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Final crackdown for border runners - New strict Immigration regulation in force from today


Eroticadventurer

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Attention all aliens.  Here are some new overstay rules.  Of course there is still also a daily fine for overstays.

 

 

The aliens who violate The Immigration Act, B.E.2522 by overstaying more than 90 days in the Kingdom of Thailand will be forbidden from re-entering the kingdom for a certain period of time as follow ;       
 
                Overstay more than   90      days            forbidden       1       year
                Overstay more than   1       year             forbidden       3       years
                Overstay more than   3       years            forbidden       5       years
                Overstay more than   5       years            forbidden      10      years

        In the case that alien is being apprehended
                Overstay less than     1       year              forbidden       5       years
                Overstay more than   1       years             forbidden       10      years

http://bangkok.immigration.go.th/popup_anounce.html

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Yes, lance, agreed.  Sometimes I get the feeling that they can't see the wood for the trees. 

I live here now on a retirement visa, so less of a problem for me, (except I'm old 555) but a big percentage of my income is spent in Thailand.

Yes, any country is entitled to enforce their own rules, but when its a low season for tourism for so long, there ought to be more consideration for genuine tourists to encourage them to stay/come again, with less hassles.

Hey young fella, I got a beer that says you stroll past a few beer bars and you will be hailed as YOUNG Man, come inside! (or my personal favorite, come inside me please, 555!)

Back OT, yeah funny the locals pick the lowest low season ever to implement stricter rules. My hunch is that the Junta is playing politics, pandering to the locals. Xenophobic rhetoric always useful to divert attention from the elephant in the room :)

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Xenophobia always plays well but I think there's more to it than that.

 

I think the junta is trying to do away with BS stuff such as a 10 hour van trip being the best way for some to stay in Thailand.  It seems they are trying too set up a workable system re immigration.

 

They just tore down about 50 illegal structures on public beaches in Phuket and have cracked down on the Phuket mafia.  Supposedly the Pattaya mafia is next.

 

Special friends of powerful generals will have undue influence but it seems the junta is doing quite a bit to restore respect for the law.  Of course overthrowing an elected government was breaking a law too.

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I feel it has more to do with the problems of the fake passports obtained in Thailand for MH37. Around the same time it was discovered that there were a number of fake visa stamps circulating around. This of course is very bad for the Thai gov't as it means easy entry for all sorts of unsavory types (even though the 2 on flight MH37 were not "unsavory"). I'm sure pressure was applied by a number of western countries wanting to keep their borders as secure as possible.

 

There probably would have been stricter rules regardless of who was in power.

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I have had two Russian sisters renting my house in Samui for the last 5 months. The rental agreement was for 1 year, so until March 2015.

I received an email today, from the estate agent handling the rental, which stated " Due to their circumstances, the Government has denied visa renewal to your client, and they will now have to check out on August 11th"

 

I guess this new immigration enforcement is for real. And I am now looking new tenants. <_<

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi gents, just wondering if anyone could clarify a few things for me.

 

Firstly i was talking to a frequent visitor to Thailand a few days ago and he said that now you can only extend a 60 day Tourist visa in Bangkok.  True or False?

 

Secondly I read that after 60 days on a Tourist Visa you have to do a visa run as you cannot get a 30 days extension anymore, which contradicts the above of course.  True or False?

 

Thirdly, if i have a Double entry Tourist visa, can i just go to the border and activate the second one to get the next 60 days, or will I have to spend a day or so outside Thailand?

 

You read and hear so many different interpretations it would be great to know exactly where i stand before i head over, cheers guys.

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Good questions BB...

 

The Thai Consulate in Los Angeles  is intimating that the Tourist Visa is good for a 60 day trip without extension...They are also only offering a double entry visa and have apparently stopped issuing the triple entry visa...

 

I was unable to find out anything on how to enact the second Visa but they do state that if you are not a USA citizen you have to submit your airline tickets showing an in and out and if you are applying for a double entry visa you have to submit tickets showing a second in and out...Which to me suggests that you have to fly in and out and not simply take a run to the border...

 

I sent them and email for clarification but it's anyone's guess if they will answer...Our if they even know the answer...

 

I look forward to hearing from someone on the ground....

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Thirdly, if i have a Double entry Tourist visa, can i just go to the border and activate the second one to get the next 60 days, or will I have to spend a day or so outside Thailand?

 

You read and hear so many different interpretations it would be great to know exactly where i stand before i head over, cheers guys.

 

There will be reports in the next month on how things are being handled.

 

Guidelines have been issued to Immigration officers but the final determination is done by the officer interviewing you.

 

There will be a big crackdown on In-Out visa runs so you are probably safest not rying to re-enter the same day.

 

Here are some guidelines for the 30 day Visa Exempt Stamp but I would think there are similar guidelines for your scenario:

 

 

2. Reason to believe that entry into Kingdom is not for the purpose of tourism

2.1 Alien will be interviewed and requested to show evidence of the purpose of tourism

such as tickets, pocket money, booking slip, traveling plan.

2.2 The criterion as in 2.1 if deemed necessary to record as an evidence, the alien may be

required to fill out the form as attached in the annex hereto.

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Just found this updated daily

 

http://www.thaiembassy.com/visa/thaivisa.php

 

VISA TYPES ISSUED BY THAI EMBASSIES/CONSULATES:

[1] TOURIST (TR)
  • Tourism in Thailand
  • Not for Business or Employment purposes
  • Allowed to stay up to 60 days
  • Extension allowed for another 30 days

So it looks like a Tourist Visa (60 days) can still be extended for 30 days but will have to see if it can only be done in Bangkok now.  Will report back when I find out more.

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Looks like it is up to the discretion of the border guard to stamp you back into Thailand if you are on a double entry Tourist Visa.

 

"Even foreigners on valid tourist visas may now be denied entry if border officials suspect they are spending too long in the country or working illegally."

 

http://www.expatforum.com/thailand/thai-authorities-launch-crackdown-on-expat-paperwork.html

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Thirdly, if i have a Double entry Tourist visa, can i just go to the border and activate the second one to get the next 60 days, or will I have to spend a day or so outside Thailand?

 

 

I´ll be in the same boat, so looking forward to  some hard facts, and not the self-proclaimed ex-pats/perts on Soi Bokaow.

 

Previously i have made the extension after 60 days in both Bkk and Jomtien, and after the 30 days extension i've  done the Cambo visa run, exit and entering in an hour, as well as flown to another country for a few days. Both without any problems.

 

The Bkk immigration office is a real pain in the ass, btw.

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 i've  done the Cambo visa run, exit and entering in an hour,

 

as well as flown to another country for a few days.

 

 

Guess we'll see how things are being handled soon enough.

 

I suspect the same day in and out will be problematic.

 

If you see a cheap Air Asia flight to a neighboring country, it might be worthwhile to book it.

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I´ll be in the same boat, so looking forward to  some hard facts, and not the self-proclaimed ex-pats/perts on Soi Bokaow.

 

Previously i have made the extension after 60 days in both Bkk and Jomtien, and after the 30 days extension i've  done the Cambo visa run, exit and entering in an hour, as well as flown to another country for a few days. Both without any problems.

 

The Bkk immigration office is a real pain in the ass, btw.

That's exactly the way I did it last year so here is hoping it will be still possible, will shall know more from the 12 August  onwards when the new rules are enforced and reports are made on various sites.  Seems they are aiming at people who do 30 days back to back and also Tourist visas back to back.  As I have not been in Los since late June hopefully the time lag when I get back in a couple of months should not be a problem.  But it's the visa run during my 5 months there that concerns me as you can tell.  I have to convince them I am a tourist and not working illegally it appears.

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I had to get out of the country last week as I had an overlap whilst waiting for funds to clear for my retirement visa & I was granted 30 days at the Takilek (Burma) boarder crossing.

 

Now luckily, a couple of days later I was given a non immigrant 'O' visa to tide me over at the Chiang Mai immigration office by one of their senior officers, but previously to that I got a new recruit who told me that I would be viewed as a tourist & therefore must get out of the country again at the end of the 30 day period to receive another 30 days & then after that I'd only be granted 7... And if the funds hadn't yet cleared by then, it would be back off to Blighty for me.

 

So it is really at their individual discretion & to be perfectly honest, the left hand still really doesn't quite know what the right hand is doing... at least not in our local office.

 

The 60 days was out of the question, by the way, as I did ask.

 

:hi:

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What do you mean by the 60 days Lung, sorry? Did you ask them to stamp you into the country for 60 days on arrival or did they refuse to give you 60 days on an actual visa, cheers.

 

In spite of the fact that I was doing the boarder run with a view to getting a flexible non immigrant 'O' visa upon my return to CNX, a 60 day extension would have been an easier & less expensive option which would have done the job quite adequately, but I was told that I can only be stamped in for 30 days at the boarder.

 

The next day I enquired about a 60 day visa extension at Chiang Mai immigration & this request was also turned down.. I was told to get another 30 days upon expiry of the 30 days that were just granted to me.

 

The following day after that I was granted a flexible non 'O' visa by a more earnest & kind officer in the back office... It just cost me a hand job.

 

:hi:

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I was in contact with a friend who has just done his first visa run on a Triple Entry Tourist Visa.  He went to Cambodia for 2 days and flew back into Bangkok yesterday.  He said that they examined his passport a bit more than usual but besides that there were no hassles.  They just asked him the purpose of his visit but nothing about an outbound ticket, a hotel booking or proof of sufficient funds.

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A bit confusing

 

 

The military has told the Immigration Bureau to be flexible with "visa runners", junta chief General Prayuth Chan-ocha said Friday.The runners can register with the bureau, which will find a sustainable resolution to the problem, he said in his weekly televised programme last night.



Foreigners had been exploiting tourist visas and visas on arrival by illegally working in the country, mostly as English teachers.



When their visa was about the expire, they entered a neighbouring country to apply for a tourist visa and returned to the Kingdom to illegally work again.



The authorities responded by tightening the rules by not re-issuing visas to the runners and they faced deportation.



Prayuth said the change of the visa system concerning visa runners had considerably affected certain groups such as English teachers and academics.



"So, this is an ongoing problem that needs to be resolved, as it can lead to a shortage of English teachers and guides," he said during his weekly TV programme.


http://www.nationmultimedia.com/breakingnews/Immigration-Bureau-told-to-be-flexible-with-visa-r-30241608.html
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