Interesting overstay resolution

[Cam Khao]

I have just flown out of Don Mueng with a couple of buddies, heading to KL.

One of the party had an overstay of just over two years (silly boy). However, prearmed with the info from this forum, he had 20k Baht ready and waiting.

He was taken off to the fine payment room, and after we dealt with passport control, the remaining pair of us followed him in, as nobody objects to us being there.

The guy paid his cash, and a rather abrasive woman old him he cannot come back to Thailand again. she told him it is new policy since about 6 months ago for people with more than 1 year overstay. My traveling companion was clearly stunned by this.

Whilst the fine was being paid though, two things happened that we most odd. Once maggresive woman had finished abusing him verbally, she went quiet for a while, and then a few minutes later asked when he was coming back?

Once the paperwork was done, and passport handed back, the guy with me asked straight out... So I cannot come back to Thailand again? To which the person behind the desk responded... maybe.

I have looked in his passport and I can't see anything apart from the overstay payment stamp. Something really does not ring true here. A most odd situation indeed.

Edited November 19, 2013 by Cam Khao

[ubonjoe]

Just a threat is all it was. He will not have a problem returning.

[Cam Khao]

He did have to sign a yellow form, with Thai Police up at the top. Although I believe this was just a record of the transaction, as the vale 20,000 was entered on to it. Stupidly he neglected to get a copy of this.

I admit it seems like a scare tactic to me. It worked if it was, the woman terrified him!

[ubonjoe]

He should of gotten a copy. That is a receipt for the fine.

[Colabamumbai]

At one time I was inadvertenly on overstay. I had changed schools and provinces 40 kms away, and did not know that I had to cancel my W.P. and report to Immigration and leave the country, get a new Non B for the new school etc. Movng from Roi-Et (Amnat Chareon) Immigration to Kalasin (Sakhon Nakhon) Immigration.

I went to buy a re-entry permit at Sakhon Nakhon, bought the re-entry and then the g/f having being told not to, pulls out my W.P. from my bag. So I am told I am overstay and must go to Amnat Chareon because my extension came from there. Another 3 hour drive to be told that I am overstay to the tune of 17,500 Baht, the two officers figured it out and were waiting for me to pay.

The head officer arrived, looked everything over, passport, documents, visa, extension etc., I was dressed as always, usually with tie. The head man called Sakhon Nakhon and gave them shit for selling me the re-entry while on overstay..

He then told me pay 1,900 Baht and I will give you 7 days. He wrote in my passport beside the re-entry from Sakhon Nakhon "<deleted>".

I have since learned the rules and regulations from contributors such as Lopburi, Wayned, Mario and many others, to avoid this situation again.

Recently while awaiting papers for Non B, teaching, the Thai Consulate in Vientaine told me "This is the last Tourist Visa we will give you, but later I noticed there was no stamp in my passport stating "No more Tourist visas". I have had 3 in 4 years all while awaiting paperwork from employers. None for the actual purpose of being a tourist as such..

And now again after thinking of going for a Non O retirement, a college calls me to work, so now waiting paperwork again, but now Canadians get 30 days at land border, so I am doing that while awaiting "waiver" from Bangkok, so I can apply for a Non B, once again. "The song remains the same".

[Cam Khao]

I just thought I would pop back and give the following info on this topic.

I got a call from the guy who was told by the immigration official that he could not come back to Thailand late last night, from Bangkok!

So what we have here, is some pretty badly unprofessional behavior from a senior immigration officer.

He was told several times whilst paying his 20,000 Baht that he could not come back to Thailand, and this was due to new rules instigated a few months back of automatically blacklisting people on an overstay of a year or more.

Now if this was simply a scare tactic, then fine, but he was allowed to walk out of the room still thinking he had been blacklisted, which is quite obviously not correct as he came back to Thailand last night. He had a ticket pre-booked, so figured give it a shot, nothing to lose, and he was let in.

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of throwaway comments, made by both the senior official and the guy collecting the overstay fine, that raised the suspicion that it was not true, then he would have dumped his return ticket, and never returned to Thailand thinking he had been blacklisted. He was also lucky he had myself and another guy with him that understand enough Thai to overhear a few things that also made us suspicious that he was being lied too.

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

[richard_smith237]

I just thought I would pop back and give the following info on this topic.

I got a call from the guy who was told by the immigration official that he could not come back to Thailand late last night, from Bangkok!

So what we have here, is some pretty badly unprofessional behavior from a senior immigration officer.

He was told several times whilst paying his 20,000 Baht that he could not come back to Thailand, and this was due to new rules instigated a few months back of automatically blacklisting people on an overstay of a year or more.

Now if this was simply a scare tactic, then fine, but he was allowed to walk out of the room still thinking he had been blacklisted, which is quite obviously not correct as he came back to Thailand last night. He had a ticket pre-booked, so figured give it a shot, nothing to lose, and he was let in.

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of throwaway comments, made by both the senior official and the guy collecting the overstay fine, that raised the suspicion that it was not true, then he would have dumped his return ticket, and never returned to Thailand thinking he had been blacklisted. He was also lucky he had myself and another guy with him that understand enough Thai to overhear a few things that also made us suspicious that he was being lied too.

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

Had he not overstayed in the first place…. … .. .

How do over stayers (or friends of in this case) attain this sense of entitlement ?...

... You are very correct... It is 'mind boggling'... but what boggles my mind is that some think they can break the immigration regulations on their own whim. Your friend is not the 'Poor Chap' he is not the innocent party, he has broken immigration law by overstaying.

Are these the same type of characters who have no medical-insurance, have motorcycle accidents and then expect to bleed their friends for cash to pay the bills?

I'm not defending the Immigration Officer's behaviour, she deliberately gave out wrong information. However, she was probably fed up of people taking advantage of her country and her position and decided to voice her frustrations. As unprofessional as that may seem perhaps she has done your friend a favour.

Had your friend been caught on overstay in country he would have faced a tougher more challenging situation.

If he has learned his lesson from this lady, she has done him a favour.

If he overstays again... Well, lets face it he'd be somewhat of an idiot to overstay again...

[Cam Khao]

I completely agree with you, overstay is not a convenient loophole to be used for staying in the country indefinitely, the guy was in the wrong. Those of us who know him quite well have been telling him for a long time to get it resolved. Every time it was pointed out to him that he could be in serious trouble, he would just point at this forum and the number of people who say "Just turn up at the airport with 20k, and no problem".

And sure, she may have been fed up with people taking advantage of her country. But, and this is a very big but, she is still expected to treat people properly, and act in a professional manner. Screaming at somebody for 10 minutes, and telling them are banned from a country they have lived in for the last 12 years, who has two children here, a home, all the usual trimmings of a life, when they are clearly not banned is unprofessional in the extreme. If this guy had been on his own, he would have probably walked out of immigration fully believing he was banned from Thailand.

I don't think he will overstay again though

[AYJAYDEE]

I completely agree with you, overstay is not a convenient loophole to be used for staying in the country indefinitely, the guy was in the wrong. Those of us who know him quite well have been telling him for a long time to get it resolved. Every time it was pointed out to him that he could be in serious trouble, he would just point at this forum and the number of people who say "Just turn up at the airport with 20k, and no problem".

And sure, she may have been fed up with people taking advantage of her country. But, and this is a very big but, she is still expected to treat people properly, and act in a professional manner. Screaming at somebody for 10 minutes, and telling them are banned from a country they have lived in for the last 12 years, who has two children here, a home, all the usual trimmings of a life, when they are clearly not banned is unprofessional in the extreme. If this guy had been on his own, he would have probably walked out of immigration fully believing he was banned from Thailand.

I don't think he will overstay again though

its a fact of life that some public servants will act unprofessionally. if your friend provided her with the opportunity to do so, he only has himself to blame. and relying on anecdotal assurances from TV posters is a recipe for disaster.

[Chivas]

Just a threat is all it was. He will not have a problem returning.

Probably as you say he wont but quite frankly he should....

There is just no excuse whatsoever.

[paz]

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

How? I had an immigration officer pocket a 500 bt overstay fine once by covering stampa creatively. We know that cops can kidnap and judges be corruputed. Not to mention what happens with the real big people. Then we see the usual acid reflux from forum members ready to spew judgment on someone that can come and go freely with 20000 bt while they spent possibly more, endangered thier lives on visa runs while being miserable in queues and abused by bureaucrats. TIT really. Edited December 1, 2013 by paz

[evadgib]

Their feet wouldn't touch the floor if an immigration official tried this in the west.

Edited December 3, 2013 by evadgib

[scorecard]

I just thought I would pop back and give the following info on this topic.

I got a call from the guy who was told by the immigration official that he could not come back to Thailand late last night, from Bangkok!

So what we have here, is some pretty badly unprofessional behavior from a senior immigration officer.

He was told several times whilst paying his 20,000 Baht that he could not come back to Thailand, and this was due to new rules instigated a few months back of automatically blacklisting people on an overstay of a year or more.

Now if this was simply a scare tactic, then fine, but he was allowed to walk out of the room still thinking he had been blacklisted, which is quite obviously not correct as he came back to Thailand last night. He had a ticket pre-booked, so figured give it a shot, nothing to lose, and he was let in.

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of throwaway comments, made by both the senior official and the guy collecting the overstay fine, that raised the suspicion that it was not true, then he would have dumped his return ticket, and never returned to Thailand thinking he had been blacklisted. He was also lucky he had myself and another guy with him that understand enough Thai to overhear a few things that also made us suspicious that he was being lied too.

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

Had he not overstayed in the first place…. … .. .

How do over stayers (or friends of in this case) attain this sense of entitlement ?...

... You are very correct... It is 'mind boggling'... but what boggles my mind is that some think they can break the immigration regulations on their own whim. Your friend is not the 'Poor Chap' he is not the innocent party, he has broken immigration law by overstaying.

Are these the same type of characters who have no medical-insurance, have motorcycle accidents and then expect to bleed their friends for cash to pay the bills?

I'm not defending the Immigration Officer's behaviour, she deliberately gave out wrong information. However, she was probably fed up of people taking advantage of her country and her position and decided to voice her frustrations. As unprofessional as that may seem perhaps she has done your friend a favour.

Had your friend been caught on overstay in country he would have faced a tougher more challenging situation.

If he has learned his lesson from this lady, she has done him a favour.

If he overstays again... Well, lets face it he'd be somewhat of an idiot to overstay again...

And you can find rude / obnoxious government officials, and others in every aspect of daily life, in shops, at airline check in lines etc etc., in every country in the world.

Edited December 3, 2013 by scorecard

[evadgib]

....& accountability too!

[Briggsy]

Do remember that entry to the Kingdom is at the discretion of the immigration officer and that there is no automatic right of entry. So what she said could be interpreted as possible.

[ubonjoe]

Flame removed.

[Chao Lao Beach]

Why don't they blacklist people like this and make life easier for the honest non criminal folks who abide by the immigration law ?

You seem to blame the immigration police officer, not your criminal buddy.

[paz]

Why don't they blacklist people like this and make life easier for the honest non criminal folks who abide by the immigration law ?

 

You seem to blame the immigration police officer, not your criminal buddy. 

Because under and below, the Thai 'system' has more sense and humanity than the hang them high brigade to which you belong.

Pay money - issue fixed. That seems so hard to digest for some stiff people here.

[FritsSikkink]

I just thought I would pop back and give the following info on this topic.

I got a call from the guy who was told by the immigration official that he could not come back to Thailand late last night, from Bangkok!

So what we have here, is some pretty badly unprofessional behavior from a senior immigration officer.

He was told several times whilst paying his 20,000 Baht that he could not come back to Thailand, and this was due to new rules instigated a few months back of automatically blacklisting people on an overstay of a year or more.

Now if this was simply a scare tactic, then fine, but he was allowed to walk out of the room still thinking he had been blacklisted, which is quite obviously not correct as he came back to Thailand last night. He had a ticket pre-booked, so figured give it a shot, nothing to lose, and he was let in.

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of throwaway comments, made by both the senior official and the guy collecting the overstay fine, that raised the suspicion that it was not true, then he would have dumped his return ticket, and never returned to Thailand thinking he had been blacklisted. He was also lucky he had myself and another guy with him that understand enough Thai to overhear a few things that also made us suspicious that he was being lied too.

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

This poor chap ???

Overstayed 2 years, very nice to hear they scared him.

[moe666]

I just thought I would pop back and give the following info on this topic.

I got a call from the guy who was told by the immigration official that he could not come back to Thailand late last night, from Bangkok!

So what we have here, is some pretty badly unprofessional behavior from a senior immigration officer.

He was told several times whilst paying his 20,000 Baht that he could not come back to Thailand, and this was due to new rules instigated a few months back of automatically blacklisting people on an overstay of a year or more.

Now if this was simply a scare tactic, then fine, but he was allowed to walk out of the room still thinking he had been blacklisted, which is quite obviously not correct as he came back to Thailand last night. He had a ticket pre-booked, so figured give it a shot, nothing to lose, and he was let in.

If it wasn't for the fact that a couple of throwaway comments, made by both the senior official and the guy collecting the overstay fine, that raised the suspicion that it was not true, then he would have dumped his return ticket, and never returned to Thailand thinking he had been blacklisted. He was also lucky he had myself and another guy with him that understand enough Thai to overhear a few things that also made us suspicious that he was being lied too.

How the hell can this kind of thing go on? How can an immigration official get away with this? Had this guy left Thailand for good, based on the word of the immigration official, his life would have been changed completely, on nothing more than the whim of a woman who was having a bad day and talking it out on this poor chap. Mind boggling.

Know the rules and then you can just nod off the bad behavior of some thai people. No big deal but your friends extended overstay is a big deal why does he think it is ok to break Thai law.

Edited December 4, 2013 by moe666

[Chivas]

Theres absolute no excuse for 2 years overstay and should be persona not grata for all Foreigners who do the same.....

If everyone knew that say 6 months and above was Mandatory then it would close to cease overnight and even up to 6 months a Certified Doctors Certificate etc.

As someone else says try coming back into UK after overstaying 2 years and see what happens

[Satcommlee]

Can't say I actually blame the immigration officers for telling these people they are blacklisted (albeit not true), they are clearly p##stakers and not welcomed in their eyes.

[Chao Lao Beach]

Theres absolute no excuse for 2 years overstay and should be persona not grata for all Foreigners who do the same.....

If everyone knew that say 6 months and above was Mandatory then it would close to cease overnight and even up to 6 months a Certified Doctors Certificate etc.

As someone else says try coming back into UK after overstaying 2 years and see what happens

Actually, 12 months is better than 6 months. I am sure there have been plenty of honest cases where someone got a 12 month visa issued abroad, and didn't really understand they have to re-enter every 90 days. Same as someone getting 2 tourist visas and not realizing they have to re-enter. I knw there is a date in their passport etc, but 12 months would cover a genuine innocent dill !!

The fact is that for many people, it is cheaper to pay the 20k, just black ban them.

The was a push about 1 year ago where over-stayers of more than 12 months were to do jail time in the imm detention center, but it fizzled out.

I believe that there is already provisions for people who are will under hospital care, they should make provisions for people who have their passports confiscated by the courts though.

Chances are these are the same people driving around with no valid license and making money through dodgy was as they have proven they have absolutely no respect for laws of the land.