I will just stay away from the bars and clubs until things settle down.

I haven't seen an example of Nationalism like this since a young Austro-German man had grand visions for his adopted country in the 1930's.

If you have an investment there, I truly would advise you to divest in a hurry.

Oh come on, Thailand can not even handle the unrest in South let alone starting WW3, what a silly comment.

I hope you dont have to eat your words one day.

All is not rosie her lately.

for those of you on this thread suggesting that a copy of your passport is ok, you are talking <deleted>, the law says your original must be carried with you. Yes normally the police will accept the photocopy with also a copy of tm card and entry stamp but if they want to be <deleted> they can be. About 2 years ago i was in Bangkok when they did a raid, everyone without original passport arrested and held till passport produced, those who had a copy on them (like i did) fined 500 baht, those who had nothing 2000 baht fine and held till passport produced.

BB

As far as I know a copy is valid as long as it is verified as a true copy by your Embassy, with chop and signatures.

For ID purposes with the normal police a Thai drivers license is ok, ONLY the Immigration police can demand to see your passport.

for those of you on this thread suggesting that a copy of your passport is ok, you are talking <deleted>, the law says your original must be carried with you. Yes normally the police will accept the photocopy with also a copy of tm card and entry stamp but if they want to be <deleted> they can be. About 2 years ago i was in Bangkok when they did a raid, everyone without original passport arrested and held till passport produced, those who had a copy on them (like i did) fined 500 baht, those who had nothing 2000 baht fine and held till passport produced.

BB

As far as I know a copy is valid as long as it is verified as a true copy by your Embassy, with chop and signatures.

For ID purposes with the normal police a Thai drivers license is ok, ONLY the Immigration police can demand to see your passport.

Who gives you this mis-information? You should do some research before writing something as fact that is simply wrong.

If you show them a laminated copy, would that suffice until you can get someone to go to the hotel/Condo/home to get your original if you are blatantly a tourist ? (ie white, sunburnt,knotted hankie, grey socks with sandles )

I've never carried my passport or a copy in Pattaya/BKK before, but then again never spent time in the pokey either (I dont like places where the sun comes through in stripes)

So do I carry the original (and risk losing it ) or a copy of the front pages ?

I have a suggestion.

I suggest that NOBODY carry their original passport. Nobody.

Then, if they do a crackdown, they will find no passports, and have to arrest EVERYBODY.

That cannot be sustained over any amount of time. I have always felt that deep down, when push comes to shove (as it seems to be now) Thais are a PRACTICAL people. This enforcement is simply not PRACTICAL. How can it last?

I do think it is a good idea to carry a COPY of the front page and all pertinent visa and stamp pages. I don't see any reason why this must be laminated.

for those of you on this thread suggesting that a copy of your passport is ok, you are talking <deleted>, the law says your original must be carried with you. Yes normally the police will accept the photocopy with also a copy of tm card and entry stamp but if they want to be <deleted> they can be. About 2 years ago i was in Bangkok when they did a raid, everyone without original passport arrested and held till passport produced, those who had a copy on them (like i did) fined 500 baht, those who had nothing 2000 baht fine and held till passport produced.

BB

As far as I know a copy is valid as long as it is verified as a true copy by your Embassy, with chop and signatures.

For ID purposes with the normal police a Thai drivers license is ok, ONLY the Immigration police can demand to see your passport.

Who gives you this mis-information? You should do some research before writing something as fact that is simply wrong.

Immigration offenses are not under the normal police jurisdiction. They can ask for a valid ID. Normally this would be a passport, for a foreigner, but could also be a Thai drivers license which is a valid form of ID in Thailand, if you have a Thai drivers license this will be enough for the normal police.

Anyway, all these raids have immigration police involved or the normal police can always call for a immigration police if needed so my comment that the normal police can not demand to see your passport was really unnecessary.

I voted Saturday that I'd not carry any passport info on the basis that during 12 years in Thailand I was never asked to produce it. However having taken the time to read some other threads I most likely will get a photocopy made for my next visit. It appears that the Pattaya police in particular have got a fire lit under their ar5es, possibly as a result of the Russian girl murders, and as usual actions must be seen to be done.

For visa run info to KL. My Filippina gf always carries a laminated copy of her passport front page and visa page. A month or so back she was stopped and id demanded. The laminated copy was not acceptable, well not until it was wrapped in a 100 Ringit note (around 900 Baht). So if any of you come down here with your Thai wife/gf/husband/bf make sure she/he carries their passport at all times. Westerners, in general, will not be subject to this kind of checks but if you go out to nightclubs there is a chance the place could be raided and id will be required.

Much ado about nothing!

When I rec'd my 1 year extension I asked the Immigration Officer if carrying a color copy of my passport and amendments was good enough. He said it was.

In light of the recent horseshiit, I think I'll pay a visit to Immigration and ask him politely if it is still true, and if he says yes, I'm going to ask him to make a quick note on my color copy and sign his name.

Otherwise I'll play the idiot Thai game of carry my passport. However, I find it highly unlikely that I'll be stopped at Carrefour buying Mamypoko diapers and eggs.

I thought the drivers license was all that was needed if you had one? Probably a good idea to get one just in case.

When I rec'd my 1 year extension I asked the Immigration Officer if carrying a color copy of my passport and amendments was good enough. He said it was.

In light of the recent horseshiit, I think I'll pay a visit to Immigration and ask him politely if it is still true, and if he says yes, I'm going to ask him to make a quick note on my color copy and sign his name.

Dont forget to take your original passport with you........... just in case

Yes, of course. The "poll" wasn't complete enough for me, I will carry my original while the idiots in Brown are busy minioning for their superiors. When they go back to shaking down storeowners and helmetless fools, I'll put it back in the safe.

JR

About 2 years ago i was in Bangkok when they did a raid, everyone without original passport arrested and held till passport produced, those who had a copy on them (like i did) fined 500 baht, those who had nothing 2000 baht fine and held till passport produced.

BB

BB You had your original passport, so what did they fine you for?

Edit// P.S. NEVER carried my original, only a copy (unless going up country). Not had a problem thus far and would prefer a fine to losing it.

I think I'll take my chances with copy of pp, visa, and extension stamp, along with my Thai driver's licenses. I've only used an on-premises short-time room a few times in four years, and don't get drunk, and always drive a fully registered vehicle, wear helmet, etc. In other words, I'm not likely to even be asked to identify myself except at a border checkpoint.

When we knew the local law in Mexico, we refused to show passports to anybody but inmigracion, so sometimes the army officer would round up the nearest migra anyway.

I visited the Tourist Police HQ yesterday to ask about this. I was told that you need to carry some sort of official ID with you at all times, such as a legible copy of your passport personal details page. I showed the officer my Thai drivers license and asked if that was OK ID. He was very enthusiastic in his approval!

I carry my original passport in the car. Which is usually close by enough.

I think I'll take my chances with copy of pp, visa, and extension stamp, along with my Thai driver's licenses.

On another forum someone suggested in addition to the usual front page, visa page and extension stamp, that you carry a copy the 90-day address-notification form. That may be overkill, I honestly don't know. But when you think about it, it is something stapled in your passport that must be kept current...

About 2 years ago i was in Bangkok when they did a raid, everyone without original passport arrested and held till passport produced, those who had a copy on them (like i did) fined 500 baht, those who had nothing 2000 baht fine and held till passport produced.

BB

BB You had your original passport, so what did they fine you for?

Edit// P.S. NEVER carried my original, only a copy (unless going up country). Not had a problem thus far and would prefer a fine to losing it.

always carry a laminated colour copy of my driver license on me...the original is ..well...I'll get it back when I pay the fine....errmm...

Never been asked for anything in 10 years.

Passport is locked up where it should be. Pain in the butt getting a new one and all the stamps redone.

As another poster already suggested...if no one carries a passport, it will be a hard time for the cops rounding everybody up...sometimes civil disobedience is part of the solution.

Will the immigration officers take a cruise down the beach one fine day and arrest thousands of people swimming and sun bathing? It could present a problem when jet-skiing too.