mango66

My sense is that the OP is not exactly rolling in money. Also, the March 19 (one day before the new regulations go into effect) is looming. I agree, if funds allow, talking to a good lawyer is prudent. However, if this would mean that he would be leaving after March 20th, or have insufficient funds to leave, he will need to quickly try to verify his position, perhaps by trying to phone the court officials, and (if there is no obvious impediment to leaving) leave on a flight somewhere. A flight to Laos should be avoided, however.

why a flight to LAOS should be avoided ?

Surely as soon as the passport number is scaned it brings up all previous history attached to that unique passport number. I know it is slightly different but when I opened a bank account at Bangkok Bank they just entered my passport number and found me on their data base within seconds and my account with them was closed 20 years ago.

look at your passport !

Your name, your birth date, expire date of passport, Nationality,

and passport number on the 2 lines which are electronically scanned,

and it takes not a second !

so they will find all passports which they have under your name and birthdate

in their system;

Last time he asked me if I have 3 passports ?

I have 3 PP valid ones,

but 1 was lost - but by expire date still valid;

They have this information !!

Get a new passport. Systems cannot track it and its too much effort for them

Don't give wrong information's !!

A new passport will not help !

They will track it down !!

In seconds ! not a time manner at all !!

It's a known fact that Thai nationals with dual citizenship / passports should always enter Thailand and depart Thailand on a Thai passport to avoid the hassle you have stated above.

It takes about 3 to 5 days to obtain a Thai passport in Thailand so I fail to see why he doesn't currently have one.

What advice are you actually seeking ?

As he is my step-son and his parents who are still both required to appear before the Thai passport issuing authorities but not live close to each other it is not as easy as you would like to believe.

Really my girlfriend obtained a passport for her son my step son only last year,his father was no where to be seen so I fail to see how that's the case.

Good for you! I do know different cases and are living proof for it does not work everywhere so I fail to see what help you could be to this case.

Thats Thailand,

not every officer work according of the law !!

( Maybee his province not yet aware of laws ??

It's a known fact that Thai nationals with dual citizenship / passports should always enter Thailand and depart Thailand on a Thai passport to avoid the hassle you have stated above.

It takes about 3 to 5 days to obtain a Thai passport in Thailand so I fail to see why he doesn't currently have one.

What advice are you actually seeking ?

As he is my step-son and his parents who are still both required to appear before the Thai passport issuing authorities but not live close to each other it is not as easy as you would like to believe.

Really my girlfriend obtained a passport for her son my step son only last year,his father was no where to be seen so I fail to see how that's the case.

My ex-step daughter could not get a Thai passport with out the fathers approval. This the form I obtained from the Thai Consulate in the US. I have attached the form required by Udorn passport office.

My wife had the same experiance,

even we not married,

that time even not legaliused fatherhood,

Passport department asked the permit from me,

( I had to give the permit than in a thai embassy )

to issue passports for my kids !!

Some country still takes care for kids it seems !!

It's a known fact that Thai nationals with dual citizenship / passports should always enter Thailand and depart Thailand on a Thai passport to avoid the hassle you have stated above.

It takes about 3 to 5 days to obtain a Thai passport in Thailand so I fail to see why he doesn't currently have one.

What advice are you actually seeking ?

Thats not only in Thailand,

also in EU they say , if dual citicenship,

you have always to present the passport of the country you travell in !!

Your best visa option would be a multiple entry non immigrant 'O' for the purpose of visiting your child. It's not so easy to get these days but might be available from your home country or a Thai consulate in a neighbouring country to Thailand.

That visa would enable you to come and go as often as you want for 1 year. Each entry is granted a 90 day permit to stay and can be extended by 60 days. Or a border hop at the end of 90 days would give you a new 90 day entry. With planning you can utilise this visa for nearly 17 months.

could I get such a visa in Savannaketh ?

what financial proof would be needed ??

You could get one in Savannakhet with no financial proof if your child and their mother is with you when you apply for the visa to demonstrate you are living together as a family (de facto marriage).

Penang will do one with 100k baht without the family being with you.

thanks for the helpfull info UbonJoe !

Your best visa option would be a multiple entry non immigrant 'O' for the purpose of visiting your child. It's not so easy to get these days but might be available from your home country or a Thai consulate in a neighbouring country to Thailand.

That visa would enable you to come and go as often as you want for 1 year. Each entry is granted a 90 day permit to stay and can be extended by 60 days. Or a border hop at the end of 90 days would give you a new 90 day entry. With planning you can utilise this visa for nearly 17 months.

could I get such a visa in Savannaketh ?

what financial proof would be needed ??

• If you are the legal father and your child and their mother are with you then Savannakhet, reportedly, will issue a multiple entry visa without any financial proof.
• Penang, Malaysia will reportedly issue a multiple entry visa if you can show at least 100k baht equivalent in a bank account. Just being named on the birth certificate is sufficient and the mother and your child do not need to be present.

If you don't plan to marry the mother of your child anytime soon you should legalise (if you haven't already) your parenthood. That will then give you more options for long term stays in Thailand.

thanks for the info,

have still 1 year,

marriage not possible,

fatherhood already legaliced,

have managed also the yellow house book within home of my family,

even not yet full time living in Thailand;

( will not have the 800k for retirement,

and dont want block 400k on bank,

and many reports say, difficult to get the extension on Dependance with 400k;

Immigration forcing retirement and 800k;

Dont have information about this, how is it in CHW ??

Thanks

Not funds but good income - highest SSDI allowed

buy the elite card,

you get the 5 years you need, without hassle ,

propable best in your health situation;

Your best visa option would be a multiple entry non immigrant 'O' for the purpose of visiting your child. It's not so easy to get these days but might be available from your home country or a Thai consulate in a neighbouring country to Thailand.

That visa would enable you to come and go as often as you want for 1 year. Each entry is granted a 90 day permit to stay and can be extended by 60 days. Or a border hop at the end of 90 days would give you a new 90 day entry. With planning you can utilise this visa for nearly 17 months.

could I get such a visa in Savannaketh ?

what financial proof would be needed ??

Going with wife and daughter I explain that I live and work in Thailand, pay my taxes here, live with my family here, that we are not rich (I might tell a small lie about my salary being 21,000B/month) and that if I have to pay that ridiculous fee, I won't be able to go in and my family day out will be just my wife and daughter, whilst I sit at the entrance waiting for them to come home.

It has worked once (Doi Khun Tan National Park) but not at Doi Inthanon, where I sat for three hours with the staff to ensure they felt suitably embarrassed at the entire situation.

if i would have a thai income,

I would not have the car and money to go there at all !!

No lie !!

I dont prefer dubble pricing,

but , if I send my kids in BKK to a dual language school,

or foreign language school,

I have to pay much more than for a usual Thai school;

Why ?

Because the school have to pay much higher selaries to foreign teachers than to Thais;

So this foreigners get a much higher selary, and conditions that a Thai teacher,

so why than this foreigner should not pay on the other side also higher prices ??

I think every expat who have a thai DL

should also agree with Thai selaries !

min 600,- thb per day !!

And than he can request Thai prices on any premises !!

I assume hcmv means Ho Chi Minh Vietnam.

It seems odd they would not even explain why they refused your application.

You should have no problem getting a 30 day visa exempt entry and then a 30 day extension of it. Perhaps have 20k baht handy to show on entry in case you are questioned.

is savanna khet also scary with tourist visas ??

It sounds like posters are saying Americans can get an METV in Australia though that's not what the OP said. Does someone know that this is possible for certain?

That is what OP said.

It's written on the consulate websites there, that you don't need to an Australian national. The Melbourne website seems to be down at the moment, but this is the application form for Canberra:

http://canberra.thaiembassy.org/Home/DownloadForm/4304860377

From the second page this is all you need to show:

its really very simple and easy :

8 k AUD for the last 6 month !!

"I'm asking because I have a friend that is overly paranoid, he sells stuff on ecommerce sites from West to West, nothing to do about Thailand. He also has a business in the USA that he controls from over here, again, nothing to do with Thailand."

Actually, it has everything to do with Thailand, because that is where your "friend" is when he works.

So, as he is, (according to the letter of the law), working illegally, I would think that the RTP do have the powers to seize his laptop and any other evidence.

he work in Thailand without ! work permit "

that is illigal !!

Police can act !!

how can you miscalculate? . you email yourself the date In your passport, set alarm on Google, sent email to yourself 1 week before, repeat alarm 3 days before.

place the date on your exit door so you see it everyday.

etc.

How does sending an email to yourself one week before do anything? You'll just receive that email within a few minutes after sending it.

Should you also send a reminder email a week before sending that email?

stay there from where you are, you will not get this problems !!4

In 50 years and hundreds of trips in and out of Thailand- I have never overstayed even 1 day. However, I believe the law is poorly written. If one makes an honest mistake and then is stopped and found to be a few days overstay- your life depends upon convincing the Immigration not to prosecute or then convincing a judge not to blacklist. While the current law is somewhat benign the new law is way to severe. It doesn't matter what Western countries do, Thailand used to be know for its readiness to bend. Let us see how this is actually handled in reality. My instincts tell me money is going to make the difference and that is not how the law should work.

Grey areas are the perfect breading ground for more corruption.

I was late by 1 day once in 15 years because of the massive floods a few years ago. You'd think the immigration officer would understand, but no, he was a real <deleted> about it. So what now? somebody caught in floods is banned if the officer is having a bad day?

People will say no it won't happen but when things are open to interpretation like Thailand's 10 year in jail or/and 10k fine it means you are at he mercy of a uniform. Why not make it 100% clear?

still better than US,

if a cop kill a coloured youth, never mind whats the reason ,

not guilty !

No <deleted> sympaty from my side for overstayers, put all expats in a bad light, except because accident or other medical situation hindering one from appearing at immigration at said date

your missus or the hospital also can " inform " the immigration,

in such a case you must - as can not - visit the immigration personal !!

When caught with overstay a judge will make the decision on the fine and the ban. That is where the prosecuted term comes into play.

I don't think they would ban a person for just a few days of overstay unless they were a repeat offender.

Technically speaking, if you go before a Judge, then that means that you have been 'Prosecuted'. Maybe there is some leniency for the Judge and/or Immigration as to whether they will apply the ban, but that isn't clear.

It is indeed not mentionned, but I doubt that they would renounce to the 500 baht per day fine...at least for the first few days or weeks...and by the way, there was a "grace" period of 1 day, it was free of charge, what about now ? Sometimes a tourist could make a mistake of 1 day calculating by month, or maybe not take into account the day of arrival as nr 1, but calculating from the day following his arrival in the kingdom...

go back to your mathe teacher

When caught with overstay a judge will make the decision on the fine and the ban. That is where the prosecuted term comes into play.

I don't think they would ban a person for just a few days of overstay unless they were a repeat offender.

Technically speaking, if you go before a Judge, then that means that you have been 'Prosecuted'. Maybe there is some leniency for the Judge and/or Immigration as to whether they will apply the ban, but that isn't clear.

the Judge will deside, and beleave its not a cleaning stuff !!

He will know what to do !

If you have been there for almost 2 - 5 years with only visa runs,

he know exactly that it was a planned overstay and will court you to the new rules !

If you a real tourist - hotel bookings - flight tickets -

and you once in 3 years there, you will finish propably with a small fine and no ban !!

the new rules are not against tourists -

you guys know for whom they are,

no winning now please !!

Take the correct visas !!

Good about time.

How is it good?

Do overstayers impact on your lifestyle?

yes, as we regular stayers, we for sure contribute correct to the public system ,

which some other use without, or minor contribution,

not to talk about tax and other duties ;

Its time to do the correct things !!

So, I have been here 10 years legally and I miscalculate my dates and I am stopped and arrested a few days over. Automatic 5 year ban. Wow a bit harsh but TIT.

Arrested and prosecuted is what it says. Doesn't seem harsh to me that they'd want to ban criminals from the country.

Yes, the key words are "arrested and prosecuted". But as others are pointing out, a one day miscalculation could lead to a 5 year ban? That is just wrong. Draconian policies tend to not bother the illegals, since they are going to try and get away with it anyway, but it can really harm the general Tourist population that makes a mistake or gets a bit lax now and then. I know I did a one day overstay in the past, and this was after 11 trips to the country. I thought paying a nominal fine at the border was OK and I was happy to do that as I extended my trip via a border run for another 30 (29) days. I spent a fair amount of money on that two month vacation and now after 14 trips to the country, getting threatened with these penalties is not appreciated.

Wouldn't worry too much, after 14 trips I am sure you know that all is negotiable. This is just a mechanism to get rid of the real undesirables, and long time overdue.

so you think to continou with cheating thai immigration laws will continou ?

In first step you always will be arrested -

have fun there until you see the prosecuter !

maybee you go free with a small penalty,

but your ticket also will be lost and you pay a new one !!

Why is it so difficult to keep the immigration and visa rules ?

Beleave - I have travelled 80 countries - thais are one of the easy ones !

So overstayers - go back to regular stays in LOS !!

how can you miscalculate? . you email yourself the date In your passport, set alarm on Google, sent email to yourself 1 week before, repeat alarm 3 days before.

place the date on your exit door so you see it everyday.

etc.

and you have propably your flight ticket ready too !!

if you miss your plane even for 15 minutes,

you are lost !!

Come 20 Mar 16 the bell will toll for overstayers with over a 90 days overstay for those who surrender themselves, but for those who get arrested it appears there is no 90 day grace period if I'm reading the announcement right.

If I was an overstayer of over 90 days I would definitely exit Thailand before the rules go into effect 20 Mar 16 in order to avoid a long ban on reentry. Get legal on your stay or possibly say goodbye to Thailand for a year (or many more depending on overstay length) once identified as an overstayer.

Actually, I'm somewhat surprised the govt is actually putting it into effect but it does appear it's going into effect 20 Mar 16.

hopefully we getting to law and order closer ;

Good news for any farong who do his homework correct and get the correct visas;