mstevens

3 hours ago, ThaiWai said:

So don't issue any visas just in case some of the applicants may possibly being doing something wrong?  Really?  That's the best strategy you think they came up with for blocking illegal workers? Really??  

No, that is not what I said at all.  I think that their systems should be beefed up so that after a certain number of days in Thailand per year - let's say 180 - that the onus is on "the traveller" to prove that they are a bona fide tourist and not working illegally as tens of thousands are.  This is hardly a radical idea and most countries would have started asking questions well before someone spent 6 months there as a tourist.

What about simply reporting the work permit lost at the Labour Office and explaining that you've resigned from that job and ask for the work permit to be cancelled?  I imagine they would be happy to do that and then issue you with the cancellation slip and you could get on with your life.

I would, however, fulfil your contractual obligations to your current employer so if you have a minimum notice period that is what I would give.  If it is 2 weeks or a month ,or whatever, give that to your employer in writing.

18 hours ago, Lovethailandelite said:

And you and others need to stop suggesting fraudulent ways to obtain visas. It's through this nonsense that Embassy's and consulates are continuing to make things harder and harder for people.

I am in total agreement.  I am surprised that the forum owners actually allow posts like this which essentially promote an illegal means of meeting the requirements for a visa.  Representing a fake ticket as a genuine one to meet visa requirements is fraud.  In many countries - and I suspect most of the countries where these applicants are from - anyone applying for a visa in such manner would face fraud charges and if found guilty might find themselves banned from that country for life.

You might be able to use this trick of changing your name to circumvent the block and get back in to Thailand, but consider the downside.  If anything happens and it comes to the attention of the authorities what you have done, how will they react?  Is it possible that they could get angry and perhaps impose a permanent blacklist i.e. for life?

For what it's worth, you've only been blacklisted a year.  I'd suggest to you that you enjoy your homeland (or other countries) and return to Thailand in September with the confidence that you're allowed to return and are welcome.  I feel that the downside of getting caught trying to circumvent the blacklist is just too great.

Whatever you do, good luck to you.

To the OP,  what exactly did the firm you retained charge you for the service of getting you removed from the blacklist?  And did they say how they would do it i.e. through legal means such as some sort of appeals process or petitioning the courts, or was it via a backhander to a crooked official.  Also, exactly what did they say to you when they had supposedly completed the work for you?  No disrespect intended, but when you have someone called David (NOT a Thai name) getting someone removed from an immigration blacklist, it all sounds rather dodgy to me!

This is a sad story in many ways.  Sad that you overstayed so long, sad that you have been blacklisted and separated from your partner and sad that the blacklist block has not been lifted.  Some could argue that it is sad that you tried to circumvent the punishment you got for overstaying.

In a case like this in my country, I would say to get in touch with a lawyer who specialises in immigration law.  The difficulty is that I am not sure that I have ever read any recommendations on here of any Thai lawyers who specialise in immigration issues and who are good at what they do and honest.

Some members of this forum have been impressed with the service provided by www.thaivisaservice.com  Apparently they can help with blacklist checks and things like that.  Why not get in touch with them and see if they can help you.

Good luck.

19 hours ago, BritTim said:

 

I would like to see some evidence that Thailand has a major problem with economic migrants from Sweden flocking into their country.

 

What I see happening is rule changes that do not address the problems (real or imagined) they are supposed to solve. Pedophiles, drug traffickers, terrorists, and other unsavory elements are not generally spending six months (or more) continuously in Thailand. If they are, it is purely coincidental, and most (like regular tourists) will be making shorter visits to engage in their illegal activities.

 

I have no doubt that it is true that a few of those here on tourist entries are working, especially teaching English. I agree this is against the regulations, but I question the assumption that it should be a top priority to eliminate native English teaching for less affluent Thais. There is no evidence that further degrading the already deplorable level of English proficiency in Thailand is going to be positive overall.

Why does there seem to be this idea that those who stay a long time in Thailand on back to back tourist visas are English teachers?  I thought that the whole English teaching industry had grown up and it was more professional.  Do you really think there are so many English teachers earning lousy salary and exiting the country frequently to get a new tourist visa or do a visa run?  I would not have thought there would be enough money in it to live like that.  I could of course be totally wrong.  (In case you wonder, no, I am not an English teacher!)

I thought it more likely that people with many tourist visas back to back are digital nomads or at least doing work that pays enough to do visa runs frequently.

On 4/01/2017 at 2:42 AM, kmw said:

hey all, just wanted to share my story, I am currently on my second METV, had no issues at all obtaining the visa sticker in my passport, however upon entering suvarnabhumi, I was grilled by the immigration officer, she asked me heaps of questions about my previous non thai visa, for exmaple I had a few vietnam and burma visas, it seemed like she was trying to find a reason to deny me! I was also traveling in business class so this was in the premium lane at immigration,

 

perhaps she just was having a bad day or maybe, are the authorities cracking down on people taking advantage of the METV by doing it back to back? as on my first METV I stayed a total of just under 9 months, then flew back to sydney, obtained another METV within one week then back to Thailand.

 

Can anyone else give some feedback for people who are on their second METV? 

Probably it was a mix of bad luck / an officer having a bad day / the fact that you spent just under 9 months in the country on your previous METV and were back so fast.

I am on my second METV but I never stay in Thailand more than 3 months at a time and I never do a 30-day extension.  I just fly out somewhere new, check the place out and return in 2 - 4 days.  I've never been questioned about my visa history which for the last several years has generally been a bit over half the year in Australia and a bit under half the year in Thailand.  I would speculate that you spending so much time in Thailand on the previous METV and stringing it out as long as you could, only to shoot down here, get another one and go straight back, might (very reasonably) have them questioning what you're up to.  I think it's perfectly fair for them to question you.  No doubt you've seen Border Security on TV - any foreigner with that sort of travel pattern to Australia would be grilled at the border!

2 hours ago, IMA_FARANG said:

Sorry but that is the rules.

For the METV you need to be employed according to their rules.

I think this is a regulation in Sweden.  In Australia, no need to be employed to get the METV.

Money can cause people to behave badly and so some really strange things.  That seems to be even more so in Thailand but in fairness, this is an extreme situation and you'd hardly call this sort of thing "normal".  Still, plenty of people get threatened, hurt or even killed for much less than 20 million baht!

I went through a phase living in Bangkok where I found myself saying unkind things about Thai people.  A friend visiting me from home felt my comments were due to my choice of company.  He pointed out that perhaps the problem was that I was hanging out with people I would not hang out with back in Australia and I should change my social circles.  I took his advice and did just that and everything changed.  I began to enjoy the company of my new Thai friends.  That worked for me.

There are some things that happen in Thailand that are cringeworthy and others which I think are very hard to justify, but if you change your social circles and avoid people or places who behave in a way that makes you uncomfortable then it was my experience that you can avoid a lot of the things that cause you grief.

You've spent the best part of a year in Thailand on a tourist visa.  That is quite a long time.  Of course, you might be legitimate travellers or you might be working.  It's not my place to comment on that.  But what I think IS good is the fact that Immigration took the time to question you and check before allowing you in.  They're doing their job and I think ultimately that's a good thing.

55 minutes ago, sandemara said:

Were you really hoping anyone on a farang open forum would encourage you to continue blatantly breaking immigration and labour laws? Just "a married guy trying to  make a living". Pathetic.

Really?  If I were to spend a few minutes dredging I am sure I could come up with a lot of people on this forum who are "blatantly breaking immigration and labour laws", to quote you.  It's so obvious that many of the people on this forum so desperate to get their next tourist visa are performing some sort of work and are not in the system.

What this guy has done is wrong, clearly, but there are so many others doing similar or worse.  I may not live in Thailand but when I am there the number of people I speak to who are flying below the radar would appear to be equal to or greater than the number who are legal.  The last condo building I stayed in recently for a stint of a few months was full of young Westerners making money online and doing basically as this guy was doing.  If you want to give a hard time to foreigners in Thailand breaking the law, I reckon your net is going to catch a high percentage.

Of course this guy should get legal or stop what he's doing.  At the same time, some of the harsh comments on here make me wonder if some posters are as pure and innocent as they make themselves out to be.  I seriously doubt it.

2 hours ago, AdiP said:

Obviously legal proceedings are not an option due to costs and landlords know this. How ever if they risk the tax and revenue department getting their teeth into them then good luck. Will cost them a fortune in fines and taxes..

This is exactly what I did when this happened to me in the past.  I very casually asked whether they were meeting their Revenue Department obligations on the rent I was paying - which was directly into the account of the American owner of the condo.  Very quickly my deposit was returned.

I am very sorry to hear of the loss of your wife and you have my sympathies.

You've been married 30 years so it would appear the two of you are solid together.

I cannot imagine how Thailand is changed in the time since you left so why not take a holiday and check the place out for a couple of weeks and see what you make of the changes.  It might be that you love all the changes to the country or it might be that you don't....but it would it not be sensible to check it out and see how it has changed before you planned any big move?