwork yourself is easy enough to do, it's the money on deposit earning diddly is why I use an agent. The money I make keeping the 800k invested in my home country more than covers the agent's fee.

Using the same agents, adding a retirement "visa" to my non imm O cost 12,500 back in March. It actually cost 15,500 as I have a kasikorn account, and the agent had to pay extra to get the required letter, but if you have a BKK bank account then its 12,500, and will take 3 or 4 working days. No insurance requirements needed.

If you enter on a tourist Visa they charge 25,000, and the process takes 20ish working days.

 

 

[forcebwithu]

39 minutes ago, Painter said:

Using the same agents, adding a retirement "visa" to my non imm O cost 12,500 back in March. It actually cost 15,500 as I have a kasikorn account, and the agent had to pay extra to get the required letter, but if you have a BKK bank account then its 12,500, and will take 3 or 4 working days. No insurance requirements needed.

If you enter on a tourist Visa they charge 25,000, and the process takes 20ish working days.

Just to clarify. What you're getting is a 12 month extension to stay based on retirement.

[Painter]

10 minutes ago, forcebwithu said:

Just to clarify. What you're getting is a 12 month extension to stay based on retirement.

Yes, that's why my "visa" was in " "  !! 🙂

 

 

[Britboy]

2 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

If you convert your tourist visa or exempt on arrival to a Non-O while in Thailand, there currently is no insurance requirement for that type of visa. It's the Non-OA you get outside of Thailand that requires health insurance. The Non-O is the much better route to take.

Having an agent handle it should cost around 25k, less if you have the 800k on deposit. Extensions to stay then cost 12,500k when using the agent, and I heard quoted 8,000B if you have the 800k on deposit.

I've been using Manareet on Soi P.O. to handle the extension to stay paperwork ever since Thailand stopped accepting the income affidavit from the US Embassy. While doing the paperwork yourself is easy enough to do, it's the money on deposit earning diddly is why I use an agent. The money I make keeping the 800k invested in my home country more than covers the agent's fee.

Yes, it's the same agent as yourself and @Painter use. They did a great job for me in 2019/20.

What they've said now is come on a tourist visa and get to them with at least 20 days remaining on it. They'll then get me covered for 15 months, getting a 3 month non-O and a 12 month retirement visa. They're saying I'll be without passport for 30 days as it'll take them/immigration that long to get it done.

It's 25k to handle the 800k side of things plus 4k for a multi-entry retirement visa (very important for me) or plus 1k for single entry, providing I already have a Thai bank account. When I first came they helped me set up the Bangkok Bank account and I also set up a Kasikorn account. When I left Thailand I left about 1k baht in the Bangkok Bank account and about 2.5k in Kasikorn. I'm assuming they're both still live, obviously haven't used them for over 2 years, but can still view both accounts online. Both debit cards have expired, so first day back plan to go to both banks to make sure they're still live, get new debit cards, etc. I still have both bank books and it's the same passport I used to open them, so hopefully no problem.

Quite agree about the 800k. Just crazy transferring it to Thailand when there's no need.

[KWA]

18 minutes ago, Britboy said:

What they've said now is come on a tourist visa and get to them with at least 20 days remaining on it. They'll then get me covered for 15 months, getting a 3 month non-O and a 12 month retirement visa. They're saying I'll be without passport for 30 days as it'll take them/immigration that long to get it done.

It's 25k to handle the 800k side of things plus 4k for a multi-entry retirement visa (very important for me) or plus 1k for single entry, providing I already have a Thai bank account.

For clarity and to give what I think are more accurate descriptions, I think they will get you a 3 month Non-O visa and then a 12 month extension of stay based on retirement.  That's what fbwu and Painter were referring to in the previous two posts.

The multi- and single-entry you mention are re-entry permits covering your extension of stay, not multi (or single) entry visas.  The re-entry permit number goes on your TM6 when you re-enter.  You may not need it, but Maneerat can also obtain future extensions as much as 3 months ahead of the expiry date, not the typical 1 month often mentioned.

Sounds pedantic but it pays to know what's what IMO.

[Painter]

23 minutes ago, KWA said:

For clarity and to give what I think are more accurate descriptions, I think they will get you a 3 month Non-O visa and then a 12 month extension of stay based on retirement.  That's what fbwu and Painter were referring to in the previous two posts.

The multi- and single-entry you mention are re-entry permits covering your extension of stay, not multi (or single) entry visas.  The re-entry permit number goes on your TM6 when you re-enter.  You may not need it, but Maneerat can also obtain future extensions as much as 3 months ahead of the expiry date, not the typical 1 month often mentioned.

Sounds pedantic but it pays to know what's what IMO.

Yup.

Maneerat will also do you 90 day check-ins as part of the package to get the retirement extension. 

[Britboy]

1 hour ago, KWA said:

For clarity and to give what I think are more accurate descriptions, I think they will get you a 3 month Non-O visa and then a 12 month extension of stay based on retirement.  That's what fbwu and Painter were referring to in the previous two posts.

The multi- and single-entry you mention are re-entry permits covering your extension of stay, not multi (or single) entry visas.  The re-entry permit number goes on your TM6 when you re-enter.  You may not need it, but Maneerat can also obtain future extensions as much as 3 months ahead of the expiry date, not the typical 1 month often mentioned.

Sounds pedantic but it pays to know what's what IMO.

 

1 hour ago, Painter said:

Yup.

Maneerat will also do you 90 day check-ins as part of the package to get the retirement extension. 

Yep, understand all that. Maybe I didn't word it correctly but @KWA that's exactly what I meant. Although their English in their email reply wasn't the best . . 🤣

All is good and for medical insurance purposes to begin with - I'll get the StaySure 50 or 100 day max stay policy for the initial part of my stay. As far as they're concerned I'll be returning back to the UK.

Last time I was there they handled the 90 day reporting as @Painter mentions. That saves a real hassle.

[forcebwithu]

32 minutes ago, Britboy said:

Yep, understand all that. Maybe I didn't word it correctly but @KWA that's exactly what I meant. Although their English in their email reply wasn't the best . . 🤣

All is good and for medical insurance purposes to begin with - I'll get the StaySure 50 or 100 day max stay policy for the initial part of my stay. As far as they're concerned I'll be returning back to the UK.

Last time I was there they handled the 90 day reporting as @Painter mentions. That saves a real hassle.

Even though they will do the 90 day report, I find the online system is faster and easier to use than taking the time to stop by their office for them to handle the report. I do wonder now as I never asked them for details, but perhaps no visit is necessary and they use the online system for reporting and email the receipt to you.

Regarding your bank accounts, they probably have them flagged as inactive. A visit to the office where you opened the account is all it takes to reactivate the account.

[Britboy]

2 hours ago, forcebwithu said:

Even though they will do the 90 day report, I find the online system is faster and easier to use than taking the time to stop by their office for them to handle the report. I do wonder now as I never asked them for details, but perhaps no visit is necessary and they use the online system for reporting and email the receipt to you.

Regarding your bank accounts, they probably have them flagged as inactive. A visit to the office where you opened the account is all it takes to reactivate the account.

Thanks.

The 90-day reporting wasn't in operation when I was there in 2019/20 but absolutely, I'll do that myself. Saves going down there, though there are a couple of decent massage places very close . . 😉

In their email to me they even quoted a price of 35k for "No need to come to Pattaya" . . . .