17 hours ago, Artisi said:

Looks like good bye overnight visa runs - oh! what a bummer for some people. 

at the same time, I also am read the Europen expat forums and they too are getting more and more problems with staying away from their home countries; as well too I get a regular email from Digital Nomad and they too mention that the doors are closing to many of those previous nations begging for retirees.   Japan is inundated with tourists so is considering a 3000yen  exit fee .  Some European countries also tired of tourists.  World is changing just about everywhere it seems IMHO.

1 hour ago, hotchilli said:

I guess the border run jaunts will slow down.

I took a trip to Seoul last week, at the CM airport, the first IO didn't understand what an LTR visa was so he sent me to the senior most IO there.  He and another senior IO checked my PP and then the only thing they ever asked was why I had not left Thailand for so many years.  I answered that my family is Thai so they then stamped my P/P out and on I went to Korea.  I also had all the necessary extensions for many years and TM.30 was uptodate as I do whatever is necessary to satisfy the immigration folks.  Thanks to the LTR that is now pretty easy to do.

  Here is my situation.  I live in a bordering country. I take two flights two times a year to the Philippines where I have a lifetime visa. 

By far the best flight is a transfer in BKK with separate airlines. This results with a "self transfer" and necessitates exiting immigration and immediately re-entering immigration. 

This means 4 boarder crossings (back and forth twice) whilst never leaving the airport. 

This means I need I need to get a multiple entry visa?????

1 hour ago, MalcolmB said:

 

Thanks largely to the Israelis and Russians.

Now we are all getting dragged down with them.

 

Thanks a lot.

 

   Thanks indeed .

This board is  99 % in favour of these clampdowns .

A genuine thanks to the Israelis 

While inconvenient, Thailand must keep misuse and exploitation in check. Foreigners will naturally try to get by with as little hassle as possible but the few bad apples makes this necessary.

1 hour ago, crazykopite said:

If that’s the case they will have to compensate all those who paid for that particular visa I’m on an O visa have been for many years why they can’t offer a five year multi entry visa at a reasonable cost is beyond me 

 

Hard to say. All that visa actually is in real terms is a 6 months grant of entry with multiple entries until it expires within 5 years. People have read in to it that this means de-facto residency for 5 years. 

 

Consider what happens if you follow that to its logical conclusion. YouTubers or drop shippers who have 500k baht in their home bank account can now live in Thailand for the rest of their life doing a border run every 6 months and buying a new visa every 5 years. Boom de-facto residency. Who really thinks Thailand will allow that?

 

The reason they make you leave after 6 months is so they can leave open the possibility to decline your reentry every 6 months. If it weren't for that it would essentially be a Non-O visa. If they really wanted people who take a cooking class to live in Thailand for 5 years they would issue a Non-O with a 5 year entry.

17 hours ago, KimchiCurry said:

Next is the DTV. Too many abuse and possibly used by scammers as it's too easy to get it. Just wait a few months....

It's over guys.

I’m on a DTV and agree!

 

5 years for remote work is ok but with minimum income. I’d say at least equivalent of 65k per month (same as retirement) but 130k would be better - younger people should be doing more!

 

Soft power should be separate. Maybe 1 year renewable if reason ongoing.

 

Hope they don’t throw the baby out with the bath water and cancel it completely.

 

13 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There is no ban on alcohol sales.    

 

Not anyone can captain a boat, they have to be licenced.

Are you for real??  Do you live in Thailand???  2pm to 5pm sales of alcohol are banned. FACT.

 

And you think that it is hard for a Thai to get a boat licence?  It is easier than getting a car licence in the sticks. 

If you don't have a visa ....... How can it be visa abuse?

6 hours ago, it is what it is said:

 

excellent news. keep the 60 days exempt entry, but stop the abuse, visa exempt is for tourists, not people staying long term. there are plenty of visa options for people who want to stay long term.

I dont like the 60 days exempt - that is the cause of the problems mentioned.  The vast majority of Tourists only stay for 7-15 days and the 30 days Visa exempt (with extension) is more than enough.  Plus the big problem is that Visa exempt was only for selected countries - now they are giving it to most countries (China being the worst abusers) - all in the name of chasing the tourist dollar. 

Finally, I support this new policy.   I hope it is enforced!

3 hours ago, MalcolmB said:

I did contemplate including them but it is a little more complicated.

Its the hormones hes taking to change himself into a Jewish girl like his avatar. Lets celebrate his change

Meanwhile the most questionable new people I came across in recent times all have DTV or illegal business setup visas.

Sometimes one think he is dreaming with this crazy ever repeating cycle of the same half assed laws and rules on every possible end (visa, alcohol, weed, poker etc etc).

 

Or to first sell off islands and allow anything to then blame foreigners that run a business when tourism in general is down a bit.

 

The fact they even think it solves it while it only makes it worse, is a joke too.

 

Or the fact a foreign child enrolled in a cheap billingual school gets a foreigner a year visa hassle free while one with a thai child needs 400k and not get the same visa.

 

I could go on and on.

2 hours ago, NorthernRyland said:

Consider what happens if you follow that to its logical conclusion. YouTubers or drop shippers who have 500k baht in their home bank account can now live in Thailand for the rest of their life doing a border run every 6 months and buying a new visa every 5 years. Boom de-facto residency. Who really thinks Thailand will allow that?

 

I remember a lot of people thinking that on this forum. Some even let their retirement extensions lapse and went for what they thought was the cheaper five year visa. Big mistake.

Criminals will always find a way so these changes will only slightly inconvenience them. The only people affected will be genuine tourists and Thais whose living depends on tourism 🤨

fantastic, hit the below 50 suckers where it hurt

Thailand could raise it's ICE force just with all the wannabe National Tourist Policy makers here.

 

"They should ban her" They should ban him" "Anyone who (perfectly legally) stays here cheaper than me" "Anyone with a lifestyle different to mine >> Ban Them!!"

 

Bunch of crusty old wannabe policemen without a happy life of thier own looking out at the big wide wonderful world thru thier narrow mean little eyes. 

24 minutes ago, GanDoonToonPet said:

Criminals will always find a way so these changes will only slightly inconvenience them. The only people affected will be genuine tourists and Thais whose living depends on tourism 🤨

It's so cliche by now, there is some foreigners who do need to be addressed indeed, but then they just go full out nazi and hating on foreigners staying here long-term, while in the same time claiming they are desperate for more and better spending tourists..

 

I used to stop going to bars as it became nonsense but it now infected many restaurants already too. I slowly start to wonder what I am still doing here as I essentially live the lifestyle of the west by now (cooking home, staying home etc etc). Irony is that I earn much more nowadays but their behavior, lack of service and quality, makes me spend less than when I arrived over a decade ago.

 

Many tourists do the same too, they just eat mostly from 7/11 and Tops as the selection is decent enough to live off that for 2-3 weeks. But of course Thais would never point a finger towards these shops. It's like they promote Vietnam for free while injecting millions of dollars in TAT campaigns.

Last but not least many very rich Thais are heavily invested in Vietnam since years.

All of these activities are usually done with police support. The crackdown is on those who don’t want to pay bribes. 

21 minutes ago, NoMoonLogistics said:

"They should ban her" They should ban him" "Anyone who (perfectly legally) stays here cheaper than me" "Anyone with a lifestyle different to mine >> Ban Them!!"

I noticed that lately down south a lot, suddenly people who stay here 'long term' are the cause of their bad economy while the long stayers are keeping things afloat. When I asked them how they come to such conclusions they refer to social media.

28 minutes ago, John Drake said:

I remember a lot of people thinking that on this forum. Some even let their retirement extensions lapse and went for what they thought was the cheaper five year visa. Big mistake.

 

The Elite visa people must be working the background too. In the past anyone under 50 that had an online business and wanted to live in Thailand had to pay them but now there's a backdoor which is good enough for most people and a fraction of the cost. That must have totally eaten in to their profits and they must be upset.

3 hours ago, AAArdvark said:

  Here is my situation.  I live in a bordering country. I take two flights two times a year to the Philippines where I have a lifetime visa. 

By far the best flight is a transfer in BKK with separate airlines. This results with a "self transfer" and necessitates exiting immigration and immediately re-entering immigration. 

This means 4 boarder crossings (back and forth twice) whilst never leaving the airport. 

This means I need I need to get a multiple entry visa?????

No they would see you never stay long so that is no problem at all, worst case they might ask you it to double check.

Why not start with banning israeli's, ukranians, russians and indians from getting 60 day on arrival to then see is drastically improves in no-time and also attracts the nice tourists to come back to Thailand again. 

4 hours ago, mikeymike100 said:

Or stop altogether??

Imagine you go to, say Cambodia, for a 'visa run' and Thai immigration won't let you back into Thailand? You are stuck?

Just happened to a friend. Flew to Cambo on November 3. Wanted to use one of the major easy entry agents to reenter this week. Agent told me Cambo is "hot" right now and even they cannot insure reentry. 

2 hours ago, robert2 said:

While inconvenient, Thailand must keep misuse and exploitation in check. Foreigners will naturally try to get by with as little hassle as possible but the few bad apples makes this necessary.

Necessary for what, after all the fk ups over the past 10 years (the nonsense started back in 2015 with visa crack downs, a year after the coup), they will end up with only much more empty hotels, less rented real estate and more empty activities, restaurants and bars as a consequence. Shops are done since ecommerce exist already too, so what will actually be left at that point? Just the beaches and national parks essentially.

 

We all know they know too, and after a crackdown round they will start from 0 again to allow everyone in. Same with selling land on islands. Most people arrested for working illegal etc in recent weeks news down south, were all released the same day to continue. Try the same thing in Chiang Mai and you would be blacklisted for 10 years or life as well deported.

36 minutes ago, NorthernRyland said:

 

The Elite visa people must be working the background too. In the past anyone under 50 that had an online business and wanted to live in Thailand had to pay them but now there's a backdoor which is good enough for most people and a fraction of the cost. That must have totally eaten in to their profits and they must be upset.

not that i need it anymore, but what is this backdoor beside education visa ?

Just been speaking to  UK guy in Laos .

He intended to get a guaranteed same day entry back into Thailand yesterday ,

The agency cancelled the arrangement yesterday   and now he's got to stay in Laos

"Authorities have identified several misuse cases, prompting the launch of enhanced immigration measures."

 

Tourists aren't welcome here. Nor are refugees who have escaped scam operation in Myanmar or Cambodia.

16 minutes ago, mordothailand said:

not that i need it anymore, but what is this backdoor beside education visa ?

 

The DTV is the backdoor, at least under the assumption it's really 5 years of back to back entries. Sure no banking and you need to do visa runs but that's still good enough for most people. 

2 hours ago, TroubleandGrumpy said:

16 hours ago, Liverpool Lou said:

There is no ban on alcohol sales.    

 

Not anyone can captain a boat, they have to be licenced.

Are you for real??  Do you live in Thailand???  2pm to 5pm sales of alcohol are banned. FACT.

Are you?    Yes, I live in Thailand.   That is not "a ban on alcohol sales", it is a restriction during very limited hours.