Thailand Pass - Its even worse than the COE system.

[RichardColeman]

21 hours ago, Leveraged said:

This really is the stupidest, most insufferable and risky system they could have developed. 

Nonsense - 14,000,000 are waiting in the wings and will do this easily and not be put off  next year ! ????

 

[richard_smith237]

3 hours ago, jojothai said:

Unfortuntely for passport that is not true.

It states they need a photo.

A scanned docment is not a photo.

Been there and had that problem before rejected.

You are deliberately tripping over your own shoelaces. 

 

Take a scan of the Passport and save it to JPEG, make sure it looks ok - its that simple. 

 

This is all thousands of people are doing.

 

The Thailand Pass is a ridiculous enough system without adding our own silliness to it. 

[JustAnotherHun]

Reading about the huge hurdles of the TP (provide jpeg, scan something, read correctly about the processing time and so much more), I ask myself how some posters here can cross a street without being hit by a bus.

[EricTh]

19 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

  2 days later received a rejection for having 2 pages of the medical insurance certificate, one for covid and one for the 50K USD policy.  Was told what was needed in the rejection e-mail.  Contacted my Insurer here in Thailand and they sent me one certificate with both listed on 1 page. 

 

Do we need to have separate Covid and the 50k USD policies? I thought the 50K USD policy would have covered Covid.

 

Which insurance company did you use and how much did you pay? I might need this in the future.

 

[richard_smith237]

22 hours ago, Leveraged said:

Sitting in a hotel in Qatar waiting on my Thailand Pass to be.... Approved? Rejected? Anything? 

 

What an Abomination of a system. With the COE I got pre-approval on the same day, and full approval within 24 hours. Thailand Pass? Im on day 3, waiting.... 

 

Several thousand dollars tied up in tickets and bookings and all the other nonsense needed to get uploaded and now you just have to wait & pray. 

 

What on earth was Thailand thinking when they made this ridiculous system. The fact that your specific flight is tied all thorough your application is the dumbest thing imaginable. It forces you into a specific date with everything booked in advance.

 

This really is the stupidest, most insufferable and risky system they could have developed. 

 

If I dont get anything back today from them, whats a person supposed to do? Re-book your entire trip and try again??? 

I absolutely agree with the Op on this one.... 

 

I received 3 Certificates of Entry and 1 Thai Pass

1 - UK - July 2020 (AQ)- dealt directly with Thai Embassy London, approval took a few weeks - a bit of a faff as no-one really knew what they were doing or exactly what the requirements were. 

2 - Qatar - April 2021 (AQ) - CoE issued within 3 hrs of initial application: Slick system

3 - Qatar - Sept 2021 (Sandbox) - CoE issued within 20 hrs of initial application: Slick system

4 - UK - Nov 2021 (Test&Go) - Thailand Pass an utter nightmare.

 

The Thailand Pass system is heavily flawed - Theoretically its easier and only single phase application (rather than CoE dual phase) with less documents being required for submission. 

However, it just doesn’t work properly. 

 

It's clear that instead of a ‘ground up’ design an interface was repurposed by whichever company was tasked with doing the programming (german company I believe). 

 

 

The reliability and last minute timing of a approval (issuing QR codes) is outrageous and generates and unwarranted degree of stress. 

 

We have some people saying its great, others placed in a panic as they don’t have a response within days of their planned travel, others don’t know how to save a PDF to a JPEG.

 

The system should be streamlined by now and clearly it’s not. 

 

The system is also utterly pointless. What is the point in having to upload all the information when at Check-in for a flight and arrival in Thailand the same documents (Passport, Vaccine Cert, Hotel Booking and Insurance along with the PCR test result) are all checked again ?

 

The system was clearly designed with the idea of simplicity - much like a QR code boarding pass, someone in a position of decision making power deiced it would be cool for anyone travelling to present a ’Thailand Pass QR code' upon check-in and need no other document. 

Then arrival at Thailand, just show the ’Thailand Pass QR code’ to arrival staff who scan it and thats it...

 

But no... at each step all that has happened is the Thailand Pass is an additional document which is checked rather than a document which removes the need to check all the other documents. 

 

The whole Thailand pass system is all so very very utterly pointless if the same document checks continue. 

[ThailandRyan]

2 hours ago, jojothai said:

So you agree it is not a just a short 5 or 10 minutes here or there.

If you follow the threads it is a total of maybe 5 minutes to upload it and submit.  Took no more than 20 minutes to get it all ready.

[ThailandRyan]

5 minutes ago, EricTh said:

Do we need to have separate Covid and the 50k USD policies? I thought the 50K USD policy would have covered Covid.

 

Which insurance company did you use and how much did you pay? I might need this in the future.

 

I am insured here in Thailand as I live here full time.

[richard_smith237]

4 minutes ago, EricTh said:

19 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

  2 days later received a rejection for having 2 pages of the medical insurance certificate, one for covid and one for the 50K USD policy.  Was told what was needed in the rejection e-mail.  Contacted my Insurer here in Thailand and they sent me one certificate with both listed on 1 page. 

 

Do we need to have separate Covid and the 50k USD policies? I thought the 50K USD policy would have covered Covid.

 

Which insurance company did you use and how much did you pay? I might need this in the future.

 

No need for separate insurance documents. 

 

You need just one certificate of cover (1 page) which states you are covered up to US$50,000 

 

Previously the certificate of cover required statement that US$100,000 cover including covid related issues - this amount has been reduced to US$50,000 and the requirements no longer ask that the certificate of cover states ‘cover for covid related issues’ (or something similar), however, there is no harm in having that. 

 

Companies which issue cover - lots of different options from short term cover to long term (year cover). April / VUMI / AXA

 

Pacific Prime are a broker who know the requirements and have been very helpful offering a range of insurance coverage.... [email protected] (this lady was very helpful).

 

 

Ultimately, if you are travelling for a short period of time, travel insurance should also cover you. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

17 minutes ago, JustAnotherHun said:

Reading about the huge hurdles of the TP (provide jpeg, scan something, read correctly about the processing time and so much more), I ask myself how some posters here can cross a street without being hit by a bus.

The street can be crossed.... but it sometimes takes 4-5 days instead of a minute...  

 

Admittedly the hassles I had with the Thailand Pass were in the first week - however, it took my Wife and I 5 days to receive approval (2 days before flight)... we’d made numerous applications and had no idea....  the Thailand Pass threads at the time were full of people facing issues.

 

I am extremely computer literate, no issues prepping the documentation (which I actually had on had for 3 previous Certificate of Entry process)/

 

 

The hurdles of the Thailand Pass are not the documents requirements themselves, that part is extremely simple for all but the extremely computer illiterate - The actual issue is not knowing we will get approval until 48 hrs before travel

 

This is being experienced by many many people, meanwhile others are saying the system is excellent and they received instant approval - as yet there is no rhyme or reason as to how or why some are receiving instant approval and others are not. The theories have been put out there, clarity of JPEG, Clarity of QR codes on vaccine certs etc, origin of Vaccine Cert - but no firm patterns of approval have yet been found.

 

 

 

 

[richard_smith237]

30 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

I am insured here in Thailand as I live here full time.

have you actually applied for the Thailand Pass or been in a situation whereby you have paid thousands for flights and are left unsure if you will receive the pass in time ?

 

Or, do you mean that you have all year round insurance which provides a certificate which is sufficient for the Thailand Pass application process ?

 

Or, you are insurance under Thailand Social Security Scheme ? (i.e. 30 baht scheme - which is not sufficient from the perspective of the Thailand Pass application process)

 

 

[EddieCM]

Quote

44 minutes ago, JustAnotherHun said:

Reading about the huge hurdles of the TP (provide jpeg, scan something, read correctly about the processing time and so much more), I ask myself how some posters here can cross a street without being hit by a bus.

 

Because in Thailand, the hub of road deaths, folk like you or I know how to safely cross a road (or operate a computer, for that matter) but still have to survive incompetent driving skills (and equally incompetent web page design).

 

[Sheryl]

43 minutes ago, EricTh said:

Do we need to have separate Covid and the 50k USD policies? I thought the 50K USD policy would have covered Covid.

 

Which insurance company did you use and how much did you pay? I might need this in the future.

 

You do nto need separate policies.

 

Many, many different insurance policies have been used for Thailand Pass. Some people have used their existing health insurance (I did). Some bought policies from Thai companies. Some used Travel policies from their home countries.

[Sheryl]

5 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

 

Or, you are insurance under Thailand Social Security Scheme ? (i.e. 30 baht scheme - which is not sufficient from the perspective of the Thailand Pass application process)

 

 

The Social Security scheme is entirely different from the so-called "30 baht scheme" and will be accepted by Thailand Pass

[richard_smith237]

4 minutes ago, EddieCM said:

Because in Thailand, the hub of road deaths, folk like you or I know how to safely cross a road (or operate a computer, for that matter) but still have to survive incompetent driving skills (and equally incompetent web page design).

 

I think if we are going to use the ‘cross the road analogy’ then we need an accurate perspective. 

 

The Thailand Pass is like ‘applying for a permission to cross a road’....  to apply for the permission we need to submit 4 documents in JPEG file format, then await for permission which for some may take a week or more for others permission is instant....  

 

Once permission is granted all our documents are checked again before we can step onto the pedestrian crossing. Then when we get to the other side of the road we are not allowed to exit the pedestrian crossing until the original permission slip is checked alone with all the documentation we submitted in the first place. 

 

The Thailand Pass makes a pigs ear of something simple.... 

 

 

 

 

[ThailandRyan]

1 minute ago, richard_smith237 said:

have you actually applied for the Thailand Pass or been in a situation whereby you have paid thousands for flights and are left unsure if you will receive the pass in time ?

 

Or, do you mean that you have all year round insurance which provides a certificate which is sufficient for the Thailand Pass application process ?

 

Or, you are insurance under Thailand Social Security Scheme ? (i.e. 30 baht scheme - which is not sufficient from the perspective of the Thailand Pass application process)

 

 

As I said I am insured year round here in Thailand as it is required for my Non Imm O-A visa extension of stay.  I have also received my QR Code for Thai pass, first time as I said rejected because of two certificates and only one was wanted with both my 50K and Covid listed. 

 

Upon receiving the rejection I called PCH talked with my agent and he sent me one document that covers both. I then resubmitted everything asked for and it took only a few minutes as I have all the documents saved on my phone from where I applied for the Thai Pass with an exemption from Quarantine.  My Thailand pass is good until the 11th of March just in case my many thousands of dollars of First Class tickets with full refund available get changed by the airline.  My Hotel is also booked here and paid for so that when I return I can stay the night, get tested, and then walk to my Condo around the corner.

 

Because of the uncertainty as to how long the process would take I applied while still in Thailand and before I flew to the US for a trip back, first in 2 years.  You can apply 90 days in advance to your trip, be it a return here or a vacation here.

[richard_smith237]

12 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

As I said I am insured year round here in Thailand as it is required for my Non Imm O-A visa extension of stay.  I have also received my QR Code for Thai pass, first time as I said rejected because of two certificates and only one was wanted with both my 50K and Covid listed. 

 

Upon receiving the rejection I called PCH talked with my agent and he sent me one document that covers both. I then resubmitted everything asked for and it took only a few minutes as I have all the documents saved on my phone from where I applied for the Thai Pass with an exemption from Quarantine.  My Thailand pass is good until the 11th of March just in case my many thousands of dollars of First Class tickets with full refund available get changed by the airline.  My Hotel is also booked here and paid for so that when I return I can stay the night, get tested, and then walk to my Condo around the corner.

 

Because of the uncertainty as to how long the process would take I applied while still in Thailand and before I flew to the US for a trip back, first in 2 years.  You can apply 90 days in advance to your trip, be it a return here or a vacation here.

Thanks.... 

 

For those of us in Thailand, applying for and receiving the Thailand before we leave Thailand definitely removes the element of uncertainty particularly if travel dates are known.

 

What of those who travel and need a little flexibility ?... i.e. when I applied for my Thailand Pass the pass itself states ‘arrival date’

 

We (Wife, Son and I) flew in on 8th Nov...  unable to apply for CoE (as per Embassy letter) we went through 5 days of stress and difficulties with the Thailand Pass - it wasn’t a pleasant week - that was just the first week of operation. Clearly the system had not been beta tested.

 

I would have expected the system to have been sufficiently refined by now... it seems not to be the case and ‘luck’ is still an element of the timing of the approval. 

 

I don’t want to have to go through that again when in a remote location with poor internet connection !

[ThailandRyan]

44 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

No need for separate insurance documents. 

 

You need just one certificate of cover (1 page) which states you are covered up to US$50,000 

 

Previously the certificate of cover required statement that US$100,000 cover including covid related issues - this amount has been reduced to US$50,000 and the requirements no longer ask that the certificate of cover states ‘cover for covid related issues’ (or something similar), however, there is no harm in having that. 

 

Companies which issue cover - lots of different options from short term cover to long term (year cover). April / VUMI / AXA

 

Pacific Prime are a broker who know the requirements and have been very helpful offering a range of insurance coverage.... [email protected] (this lady was very helpful).

 

 

Ultimately, if you are travelling for a short period of time, travel insurance should also cover you. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In my case they apparently wanted to see that the PCH policy I have also had covers Covid, as on the first attempt to get my QR code I had submitted a certificate showing the 50K or more USD and a certificate for Covid, ergo they rejected my application.  I submitted both certificates even though it is the same policy because my health insurance Certificate for 50K plus did not show covid was covered, and because that's what I was told was needed when I was doing my initial research prior to applying.  After the rejection as I said I contacted PCH and they in turn e-mailed me the one certificate that outlined I was covered for both the 50k USD and Covid all on one document and is what I uploaded.  

[ThailandRyan]

2 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Thanks.... 

 

For those of us in Thailand, applying for and receiving the Thailand before we leave Thailand definitely removes the element of uncertainty particularly if travel dates are known.

 

What of those who travel and need a little flexibility ?... i.e. when I applied for my Thailand Pass the pass itself states ‘arrival date’

 

 

We (Wife, Son and I) flew in on 8th Nov...  unable to apply for CoE (as per Embassy letter) we went through 5 days of stress and difficulties with the Thailand Pass - it wasn’t a pleasant week - that was just the first week of operation. Clearly the system had not been beta tested.

 

I would have expected the system to have been sufficiently refined by now... it seems not to be the case and ‘luck’ is still an element of the timing of the approval. 

 

I don’t want to have to go through that again when in a remote location with poor internet connection !

 

 

 

 

 

 

My Thailand pass QR page also states my arrival date but if you look at the actual Thai Pass app and input your code it actually shows an ending date, or it did, and now when I check it the ending date is not listed.  Luckily I took a screen shot of it...lol

[richard_smith237]

9 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

My Thailand pass QR page also states my arrival date but if you look at the actual Thai Pass app and input your code it actually shows an ending date, or it did, and now when I check it the ending date is not listed.  Luckily I took a screen shot of it...lol

Theres a Thailand Pass App ??? 

 

Or do you mean when we ‘scan the QR Code’ and it comes up with our vaccine information and ‘issuance date and Expire date’ of the QR code (as pasted in below).

 

 

If the QR Code is valid we can use it multiple times? or one use per-entry ? 

I suspect one entry per pass, but what stops it being used a second time ?

 

While last time I entered Thailand from the UK and was quarantine exempt. 

Next time I enter Thailand it will be from a ’non-green’ country and I will not be quarantine exempt. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[ThailandRyan]

29 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Theres a Thailand Pass App ??? 

 

Or do you mean when we ‘scan the QR Code’ and it comes up with our vaccine information and ‘issuance date and Expire date’ of the QR code (as pasted in below).

 

 

If the QR Code is valid we can use it multiple times? or one use per-entry ? 

I suspect one entry per pass, but what stops it being used a second time ?

 

While last time I entered Thailand from the UK and was quarantine exempt. 

Next time I enter Thailand it will be from a ’non-green’ country and I will not be quarantine exempt. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

OK not an app my mistake I downloaded it to my home screen on my phone.

https://tp.consular.go.th/

 

Yes when you scan the QR code sent it has a until date.  

Edited December 15, 2021 by ThailandRyan

[Colki]

I entered Thailand 1/12 with Thai Pass. For the computer illiterate of which I am one, on booking hotel there was a service where they would apply for TP obo for approx B2,900.

You send all your docs to them in PDF or J.peg format. They will convert to J.peg as required and submit on your behalf. Had TP two hours later. A very efficient worry free service.

[SunsetT]

Email your Thai embassy asking for help. Isnt there also an email provided for help on the Thailand Pass website?

[ThailandRyan]

19 minutes ago, SunsetT said:

Email your Thai embassy asking for help. Isnt there also an email provided for help on the Thailand Pass website?

From the Thai Pass page itself

https://tp.consular.go.th/

 

https://consular.mfa.go.th/th/content/thailand-pass-faqs-2

 

https://medium.com/thailand-pass/where-do-i-contact-for-thailand-pass-support-1636daadc180

 

Edited December 15, 2021 by ThailandRyan

[onekoolguy]

6 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

You still have to get them your documents. So why use them.

They say they can usually get 24 hour approval.

[richard_smith237]

1 minute ago, onekoolguy said:

6 hours ago, ThailandRyan said:

You still have to get them your documents. So why use them.

They say they can usually get 24 hour approval.

Which IMO is BS and marketing to suckers. 
 

I bet they just take your money & documents & go through exactly the same process you would anyway.

 

 

[onekoolguy]

34 minutes ago, ThailandRyan said:

From the Thai Pass page itself

https://tp.consular.go.th/

 

https://consular.mfa.go.th/th/content/thailand-pass-faqs-2

 

https://medium.com/thailand-pass/where-do-i-contact-for-thailand-pass-support-1636daadc180

 

Yes there is an email help link and several phone numbers.

My emails were never replied to and over 2 days could not get any answer on the listed phones.

[ThailandRyan]

8 minutes ago, onekoolguy said:

Yes there is an email help link and several phone numbers.

My emails were never replied to and over 2 days could not get any answer on the listed phones.

As always with Thailands consulates  immigration etc...your mileage may vary....which actually sucks.  I spent many years learning to play the game and even now it's still a crapshoot.

[Knocker33]

I had the same nonsense. Two days before my flight nothing. Tried contacting the numbers given . No answer. Emailed the urgent mail address. Nothing. Ended up calling the Thai Embassy in the UK and it was sorted in 20 seconds. Very stressful  and I don't get stressed. 

[scorecard]

Have you contacted any of the published tel. numbers/e.mail address for enquiries?

 

[Sheryl]

5 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

....

The system is also utterly pointless. What is the point in having to upload all the information when at Check-in for a flight and arrival in Thailand the same documents (Passport, Vaccine Cert, Hotel Booking and Insurance along with the PCR test result) are all checked again ?

 

The system was clearly designed with the idea of simplicity - much like a QR code boarding pass, someone in a position of decision making power deiced it would be cool for anyone travelling to present a ’Thailand Pass QR code' upon check-in and need no other document. 

Then arrival at Thailand, just show the ’Thailand Pass QR code’ to arrival staff who scan it and thats it...

 

But no... at each step all that has happened is the Thailand Pass is an additional document which is checked rather than a document which removes the need to check all the other documents. 

 

The whole Thailand pass system is all so very very utterly pointless if the same document checks continue. 

Exactly.

 

Every single document required to get the RTP QR code is spearately checked by the airline before issuing a boarding pass, and by noto ne but several people on arrival in Thailand.

 

Which means there is a very, very simple solution:

 

Stop the TP QR code step entirely and just require the relevant documents.

 

Problem solved.