Lost Passport due to agent witholding

[Stuck01]

Writing for a friend

My friend used an agent in Bangkok to help get a new visa a few weeks ago. Whilst the passport has been away the persons current visa expired. The agent keeps insisting the passport will return 'next week' - which has been said several weeks in a row, but can't give any clear idea on when the passport will return or if the new visa has even been done. My friend is obviously worried they are now weeks overstayed and with no passport in hand or if they even have a new visa.

It's at a point that I think it's best they go to their embassy and report the passport lost.

Anyone ever been in a situation like this and what the best steps might be? If they get a police report and go to embassy to get a replacement or emergency passport I assume they should just go directly to the airport and leave and apply back home for a new visa.

[scubascuba3]

Is it an agent with a shop? rather than some bloke.

 

If it's a proper established shop offer to pay more, they can turn them around in 3 days

Edited November 29, 2019 by scubascuba3

[Neeranam]

Go to the embassy and leave the country.

Live by the sword.....

 

[Tropicalevo]

As I see it, your friend has three choices.

1 report the passport as lost at a police station. Take the police report to the embassy and ask for a temporary travel document. Go back to their home country and obtain a replacement. There will be restriction on the replacement in case the original passport surfaces. Usually only valid for one year but it depends on the country.

2 Stay quite. Do not go out and pray like buuggery that the passport finally tuns up.

3 Report the agent to the police and say that the passport has been stolen.

I know which option I would take.

[spiekerjozef]

You need a police report to get a new passport.

So that's your first stop, then to your embassy to apply for your new passport. Once you got that you will have to pay for the overstay.

[Tayaout]

It might be tricky to report a passport stolen to the police while on overstay. 

[Vacuum]

1 hour ago, Stuck01 said:

If they get a police report and go to embassy to get a replacement or emergency passport I assume they should just go directly to the airport and leave and apply back home for a new visa.

..and a new passport. The emergency passport is just for getting home...

[Just Weird]

1 hour ago, Stuck01 said:

If they get a police report and go to embassy to get a replacement or emergency passport...

That sounds like a great idea, go to the police and, unless the police are told that the passport is in the hands of an agent, make a false report about losing it and then present that false report to the Embassy to try to get a new passport!  Do you really think that the embassy or the police will not ask about the (now expired) visa and put two and two together?

[bbi1]

I guess this post serves as a lesson for all those people on ThaiVisa who likes using Agents to bribe IO's. Don't use Agents unless you wanna gamble with having a lost passport ????

[GalaxyMan]

36 minutes ago, farangchuma said:

First, no one can get a visa inside Thailand.

Not true. I got my Non-O while in Thailand, though I had to pay an agent 35,000 baht to make it happen.

[anchadian]

Just now, GalaxyMan said:

Not true. I got my Non-O while in Thailand, though I had to pay an agent 35,000 baht to make it happen.

An extension yes but not an actual VISA

[bbi1]

2 minutes ago, GalaxyMan said:

Not true. I got my Non-O while in Thailand, though I had to pay an agent 35,000 baht to make it happen.

You paid the Agent a 35k bribe to get a Non-O visa in Thailand rather than having to fly out to get it?

[GalaxyMan]

1 minute ago, anchadian said:

An extension yes but not an actual VISA

You obviously have a reading comprehension issue. I got a standard 30-day stamp when crossing into Thailand from Malaysia. I then paid an agent to arrange my Non-O visa while still in Thailand, which I have successfully renewed several times.

[GalaxyMan]

Just now, bbi1 said:

You paid the Agent a 35k bribe to get a Non-O visa in Thailand rather than having to fly out to get it?

Bribe, fee, whatever; that is correct.

[Tayaout]

9 minutes ago, spiekerjozef said:

nothing tricky about. It's the overstay you should worry about. Even it is not your fault you have to pay it. The longer you wait the more problems you get. max overstay fine is 20k baht.

 

 

If the police catch you on overstay you go straight to immigration detention center for couple days/weeks and get automatic 5 years ban. Getting out of Thailand and paying the fine at the airport is not the same procedure and doesn't involve detention with 150 peoples in a Thai jail. 

 

So if I was on overstay, I would avoid contact with police at all cost even if my passport is stolen. 

Edited November 29, 2019 by Tayaout

[Peter Denis]

11 minutes ago, Tropicalevo said:

As I see it, your friend has three choices.

1 report the passport as lost at a police station. Take the police report to the embassy and ask for a temporary travel document. Go back to their home country and obtain a replacement. There will be restriction on the replacement in case the original passport surfaces. Usually only valid for one year but it depends on the country.

2 Stay quite. Do not go out and pray like buuggery that the passport finally tuns up.

3 Report the agent to the police and say that the passport has been stolen.

I know which option I would take.

In case the agent has an office I would definitely go for #3,

#1 - Saying it is 'lost' will most probably be looked at as an attempt to circumvent your overstay.

#2 - The longer you wait, the graver the situation becomes. 

#3 - Pity you did not do that one, before your permission to stay expired.  But imo the best option left. 

Note: If the agent does not have an office, or you do not have any ID or credentials of him #3 is basically same as #1. 

[spiekerjozef]

11 minutes ago, Tayaout said:

If the police catch you on overstay you go straight to immigration detention center for couple days/weeks and get automatic 5 years ban. Getting out of Thailand and paying the fine at the airport is not the same procedure and doesn't involve detention with 150 peoples in a Thai jail. 

i was in the same situation a few years back. You have to report the crime that your passport is "stolen" (in my case it was also with an agent, he had an office) to the police. Overstay is an immigration matter not for the police to handle.

So with the police report to your embassy apply for a new passport.

Once you've got that go to the immigration office and pay the overstay fine (That's what I did) or fly out and pay the overstay fine at the airport.

(In my case after I paid the fine I went to Laos and applied for a new visa there and everything was fine.

Re-enter again without any problems.) Lesson learned NEVER use an agent again!

Edited November 29, 2019 by spiekerjozef

[spiekerjozef]

16 minutes ago, Tayaout said:

If the police catch you on overstay you go straight to immigration detention center for couple days/weeks and get automatic 5 years ban. Getting out of Thailand and paying the fine at the airport is not the same procedure and doesn't involve detention with 150 peoples in a Thai jail. 

 

So if I was on overstay, I would avoid contact with police at all cost even if my passport is stolen. 

To fly out you need a passport. To get a new passport in the OP's case he needs a police report.

Edited November 29, 2019 by spiekerjozef

[ubonjoe]

47 minutes ago, Tayaout said:

It might be tricky to report a passport stolen to the police while on overstay. 

They do not check for an overstay when doing a police report.

[ubonjoe]

Several inflammatory posts flaming the OP and replies to them have been removed.

[baansgr]

If the agent was getting an extension based on marriage/dependent, it may very well take a few weeks to do.

[lopburi3]

45 minutes ago, GalaxyMan said:

You obviously have a reading comprehension issue. I got a standard 30-day stamp when crossing into Thailand from Malaysia. I then paid an agent to arrange my Non-O visa while still in Thailand, which I have successfully renewed several times.

So for what others pay 2,000 baht but have to do themselves you paid a bit more.  

[MJKT2014]

1 hour ago, GalaxyMan said:

1 hour ago, farangchuma said:

First, no one can get a visa inside Thailand.

Not true. I got my Non-O while in Thailand, though I had to pay an agent 35,000 baht to make it happen.

Agree not true. I got a visa for India which took flipping ages! Nothing in the o/p says the agent was getting a Thai visa?

[Isaanbiker]

9 minutes ago, lopburi3 said:

So for what others pay 2,000 baht but have to do themselves you paid a bit more.  

Some of my colleagues told me that you have to book flights and hotels at a travel office, because they are the specialists.

 

  They can't even order from Lazada without a Thai person from our office.

 

  I knew a real "gentleman", an English guy who'd bought his visa and work permit from an agent. Both as fake as many noses of gal's here. 

 

Unfortunately, was the most important part of the visa missing the stamp of Ayutthaya Immigration. 

 

  

 

  

[Nong Khai Man]

1 hour ago, GalaxyMan said:

Not true. I got my Non-O while in Thailand, though I had to pay an agent 35,000 baht to make it happen.

Well I'll say You NEVER Did !!!! 

[pookondee]

I'd wait on the agent and keep calling him every day or so.

Another week or so wont make much difference to the overstay penalty.

 

Its possible the visa (or permission to stay or whatever your targeting) might be back-dated so you dont have an overstay.

(These agents can seemingly do anything if they have money).

 

Its a gamble, but going the way other posters have suggested might a lot of trouble that could be avoided if the agent comes up with the goods in the next few days.

 

After this whole ordeal, i would be inclined to exit Thailand back door at some quiet border in Isaan..

Fly international back to home from a neighbouring country and get a real visa there..

 

I would not want Immigration officers at any Thai airport to be scrutinizing those stamps or you could be in for another round of worse trouble.

 

[spiekerjozef]

2 minutes ago, pookondee said:

Its possible the visa (or permission to stay or whatever your targeting) might be back-dated so you dont have an overstay.

(These agents can seemingly do anything if they have money).

 

 

NOT possible! it's always gonna be an overstay, the longer he waits the more he's gonna risk a ban.

[DrJack54]

2 hours ago, GalaxyMan said:

Bribe, fee, whatever; that is correct.

You can obtain a non o inside of Thailand by doing "conversion" at immigration. You can enter on tourist visa or even visa exempt and do this.

[DannyCarlton]

2 hours ago, anchadian said:

An extension yes but not an actual VISA

Yes, an actual visa. I paid 45k but that included also getting a 12 month extension tagged on to it. Gave the agent my passport, 2 weeks later was returned with non O valid for 3 months plus 12 months extension (retirement) giving me a total of 15 months permission to stay. I never left Pattaya.

[lopburi3]

13 minutes ago, DannyCarlton said:

Yes, an actual visa. I paid 45k but that included also getting a 12 month extension tagged on to it. Gave the agent my passport, 2 weeks later was returned with non O valid for 3 months plus 12 months extension (retirement) giving me a total of 15 months permission to stay. I never left Pattaya.

If a person meets the requirements the official cost would be 2,000 for visa and 1,900 for extension plus a little for official paperwork from bank so about 10x the official cost.