Passport Stolen In Argentina. What About The Thai Visa I Had In It?

[Wonderboy]

As I write this it is Saturday evening here where I am on holiday in Argentina to visit my family (I am from Norway though). Two days ago I left Chile after a wonderful week. When I was there I used the opportunity to get a dual entry tourist visa at the Thai embassy in Santiago. I was lucky to escape the earthquake with just one day, but not so lucky on the Argentinian side of the border. Stopped at a restaurant high up in the Andes mountains where somebody broke into our car and stole among other things my passport. This is just an unbelievable problem for me. Closest embassy is in Buenos Aires and I am now in Mendoza close to the border of Chile, so it is very far away. After two weeks in Argentina, I will go to Norway, where I will stop over for just one night, and then go to Thailand.

So now I have this huge headache. Have to travel more than 2000 km back and forth to the Norwegian embassy in Buenos Aires, lose my holiday and spend shitloads on travel and hotel instead of staying free with my family. If I am lucky I might get a proper passport before I leave, but more likely I will only get a temporary passport valid for the trip back home. That means I will miss my onwards flight to Thailand, and in any case my tourist visa is gone.

Looking at the best case scenario, I will get a proper passport and catch my flight to Thailand. But I will get there with only a 30 day visa on arrival which is to short. Is it possible that I somehow, somewhere can claim my lost visa back? Guess not, but doesn't hurt to ask....

Wonderboy - Or was it Loserboy?

[Jingthing]

In the case that you do get a proper passport instead of an emergency travel passport, there is a Thai embassy in Buenos Aires where you can easily get a tourist visa there. They speak some English there, but won't issue it the same day, apply one day, come back the next.

http://www.thaiembargen.org/contactos.php

Edited February 28, 2010 by Jingthing

[lopburi3]

I would also not count on boarding a flight from Europe without a visa if you do not have an onward ticket within 30 days. It will be up to airline if allowed. I would delay trip until a visa can be obtained if not important reasons for rush.

[IsaanAndy]

Lose passport and you unfortunately lose all your visa's and have to reapply for them.

Whatever you do, make sure you get a police report as invariably most places you need to reapply to will require one.

[YanTree]

That sucks man. I would guess you could go back to the embassy that issued the Visa and get a new one - though that sounds like the least of your problems at the moment.

Hope you learned a valuable lesson though. When traveling, your most valuable possession is your passport - unless you happen to have a backpack full of 500 euro notes. Keep it with you at all times or locked up in a 100% secure place. Inside your car in some random place in South America is not a place I would consider 100% secure - though I've never been to Argentina.

Good luck.

[BangkokHank]

First of all, don't give up yet on getting your original passport back. Visit the nearest police station and see if anyone has turned it in. Sometimes thieves will dispose of everything else but the cash and, if you're lucky, maybe someone will find your passport and turn it in to the police. It's a long shot, but not impossible.

Also, you don't really have to spend a lot of money to travel to and stay in Buenos Aires. Argentina has the most comfortable buses in the world and a night bus from Mendoza to Buenos Aires is not very expensive. There are also nice but cheap hotels in Buenos Aires, as well as some very nice and cheap all-you-can-eat buffet restaurants.

So your best bet is to get yourself to the Norwegian Embassy in Buenos Aires, get a new passport, then go to the Thai Embassy there and get yourself another visa - and try to enjoy your stay in that lovely city. The weather should be perfect there at this time of year.

You might try telling the Thai Embassy what happened and perhaps they;'ll be able to check with their Santiago Embassy and verify that your visa was issued there. Then they might be able to give you a replacement for free.

[Jingthing]

Yeah, its up to the Norway embassy whether they issue a passport that can take visas or not. It sounds like a real horror story. I am sure everyone reading this wishes you good luck to solve your big problems. If its any consolation, just got an email from the brother of a good friend living in Chile and although he survived the hotel he was in was destroyed, his girlfriend and baby's house was destroyed, and he can't get to them because the roads are out, and also no petrol to be found for his car. So you were lucky to get out of Chile, look on the bright side.

Edited February 28, 2010 by Jingthing

[Wonderboy]

Thanks a lot to everybody who replied. it is really nice to see all the people who come forward to assist a total stranger. Now it is Monday morning, and I have finally been able to contact the embassy. A new passport takes 3 weeks to make and is such out of the question. Still they can issue an non machine-readable emergency passport in just one day. Normally such a passport only lasts for the journey back home, but can last longer for a journey onwards. From what I know the passport must be valid for at least 6 more months for entry into Thailand, so I hope I can get that and that Thailand accept an emergency passport (I believe US does not).

If anyone is interested to know, buses to Buenos Aires costs about 2000B each way, and takes about 15 hours. As somebody mentioned, it can become an interesting trip, but I will have to manage without Spanish speaking assistance. Not sure how that will work out... So yes, have to look at things on the bright side. Weather is nice, Argentina is an interesting country and I got away from the earthquake unharmed. Things could have been much worse, and from here on I will guard my passport like my life depends on it. I had forgotten to take it out of a small backpack I left in the trunk of the car, and paid dearly for that.

Finally, was quite surprising to go to the police station to report my passport stolen. Went there Sunday and the place looked totally deserted. Was then directed to another police station because I was in the wrong jurisdiction. Same story at the next place. Nobody there. Not even in the reception. Had to knock on the door for quite a while before somebody opened. With so much crime evident, why no people reporting?

WB

[BangkokHank]

I didn't mention it before because it's really not relevant to your situation, but Mendoza, Argentina happens to be my favorite city in the world! If I could get myself and my stuff there from Bangkok (and get some kind of long-term visa), I'd relocate in a heartbeat.

Cordoba, Argentina's second largest city, located between Mendoza and Buenos Aires, is also worth a visit if you have time. Actually I found most of Argentina wonderful. Except for the loss of your passport, I envy you being there. So do try to enjoy it.

And finally, regarding your question: "With so much crime evident, why no people reporting?" Perhaps that's why there's so much crime: Because the police are nowhere to be found!

[Wonderboy]

I didn't mention it before because it's really not relevant to your situation, but Mendoza, Argentina happens to be my favorite city in the world! If I could get myself and my stuff there from Bangkok (and get some kind of long-term visa), I'd relocate in a heartbeat.

I can really understand your point of view. In general Mendoza is very cheap, mostly almost on par with Thailand. It is a decent size city, but yet with a small town feel to it. Streets are really wide with trees on both sides. Lot's of outdoor restaurants and cafe's. You can enjoy really cheap, quality steaks with redwine without getting tormented by terrible traffic and sweltering heat. The language is a lot easier to learn, visa is easier to get (6 months free on arrival), climate better and women prettier. I like Thailand too, has some good things going for it, but who knows, maybe I settle down here myself one day...

WB

[BangkokHank]

I didn't mention it before because it's really not relevant to your situation, but Mendoza, Argentina happens to be my favorite city in the world! If I could get myself and my stuff there from Bangkok (and get some kind of long-term visa), I'd relocate in a heartbeat.

I can really understand your point of view. In general Mendoza is very cheap, mostly almost on par with Thailand. It is a decent size city, but yet with a small town feel to it. Streets are really wide with trees on both sides. Lot's of outdoor restaurants and cafe's. You can enjoy really cheap, quality steaks with redwine without getting tormented by terrible traffic and sweltering heat. The language is a lot easier to learn, visa is easier to get (6 months free on arrival), climate better and women prettier. I like Thailand too, has some good things going for it, but who knows, maybe I settle down here myself one day...

WB

Exactly. It has so much going for it. Wonderful climate; beautiful tree-lined streets; reasonably cheap; pretty girls; good food and wine; easier language; etc. Heck, what am I waiting for?! It's just so far to get myself there from Bangkok!

[Jingthing]

Well for one thing there aren't any easy visa options there for those who don't qualify based on their retirement visa program (which is income based, no bank account option at all). You can do visa runs but it isn't always reliable to stay there for years that way. But the good part of that is they don't throw people in jail for overstaying their visas (but you can't really function there without a legal status for things like bank accounts, utilities, etc.). Medoza's streets are wide partly because they periodically have major earthquakes. Just keeping it real.

Edited March 2, 2010 by Jingthing

[lazygourmet]

I don't about Norway rules regarding issuing an emergency passport, but similar story happened to me when I was traveling in Kalimantan (Indonesian part of Borneo).

My embassy (Belgian) issued me a temporary passport (because, same as you, a proper one would take too long) and that book was valid for nine months... So I had a proper I.D. to cash some money and plenty of time to go back to Bangkok to apply for a proper one.

But this type of passport are very thin, handwriting and green color... so I had a lot of questions from both (Indo & Thai) immigration officers.

[Wonderboy]

Well for one thing there aren't any easy visa options there for those who don't qualify based on their retirement visa program (which is income based, no bank account option at all). You can do visa runs but it isn't always reliable to stay there for years that way. But the good part of that is they don't throw people in jail for overstaying their visas (but you can't really function there without a legal status for things like bank accounts, utilities, etc.). Medoza's streets are wide partly because they periodically have major earthquakes. Just keeping it real.

Wow, you seem to be really well informed. Visa runs is the only option for lots of people in Thailand, so comparing those I guess you will find it easier in Argentina. Regarding earthquakes, they had a major quake in 1861 and all the collapsed buildings made it impossible to pass through the streets. After that all streets have to be made really wide and mostly have low buildings making for a very attractive city layout. As far as I know, there are smaller trembles from time to time, but nothing major since 1861. Then again, I am no expert on this... Thanks for your input.

WB

Edited March 2, 2010 by Wonderboy

[Jingthing]

Living in Argieland on visa runs is not really realistic. You can't get a DNI number which means you can't open a bank account, work legally, get utility accounts, etc. It is possible if you leech on to a local, so maybe OK for people with really good local connections.

Mendoza being near the Andes has periodic large earthquakes. The last rather large one was 1985 so probably overdue.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1985_Mendoza_earthquake

The area is the most seismically active in Argentina

Edited March 2, 2010 by Jingthing

[bendejo]

Just out of curiosity where was it stolen? In or near Atacama?

[Wonderboy]

Just out of curiosity where was it stolen? In or near Atacama?

It was stolen at Vicencio. We had parked outside Villa Vicencio, the famous hotel you will find pictured on the water bottles with the same name. Just a tip, if you are coming from Mendoza dont turn around as most people do, but carry onwards on the old rode to Chile. You will see some stunning scenery and it makes for quite a scary ride as you turn around narrow hairpin bends next to the mountain droppping several hundred meters straight down. Drive slow

WB

[Wonderboy]

In the case that you do get a proper passport instead of an emergency travel passport, there is a Thai embassy in Buenos Aires where you can easily get a tourist visa there. They speak some English there, but won't issue it the same day, apply one day, come back the next.

http://www.thaiembargen.org/contactos.php

Got back from Buenos Aires yesterday. In no time I got my emergency passport issued which was identical to a normal passport except not machine readable. I then took a taxi to the Thai embassy. There I really got quite surprised by their service, though in retrospect I should have seen the warning signs. Some days before I went I tried to call them without answer and also sent an e-mail which got no reply either.

Anyway, I showed up at the embassy. Only person present was a bored receptionist looking into the air. I said I wanted to apply for a tourist visa and she answered I needed to show her my plane ticket. I never heard that one before, so I explaine I have electronic ticket but could print it out. (Why would I need to prove that anyway? It is not very likely that I would go to Thailand over land from Argentiona, and if I did, why should it matter?)

Next she says I have to show proof of having booked a hotel for the duration of the entire stay? I say I never pre-arrange with hotel and I have bought a condominium in Thailand anyway. Lady answers she need proof of that. I say I don’t carry the land office document with me, so what can I do? She answers that if so, I cannot get a visa. I ask if I can call my condominium and ask them to fax a confirmation, would that be ok? Not good enough is the answer. I need official documents with official stamps!!!! Ok, I tell her. If I can get a confirmed and stamped document, can you make the visa quickly as I have limited time in Buenos Aires? She answers "Probably not". The procedure is that you will have to wait a minimum period regardless.

I then give up, head back to my hotel and head straight back to Mendoza.

You might think I must have come across as very rude or as an unpreventable Pattaya slob, but I can assure that is not the case. I never raised my voice, was polite and positive. Seems like they just don’t want to issue tourist visas in Argentina. She did not even take a look at my passport. The lady also showed me an application that got denied the day before from an American.

Feel like complaining to some tourist board somewhere, but of course I will get nowhere. Anyway, lesson learned. Argentinean embassy is quite likely among the worst for getting a tourist visa.

WB

Edited March 5, 2010 by Wonderboy

[Jingthing]

Sorry to hear about your experience at the embassy there. I had a good experience but it was some years ago. At that time, I did provide a printout of an e-ticket and they most certainly never asked for any proof of accommodation in Thailand. It isn't unusual for embassies to ask for proof of travel. The only problem I had then was they had recently moved and I went to the old address first and was lucky enough to find someone there who could give me the new address (at that time, I couldn't find it on the web). I am sure they deal mostly with Argentinians of course but at the time I felt welcome enough there. Happy travels.

Edited March 5, 2010 by Jingthing

[bendejo]

wonderboy: sounds like she's been in Argentina a while, she comes off like most Argie receptionists/secretaries