Misled by phishing email (was £10,000 for a tourist visa now?)

[kennw]

On 8/22/2023 at 4:57 PM, FritsSikkink said:

Her Amphur is talking nonsense, no need to change to maiden name at all.

Unless there has been a recent change the law said she cannot own land if she is married to a non Thai. The law was originally brought in to stop Chinese buying up land by marrying a Thai lady.

[DrJack54]

9 minutes ago, kennw said:

Unless there has been a recent change the law said she cannot own land if she is married to a non Thai. The law was originally brought in to stop Chinese buying up land by marrying a Thai lady.

Show proof of that claim.

[Farma]

29 minutes ago, kennw said:

Unless there has been a recent change the law said she cannot own land if she is married to a non Thai. The law was originally brought in to stop Chinese buying up land by marrying a Thai lady.

The law you refer to no longer exists. It was changed maybe 20 years ago.

Thais married to foreigners are free to buy land.

[Sigmund]

3 hours ago, Vibora99 said:

Just raising this is a waste of time for the forum. I would recommend you go to a psychologist in order to get rid of the victim syndrome. Raising stupidities when the solution is to buy a ticket and fly and when you arrive they will give you a stay for 30 days, and then you renew it for another 30 days, and then you fly to Vietnam and return and they give you another 30 days… Stop wasting money time for others...

How long must one stay in Vietnam on flying out, before comming back ?

[natway09]

Strike out 0 out of 3.

You do not need 10,000 quid for a tourist visa.

Your marriage certificate should be fine regardless of name as long as they match passports & her ID card.

Very surprised about the land office giving very bad advice.

I have dealt with them 5 times in the last 12 months & they could not be more helpful 

& explaining things correctly.

Their advice to your wife is just absolute rubbish & has been for at least 14 years

Are you sure your wife is "relaying" the truth ?

 

[BritTim]

6 hours ago, MangoKorat said:

Should have said before, until you get this sorted, go to Ho Chi Minh and get a 12 month Multi Entry Non O there - no financials required

Financials are now required at HCMC. The only consulate providing multiple entry Non O without financials now is Savannakhet

[thaiscot]

I did 2 e-visa's from London but they were 1 year non o visa visas based on marriage  as I have a thai wife & Daughter  & they need you to show £10k in a bank account before receiving  the visa so maybe you have been mixed up with that

[BritTim]

2 hours ago, thaiscot said:

I did 2 e-visa's from London but they were 1 year non o visa visas based on marriage  as I have a thai wife & Daughter  & they need you to show £10k in a bank account before receiving  the visa so maybe you have been mixed up with that

No. The phishing email was worded in such a way that it is clear that the scammer (along with not knowing his name) were unaware of the visa type being applied for. All they have is the list of email addresses of those applying for visas. 

[FritsSikkink]

18 hours ago, kennw said:

Unless there has been a recent change the law said she cannot own land if she is married to a non Thai. The law was originally brought in to stop Chinese buying up land by marrying a Thai lady.

Absolute nonsense, that was an old law which doesn't exist for a long time already.

My wife has quite a few plots while married with me and has my family name.

[FritsSikkink]

19 hours ago, alex8912 said:

What is the difference between number 3 and 4? Can you send the same copy of accommodation twice? 

3 is a plane ticket.

[MangoKorat]

15 hours ago, BritTim said:

Financials are now required at HCMC. The only consulate providing multiple entry Non O without financials now is Savannakhet

Has that been reported in a post? If so, what amount are the requiring?

[MangoKorat]

20 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

Bit off topic ...

Any guys married to Thai national and want to enter visa exempt 30 day stamp and wish to maximize stay....do it as a 30+ 30extension + 60 extension to visit wife.

In that order. 

 

Outlined here in short thread with ubonjoe post 

https://aseannow.com/topic/1276780-60-day-extension-to-visit-spouse-and-family/

Not arguing with you but that would conflict with my experience a few years back. I was a regular visitor and for a few years did so using a 12 month multi Non O based on marriage.  However, I only stayed for 2 weeks each trip and thought "why am I paying for a visa every year when I only stay 2 weeks.  When my visa ended I started entering on 30 day exempts.

 

My trips were usually every 8 weeks.  After a few trips the I.O. looked through my passport and asked me why I had not renewed my visa and was I still married. I explained that I only stayed 2 weeks and didn't need then 90 days per visit that the MENO gave me.  I was told in no uncertain terms that visa exempts are for tourists - as my trip was to visit my wife, I was not classed as a tourist and I should get a visa or be denied entry next time.

[DrJack54]

43 minutes ago, MangoKorat said:

Not arguing with you but that would conflict with my experience a few years back.

It depends on how often you enter visa exempt.

For example previously some oil gas guys on month on month off roster were using visa exempt entries ongoing.

Immigration will eventually tell them to get appropriate visa..

[ewelve]

Well after another day nof being ignored on the phone i got an email from the Embassy.

Lets get this clear .

1. I applied for a Multiple entry Tourist visa. 

2.The Embassy website says 60,000 baht has to be shown for this visa

3 I have checked and rechecked that i did not make a mistake like applying for the wrong visa.

4 I sent copies of two accounts i hold, my everyday UK bank account with around £4,000 and my Thai account with 320,000 baht in it.

5. this equates to around 460,000 baht more than the 60,000 baht required

6. I received an email asking for another £10,000 proof of funds in my savings account  (Email contents already printed previously on here)

7. after 3 days of calling i got no answer.

8 last night i sent an email to the Embassy asking if the email address and request was genuine because i was advused it was a compromised address and it was a phishing scam.

9. today eventually got an email back from Embassy which did NOT tell me if the address was a scam one or not but asked me to send details of another £10,000 to this new email address.

10. this email address is [email protected] as below.

11. I have absolutely no idea why i have had to show a total of 910,000 baht for a Tourist visa does anyone else?

12.I have now sent another email asking why i need to show so much when their own website asks for 60,000.

I will update you guys when i get an answer, this is so bizarre, its just off the scale crazy

<[email protected]>

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To:

[ewelve]

On 8/23/2023 at 3:26 PM, natway09 said:

Strike out 0 out of 3.

You do not need 10,000 quid for a tourist visa.

Your marriage certificate should be fine regardless of name as long as they match passports & her ID card.

Very surprised about the land office giving very bad advice.

I have dealt with them 5 times in the last 12 months & they could not be more helpful 

& explaining things correctly.

Their advice to your wife is just absolute rubbish & has been for at least 14 years

Are you sure your wife is "relaying" the truth ?

 

Mate i asked first if anyone could help then it got so as it was a warning to others, so why the insults? My wife isnt the problem it was the Amphur's office, the boss there just wasnt being a nice guy at all. The thread was about the £10,000 extra wanted even though they had 460,000 baht proof all ready and the website sys you need only 60,000 baht

[BritTim]

3 hours ago, ewelve said:

Well after another day nof being ignored on the phone i got an email from the Embassy.

Lets get this clear .

1. I applied for a Multiple entry Tourist visa. 

2.The Embassy website says 60,000 baht has to be shown for this visa

3 I have checked and rechecked that i did not make a mistake like applying for the wrong visa.

4 I sent copies of two accounts i hold, my everyday UK bank account with around £4,000 and my Thai account with 320,000 baht in it.

5. this equates to around 460,000 baht more than the 60,000 baht required

6. I received an email asking for another £10,000 proof of funds in my savings account  (Email contents already printed previously on here)

7. after 3 days of calling i got no answer.

8 last night i sent an email to the Embassy asking if the email address and request was genuine because i was advused it was a compromised address and it was a phishing scam.

9. today eventually got an email back from Embassy which did NOT tell me if the address was a scam one or not but asked me to send details of another £10,000 to this new email address.

10. this email address is [email protected] as below.

11. I have absolutely no idea why i have had to show a total of 910,000 baht for a Tourist visa does anyone else?

12.I have now sent another email asking why i need to show so much when their own website asks for 60,000.

I will update you guys when i get an answer, this is so bizarre, its just off the scale crazy

<[email protected]>

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To:

Based on the information you have sent me, it looks very much as though you are using the scammer's email address to try to communicate with the Royal Thai Embassy in London. That is a very bad idea.

 

As I have informed you earlier, I cannot investigate without seeing the raw message as it was received by Microsoft. A regular forward does not contain all the information about how the message was transmitted from the original sender to Microsoft which is critical to any meaningful investigation.

[ewelve]

1 hour ago, BritTim said:

Based on the information you have sent me, it looks very much as though you are using the scammer's email address to try to communicate with the Royal Thai Embassy in London. That is a very bad idea.

 

As I have informed you earlier, I cannot investigate without seeing the raw message as it was received by Microsoft. A regular forward does not contain all the information about how the message was transmitted from the original sender to Microsoft which is critical to any meaningful investigation.

I am in no doubt now that if this is indeed a scam its coming from inside the Embassy. I emailed them last night with the official email address on the Embassy website and got an email today without my name in the title asking for my bank details again that i had already sent last night directly to the Thai Embassy so how did the scammers know i had sent an email unless they had access to the Embassy emails.

I know im an old duffer but im slowly with help from Brit Tom working this out.. Going to police tomorrow have already  stopped my bank accounts. Both banks advised me to contact action fraud and something called CIFAS because although they cannot now get anything from my accounts they have all the information available to open up accounts in my name. Another thing that was pointed out to me is any Embassy contacted with information of a possible leak in security would be on the blower pronto but nothing at all from the Thai Embassy which the banks say is a massive red flag.

Also i have never got an answer from the Embassy for the need of collectively of 910,000 baht proof of funds when it says 60,000 baht on the web site. I just cant get through to the Embassy on the phone its impossible ive tried solid for 3 days.

If anyone knows an emergency number for them please let me know  

This is the web address i used to apply for the visa im sure it the true one yes? 

https://www.thaievisa.go.th/dashboard

 

This is a copy of what i got today

Sent: 22 August 2023 09:55
To: <redacted>@hotmail.com <[email protected]>
Subject: Request for Further document

 

Dear Applicant,

 

Visa application on hold. Please email the following document(s) to [email protected], quoting your passport number on the email subject title. - Your recent UK/Ireland bank statement, showing your name, address, and a minimum closing balance of £10,000 (Do not send the screenshot) or pension statement.

 

*Please note this is an auto generated e-mail. Please do NOT reply to this email.

 

Best wishes,

E-Visa Team

Edited August 24, 2023 by BritTim
Redacted part of the email address

[BritTim]

29 minutes ago, ewelve said:

I am in no doubt now that if this is indeed a scam its coming from inside the Embassy. I emailed them last night with the official email address on the Embassy website and got an email today without my name in the title asking for my bank details again that i had already sent last night directly to the Thai Embassy so how did the scammers know i had sent an email unless they had access to the Embassy emails.

I know im an old duffer but im slowly with help from Brit Tom working this out.. Going to police tomorrow have already  stopped my bank accounts. Both banks advised me to contact action fraud and something called CIFAS because although they cannot now get anything from my accounts they have all the information available to open up accounts in my name. Another thing that was pointed out to me is any Embassy contacted with information of a possible leak in security would be on the blower pronto but nothing at all from the Thai Embassy which the banks say is a massive red flag.

Also i have never got an answer from the Embassy for the need of collectively of 910,000 baht proof of funds when it says 60,000 baht on the web site. I just cant get through to the Embassy on the phone its impossible ive tried solid for 3 days.

If anyone knows an emergency number for them please let me know  

This is the web address i used to apply for the visa im sure it the true one yes? 

https://www.thaievisa.go.th/dashboard

 

This is a copy of what i got today

Sent: 22 August 2023 09:55
To: <redacted>@hotmail.com <[email protected]>
Subject: Request for Further document

 

Dear Applicant,

 

Visa application on hold. Please email the following document(s) to [email protected], quoting your passport number on the email subject title. - Your recent UK/Ireland bank statement, showing your name, address, and a minimum closing balance of £10,000 (Do not send the screenshot) or pension statement.

 

*Please note this is an auto generated e-mail. Please do NOT reply to this email.

 

Best wishes,

E-Visa Team

My suspicion is that the Royal Thai Embassy London no longer has control of the domain thaiembassyuk.org.uk. I think it is now under the control of the scammers. Usually, there should be email addresses [email protected] and [email protected] that I could contact to discuss this issue. Neither of those email addresses exists.

 

You are receiving the scam emails through an application called Taximail (https://www.taximail.com/th/home) which obviously would never be used to communicate with visa applicants.

 

I believe the scammers are operating in Thailand, though they are using a server from Amazon in Singapore.

 

I am a bit rusty in these kinds of forensic investigations. Anyone who is an expert in this area, if you send me a PM, I will be happy to share the raw emails with you (assuming the OP agrees with me sharing some sensitive data with you).

[TheAppletons]

Awesome job, BritTim.

Edited August 24, 2023 by TheAppletons
Typo

[Jaggg88]

On 8/22/2023 at 4:51 PM, TTSIssues said:

You can download a pdf statement of your account and print that. It’s certainly not illegal in the UK to have paper statements.

 

as for the need to have £10k to get a visa, can’t help you but sounds ridiculous 

I agree, as my bank let me download and print pdf of my account. The last 3 times I've applied for my non O e-visa the online application says I need £10,000 in my bank but this is a typo as I been granted my visa every time and never has 10k in my bank. Who on earth do they expect would keep 10k in their current account?

[BritTim]

9 hours ago, ewelve said:

Going to police tomorrow have already  stopped my bank accounts. Both banks advised me to contact action fraud and something called CIFAS because although they cannot now get anything from my accounts they have all the information available to open up accounts in my name.

The banks are giving you good advice.

 

I suggest you educate yourself about Identity Theft, the techniques scammers use to achieve it, and the consequences it can pose for you. A particular worry is that they might get credit cards using the information you have given them, and end up ruining your credit rating. This is almost impossible to recover from.

 

CIFAS has decades of experience in these matters, and can hopefully prevent serious consequences (though it may well mean more stringent scrutiny when you want to carry out financial transactions).

 

Please keep us informed about the actions taken by the police.

[ewelve]

12 hours ago, BritTim said:

My suspicion is that the Royal Thai Embassy London no longer has control of the domain thaiembassyuk.org.uk. I think it is now under the control of the scammers. Usually, there should be email addresses [email protected] and [email protected] that I could contact to discuss this issue. Neither of those email addresses exists.

 

You are receiving the scam emails through an application called Taximail (https://www.taximail.com/th/home) which obviously would never be used to communicate with visa applicants.

 

I believe the scammers are operating in Thailand, though they are using a server from Amazon in Singapore.

 

I am a bit rusty in these kinds of forensic investigations. Anyone who is an expert in this area, if you send me a PM, I will be happy to share the raw emails with you (assuming the OP agrees with me sharing some sensitive data with you).

Absolutely Tim, so the application and the money are now in the wind yes? Wow what a state of affairs when you cant contact an Embassy after telling them their site and security is maybe compromised but if as you say the scammers have control thats the reason. I know this bud i am safe now with the banks just because of you.

[FridgeMagnet1]

If you log into the Evisa website, what does it say the status of your application is?

Edited August 25, 2023 by FridgeMagnet1

[Maestro]

Removed a troll post and the reply to it.

[Liverpool Lou]

On 8/23/2023 at 7:22 PM, alex8912 said:

On 8/22/2023 at 5:03 PM, FritsSikkink said:

• 3. Travel booking confirmation
• 4. Proof of accommodation in Thailand, e.g. Accommodation bookings, invitation letters from family/friends in Thailand
•  

What is the difference between number 3 and 4?

Maybe (3) is an air ticket confirmation, you know travel.

[Liverpool Lou]

On 8/23/2023 at 8:14 PM, kennw said:

Unless there has been a recent change the law said she cannot own land if she is married to a non Thai.

Your statement is incorrect.   There was a change but it sure wasn't a recent one.

Edited August 27, 2023 by Liverpool Lou

[lopburi3]

40 minutes ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Your statement is incorrect.   There was a change but it sure wasn't a recent one.

The land ownership issue was never a law AFAIK - it was a Land Office policy to not register land to wife of foreigner because there was no way to exempt this from being 50% property under Thai marriage laws.  A few years ago they adopted a signed paper procedure that money used belonged 100% to Thai so land bought would not be joint property.  The death inheritance transfer issue is taken care of with a rule that property must be sold to a Thai within one year of Thai owners death.

[BritManToo]

1 minute ago, lopburi3 said:

The land ownership issue was never a law AFAIK - it was a Land Office policy to not register land to wife of foreigner because there was no way to exempt this from being 50% property under Thai marriage laws.  A few years ago they adopted a signed paper procedure that money used belonged 100% to Thai so land bought would not be joint property.  The death inheritance transfer issue is taken care of with a rule that property must be sold to a Thai within one year of Thai owners death.

The signed paper means nothing.

We have a mortgage and every payment has come from my account.

I guess they could claim the deposit was hers, but that is only 10% of the house cost.

[lopburi3]

You obviously already gave that money to your wife or it is from her share of your account under joint property. That letter says so.  It is an exercise to make it possible to register the land for a Thai married to a foreigner.  Suspect most expats welcome the change allowing wife to take their name and register land.

[Liverpool Lou]

22 hours ago, lopburi3 said:

23 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

Your statement is incorrect.   There was a change but it sure wasn't a recent one.

The land ownership issue was never a law AFAIK

I never said that it was.