DMK immigration

[NanLaew]

I am planning doing a passport shuffle on a short business trip to Ho Chi Minh City later this month. I have a retirement extension in one UK passport that will expire on my day of departure and I wish to re-enter on the 'clean' UK passport and get the ball rolling on obtaining a one-year multi-entry Non O (Thai spouse) at the RTC in Savanakhet after my next overseas business trip.

 

The prices for a r/t using Nok Air and DMK are exceptional value including my domestic r/t compared with my usual routing via BKK and regular carriers. My question is how hard-nosed could the DMK immigration be on seeing I am re-entering within 24-hours, without a visa but having a long history of extension-enabled stays in Thailand on my other passport showing in their database?

 

I have little experience of international in/out via DMK compared with BKK, hence asking for opinions and experiences here.

 

Thanks in advance.

NL

[BritTim]

Don Muang immigration can be tough. However, if you have not been a long stay tourist (you seem to have been on retirement extensions) a visa exempt entry should be no problem.

Edited February 4, 2023 by BritTim

[lamyai3]

Recent entry at DMK (on AirAsia from SGN in November) was straightforward, visa exempt entry after years of retirement extensions on Non O-A visa. They asked how long I was staying and were trying to find a re-entry permit, as soon as I explained I was in the process of changing to Non O and just needed a 45 day entry they stamped me in. 

[JoseThailand]

They usually don't give sh*t to people of retirement age, because they have all the rights to stay in Thailand long-term. Younger folks is a different story.

[NanLaew]

10 hours ago, lamyai3 said:

Recent entry at DMK (on AirAsia from SGN in November) was straightforward, visa exempt entry after years of retirement extensions on Non O-A visa. They asked how long I was staying and were trying to find a re-entry permit, as soon as I explained I was in the process of changing to Non O and just needed a 45 day entry they stamped me in. 

Much the same as my status so I can rest easy...or at least rest easier since the standard rule of 'there are no rules' still applies.

 

Thanks.

[DrJoy]

On 2/4/2023 at 12:22 PM, NanLaew said:

I wish to re-enter on the 'clean' UK passport

They have been fingerprinting all arrivals and departures since a long time.

 

Even with a new PP, your fingerprints remain the same. They can access all your data.

 

However, should not be a problem, as you have done nothing wrong.

[NanLaew]

1 hour ago, DrJoy said:

They have been fingerprinting all arrivals and departures since a long time.

 

Even with a new PP, your fingerprints remain the same. They can access all your data.

 

However, should not be a problem, as you have done nothing wrong.

Yes, I'm not hiding from anything or anyone.

 

They tripped my up on my passport shuffle several years ago at BKK, before the finger printing stuff was installed. I was arriving on the 'clean' one that had been used for visa-exempt entry before without incident. I liked to use them alternately to stop one filling up with stamps faster than the other. The IO had all my history of Marriage and Retirement Extensions on his screen, decided to make a meal of it and called a supervisor. She asked for my other passport (the one with the valid Retirement Extension in it). Then she got all 'fake passport' on me but in the end calmed down and told me I can only use the passport with a visa/extension in it to enter Thailand. If I wanted to use the visa exempt option on the 'clean' passport, they would cancel the Retirement Extension in the other. I didn't argue and put it down to just another one of the things you discover after 14 years of frequent in/outs.

 

TiT

YMMV

[NanLaew]

Not unexpectedly, DMK immigration made a bit of a fuss. After doing the fingers, thumbs and photo bit, I was watching the immigration lady flipping through my half-used 'new' passport for the tenth time when I offered that it was a different passport with no extensions and no visas and I just claiming  a visa-exempt entry. She then asked for my other passport which I said I didn't have. She eventually called not one but two immigration blokes over who were busy herding cats with some Viet tour groups who were getting rowdy. Eventually he led me to the supervisor's desk, an older lady who first asked how long I was staying; about five days. She didn't ask for the other passport but did state again that I can only ever use the one passport for Thailand entry. I told her the other one was full (which it almost is) and the extension had expired hence my making the change. She took my dabs and picture again and she asked where I was going and I confirmed Udon. The stamp I got was the standard for a visa exempt with the flight number and "30-day (45)" annotation.

 

Taking this experience at DMK along with my previous rodeo several years ago at BKK, it appears that the 'front desk' immigration officers are maybe unable to edit/change what they see in the database with regard to passports, hence my being passed over to a more senior officer.

 

Interesting to read of anyone else doing a passport flip at either BKK or DMK (or any other international Thai airport on arrival) these days since there's no such thing as 'standard' rules or common application of the  law when it comes to immigration.

 

BTW, despite being right in front of the big "no pictures" placard, the clown right in front of me in the queue took a flash picture of the immigration lines which was spotted by one of the other immigration ladies about four lines over. She couldn't get the cat-herder's attention but loudly said it was the guy in front of the farang in green (me). Sure enough, the lady handling my line stamped him in but was asking him about taking the picture and pointing at his phone but he was playing dumb. Then she came up against me and I guess her 'bad hair day' kicked off.

[Digitalbanana]

9 hours ago, NanLaew said:

I told her the other one was full (which it almost is) and the extension had expired hence my making the change.

Isn't it easier to keep the pp and extensions up to date, rather than try this 'doing a passport flip'?

 

When I came thro BKK where you can see the IO computer screen on the next queue now they are sitting back to back, everyone as they passed through was showing two or three previous screen images of the same person, presumably from previous visits, almost instantly. The IO databases seem very fast these days.

[NanLaew]

15 hours ago, Digitalbanana said:

On 2/17/2023 at 8:10 AM, NanLaew said:

I told her the other one was full (which it almost is) and the extension had expired hence my making the change.

Isn't it easier to keep the pp and extensions up to date, rather than try this 'doing a passport flip'?

 

When I came thro BKK where you can see the IO computer screen on the next queue now they are sitting back to back, everyone as they passed through was showing two or three previous screen images of the same person, presumably from previous visits, almost instantly. The IO databases seem very fast these days.

The reason I flipped both passports regularly was simply to stop one of them filling up faster and needing replacement. I never managed to get a full ten-years usage out of the regular 48-page UK passport before it would fill up with visas and entry/exit stamps from the many countries I either visit or work in. Having two passports meant I could 'spread the load' and and only need to replace them every nine-and-half years.

 

They told me at BKK several years ago that I could only use the one passport. By doing that, one passport has had five extensions plus associated re-entry permits. So along with entry/exit stamps and a couple of "under consideration" stamps, that's over a dozen pages used up just for Thailand. This passport now has only three usable pages remaining whereas my 'new' one has twenty five totally unused pages.

 

But the big bonus for me is reducing any dealing with Thai immigration to the officer that stamps me in/out. No more local immigration office vagaries, bank letters and address paperchases or hand-drawn maps or home visits or being "under consideration" or arbitrary requests for additional bits of paper or 90-day reports.