Border runs: pay extra to avoid the trip?

[Hal65]

Reading trip reports it seems you do not even talk to immigration on these runs. So essentially the passport is needed and the person's body is a formality.

 

Do any services allow skipping the 9-10 hour trip if you pay extra? I would like to hand off and pick up the passport

[ubonjoe]

4 minutes ago, Hal65 said:

Do any services allow skipping the 9-10 hour trip if you pay extra? I would like to hand off and pick up the passport

There is no service that does that now since it would be illegal to do.

A number of years ago there were companies doing it but they got shut down when there was crackdown on them. A lot people waiting for their passports back had big problems when it happened.

[Briggsy]

@Hal65

 

Whilst it is very possible that you don't "bodily present" yourself to Cambodian officials, I can assure that each and every visa runner must personally stamp in and out of Thailand by themselves. Therefore your reading of reports of border runs is incorrect. You have taken what happens on the Cambodian side as both sides. This is not the case.

[darrendsd]

I did it myself a few times back in the day, wouldn't dream of doing it now

 

I didn't give it to a visa run company, I did it through a "agent" sometimes the PP took 4-6 weeks to come back, worrying times

 

OP you are asking a lot of questions here on the forum about things are basically illegal, you would be advised to stop and stop thinking you can bend the rules, it can still be done if you know the right people however times have changed from what they were 10-15 years ago

 

You are going to  eventually end up in trouble if you continue to try and think you can break the law

[Hal65]

3 hours ago, darrendsd said:

OP you are asking a lot of questions here on the forum about things are basically illegal

Your post in general is well received but the quoted sentence is a stretch. This forum is about visas in Thailand and my other 2 recent posts were both about visa runs, a common forum topic.

 

This particular topic appears to cross the line as drawn these days, but to project and then say I'm knee deep in illegal territory based on one question is excessive.

[stud858]

If I suggest you could send someone who looks like you it would be a no no. Because all us farang look the same to thai,  right. 

Anyway everything is illegal while not being illegal in Thailand.  If you know what I mean. 

[imjmn]

I did this once back in 1999 or so and NEVER again.

 

I was in Phuket at the time and sent my PP using a 'service' to do and exit and entry from Thailand to Malaysia and back to Thailand.

The next time I flew out of Phuket to Singapore the immigration officer took a very long hard look at the Thai exit/entry stamps and indicated there were some irregularities  with the stamps but he let me pass.

 

It was illegal then and is still illegal - not a good option - it is a privilege to live in a foreign country and it is always best to follow the local law unless you have the time to spend in the monkey house.

 

MJ

[AlQaholic]

13 hours ago, Hal65 said:

Your post in general is well received but the quoted sentence is a stretch. This forum is about visas in Thailand and my other 2 recent posts were both about visa runs, a common forum topic.

 

This particular topic appears to cross the line as drawn these days, but to project and then say I'm knee deep in illegal territory based on one question is excessive.

Why not just make your own stamps in the stamp shop around the corner? Problem solved!

[Kerryd]

Some years back I had a 9 month lay-off between contracts. Too young for a retirement visa, too smart to opt for an Elite Card (when they first came out).

I had to do a border run each month to get another 30 day stamp (that was back when you could do it as often as you wanted).

 

I used a Visa Run company in Pattaya. For 2,500 baht they fed me an (English) breakfast, loaded me into a mini-van (6-8 people max - some were designated smoking vans, others were non-smoking). They drove us to the border, we walked through Thai Immigration and into Cambodia. Inside Cambodia the Visa Run agent collected our passports and we had an hour to kill shopping or gambling or just relaxing in the shade. The agent took care of doing all the paperwork and getting the Visas and stamps in Cambodia.

Got our passports back all stamped (in/out) and walked back into Thailand, got a new 30 Day stamp, got into the minivan, had the packaged lunch they provided, watched another movie on the trip back to Pattaya, was home by early afternoon.

Total cost - 2,500 baht and half a day.

 

At the exact same time I was doing that, there was an English guy living in the building who was also living on 30 Day stamps. He was also living on "borrowed money" as he had no income or savings of his own (according to him, he'd just borrow money from one guy, then the next month borrow more from someone else so he could pay back the first guy and have some to live on).

 

What did he do for his 30 day stamps ? He hired "someone" to get it done for him. Said it took 2-3 days to get the passport back and cost him 6,000 baht.

 

I thought, what an @ss. He's living on borrowed money and can't be arsed to do a border run once a month (for 2,500 baht) but will pay someone 6,000 to get the stamps for him instead. The idea of maybe not drinking for one night so he could get up early, have a shower (maybe), put on some clean clothes (maybe) and do the trip himself was too much of a burden.

Also, back around that time (or shortly after) I believe a couple of "Visa Companies" got busted for providing counterfeit stamps in passports wasn't it ? At least a couple of shops in Soi Bhukhao were nailed if I recall correctly. I think that happened because a couple people got nailed at the airport when Immigration noticed the stamps they had were fake.

(For the last few months before I went back to work, I started doing the border runs myself. I got the landlady's niece to take me to the border in her car, did the paperwork myself, filled her gas tank and gave her 500 baht. Ended up costing me maybe 1,500 per trip but it was more about the trip than the money. We could take different routes, stop at different places for lunch or shopping, arrive after the crowds were gone and still be home by early afternoon.)

[phuketrichard]

16 hours ago, Briggsy said:

@Hal65

 

Whilst it is very possible that you don't "bodily present" yourself to Cambodian officials, I can assure that each and every visa runner must personally stamp in and out of Thailand by themselves. Therefore your reading of reports of border runs is incorrect. You have taken what happens on the Cambodian side as both sides. This is not the case.

Cambodia takes ur fingerprints on entry, Thailand takes ur photo

how do u accomplish that without being there physically?

[overherebc]

If you decide to use a service like this then prepare the following documentation.

 

Envelope with 20,000 baht for overstay fine

 

Envelope with 10,000 baht for court fine.

 

Flight ticket one way to home country, undated/open ticket.

 

Envelope with 10,000 baht to leave with a trusted friend. Their expenses to visit and help you in IDC.

 

Written instructions to trusted friend on safe keeping of your possessions in Thailand for a minimum of one year.

 

 

I'm sure that others will add to the list.

[tweedledee2]

3 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

Cambodia takes ur fingerprints on entry, Thailand takes ur photo

how do u accomplish that without being there physically?

May I ask, when did Cambodia start taking fingerprints?

[phuketrichard]

years ago...not all land borders but all airports.

[overherebc]

9 minutes ago, phuketrichard said:

years ago...not all land borders but all airports.

Poipet started years ago but then became sometimes.

[tweedledee2]

1 minute ago, phuketrichard said:

years ago...not all land borders but all airports.

I may be mistaken, but I believe the OP was inquiring about doing this at land border crossings. I also believe it would be nearly impossible for someone to use another persons passport at an airport to obtain new visa stamps unless they were identical twins. 

[overherebc]

13 minutes ago, tweedledee2 said:

I may be mistaken, but I believe the OP was inquiring about doing this at land border crossings. I also believe it would be nearly impossible for someone to use another persons passport at an airport to obtain new visa stamps unless they were identical twins. 

A friend and his son had the same name and after his son had gone home after a holiday here it caused some confusion at DM. Two or three times the IO got confused when the name was entered, pre chipped passport. Never a big problem, just a bit of confusion over entry stamp and no record of it.

[Briggsy]

2 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

Cambodia takes ur fingerprints on entry

Yeah right. ?

[anon789561]

you could have done that years ago in places such as the hole in the wall in silom. drop off one day and pick up the next. completely illegal ofcourse. i don't think you can find an agent offering such a service anymore. if you need to get your passport stamped you'll have to go yourself as far as i know

[overherebc]

13 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

Yeah right. ?

When the desk top scanners are working they do.

[Briggsy]

3 minutes ago, overherebc said:

When the desk top scanners are working they do.

This is Cambodia we are talking about. The scanners were just an excuse to steal the budget. They don't finger scan hundreds of border runners at Ban Laem and Ban Phak Kat every day. The machines probably never made it that far. And if they were there, they wouldn't be working and they wouldn't be connected to any database. Passports moving across the Cambo border without their owners (the topic) is eminently possible, the Thai border on the other hand would be much more difficult to achieve.

[anon789561]

8 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

This is Cambodia we are talking about. The scanners were just an excuse to steal the budget. They don't finger scan hundreds of border runners at Ban Laem and Ban Phak Kat every day. The machines probably never made it that far. And if they were there, they wouldn't be working and they wouldn't be connected to any database. Passports moving across the Cambo border without their owners (the topic) is eminently possible, the Thai border on the other hand would be much more difficult to achieve.

i went to ban laem last year and no one took my finger prints and you're probably right. there may well be some companies offering to take your passport but i'm sure it'd cost more than it's worth to most people and at the end of the day would you really trust them with your passport. times have changed, best to stay legal and do things properly in thailand or IDC awaits 555

[overherebc]

9 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

This is Cambodia we are talking about. The scanners were just an excuse to steal the budget. They don't finger scan hundreds of border runners at Ban Laem and Ban Phak Kat every day. The machines probably never made it that far. And if they were there, they wouldn't be working and they wouldn't be connected to any database. Passports moving across the Cambo border without their owners (the topic) is eminently possible, the Thai border on the other hand would be much more difficult to achieve.

I should have added the tongue in cheek emoticon.

I absolutely agree that anyone trying the idea from the OP should really have their bumps read.

[Briggsy]

Just now, Happy enough said:

i went to ban laem last year and no one took my finger prints and you're probably right. there may well be some companies offering to take your passport but i'm sure it'd cost more than it's worth to most people and at the end of the day would you really trust them with your passport. times have changed, best to stay legal and do things properly in thailand or IDC awaits 555

Indeed.

 

As far as I know there are no passport stamping services in Thailand now and haven't been for many years.

[overherebc]

Years ago at a certain crossing the system was that the passports were delivered to the home of one IO who would stamp the out in at home.

Next day at work he would enter the passport number and name in the computer.

It worked for a good while until a certain wanted person from Malaysia was arrested in Ayuthaya and his passport had gone through the same system. It may have been a stolen or false passport.

That was when the stuff hit the fan

[anon789561]

9 minutes ago, overherebc said:

Years ago at a certain crossing the system was that the passports were delivered to the home of one IO who would stamp the out in at home.

Next day at work he would enter the passport number and name in the computer.

It worked for a good while until a certain wanted person from Malaysia was arrested in Ayuthaya and his passport had gone through the same system. It may have been a stolen or false passport.

That was when the stuff hit the fan

he must have been wanted for something pretty bad. i'm going back like 20 years when you could drop in silom. i'm not even sure if the stamps were from immo or copies or even if they had a proper computer system set up back then. i guess they must have

[overherebc]

8 minutes ago, Happy enough said:

he must have been wanted for something pretty bad. i'm going back like 20 years when you could drop in silom. i'm not even sure if the stamps were from immo or copies or even if they had a proper computer system set up back then. i guess they must have

Not sure of the spelling, must google ?,   Hambali, or something like that.

Edit.

Google  where was Hambali arrested.

[bluesofa]

3 hours ago, phuketrichard said:

Cambodia takes ur fingerprints on entry, Thailand takes ur photo

how do u accomplish that without being there physically?

Maybe he's going to use the hands-free option.

(sorry!)

 

[anon789561]

1 minute ago, overherebc said:

Not sure of the spelling, must google ?,   Hambali, or something like that.

thought it must have something to do with terrorism. same last time they cracked down because of the erawan guys

[overherebc]

2 minutes ago, Happy enough said:

thought it must have something to do with terrorism. same last time they cracked down because of the erawan guys

Bali bombing and then planning an attack in BKK.

[anon789561]

Just now, overherebc said:

Bali bombing and then planning an attack in BKK.

yeah i saw. scum bags.