Help: My son has been arrested for overstay

[ivor bigun]

As a few other TV members have said, many thanks for the update on your son’s situation.  Sorry to hear that his repatriation is taking much longer that both you, and no doubt he, were hoping for.
 
Regrading your subsequent comment that nobody from the Embassy has visited your son at IDC since his arrival two weeks ago.  I would agree that this lack of support is not very good.
 
FYI…..  IDC are supposed to notify the Embassy within 24 hours of your son’s arrival.  It is possible, for example, that if he arrived at the IDC late on a Friday afternoon they would not have officially notified the Embassy until the following Monday. 
 
It also needs to be borne in mind that there have been two holidays here, almost back-to-back.  Namely, Songkran (Thai/Buddhist New Year) followed by the Easter holiday both of which would have affected Immigration and Embassy staff to one degree or another.
 
Hopefully this week you will have some good news that his flight back to the UK has been booked and that you will soon be able to give him a clip around the lughole for causing you so much grief.
 
Please keep us updated on his progress as its always nice to know the final outcome.
 
PS.
Please also bear in mind that Civil Servants (Consular Staff) only have two speeds.  Namely, dead slow and stop.  Urgency does not exist in their vocabulary. [emoji849]

Many years ago i had to deal with the Embassy on business stop was their fast response,

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[overherebc]

In all fairness to the embassy staff a lot of people who ask for help are in circumstances of their own making.

Generally if you break the law in Thailand they cannot become involved. If you have a valid visa and are innocent of any 'overstay charge' then I'm sure they would much quicker to respond/act.

None of us know exactly how many UK expats are in IDC at the moment and how the embassy deals with them, in order of what?

IDC may be rough but no-one in there is under a death sentence.

My sympathy lies with the father, not the son.

When he gets home, as he will, his father should give him a hug and then a good hard kick in the ass.

[OJAS]

23 hours ago, Sheryl said:

Keep calling the Embassy. And perhaps complain to the Foreign Office


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@bazzer - for your information the FCO complaints procedure is set out in the following link:-

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/foreign-commonwealth-office/about/complaints-procedure

 

[overherebc]

37 minutes ago, OJAS said:

@bazzer - for your information the FCO complaints procedure is set out in the following link:-

 

https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/foreign-commonwealth-office/about/complaints-procedure

 

Going down that road is a sure way to get more weeks of delay from the embassy who will most likely put things on hold when they get notification of the complaint. Answering that complaint will become their prioroty.

[bazzer]

Thankyou to all that have poste positive and helpful comments, I will indeed keep you all updated all the way.

  

[bazzer]

I have received good news, my son has been visited by Foreign office, his status is Green, and he is good to go, I have been told that he could be on a flight by this Friday or Monday, all this has come about with the help of a good friend of my son who lives in Thailand.

I will post further details as they become available. 

[jmd8800]

10 minutes ago, bazzer said:

I have received good news, my son has been visited by Foreign office, his status is Green, and he is good to go, I have been told that he could be on a flight by this Friday or Monday, all this has come about with the help of a good friend of my son who lives in Thailand.

I will post further details as they become available. 

Good news!!!

[bazzer]

Flight is booked and paid for should be landing in U.K. Thurs 9th, fingers crossed.

[BritTim]

1 hour ago, bazzer said:

Flight is booked and paid for should be landing in U.K. Thurs 9th, fingers crossed.

As long as the booking was done correctly (airline is aware the booking is for a deportee, and immigration has agreed) there is little now that can go wrong. I am happy things seem to be sorting themselves out.

 

Thank you for keeping the forum informed. In all too many cases, people just disappear when a crisis is over without providing feedback.

[007 RED]

9 hours ago, bazzer said:

Flight is booked and paid for should be landing in U.K. Thurs 9th, fingers crossed.

Great news.  Don't forget to give him a good clip around the ear for all the heartache that he has caused you.

[scorecard]

12 hours ago, BritTim said:

As long as the booking was done correctly (airline is aware the booking is for a deportee, and immigration has agreed) there is little now that can go wrong. I am happy things seem to be sorting themselves out.

 

Thank you for keeping the forum informed. In all too many cases, people just disappear when a crisis is over without providing feedback.

Good point, was the booking made after discussions and with agreement from the immigration folks, who need to check several items of the booking and ensure that transport to the airport / to the flight fits into their schedules? 

 

Or was the booking made by your son's friend simply by selecting the best fare etc?

 

 

Edited May 3, 2019 by scorecard

[BritTim]

22 minutes ago, scorecard said:

Good point, was the booking made after discussions and with agreement from the immigration folks, who need to check several items of the booking and ensure that transport to the airport / to the flight fits into their schedules? 

 

Or was the booking made by your son's friend simply by selecting the best fare etc?

Immigration can be the issue sometimes, but given notice and appropriate payment will usually be able to accommodate the chosen flight.

 

Very important to realize is that international rules state that the airline must be informed when a booking is being made for a deportee, and they can generally refuse to accept the passenger. If a booking is made, and the airline only learns later that a deportee is involved, it is likely the booking will be canceled. There are exceptions to the general principle that airlines can refuse deportees. The one that will apply in this case is that the national airline cannot refuse to carry the deportee back to home country.

[stevedement]

16 hours ago, bazzer said:

Flight is booked and paid for should be landing in U.K. Thurs 9th, fingers crossed.

 

Why would he not arrive to the U.K. until the 9th? A week away seems steep as I’m sure he wants to get out ASAP. 

[stevedement]

3 hours ago, BritTim said:

Immigration can be the issue sometimes, but given notice and appropriate payment will usually be able to accommodate the chosen flight.

 

Very important to realize is that international rules state that the airline must be informed when a booking is being made for a deportee, and they can generally refuse to accept the passenger. If a booking is made, and the airline only learns later that a deportee is involved, it is likely the booking will be canceled. There are exceptions to the general principle that airlines can refuse deportees. The one that will apply in this case is that the national airline cannot refuse to carry the deportee back to home country.

How different would this have been if he turned himself in at the airport right before a flight home before being caught?

[ubonjoe]

1 hour ago, stevedement said:

How different would this have been if he turned himself in at the airport right before a flight home before being caught?

Pay the 20k baht fine, be banned from entering the country for 5 years and then on to his flight out of the country.

[pattayadude]

On 5/3/2019 at 8:14 AM, 007 RED said:

Great news.  Don't forget to give him a good clip around the ear for all the heartache that he has caused you.

I'm sure he learned a lesson and this experience must have petrified him and he is old enough to draw some conclusions from it.

Parents should show support and  love at this point.

If he were my own son, I'd hug him so tight his bones would almost crack

[dddave]

OP, good to read that your son will soon be home.  He is fortunate to have a dad as supportive as you have been and a friend who it appears also went the extra mile for him.

I'm sure your son will want to put this all behind him and get on with his life but it would be very interesting and perhaps cathartic for him if he were write the story of his experience so that others can learn what it is like to be incarcerated in the IDC.

His view from the inside could help answer a lot of the questions that came up here on this forum during his and your ordeal.  How much communication was he allowed? Were his options ever explained to him? What was the day in, day out treatment by IDC staff like?

All these questions and many more would be very helpful to those who inevitably will find themselves in this same situation in the future.

[Riker65]

So what I get from the comments if he cannot pay the overstay fees he will gets a life time stay in Thai prison system, I am sure there is many foreigners from western countries that have little income to tap. 

[BritTim]

2 minutes ago, Riker65 said:

So what I get from the comments if he cannot pay the overstay fees he will gets a life time stay in Thai prison system, I am sure there is many foreigners from western countries that have little income to tap. 

Actually, the fine is not the biggest issue. The fine is forgiven after some time in detention. The big problem is having the funds to purchase an air ticket and travel document to go back to home country. Many, especially if not in great health to begin with, will die in the Immigration Detention Centre before they are rescued. However, there are charities that attempt to help those who are trapped. The need far outstrips their resources, but after a number of years, if you survive long enough, a charity will help you.

[bazzer]

Funds for flight were transferred by myself to a friend in Thailand, they were taken to IDC by him, Idc then booked flight, they gave him confirmation and flight details which were duly forwarded to me.

 

[GinBoy2]

31 minutes ago, bazzer said:

Funds for flight were transferred by myself to a friend in Thailand, they were taken to IDC by him, Idc then booked flight, they gave him confirmation and flight details which were duly forwarded to me.

 

You're a good Dad, and obviously he has a good friend there too.

 

Trouble with kids, no matter how old they are we can't give up worrying about them and trying to 'fix it'

 

Glad it all worked out though.

 

Hopefully he's learned his lesson....fingers crossed!

[bazzer]

Could anyone tell me the pre flight procedures/timing from IDC to Airport prior to Repatriation  flight to u.k

[UKJASE]

i took the money to the IDC for him last week, 20600 b was paid for the ticket plus an extra 4500 b for hospitality charges ????

 

because of the kings coronation it took until last night until he was deported.  he finally landed in UK today and Baz was their to greet him!

 

so time in captivity 5 + weeks

 

he was only fined 2000 baht i think in court (weeks ago), and somehow dodged the 20k fine.  he was banned for ten years tho.

 

by all accounts conditions in the IDC are not good.  i spoke to a couple of detainees while i was waiting to pay his air ticket, and it sounded pretty harsh.  definitely to be avoided if at all possible!!

 

unfortunately he was not visited by the UK embassy for 17 days in bangkok, so that period must have been very hard for him as he must have been wondering if anyone even was aware he was in there.  no visits either in that time as all his mates are in hua hin, and by all accounts visiting is very difficult due to big fences between detainees and visitors, plus the noise from 50 visitations all shouting at once (look youtube for video!)

 

anyway, hopefully son of baz will pop up on this thread soon and share some of his experiences with us ????

 

glad u got home safe G mate, gonna miss ya tho you numpty ????

 

[bazzer]

Glad to say my son is now home in u. k.. he did not have to pay fine, but paid 3000bht court fee, he was held in IDC for almost 5 weeks along with 116 other prisoners, the conditions were very uncomfortable but considerably clean, food was rice and cabbage, with a boiled egg at night, allowed exercise for 1hr every other day, living space was approx. 6ft x 2ft.

Thankyou to all that posted positive comments. 

[theboogeyman]

Glad to say my son is now home in u. k.. he did not have to pay fine, but paid 3000bht court fee, he was held in IDC for almost 5 weeks along with 116 other prisoners, the conditions were very uncomfortable but considerably clean, food was rice and cabbage, with a boiled egg at night, allowed exercise for 1hr every other day, living space was approx. 6ft x 2ft.
Thankyou to all that posted positive comments. 

I think I remember reading your post a long time ago. I’m glad to hear everything is okay now. Good luck in the future.


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[Caldera]

I think it's shameful that the British Embassy failed to visit him for 17 days. Now that he's out of harm's way, maybe a formal complaint to the FCO would be a good idea.

[007 RED]

49 minutes ago, UKJASE said:

i took the money to the IDC for him last week, 20600 b was paid for the ticket plus an extra 4500 b for hospitality charges ????

 

because of the kings coronation it took until last night until he was deported.  he finally landed in UK today and Baz was their to greet him!

 

so time in captivity 5 + weeks

 

he was only fined 2000 baht i think in court (weeks ago), and somehow dodged the 20k fine.  he was banned for ten years tho.

 

by all accounts conditions in the IDC are not good.  i spoke to a couple of detainees while i was waiting to pay his air ticket, and it sounded pretty harsh.  definitely to be avoided if at all possible!!

 

unfortunately he was not visited by the UK embassy for 17 days in bangkok, so that period must have been very hard for him as he must have been wondering if anyone even was aware he was in there.  no visits either in that time as all his mates are in hua hin, and by all accounts visiting is very difficult due to big fences between detainees and visitors, plus the noise from 50 visitations all shouting at once (look youtube for video!)

 

anyway, hopefully son of baz will pop up on this thread soon and share some of his experiences with us ????

 

glad u got home safe G mate, gonna miss ya tho you numpty ????

 

Good on you... he was very lucky to have a real friend.

[007 RED]

33 minutes ago, bazzer said:

Glad to say my son is now home in u. k.. he did not have to pay fine, but paid 3000bht court fee, he was held in IDC for almost 5 weeks along with 116 other prisoners, the conditions were very uncomfortable but considerably clean, food was rice and cabbage, with a boiled egg at night, allowed exercise for 1hr every other day, living space was approx. 6ft x 2ft.

Thankyou to all that posted positive comments. 

Thank you for the positive news that he's back. Hopefully he will readjust to life in the UK.

[lamyai3]

12 hours ago, UKJASE said:

glad u got home safe G mate, gonna miss ya tho you numpty ????

 

11 hours ago, bazzer said:

Glad to say my son is now home in u. k.

 

Kudos to you both for helping him out of a horrendous situation, and keeping people updated. Hope everything works out now.