My little to-do at immigration in the airport on 20 Sept.

[IMA_FARANG]

On 20 September had a little discussion with a Thai immigration female as I returned from a trip to the U.S.

I am here on a retirement extension on a visa originally issued in October 2010 from Hull.

I have extended that visa every three years and my next extension is due 15 October 2013.

That is stamped in my passport.

I due 90 day reporting and my last 90 day reporting was on June 26th 2013.

I left Thailand for the U.S. on 5 September and returned to Thailand about 2300 local on 20 September

The woman at the immigration booth insisted I did not have a visa to return to Thailand. She wanted to give me a 30 day visa exempt stamp.

It was mostly my fault as I had not filled in my exit re-entry permit stamp on my arrival card .... frankly I just forgot that.

I stopped her before she gave me 30 days, and showed her my exit re-entry permit, but she said No, that's not a visa.

I showed her my original Hull Non O visa from 2010 and my 3 yearly extension stamps ... including the one that clearly shows I'm here until 15 October 2013.

But she wasn't buying that. She said my visa from Hull was "to old" and was therefore used.

No matter how I argued she was going to give me a 30 day visa exempt entry.

Finally the light went on, and she looked at my exit r e-entry permit again and she realized it had been stamped when I exited Thailand on 5 September and since I was now returning that it was keeping my extension alive and therefore my extension was still valid.

She stamped me in 20 September on that exit re-entry ... so no problem.

She then showed me where on my arrival card I had not put down the exit re-entry permit number, and scolded me for not doing that.

Then she blamed me for the whole incident .... for not properly putting that number on the arrival card.

She was right .... all I can say was that I had just got off a 27 hour series of flights, with 3 flight changes in Boston, to San Francisco, to Narita, and then to Bangkok.

I was tired and I just forgot.

But that just shows how important it is to check your entry card and make sure you get the correct visa on arrival.

If I hadn't been watching and stopped here stamping my passport with a 30 day visa exempt entry, I would have had problems.

So, be careful, and don't leave that immigration booth without the proper visa stamp.

[Sceptict11]

By failing to fully complete the entry card a 30 day visa exempt entry was in fact being requested.

[Thanyaburi Mac]

You would have had "problems" but in small letters. Not that big a deal to get the stamp corrected at Immigration, but does require a trip to your local office, which for some is quite a distance.

Mac

[Dah fahrang]

Similar 'skirmish' a few years ago. The officer, chatting to his colleague in the next booth looked briefly at my arrival card, never looked beyond the visa page, so never saw sequential contiguous extensions, and banged his stamp for 30 days. I read the stamp before going on to baggage claim. Returned to the said officer in the same booth, and pointed out his error. He was a bit p**sed to have to correct the error, but did so, after minor confrontation.

Since then, I NEVER enter my original visa number on my arrival card.

I cross out where it says visa number, and write "re-entry". Then I write the re-entry permit number in the boxes provided (for visa number) and write the page number in my passport where the stamp can be found.

Yesterday, arrived back in Bangkok from a UK visit. The officer (female, elderly) looked at the modified arrival card and grinned a huge grin. I asked her, in Thai, if my change to the arrival form was "helpful" to her. She smiled again, nodded, and said thank you, in English.

[lopburi3]

Flame removed.

[Crossy]

I always note next to the 'visa number' slot "re-entry", seems to work.

My pet gripe is all those arriving passengers who have not filled in their arrival card, why do they think it's been given to them on the plane, decoration?

[ubonjoe]

It could be that many of them cannot read English or Thai.

[A1Str8]

Even if you were right and it was not your fault, she would have still blamed you. I remember last time I got into an accident in Thailand, the woman got out of the car after hitting my motorbike and started to educate me on how I should do this and that next time while riding so I would not get into an accident again. She was quick to make it clear that it was not her fault. I was about to put her into the trunk so she could shut up but the cops arrived.

No matter what the case is, the first thing they do is make a statement: ahhh I have nothing to do with it.

Edited September 23, 2013 by A1Str8

[Gsxrnz]

OP - thanks for the post. I'm going to be in a similar timing position with reporting and visas and re-entry permits when I return in October, so I'll be sure to write the re-entry permit number on the card.

Funny thing is, I don't ever recall writing a visa or permit number on the arrival card before and didn't even know there was a slot for it. Obviously I'm not too observant.

Never had any problems although once one of the officials said something like "retirement visa expires on dd/mm/yy, right?" Maybe he was confirming what he thought.

Anyway, thanks once again for your timely post.

[Spoonman]

Might be helpful for some.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/24702-thai-immigration-introduces-new-tm-card/

Edited September 23, 2013 by Spoonman

[Card]

:" am here on a retirement extension on a visa originally issued in October 2010 from Hull.

I have extended that visa every three years and my next extension is due 15 October 2013."

I don't understand - I am also on a retirement visa for over 10 years and have had to extend every year - how come you extend every 3 years?

[ubonjoe]

 

 

:" am here on a retirement extension on a visa originally issued in October 2010 from Hull.

I have extended that visa every three years and my next extension is due 15 October 2013."

 

I don't understand - I am also on a retirement visa for over 10 years and have had to extend every year - how come you extend every 3 years?

 

He wrote.

I showed her my original Hull Non O visa from 2010 and my 3 yearly extension stamps ... including the one that clearly shows I'm here until 15 October 2013.

He has done 3 extensions.

[rct99q]

:" am here on a retirement extension on a visa originally issued in October 2010 from Hull.

I have extended that visa every three years and my next extension is due 15 October 2013."

I don't understand - I am also on a retirement visa for over 10 years and have had to extend every year - how come you extend every 3 years?

His statement reads he has a retirement extension which he has renewed every year for three years.....so no difference to what you are doing......just worded differently.

edited: extension (instead of visa, my bad)

Edited September 23, 2013 by rct99q

[haybilly]

it doesn't actually--but, we all knew what he meant.

[mickba]

"She then showed me where on my arrival card I had not put down the exit re-entry permit number, and scolded me for not doing that.

Then she blamed me for the whole incident .... for not properly putting that number on the arrival card.

She was right ...."

That's the important part of your story.

I confess that it took me a couple of tellings off and mis-stamps before I realised that that's it's the Re-entry Permit number they need to see on your Arrival Card, rather than your actual Visa or Extension of Stay number.

It also helps if, as you hand over your Passport you have it open at the Re-entry stamp page, point to it and politely say "Visa".

.

[iancnx]

I entered BKK a week ago. I had a single entry re-entry permit based on marriage extension. Original Non Imm O was issued in Hull 4 years ago.

The arrival card is NOT clear. It asks for the visa number. So I filled in the Non O details from 4 years ago, but handed to the immigration official the passport with page open where the re-entry stamp was, and told him that. After the longest time I have ever spent at a booth in 8 years, he finally figured it out. He then crossed out the visa information I had put on the arrival card and wrote in Thai to the side. I guess it was extension and permit numbers/info. Then I got the correct stamp in. I bet if I had written the re entry info on the arrival card that too would have confused. Perhaps this is a training issue?

[RubbaJohnny]

Lks lke TM 2 updt TM6

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I'm not clear on what's the best advice here:

Re the Airport Cards, I agree that the sole reference to filling in a VISA number can be very misleading, especially for many folks who have a years-old and no longer valid visa stamp, followed by many many annual extension of stay stamps.

But it's always been my understanding, for folks like that and myself too, that what we ought to be filling in on the airport card is the number from our latest extension of stay stamp for the current year -- more than the number associated with one's re-entry permit.

In my past experience, that seems to be what the Immigration Officers are looking for... when it comes to someone arriving back on a still valid extension of stay.

[ubonjoe]

You should put re-entry permit number because that is what allows you to enter the country.

[Sceptict11]

Never had a problem.

On returning to Thailand just write the number of the re-entry permit in the "visa" block of the Arrival card !

Always works for me !

[lopburi3]

As said the re-entry is your visa for entry and that is the number that should be entered.

[lopburi3]

Several posts and replies have been removed.

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Thanks for correcting and clarifying on that...

[JulesMad]

ALWAYS check your stamped dates!!! On more than one occasion, they stamped (or wanted to stamp) my passport wrongly...

Check right away, and don't wait till you're home....

[oneday]

...that what we ought to be filling in on the airport card is the number from our latest extension of stay stamp for the current year...

I'm looking at my passport now and there is absolutely no NUMBER associated with or assigned to my extension of stay stamp. All it has is a stamped extension of stay DATE, a SIGNATURE under that and then the same date stamped again below the signature.

It's pretty clear what most people are saying is correct. Use the re-entry permit number in place of your visa number, which expired years ago.

Edited September 23, 2013 by oneday

[topt]

Just curious but does anybody actually fill in the back of the arrival card - the bottom one that Spoonman showed above? What is the definition of "resident" in this instance?

[lopburi3]

...that what we ought to be filling in on the airport card is the number from our latest extension of stay stamp for the current year...

I'm looking at my passport now and there is absolutely no NUMBER associated with or assigned to my extension of stay stamp. All it has is a stamped extension of stay DATE, a SIGNATURE under that and then the same date stamped again below the signature.

It's pretty clear what most people are saying is correct. Use the re-entry permit number in place of your visa number, which expired years ago.

Actually there normally is a number written at top of your extension of stay stamp in format xxxxx/xx being number/Thai year. But as said that is not used for anything except immigration records.

[smccolley]

I'm not clear on what's the best advice here:

Re the Airport Cards, I agree that the sole reference to filling in a VISA number can be very misleading, especially for many folks who have a years-old and no longer valid visa stamp, followed by many many annual extension of stay stamps.

But it's always been my understanding, for folks like that and myself too, that what we ought to be filling in on the airport card is the number from our latest extension of stay stamp for the current year -- more than the number associated with one's re-entry permit.

In my past experience, that seems to be what the Immigration Officers are looking for... when it comes to someone arriving back on a still valid extension of stay.

I always write my reentry number there, nothing else, and I have yet to have a problem. I am in the airport most every week for the last 7 years and they always figure it out. With an american passport I can keep getting more pages, so mine is usually 100 to 150 pages thick. I put a colored tab on the most recent reentry permit and they always seem to find it after a few minutes.

[HerbalEd]

Even if you were right and it was not your fault, she would have still blamed you. I remember last time I got into an accident in Thailand, the woman got out of the car after hitting my motorbike and started to educate me on how I should do this and that next time while riding so I would not get into an accident again. She was quick to make it clear that it was not her fault. I was about to put her into the trunk so she could shut up but the cops arrived. No matter what the case is, the first thing they do is make a statement: ahhh I have nothing to do with it.

The Thai's have no monopoly on that one.

[marieb]

I'm not clear on what's the best advice here:

Re the Airport Cards, I agree that the sole reference to filling in a VISA number can be very misleading, especially for many folks who have a years-old and no longer valid visa stamp, followed by many many annual extension of stay stamps.

But it's always been my understanding, for folks like that and myself too, that what we ought to be filling in on the airport card is the number from our latest extension of stay stamp for the current year -- more than the number associated with one's re-entry permit.

In my past experience, that seems to be what the Immigration Officers are looking for... when it comes to someone arriving back on a still valid extension of stay.

Agree. This is what my husband and I have been doing, after a year or two when we finally got it, and have never had a problem. Sometimes the numbers are pretty unreadable, though!