A friend of mine just returned from the UK and went down to our local Immigration Office to assist his wife in filing a TM.30 for his return. At my request, he asked there about the requirements to file TM.30s and TM.28s. He told them he was going to be going out of the province for a weekend golf trip and asked if he was required to file a TM.28 there and his wife another TM.30 when he returned.

He was told....(wait for it)....No, his wife only has to file a TM.30 if he leaves the country on his return. None are required for him just going in and out of the province.

 

????? ????

 

Not unusual, same here with me in Chaiyaphum, I do not even have to do anything when leaving and coming back to Thailand, as long as I live on my very same address..

 

glegolo

Tell them nothing, get your wife to book the accommodation in the next province.

23 minutes ago, legend49 said:

Tell them nothing, get your wife to book the accommodation in the next province.

Agree IGNORE THEM!

Seriously though. 

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

17 hours ago, billsmart said:

A friend of mine just returned from the UK and went down to our local Immigration Office to assist his wife in filing a TM.30 for his return. At my request, he asked there about the requirements to file TM.30s and TM.28s. He told them he was going to be going out of the province for a weekend golf trip and asked if he was required to file a TM.28 there and his wife another TM.30 when he returned.

He was told....(wait for it)....No, his wife only has to file a TM.30 if he leaves the country on his return. None are required for him just going in and out of the province.

thats in line with rayong

8 minutes ago, Deerculler said:

Seriously though. 

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

NO! It is obvious in many cases they are totally lost. Just ignore the whole TM 30 TM 28 until they ask for it. Many are and have for years. The more you bitch and moan and remind them about it the more they will harass you.

11 minutes ago, Deerculler said:

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

If a hotel does a online report of a person staying all immigration offices can check to see it one was done when a person goes to immigration.

 

if you go with your wife (Thai) they she does the booking why would your do anything.  Same if you go with the GF (Thai).  I have never done any booking and I have never been asked for my passport, but up to you

11 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

If a hotel does a online report of a person staying all immigration offices can check to see it one was done when a person goes to immigration.

After the online report,

CM immigration want a signed and stamped form from the hotel, which you then change at an upstairs office at immigration for an official immigration receipt before you can get on with the real business you had at immigration.

 

A true time wasting paper circus.

Edited September 24, 20196 yr by BritManToo

15 minutes ago, Deerculler said:

Seriously though. 

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

That is the wrong question though isn't it. More correctly, does the report made by a hotel make it to the immigration records. The hotel is required by law to report any foreigner staying with them... maybe they do, maybe they don't. That report should include details like passport number and TM6 number. Does that report then end up on a foreigner's personal record with immigration? I expect that data would need to be manually transferred... does seem unlikely with 20 million tourists alone. 

But it does sometimes.....

29 minutes ago, steve187 said:

thats in line with rayong

Same in Kanchanaburi,

31 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

After the online report,

CM immigration want a signed and stamped form from the hotel, which you then change at an upstairs office at immigration for an official immigration receipt before you can get on with the real business you had at immigration.

 

A true time wasting paper circus.

Wow! They really hate you there!

1 hour ago, legend49 said:

Tell them nothing, get your wife to book the accommodation in the next province.

Same with me. When I travel with my girlfriend, our accommodations are booked on her Thai ID card. I have never been asked to produce a passport. The TM-30 requirement is hardly the stupidest rule in the Kingdom, but it is pretty high on the list.

My missus always does the booking for hotels and houses. Been to many a hotel with her and they don't ask me for anything. Was just in Pattaya at the weekend and I didn't even have my passport. 

 

Just more proof of how dumb the TM30 really is.

41 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

After the online report,

CM immigration want a signed and stamped form from the hotel, which you then change at an upstairs office at immigration for an official immigration receipt before you can get on with the real business you had at immigration.

 

A true time wasting paper circus.

So CM immigration doesnt accept anyone reported in the online system ? Everyone still has to report manually before doing any business ?

Does that mean nobody can use the online system in CM ?

1 hour ago, Deerculler said:

Seriously though. 

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

Immigration don’t have to check the bookings....every hotel, resort and guesthouse should tell them by law. And if they do it online, as immigration encourage, it only takes a few clicks for immigration to check up on your travels

1 hour ago, Mitkof Island said:

NO! It is obvious in many cases they are totally lost. Just ignore the whole TM 30 TM 28 until they ask for it. Many are and have for years. The more you bitch and moan and remind them about it the more they will harass you.

Yes they do...They knew exactly where I stayed when I did my visa extension.. Chiang mai Bangkok and Pat ta ya. I was warned to do a TM30 every time I stayed anywhere including somewhere else in town. Also had avThai  friend get a fine in the post as she had not done a TM30 for her boyfriend who had traveled from the UK to visit her for two weeks. He had written where he was staying on his TM7.. 

2 hours ago, legend49 said:

Tell them nothing, get your wife to book the accommodation in the next province.

He just said he doesn't need to report when coming back from another province. Many Immigration offices reasons the same. 

22 minutes ago, Chicken George said:

Yes they do...They knew exactly where I stayed when I did my visa extension.. Chiang mai Bangkok and Pat ta ya. I was warned to do a TM30 every time I stayed anywhere including somewhere else in town. Also had avThai  friend get a fine in the post as she had not done a TM30 for her boyfriend who had traveled from the UK to visit her for two weeks. He had written where he was staying on his TM7.. 

The TM7 is not same as the TM30. Only the TM30 address is official. 

26 minutes ago, Chicken George said:

Yes they do...They knew exactly where I stayed when I did my visa extension.. Chiang mai Bangkok and Pat ta ya. I was warned to do a TM30 every time I stayed anywhere including somewhere else in town. Also had avThai  friend get a fine in the post as she had not done a TM30 for her boyfriend who had traveled from the UK to visit her for two weeks. He had written where he was staying on his TM7.. 

TM7 doesnt have an address on it, how would immigration know the address or the girlfriends name, or whether she owned the property. A TM7 for a 2 week stay ???

14 minutes ago, Peterw42 said:

TM7 doesnt have an address on it, how would immigration know the address or the girlfriends name, or whether she owned the property. A TM7 for a 2 week stay ???

The TM7 has an address of course, on page 2. 

14 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

The TM7 has an address of course, on page 2. 

yes, but not the owner/landlords address, name. 

The point being that immigration are not sending out fines based on TM7 forms/TM30 forms. They dont mail out fines to anyone.

Yesterday I returned to Chiang Mai from a 6 day trip to Bangkok and Pattaya. and after we returned, my wife, who is the owner of my accommodation here, rang CM Immigration and asked whether she needs to submit a new TM 30. The answer was yes and she should bring a Taxi receipt or boarding passes to show that it is within 24 hours.

This morning we went to Immigration armed with the completed TM30 form, copy of her house book, ID card, my passport, my boarding pass and the original of the previous TM 30 receipt she submitted in February this year.

They kept all the documents, returned the boarding pass which I don't think the I.O. even looked at and the previous original TM30 receipt endorsed with todays' date and an initial. 

The attached notice is on the desk of the I.O.

3 hours ago, Deerculler said:

Seriously though. 

Does immigration really check every hotel booking all over Thailand?

It has nothing to do with the bookings, it's all about the TM30 reporting laws. There are so many hotels and guesthouses which never file any TM30,so if staying there, you're not in any database. The bigger hotels and licensed guesthouses with many guest will probably file the TM30 online,and you "should" be in the database. 

But, if they file a report or not is totally irrelevant. Many provinces don't give a c**p about the TM30  when expats are coming back from other provinces, and an ordinary tourist doesn't have to bother. NEVER EVER. I don't understand why people are getting so upset about this. How many expats have to do the report every year? Many don't know the rules in their own province, but are still complaining.

Go figure.

2 hours ago, rkidlad said:

My missus always does the booking for hotels and houses. Been to many a hotel with her and they don't ask me for anything. Was just in Pattaya at the weekend and I didn't even have my passport. 

 

Just more proof of how dumb the TM30 really is.

What was the name again?

9 minutes ago, Max69xl said:

It has nothing to do with the bookings, it's all about the TM30 reporting laws. There are so many hotels and guesthouses which never file any TM30,so if staying there, you're not in any database. The bigger hotels and licensed guesthouses with many guest will probably file the TM30 online,and you "should" be in the database. 

But, if they file a report or not is totally irrelevant. Many provinces don't give a c**p about the TM30  when expats are coming back from other provinces, and an ordinary tourist doesn't have to bother. NEVER EVER. I don't understand why people are getting so upset about this. How many expats have to do the report every year? Many don't know the rules in their own province, but are still complaining.

Go figure.

I stayed it a 5 star hotel in Bangkok in July. They didn't ask me for diddly squat. All under the missus' name. 

 

You don't understand why people are getting so upset by the TM30? Why do you care if they are? Why are you getting so upset? 

Edited September 24, 20196 yr by rkidlad

3 hours ago, KhunFred said:

Same with me. When I travel with my girlfriend, our accommodations are booked on her Thai ID card. I have never been asked to produce a passport. The TM-30 requirement is hardly the stupidest rule in the Kingdom, but it is pretty high on the list.

Nice idea to have the Thai do the booking.  So I assume at the hotel when you check in only she checks in?  Do you just stand in the background and not get noticed?

3 minutes ago, gk10002000 said:

So I assume at the hotel when you check in only she checks in?  Do you just stand in the background and not get noticed?

That is what I have done many times.

At some I was asked to put my name on the registration but no need for my passport just my wife's ID card number.

28 minutes ago, SANSAI said:

Yesterday I returned to Chiang Mai from a 6 day trip to Bangkok and Pattaya. and after we returned, my wife, who is the owner of my accommodation here, rang CM Immigration and asked whether she needs to submit a new TM 30. The answer was yes and she should bring a Taxi receipt or boarding passes to show that it is within 24 hours.

This morning we went to Immigration armed with the completed TM30 form, copy of her house book, ID card, my passport, my boarding pass and the original of the previous TM 30 receipt she submitted in February this year.

They kept all the documents, returned the boarding pass which I don't think the I.O. even looked at and the previous original TM30 receipt endorsed with todays' date and an initial. 

The attached notice is on the desk of the I.O.

Why would you hand over a "Boarding pass"? Don't you mean the TM6-card? There are several immigration offices like CM, CW in BKK for example, that requires the TM30 to be submitted even when coming back from another province.

That's the "official" rule since late 2017.