Where to retire in South East Asia

For most retirees, Thailand is the safest all-round pick: the best hospitals in the region and a retirement visa from 50, as long as you can pass the money test. The Philippines wins on English and a permanent visa, Cambodia on cost and the easiest visa, and Vietnam on food and value, though it has no retirement visa at all.

Below I compare all four on the things that matter after 50: the visa you’d live on, what a month costs for one person or a couple, how good the healthcare is outside the capital, and how far English gets you. I lived in Saigon and around southern Vietnam, and Cambodia is the one I’m looking at next, so I know those two best. I’ve tried to give all four a fair hearing.

What the monthly budgets assume

The budgets below come from my city guides. They assume a modern one-bedroom apartment in a popular area, eating out most days, taxis and Grab, utilities and some social life, but not flights home or big medical bills. A couple needs roughly 50 to 70 percent more than one person, not double.

The Thailand and Vietnam figures include mid-range health insurance at mid-life premiums. For Cambodia and the Philippines, add it on top. Over 65, premiums climb steeply, and home systems won’t pay: Smartraveller confirms Medicare covers nothing overseas. The healthcare and insurance guide has premiums by age, and the cost of living guide breaks the Thai and Vietnamese budgets down line by line.

Thailand: the best hospitals, with a money test

The visa. Thailand’s retirement visa is for people 50 and over who won’t work. You either get a Non-Immigrant O-A from your home country, which gives a year’s stay, or a 90-day Non-Immigrant O that you extend in Thailand for a year at a time. Either way, you then renew every year at your local immigration office.

• Money: 800,000 THB (about A$34,000) in a Thai bank, or income of 65,000 THB a month (about A$2,800), or a mix adding up to 800,000 THB a year.
• Insurance: the O-A needs cover of at least US$100,000 or 3,000,000 THB (about A$128,000) for the whole stay. Immigration doesn’t currently ask for insurance when you renew an O-based extension, though some embassies want cover before they issue the O itself.
• Paperwork for the O-A: a police check and a medical certificate, each no more than three months old.

The Thailand retirement visa guide covers both routes, renewals and 90-day reports.

What it costs. Chiang Mai runs 38,000–60,000 THB a month (about A$1,600–2,600) for one person, or 57,000–100,000 THB (about A$2,400–4,300) for a couple. Bangkok runs 52,000–78,000 THB (about A$2,200–3,300) single, or 78,000–130,000 THB (about A$3,300–5,600) for two.

Healthcare. Bangkok’s leading private hospitals handle complex surgery and cancer care for patients from all over the world. Good private care also reaches further beyond the capital than in the other three countries: the Bangkok Hospital group alone runs hospitals in Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Hua Hin, Pattaya, Phuket, Samui, Udon Thani, Khon Kaen and Korat. Smartraveller says hospitals in Bangkok and other large cities can treat serious illness, while from smaller places you may need to be moved.

English. Common in expat areas, hospital international departments and tourist towns. Away from those, a little Thai goes a long way.

Who it suits: retirees who want a long-term base with good hospitals, a choice of city, beach or hills, and an established expat life, and who can meet the money test.

Vietnam: great value, but no retirement visa

The visa. Vietnam has no retirement visa. Most retirees live on the e-visa, which the Immigration Department issues online for up to 90 days, single or multiple entry. Under the fee schedule in force since 1 April 2026, a single-entry visa is US$25 and a multiple-entry one for up to 90 days is US$50 (about A$72). The US State Department notes it can’t be extended inside Vietnam, so every three months you leave and come back on a new one. Britons and some other Europeans can enter visa-free for 45 days, which doesn’t solve the long-stay problem.

The e-visa has no age, income or insurance test. A temporary residence card, which lets you stay for years, generally needs a work permit, an investment or a Vietnamese spouse or family.

What it costs. Da Nang runs 25–40 million VND a month (about A$1,400–2,200) for one person, or 38–68 million VND (about A$2,100–3,800) for a couple. Ho Chi Minh City runs 30–50 million VND (about A$1,700–2,800) single, or 45–85 million VND (about A$2,500–4,700) for two.

Healthcare. In Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi, private hospitals such as FV and Vinmec handle most things. Vinmec’s own directory shows hospitals in Da Nang, Nha Trang, Hai Phong, Can Tho, Ha Long and Phu Quoc too. Outside the cities, the US State Department warns that adequate care is hard to find, staff may speak little English and hospitals often want cash up front. For complex surgery or cancer care, many expats fly to Bangkok or Singapore.

English. Less common than in Thailand outside the expat areas of Saigon, Hanoi and Da Nang. Leases and local clinics go more smoothly with a Vietnamese speaker beside you.

Who it suits: healthy, independent retirees who love food and city energy and don’t mind a trip out of the country every three months, or who have a Vietnamese spouse. It’s the hardest of the four if you want to settle and stop thinking about visas. More in retiring in Vietnam.

Cambodia: the easiest visa, the weakest healthcare

The visa. Cambodia’s route is the simplest of the four. You arrive on an ordinary (E) visa, US$35 (about A$50) since January 2025, then extend it inside Cambodia as a retirement (ER) extension, for up to 12 months at a time and renewable.

• Age: generally 55 and over.
• Money: no set income or deposit. You show proof that you’re retired, such as a pension statement.
• Insurance: not required for the visa, but going without it here would be a serious gamble.

Most people renew through a visa agent. Confirm the current rules with the agent or the General Department of Immigration before you rely on them.

What it costs. Phnom Penh runs US$1,200–2,000 a month (about A$1,700–2,900) for one person, or US$1,800–3,400 (about A$2,600–4,900) for a couple. Kampot runs US$900–1,500 (about A$1,300–2,100) single, or US$1,350–2,550 (about A$1,900–3,700) for two. Add insurance to both.

Healthcare. This is Cambodia’s weak spot. Royal Phnom Penh Hospital and Sunrise Japan Hospital handle most care in the capital, and Smartraveller notes foreign private clinics in Siem Reap and Sihanoukville. It also says that outside Phnom Penh there are almost no facilities that can deal with emergencies, and hospitals usually want cash first. Anything serious means Bangkok or Singapore, so evacuation cover is essential. See healthcare in Cambodia and, if Kampot appeals, living in Kampot.

English. Widely used in hotels, restaurants and the expat areas of Phnom Penh, Siem Reap and Kampot, and much less so in the countryside.

Who it suits: retirees who want low costs and an easy visa, like a slower and less polished place, and are comfortable flying to Bangkok for serious care. It’s not the place for complex ongoing health needs. More in retiring in Cambodia.

The Philippines: English and a permanent visa

The visa. The Special Resident Retiree’s Visa (SRRV), run by the Philippine Retirement Authority, gives permanent residence with unlimited entries for as long as you keep your deposit in place and pay the annual fee.

• Age: 40 and over, with bigger deposits below 50.
• Money: at 50 and over, a deposit of US$15,000 (about A$21,000) if you have a lifetime pension of at least US$800 a month (US$1,000 with dependants), or US$30,000 (about A$43,000) without one. At 40 to 49 it’s US$25,000 or US$50,000.
• Fees: US$1,500 to apply, then US$360 a year.
• Insurance: not required. You do need a medical certificate and police clearance.

The SRRV guide has the details, and moving to the Philippines covers visiting first and where retirees settle.

What it costs. Dumaguete runs 53,000–80,000 PHP a month (about A$1,200–1,800) for one person, or 80,000–136,000 PHP (about A$1,800–3,100) for a couple. Cebu City runs 80,000–130,000 PHP (about A$1,800–3,000) single, or 120,000–220,000 PHP (about A$2,700–5,000) for two. Add insurance to both. Metro Manila costs more.

Healthcare. Smartraveller says the major private hospitals, particularly in Metro Manila, are well equipped and internationally accredited, and Cebu has large private hospitals too. In regional and rural areas services can be limited, and most hospitals want payment or a guarantee before they treat you.

English. An official language, so leases, banks, hospitals and government offices all work in English.

Who it suits: retirees who want English everywhere, a permanent visa with no yearly renewal, and island life, and who don’t mind heat, typhoon season and city traffic.

The four countries side by side

	Visa route	Age	Money and insurance tests
Thailand	O-A or O, renewed yearly	50+	800,000 THB or 65,000 THB a month; insurance for the O-A
Vietnam	No retirement visa; 90-day e-visas	Any	None
Cambodia	E visa, then ER extension yearly	Generally 55+	Proof of retirement; no insurance test
Philippines	SRRV, permanent	40+	US$15,000–50,000 deposit; no insurance test

	Single (A$/mth)	Couple (A$/mth)	Serious medical care
Thailand	1,600–3,300	2,400–5,600	Bangkok and large regional cities
Vietnam	1,400–2,800	2,100–4,700	Main cities; complex cases to Bangkok or Singapore
Cambodia, plus insurance	1,300–2,900	1,900–4,900	Phnom Penh, then Bangkok
Philippines, plus insurance	1,200–3,000	1,800–5,000	Metro Manila and Cebu

The ranges overlap more than most people expect. Where you live inside a country, and how, moves your budget more than which country you pick.

What happens to your home pension

• Australians: you may still get the Age Pension while living overseas, but how you’re paid can change. See the Age Pension overseas.
• Britons: the UK State Pension only rises each year in countries on the UK Government’s list. The Philippines is on it; Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia aren’t, so your pension stops getting yearly increases there. See your UK State Pension abroad.
• Americans: the Social Security Administration’s Payments Abroad Screening Tool, at ssa.gov/international, shows whether payments continue in a given country.

How to choose between them

Start with what you can’t change.

• Your age. Under 50, Thailand’s retirement visa isn’t open to you yet. The SRRV is, from 40, at a higher deposit.
• Your health. With an ongoing condition, Thailand is the safest bet, then Manila or Cebu. Cambodia works only with strong insurance and evacuation cover.
• Your money. On a modest pension, Cambodia has no money test. The SRRV asks for a pension of US$800 a month (about A$1,100) plus a US$15,000 deposit, well below Thailand’s 65,000 THB a month or 800,000 THB in the bank.
• Your patience for paperwork. The SRRV is a one-off application and an annual fee. Thailand means yearly renewals and address reports. Cambodia means a yearly extension. Vietnam means leaving every 90 days.
• Language. If English everywhere matters, it’s the Philippines.

Then spend a month or more in each of your top two before you sign a lease. Since 15 September 2026, Thailand gives Australians and most Western visitors 30 days on arrival; the Philippines gives 30 days that you can extend; Cambodia’s e-visa is 30 days; and Vietnam’s e-visa runs up to 90.