3 hours ago, 007 RED said:

At present the reports indicate that this has only happened at Phuket, I suspect, however, that if this is successful as it has been in a couple of reported instances immigration may well introduce this facility at other international departure airports.  Watch this space.   So overstayers may well face being picked up at the airport prior to getting anywhere near to immigration and paying their fine in the future.

 

I don't buy your explanation. It's not impossible that this is what actually happened in Phuket, but rather far-fetched and thus implausible.

 

One of those arrested was sent off to a police station in Krabi, so a much more likely explanation than yours is that those arrests were the result of arrest warrants being executed when suspects attempted to leave the country. That they were (also) on overstay just gave immigration an extra reason to pat their backs.

On 11/10/2023 at 5:35 PM, Deserted said:

I told him that but because he has a wife here he kinda sees Bangkok as home. There must be ways to get out of the country, fake stamps at the border and so on. I think he could get out if he put his mind to it but I am not sure he could get back in though.

 

Generally getting out of one country requires entering another country. Sneaking out of Thailand across a border will mean illegal entry into another country (a serious offence in that country to add to his legal issues in Thailand). I guess if he is a good swimmer, and can get good faked stamps in his passport, he might be able to turn up somewhere claiming to have been shipwrecked (if looking for a script for a good movie). However, in the real world, the Thai authorities will be contacted, and his lack of a legal departure from Thailand will be discovered. It is not 1970 any more.

Anyone one who can overstay while walking around in floral shirt with beer in one hand in plain sight should not be punished.  This is immigration's failure to police it.  Its just embarrassing.

On 11/11/2023 at 5:34 AM, impulse said:

 

When I first arrived in 2011, there were some guys who simply paid the 20,000 baht maximum overstay fine every Christmas to visit the family back home and flew right back to Thailand after the first of the year.  $600 once a year was cheaper and more convenient than 12 land border jumps (which was also legal back then, unlike the 2 a year limit today).  Seems like it was right after the coup that all ended.  I ended up buying a couple of bicycles, 2 scooters, a pickup truck and a kayak, all on Bahtsold from expats who had to leave when their particular loophole slammed shut.

Thanks for the Bahtsold reference.    I had been on the website a couple of years ago, but lost the bookmark.  

Flash in the pan or a new policy, time will tell I suppose; anyway, it was always a risky strategy, get picked up before you hit the airport, and your screwed.