Suvarnabhumi Airport Passport Lines Will Take Max. 24 Minutes From Today

[Hanuman2547]

The Only problem i have is immigration coming into Thailand no matter how fast i walk/run to the desk there is always a huge queue in front and a 45 minute wait made worse by those donkeys who do not fill in their cards on the plane plus the booths are half occupied <deleted> place more staff in it must cost 10k baht a month per employee?

Leaving is not a problem there is never anyone in front of me as i turn up at the last minute name being called by the time i walk past duty free and always fly out at 2.30am.

Well said! I agree. When departing Thailand I never have that long of a wait. I've already paid the departure tax and now I have more time to be accosted/accused by King Power or other merchant. It is entering Thailand that is the problem. Long lines at the three or four (out of 10+) available immigration desks. Simply baffling!!

[prinzregent]

if somebody working at immigration is reading this forum :

why you do not make it possible again to get a re-entry permit at SUVI airport ?

that would be an improvement in stead of going somewhere far far away ....

that is my suggestion for improvment which would make a lot of sense, as it is true the airport that you leave the country

and you have to begg and pay to re-enter, even you paid already your dues at immigration for 'staying' and spending all your money here

my friend Udo wait for the re-entry permit ONE MONTH.

[krakatoa]

What I don't get is, what's the maths behind 24 minuets. I mean it could simpler number like 20 minutes or 25 minutes. Second thing that comes to mind, what if, like at McDonalds, they are late? What is the prize? Bonus?

Probably got some immigration official bucking for promotion who came up with the number based his/her research, or they asked a fortune teller what would be a lucky number. Either way, I hope it works out...I've been in these lines which were much more than 24 minutes long all too often.

Probably a monk (who came up with the 24 minutes) as for a top 10 ranking, it will never happen

[virtualtraveller]

Immigration at Heathrow, you've gotta be joking! If you're not an EU citizen the queue early mornings when long hauls arrive is horrendous, with that low ceiling and cramped area, out dated airport design and all.

Still 24 minutes is still a long wait indeed, though anything shorter than 15 minutes is probably irrelevant since that's how long it takes for your baggage to arrive anyhow.

I still don't understand why they REMOVED THE RE ENTRY PERMIT DESK, I got caught short with this about a month after it was discontinued in Feb 2009, no announcement, no signs at local immigration etc for this pretty crucial decision. It meant I lost my Non Imm visa upon returning, had to start the whole dam_n paper chase again, visa run and all, lots of time wasted for me and them, and probably hundreds of others in my position too. At the time I tried explaining to the imm officer but he just shrugged and told me to miss my flight and go to the Bangkok Imm office the next morning. No one at Chiang Mai Immigration office could answer me when I asked why no notifications were given. Morons!

[atyclb]

How about the lazy fat slobs that arbitrarily choose whose baggage to x-ray on arrival helping to lift our suitcases; some are heavy.

[Lizard2010]

We will all have to wait and see if they actually can cope with all their changes time will tell

[Asianrider]

I flew in yesterday from a trip. Very short queue's, but they could at least make some effort to smile at you, or acknowledge you when you hand over your passport !!

[tombkk]

if somebody working at immigration is reading this forum :

why you do not make it possible again to get a re-entry permit at SUVI airport ?

that would be an improvement in stead of going somewhere far far away ....

that is my suggestion for improvment which would make a lot of sense, as it is true the airport that you leave the country

and you have to begg and pay to re-enter, even you paid already your dues at immigration for 'staying' and spending all your money here

my friend Udo wait for the re-entry permit ONE MONTH.

Hm. I have never waited longer than 15 minutes for the re-entry at Bangkok Immigration. But maybe your friend applied somewhere else.

The question is: Why do we need re-entry permits at all? We have already been granted a stay for a certan period of time, why do we need this extra stamp if we want to leave an re-enter the country? Shouldn't our visa or extension of stay be sufficient?

[petedk]

So lets see now I often arrive on an A380 holding about 500 people, lets say 2 arrive at the same time after my 13 hour flight and if Im not in business class (which I do often book on 1 segment just to avoid any delay when arriving) how long will I have to wait??? Thats about 1000 people hitting the desks at once.

As I understand it, it is the passport control when LEAVING the country not arriving at.

Last time I left bangkok at midnight and it took over an hour (about 1 hour 15 minutes) just to go through passport control so 24 minutes or less would be a blessing.

[djayz]

This must be the first steps to bring back the tourists, because this is one of the major concerns for the people coming to Thailand

and being in top 10 makes a huge difference, may be now more people will fly via BKK so they can say they went through top 10

Yes when people travel abroad one of their major concerns is the airport - it just has to be one of the Top 10 airports in the world - to h_ll with the rest of the country, safety, price/quality, exchange rates and the actual holiday itself - the airport is the deciding factor...

[djayz]

I flew in yesterday from a trip. Very short queue's, but they could at least make some effort to smile at you, or acknowledge you when you hand over your passport !!

I've passed through a good many airports in the past and very few of the Immigration Officials ever smile or acknowledge travellers.

Understandable really as it's not their job to "greet" people to the country - it's their job to check passports, be on the look out for criminals/wanted, etc. - smiling just isn't a part of their job description.

These officials aren't from the Ministry of Tourism - they're trying to control who's entering the state.

[midas]

if somebody working at immigration is reading this forum :

why you do not make it possible again to get a re-entry permit at SUVI airport ?

that would be an improvement in stead of going somewhere far far away ....

that is my suggestion for improvment which would make a lot of sense, as it is true the airport that you leave the country

and you have to begg and pay to re-enter, even you paid already your dues at immigration for 'staying' and spending all your money here

this is a very sensible comment. Yes why do you have to travel far far away ?

Edited June 25, 2010 by midas

[tonywebster]

i came through last night, only 5 people in my queue but still took around 15 minutes for me to get through, personally I would settle for a smile from one of the miserable bastards.

Last night was individual queues at arrivals, when I left on Tuesday there was one queue, at the front of the queue you were directed to a booth, they tried to make sure at each booth one person was being served an another queueing.

[tonywebster]

I flew in yesterday from a trip. Very short queue's, but they could at least make some effort to smile at you, or acknowledge you when you hand over your passport !!

There was two African guys in the queue next to mine, the contempt shown to them by the immigration guy was embarrassing. They looked like business men, both times the immigration just slammed their documents down on the counter, he also just barked 'TICKET' at him, I thought it was rude but I ended up in that queue and was treated the same.

I understand their job, but a bit of common courtesy goes a long way, its just as easy to smile as it is to snarl.

[asiawatcher]

Leaving unless you are on Diplomat or APEC or Thai VIP passes is painful. 24 minutes is about what it takes already.

Arrivals are even worse in most instances especially at the peak time of evening flights arriving between 9:00pm and midnight.

Cannot see how that will improve at all under any circumstances as in most cases the number of entry booths are limited and never fully operational (lack of staff - will not pay OT on the evening shift etc).

But as another forum member stated - PLEASE ALLOW TM9 RENTRY PERMITS AT SUVARNABHUMI AGAIN. To have removed that back to immigration was the most stupid move the Govt could have made. Last month on a phone call at 5:00pm I was on an 1000 flight next day to China. There was no way I could have complied and thus my 10 year constant renewal of my Non Imm B as now in jeopardy. At the airport I took my copies of Work Permit, my APEC Card, filled out the form and had the right money and lo and behold, 1,000 Baht later I had the re-enrty permit so they still DO handle the visas there but it was a song and dance, knees bent and certainly a lot of khortort khrups and wai's.

Why does immigration have to be so anal and non understanding business travel is spontaneous and essential. Can we please have you all back at Suvarnabhumi ASAP as sometimes it is simply impossible to comply with your rules! And if I have to wait 24 minutes to get out or in - that is a small price to pay rather than a trip to Chaeng Wattana.

[pkarthik24]

is that for the THAI PASSPORT Queue or FOREIGN PASSPORT Queue were it applies 24 Minutes

Edited June 25, 2010 by pkarthik24

[apetley]

What I don't get is, what's the maths behind 24 minuets. I mean it could simpler number like 20 minutes or 25 minutes. Second thing that comes to mind, what if, like at McDonalds, they are late? What is the prize? Bonus?

No maths, 2x4=8, lucky number.

[jfchandler]

Forgive me for saying so, but 24 minutes to get thru Airport Immigration is B.S. As in, is it really supposed to be a good thing that you only will need to wait no longer than almost a half an hour, just to get thru airport immigration. That really is B.S.

I'll agree with the posters above: to make a real and better improvement, bring back the ability to obtain re-entry permits at the airport. For heaven's sake, what possible reason could some govt. genius have had for deciding to remove that function from Airport Immigration. There's no big processing or checking involved in re-entry permits... Just check for a valid visa/extension and pay the proper fee. What's so tough about that???

I flew back into BKK from the U.S. early this morning 1-2 am... and they had about 4-5 Immigration officers working at the counters, and I waited less than 5 minutes in line, each line having 3 or 4 people in front of me. Of course, it was early morning. But the last few times I've been thru the airport at all different hours, the incoming Immigration lines haven't been that long...particularly since I (being of long legs) always rush ahead once I get off the plane so I'm not behind everyone else getting off the same plane. That certainly helps, along with Thailand having dropped way down on the tourist desirability index.

Then, standing outside the airport terminal for 10 minutes or so waiting for my wife to arrive, I nonetheless was propositioned by 3 different illegal taxi touts wanting to give me a ride...this being at 2 a.m. on a Friday morning. Glad to see the AOT and police's other BIG initiative, getting rid of the illegal taxi bandits, has proved to be such a resounding success.

[Davedub]

I arrived last night and waited for a period of around 24 minutes, which is far, far too long after a long haul flight! If you tired and in need of a shower, as is anyone who has been travelling for many hours (as all European and North American visitors to Thailand have) the last thing you want to do is stand in line waiting, looking at empty immigration desks wondering why there are not more staff.

Of course, there's not much point in speeding through immigration only to stand around waiting for your baggage to come off the plane, as I did last night - so I'd suggest that baggage handling efficiency is as important as the immigration turnaround time - there is no point addressing one without the other.

Also, as a smoker, waiting around for immigration / baggage whilst craving nicotine is more than unpleasant and is actually very frustrating. I know us smokers are seen as second class citizens / travellers these days, but for whatever reasons, there ARE a lot of us, and it really DOES cause us discomfort.

/rant

[kuffki]

Ok, so now its introduced and many people have had a say that its good, bad or useless.

Next question is who is going to monitor that it is in fact maximum 24 mins at all times and should people wait longer then 24 mins what happens then? and is there an office to complain?

I have a feeling there is no complaints department or quality control department and if there was, they will make sure that all is up to scratch and if anyone complains, they may find themselves being harassed all the way from passport control to luggage check etc

So really this is just like any other rule or law in LOS, Just because its there it does not mean its enforced or followed.

[jfchandler]

One additional tip thing I'll mention, on the general subject...

On a recent trip abroad with my Thai wife, we came back to Suvarnabhumi, and she went to the Thai immigration line, and I went to the foreigner line, which had far more passengers waiting, as is usually the case... Then, after a few minutes, my wife motioned/called me over to the Thai line, after she had been conversing with the immigration officer there.

Turned out, she said, when a farang resident and Thai are traveling together, as in husband and wife or similar, apparently Immigration considers it OK for the two to go together thru the Thai line. We've since done that several times, and it seemed to go OK...

I'm on retirement extension now, and there was no problem about that. However, I can't say whether the same would apply for a farang on a tourist visa or such...since Immigration might wonder how the couple could be married.

Of course, as soon as I mention this, someone else will try it and get rebuked by Immigration... Such is life in Thailand...

[bkkjames]

One additional tip thing I'll mention, on the general subject...

On a recent trip abroad with my Thai wife, we came back to Suvarnabhumi, and she went to the Thai immigration line, and I went to the foreigner line, which had far more passengers waiting, as is usually the case... Then, after a few minutes, my wife motioned/called me over to the Thai line, after she had been conversing with the immigration officer there.

Turned out, she said, when a farang resident and Thai are traveling together, as in husband and wife or similar, apparently Immigration considers it OK for the two to go together thru the Thai line. We've since done that several times, and it seemed to go OK...

I'm on retirement extension now, and there was no problem about that. However, I can't say whether the same would apply for a farang on a tourist visa or such...since Immigration might wonder how the couple could be married.

Of course, as soon as I mention this, someone else will try it and get rebuked by Immigration... Such is life in Thailand...

John, you don't have to get a non-immigrant O just because you are married. Retired eh, no wonder you have so much time to visit all the restaurants.

[doggie888888]

24 minutes???!!???? My bags bloody well be waiting for me when I arrive at the carousel. Or do we add another 24 minutes for that?

[jfchandler]

Of course, I know that... James.

But the reason I mentioned it is: Will Immigration will extend the same courtesy to couples where the farang is on tourist visa or similar???

I'm assuming they would. But in real life, I don't have any experience with that, so I can't say for certain.

PS - Retirement (at a young age) is quite nice... Don't knock it, until you've tried it.

John, you don't have to get a non-immigrant O just because you are married.

[jfchandler]

The airport does have smoking rooms in the terminal, including I believe on the way out from arriving gates en route to immigration.

You could always stop in for a puff, while waiting for the crowds to clear.

And those are kind of nice I'd imagine, because then you can also inhale everyone else's smoke -- not just your own... Kind of like buying one beer, and getting three to drink for free...

Also, as a smoker, waiting around for immigration / baggage whilst craving nicotine is more than unpleasant and is actually very frustrating. I know us smokers are seen as second class citizens / travellers these days, but for whatever reasons, there ARE a lot of us, and it really DOES cause us discomfort.

[tutone]

I don' think I have ever had to wait longer than 24 minutes. It's much better than Atlanta where I have spent up to an hour clearing immigration and customs.

[tonywebster]

I think i have worked it out guys, maybe they mean 'on average' it will take 24 minutes, some will be 5 minutes and some will be 55 or 60 minutes or longer

[Colabamumbai]

I arrived last night and waited for a period of around 24 minutes, which is far, far too long after a long haul flight! If you tired and in need of a shower, as is anyone who has been travelling for many hours (as all European and North American visitors to Thailand have) the last thing you want to do is stand in line waiting, looking at empty immigration desks wondering why there are not more staff.

Of course, there's not much point in speeding through immigration only to stand around waiting for your baggage to come off the plane, as I did last night - so I'd suggest that baggage handling efficiency is as important as the immigration turnaround time - there is no point addressing one without the other.

Also, as a smoker, waiting around for immigration / baggage whilst craving nicotine is more than unpleasant and is actually very frustrating. I know us smokers are seen as second class citizens / travellers these days, but for whatever reasons, there ARE a lot of us, and it really DOES cause us discomfort.

/rant

Got to have the Nicorette or nicomild gum with you. At least I always try to when flying.

[ykatz0]

To the smokers: Please always use the Nicorette gum, especially when I am behind you in the open restaurant, night club and/or walking down the street! Do not smoke in public! Thank you...

Now back to topic: For the record I have never waited at the airport more then 5 or so minutes and the visa processor are always quite friendly and helpful if I have questions.

Be well all!

ps - I invite all flames for being a newbie and having only 5 posts, let's get it over with already!

pss - I am posting from outside the country so don't bother tracking my IP address!!

Edited June 25, 2010 by ykatz0

[nosatisfaction]

if somebody working at immigration is reading this forum :

why you do not make it possible again to get a re-entry permit at SUVI airport ?

that would be an improvement in stead of going somewhere far far away ....

that is my suggestion for improvment which would make a lot of sense, as it is true the airport that you leave the country

and you have to begg and pay to re-enter, even you paid already your dues at immigration for 'staying' and spending all your money here

why don't you get a multiple entry like normal people do?