3,000 apply for Thailand’s new long-term visa in first 4 months
Almost 3,000 wealthy and/or skilled foreigners have applied for Thailand’s new long-term resident (LTR) visa in the first four months, government spokeswoman Traisulee Taisaranakul said on Friday.
The 10-year, multi-entry visa was introduced on November 1 last year to attract foreign talent and multinational firms to Thailand.
Traisulee said 2,920 foreigners had applied for LTR visas from the Board of Investment (BOI) between November 1 and February 28 this year.
Of those who applied, 195 are wealthy people, 1,011 are retirees, 771 are people who want to work in Thailand, 390 are skilled individuals, and 553 are dependants. The top three sources of applications were Europe (940 people), followed by the US (517) and China (325).
Offering the LTR visa to lure skilled foreign individuals and multinationals to set up headquarters in Thailand was a shortcut to boost the potential of the Thai workforce, she said. This would in turn enhance Thailand's competitiveness.
"Talented foreigners and multinational firms can offer knowledge and innovation for Thais who work with them," she said.
Many countries had witnessed Thailand's potential during the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Bangkok last November, she added.
Traisulee said the BOI has handed privileges to over 500 multinational firms to set up regional headquarters in Thailand worth around 13 billion baht.
The top five sources of multinational firms setting up headquarters in Thailand are Japan, the US, Singapore, Hong Kong and France, she said.
Among those choosing Thailand for their regional bases are well-known companies such as Agoda, Huawei Technologies, Arcelik Hitachi, Ajinomoto, Nissin Foods, Alstom, Toyota Motor and Nippon Steel.
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