Is Your Thai Required To Report Your Presence (?)

[chiangmaibruce]

Well you learn something new every day ... today we had lunch with another Thai/foreign expat couple and they told us a story about friends who had Immigration staff turn up in force at 7pm one evening. It was apparently an attempt at a shake-down. The crime? Why haven't you reported your husband as a resident in your home? (This despite using their address on his arrival cards, visa applications, etc). The Thai wife was home alone and told them she did not know, and had no money to pay them .. she would pay at their office in the morning. They left, called her husband who was furious, and then they lawyered-up. No money was ever handed over and the matter went away.

Many of you would be aware of the requirement for hotel and condo management to report foreign guests, right? I thought no way would this apply to private households but then went to the Immigration Bureau web site and read the following:

"House owners, heads of household, landlords or managers of hotels who accommodate foreign nationals on a temporary basis who stay in the kingdom legally, must notify the local immigration authorities within 24 hours from the time of arrival of the foreign national." If there is no immigration office in the province or locality of the respective house or hotel, the notification is made to the local police station. In Bangkok the notification is made to the Immigration Bureau. The notification of residence of foreign nationals is made by the manager of licensed hotels according to the hotel act, owners of guesthouses, mansions, apartments and rented houses using the form TM. 30."

There was a short-lived Thaivisa discussion thread on this topic in October 2009 and "Poorsucker" mentioned the above quote .... but there was no mention of anyone copping grief about not reporting their husband. I was wondering whether any other Thaivisa members had encountered any problems in this regard.

[Koratpat]

Thai silliness, corruption and time wasting. The 90 day reports are same same.

[kerryk]

Where did the friend of your friends say this took place and how long ago?

[bangkockney]

The quote says those who accommodate foreigners on a temporary basis. I wonder what this means exactly.

Surely it can't apply to someone living here with that wording? And therefore your story really was a shakedown not a crackdown.

[Soutpeel]

The quote says those who accommodate foreigners on a temporary basis. I wonder what this means exactly.

Surely it can't apply to someone living here with that wording? And therefore your story really was a shakedown not a crackdown.

Of course it can..unless you are a PR or Thai citizen your presence in Thailand would be deemed "temporary"....you do not have any legal standing...ergo you are accomadated on a temporary basis

[surayu]

foreigners on a temporary basis. I wonder what this means exactly.

Surely it can't apply to someone living here with that wording?

My understanding is, that as long as you are a foreigner, you will be considered as something temporary, it doesn't matter if you have been here 30-40 years in a row with no more ties with your place of origin, etc, you will always be considered a Non Immigrant....

[thaibeachlovers]

The quote says those who accommodate foreigners on a temporary basis. I wonder what this means exactly.

Surely it can't apply to someone living here with that wording? And therefore your story really was a shakedown not a crackdown.

It means exactly what it says. Any Thai national acommodating an alien must notify the authorities. At least it's not yet our responsibility.

What worried me when I went to the police with my wife ( twice, in different locations ) was that they didn't know about the correct documentation, and spent ages laboriously writing a lot in their big book.

They must get plenty of the correct forms from hotels in the area, or perhaps the hotels send theirs to the immigration office in Chiang Mai.

While it may be largely ignored, it's easy enough. Just fill in the form, and take it to the immigration office, or to the police station if there is no immigration office in your area.

[surayu]

Any Thai national acommodating an alien must notify the authorities. At least it's not yet our responsibility.

Well, wait untill the first court judgement will be pronunced : "...yes your wife broke the law, but only because you, the farang, where here, if you, the "temporary basis farang" where not here, the law would not have been broke, so it's all your fault!"

I also believe that is a responsability of the person recognized as the home owner, wherever that means the thai citizen or the temporary basis foreigner

[soundman]

While it may be largely ignored, it's easy enough. Just fill in the form, and take it to the immigration office, or to the police station if there is no immigration office in your area.

Its easy enough, and I have posted it to the immigration office that covers my area in the past.

TM 30.

tm30.doc

Edited April 14, 2012 by soundman
Reworded post.

[mauGR1]

While it may be largely ignored, it's easy enough. Just fill in the form, and take it to the immigration office, or to the police station if there is no immigration office in your area.

Its easy enough, and I have posted it to the immigration office that covers my area in the past.

TM 30.

tm30.doc

Excuse me if my question is silly..

But, whenever i spend 1 or 2 nights in some people room..Is that person supposed to report to Immigration Police ??

[surayu]

whenever i spend 1 or 2 nights in some people room..Is that person supposed to report to Immigration Police ??

It wouldn't surprise me if they start asking for photographic evidences too, the same way as when you apply for the "marriage" visa, they want to see pictures of you and your wife together in the bedroom!!!!

[BigJohnnyBKK]

This is usually only enforced for hotels and landlords.

But yes, the law can technically be applied in a host/guest situation.

The idea is that the police have a right to keep track of the current location of all foreigners, and if they decide to actually do so all they have to do is tighten up on enforcement of existing laws.

Our requirement to keep them informed is separate, and in practice not cross-checked. I've maintained a private mailbox service for 12 years, and this is what I use for anything official, anything that gets entered into any computers anywhere. Only people I choose to inform know my actual residential location.

[Razzler1973]

So if you're relatively long term and rent a small place to live do you or the building owner/real estate company report your presence to the authorities?

I usually just fill any old hotel name in on the landing card and sometimes stay there and sometimes stay somewhere else ... of course you sign in again. Do they ever match the two up at all? If not, don't see the point really.

I also like how pretty much everywhere in Thailand just still loves the big ledger book. Computers? No thanks, sir we'll right everything down in a big book! Even this smallish place I booked online before ... turned up and ... big ledger with all the details in. The request must be made electronically via email and I guess it's just easier to write it down

[soi41]

Hearsay 3rd.hand. Straight from the mouth of the barstool-horse. Doesn't even make a good thread-topic. Come on Bruce, you can do better than that !

[Semper]

Hearsay 3rd.hand. Straight from the mouth of the barstool-horse. Doesn't even make a good thread-topic. Come on Bruce, you can do better than that !

It's the law. Like it or not. "House owners, heads of household, landlords or managers of hotels who accommodate foreign nationals on a temporary basis who stay in the kingdom legally, must notify the local immigration authorities within 24 hours from the time of arrival of the foreign national."

[thaibeachlovers]

Hearsay 3rd.hand. Straight from the mouth of the barstool-horse. Doesn't even make a good thread-topic. Come on Bruce, you can do better than that !

It's the law. Like it or not. "House owners, heads of household, landlords or managers of hotels who accommodate foreign nationals on a temporary basis who stay in the kingdom legally, must notify the local immigration authorities within 24 hours from the time of arrival of the foreign national."

Indeed it is, but of course most farangs will take the attitude that it's Thailand, so no need to obey the law, and then complain when it all goes to poo.

[BigJohnnyBKK]

So if you're relatively long term and rent a small place to live do you or the building owner/real estate company report your presence to the authorities?

They may or they may not. More likely with the larger companies, less so with individual landlords, who may not even know they're supposed to.

I usually just fill any old hotel name in on the landing card and sometimes stay there and sometimes stay somewhere else ... of course you sign in again. Do they ever match the two up at all? If not, don't see the point really.

No, in practice they usually don't - IMO very rarely do - but nothing to do with the point. The police have the right in theory, if not the ability in practice, to keep track of who everyone is, what they are doing and where they are living in Thailand. This is considered especially true in the case of foreigners.

There is not "right to privacy here", no rights of individuals to be protected from the government as some native-English speaking countries still pretend to give lip service to.

I also like how pretty much everywhere in Thailand just still loves the big ledger book. Computers? No thanks, sir we'll right everything down in a big book! Even this smallish place I booked online before ... turned up and ... big ledger with all the details in. The request must be made electronically via email and I guess it's just easier to write it down

And harder to falsify after the fact. As the owner of a cash business that isn't physically watching every transaction, it is good to have multiple redundant ways to estimate true revenues to try to minimize shrinkage from staff dishonesty.