Tough New Policy for Visa Runs

[bar stool]

Yes same as Cambodia and Indonesian .

 

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As far as I can remember I’ve never paid for a tourist visa on arrival, except in Egypt.

I’ve been to Indonesia, but that was still in the Soeharto era.

[nixonsbest]

As far as I can remember I’ve never paid for a tourist visa on arrival, except in Egypt.

I’ve been to Indonesia, but that was still in the Soeharto era.

 

I would not have a problem paying for a tourist visa on arrival.

 

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[Edge]

Yes same as Cambodia and Indonesian .

 

Ditto Laos (about 1200 Baht ?)

 

PI lets you in for 30 days, but charges you on exit.

 

For Vietnam you pay,

 

Myanmar how much?

 

Is it only Thailand doing it for free?

 

They're bound to wonder why.

[nixonsbest]

 

Ditto Laos (about 1200 Baht ?)

 

PI lets you in for 30 days, but charges you on exit.

 

For Vietnam you pay,

 

Myanmar how much?

 

Is it only Thailand doing it for free?

 

They're bound to wonder why.

Myanmar and China are around the same price 1000B tourist visa for 30 days!

[nixonsbest]

It cost me AUD $20 in Brunei to go through immigration and have a smoke!

[bar stool]

 

Ditto Laos (about 1200 Baht ?)

 

PI lets you in for 30 days, but charges you on exit.

 

For Vietnam you pay,

 

Myanmar how much?

 

Is it only Thailand doing it for free?

 

They're bound to wonder why.

In Thailand you pay for exit too, now included in airplane ticket.

[nixonsbest]

In Thailand you pay for exit too, now included in airplane ticket.

And if you exit by land?

[COLD SODA]

In Thailand you pay for exit too, now included in airplane ticket.

 

 

 

That's not exit fee , that's for airport facilities and charged by the company contracted for managing airport facilities with Govt approval .

[vermut12]

Personally I do not have anything against them getting stricter rules because let's be honest - many people abused the system. The visa waiver was intended to facilitate the life for short term tourists. Not so that people could stay indefinitely in the country doing border runs.

 

But they should make a new type of visa. It should be for a year or more with multiple entries. Because with these new rules they cripple a lot of ordinary tourists who use Thailand as a base for their travels all over SEA (and I know of many people who did so and I personally did it the first time I came to SEA) and do not intend to stay in Thailand long term. So they go on a trip to Cambodia, come back to Bangkok, then go to Malaysia and again come back to Bangkok. Next time when they go to Laos they will be denied entry back into Thailand... As they will be classified as abusers of the visa waver program.

 

The current tourist visas only allow for a maximum of 2 in-outs. So they are not a solution either.

 

I made a Spanish visa for my TGF. She was given a 1 year visa to all of the EU countries with multiple entries to that. The only condition is that she can stay no more than 90 days every 6 months. Something similar for Thailand would be nice.

[The Selfie Warrior]

Personally I do not have anything against them getting stricter rules because let's be honest - many people abused the system. The visa waiver was intended to facilitate the life for short term tourists. Not so that people could stay indefinitely in the country doing border runs.

 

i dont think they really give a shit about people staying in the country long term.... they just dont want them WORKING here and taking away jobs from thai people..... and unfortunately many of the border runner types are doing that, working off-the-books.

 

guys like myself, i contribute heavily to the local economy, and do not take any jobs away from thai people.... quite the opposite, i help them maintain employment with my spending..... pretty sure they dont mind people like me staying here long term, but there is no official proper visa for my situation.

[Edge]

........................ pretty sure they dont mind people like me staying here long term, but there is no official proper visa for my situation.

 

To invent a visa which suited you, but which the dodgies could be excluded from, is difficult to imagine.

 

How much would you be happy to pay?

[Bek]

 

But they should make a new type of visa. It should be for a year or more with multiple entries. Because with these new rules they cripple a lot of ordinary tourists who use Thailand as a base for their travels all over SEA (and I know of many people who did so and I personally did it the first time I came to SEA) and do not intend to stay in Thailand long term. So they go on a trip to Cambodia, come back to Bangkok, then go to Malaysia and again come back to Bangkok. Next time when they go to Laos they will be denied entry back into Thailand... As they will be classified as abusers of the visa waver program.

As far as I know, the multiple entry tourist visa has been an option before - but only with 4 entries. If they make a genuine multiple entry visa, I will get that.

 

I don't care about paying a thousand baht at arrival, that's pocket money for most of us. What I don't like, is all the hassle to make the visa, if they require so.

When I leave Thailand, I leave for work. That means I don't have the spare time to go to a thai embassy in another SEA country, to apply for the visa.

 

If it's all about the money, which I suspect it is, just make us pay a fee at arrival.

 

 

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[The Selfie Warrior]

To invent a visa which suited you, but which the dodgies could be excluded from, is difficult to imagine.

 

How much would you be happy to pay?

 

why would it be difficult?

 

well it could be similar to the retirement visa, just with a reduced age..... proof of income requirement would exclude the dodgies.

 

im not happy to pay anything lol... why would i be happy about paying? paying sucks

[Edge]

why would it be difficult?

 

well it could be similar to the retirement visa, just with a reduced age..... proof of income requirement would exclude the dodgies.

..........................................................

 

Pretty sure there are already plenty of over 50s using the Retirement (and Marriage) Extensions in order to stay here and work or whatever.

 

Why would proof of income stop those dodgies - those with no money perhaps, although Septics only have to self certify income anyway right?

.

[The Selfie Warrior]

Pretty sure there are already plenty of over 50s using the Retirement (and Marriage) Extensions in order to stay here and work or whatever.

 

Why would proof of income stop those dodgies - those with no money perhaps, although Septics only have to self certify income anyway right?

.

 

are there really plenty?

 

why would a retired guy over 50 with adequate money in the bank and regular monthly income to meet the requirements want to work for thai wages? 

id think that type of guy would be a rare exception.

 

i think the vast majority of border runners stealing jobs from thais are people that would not meet the requirement of having proven monthly income from their home country, let alone 800k in the bank..... especially the lao and cambo illegal workers, or any of the russians working menial unskilled jobs for meager thai pay.

 

maybe im wrong though?

[bar stool]

And if you exit by land?

Never tried.

[Garzan]

And if you have the retirement visa already, why would you risk having it cancelled if you got caught working? I doubt there are that many on retirement visas working in Thailand. Maybe on the web where it isn't tracked, but certainly not at any brick and mortar inside the Kingdom boundaries.

[The Selfie Warrior]

http://www.phuketgazette.net/phuket-news/Tourist-visa-runs-not-dead-Immigration-boss/29460#ad-image-0

 

Tourist visa runs are not dead: Immigration boss

Phuket Gazette - May 16, 2014 | 05:46 PM

 

PHUKET: Tourists who can prove that they are genuinely staying only short-term while travelling in Thailand will be allowed to leave on “visa-runs” and re-enter the country, Immigration Commissioner Pharnu Kerdlarpphon confirmed to the Phuket Gazette.

“Genuine tourists are fine. All they have to do is prove to the immigration officer at the border checkpoint that they really are tourists by presenting evidence such as their travel itinerary, hotel booking, tour bookings and any other documents to prove their travel in Thailand is genuine,” Lt Gen Pharnu said on Wednesday.

“Then they will be allowed to re-enter the country.”

Gen Pharnu clarified the focus of the new immigration regulation, which allows most foreigners to enter the country only once using visa-exempt status.

“The crackdown is all about preventing foreigners from using visa-exemptions and tourist visas to stay in Thailand and work,” Gen Pharnu said. 

“We should have done this a long time ago. We have let foreigners work illegally in Thailand on tourist visas for too long. It’s time to stop them.”

The new regulation has nothing to do with ill-fated Malaysian Airlines Flight MH 370 and the passports from Phuket that were used to board the flight, the general added.

The immigration chief was clear that from August 13 any foreigners who fail to prove that they are tourists will not be allowed to re-enter the country on visa exemption status (story here), as explained in a formal notice posted on Bangkok Immigration’s website on May 8. 

“From August 13, if we suspect any foreigner of working illegally in Thailand on a tourist visa, that person will be detained and deported, even if the foreigner has not previously completed even a single visa run,” he said.

“People who are deported will be banned from re-entering Thailand for five years, not forever. After that, the foreigner may appeal to re-enter the country.

“This is what we have been doing for years with foreigners who have been deported, and any foreigner who is added to our blacklist is issued a formal notice explaining what they have done wrong.”

Gen Pharnu noted that immigration officers were ordered to give special attention to Russians, South Koreans, Vietnamese and Chinese attempting to extend their stays by completing visa runs.

Ranong Immigration Superintendent Ekkorn Bussababordin confirmed to the Gazette on May 12 that foreigners will continue to be allowed to re-enter Thailand on three consecutive “walk-in” visas until August 12.

As reported in the Gazette last week, after August 12, such foreigners risk being stranded in Myanmar (story here). 

The May 8 order, posted in Thai, stated that the new rule is to come into effect at all immigration checkpoints, including airports.

“Thailand is open to all tourists,” Gen Pharnu said, “but we will not allow illegal workers. If you want to work here please do the right thing. Apply for a business visa and live here legally.”

[The Selfie Warrior]

despite the above article, still a problem for guys like me..... since returning back into the country i do not have travel plans, hotel bookings, etc to show myself as a tourist.

[bar stool]

Personally I do not have anything against them getting stricter rules because let's be honest - many people abused the system. The visa waiver was intended to facilitate the life for short term tourists. Not so that people could stay indefinitely in the country doing border runs.

 

But they should make a new type of visa. It should be for a year or more with multiple entries. Because with these new rules they cripple a lot of ordinary tourists who use Thailand as a base for their travels all over SEA (and I know of many people who did so and I personally did it the first time I came to SEA) and do not intend to stay in Thailand long term. So they go on a trip to Cambodia, come back to Bangkok, then go to Malaysia and again come back to Bangkok. Next time when they go to Laos they will be denied entry back into Thailand... As they will be classified as abusers of the visa waver program.

 

The current tourist visas only allow for a maximum of 2 in-outs. So they are not a solution either.

 

I made a Spanish visa for my TGF. She was given a 1 year visa to all of the EU countries with multiple entries to that. The only condition is that she can stay no more than 90 days every 6 months. Something similar for Thailand would be nice.

A Schengen visa is not a 1 year visa; it is a 90 days tourist visa and you can get one every 6 months.

The Schengen area includes most EU countries (not the UK and Ireland), Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Spain is one of the Schengen countries.

[brewster]

“From August 13, if we suspect any foreigner of working illegally in Thailand on a tourist visa, that person will be detained and deported, even if the foreigner has not previously completed even a single visa run,” he said."

 

Suspect but not prove?

[bar stool]

Personally I do not have anything against them getting stricter rules because let's be honest - many people abused the system. The visa waiver was intended to facilitate the life for short term tourists. Not so that people could stay indefinitely in the country doing border runs.

 

But they should make a new type of visa. It should be for a year or more with multiple entries. Because with these new rules they cripple a lot of ordinary tourists who use Thailand as a base for their travels all over SEA (and I know of many people who did so and I personally did it the first time I came to SEA) and do not intend to stay in Thailand long term. So they go on a trip to Cambodia, come back to Bangkok, then go to Malaysia and again come back to Bangkok. Next time when they go to Laos they will be denied entry back into Thailand... As they will be classified as abusers of the visa waver program.

 

The current tourist visas only allow for a maximum of 2 in-outs. So they are not a solution either.

 

I made a Spanish visa for my TGF. She was given a 1 year visa to all of the EU countries with multiple entries to that. The only condition is that she can stay no more than 90 days every 6 months. Something similar for Thailand would be nice.

 

 

A Schengen visa is not a 1 year visa; it is a 90 days tourist visa and you can get one every 6 months.

The Schengen area includes most EU countries (not the UK and Ireland), Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

Spain is one of the Schengen countries.

And, I forgot to tell: a Schengen visa does not allow you to work.

[bar stool]

i dont think they really give a shit about people staying in the country long term.... they just dont want them WORKING here and taking away jobs from thai people..... and unfortunately many of the border runner types are doing that, working off-the-books.

 

guys like myself, i contribute heavily to the local economy, and do not take any jobs away from thai people.... quite the opposite, i help them maintain employment with my spending..... pretty sure they dont mind people like me staying here long term, but there is no official proper visa for my situation.

An Ed visa?

[Edge]

are there really plenty?

 

why would a retired guy over 50 with adequate money in the bank and regular monthly income to meet the requirements want to work for thai wages? 

id think that type of guy would be a rare exception.

 

i think the vast majority of border runners stealing jobs from thais are people that would not meet the requirement of having proven monthly income from their home country, let alone 800k in the bank..... especially the lao and cambo illegal workers, or any of the russians working menial unskilled jobs for meager thai pay.

 

maybe im wrong though?

 

Come down young boy - did I say much/any of that?

 

Anyone with a Passport showing 49+yo, whether they're straight or a smooth criminal, basically has no pompen.

 

Stick 800k in a bank or just pay a dodgy agent 20k to sort it over the kitchen table.

 

So yes loads of 'em.

[Daddee]

 

Ditto Laos (about 1200 Baht ?)

 

PI lets you in for 30 days, but charges you on exit.

 

For Vietnam you pay,

 

Myanmar how much?

 

Is it only Thailand doing it for free?

 

They're bound to wonder why.

I believe there's an exit fee for leaving thailand, built into your ticket...