Questioned after multiple stamps in/out. What next?

[trendflo]

Hi,

I'm British & been in Thailand for 10 months (5 x 2months stamps) doing 1 day trips to Singapore.

I got questioned about the length of my stay at Don Muang, but i was let in without much fuss.

Something was mentioned about getting a visa next time (though i prefer a short trip to visit Singapore again vs Multiple days in Cambodia).

I wasn't sure if the immigration officer was giving advice (on how to avoid potential issues with future immigration at entry).

Or have I been registered into their system and surely denied entry again without visa?

Also, if i need to get a Visa next time and in some system. Does that mean i need one every time going forward? Or i can get a visa once and then do more exempt entries until they tell me to get another visa.

I'm a young guy (marriage, retirement arnt an option) with plenty of cash savings. I just dont want the hassle and wasted time of getting Tourist visa in places i don't enjoy visiting.

Edited February 21, 2018 by trendflo

[BritTim]

Using back-to-back visa exempt entries as a way to stay for long periods in Thailand is very likely to end up with an eventual denied entry. In fact, immigration in mid 2014 was given instructions not to allow back-to-back visa exempt entries in this way (though the Prime Minister advised that this should be "applied flexibly").

 

There are plenty of places you can go for a tourist visa that require only a single night away from Thailand. Cambodia is actually one of the worst options. With no previous Thai tourist visas in your passport, Hong Kong, and Vientiane (Laos) are two locations where you can easily get your visa. Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Kota Bharu (Malaysia), Yangon (Myanmar), and Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi (Vietnam) are also good, although you will probably need to show onward flights out of Thailand at those locations. Surely, one of these would be satisfactory for a one-night stay. If you plan to stay a lot longer, do get advice on where to go for visas later on when you already have several Thai tourist visas in your passport. Most locations impose limits on how many tourist visas you can get.

[trendflo]

So I can get a Tourist visa within 24hr in HK without showing proof of onward flights (or anything else?)

What if i want to stay longet than 3 months. Can i get visa this time then do another re-entry with a stamp (a few times maybe). Thats what i prefer.

I see no reason why theres an issue if i have the cash to survive long term (say someone on a career break or sold a business but other visa's don't suit).

Going to those other places can be done - but i like the flexibility of not having to decide onward tickets till later. Also Singapore is where i actually have contacts and stuff to do,

I want to get a Work permit (own thai company) but i might not be ready to do this for 6months or later. Its the only long term solution that seem open to me.

Edited February 21, 2018 by trendflo

[KiChakayan]

2 hours ago, trendflo said:

I want to get a Work permit (own thai company) but i might not be ready to do this for 6months or later. Its the only long term solution that seem open to me.

Thailand Elite gives you a multi entry 5 years visa, renewable 4 times, for 100000 Bahts. But you are not allowed to work.

[BritTim]

2 hours ago, trendflo said:

So I can get a Tourist visa within 24hr in HK without showing proof of onward flights (or anything else?)

Yes. You apply in the morning of day 1 (it is easy to arrive early enough in the day for this) and receive your passport back with visa in the morning of day 2.

 

2 hours ago, trendflo said:

What if i want to stay longet than 3 months. Can i get visa this time then do another re-entry with a stamp (a few times maybe). Thats what i prefer.

If the visa exempt entries are not back-to-back, then they do not strictly fall under the regulations announced back in 2014. That said, some immigration officials hate long stay expats on visa exempt entries. They may try to invent justifications to deny you entry. I would quite honestly advise you to avoid doing it but, if you do anyway, make sure you are 100% in compliance with all the rules. Most important, have cash or travelers' checks to show, along with financial proof showing you have no need to work illegally while here.

 

2 hours ago, trendflo said:

Going to those other places can be done - but i like the flexibility of not having to decide onward tickets till later.

You could consider buying throw away tickets (this costs about US$30) to meet the requirement. Frankly, though, I hate doing this myself so, if you cannot stomach the idea, I totally understand. Note, also, that some consulates will accept bus tickets from, say, Hat Yai to Penang. These are cheap.

[HampiK]

As you mention that you have a lot of cash,

I would say check out the Thai Elite Visa... this you can have for 5, 10 or 20 years.

I think this visa is the easiest solution if you not married and much under 50 years old.

[chrisinth]

40 minutes ago, KiChakayan said:

Thailand Elite gives you a multi entry 5 years visa, renewable 4 times, for 100000 Bahts. But you are not allowed to work.

That figure should read 500,000 baht, not 100,000.

[KiChakayan]

44 minutes ago, chrisinth said:

That figure should read 500,000 baht, not 100,000.

 

45 minutes ago, chrisinth said:

That figure should read 500,000 baht, not 100,000.

Apologies, yes, 500,000 for 10 years, 1,000,000 for 4x5 years without golf, non transferable, 2,000,000 for 4x5 years with golf, transferable. There are other option.

 

Anyhow, only to be used if no other option is available and you don't want to get into "borderline" use of the tourist options, which are, rightfully,  more and more under scrutiny from the authorities.

[ubonjoe]

1 hour ago, KiChakayan said:

Apologies, yes, 500,000 for 10 years,

It is 500k baht for 5 years. For 10 years it is 800k baht.

 

[ubonjoe]

A inflammatory post has been removed.

[darrendsd]

If you have done 5 Visa Exempt entries by air over the last 10 months you have been very lucky not to have been questioned or even denied entry before now

 

A friend of mine was denied entry last year after doing 3 consecutive VE by air

 

 

 

 

[elviajero]

On 21/02/2018 at 11:50 PM, KiChakayan said:

Thailand Elite gives you a multi entry 5 years visa, renewable 4 times, for 100000 Bahts. But you are not allowed to work.

Thailand Elite members are allowed to work, but they would need to enter using a non-immigrant visa and apply for a work permit.

 

They wouldn’t be able to use the PE visa while they are working, but they can retain their TE membership.

[thaiclan]

This happened to my 7 year old daughter.  I have a house in Singapore and we both have permits to live in Singapore.  We divide our time between Thailand and Singapore.
In 2015 they started questioning the continual arrival stamps into Thailand. We never did single day visits to Singapore so was pretty clear we divided our time between the two and wasn't working in the Kingdom.

I managed to get a non-O on the back of my eldest daughter who attends school in Thailand.
But the only option for my 7 year old daughter (homeschool) was to get her a 5 year Elite Visa which she has now got.

Elite visa seems to solve the problems of those under 50, no Thai spouse or children and not working in the Kingdom.
When my non-O runs out I'll just get an Elite Visa too and save a lot of hassle!

(BTW I have been in Thailand for 15 years and have run the gamult of non-O's, tourist, Business Visa's and the like.  Always changing!)

Edited February 26, 2018 by thaiclan

[Media1]

On 22/02/2018 at 4:30 AM, BritTim said:

Using back-to-back visa exempt entries as a way to stay for long periods in Thailand is very likely to end up with an eventual denied entry. In fact, immigration in mid 2014 was given instructions not to allow back-to-back visa exempt entries in this way (though the Prime Minister advised that this should be "applied flexibly").

 

There are plenty of places you can go for a tourist visa that require only a single night away from Thailand. Cambodia is actually one of the worst options. With no previous Thai tourist visas in your passport, Hong Kong, and Vientiane (Laos) are two locations where you can easily get your visa. Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Kota Bharu (Malaysia), Yangon (Myanmar), and Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi (Vietnam) are also good, although you will probably need to show onward flights out of Thailand at those locations. Surely, one of these would be satisfactory for a one-night stay. If you plan to stay a lot longer, do get advice on where to go for visas later on when you already have several Thai tourist visas in your passport. Most locations impose limits on how many tourist visas you can get.

all those cities are expensive travel and best just go to Laos 

[Media1]

By the way he did not record you. He only asked

[BritTim]

4 minutes ago, Media1 said:

all those cities are expensive travel and best just go to Laos 

Most must pay for a visa when going to Laos. Malaysia and Hong Kong require no visa, and the same is true for many nationalities with Vietnam. This helps to defray the cost. Further, lots of people want to make a little holiday out of their visa runs. Even if slightly more expensive, many would prefer Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong or Penang over Vientiane/Savannakhet for a short getaway.

[yogavnture]

im no expert but i think if u stay more than 6 months in Thailand on in out stamps.........immigration will become wary of you

[buick]

i know how you feel.  i have friends living in hong kong, the philippines and singapore, i visit them often.  it wasn't a big deal for me to leave thailand every 30 days (this is before they allowed a 30 day extension to visa exempt entries).  after a few years of doing that, i was told to use tourist visas.  more recently, people with tourist visas have had trouble entering the country.  i wouldn't view getting a tourist visa as a waste of time, etc...  now it is an absolute requirement so it is well worth your time to get one if you plan to stay long periods in thailand.  too many visa exempt entries will end up being a bigger waste of time (denied entry and having to fly out somewhere, hopefully a place of your choice and not deported to home country).  i turned 50 in 2016 so my 10 years of the visa exempt/tourist visa game came to an end.  it wasn't very fun towards the end as i felt i could be turned away on any of my entries.  some people suggest using land borders if you plan to do this a long time, that way you don't end up getting deported and forced to fly somewhere (which can happen at airports).  you should always carry 20,000thb cash and a return ticket (just buy a throwaway, i bought alot of those air asia DMK-SGN is cheap).

[Media1]

3 hours ago, BritTim said:

Most must pay for a visa when going to Laos. Malaysia and Hong Kong require no visa, and the same is true for many nationalities with Vietnam. This helps to defray the cost. Further, lots of people want to make a little holiday out of their visa runs. Even if slightly more expensive, many would prefer Ho Chi Minh City, Hong Kong or Penang over Vientiane/Savannakhet for a short getaway.

probably true

[wazzupnow]

On 2/22/2018 at 4:30 AM, BritTim said:

Using back-to-back visa exempt entries as a way to stay for long periods in Thailand is very likely to end up with an eventual denied entry. In fact, immigration in mid 2014 was given instructions not to allow back-to-back visa exempt entries in this way (though the Prime Minister advised that this should be "applied flexibly").

 

There are plenty of places you can go for a tourist visa that require only a single night away from Thailand. Cambodia is actually one of the worst options. With no previous Thai tourist visas in your passport, Hong Kong, and Vientiane (Laos) are two locations where you can easily get your visa. Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Kota Bharu (Malaysia), Yangon (Myanmar), and Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi (Vietnam) are also good, although you will probably need to show onward flights out of Thailand at those locations. Surely, one of these would be satisfactory for a one-night stay. If you plan to stay a lot longer, do get advice on where to go for visas later on when you already have several Thai tourist visas in your passport. Most locations impose limits on how many tourist visas you can get.

kuala lumpur is giving many people a hard time since a few months

all about a airplane ticket for leaving thailand

but i think this is a scam from the lady at the desk 

her father has a travel agency opposite the embassy and he wil forge any ticket U want(if U pay ,get it??)

[wazzupnow]

by the way loose your passport and apply for a new one? that works fine

[fabphil]

How come ur getting 60 day entries without visa, im from oz only get 30 days

 

[buick]

1 hour ago, fabphil said:

How come ur getting 60 day entries without visa, im from oz only get 30 days

 

you can extend a 30 day visa exempt entry for another 30 days at an immigration office.

[Suradit69]

5 hours ago, wazzupnow said:

by the way loose [sic] your passport and apply for a new one? that works fine

Not really. Having a new passport doesn't mean Immigrations can't access your record of previous entries into Thailand.

[ubonjoe]

12 hours ago, wazzupnow said:

kuala lumpur is giving many people a hard time since a few months

all about a airplane ticket for leaving thailand

but i think this is a scam from the lady at the desk 

It is not a scam since the ticket out is shown on the embassies checklist. 

"5. A Copy of reservation/confirmation of return ticket (ticket in and out of Thailand)."

Source: http://www.thaiembassy.org/kualalumpur/contents/files/services-20170329-105808-985625.pdf

[JackThompson]

21 hours ago, wazzupnow said:

by the way loose your passport and apply for a new one? that works fine

Most nationalities can get a new passport without "losing" or "accidentally washing" the old one.  But this will help minimally if at all, as far as Immigration-agents upon entry. 

 

The only reason to get a new passport prematurely, is if a consulate stamps your new tourist visa with "This person travels to Thailand frequently..." - at which point you need a new passport to be able to get more Tourist-Visas at that and many other consulates.

[JackThompson]

On 2/22/2018 at 4:43 AM, trendflo said:

I see no reason why theres an issue if i have the cash to survive long term (say someone on a career break or sold a business but other visa's don't suit).

There is no logical reason but, unfortunately, this is irrelevant to your situation. 

 

There are immigration personnel who don't want foreigners here longer-term, and you (coming in exempt) are an easy target for them to vent their wrath.  You have been very fortunate to make it this far with only a warning.

 

I stayed long-term for some years, and used Tourist Visas and ONLY entered via land-borders, to avoid potential problems.  I saved visa-exempt land-border entries (2 per year permitted) for cases when/if something went wrong with a Tourist Visa application.

[BuckBee]

I would get a couple SET visas, Yangon is good trip, hongkong decent, vietnam nice and even savanakhet okay for a quick cheap SET visa trip for the experience and it only 1 night away if plan it right .

Tourist and extension gives you 3 months per SET visa.

Going back UK for new passport and picking up a MET visa would be good step (don't need proof of working if got plenty money) read up on rules and requirements be prepared by carrying 20K cash and having some travel plan documents/ onward travel if entering exempt at hand to show you a leisure tourist and meet the basic immi checks. If you got money you won't have much trouble if use a mix of visas and visa exempts but purely sticking to exempts likely end badly .

Edited February 27, 2018 by BuckBee

[thaiclan]

On 2/26/2018 at 7:47 PM, wazzupnow said:

all about a airplane ticket for leaving thailand

but i think this is a scam from the lady at the desk

 

On 2/27/2018 at 7:59 AM, ubonjoe said:

It is not a scam since the ticket out is shown on the embassies checklist. 

"5. A Copy of reservation/confirmation of return ticket (ticket in and out of Thailand)."

Source: http://www.thaiembassy.org/kualalumpur/contents/files/services-20170329-105808-985625.pdf

The airline who allows you into Thailand will be liable to fly you out again if you do not have a valid visa to stay.
So nowadays the check-in staff often ask to see proof of visa or outbound travel before allowing you to check in.

[BuckBee]

10 hours ago, thaiclan said:

 

The airline who allows you into Thailand will be liable to fly you out again if you do not have a valid visa to stay.
So nowadays the check-in staff often ask to see proof of visa or outbound travel before allowing you to check in.

Most airlines are checking this now thailand tightening up on tourist entries at airports, last flight I on had couple ahead of me checking in that had go book a onward flight, I was asked too until prompted them on having a valid visa they had overlooked .