Thailand triumphs in UN Human Rights council bid

[Lite Beer]

Smart card system for Thais to be introduced at Suvarnabhumi Airport
By Digital Media

BANGKOK, May 11 - A smart card and barcode system is to be introduced by the end of this year at Suvarnabhumi Airport to facilitate processing at immigration for Thai citizens.

Board chairman of Airports of Thailand (AoT) Plc Sita Divari said today that he had discussed with Immigration Bureau and Foreign Affairs Ministry on the use of such technology which is to replace passport use.

He said with a smart card, it will take a Thai passenger less than 10 seconds at the immigration checkpoint. He added that the use of immigration documents for departure and arrival will also be phased out, which would help save printing cost of the documents at around Bt20-30 million/year.

Sita said the number of passengers expected to reach over 50 million this year, where Suvarnabhumi Airport's maximum capacity supports only 45 million passengers per year. However, passenger circulation is currently manageable.

In the long run, AoT has a plan to expand the airport in its second phase under a budget of Bt65 billion. The progress in now in the design stage, which will take about 10 months. Construction will begin next March and finish by 2016. (MCOT online news)

-- TNA 2013-05-11

[EvilDrSomkid]

Could they please introduce something similar for foreigners who live here? Like people with WPs or something?

Yeah, like introducing fast track for Thais will help with the enormous lines of tourists coming in... There are soooo many of them.

The Thai nationals booths NEVER have a line. Never.

<deleted>.

[Chicog]

^ To get the card you go to an office upstairs in Dubai airport; they take your fingerprints and photograph (and your money) and issue you the card on the spot.

So they have a record of when you're in and out, which is all an immigration officer does anyway.

Except in Thailand where they seem to have a myriad of ways of slowing the whole process down most of the time.

[EvilDrSomkid]

^ To get the card you go to an office upstairs in Dubai airport; they take your fingerprints and photograph (and your money) and issue you the card on the spot.

So they have a record of when you're in and out, which is all an immigration officer does anyway.

Except in Thailand where they seem to have a myriad of ways of slowing the whole process down most of the time.

Oh, I just remembered. They don't want us here. No convenience for us.

Farang go home after 2 weeks. You give us all your money first.

[aguy30]

Why a smart card? Extra technology and extra expense. Unless of course there is a need to pay for some extra "overhead expense and special commissions". I thought all of the newer passports have an RFID chip built in already. Those readers and a proper database software should be all that is needed.

[lomatopo]

What percentage of international/departures/arrivals are Thai? Maybe less than 5%?

Anyway, it's never been clear to me why Thais even need to clear Immigration departing - airlines check for a valid passport/visa; on arrival I guess you'd need some sort of smart ID (national ID, chipped passport) to verify they are citizens. Thais can return on an expired passport or even without a passport. Obviously the Thai penchant for paperwork needs to be addressed, but no one in Immigration likes the airport job anyway: long hours, no OT, bad commute, no ancillary income.

[Spoonman]

Could they please introduce something similar for foreigners who live here? Like people with WPs or something?

Yeah, like introducing fast track for Thais will help with the enormous lines of tourists coming in... There are soooo many of them.

The Thai nationals booths NEVER have a line. Never.

<deleted>.

I always have my work permit on hand and use the Thai lines, never been denied.

[theoldgit]

They announced they were going to do this last year, initially for Thai passport holders and eventually for other frequent visitors, I look forward to a similar announcement this time next year.

When they first introduced the automated passport scanners my partner was encouraged to use one of them when we were flying to Singapore, as there was no exit stamp on her passport she was sent for secondry examination, no real problem apart from the two long queues.

[Soi Dog]

THis would be great if it applied to Permanent Residents as well.

[Dirk_brijs]

^ To get the card you go to an office upstairs in Dubai airport; they take your fingerprints and photograph (and your money) and issue you the card on the spot.

So they have a record of when you're in and out, which is all an immigration officer does anyway.

Except in Thailand where they seem to have a myriad of ways of slowing the whole process down most of the time.

why dont you travel to LAX or Miami Airport a few times a year so you would start appreciating Bangkok airport and the country that allows you to live in it a little more

Did someone put a gun in your face for living here??

[Gerald14]

I agree with Soi Dog, they should do this for permanent residents or even retirees as well

[steveyinasia]

Malaysia did away with the immigration form, you get your fingerprints taken on the first visit and after that, all very fast. To my knowledge, Thailand is the only place(in the region I travel) that collects information about your income.....maybe thats profiling for the scammers(joke). I live in Thailand by choice, working from a home office and travel through old swampy at least 30 times a year. It is way better than it used to be.

[Wonderboy]

Oh, I just remembered. They don't want us here. No convenience for us.

Farang go home after 2 weeks. You give us all your money first.

Nope, you are wrong. They just don't want the grumpy, bitter, ugly farangs. The rest are most welcome...

[Chicken George]

I agree with Soi Dog, they should do this for permanent residents or even retirees as well

You know something the rest of us do not? Permanant? Now I would like to become a Thai citezen but that will never hapen.:-)

[RBOP]

Could they please introduce something similar for foreigners who live here? Like people with WPs or something?

Yeah, like introducing fast track for Thais will help with the enormous lines of tourists coming in... There are soooo many of them.

The Thai nationals booths NEVER have a line. Never.

<deleted>.

I always have my work permit on hand and use the Thai lines, never been denied.

I have gone to the Thai lane before but was scolded by the Immigration Officer who said next time go to the other lane.

[Kularion]

Oh, I just remembered. They don't want us here. No convenience for us.

Farang go home after 2 weeks. You give us all your money first.

Nope, you are wrong. They just don't want the grumpy, bitter, ugly farangs. The rest are most welcome...

Most welcome with huge wallet in their pocket you forget to add... Just don't start try to convince us that something has change and Thai starts to love foreigners...

As for Frequent Visitor Card would be nice to have one... lot of time and stress saved but this not gonna happen any time soon...

Edited May 12, 2013 by Kularion

[johna]

There was a story about this last year in the BP, it also said there would be a ฿50 extra charge on passengers to pay for the machines, I got the impression at the time that all passengers would be paying this extra fee.

[djlest]

sorry but the amount of Thais travelling is miniscule compared to the 40 million tourists coming in.
At customs there is always one little booth in the corner for the Thais and they usually clear it either instantly or within 5 minutes
Making this system only available to Thai doesnt seem like it will save anything on paper or printing compared to the 40 million others standing for hours while one person slowly sits on their pedestle and checks for spelling mistakes.

In this day and age, where we can check in to places via smartphones, Passports have microchips, and there are retina scanners appearing, i think they could dream far bigger, considering swampy is one of the biggest and superficially impressive airports in the world. Be nice to see the Thais dream something advanced up by themselves for a change.

[rodroy]

I agree with Soi Dog, they should do this for permanent residents or even retirees as well

Heartily agreed !

if there is a minimum fee so be it!

Could also be used for 90 reporting!

[VINCENT2012]

Oh, I just remembered. They don't want us here. No convenience for us.

Farang go home after 2 weeks. You give us all your money first.

Nope, you are wrong. They just don't want the grumpy, bitter, ugly farangs. The rest are most welcome...

no...! you are wrong they don't care if you are grumpy, bitter, or even ugly ,they dont care about your face ans aspect at all, but my frienf if you dont have money then you become strait away a non grata person.

thats exactly what they wanted and did so when they changed the tourist mounth visa and all the rules so all bagpackers and young people travelling around have today no chances here.so now it only remain a bunch of old and ancestral foreigners most of them married to thais...the rest is all gone!

they made thailand unplaisant to many people.

[Amras]

Malaysia did away with the immigration form, you get your fingerprints taken on the first visit and after that, all very fast. To my knowledge, Thailand is the only place(in the region I travel) that collects information about your income.....maybe thats profiling for the scammers(joke). I live in Thailand by choice, working from a home office and travel through old swampy at least 30 times a year. It is way better than it used to be.

sorry but the amount of Thais travelling is miniscule compared to the 40 million tourists coming in.

At customs there is always one little booth in the corner for the Thais and they usually clear it either instantly or within 5 minutes

Making this system only available to Thai doesnt seem like it will save anything on paper or printing compared to the 40 million others standing for hours while one person slowly sits on their pedestle and checks for spelling mistakes.

In this day and age, where we can check in to places via smartphones, Passports have microchips, and there are retina scanners appearing, i think they could dream far bigger, considering swampy is one of the biggest and superficially impressive airports in the world. Be nice to see the Thais dream something advanced up by themselves for a change.

Nope, to both the above. No way do I want to be forced to give my fingerprints or my retinal scan to any database system anywhere in the world and especially some SE Asian country.

All countries that have the electronic arrivals are for NATIONALS of that country only, Australia has them for Australian citizens (and NZ). There's a reason they can't do it for others. Visa's, checks etc. Your visa only grants you permission to arrive, the ultimate decision on your length of stay and whether or not you are permitted to enter a country is with the immigration officer.

And who says you have to put your real income....why would I want to do that. I'm fine with the forms and no way would I want biometric data to replace it.

Nope, you are wrong. They just don't want the grumpy, bitter, ugly farangs. The rest are most welcome...

no...! you are wrong they don't care if you are grumpy, bitter, or even ugly ,they dont care about your face ans aspect at all, but my frienf if you dont have money then you become strait away a non grata person.

thats exactly what they wanted and did so when they changed the tourist mounth visa and all the rules so all bagpackers and young people travelling around have today no chances here.so now it only remain a bunch of old and ancestral foreigners most of them married to thais...the rest is all gone!

they made thailand unplaisant to many people.

What country does want a ton of backpackers in their country? None. They don't spend money (compared to a normal tourist), they take up space, use infrastructure and are the types who will buy a bottle of beer at 7-11 (and sit out the front) instead of going next door to the bar and paying 30baht per bottle more. I wouldn't want them in my country either.

A tourist visa is supposed to be for travel, not for permanently living like a hobo in Thailand. So yes, Thailand doesn't want people here not spending money, like all countries they want tourists who spend money.

[madmitch]

All countries that have the electronic arrivals are for NATIONALS of that country only, Australia has them for Australian citizens (and NZ). There's a reason they can't do it for others. Visa's, checks etc. Your visa only grants you permission to arrive, the ultimate decision on your length of stay and whether or not you are permitted to enter a country is with the immigration officer.

Wrong. If you have a work permit in Singapore you can use the fast track system and I am sure it will work elsewhere.

In theory it should free up a couple of immigration officers for foreign arrivals so there is a plus point to this for us.

As for farangs with work permits and/or 12 month visas, it won't work unless they do away with 90 day reporting or they allow the smart card to be used for the reporting, which would mean a reader at each immigration office.

[honzad]

God, there are some miserable bitter people on this site. If you don't like Thailand and the Thais, go home. Simple as that.

Now for the few who are left - why don't you do something about it? Write to your Embassy and Chamber of Commerce asking for them to lobby for better entry privileges for permanent residents and holders of legal work permits. Point out that HK and Japan (among others) do this and it encourages inbound investment if you treat frequent travelers well.

Who knows? It might even work if enough people do it.

[Tomtomtom69]

steveyinasia, on 12 May 2013 - 11:01, said:

Malaysia did away with the immigration form, you get your fingerprints taken on the first visit and after that, all very fast. To my knowledge, Thailand is the only place(in the region I travel) that collects information about your income.....maybe thats profiling for the scammers(joke). I live in Thailand by choice, working from a home office and travel through old swampy at least 30 times a year. It is way better than it used to be.

I stopped filling out that information last year - you only really need to fill out the departure and arrival card sections anyway, not the back. How many times do I need to write down that I am a high income earner that earns at least $80000 a year? I travel in and out of Thailand frequently and the paperwork is becoming annoying, even if familiar. Just do away with the forms already - everything the authorities need is contained within your passport anyway.

[Tomtomtom69]

sorry but the amount of Thais travelling is miniscule compared to the 40 million tourists coming in.

At customs there is always one little booth in the corner for the Thais and they usually clear it either instantly or within 5 minutes

Making this system only available to Thai doesnt seem like it will save anything on paper or printing compared to the 40 million others standing for hours while one person slowly sits on their pedestle and checks for spelling mistakes.

In this day and age, where we can check in to places via smartphones, Passports have microchips, and there are retina scanners appearing, i think they could dream far bigger, considering swampy is one of the biggest and superficially impressive airports in the world. Be nice to see the Thais dream something advanced up by themselves for a change.

That's right, why don't Thais travel more? Virtually every other country I've been to, even those that are poorer than Thailand and/or with smaller populations have a significantly higher proportion of locals traveling compared to foreigners. Thailand feels like a zoo where foreigners come and visit and the locals are locked up inside their own country. LOL

[Garry]

I use my resident card (some call it a labor card). It is a smart card which can be used for exiting and entering via E-Gate the Middle East state where I work.
It avoids waiting in sometimes long queues to the immigration desk. It would be an advantageous card to have for WP holders, retirees, marriage visa's etc. If
the card is not accepted/rejected/e-gate not working, simple, go to the immigration line. Takes on the average about 20 seconds to go through the e-gate.

Edited May 12, 2013 by Garry

[metisdead]

A post containing overly derogatory comments toward Thais has been removed as well as the replies that contained that post.

[tberentsen]

Malaysia did away with the immigration form, you get your fingerprints taken on the first visit and after that, all very fast. To my knowledge, Thailand is the only place(in the region I travel) that collects information about your income.....maybe thats profiling for the scammers(joke). I live in Thailand by choice, working from a home office and travel through old swampy at least 30 times a year. It is way better than it used to be.

During my 10 years travelling to Thai, I have never cared about filling out the form about income, never got any problems or questions, because it`s volunteer!

Just fill out arrival and departure!

[tberentsen]

steveyinasia, on 12 May 2013 - 11:01, said:

Malaysia did away with the immigration form, you get your fingerprints taken on the first visit and after that, all very fast. To my knowledge, Thailand is the only place(in the region I travel) that collects information about your income.....maybe thats profiling for the scammers(joke). I live in Thailand by choice, working from a home office and travel through old swampy at least 30 times a year. It is way better than it used to be.

I stopped filling out that information last year - you only really need to fill out the departure and arrival card sections anyway, not the back. How many times do I need to write down that I am a high income earner that earns at least $80000 a year? I travel in and out of Thailand frequently and the paperwork is becoming annoying, even if familiar. Just do away with the forms already - everything the authorities need is contained within your passport anyway.

I have never filled out that information, only arrival and departure! I`m pretty sure it`s optional....and I have never been asked once of the immigration officer about it!

[Spoonman]

Could they please introduce something similar for foreigners who live here? Like people with WPs or something?

Yeah, like introducing fast track for Thais will help with the enormous lines of tourists coming in... There are soooo many of them.

The Thai nationals booths NEVER have a line. Never.

<deleted>.

I always have my work permit on hand and use the Thai lines, never been denied.

I have gone to the Thai lane before but was scolded by the Immigration Officer who said next time go to the other lane.

Really, I usually show my work permit to the lad directing traffic and ask if I can go the Thai lane and he says of course you can Sir......... Immi dude at counter has always been accommodating.

Do you smile or act grumpy ?