Anyone ever caught without passport in random immigration check? Immigration has a database of all farangs?

[NoshowJones]

10 hours ago, TSF said:

I was on a bus a couple years ago heading to the Thai-Lao border on way to having a little holiday at Pakse. Bus was stopped by police and he asked to see all foreingers passports. When he saw my UK passport he told me to follow him into the police station. I was starting to get worried why, but everything was in order regarding my visa. In the police station I was taken into a large meeting room where there were about 30-40 unimformed police officers and I was taken to a lectern and handed a microphone and told to give an English lesson to the police.

 

So seems they were having this meeting and someone decided at the last minute it'd be good to have a native speaker give an English lesson, so they pulled one (me) off the next bus to the border.

I hope you charged them for your'e time.

[NoshowJones]

4 hours ago, dotpoom said:

It is no longer a requirement to carry your passport on your person.

It would depend on which Maj/Gen, Lt/Col or whatever rank they could afford to buy, told you.????

[NoshowJones]

3 hours ago, 1337markus said:

This comes up every year, and every year a RTP authority states what is required. Pity people dont read.

But each RTP authority gives you a different answer.????

[richard_smith237]

Not a Random Immigration Check... But at a Police Shake Down at Asoke / Sukhumvit Junction in Bangkok. About 7 or 8 Policemen stopping foreigners. 

 

I was asked for ID, I showed my Thai Driving License, I was then asked for Passport and to get out of the Taxi I was in (which was turning left coming from Queen Sirikit to head towards Ploernchit).

Long story short - I didn't really fancy getting out of the Taxi and being exposed to these scummy chancers, it was a few years ago and at a time when they were making foreigners pee in cups for a drugs test....  I called a friend who spoke with them and was waved on my way.

 

Regarding the Immigration Database: 

Yes - Immigration do have a Database of all 'Air' arrivals - linked to your Passport Nationality, Number, DOB, Place of Birth and can be cross checked against your photo. 

Immigration often has linked the information for those with two passports (and have entered on both in the past). 

 

I'm not sure if Immigration have a Database for arrivals over land borders. 

 

I don't think the regular Police can access immigration records. 

 

Immigration can access Immigration records at Random checks with the 'correct' networked (wireless) equipment... but the quickest way they do this is take your details and send a LINE (app) message to one of their friends who's at an Immigration Desk at Don Muang or Suvarnabhumi Airport... (how do I know this... my friend has done this with my details... 5 mins later he had a copy of all my arrivals and departures over different passports over the past 6 years or so !!!)

[richard_smith237]

4 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

I personally would never be very far from where my passport was in case it was required. I certainly would not travel around the country without it.

Indeed... when in Bangkok I never carry my passport, I always have a photo of my latest arrival stamps saved to DropBox on my Phone. 

Whenever traveling around Thailand I always take my passport with me but usually leave it wherever I'm staying (hotel etc).

 

I'm of the understanding that when in Thailand we should always be able to access my Passport within a reasonable timeframe...  It's debatable, but I would suggest that 1hr is a reasonable timeframe. 

 

I always carry a form of ID - Thai Driving License (and of course, phone with photo of passport and latest stamps)

 

[seahorse]

10 hours ago, TSF said:

I was on a bus a couple years ago heading to the Thai-Lao border on way to having a little holiday at Pakse. Bus was stopped by police and he asked to see all foreingers passports. When he saw my UK passport he told me to follow him into the police station. I was starting to get worried why, but everything was in order regarding my visa. In the police station I was taken into a large meeting room where there were about 30-40 unimformed police officers and I was taken to a lectern and handed a microphone and told to give an English lesson to the police.

 

So seems they were having this meeting and someone decided at the last minute it'd be good to have a native speaker give an English lesson, so they pulled one (me) off the next bus to the border.

Were they more informed after your English lesson?

[BestB]

8 hours ago, Pattaya46 said:

Happened several times in late checks in several Pattaya discos.

From what I have read in news or forum :

- Most of times tourists are not checked and just let go
 

- When checked, a photocopy of passport was accepted,

  but pics of passport pages on a mobile phone were not...

- Depends of the type of control. If no Immigration Officer with the Police, your DL may be enough.

 

- Yes

- Don't know for sure, but think they can organise to "escort" you to your home or hotel

You read and hear wrong . Raids in walking street were targeting tourists and tourists were detained and dragged to tourist police HQ to verify all. As I said earlier I was caught up in one of those raids.

[Kasset Tak]

I have been asked for passport several times when traveling in border areas/provinces... going to Mae Sot (Thai-Myanmar border +border crossing) from Tak city we were stopped 3 times and 5 times going back and at every stop they asked for my passport and all Thais in the car had to show their ID cards (so many illegal immigrants coming in from Myanmar). They have also checked all bus passengers already at Khon Kaen bus terminal (going to Mukdahan) several times and they arrested illegal Laotians and Burmese but left all westerners on the bus with just checking that we had passports...

 

[DPKANKAN]

On 12/27/2018 at 7:58 PM, jackdd said:

The only case of "random Thai immigration check" i've ever seen is when they check people in "visa run vans" near the border, other than that i've never seen Thai immigration doing random checks and i've travelled quite a lot in Thailand and also in border regions.

In random police checkpoints i was asked for my passport one single time, i did have my passport with me back then, but i doubt it would have been a big problem if i wouldn't have had my passport with me.

About which "random Thai immigration checks" are you talking?

It has been stated by the hierarchy that you do not have to carry your passport with you. I never do unless I go to stay away somewhere. I have a credit card sized photo of my passport page and latest retirement extension on the back. Been asked a few times and only one a...hole demanded I show my passport. I educated him on his own laws and he backed off.  I use the copy or driving license when booking in hotels.

[DJ54]

3 years never stopped and asked for passport. USA has regular 

passport and for an extra few a drivers license size card with

paaport details picture etc. No valid other than US, Mexico,Canada 

 

i don’t carry passport for 10+ years in APAC it tends to ruin it. 

US TSA or Customs heading out complained about condition of

passport (had the papers added) a lot of traveling. Told him its

you guys dragging through the scanner and not being careful.

 

the plastic on main page was delaminating. He got an attitude

but it was the truth my passport is in a passport type wallet 

 

[ericthai]

In all the years i lived in thailand i was only asked for my passort one time at a regular checkpoint, i didnt have it with me gave them my lisence no problem, however that was about 7-8 years ago.

[ThaiRebound]

I was on the bus coming from Vientiane through the Thai-Lao border. We we a few miles into Thailand, and the bus got pulled over at a checkpoint. They seemed to be looking for someone and asked all of the foreigners on the bus to show their passport. When they got to me, I was still fishing my bag for it. They skipped me and forgot to come back to ask for it. I guess they have ADHD or something

[balo]

Never been asked after 8 years, Always carry Thai drivers license in my wallet. 

 

[bendejo]

I've done the Ranong visa run more times than I can remember, usually mini-bus.  About half-way to Chumphon there is a checkpoint where all must stop.  I may have been asked to show my passport once, can't recall for sure.

Other than that I have no recall of being asked for passport.  I've usually sought out places off the usual farang paths, and am accustomed to quizzical "what's that farang doing here?" expressions, or that particular facial expression of someone who has never seen one such before.  It was in places like these that I was expecting to be checked, but didn't happen.

A few times on the bus ride from Udon to Nong Khai the bus was stopped and coppers came on looking for Lao people, and papers were demanded of them in a quite rude manner and Attila the Cop rifled through their bag.

But I recall regular reports around 10-15 years ago of raids at the hiso clubs (like at the end of Suk Soi 11 in Bkk) where passport was demanded, and everyone had to pee in the cup, even the Thais.

 

 

[TSF]

21 hours ago, roo860 said:

How long did they hold the bus for while you gave the English lesson?

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

 

20 hours ago, OJAS said:

More likely that @TSF had an exceedingly long wait for the next bus, I think!

The bus was stopped for about 30 minutes while I gave the lesson/talk. They were fortunate actually as I had about 25 years teaching experience in Thailand. When I got back to the bus my Thai wife was laughing. The police told her what they were doing and why they pulled me off the bus. She thought it was funny.

[roo860]

The bus was stopped for about 30 minutes while I gave the lesson/talk. They were fortunate actually as I had about 25 years teaching experience in Thailand. When I got back to the bus my Thai wife was laughing. The police told her what they were doing and why they pulled me off the bus. She thought it was funny.

And the rest of the passengers?

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[masterblaster]

What cracks me up about those vans is there are always a couple folks who instead of ID cards produce a written letter that's been folded all to hell, and the cop/soldier will read it then without any other form of ID with picture etc. they are cleared. I always assumed they are Burmese and it's some document related to their right to be in Thailand, but really no idea.

 

I like to imagine it saying something along the lines of "Htay is pretty cool, let him pass."

[TSF]

14 minutes ago, roo860 said:

And the rest of the passengers?

Sent from my SM-G920F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app
 

Guess they just sat there in the bus for approx 30 minutes. I doubt any of the Thais or the few farang who were on that bus would raise a ruckus when there were police with guns who stopped the bus.

[ubonjoe]

This topic just got 16 posts shorter after I removed several troll, baiting and bickering posts. Time to end it now.

[Nyezhov]

16 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

ndeed... when in Bangkok I never carry my passport, I always have a photo of my latest arrival stamps saved to DropBox on my Phone. 

Whenever traveling around Thailand I always take my passport with me but usually leave it wherever I'm staying (hotel etc).

 

I'm of the understanding that when in Thailand we should always be able to access my Passport within a reasonable timeframe...  It's debatable, but I would suggest that 1hr is a reasonable timeframe. 

 

I always carry a form of ID - Thai Driving License (and of course, phone with photo of passport and latest stamps)

Thats exactly how I do it.

[Caldera]

2 hours ago, masterblaster said:

What cracks me up about those vans is there are always a couple folks who instead of ID cards produce a written letter that's been folded all to hell, and the cop/soldier will read it then without any other form of ID with picture etc. they are cleared. I always assumed they are Burmese and it's some document related to their right to be in Thailand, but really no idea.

 

I like to imagine it saying something along the lines of "Htay is pretty cool, let him pass."

That letter is a border pass and does have a picture. Thais can get a similar one for visiting the border areas of neighboring countries.

[dcnx]

On 12/28/2018 at 7:32 AM, mvdf said:

 

Right. Colorful imagination there. A well-embellished story. Some would naively buy it but most will see straight through this invented fiction.

 

Most people would know that was a humorous post and wouldn’t feel the need to point out that it wasn’t factual.

[jackdd]

3 hours ago, masterblaster said:

What cracks me up about those vans is there are always a couple folks who instead of ID cards produce a written letter that's been folded all to hell, and the cop/soldier will read it then without any other form of ID with picture etc. they are cleared. I always assumed they are Burmese and it's some document related to their right to be in Thailand, but really no idea.

 

I like to imagine it saying something along the lines of "Htay is pretty cool, let him pass."

That's the burmese equivalent to this document, this allows them to enter the other country without a passport

 

[JAG]

On 12/28/2018 at 6:53 AM, TSF said:

I was on a bus a couple years ago heading to the Thai-Lao border on way to having a little holiday at Pakse. Bus was stopped by police and he asked to see all foreingers passports. When he saw my UK passport he told me to follow him into the police station. I was starting to get worried why, but everything was in order regarding my visa. In the police station I was taken into a large meeting room where there were about 30-40 unimformed police officers and I was taken to a lectern and handed a microphone and told to give an English lesson to the police.

 

So seems they were having this meeting and someone decided at the last minute it'd be good to have a native speaker give an English lesson, so they pulled one (me) off the next bus to the border.

If that ever happens to you ever again teach them some common idioms: sick as a parrot, over the moon, raining cats and dogs, as nutty as a fruitcake etc.

 

Imagine the next time they stop a bus full of foreigners. "Ladies and Gentlemen, please don't be as sick as a parrot. You can remain on the bus as it is raining cats and dogs outside, my colleague, who is as nutty as a fruitcake wishes to check your passports, you will be over the moon as it will only take a twinkle of an eye and then you can be off like a rat up a drainpipe..."

[masterblaster]

2 hours ago, Caldera said:

That letter is a border pass and does have a picture. Thais can get a similar one for visiting the border areas of neighboring countries.

Ahhh didn't even see the picture when the folks hand it over to the soldier.

 

Thanks! No more shall I wonder.

 

[lamyai3]

On 12/28/2018 at 5:50 PM, BestB said:

You read and hear wrong . Raids in walking street were targeting tourists and tourists were detained and dragged to tourist police HQ to verify all. As I said earlier I was caught up in one of those raids.

These type of raids are more in the nature of occasional one off events than regular ones, which would elicit way too much bad press from foreign tourists returning home and reporting their stories of being hauled off to the police station for nothing worse than going to the disco. There was a spike in targetting foreigners like this in the first month of Big Joke taking over immigration but things then seemed to settle down. 

[BestB]

9 minutes ago, lamyai3 said:

These type of raids are more in the nature of occasional one off events than regular ones, which would elicit way too much bad press from foreign tourists returning home and reporting their stories of being hauled off to the police station for nothing worse than going to the disco. There was a spike in targetting foreigners like this in the first month of Big Joke taking over immigration but things then seemed to settle down. 

Far more frequent than you may think and the one i was caught up in was 3 or so years ago.Big Joke was not around then. On the upside the ones where foreigners are tested for drugs have stopped for a while

[onera1961]

I was caught without a passport in Bangkok in "Big Joke's immigration crackdown". I had a pic of my passport in the phone and showed them the pic. The immigration officer immediately checked it in their system (using mobile phone) and cleared me. The guy was nice and he spoke good english also. He had been to a US university for some certificate course, he told me.

However, after the immigration check, Lumpini police wanted to do a urine test. I just returned from Amsterdam and checked positive for weed. Lumpini police took me to the Captain's office (not a police station) and bargaining started to get out of the mess. Yes I paid money and got out. 

 

People who did not test positive, let go even if most people did not have passport but immigration checked them on the spot using mobile phones

[balo]

1 hour ago, onera1961 said:

Yes I paid money and got out. 

Just curious, how much did you pay ? 

[Geordie59]

Never been asked to show pp in30 years. 

These days I always carry Thai driving licence with me and have photo on my phone of pp, visa and latest entry stamp.