Overstay after positive PCR fit to fly test

[Sheryl]

2 hours ago, AKJeff said:

Okay, but the OP says that he was charged for 15 days overstay, not the extra 5.  Also the OP said that he had all the required documents.  That may mean he had the note from the doctor.  I am not sure how you can be sure.  I am only commenting on what was posted.

 

But if you read my post I was commenting on the person that asked "based on what criteria.". That is the criteria, if he didn't have it then maybe he should be charged an overstay.  I don't see how any reading of the OP would imply that he didn't have the documents to prove the 10 day quarantine so a max if 5 days maybe .

 

 

 

There is no getting overstay fine waived based on a note from a doctor, it does nto work that way.

 

What one can get, is a extension of stay, on medical grounds. But the person involved has to request it and fill out the requisite forms at an immigration office, or a friend or relative has to do so on their behalf.

[Mac Mickmanus]

An idea would be to do a self test and then if its positive , go to immigration and get a Covid extension and then get an official test 

[0james0]

5 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

I think I would buy a ATK and test myself to have a little confidence that I would not test positive when the RT-PCR test was done. I might even do 2 ATK tests to be more sure.

ATK's are inexpensive for about a 100฿ at most 7/11's and pharmacies. If someone is short on time, hire a visa agent to expedite the process. For me staying 100% legal is an imperative even if it costs me a few extra ฿ it's worth it for me. Drive legal 100% of the time, and of course maintaining legal visa status 100% of the time. This is a good thread because it helps with maintaining awareness. 

[donx]

Here's my wife's story: 

 

She used ATK tests multiple times before getting an official test to fly back to the US one day before her flight. All self-tests were negative. However, the official antigen test result was positive. This was the last day of her 30 day visa exemption. Although she's Thai, she entered as a US citizen so she knew she needed to extend her stay. She decided to go to immigration that day. She was planning on keeping the test result secret and just self-quarantine, but they tested her at immigration and provided a phone number for her to schedule to be picked up and driven somewhere to be quarantined. Fortunately for my wife, since she is Thai she is quarantining for 10 days without a fee. I assume she received an extension of some sort at immigration, but I don't know for sure or for how long.

[donx]

32 minutes ago, donx said:

Here's my wife's story: 

 

She used ATK tests multiple times before getting an official test to fly back to the US one day before her flight. All self-tests were negative. However, the official antigen test result was positive. This was the last day of her 30 day visa exemption. Although she's Thai, she entered as a US citizen so she knew she needed to extend her stay. She decided to go to immigration that day. She was planning on keeping the test result secret and just self-quarantine, but they tested her at immigration and provided a phone number for her to schedule to be picked up and driven somewhere to be quarantined. Fortunately for my wife, since she is Thai she is quarantining for 10 days without a fee. I assume she received an extension of some sort at immigration, but I don't know for sure or for how long.

I just talked to my wife. She told me she was checked for COVID before entering the immigration building so she never received an extension. I told her she needs to call immigration ASAP.

[Polaky]

7 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

I think I would buy a ATK and test myself to have a little confidence that I would not test positive when the RT-PCR test was done. I might even do 2 ATK tests to be more sure.

Exactly what i did, was also worried because the Insurance expired on the same day.

[Dan O]

On 1/29/2022 at 9:08 PM, Canadian Snowbird said:

This will really help entice the tourists back won't it. Test positive on arrival, get quarantined, miss out on your vacation, plus get charged and fined for overstay because of being quarantined. TAT should put that in their promo's. Amazing Thailand. 

Or people should plan ahead and be prepared for testing positive and all that comes with it. Traveling during a worldwide pandemic and then acting surprised if something goes wrong is there own choice\fault. None of the testing or qurantine practices are a secret, it's all been in the news and media for over a year. granted immigration should not charge overstay that is specifically related to qurantine issue and I think you'll probably see that change quickly. 

[richard_smith237]

9 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

On 1/29/2022 at 8:09 PM, feasantplukka said:

A friend just been charged for overstay 7500bht, spe t 15 days quarantine after Fit to fly PCR came back positive,

That's ridiculous

That could of been easily avoided it he had arranged to apply for a extension of stay at immigration based up being under the care of a hospital or doctor. Most hospital have staff that are familiar with applying for extensions when needed.

What happens IF someone tests positive but have no symptoms and are sent home to isolate for 10 days (or is it 14 days ?)... 

They cannot leave their house. They cannot attend immigration to obtain an extension themselves. 

 

Can they send a family member or friend with their passport to do an extension ?

Will the hospital help even if they are not resident at that hospital but tested positive there ?

 

Still a lot of IF’s....  Proof of a Positive Covid-19 test within a couple of weeks of the onset of over-stay really should be sufficient to void overstay penalties - this is a very clumsy situation. 

[richard_smith237]

16 hours ago, Sheryl said:

There is no getting overstay fine waived based on a note from a doctor, it does nto work that way.

 

What one can get, is a extension of stay, on medical grounds. But the person involved has to request it and fill out the requisite forms at an immigration office, or a friend or relative has to do so on their behalf.

That kind of answers some of my questions above... 

 

It would certainly raise some eyebrows turning up at Immigration to obtain an extension of stay based on medical grounds of testing Covid-19 Positive !!!.....  

[richard_smith237]

9 hours ago, Dan O said:

Or people should plan ahead and be prepared for testing positive and all that comes with it. Traveling during a worldwide pandemic and then acting surprised if something goes wrong is there own choice\fault. None of the testing or qurantine practices are a secret, it's all been in the news and media for over a year. granted immigration should not charge overstay that is specifically related to qurantine issue and I think you'll probably see that change quickly. 

How exactly ?... 

 

What if I am on a tourist visa (or visa exempt arrival) and getting a PCR test tomorrow for Travel on Wednesday, the visa / stamp expires in a day or two.

 

How can I cover my bases ? can I apply for a ‘covid extension’ - just incase I catch Covid and can’t travel ?

Are Covid extensions still being issued ?

 

How can I apply for an extension of stay based on medical grounds which don’t exist yet, and may not (i.e. testing positive) ?

[0james0]

13 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

How exactly ?... 

 

What if I am on a tourist visa (or visa exempt arrival) and getting a PCR test tomorrow for Travel on Wednesday, the visa / stamp expires in a day or two.

 

How can I cover my bases ? can I apply for a ‘covid extension’ - just incase I catch Covid and can’t travel ?

Are Covid extensions still being issued ?

 

How can I apply for an extension of stay based on medical grounds which don’t exist yet, and may not (i.e. testing positive) ?

 

 

 

 

 

Apply for a 30 day extension. If you're short on time, hire an agent.

 

If you're in a jamb and don't know what to do & no answers here, then hire a visa agent or pay the overstay fine. As said in the previous post, be prepared and aware before, don't be lazy about it. You need to read and educate yourself of the laws and rules on your own for the best information and come here to ascertain some clarity.  

[richard_smith237]

8 hours ago, 0james0 said:

Apply for a 30 day extension. If you're short on time, hire an agent.

 

If you're in a jamb and don't know what to do & no answers here, then hire a visa agent or pay the overstay fine. As said in the previous post, be prepared and aware before, don't be lazy about it. You need to read and educate yourself of the laws and rules on your own for the best information and come here to ascertain some clarity.  

Not for me personally...   the situation was hypothetical... as someone here on a 30 day holiday can easily get caught out and not know what to do may be reading this (as per the Op).

 

I agree with your comments ‘don’t be lazy about it’ and 'educate yourself'...    'what if’ has become an ever more present concern with the new normal. 

 

But, if someone were to find themselves caught out by testing positive the day before they are due to fly with a visa expiring on the same day - their options are a little limited.

 

Additionally, Thailand (TAT) has been is going on and on about how its opening up to tourists, no quarantine (erm) etc etc... waxing lyrical about how its planning to attract all these tourists, how numbers may increase etc.... announcement after announcement.....  

...... BUT.... its doing nothing to iron out the creases and fill in the potential pit falls unsuspecting travellers may encounter..... 

.... Thailand is handling this in an outrageously unprofessional and clumsy manner and is highlighting its utter incompetence at ‘decision making levels’.

[donx]

24 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

Not for me personally...   the situation was hypothetical... as someone here on a 30 day holiday can easily get caught out and not know what to do may be reading this (as per the Op).

 

I agree with your comments ‘don’t be lazy about it’ and 'educate yourself'...    'what if’ has become an ever more present concern with the new normal. 

 

But, if someone were to find themselves caught out by testing positive the day before they are due to fly with a visa expiring on the same day - their options are a little limited.

 

 

 

Additionally, Thailand (TAT) has been is going on and on about how its opening up to tourists, no quarantine (erm) etc etc... waxing lyrical about how its planning to attract all these tourists, how numbers may increase etc.... announcement after announcement.....  

...... BUT.... its doing nothing to iron out the creases and fill in the potential pit falls unsuspecting travellers may encounter..... 

.... Thailand is handling this in an outrageously unprofessional and clumsy manner and is highlighting its utter incompetence at ‘decision making levels’.

 

 

 

 

 

 

My wife is Thai so she doesn't know about the immigration issues even though she arrived on a US passport. I'm wondering if having a Thai ID will help her in getting the extension approved without an overstay fee or not. She didn't realize that she needs to contact immigration before she leaves quarantine. I would have told her earlier to contact them, but I assumed when she said she was tested at immigration, that she actually received the extension - or at least alerted them to the situation - at that time. She didn't tell me until today that she was stopped before being allowed to enter the building.

 

She's spent 4 days now in a government provided quarantine hotel. I hope she can sort all of this out. I have her booked to return to the US 14 days after her original flight. They won't let her out of quarantine until she's been there 10 days. I hope she won't be required to wait 5 days after she's out because then I'd have to change her travel plans yet again.

[0james0]

37 minutes ago, richard_smith237 said:

But, if someone were to find themselves caught out by testing positive the day before they are due to fly with a visa expiring on the same day - their options are a little limited.

Absolutely, agree. The overstay fine is not the end of the world, in a way it's a forgiveness fine, a little spanking for not having your affairs in order. Just pay it and move on.

[Jack1988]

Amazing Thailand ????

[ubonjoe]

7 hours ago, donx said:

My wife is Thai so she doesn't know about the immigration issues even though she arrived on a US passport. I'm wondering if having a Thai ID will help her in getting the extension approved without an overstay fee or not. She didn't realize that she needs to contact immigration before she leaves quarantine. I would have told her earlier to contact them, but I assumed when she said she was tested at immigration, that she actually received the extension - or at least alerted them to the situation - at that time. She didn't tell me until today that she was stopped before being allowed to enter the building.

A Thai can apply for a one year extension at immigration without any proof other than that they are Thai.

They might waive the overstay fine at a immigration office. 

[Sheryl]

12 hours ago, richard_smith237 said:

What happens IF someone tests positive but have no symptoms and are sent home to isolate for 10 days (or is it 14 days ?)... 

They cannot leave their house. They cannot attend immigration to obtain an extension themselves. 

 

Can they send a family member or friend with their passport to do an extension ?

Will the hospital help even if they are not resident at that hospital but tested positive there ?

 

Still a lot of IF’s....  Proof of a Positive Covid-19 test within a couple of weeks of the onset of over-stay really should be sufficient to void overstay penalties - this is a very clumsy situation. 

They can get a letter from the hospital that tested them or from the local public health authority (if registered with them) stating that they have COVID and must isolate and cannot travel.

 

A friend or relative can bring this along with their passport to immigration to request an extension.

[MadMuhammad]

On 1/30/2022 at 8:41 AM, talahtnut said:

Optimistic thoughts of daring to return to LOS a dashed again

when reading this sort of news, its like they hate us, the critters

also hate us, had scorpion in the loo, a 12" poisonous centipede

tickle my feet, and a snake under the table, mozzies eating me,

lucky not to get Dengie,    Nah, stuff it, not going back.

 

Evidently you’re not Aussie then ????

[donx]

On 1/31/2022 at 8:05 PM, ubonjoe said:

A Thai can apply for a one year extension at immigration without any proof other than that they are Thai.

They might waive the overstay fine at a immigration office. 

My wife called the immigration office and they said no matter what she's going to have to pay the overstay fine. Since the immigration office is far from where she's staying in Bangkok, she decided to see if she can renew her Thai passport and only show this to immigration on her way out of Thailand.

 

She paid 3,500 baht for an expedited Thai passport delivered on the same day. It's good for 10 years. I don't know if she will only have to show her Thai passport or not, so I told her to plan on having to pay the 7,000 baht overstay fee. If she's lucky enough to exit Thailand with only the Thai passport, then the fee to get an expedited Thai passport will be well worth it.

 

She leaves 7:10 AM February 10 so I should know soon if her strategy to avoid the overstay fee worked. I personally have my doubts.

[donx]

7 hours ago, donx said:

My wife called the immigration office and they said no matter what she's going to have to pay the overstay fine. Since the immigration office is far from where she's staying in Bangkok, she decided to see if she can renew her Thai passport and only show this to immigration on her way out of Thailand.

 

She paid 3,500 baht for an expedited Thai passport delivered on the same day. It's good for 10 years. I don't know if she will only have to show her Thai passport or not, so I told her to plan on having to pay the 7,000 baht overstay fee. If she's lucky enough to exit Thailand with only the Thai passport, then the fee to get an expedited Thai passport will be well worth it.

 

She leaves 7:10 AM February 10 so I should know soon if her strategy to avoid the overstay fee worked. I personally have my doubts.

My wife called from the airport. She used her Thai passport she received yesterday to go through immigration. They asked her how she can enter the US and she told them she has a US passport. She said she entered Thailand with her US passport about a month ago. The immigration officer tried to find her information about her entry into Thailand using her Thai name, but her US passport has a different last name - my last name. Another officer came over to help. As they were looking unsuccessfully, my wife told them she tested positive for COVID but had recently recovered. She asked them if they wanted to see her documents including her US passport, but as soon as she told them she recently had COVID, they didn’t want to see or touch anything else from her. They were so afraid that they just let her enter without her having to pay the 14 day overstay fee. I’m so glad she renewed her Thai passport!

[BritTim]

5 hours ago, donx said:

My wife called from the airport. She used her Thai passport she received yesterday to go through immigration. They asked her how she can enter the US and she told them she has a US passport. She said she entered Thailand with her US passport about a month ago. The immigration officer tried to find her information about her entry into Thailand using her Thai name, but her US passport has a different last name - my last name. Another officer came over to help. As they were looking unsuccessfully, my wife told them she tested positive for COVID but had recently recovered. She asked them if they wanted to see her documents including her US passport, but as soon as she told them she recently had COVID, they didn’t want to see or touch anything else from her. They were so afraid that they just let her enter without her having to pay the 14 day overstay fee. I’m so glad she renewed her Thai passport!

It seems that, just as important as having a Thai passport, was telling the officials she was a Covid-19 risk.

Edited February 10, 2022 by BritTim

[donx]

9 hours ago, BritTim said:

It seems that, just as important as having a Thai passport, was telling the officials she was a Covid-19 risk.

Yes, you are absolutely correct! If she didn't tell them that she had recently recovered from COVID-19, I'm sure they would have taken her US passport and found that she had overstayed 15 days. Having the Thai passport allowed her time to "play dumb" about when she arrived in Thailand.

 

When she arrived at Narita airport in Tokyo, she said they had a random check at the gate where a man came to ask her how long she stayed in Thailand. She answered honestly - 45 days - and explained that she tested positive for COVID-19 the day before her scheduled departure. She said he checked many people. She doesn't know why he was checking, though she guesses that maybe he wanted to know how many people had COVID-19. I don't think she knows what organization he represented.