Must Read Thailand starts checking foreigners' passports on domestic flights

[arick]

3 hours ago, bangkok19 said:

The queues when checking in at Chiang Mai Airport are long and slow most mornings...  I'm sure having Airline staff sniffing through your Passport (as opposed to an Immigration Officer) will extend the delays even further.

There is no queue going in Chiang Mai anymore you must be kind of confused it was like that 6-8 years ago but it isn't like that anymore. 

[jacko45k]

2 minutes ago, arick said:

Thai driving license are non-tight ID card is sufficient to check into a hotel all the hotel has to do is know your name and your date of birth. To register guest online if they even do that. 

No, the hotel is obliged to submit a TM30 in your name. So a passport likely needed.

[Skipalongcassidy]

On 1/18/2024 at 6:54 AM, bkk6060 said:

I have never had to show my passport for a domestic flight.  My Thai drivers license has always been sufficient.

And it still is...

[arick]

2 minutes ago, jacko45k said:

No, the hotel is obliged to submit a TM30 in your name. So a passport likely needed.

You don't need a passport to do a TM 30 online you just need the passport number you do not need to have a physical passport you just need the passport number the person's name and their date of birth. I do it regularly online so I should know. 

[jacko45k]

4 minutes ago, arick said:

because your passport number is on your driving license

Mine isn't.... I got a new passport since.

[arick]

1 minute ago, jacko45k said:

Mine isn't.... I got a new passport since.

Good for you keep your mouth shut. I doubt if any hotel even does a TM 30 online anyway. Maybe the question should be when is the last person some hotel has not accepted the tide driving license when you check in. 

Edited January 19 by arick

[jacko45k]

Just now, arick said:

You don't need a passport to do a TM 30 online you just need the passport number you do not need to have a physical passport you just need the passport number the person's name and their date of birth. I do it regularly online so I should know. 

I am not talking about you doing your own TM30 online, go back and read it again!

[Bday Prang]

1 hour ago, ezzra said:

I'm implying sir, that one never knows who's on the flight sitting next to you, and where do you get the assurances that idiots

only fly international routs ?

My main concerns would be being sat next to a potential suicide bomber or a family with a screaming kid,  These concerns are not addressed by airline staff checking whether names have been spelt correctly, or whether somebody is an overstayer, which  amazingly does not concern me in the slightest.  I am sure there are potentially idiots on all flights and sadly there are no assurances (neither did I say there was) 

[Skipalongcassidy]

3 minutes ago, Bday Prang said:

My main concerns would be being sat next to a potential suicide bomber or a family with a screaming kid,  These concerns are not addressed by airline staff checking whether names have been spelt correctly, or whether somebody is an overstayer, which  amazingly does not concern me in the slightest.  I am sure there are potentially idiots on all flights and sadly there are no assurances (neither did I say there was) 

So in your brain the people doing the checking cannot do more than that... you know... multitasking is possible.

[Bday Prang]

9 minutes ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

So in your brain the people doing the checking cannot do more than that... you know... multitasking is possible.

So in your brain relatively junior airline staff should have access to international databases regarding terrorism and would become the first line of defence regarding such matters. As well as checking for minor spelling mistakes and overstay status.    Get real..They are nothing more than receptionists and bus conductors

[mokwit]

21 hours ago, Jenkins9039 said:

That's what they did in our countries lol

Not quite. They made a police state for the indiginous people who complained and let the immigrants do what they want.

[gomangosteen]

46 minutes ago, arick said:

 

Driving license renewal you need to show them your passport because your passport number is on your driving license that's why a Thai driving license is sufficient enough for using on an airplane or at a hotel because your passport number is on your driving license so if there's any problem they can pick up the phone and give them your passport number and they can find out everything about you from immigration. 

Not in all cases.

 

My new drivers licences car and motorcycle issued 15 December 2023 feature the ID number from my pink non-Thai ID Card - not my passport number as per previous licences.

[sandyf]

16 hours ago, BusyB said:

I agree with your sentiment. I wasn't whinging. I was merely pointing out the gargantuan illogic of this 'policy' if it was actually aimed at overstayers. It would have required a Herculean organizational effort with chaos at check-in counters, or have been utterly ineffective as regards the stated aim.

You would have to explain the difference from hotels checking passports at check in.

I am fully aware of how hotels operate but it is not that long ago immigration reminded hotels of the "policy".

In 15 years I have taken many overnight train journeys and for every booking had to show my passport.

ID has to be checked, whatever form it takes, so I fail to understand the determination by some to make a mountain out of a molehill.

[Mansell]

Slightly different issue. When I went to Bangkok Bank to get Social Security money from USA, they wanted to see my visa extension and wouldn’t give me MY money…..I’ve capped that because it is MY money….told me I would have to go to immigration and resolve the issue.

it turned out immigration had stapled two pages together so that resolved the problem. This was something new and the first time this issue came up.

Now the banks are getting in on the act….what that has to do with them I have no idea.

[Highlandman]

23 hours ago, huangnon said:

Maybe it depends on which airport you're using.?

 

Flying from U-Tapao airport a few years ago, the woman checking us in on a Bangkok Airways counter insisted that we show the passport for our son who has dual Thai / UK nationality..

Because he's under 7 and therefore has no other ID except for a birth certificate. A Thai passport is easier to carry around than a birth certificate. 

[Highlandman]

1 hour ago, Skipalongcassidy said:

And it still is...

 

Ok. Hopefully it is, and not only for those who've lost their passports with a police report.

 

The problem with news stories like this in Thailand is they rarely present the facts concisely or explain, like in this case, what, if anything is being done differently to previously?

 

I remember seeing the signs at Suvarnabhumi airport on the types of documents acceptable for domestic flights for both Thai and non-Thai passengers when I last walked past there a few months ago (I don't fly domestic, which I'll get into, in a separate post).

 

The sign said, for non-Thai passengers, a passport or equivalent document, Thai driver's license or non-Thai ID were acceptable documents. 

 

In the past, one could sometimes get away with showing a foreign driver's license or national ID card as well. 

 

I guess that boastful guy on the Thai visa Facebook forums, Steve Smythe from Australia, who has lived in Thailand for more than 23 years and refuses to apply for a Thai driver's license, boasting he can show his Australian state issued license instead, will either have to show his passport from now on or if he has it in him to apply for a Thai driver's license, finally get that done.

Edited January 19 by Highlandman

[Highlandman]

The first source I read reporting on this was Malaysia's The Star. Curious, I read the article, but came back more confused than ever. They seemed to claim that Thai passengers had the option of presenting student ID cards and national ID cards for international flights, which is sheer nonsense.

 

Foreign authorities neither accept, nor are they interested in any documents, which isn't a passport. Therefore, a passport (or an equivalent such as a UN certificate of identity) are the only acceptable documents for international travel for both Thai and non-Thai passengers. A part of me couldn't help but think this was another attempt by the Thais to try and separate foreigners and Thais, but all it likely was a very poor translation from the original Thai language article and thus a misunderstanding. 

 

Personally, I no longer fly domestic, since I purchased my car several years back. Thailand is a small country and with almost all flights operated on a hub and spoke system through Bangkok, flying domestically isn't practical unless you are a tourist from overseas or a Bangkok resident wishing to fly to a major tourist destination with flights from Bangkok such as Phuket, Krabi, Samui, Chiang Mai or Chiang Rai. Most of the few so called "cross-country" flights that don't involve flying into Bangkok first are operated by low cost Air Asia or Vietjet Air. The only full service carrier to operate a small number of cross country flights such as Samui-Chiang Mai is Bangkok Airways. 

 

As such, domestic air travel is of no interest to me.

 

My main domestic destination is rarely one where I can fly into and even when I do head to one, I'd need a car to get around. Flying and then renting a car comes out to be much more expensive and inconvenient than just doing the driving myself from start to finish, not to mention I usually don't limit myself to just one destination which happens to have an airport. Quite often I'm doing a triangular route and forget about flying when I'm traveling with family or business associates. Too expensive, too impractical and frankly unnecessary. 

 

That's why this change (if it is indeed a change) doesn't affect me. However, I can't help but think IF they really no longer accept Thai driver's licenses or pink ID cards unless your passport is lost (again, this may be a misunderstanding and it could be they still accept them unequivocally) not to mention a lot of workers from Lao, Cambodia and Myanmar don't have passports or full passports but do have non-Thai ID cards, it's not a good sign of things to come. I can't see airline check in agents NOT accepting pink ID cards from this large cohort of workers who generally don't travel around with a passport.

 

I know that in Myanmar and China, I'm in a police state, as in those countries they've always required foreigners to present passports for train and air travel (although in China some other equivalents may now be accepted too) but thought Thailand was a little more free.

 

Now it seems like that claim can no longer be made. Besides, in China, there is definitely no check of your visa status made for a domestic train or flight. In fact, even on the international train to Laos, they're not checking your visa or stamps as you board in Kunming. That's done only at the border itself and is thus the travelers responsibility. 

 

In Myanmar though, on domestic flights they do check your passport and entry stamps/visa both upon check in and when arriving at a domestic airport. This is also done at certain checkpoints within the country if traveling by land, especially in border areas. Of course things are even tighter now with the civil war having expanded since the coup and some of these areas are inaccessible. Foreigners are no longer allowed to fly to Lashio or Tachilek unless they present a difficult to obtain permit.

[Highlandman]

1 hour ago, Mansell said:

Slightly different issue. When I went to Bangkok Bank to get Social Security money from USA, they wanted to see my visa extension and wouldn’t give me MY money…..I’ve capped that because it is MY money….told me I would have to go to immigration and resolve the issue.

it turned out immigration had stapled two pages together so that resolved the problem. This was something new and the first time this issue came up.

Now the banks are getting in on the act….what that has to do with them I have no idea.

Banks have been checking visa stuff for years at least in my experience. They simply want a photocopy of your latest entry stamp to show you're in the country legally.

[Highlandman]

2 hours ago, arick said:

 

Driving license renewal you need to show them your passport because your passport number is on your driving license that's why a Thai driving license is sufficient enough for using on an airplane or at a hotel because your passport number is on your driving license so if there's any problem they can pick up the phone and give them your passport number and they can find out everything about you from immigration. 

Correct.

 

This works even if the drivers license has an old passport number on it. 

 

A few years back I went to a New Years event at government house in Bangkok. This was on New Years Eve I think.

 

Everyone but small children had to present some sort of ID.

 

Foreigners had the option of showing a passport, pink ID or driver's license.

 

I showed my drivers license. They were able to check my immigration status using the old passport number, linking it to the new one just from my Thai driver's license alone. I was then cleared for entry. No issues whatsoever.

[Highlandman]

2 hours ago, arick said:

So nothing has changed accept the scaremongering title of this article.

''or with a non-Thai ID card or a driver's license issued by the Thai government''

So I just keep using my mom Thai ID card! 

 

The only thing that might have changed is they definitely no longer accept foreign national ID cards or drivers licenses.

 

They must now be Thai issued or if foreign issued, only a passport is recognized. 

 

That being said I thought that had already been the case for a while now.

[Highlandman]

3 hours ago, Etaoin Shrdlu said:

 

Many countries actually accept a Thai DL without an IDP since Thai DLs use English. I think most people don't bother to get an IDP unless they are going somewhere that requires one.  

 

Some car rental companies in the US insist on an IDP because there are several states that won't accept a foreign DL without an IDP even though the US is signatory to the 1949 Geneva Road Traffic Convention. Not being legal in one of those states could possibly void the rental car's insurance, so it is potentially a big issue. 

 

What a rental agency and the police accept are often two different things.

 

While you might be able to rent a vehicle with just a Thai DL,an IDP might be needed for the police or insurance purposes in case of an accident. 

[Highlandman]

19 hours ago, Neeranam said:

A few years ago, I flew Air Asia and showed my newly minted Thai ID card to board. 

I was the only white guy and after the safety procedure talk, the hostess came up to me and started saying it in English. I said I had already heard it and she said by law she had to repeat it in English as I was a foreigner. She was very embarrassed when I whipped out my ID card. Maybe she just wanted to speak to me but first I've ever heard about such a law. 

 Don't all domestic flights automatically have Thai and English announcements? I've never heard of any airline in Thailand only making Thai language announcements. 

 

In China, yes. All announcements on a recent domestic flight were in Chinese only and the pilot never speaks to the passengers, which I don't like. 

 

The safety announcement does have an automated version in English but the cabin attendants never speak anything but Chinese (they're probably able to speak English if you address them in English though). 

 

For me no problem, my Chinese is good enough to understand most of what was said. 

[Neeranam]

57 minutes ago, Highlandman said:

 Don't all domestic flights automatically have Thai and English announcements? I've never heard of any airline in Thailand only making Thai language announcements. 

 

In China, yes. All announcements on a recent domestic flight were in Chinese only and the pilot never speaks to the passengers, which I don't like. 

 

The safety announcement does have an automated version in English but the cabin attendants never speak anything but Chinese (they're probably able to speak English if you address them in English though). 

 

For me no problem, my Chinese is good enough to understand most of what was said. 

No English announcements if all Thais on board.

[quake]

On 1/18/2024 at 9:33 AM, ChaiyaTH said:

Have to beg for a visa and extensions, then do 90 day reports, then now also pay tax, and then now also not trusted anymore to not fly without a passport due to overstayers. Oh yeah and while we are on it, we also take your weed away. LOL.

 

They love us all, so Mut.

[puck2]

On 1/18/2024 at 8:44 AM, retarius said:

Yet another totally unwarranted intrusion into the lives of ex-pats living in Thailand. Has there been an incident where using a passport, instead of a driving license say, would prevent a hi-jacking or a Thai 9/11. Maybe someone could enlighten me, because I haven't seen or read about such an incident. 

Another minor inconvenience, own top of all the bureaucratic nonsense and paperwork. 

It would be very useful to sort out the foreign criminals  - maybe!

[Jackbenimble]

23 hours ago, Hakuna Matata said:

 

The so-called "Pink ID Card" was originally introduced in Thailand for people without any citizenship who don't have a national passport.

 

Now this "Pink ID Card" is widely abused by foreign criminals and fugitives who have found a safe heaven in Thailand.

 

It's high time to cancel this dubious practice.

They are predominantly used by the Immigrant work force, why do the criminal fraternity use them?  

[Highlandman]

3 hours ago, Neeranam said:

No English announcements if all Thais on board.

 

That doesn't make sense. It's Thailand not China. Granted I've never flown Air Asia but years ago I flew domestic routes with few or no other foreigners and they would always make announcements in Thai and English.

 

I thought that was a CAAT rule.

[Highlandman]

On 1/18/2024 at 6:44 AM, jacko45k said:

You are going to need it for something at your destination so makes sense to carry it, as required!

No, it's not unless you're renting a self drive car or need to go to the bank at your destination.

 

For hotel check in you can use a driver's license or photocopies of your passport and relevant visa pages (although hotels generally no longer photocopy anything other than the information page these days from personal observations).

[Highlandman]

On 1/18/2024 at 10:49 AM, Tropicalevo said:

They are not new rules.

They were first brought in when a bomb was found on the plane that Thaksin was about to  board. It was under his seat.

Before then, no checking of passenger's id for domestic flights.

AND you could carry guns as long as you discharged the weapon into a barrel of sand just before check in.

https://english.cambodiadaily.com/news/bombing-of-thai-pms-plane-bewilders-visiting-officials-20287/

https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB983784572920287408

Seems hard to believe a foreigner could board a Thai domestic flight without showing ID prior to that date. 

[Highlandman]

On 1/18/2024 at 7:19 AM, KhunLA said:

So nothing has really changed.   But really ... Who would leave their province without their passport ?

 

... "or with a non-Thai ID card or a driver's license issued by the Thai government."

Leaving their province without these documents, no big deal lets say someone drives you somewhere. Traveling by air without these documents? No, that would be foolish.