Tourism yes, work NO!: Big Oud turns back Chinese man at airport!

[ChipButty]

What about them guys who work in the oil and gas industry? month on month off some of the guys I know could live anywhere it doesn't matter to them.

I do know a couple who have sold up and moved out of Thailand some of them guys spend a fortune when here

[lamyai3]

1 hour ago, mac1970 said:

And no work emails during holiday, that is working! You are out! Criminal and worst enemy of the country. Shame on you! ????

By writing back to the office to confirm Daphne can have those extra three days off over Christmas, you've turned into a threat to national security... 

[Lodestone]

For all these supposed frequent travelers who are in and out of Thailand (and other countries) so many times, I imagine the airfare and other travel expenses would both add up over time for them while also apparently being relatively insignificant (or else how are they able to do all the traveling). So then why not just go for the 5 year 500K elite card?Compared to their other expenses it actually would seem a good value. 

[sunnyboy2018]

5 hours ago, SteveK said:

Maybe instead of desperately trying to refuse entry or to deport anyone who isn't Thai and doesn't have the correct visa, maybe they could introduce two new types of visa to entice international travelers and boost "tourism" income. One for digital nomads, and one for sex travelers. I would wager that in many cases even removing someone who is working illegally would be harmful to the country's economy, and removing a rampant sex-pat would cause lots and lots of sick buffaloes to go without their crucial medicine injections.

 

I would also bet that it's mostly the dodgy guys without proper visas who spend the most on nocturnal female companionship and local pharmaceuticals, so they could forget visas entirely - just show $2000 cash at the airport and you're in, any less and you're going back mate. Simple. Get rid of all the dumb rules that even the Thai immigration don't understand. Instead of 90-day reporting just turn up to immigration every six months with a wad of thousand baht notes to show that you are either solvent or can get money when you need it.

 

I've already got a drawer full of paperwork in my bedroom, it's ridiculous.

How do you classify yourself? Sexpat or illegal worker?

[jackdd]

17 minutes ago, Lodestone said:

For all these supposed frequent travelers who are in and out of Thailand (and other countries) so many times, I imagine the airfare and other travel expenses would both add up over time for them while also apparently being relatively insignificant (or else how are they able to do all the traveling). So then why not just go for the 5 year 500K elite card?Compared to their other expenses it actually would seem a good value. 

Using tourists visas adds up to about 20-30k per year, and you don't have to pay it 5 years ahead. Way cheaper than the elite visa ????

If Thailand would offer something as simple as a one year tourist extension, for let's say 50k THB at an immigration office, there would be takers, but not at 100k per year 5 years ahead (of course this won't happen because then there would be no need for Thailand Elite)

[LongTang]

6 hours ago, FredGallaher said:

This should be a wake up call along with a couple of other threads about refusal on this forum, that the days of multiple tourist visa extensions is ending. Staying long term on tourist visa just became more risky.

No ill intent to anyone, it just stating the evidence so far. 

 

Ill intent or not, In the end of the day these polices will and already are hurting tourism.

People do not like the stress involved with the unknown reactions of the IO when arriving here multiple times for holiday purposes, and taking the risk of being rejected like some dirty criminals.

 

So even if some people who were working illegally here will be forced to leave, In the big picture the country will lose much more then it will gain.

 

 

[brewsterbudgen]

100% correct - the anti-foreigner sentiment with painful visa hoops to jump through and the excruciatingly strong baht will mean billions of lost baht to Thailand as people go elsewhere.

What are these painful visa hoops? Thailand offers Single Entry (extendable) Tourist visas and Multiple Entry Tourist visas. What more do you suggest - letting anyone stay as long as they want?

Sent from my SM-A500F using Tapatalk

[owenm]

Recent TV reports state that tourist nos are down 20-30% year on year June stats in Pattaya and Phuket.. 

So a Chinese is denied a 15 day visa on arrival due to suspicion that they are working in Thailand illegally.. 

 

Why don't IO just put an ankle bracelet on these suspicious tourists and take a 50k refundable bond at the airport? 

 

If Thailand doesn't reverse their hard-line tactics on genuine tourists, with or without visas, and Non-Imm expats living here, albeit year to year, then no one is going to be welcome in Thailand and news will spread fast on social media.. 

[marcusarelus]

1 minute ago, owenm said:

Recent TV reports state that tourist nos are down 20-30% year on year June stats in Pattaya and Phuket.. 

So a Chinese is denied a 15 day visa on arrival due to suspicion that they are working in Thailand illegally.. 

 

Why don't IO just put an ankle bracelet on these suspicious tourists and take a 50k refundable bond at the airport? 

 

If Thailand doesn't reverse their hard-line tactics on genuine tourists, with or without visas, and Non-Imm expats living here, albeit year to year, then no one is going to be welcome in Thailand and news will spread fast on social media.. 

The guy was not a tourist.  Do you expect Immigration to operate as gatekeepers or economists?  

[marcusarelus]

23 minutes ago, brewsterbudgen said:

What are these painful visa hoops? Thailand offers Single Entry (extendable) Tourist visas and Multiple Entry Tourist visas. What more do you suggest - letting anyone stay as long as they want?

Sent from my SM-A500F using Tapatalk
 

They want to be able to stay and/or work in Thailand on a tourist visa.  Those are the folks who are doing the complaining on ThaiVisa.  

[LongTang]

7 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

They want to be able to stay and/or work in Thailand on a tourist visa.  Those are the folks who are doing the complaining on ThaiVisa.  

Rubbish and lies out of a government payed agent.

 

You know sh!t about what people are doing here, And if some are working as digital nomads then the government should thank them for spending their money here without taking any jobs from the locals.

 

 

[LongTang]

45 minutes ago, marcusarelus said:

The guy was not a tourist.  Do you expect Immigration to operate as gatekeepers or economists?  

 

I expect them to represent both the Security And the Economic interests of this country.

The effectiveness of the first one is debatable But the impact on the latter is devastating.

 

They should hunt the illegal working foreigners inland, like they arrested this Slovak operating a Spa illegally, But should avoid harassing people in airports. The damage far accedes any benefit.

 

 

[Orton Rd]

Chinese bloke round the corner from us, same visa as me has work prohibited stamped on it, goes to work everyday. His Mrs gets an extension by claiming her daughter born here has a Thai father, but that is not true. Not daft the Chinese.

[ocddave]

16 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

They've said they haven't bothered in the past as it's been too difficult to catch them. However the government pushed new cybersecurity laws this February prior to the elections, allowing them the right to snoop and seize computers and devices without a warrant. There's also been the push for a single internet gateway in recent years, so it's certainly possible the country could become hostile to digital nomads and businesses if they keep going in the current direction. 

I would just love them to try that one, I'll surely make the news when my violent side comes out....LOL

[LongTang]

33 minutes ago, FredGallaher said:

The true tourist wont know the difference. They come for a month or two and go home. They might return in a couple of years. Long stay visitors on tourist visas are not real tourists so to speak. They want to live here and don't want to pay for the appropriate visa.  Many fell because they could do this in the past they are entitled to continue.  

I beg to disagree, If the issue here is an economical one, Then the definition of what constitute a 'tourist' should not depend on the length of stay or the number of visits as long as one does not deprive work from the locals.

 

Moreover, tourists that come here for a month or two are the ones that are most likely to come back much more often as they usually develop deeper emotional ties to this place.

Those are the tourist that will be hurt the most, and the ones that will spread the bad word about this place, A word that till now brought here millions.

 

If on the other hand the issue is Not Economical one But Nationalistic one, then i rest my case..

 

[Letseng]

8 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

Not sure, I guess those options are available to them. But I can't see half a million baht for a five year visa appealing, unless they've got money to launder - there are plenty of cheaper and more welcoming destinations on offer. Let's not forget also that the yuan is another currency that's plummeted against the baht in the past year or two. 

Chinese have way more money than you think. They just don't flaunt their wealth. Majority wouldn't whinge about 800.000 Bht for retirement ext.

[holy cow cm]

6 minutes ago, Letseng said:

Chinese have way more money than you think. They just don't flaunt their wealth. Majority wouldn't whinge about 800.000 Bht for retirement ext.

Flaunt no. Hoard yes. Come in like gangbusters, yes. Too many of the billions who are buying up the world. 

[CNXexpat]

7 hours ago, SteveK said:

the anti-foreigner sentiment with painful visa hoops

What has changed for a (western) tourist?

[LongTang]

55 minutes ago, FredGallaher said:

I don't see these tourist visa /long termers contributing much. Mostly rent a cheap room and eat street food. The want to stay cheap and take advantage of Thai facilities. Thailand seem to realize that there contribution is minimal.

 

They definitely contribute, but not always to the preferred pockets.
Many poor families rely on their contribution for maintaining a decent standard of living.

 

Eating street food and and not staying in fancy apartments have nothing to do with it, for many its actually part of the exotic attraction.

 

And what are these facilities you talk about?

The dangerous roads, horrible side walks, polluted air, filthy beaches, uncontrolled diseased mosquitoes, should i go on...

 

[Tony125]

9 hours ago, jackdd said:

 

 

The translation from Thaivisa is wrong. I always wonder if Thaivisa just uses Google translate instead of employing somebody who could deliver a proper translation.

This sentence is made up from Thaivisa:

 

 

 

The Thai article just says that the Chinese man stayed a long time in Thailand before and did not meet the criteria to be allowed entry into Thailand. They suspect that he is working because he spent more time in Thailand than what would be reasonable for a tourist.

Then below this they mention which laws cover this, and also which law / rules cover the visa on arrival which he used, and here they basically say that a visa on arrival allows a stay of 15 days.

 

The problem is the statement "he spent more time in Thailand than what would be reasonable for a tourist." what's reasonable time for tourist" 2 weeks? a month? 2 weeks 4---5 times a yeaar? There is no rule so IO just make up one  depending on their mood not any particular criteria.

[holy cow cm]

1 hour ago, FredGallaher said:

I don't see these tourist visa /long termers contributing much. Mostly rent a cheap room and eat street food. The want to stay cheap and take advantage of Thai facilities. Thailand seem to realize that there contribution is minimal.

 

Hog wash.

[PingRoundTheWorld]

9 hours ago, FredGallaher said:

Staying long term on tourist visa just became more risky. 

No ill intent to anyone, it just stating the evidence so far. 

That is indeed disturbing. I'm on METV and have been spending a lot of time (and money) in Thailand. Under 50 so retirement visa is not an option, and I'm not planning on throwing 500k baht on Elite visa when I'm not confident the plan will even exist much longer. Immigration clearly no longer cares about foreigners with money. It's all about short-term visitors now. Funny enough the short-term visitor well has dried up already - they just haven't figured it out yet. In a few years when tourism is down 50% and all the long-term tourists/expats and the money are gone they'll be crying, but it'll be too late.

[PingRoundTheWorld]

1 hour ago, FredGallaher said:

I don't see these tourist visa /long termers contributing much. Mostly rent a cheap room and eat street food. The want to stay cheap and take advantage of Thai facilities. Thailand seem to realize that there contribution is minimal.

Where do you come up with this stuff?? The typical long-stayer (digital nomad or just has money) on tourist visas is under 50's and more active (read: spending) than retirees. Everyone I know in this situation is renting a nice condo, spends a lot of money in restaurants and bars and clubs, and generally spends much more than your average retiree and Non-B/WP folks.

[StayinThailand2much]

1 hour ago, FredGallaher said:

I don't see these tourist visa /long termers contributing much. Mostly rent a cheap room and eat street food. The want to stay cheap and take advantage of Thai facilities. Thailand seem to realize that there contribution is minimal.

 

You think like a Thai; 40,000 baht from a short-holiday tourist is "more" than 730,000 baht from a long-term tourist, only because the first one spends 5,000 baht/day, staying 8 days, and the latter staying 365 days but spending only 2,000 baht a day. - Wonder which tourist contributes more to Thailand's GDP...

[JamJar]

1 hour ago, FredGallaher said:

I don't see these tourist visa /long termers contributing much. Mostly rent a cheap room and eat street food. The want to stay cheap and take advantage of Thai facilities. Thailand seem to realize that there contribution is minimal.

 

 

Most of the people I met during my travels, stayed six months annually in Thailand, avoiding the cold periods in their country.

Street food is not something I ever saw them eat.

Even twenty years ago, the ones on a budget were spending a minimum of 60k baht per month. 

I would spend around 100k per month, with my accommodation costs at 45k monthly.

 

I don't know how much they spend these days. But I certainly cannot be bothered to book a flight at random and have to be concerned with that kind of nonsense at the airport. So I just don't bother. I am most certainly a tourist. 

 

In the past, my holiday would begin once I caught my flight. Now you can only relax once you emerge from the exit at the Thailand airport. Really a poor environment they have created.

 

[ukrules]

4 hours ago, brewsterbudgen said:

What are these painful visa hoops? Thailand offers Single Entry (extendable) Tourist visas and Multiple Entry Tourist visas. What more do you suggest - letting anyone stay as long as they want?

Sent from my SM-A500F using Tapatalk
 

Having your bank accounts history audited is a bit too much when you merely want to go on holiday for a few months.

 

I don't know what they're thinking but there's something wrong with the brains that thought up the conditions to the METV visa - it's retarded.

 

I know people who come here every year for the winter, strict 90 day limit as they will no longer 'do a border run' so they can stay for 4 months over the entire winter back home......

[Caldera]

4 hours ago, marcusarelus said:

The guy was not a tourist.

How do you know that, from the comfort of your armchair or barstool? Do you take the immigration chief's word for it? Being a compulsory and accomplished liar is pretty much a job requirement.

[jackdd]

39 minutes ago, ukrules said:

Having your bank accounts history audited is a bit too much when you merely want to go on holiday for a few months.

 

I don't know what they're thinking but there's something wrong with the brains that thought up the conditions to the METV visa - it's retarded. 

The requirements vary by country, the only requirement which exists in every country is a certain amount of money on a bank account. Any additional requirements were most likely set by the ambassador / embassy staff in the respective country, so you know where to complain.

[Chazar]

12 hours ago, dddave said:

The article clearly stated the Chinese person had stayed "a long time in the past."

No, it  didn't it  didn't  state HOW  LONG , this is like a  witness  saying "he was  speeding" when they have no knowledge of the true  speed.

[Chazar]

11 hours ago, Sujo said:

Well thats true. Years ago I got my long service leave and took the option of visiting thailand for 3 weeks, then home for a few weeks, then repeat a few times.

 

Could not do that now.

Hmm,  wonder  why  tourist  resorts  have  less  western  foreigners  now....cue grinding  cogs going  round noise.