Just been to Phnom Penh to get my second 60 day visa ,I was taken aside she took my my passport did some sums and said I shouldn’t do another 60 visa after the first one ,She wrote on my TM card 214 day + 42 , I explained that I got my first 60 day visa in Hull in November which took me January where I extended for 30 day at Jomtien hence my trip to PP for another 60 day visa which would cover me till I go back to UK in mid March approximately four and a half months total stay !

I tried telling her that I’d been back in UK for 7 months before coming back in November but she was getting rude when I pointed it out ,Visas here same same my country which I said no !,My wife gets a visa for the UK for 6 months and stays the duration and flys back without hassle .

Any way she stamped me back in till April !

Maybe she had a bad day and the batteries on her calculator had gone !

 

 

 

Sent from my iPad using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

Too many old visas from Phnom Pen perhaps? I've never tested them but that's what I've been told.

What would be interesting to know is whether this was simply an Immigration officer having a bad day or whether there is a directive at that airport where Immigration officers have been told something along the lines of, "If someone has x number of tourist visas during the past x years" then warn them or refuse entry or refer to supervisor etc.

 

This must be rather a concern for anyone flying in to that airport with a recent history of back to back tourist visas.

1 hour ago, mstevens said:

What would be interesting to know is whether this was simply an Immigration officer having a bad day or whether there is a directive at that airport where Immigration officers have been told something along the lines of, "If someone has x number of tourist visas during the past x years" then warn them or refuse entry or refer to supervisor etc.

 

This must be rather a concern for anyone flying in to that airport with a recent history of back to back tourist visas.

I do suspect that there are guidelines similar to the six visa exempt entries limit that immigration officials are told to look for. I doubt these are hard limits. Rather, they are supposed to prompt increased scrutiny as a genuine tourist. Probably, how officials react will vary based on their personal biases. It would certainly be great to know the truth around all this.

Just another warning on entry, nothing more. Pondering if it is a one-off, 'bad hair day' officer or a special, secret, Don Meuang-only instruction based on height, haircut and day of the week only serves to broaden the conjecture. They do seem to be all over these more at DMK than BKK so maybe the use of LCC's and border-hopping-by-air is a bit of a red-flag for them?

 

If the OP is indeed married to a local, he can probably expect to be badgered about getting the proper, long-term. multiple-entry bit of Thai immigration pedantry at some point of entry in the future? Then we can all sit around jawing about money in unsafe Thai banks, Transferwise beating High Street bank forex and fees, Immigration not seeing TW as forex, who fills in the TM30, the hardships of 90-day reporting and all the other stuff that bubbles up when someone wants to stay here longer but either can't be arsed or can't afford it.

Edited February 10, 20197 yr by NanLaew

When ever a read about people with troubles at airports its always "she said" i was told a long time ago to always get on a line at Imergration with a "he" at the desk,always less dramas,cheers

3 minutes ago, grego49 said:

When ever a read about people with troubles at airports its always "she said" i was told a long time ago to always get on a line at Imergration with a "he" at the desk,always less dramas,cheers

I think you're right. The mind numbing grind of the 9 to 5 paper pusher seems to really take its toll on women until they're hating life.

If someone is going to be here 5 months then wouldn't a 6 month METV be more appropriate?

 

Just thinking out loud......

18 minutes ago, grego49 said:

When ever a read about people with troubles at airports its always "she said" i was told a long time ago to always get on a line at Imergration with a "he" at the desk,always less dramas,cheers

Not always easy to tell!

Put a Thai in a uniform and give him/her some power and how dare you point out their mistakes or question the validity of their actions.

I think I read somewhere you are only allowed 90 days within a 6 month period on tourist visa.  This is what she may have been trying to enforce.

3 minutes ago, TheThai said:

I think I read somewhere you are only allowed 90 days within a 6 month period on tourist visa. 

There is no such rule. There is no rule that limits the amount of time in the country on tourist visa or visa exempt entries.

"A tourist visa (i.e visa exempt stamp).....say what.

Visa exempt is visa exempt. A visa is different animal

6 hours ago, 007cableguy said:

She wrote on my TM card 214 day + 42 , I explained that I got my first 60 day visa in Hull in November which took me January where I extended for 30 day at Jomtien hence my trip to PP for another 60 day visa which would cover me till I go back to UK in mid March approximately four and a half months total stay !

This type of "math" (sic) has been reported by others.  She probably arrived at her numbers by counting back as many years as necessary through your travel history to get a big number to use.

 

There is no 180-day rule, and even if there were, it is not enforced as such - unless it means "180 days in Thailand since we started keeping records."

 

If you wish to continue staying in Thailand for more than a few weeks/yr, you may need to consider always entering through the remaining law-abiding entry-points - all land-borders except Poipet/Aranyaprathet (for now, unless/until the law-breakers wreck those).

 

2 hours ago, jmd8800 said:

If someone is going to be here 5 months then wouldn't a 6 month METV be more appropriate?

They have refused-entry to visitors entering with those, also.  They first claim a non-existent "time in Thailand already" rule (similar to the OP).  Because there is no such lawful reason for denial in the Immigration Act, the law-breaking IO then puts a "too poor" denaial-stamp in the passport - though the applicant proved adequate min-balance money "in the bank" for months, to obtain the METV. 

 

If there were a question about the visitor's financials, that would need to be addressed when the Visa is applied-for - not at an entry-point.  There is no question about "previous time in Thailand" to be handled, as no limits of this sort are defined in the law.

 

If entering at a lawless entry point, expecting anything consistent is crazy.  It is like telling a mugger they are breaking the law by robbing you - as if they didn't already know that and don't care.

1 hour ago, Kenchamp said:

Put a Thai in a uniform and give him/her some power and how dare you point out their mistakes or question the validity of their actions.

Put anyone in a glass box and force them to interact with the throws of humanity for 8 houur a day and what do you expect them to do when someone lamey using tourist visas for years comes across their desk... 

Edited February 10, 20197 yr by sfokevin

When you say your wife, do you mean Thai wife. 

If so, why didn't you get a non-immigrant O visa? 

Even many years ago when visa runs were standard practice I always tried to get a male officer.   I don't like women in uniform because power goes to their brain. Thai men don't want confrontations with farang if it can be avoided.Bad karma.

28 Years and no confrontations, im amazed as i can start a fight in an empty room sometimes. Must be that i can read the rules.

Don Muang immigration. Bad experience. I am on ME immigration visa. Arrived in Aug 18, 2018. Visa-enter- by date on passport, Dec 18, 2018. Went abroad for one week in early Feb this year. Landed at Don Muang. Immigration woman officer says my ME immigration visa expired since I am entering after enter-by-date! I showed the 90 day extension doc that says next 90 day reporting on Feb 20. I showed them first entry to Thailand passport stamped in Aug 18, and ME immigration visa valid till Aug 19. But she says no. Visa expired. Gave me a 30 days tourist visa! Can I redress it with some higher immigration authority?

21 minutes ago, Kasane said:

Don Muang immigration. Bad experience. I am on ME immigration visa. Arrived in Aug 18, 2018. Visa-enter- by date on passport, Dec 18, 2018. Went abroad for one week in early Feb this year. Landed at Don Muang. Immigration woman officer says my ME immigration visa expired since I am entering after enter-by-date! I showed the 90 day extension doc that says next 90 day reporting on Feb 20. I showed them first entry to Thailand passport stamped in Aug 18, and ME immigration visa valid till Aug 19. But she says no. Visa expired. Gave me a 30 days tourist visa! Can I redress it with some higher immigration authority?

So your ME visa expired in December 2018, you cannot get 90 extension on visas, you're confusing it with the 90 day report, it's not an extension of stay. 

 

Or is your visa valid until August 2019, I'm confused. 

Doubt that becase visas are only valid for a year and then you must have entered the same day as your visa was issued. 

 

Is it a non-B or non-O. 

11 minutes ago, Kasane said:

Don Muang immigration. Bad experience. I am on ME immigration visa. Arrived in Aug 18, 2018. Visa-enter- by date on passport, Dec 18, 2018. Went abroad for one week in early Feb this year. Landed at Don Muang. Immigration woman officer says my ME immigration visa expired since I am entering after enter-by-date! I showed the 90 day extension doc that says next 90 day reporting on Feb 20. I showed them first entry to Thailand passport stamped in Aug 18, and ME immigration visa valid till Aug 19. But she says no. Visa expired. Gave me a 30 days tourist visa! Can I redress it with some higher immigration authority?

It would help people giving you advice if you posted a picture of your visa.

 

If an error has been made you can get it fixed at a immigration office.

 

It sounds to me like you have a ME Non Immigrant ‘O-A’ visa that expired in December 18. When you arrived in Aug 18 you were given permission to stay for 1 year until Aug 19. 

 

Your apparent mistake. When you left the country in February you didn’t buy a re-entry permit to keep the permission to stay until Aug 19. So when you left the permission to stay ended.

 

When you re-entered after your one week abroad the IO couldn’t give you a new 1 year permit to stay because the visa had expired; and couldn't stamp you in for the remainder of the Aug 19 permit to stay because you didn’t have a re-entry permit.

15 minutes ago, PoorSucker said:

So your ME visa expired in December 2018, you cannot get 90 extension on visas, you're confusing it with the 90 day report, it's not an extension of stay. 

 

Or is your visa valid until August 2019, I'm confused. 

Is it a non-B or non-O or perhaps METV. 

Its a non-O visa. Valid for one year after entry before enter-by-date. Report every 90 days. 

3 minutes ago, elviajero said:

It would help people giving you advice if you posted a picture of your visa.

 

If an error has been made you can get it fixed at a immigration office.

 

It sounds to me like you have a ME Non Immigrant ‘O-A’ visa that expired in December 18. When you arrived in Aug 18 you were given permission to stay for 1 year until Aug 19. 

 

Your apparent mistake. When you left the country in February you didn’t buy a re-entry permit to keep the permission to stay until Aug 19. So when you left the permission to stay ended.

 

When you re-entered after your one week abroad the IO couldn’t give you a new 1 year permit to stay because the visa had expired; and couldn't stamp you in for the remainder of the Aug 19 permit to stay because you didn’t have a re-entry permit.

Yes, I did not have a re-entry permit. Assumed my stay in Thailand valid for one year from Aug 18 to Aug 19 and reporting every 90 days. But looks like a mistake. When I go for 90 days reporting can I get this corrected?

 

1 minute ago, elviajero said:

Only METV’s are valid for six months. ME Non Immigrant visas are valid for one year.

 

IMO they have/had a ME Non ‘O-A’ visa.

Edited that post. 

2 minutes ago, Kasane said:

But looks like a mistake. When I go for 90 days reporting can I get this corrected?

 

No, sorry. 

1 minute ago, PoorSucker said:

No, sorry. 

What are my options?

56 minutes ago, sfokevin said:

someone lamey using tourist visas for years 

... not the OP - he was gone for 7 months recently. 

They aren't just targeting people here most of the time as tourists - though even that is perfectly permissible, according to the law.  They even pushing snowbirds out - trying to get them to spend their money somewhere else every winter. 

As with the other changes, it doesn't matter if it makes any economic-sense - the only constant is ensuring that fewer Western people are in the country.

 

39 minutes ago, HAKAPALITA said:

28 Years and no confrontations, im amazed as i can start a fight in an empty room sometimes. Must be that i can read the rules.

The OP broke no rules.  He didn't even break the non-existent 180-day/year rule.  They don't appear to decide to confront people based on laws or "rules," at lawless entry-points - hence why I call them that.

5 minutes ago, Kasane said:

What are my options?

If you had a re-entry for an existing permitted-stay when you left, and the IO refused to honor that re-entry permit and active permitted-stay when you returned, you should be able to get the stamp corrected at your local immigration office.  It is possible they will refuse, and say you have to fix it at the point of entry - but I would try locally first - at least getting their confirmation that an error was made.

15 minutes ago, Kasane said:

Yes, I did not have a re-entry permit. Assumed my stay in Thailand valid for one year from Aug 18 to Aug 19 and reporting every 90 days. But looks like a mistake. When I go for 90 days reporting can I get this corrected?

There is nothing to be corrected. Unfortunately you made a mistake, not immigration.

 

You don’t need to make a 90 day report. The need to report ended when you left in Feb. 

 

You're now a tourist with permission to stay for 30 days. That can be extended by 30 days if you need more time to sort out your problem.

 

Your options now depend on how long you plan to stay in the country. 

I have a non-immigrant, O-A, M entry visa. Permission to stay from Aug 11, 18 to Aug 10, 19. Went abroad for a week in early Feb with re-entry permit. IO stamped 30 days tourist visa. 

Is my permission to say till Aug 10, 19 now invalid. If so, can I get it restored? If not, do I have to apply for retirement visa again?