IMMIGRATION - THE MOVIE (2012)

Thai Immigration releases promotional video

BANGKOK: -- The Royal Thai Immigration Bureau has released an information video that describes how the Immigration Bureau works and how it is organized in subdivisions etc. Also a bit of history of the bureau.

-- 2012-03-27

I thought it was interesting and well put together. Just an observation though, when did they start taking digital fingerprints in Thailand? I have lived here for the past 19 years and never had to have my fingerprints taken, ever. I even travelled and came back home last week through the airport but saw no fingerprint machine.

I was wondering the same about the fingerprinting. I believe if you get arrested for a violation of the Immigration Act it will be the regular police to fingerprint you, not the immigration police, but I may be wrong.

Perhaps those scenes are from a passport application, which is however a function of the passport office, which falls under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I believe, not the immigration police.

I have had them taken for at least two years ago at Chiang Watanna during normal retirement extension of stay procedures.

Some people don't have any ID as they are stateless, they use finger prints to identify them.

Some people don't have any ID as they are stateless, they use finger prints to identify them.

Also, at Chiang Mai immigration, I see most of the Burmese/Cambodian legal workers use fingerprints though it is still a manual process.

Now if they used the electronic fingerprints for 90 day reporting ... Just put your thumb on the scanner and out pops your updated report receipt.

An interesting film, although it would have been better without the doomsday music.

I see Barry Kenyon had a walk-on part.

I thought it was an OK video.

I thought it was interesting and well put together. Just an observation though, when did they start taking digital fingerprints in Thailand? I have lived here for the past 19 years and never had to have my fingerprints taken, ever. I even travelled and came back home last week through the airport but saw no fingerprint machine.

I had my fingerprints taken at immigration in January, while getting my one year extension.

Several posts and theirreply deleted as off topic.

Does it explain why some of the immigration officers at Phuket Airport, the first officials many tourists see on arrival, are so bloody rude?

I don't care how they promote themselves. Just get me in and out of the airport in 30 minutes.

Well produced by rediculous considering the level of performance.

Instead of managing the department "through good governance" which basically means nothing,

trying managing the department with common sense

Step 1 - Put people in empty desks at immigration during peak times

Step 2 - See if this fixes the problem, if not add more people

Step 3 - Take some pride in a job well done

Wonder if they paid Thomas J. Bergersen for the use of his music.

I have had them taken for at least two years ago at Chiang Watanna during normal retirement extension of stay procedures.

same when you apply for: permanent resident

Wonder if they paid Thomas J. Bergersen for the use of his music.

If not, the "music police" will be knocking on their door.

A good colorful well paced video - a little too loud on the music (the Thai way)...

Plus, the voice editing could have been better...

The announcer used English very effectively, almost as if she were a native speaker, but the editor cut some of the words short - definitely not a native speaker. The same sort of thing happens with electronic editing or talking machines - the resultant words are 'flat' - no life in them.

Wonder if they paid Thomas J. Bergersen for the use of his music.

i am sure he could do with a few triple entry Tourist Visas.

good point

Would someone please explain to me why an immigration bureau would need to make a promotional video? Are we, the consumer, faced with a choice of various immigration bureaus? Or is it assumed that this is something we look at when deciding which country to live in?

I was wondering the same about the fingerprinting. I believe if you get arrested for a violation of the Immigration Act it will be the regular police to fingerprint you, not the immigration police, but I may be wrong.

Perhaps those scenes are from a passport application, which is however a function of the passport office, which falls under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, I believe, not the immigration police.

I have only ever had my fingerprints taken with ink in Thailand but presumably they are then scanned and entered into an electronic database. While getting the annual endorsement in the permanent residents' Certificate of Residence at Immigration at Chaeng Wattana they used to require either a signature or a thumbprint, an option that was taken up by the elderly Chinese PRs that can't write Thai and I think a Chinese signature was unacceptable until wealthy Taiwanese businessmen started coming. Curiously in 2010 they made ink fingerprinting compulsory for everyone in 2010 which seemed a retrogressive move.

Edited March 28, 201214 yr by lopburi3
comment removed

Several nonsense posts removed.

If they would spend as much effort simplifying immigration visas, I would appreciate it more.

My thumbprint as well as signature was required at Chaeng Wattana yesterday when applying for a new Certificate of Residence book because the present one is full. The thumbprint was a first. Not a problem; there's always something new.

The question is: who is this video intended for?

Thais? Not likely, since it's in English.

Foreign tourists? Not likely, they don't want a lesson on Thai immigration organziational structure (seriously... "Subdivision 9: Training"?! And I would care why?).

Tourism boards? Still not likely (see 'foreign tourists'). Not very salesy.

More energy (and money, likely) was spent explaining nothing much, and not fixing anything much.

Answer: more trained bodies at peak hours to process arrivals/departures. And a smile couldn't hurt (but not mandatory). Not rocket science.

Nice and informative but what's with the ominous music?

Film review in a nutshell: