Nightmare scenarios continue in wake of Thailand Pass launch

[Toby1947]

5 hours ago, KhunMorris said:

My daughter from my 3rd wife applied this afternoon and got the pass an hour ago. The email went to her Junk inbox apparently.

 

No surprise that most of TV can't work a bloody laptop though, I've seen their Thai language proficiency.

 

Sincerely 

 

MORRIS

Gun owner 

Why would anyone want to learn the language of a unwelcoming 10th world country.

Sincerely

TOBY

Chopper owner

[davidmann]

20 hours ago, mvdf said:

Phuket expat on linked article on bragging mode: 

 

“All up, I have spent almost 15 hours researching and inputting on my laptop. I have made 3 calls and 5 emails to Thai Elite - they can’t help. Apart from having a Thai Elite visa, I also have an APEC card,” he added.

 

Vomitably cringeworthy. 

 

 

long time ago thailand was great place ,fun,cheap easy to get into and stay long time. ,even the sea was clean , a long time ago. ,who can remember  free thai sticks. ,girls provided by 5 star hotels.  ,1970.  ,its got worst year by year lately   , like all animals. have to find new place for migration 

[alphonse]

I am not intending to travel until mid-Dec., but with all these complaints I had a look at it yesterday.

 

It actually seemed quite well presented, although without documentation to submit (flight/hotel booking still to be made) clearly I could only get so far.

 

I have an official (very) UK double-vaxxed certificate, but there is no passport number on it, as would be expected.

 

I note that the Thai Pass instructions say that this document must contain personal information such as home address, password number etc.

 

I take it that the use of the words such as means that not all that personal info. is required, but just some of it and an address, d.o.b, or NHS number suffices (although the latter is probably meaningless to them.)

 

You can always pay cancellation cover when booking a flight just in case there is a hitch with getting the number on time, but the expense of it all piles up repeatedly.

 

I get the impression that the Thai authorities assume that tourists are desperate to come to their self-confessed unique country and are oblivious to the fact that there are attractive alternatives.

 

I need to visit for family reasons, but would think twice about it all if my visit were to be for tourism/holiday purposes only.

Edited November 6, 2021 by alphonse

[LivinLOS]

20 hours ago, NanaSomchai said:

Think of it for a second, if the roles were switched and the tables were turned around, do you really think the Thais (stingy as they are) would fall for a, say "British Elite Visa" scheme? or a "French Elite Visa" program? or a "Belgian Elite Visa" path?

 

There goes the saying: "In Rome, do as the Romans", In Thailand, do as the Thais. The only way to survive in this Kingdom is to be as stingy as they can be.

 

The Thais would never fall for that, why would YOU?

Yeah you just couldnt imagine a Thai who had.. say... a Macedonian investment program passport... 

 

 

[robsamui]

8 hours ago, sikishrory said:

Why is it so hard for Thais to make websites. 

One of the most important websites of the last 2 years.

Their economy banking on it.

They still screw it up.

 

Because in the past they used to bring in teenage students from Singapore to do all their websites and apps.

 

Now it's too expensive and too much hassle for these guys to go over.

[PETERTHEEATER]

21 hours ago, NanaSomchai said:

Did someone go for a pee?

[Citzofwrld2]

Some people are so desperate to get back the fun, life, they had in Thailand that is no more, will never be again, to stay positive, interested in living, they will do anything to enter that illusion again.

[gejohesch]

8 hours ago, sikishrory said:

Why is it so hard for Thais to make websites. 

One of the most important websites of the last 2 years.

Their economy banking on it.

They still screw it up.

 

Correct me if I'm wrong but 3 possible factors come to my mind:

1 - Their education is usually very poor, too much time singing, preparing for shows and sketches, celebrating at any opportunity, and not challenging / questioning. Very short attention span. Note : this is not saying there is lack of intelligence, not at all, this is just an observation on what their environment makes them.

2 - As suggested in messages above, "Customer comes first" is not an accepted concept. In fact, they still seem to think that tourists and other visitors owe them sthg since they are supposed to be so desperate to come to "the centre of the known universe", so the customer - service tables end up being reversed in their minds. That comes in spite of the apparent and ubiquitous "choen khâââ!" invitation and welcome, with a big smile. Great for the façade, that's for sure!

3 - Over confidence leading to work done too quickly. I don't know if that can be generalised, but my observations over the years is that Thais tend to do things on the spur of the moment, immediately and without much thinking about possible snags, consequences etc. Just watch Thais  playing pool : not a second considering possible paths etc, no, immediate shooting the ball. Yes they can get very skilled at it, but it's the approach I'm talking about.

[Chad3000]

API error aside

 

They should have trained up a call center.

 

Moreover, a prescreen process would be helpful as well as CLEAR DIRECTION.

 

Perhaps even another queue for those 21 days out or more. Less urgent.

 

For all the service mind they're supposed to have they've already lost the plot three days in

 

Better yet drop ALL the drama.

[BusyB]

22 hours ago, WhiteBuffaloATM said:

Interesting though that Thai Elite “can’t help”. And 15 Hours Work for T. Pass ? Credible. Took me 40 hours work over two weeks six years ago to prepare / submit for Embassy Retirement Visa……..

Would expect fast track T/ Pass to be part of the TE service though ? Take it that TP only for tourists & non- immigrants ? Not for PR or Citizens……..and T. Pass clearly already a major fiasco about to Fail.

No Way China for example will not somehow be Exempt. Imagine 400k applications instead of 40k.

That last! They're hoping for millions of tourists even without China.

The whole system is a joke. I'm watching calmly having intended a long stay on retirement this winter. But watching this unfold I'm starting to think what's the point? I may just go diving to Egypt instead. PCR test, Vax cert, quick visa on arrival and after a few weeks go somewhere warm in Europe.

We'll see how it pans out but I am not hopeful. This whole mess is utterly pathetic. It's a prime example of what happens when your family of birth or the money your family has decides what job you get. From the lowliest cop to the highest government minister. And when change seems imminent the military steps in and they have no problem massacring their own citizens in order to perpetuate the whole shabby mess.

In the meantime my friends in Thailand get NO support from their 'government' and are destitute. Like millions of others. And no-one, no-one at all in officialdom seems to give the slightest damn - evident with their vaccine 'rollout'. The latest in that saga being Thamassat's 1.5m donated doses being lost. After all who cares about another 750,000 fully vaxxed people? - they're only the peasants after all. The ones that count have all been jabbed.

[robertson468]

9 hours ago, shuffler said:

I found the two main issues when applying for the Thai Pass.

One, convert your doc, s to jpeg. Do not send pdf. 

Two, Do not use Hotmail. Use g mail. 

Once I did that. Got the pass in two hours. 

Hope this helps.. 

But you would have thought that would be clearly stated in BOLD letters at the top of the app.  Oh, I forgot, I'm in Thailand!

[RobU]

19 hours ago, clivebaxter said:

Really how come they have not wrinkled out the bugs in 90 day online reporting online after 5 years?

It seems to me that the Thai mindset is Project based not maintenance i.e. finish the build then move on to the next project do not maintain and do not tweak the old projects. You see this in in buildings and public works where the build is finished then is allowed to deteriorate and collapse, then a new project is announced to replace the last one. This has become more prevalent in the EU with the advent of National Lottery grants and EU grants for projects  but not maintenance. I project that eventually there will be an announcement of a 'New' super dooper website to replace it, complete with new flaws and process errors that will never be rectified until the next website is created with its own new flaws and process errors which will never be rectified. And on it goes...

[Leif Kullberg]

It seam like this Thailand Pass will for many be just a Thailand Pass (over).
When giving a pass on Thailand there r many other destinations that comes to mind.

On the other hand -did anyone think that Thai authority's would have a working app up and running within the 10 days they had after the decision was made?

[VBF]

8 hours ago, spidermike007 said:

Web design is not terribly complicated. A talented designer could create this site, and beta test it, without alot of difficulty. There is no excuse for this failure. 

 

<snip>

Exactly. someone said earlier that "you must expect some bugs on a rollout" 

A few minor bugs yes but a total inability to fulfil the required task in a timely fashion? 

I think not.

[VBF]

8 hours ago, rwill said:

As my office in Ratchaburi likes to say when I ask how come I can't do 90 day online anymore,  "We like to see you."

Is that because they can more easily assess what size your "envelope" should be?

Just wondering...... ????

[VBF]

28 minutes ago, robertson468 said:

But you would have thought that would be clearly stated in BOLD letters at the top of the app.  Oh, I forgot, I'm in Thailand!

But that would only be the case if someone, ANYONE, had thought to test the App on a range of browsers / email types as is common practice in organised testing circles. But as you say, "TIT"

[Bundooman]

21 hours ago, hioctane said:

If you want to do anything the first day, expect some growing pains while the bugs get wrinkled out. It is the nature of all launches. 

Ahh, got it.

Sorry, I didn't realise this was the first day.

Silly me - I thought this started a while ago.

As it's the first day, I'll wait a few days......weeks...... months.... ye- ahh - forget it!

[DaRoadrunner]

10 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

in Thailand nothing can be done online except shopping. For all the rest you need lots of copies and papers to do anything, extension visa, driverslicense, 90days reports and other immigration issues, workpermits, not only for foreigners but for Thais too... Thailamd still far away from the digital era

True, but a Thai is usually happy if you use the right kind of paper, that folding stuff you keep in your wallet works wonders.

 

Another example was on a visit to Tesco. A Thai girl looked most serious, with clipboard in hand.

You had to fill in her Covid form or she would not let you into the shop. It required a name...... "Roadrunner" and a signature...... "Beep Beep!"....... She was perfectly happy with that.

[csmith]

11 hours ago, ikke1959 said:

in Thailand nothing can be done online except shopping. For all the rest you need lots of copies and papers to do anything, extension visa, driverslicense, 90days reports and other immigration issues, workpermits, not only for foreigners but for Thais too... Thailamd still far away from the digital era

Online Banking Apps (Bangkok Bank) …. has been working well for me over the past 2 years … kudos to them!

[Chad3000]

9 hours ago, RobinV said:

a clot

Wha????

[Chad3000]

1 hour ago, DaRoadrunner said:

True, but a Thai is usually happy if you use the right kind of paper, that folding stuff you keep in your wallet works wonders.

 

Another example was on a visit to Tesco. A Thai girl looked most serious, with clipboard in hand.

You had to fill in her Covid form or she would not let you into the shop. It required a name...... "Roadrunner" and a signature...... "Beep Beep!"....... She was perfectly happy with that.

Reminds me 1996 when I was on the Karakorum hwy nearly 4000m+ at times Each post to sign in I saw Vincent Van Gogh, George Washington, et al had all been up the highway before me. Lucky dogs.

Edited November 6, 2021 by Chad3000

[theoldgit]

A couple of unhelpful troll posts removed

[bill hill]

jees-so glad I cancelled my trip to thailand on november 3, at the time main reason was the false promise of no restrictions from november 1 for double vaccinated, but now hearing this too just confirms I should look at visiting another country

[yimlitnoy]

11 hours ago, Purdey said:

As the country powers it’s way to Thailand 0.4 some glitches may happen.

The sad reality is while the tourism industry is willingly destroyed by this government there are so many Thai families that are suffering from this.  Please, Thailand, let the fully vaccinated tourists come to Thailand without any more restrictions or paper work and let the economy recovers.

 

[Kinnock]

13 hours ago, sikishrory said:

Why is it so hard for Thais to make websites. 

One of the most important websites of the last 2 years.

Their economy banking on it.

They still screw it up.

 

Because of the poor standards of English language.  The developer communities for the various systems used to develop Apps operate in English.  Programs such as React Native and Flutter, and most the programming languages have large on-line communities to provide advice and solutions ..... but if you can't communicate effectively in English you cannot participate.

 

Even if they contract out to foreign developers,  they still need to brief them in English.

 

Not only the immigration and health websites are a disaster, commercial sites like Bitkub are also very poor.  This may also explain why K Bank is having another rou d of fraudulent transactions.  The Russian and Nigerian mafias are run ing rings around them.

 

English is the language of the cyber world, so Thailand is suffering because of its poor education system.

[spidermike007]

13 hours ago, Peterphuket said:

I don't believe that's the real reason, the real one I mentioned it already.

Often, things are not what they appear to be in Thailand. More so now than ever, with Covid. 

[PremiumLane]

On 11/5/2021 at 8:19 PM, NanaSomchai said:

This is akin to walking into Tukcom Pattaya buying a cheap phone or cheap accessories and expect any kind of warranty whatsoever.

 

As soon as you've parted with your money, the very minute you walk away from the booth, you now are of ZERO interest whatsoever to the Thais in general.

Except by Thai consumer law you are allowed to return something within 7 days -and funny cos I have never had any real issues with receiving refunds on faulty goods here 

[Reigntax]

Received my Thai Pass approval and QR code last night. Say 5 days.

Was getting concerned that it may have been lost as some here received theirs only a few hours after submitting.

[LoudHailer]

On 11/5/2021 at 6:08 PM, WhiteBuffaloATM said:

Interesting though that Thai Elite “can’t help”. And 15 Hours Work for T. Pass ? Credible. Took me 40 hours work over two weeks six years ago to prepare / submit for Embassy Retirement Visa……..

Would expect fast track T/ Pass to be part of the TE service though ? Take it that TP only for tourists & non- immigrants ? Not for PR or Citizens……..and T. Pass clearly already a major fiasco about to Fail.

No Way China for example will not somehow be Exempt. Imagine 400k applications instead of 40k.

There appear to be NO EXEMPTIONS for Thai nationals or for foreigners with ALL types of valid visas re-entering the kingdom. If you haven’t left Thailand, DON’T, because getting back into the country is a torturous, stressful, and very expensive process. Appalling, whichever way you look at it. And so unnecessary!

[WhiteBuffaloATM]

23 minutes ago, LoudHailer said:

There appear to be NO EXEMPTIONS for Thai nationals or for foreigners with ALL types of valid visas re-entering the kingdom. If you haven’t left Thailand, DON’T, because getting back into the country is a torturous, stressful, and very expensive process. Appalling, whichever way you look at it. And so unnecessary!

yeah thats exactly my strategy. haven’t left Phuket since March 2020. and won’t until my next outside project, maybe January. then wont return until this panic fear <deleted>show is done. thought that approach was “hardcore” until a guy here said he hadnt left Phuket in FIVE YEARS ! he lives a seriously minimized life ( like that Ryan O’ Neal character from “ The Driver”) so it’s credible.perhaps he took that MERS outbreak in 2016 too seriously !!?? ????