Overstay

[catwho]

I asked the question about overstay and new passport for a friend,[NOW OLD FRIEND I THINK]in previous post,i advised him to leave early and go to embassy ,get NEW passport then on to cheng wattana,[OERSTAY 3/4 MONTHS]then on to airport,he rang wife who was to pick him up at around 8.30am /9am,but he wanted a 11am pickup so mrs could not take him and girlfriend, she got another taxi for him.

well with the late start he got to wattana at around closing time,on the friday,but because of this from what i can gather from mrs and taxi driver [AS I AM IN OZ AT THE MOMENT]they would not let him leave and locked him up for the weekend and supposed to be prossed monday.

He's girlfriend rang my mrs and blamed her for telling him to go there and not straight to airport where immagration is opened 24hrs,so they say.

i told to take ticket police report,etc and of course 20,000bt plus extra.

i HAVE NOT HEARD OF ANYONE BEING STOPPED AND HELD AT AIRPORT,has anyone else?

he is the unreliable type so the late start may have been his down fall as i dont know what transpired at wattana.

dont know if he has left yet as no contact since friday,which ever way it pans out I'LL BE THE BAD GUY. FROM NOW ON UP TO THEM..

You always give good advice here,so i'll put it down to bad timimg and bad luck.

CAT

[Mario2008]

Being hold at airport is only done when you don't pay the fine, especially for a short overstay like this.

Same goes for Chaeng Wattana, when one has the fine and a ticket out it should also not be a problem. Without the problem of his lost passport they would probly have told him to just go to the airport and pay the fine there.

Keeping your cool and being polite goes a long way, but what the problem was in this case is speculating.

[H2oDunc]

Firstly the only person responsible for where he is is himself for overstaying in the first place.

Secondly there is something more to this story than is being said as Mario said they would normally just tell you to go to the airport, clear the overstay fine and leave.

[beano2274]

I had the same problem with a friend of mine, although he did not go to Chaeng Wattana, he had a 3year overstay, no valid passport, nothing. A few calls and emails to the Embassy and his Mum and eventually he got a new passport, then another call to Claudio, who got him over the border and helped him get a new valid visa and pay the overstay. His big problem was unreliability to, this was due to alcohol being a major factor, another problem being his mouth, he got a bit lippy at the Embassy, after drinking, and was told if he did not shut up and listen then he would not get a passport or any help.

And now he is on overstay again!!!!!!!

Edited April 12, 2011 by beano2274

[Soutpeel]

My opinion is, he most likley got to Chang Wattana got an "attitude" on with immigration so they locked him up for the weekend, which is within their right/discretion

OP not your fault at all, the person concerned should not have aloowed himself to get into this position in the first place....ie the over stay of 3 months...so only one person to blame...himself....

[Mrjlh]

Last Friday morning, when I was at Chaengwattana Immigration, there was a French man who had some really big problems. Wonder if it was the same guy? He was just ahead of me in line and was really upset. Paced back and forth, really impatient, complaining to anyone who'd listen, then made some rather loud remarks to the Officers. Two senior officers sat him down and after a few minutes, they escorted him off. After things quieted down, I was called next and asked what happened. Was told his problem was so big and complicated that he might spend a night or two in jail plus fines. All she told me was he filed a false police report about passport being stolen when his passport had actually expired and left at the airport. He had tried to leave the country with the expired passport and Officer was holding it when walked off and disappeared before they could actually help him. Since then he had overstayed but didn't say how long. They could have helped him but he made things worse if he had stayed at the airport the first time. Now he was up with the Big Boss and they would decide what to do with him. Which seems to re-enforce an important point...Don't loose your temper and stay calm. Even during times you think the world has ended. You start doing and saying the wrong things.

[moe666]

Some people cannot be helped and some donot deserved to be helped, Cat your friend may grow up someday and then he may not.

[Mario2008]

Making a false police report is a criminal offence, making it much more seriously than a simple overstay.

[lopburi3]

This person (OP subject) seems to have been from Oz.

It really seems he has nobody but himself to blame - he overstayed - lost passport - obtained one month emergency passport (with no action to legalize stay) - continued to overstay until after it expired - had to obtain second replacement, get data entered into third passport, and catch a 6PM flight out. And then decides not to be bothered starting the process until 11:00 (from Pattaya?).

You can lead . . . . . . . . . . .

[Tod Daniels]

While the O/P's 'friend' has a lot more to his story than most stories I encounter from acquaintances I'd say;

It sure doesn't sound like any of this was your fault. The initial overstay, the lost passport, the first emergency replacement and its subsequent expiration, needing to get a second emergency replacement because they couldnt pull it together, all these things were totally within HIS control and ultimately his fault and only his. Even getting to Changwattana late is on him too! Sheesh every taxi driver in greater Bangkok knows the Governmental Building Complex area out there.

You offered advice based on what you knew or found out. That he didn't follow it isn't anything I'd lose a wink of sleep over or even worry if hes now an ex-friend either.

Interestingly enough (or possibly not):

I've accompanied many acquaintances to Changwattana to pay for their (sometimes lengthy) overstays, get the 'emergency 7 day visa' and then fly outta the country. Even with printed itinerary of a ticket out the next day or so, sometimes the Immigrations officers don't wanna fool with the overstay fine & emergency visa at all.

Too many times to count, I've had acquaintances told by the Immigrations Officer, "Just go to the airport before you fly out and clear it out there..." This is straight from their mouths. In reality, I have no idea why they wouldn't collect the overstay money or sell a visa at Changwattana. Sometimes they do, sometimes they don't, thats why I dont fool with them that much anymore, cause its a crap shoot on whether theyll do it or not.

I wholeheartedly agree. I've personally witnessed things taking a precipitous turn from a manageable situation at Changwattana to a completely un-manageable one when a foreigner displays ANY attitude or even worse any "sense of entitlement" in regards to their right to be here. It's a very steep down hill slope choosing to go that route with the Officers out there. It's also a really tough climb to getting back up to 'level ground' and achieve your objective too.. I'm in no way advocating, "kissing any a**", but it's my experience a polite deferential manner and calm demeanor go a really long way to getting things accomplished.

Still you tried to help get him sorted and at the end of the day that's all that matters. ..

Edited April 12, 2011 by tod-daniels