How Do The Thai Authorities Keep Track Of Tourist Visa Entries

[mynextgig]

Apologies if this has been covered previously.

I currently come in and out of Thailand on 30 day tourist visa's, which i believe will allow me to stay upto 90 days within a 6 month period with a maximum of 30 days per stay.

Whilst this currently suits me, i do need to keep track of my visits and time spent in Thailand as i will probably come close to the limit.

So how is this tracked by the Authorities, is it 90 days including the partial day's when arriving and leaving and is it within 6 calendar months or 176 days ?

Any help would be appreciated.

[lopburi3]

It is 90 days in a six month period. Day of entry/exit count and if you return the same day it counts again as entry.

These are not visas - but are 30 day visa exempt entries.

[mynextgig]

Ok, so where is the information on your entry and exit lodged ? Does anyone know of any issues where the authorities have disputed an individuals entry and exit dates ?

[Maestro]

On each arrival in Thailand an immigration officer stamps the date in your passport and the same is done on each departure. He also enters the dates in the computer. With all dates stamped in you passport there is no room for disputes, but it is advisable that you check to see if the correct date was stamped in your passport every time you go through an immigration checkpoint.

In addition, the dates are also written by you and stamped by the immigration officer on the arrival and departure cards and these are stored at the immigration office for a certain period.

--

Maestro

[Maizefarmer]

A partial day, or part of day is counted as 1 day (i.e. if you enter at 23h59min on any day, that would be day 1 despite you only having entered a minute before the end of the day)

How do the authorities keep track of indiviudal entries and exits? - thought I read recently somewhere that, excepting a few rural points used by local folk, the system now "real time" computerised.

[scyriacus]

i understood, although this is law, it is not enforced anymore. the problem is manyfold: 1. especially in bangkok there were huge queues, coz the counting took too long. 2. there were many arguents, when this ominous 6-month-period starts and restarts after you've left the country. i've been rejected (f**ked) twice, coz of misinterpretation of these 'rules', but since about february this year it appears they have stopped counting. i do regular visa runs since 1999 and would really like to obey to the laws of this beautiful country, if only someone could explain them to me.

[Hardie]

Of course the system is computerized. No one sits there with a calculator, and the six months refers to the six months immediately prior to any individual entry. Unfortunately it's subject to wide interpretation within their own ranks and can mean three entries rather than ninety full days. I get busted on that at Chiang Mai airport, fourth entry within six months, though not nearly ninety days. If one day later that first entry would have been more than six months past, so nice lady gave me one day to leave the country and I crossed the border again the next day at Tachilek. Welcome to Thailand.

The moral of the story: count entries, not days, and max out each entry.

[digitalchromakey]

Of course the system is computerized. No one sits there with a calculator, and the six months refers to the six months immediately prior to any individual entry. Unfortunately it's subject to wide interpretation within their own ranks and can mean three entries rather than ninety full days. I get busted on that at Chiang Mai airport, fourth entry within six months, though not nearly ninety days. If one day later that first entry would have been more than six months past, so nice lady gave me one day to leave the country and I crossed the border again the next day at Tachilek. Welcome to Thailand.

The moral of the story: count entries, not days, and max out each entry.

There is definitely no limit to the number of visa exempt entries that you can make, just a maximium of 90 days stay in a 6 month period.

If you are less than 30 days before that 90 limit, immigration should give you a Permission to Stay on your stamp dated when that number of days are spent.

So in your case how many days had you actually been in Thailand for the 6 months ending the day you entered?

[Lancashirelad]

Of course the system is computerized. No one sits there with a calculator

quite correct. They were using fingers, thumbs & anything else to hand at Swampyboom.

and the six months refers to the six months immediately prior to any individual entry. Unfortunately it's subject to wide interpretation within their own ranks and can mean three entries rather than ninety full days. I get busted on that at Chiang Mai airport, fourth entry within six months, though not nearly ninety days.

Well this is wrong. You can enter 44 times in 90 days if you wish (Though somebody might, understandably, ask why).

Did you ask for the supervisor?

If one day later that first entry would have been more than six months past

If you knew that, why not plan to delay your arrival by 24 hours?

so nice lady gave me one day to leave the country and I crossed the border again the next day at Tachilek. Welcome to Thailand.

The moral of the story: count entries, not days, and max out each entry.

wrong.

Whatever you do, do it thoughtfully, and kept in mind the goal.

[ChiangMaiMike]

Does anyone know of any issues where the authorities have disputed an individuals entry and exit dates ?

Seems I recall a fellow that had a big problem with an altered entry date... He changed it by a few days to avoid overstay problems. He was arrested and thrown in prison and died. I believe he claimed nobility and was perhaps Italian. I think something like $12,000 had been paid to spring him too...

[NowImEasy]

A bit off subject, but let me ask this one. Suppose a fellow has dual citizenship (2 passports, neither Thai). Would this fellow be able to get a visa for 90 days on one, and then leave and re-enter with a 30 entry permit on the other? Would the lack of entry/exit stamps from other countries in the second passport cause a problem?

This fellow would like to spend 4 months in LOS, and I suppose this subject has been covered many times, but what would one suggest?

[lopburi3]

With air travel it can be done - but not normally at land crossings.

[PhilHarries]

I haven't seen this covered recently but does anyone know if the fixed six month window is still being applied.

If a person enters Thailand on January 1st on a visa exempt and stays 15 days and then repeats this in April again for 15 days. His six month window is up June 30th and he is well within the 90 day limit. But if his next visit starts 20th June does he get stamped in for 10 days or the maximum permitted 30 days?

I know just after the new rules started a few people got caught by this particular twist and had to do a visa run to get the additional days in the next 6 month window. I've not heard it mentioned for a long while so has it just been officially deleted or just quietly forgotten to be resurrected at the immigration officer's whim?

I ask this as I am on an 11 on 2 off rotation and spend every leave period in Thailand so with two leaves pitched approximately 3 months each I could fall foul of this rule.

[tonybuxton2]

quite a number of us have two passports, what if we used a different one each time. we should be able to stay twice as long?

Apologies if this has been covered previously.

I currently come in and out of Thailand on 30 day tourist visa's, which i believe will allow me to stay upto 90 days within a 6 month period with a maximum of 30 days per stay.

Whilst this currently suits me, i do need to keep track of my visits and time spent in Thailand as i will probably come close to the limit.

So how is this tracked by the Authorities, is it 90 days including the partial day's when arriving and leaving and is it within 6 calendar months or 176 days ?

Any help would be appreciated.

[ubonjoe]

-The computer system will get you using two passports. Unless you have two passports with different names.

It's a total on 90 days over a period of six months. It doesn't matter how many entries you make. Just so the total does not go above 90 days. The 6 months start on your first entry. A partial day counts as a entire day.

Enter on Jan. 1 the new 6 months start on 1 July.

Edited October 6, 2008 by ubonjoe

[astral]

-The computer system will get you using two passports. Unless you have two passports with different names.

Really.

I doubt it, especially if you have a common name, say John Smith from the UK.

However they may link the two since they now take photos as well, but I do not think

they will be running face recognition sw on every Visa Exempt arrival.

Far too much processing and real time would be needed.

The immigration queues would be more horrendous than they already are.

[jdinasia]

i understood, although this is law, it is not enforced anymore. the problem is manyfold: 1. especially in bangkok there were huge queues, coz the counting took too long. 2. there were many arguents, when this ominous 6-month-period starts and restarts after you've left the country. i've been rejected (f**ked) twice, coz of misinterpretation of these 'rules', but since about february this year it appears they have stopped counting. i do regular visa runs since 1999 and would really like to obey to the laws of this beautiful country, if only someone could explain them to me.

If you really want to obey both the spirit and the letter of the laws, get a real visa. With a visa (even a tourist visa) there is no need to count days or entries etc.