Phuket Immigration Warns Of Drive On Foreign Stay Reports

[JetsetBkk]

When you go for your annual 1 yer renewal for retirement you need to have the owner of the property or your spouse with you or a contract. I assume that this is in replacement to reporting. Personally i think it is a good idea this way they can attempt to make sure people that are a hardship are not here screwing things up for the rest of us

Nonsense.

[StefanBBK]

I do understand this requirement for businesses (Hotels, B&B's, Apartment Rentals etc.). But for private households? This is insane. So if my mother sleeps over in our house, my wife should quickly notify immigration?

Does anyone have the link to do that online?

[unanimosity]

so if my mum visit me and stay at my house I have to contact the immigration for that ? For hotel its normal I guess that is why we fill up this form on arrival .... Reminds me when you travel to Moscow , they keep your passport one hour for registration ...

If you own the house apparently.

It raises a litany of questions that suggest this may not have been thought out so thoroughly.

The random-check team, led by Pol Col Sanchai Chokkayaikij, Superintendent of Phuket Immigration, will start checking accommodation from the end of next month. If they find owners or managers breaking the law, “they will prosecute strictly”, Capt Angkhan said.

Duhhh, sorry for the obvious question but how will the random check team know there are unreported foreigners staying there if the owner/manager/clerk answers no when asked?

Will this apply to expats working in Phuket?

Does this apply to ASEAN neighbors like Laos, Cambodia, etc., or is it just discriminating against western foreigners?

What if the foreigner is the owner of the property?

Does the owner/manager of a hotel or house report the arrival only or departure also?

Does this look like an effort to drive foreigners out of unregistered hotels or guesthouses to higher priced "authorized" places to stay? Not saying this is bad, just asking. It may drive some out of Phuket.

Does this create significant new tea money opportunities for the beat cop?

Is it not possible that the criminal element referenced in the OP will still fly under the radar with fake docs?

If a foreigner is a missing person, would it really be that much help to know where they were staying? Isn't that more easily traceable and more immediate via credit card activity upon a missing person report being received instead of gathering data on people who aren't missing just in case?

Is it not true that many foreigners staying one night will be gone by the time the data reaches the IO?

What happens when a foreigner rents a room and brings home another foreigner for a few days?

What about the rights of the the individual that simply wants privacy and perhaps is being sought by a jealous spouse, crazed fan, angry offspring, or whatever, who submits a missing person report?

Why is there no explanation as to the disbursement of fines collected?

Since it is the law that owners/managers must report in 24 hours, does it mean that when the IO is closed for weekends/holidays the owner/manager owes 8K per day until the office reopens? That would qualify as strictly enforced. Something very similar to this has actually happened.

Why no mention of the identity theft implications of having foreigner data circulating? Any precautions in place?

Full stop.

[nick02]

if have thai gf rent home her name.

she not the owner so she no need to report imigration u stay with her.

many owner should be ok do that for no paie tax of rent.

[mickymouse1]

it is the law in most countries around the world,however it is widely ignored. Micky mouse

[NamKangMan]

A few years ago whilst staying in a CNX gh , a huge 'skinhead' type Serbian did a runner owing a months rent. He had used a photocopy of his passport.

The landlady reported it. Two days later Immigration and 'others' turned up and checked her records. They said the guy was on thier wanted list and made her promise to submit a detailed guest list everyday. Which she faithfully honoured.

A guy would come round each morning, collect yesterdays form and leave a new form to be filled in.

Months later after returning from Laos, in the same gh, reception where called by the consulate asking to speak to me (family emergency-go home asap). The consulate had found me via the guest reporting system and so I was able to say goodbye to my farther.

This system is priceless for safety and emergencies. It should be strictly enforced.

Of course, there is also the "mobile phone system" to use in cases of emergency as well.

Edited March 30, 2013 by NamKangMan

[tragickingdom]

More bogus reasons needed? Missing persons are often notorious difficult to find. Big brother is watching you or likes to watch you

[tragickingdom]

it is the law in most countries around the world,however it is widely ignored. Micky mouse

No in most countries in the world the authorities are not incompetent Xenophobes. If immigration wants to make itself useful check what is going on with all terrorists entering and leaving the country at will after killing little children and women. Do not harass foreigners and Thai people alike. Or just quit and go do something useful. The german Stasi and Rumanian Securitatii used these reasons too to spy on half their population.

[lookingeast]

The last 3 houses I have rented the Thai owners did not have a contract or ask for a copy of my passport. I don't think my current landlord even knows my name. Just shows up once a month to collect rent.

they don't want to know you nor to report that you are staying at their house to the immigration for fear that information may leak to the revenue department and that they will end up having to pay tax on their rental income...

That's exactly my landlord's position - when my lady (teacher) found out that she could get a 'Rent Allowance' from the government (1,900 bt a month) our landlord nearly had a heart-attack when he was told he had to go to the council offices to give details of our contract !

[lookingeast]

Sorry if this is a totally dumb question (hostage to fortune there!) but is this restricted to Phuket or is it going to be rolled out across the country ?

[phuketjock]

I do understand this requirement for businesses (Hotels, B&B's, Apartment Rentals etc.). But for private households? This is insane. So if my mother sleeps over in our house, my wife should quickly notify immigration?

Does anyone have the link to do that online?

Online reporting for businesses only

[phuketjock]

Sorry if this is a totally dumb question (hostage to fortune there!) but is this restricted to Phuket or is it going to be rolled out across the country ?

It has been a legal requirement in all of Thailand ( not just Phuket ) for some years now.

[ukrules]

I remember all this in China. The thing there was that every place we stayed (guesthouse, hotel, etc) had a method to report this information through a website. For them to report our stay took about 20 seconds and, in some cases, was integrated into in-house billing solutions.

What chances are there of this happening in Thailand? More likely is that pockets will be filled and the newly fattened officers will switch off and sleep off their excesses and we can all rest easy again.....until next time.

This is all done by website in the background. At the place where I stay the owner doesn't have a computer at the moment.

As incredible as it may seem I was given a sheet of paper containing all the login details to the immigration departments computer and asked to enter my own details using their login.

I did this, it takes only a couple of minutes per person.

You need to enter your name, passport details, etc. The site is in Thai only.

I entered my details and gave her the piece of paper back. I have no doubt she will be back when it needs doing again unless she gets her lazy son to do it on his computer.

Apparently last time the boy was too busy to do it as he was playing online video games so i did it instead.

[rct99q]

It truly is not a difficult process. Seriously. If you are living, as I do, with your Thai wife you go to the nearest immigration office (or police station) you register with them, you get a little piece of paper that show you have registered your address and it gets stapled into your passport.

If you travel and go to a hotel the hotel registers you in their system and this information gets sent to immigration. upon your return home you have the existing little piece of paper that is stapled into your passport as your confirmation of residence.

If you leave the country and return you are required to proceed to immigration and re register. I have asked the immigration officers in Nong Khai if I do not leave the country but travel do i need to re register every time I spend more than 24 hours outside of my main residence and they said NO. Only if I leave the country. However if you spend more than an unusual amount of time away from your main residence they did suggest that I re register upon my return.

Unusual amount of time was narrowed down to more than 30 days.

All guests at the guest house I work at are registered via the on line system and it takes less than 10 minutes each day to accomplish.

If you let your girlfriend or wife register without you providing your details you are in violation of the law. All guests must be registered when in Thailand.

The rule applies for any stay beyond 24 hours. If you pop on over to your girlfriends house for the night and return home to the wife the next day then NO you do not to register your stay as it was less than 24 hours.

If you are moving from place to place every night then I have the feeling that registering your residence is the least of your problems.

As a side note for those living here permanently and legally you should have your certificate of residence updated every year, register with your consulate as an expat living in Thailand and know your blood type or group. Just for emergencies.

[atsiii]

It's hard to imagine that if every hotel, resort, guesthouse, apartment, private home and homestay (of even one room) in Thailand must report all foreigners staying each day within 24 hours, that every Immigration Office in the country won't be overwhelmed immediately.

We have a 4-room guesthouse on a little island where there is not an Immigration Office within a one-hour speedboat ride. Must every facility on this island with foreigners put a paper report on the 8am speedboat to the mainland each morning? That alone would overwhelm the Laem Ngop Office, and we are just one tiny island among many in Trat. And the Internet on this little island is hit-and-miss, at best, so I don't think online reporting is really plausible.

This seems unworkable; so perhaps others are right; that it is just another "tea money" law passed so police can harass lodging establishments for payoffs. And for hotels that allow "extra guests" in a patron's room, does this mean the "extra" guest can only be Thai? Must their Thai ID be recorded to prove they were not foreign "extra" guests?

[Amras]

A few years ago whilst staying in a CNX gh , a huge 'skinhead' type Serbian did a runner owing a months rent. He had used a photocopy of his passport.

The landlady reported it. Two days later Immigration and 'others' turned up and checked her records. They said the guy was on thier wanted list and made her promise to submit a detailed guest list everyday. Which she faithfully honoured.

A guy would come round each morning, collect yesterdays form and leave a new form to be filled in.

Months later after returning from Laos, in the same gh, reception where called by the consulate asking to speak to me (family emergency-go home asap). The consulate had found me via the guest reporting system and so I was able to say goodbye to my farther.

This system is priceless for safety and emergencies. It should be strictly enforced.

Of course, there is also the "mobile phone system" to use in cases of emergency as well.

Was going to say the same thing......everyone has a mobile phone. There reasons are rubbish. When you enter Australia you write your usual place of residence (where you will primarily be). Nothing more is needed.

It's a whole lot of xenophobic rubbish, tbh.

[ukrules]

It's hard to imagine that if every hotel, resort, guesthouse, apartment, private home and homestay (of even one room) in Thailand must report all foreigners staying each day within 24 hours, that every Immigration Office in the country won't be overwhelmed immediately.

We have a 4-room guesthouse on a little island where there is not an Immigration Office within a one-hour speedboat ride. Must every facility on this island with foreigners put a paper report on the 8am speedboat to the mainland each morning? That alone would overwhelm the Laem Ngop Office, and we are just one tiny island among many in Trat. And the Internet on this little island is hit-and-miss, at best, so I don't think online reporting is really plausible.

This seems unworkable; so perhaps others are right; that it is just another "tea money" law passed so police can harass lodging establishments for payoffs. And for hotels that allow "extra guests" in a patron's room, does this mean the "extra" guest can only be Thai? Must their Thai ID be recorded to prove they were not foreign "extra" guests?

This is why it's all done on the internet and it takes only a minute or two for each guest.

[stingray]

What is all about those immigration rules in 2015? Tourist would go to Cambo, get a 1 year visa and can they living all over any places?

[JetsetBkk]

Am I only one who remember the fine is 2,000b and not per day? Just one payment, no matter how long foreigner has stayed. Thought I read that in this forum long ago.

Phuket Gazete has the same story now:

"If they do not start filing the daily reports to us, they will be fined up to 2,000 baht."

So who do you believe? ThePhuketGazette or ThePhuketNews?

I know who I believe.

[sandhurstmolonski]

This is a Incredible announcement . Completely unenforcable , and what an absolute unnecessary Drama for a private individual putting up a family member or Friend , and Visa dependent an Individual " Touring " Visiting , Moving Around etc etc .....

Just imagine the " Interest " at the local Police Establishment , when you are attending to Report that you friend from Another Area was " Visiting " ..No way it can be policed ..Yet a potential nice little Cash pick up for those involved if you didn't make it down ..While , your " Informed " Neighbour was right onto it .

Fair enough for Resorts and Guest Houses etc .

This is an absolute Shocker ...and will do very little good , but produce an incredible amount of Administration .

[stingray]

So, when i stay at a party until 5 a clock in the morning and decide to not drive home and sleep at the girls place overnight, she has to report me to the immigration first? And where at 5 a clock in the morning?

BTW, not everyone is familiar with all this online procedures. I guess they have to plant a whole forest of trees to cover the upcoming paperwork

Edited March 30, 2013 by stingray

[MaxYakov]

so if my mum visit me and stay at my house I have to contact the immigration for that ? For hotel its normal I guess that is why we fill up this form on arrival .... Reminds me when you travel to Moscow , they keep your passport one hour for registration ...

Reminds me of that too. I believe this comes under the heading of 'Police State'. My ten trips to Russia were marked with police intrusion on an almost daily basis. It seemed they had unlimited resources for this.

[mickjn]

Great idea

[flyinghigh]

I am on a multi entry o visa ,I apply for this at Hull ,in England ,I put my Thai Girlfriends addresss on the form ,I also put my Thai Girlfriends address on the arrival form ,you fill in on the plane ,We live in Sattahip, Should my girlfriend register me at police/immigration ....????confused.

[bluuskii]

so if my name is in the yellow book, does my wife still have to make a report to immigration??

[flyinghigh]

sorry not sure if this matters ....we have been together 4 years

[MaxYakov]

Can i still pick up a pretty girl in RCA and stay in her High floor Condo, lets say for 3 days/nights?

Must she report me then?

Report you for what? Extreme Fantasization?

Edited March 30, 2013 by MaxYakov

[Maestro]

I have deleted off-topic posts about overstay fines, the USA, Russia, "90 day reporting", etc and the replies to them.

[madmitch]

Be realistic. Immigration are not going to raid private homes. Where's the money in that? And the tenant is doing nothing wrong anyway so it's not a problem for the majority on here.

For owners of small hotels it's a different matter. Even a 10 room guesthouse, fully occupied, 20 persons, that's a 40,000 baht fine (four times that if you prefer to believe the Phuket News). And maybe back payment for previously unreported guests and that is an amount worth a visit from the Immigration Office.

It'll probably be the usual 2 week crackdown and everything back to normal thereafter anyway.

[Maestro]

Be realistic. Immigration are not going to raid private homes. Where's the money in that? And the tenant is doing nothing wrong anyway so it's not a problem for the majority on here...

It is my understanding that if you are renting a house or an apartment it is you, the "house master" and "possessor of the residence", not the owner, who must report the arrival of the foreigner.

Source: Section 38 of Immigration Act