Teachers told not to panic about visa and work permit crackdown

[Jonathan Fairfield]

Teachers told not to panic about visa and work permit crackdown

 

 

PHUKET:-- Immigration officials have urged teachers not to worry about the visa and work permit crackdown on the island.

 

Over recent days, rumours have spread throughout the teaching community after a number of posts made on Facebook suggested Immigration Police had started raiding schools in Phuket checking that all foreign teachers have work permits and visas.

 

However, Immigration Inspector Tianchai Chompoo has moved to reassure foreign English teachers, reports the Phuket Gazette.

 

“Please do not worry right now. We have yet to receive an order from the Phuket Immigration Chief to crack down on school teachers” Immigration Inspector Tianchai Chompoo said.

 

This is despite an officer who is based at Immigration Division 6, which covers the majority of Southern Thailand, confirming to the Phuket Gazette that there has indeed been an order to raid schools in Satun, Patthalung and Trang to ensure that all foreign teachers have work permits and are not working illegally.

 

Inspector Tianchai went onto say that Immigration officials in Phuket currently have orders to target, register and legalise illegal migrant workers.

 

According to Inspector Tianchai, him and and his team are also now strictly enforcing the requirement for hotels and guesthouses to report details of all guests within 24 hours of check in.

 

[tv]2014-07-31[/tv]

[TheMysteriousMrTesla]

Ah yes, lull them into a false sense of security, then pounce!!

[khwaibah]

“Please do not worry right now. We have yet to receive an order from the Phuket Immigration Chief to crack down on school teachers” Immigration Inspector Tianchai Chompoo said."

 

​Checks in the mail and I won't  .........  

[Tham1]

Yes looks good - nothing to worry about then. See you soon Teachers..........

[Arjay]

"Not to worry huh?" This guy obviously want to catch them in the act. 

[Johnnie99]

Ah yes, lull them into a false sense of security, then pounce!!

 

Quite right. Pounce on those who spoil it for the rest of us,

[barryofthailand]

They should crack down and check work permits of foreign teachers. I know for a fact thst their are teachers with either no work permits or forged work permits.

[Kitbaikitmah]

Forgive me if I happen to offend ...
but shouldn't teachers have the said documents or be in the process of obtaining them....in order to legally teach.
IMHO. If you are neither of the above but teach.....get your paperwork sorted ASAP.
Consider the Inspector's words as a 'shot across the bow' and ample warning.
It shows he is aware of such practices

[thhMan]

Cmon... Road rules are known but the police set their own rules....

So no matter what the top brass say... it will play differently on the ground

[Banzai99]

Many people in Thailand work with no work permit, I have known many over the years, they flagrantly ignore the law, they know what they are doing is illegal , yet continue to do it, then complain when the laws are enforced.

Paid or voluntary, on site or online, if you are working in any capacity for a commercial enterprise, you need a work permit if you live in Thailand.

Everybody knows it, yet so many choose to ignore the law, this is why they are tightening up, because people take the piss.

[easybullet3]

 

Ah yes, lull them into a false sense of security, then pounce!!

 

Quite right. Pounce on those who spoil it for the rest of us,

 

 

 

@ Johnnie99

       -  do you really think that foreigners "enjoy" going on a visa run ????

  its a complete waste of time and money.

 

if the schools (in question) were more honest and not so lazy, they would apply for the teachers work permit in the correct manner and then the teacher will not need to do these annoying visa-runs every 3 months.

 

its NOT the teachers that are "spoiling" it for the rest of us!!  they would LOVE to have the correct visa!!  

  you should blame the owners of the schools that "cant be bothered to do it properly"

Edited July 31, 2014 by easybullet3

[TimCM]

The other issue is many teachers apply for a role under the belief that all will be legal, yet when it comes time to get the visa, the school does not do the needed paperwork. 

[easybullet3]

Immigration Inspector Tianchai Chompoo said:

"Please do not worry right now. We have yet to receive an order from the Phuket Immigration Chief to crack down on school teachers”

 

 he said "yet"... (meaning: it could well happen SOON).

 

ALSO:

Inspector Tianchai went onto say:   "Immigration officials in Phuket currently have orders to target, register and legalise illegal migrant workers".

  really?  they want to Legalise the illegal workers?   no deportation? no jail? no ethnic camps?   they want to GIVE them a work permit?

is he saying that there is currently an AMNESTY for all illegal workers???

  that's how it reads to me.

 

 

[AloisAmrein]

Why teaching in Thailand? Salary far too low. I could teach English, German, French, Italian, Spanish and Portuguese but I prefer to work as a translator and quality controller for European companies. Far more interesting.

[Lee4Life]

Forgive me if I happen to offend ...
but shouldn't teachers have the said documents or be in the process of obtaining them....in order to legally teach.
IMHO. If you are neither of the above but teach.....get your paperwork sorted ASAP.
Consider the Inspector's words as a 'shot across the bow' and ample warning.
It shows he is aware of such practices

 

       You are correct in what you say, but there is another side of the story. I have had several friends who were teachers, who wished to do everything "by the book" and have the correct visa and work permits, yet the Thai schools that they taught at consistently bungled them up as far as their visas went. The schools promised visas and work permits but then did not follow through and hold up their end of the deal, or they were helpful and assisted the foreign teacher in obtaining the correct visas and wp's at first but when It came time to renew they drug their feet, the teachers were then forced to chose....do they just quit and leave or do they try to stay on and teach while using incorrect visas. (sometimes the school directors actually encourage them to "just go ahead and get a tourist visa while we work on getting the correct documents for you".

         They become caught between the students and the laws in a way. Some of these teachers really love their jobs and their students and feel forced to do what they do as far as their visas go. (and no...I am not a teacher, I haven't been blessed with that ability!)

[AloisAmrein]

Many people in Thailand work with no work permit, I have known many over the years, they flagrantly ignore the law, they know what they are doing is illegal , yet continue to do it, then complain when the laws are enforced.

Paid or voluntary, on site or online, if you are working in any capacity for a commercial enterprise, you need a work permit if you live in Thailand.

Everybody knows it, yet so many choose to ignore the law, this is why they are tightening up, because people take the piss.

 

Only partly true. If a farang in Thailand - no matter if tourist or resident - works online for foreign companies, this has not to interest Thailand. And after all: How they can control this?

[TTom911]

I think it would be VERY foolish of anyone to to believe that they will turn a blind eye in the long run...  will merely mean "more time" to get things straight, which of course will be very welcome to those concerned. I just would not bank on it in a few weeks/months time...

[Jimbolai]

<script type='text/javascript'>window.mod_pagespeed_start = Number(new Date());</script>

 

Immigration Inspector Tianchai Chompoo said:

"Please do not worry right now. We have yet to receive an order from the Phuket Immigration Chief to crack down on school teachers”

 

 he said "yet"... (meaning: it could well happen SOON).

 

ALSO:

Inspector Tianchai went onto say:   "Immigration officials in Phuket currently have orders to target, register and legalise illegal migrant workers".

  really?  they want to Legalise the illegal workers?   no deportation? no jail? no ethnic camps?   they want to GIVE them a work permit?

is he saying that there is currently an AMNESTY for all illegal workers???

  that's how it reads to me.

 

 

 

No that is not what it said.  If you have trouble understanding the rules you should not work here. 

[arisaje]

Of course they don't want them to panic, quit and go home.....as their businesses (schools) will suffer.

 

Typical in Thailand to ignore the problem, brush it under the carpet and wait.......wait until the situation is 100 times worse!

[Assurancetourix]

Many people in Thailand work with no work permit, I have known many over the years, they flagrantly ignore the law, they know what they are doing is illegal , yet continue to do it, then complain when the laws are enforced.

Paid or voluntary, on site or online, if you are working in any capacity for a commercial enterprise, you need a work permit if you live in Thailand.

Everybody knows it, yet so many choose to ignore the law, this is why they are tightening up, because people take the piss.

 

The problem isn't there but in the other face..

It's the school directors who don't do what they must do  and ask for the WP for their teachers because they must pay more than they give actually .

[razer]

If you choose to live and work in a country, just do it legally. It is your choice to live in Thailand so just like in every western country, do it legally.

[smotherb]

Yeah, reminds me of a classic police trick--on a highway in Humbolt County is a big sign reading something like, "Police Drug Checkpoint, 500 Meters."  The cops are hiding 50 meters back on the other side of the road, waiting to see who turns around. 

[media]

"Not to worry huh?" This guy obviously want to catch them in the act. 

 

More like  he wants to CASH them in the act.

[Mudcrab]

Don't panic...stay where you are...Silence of the lambs

[rrbing]

The problem here is that the schools are incentivized by the government to hire illegal workers. 

 

1. There is, to my knowledge, no penalties being assessed to the schools / employment agencies for hiring illegal workers. 

2. Schools have told me that is expensive for them to file the paperwork to make someone legal and is a long drawn out process.

 

As long as the school keeps their teachers working illegally, they have no rights to sue (eg: suddenly the school doesn't need and breaks the contract).

 

So if you're a school or an employment agency and don't really care about keeping a teacher for the long term, it makes more sense financially to keep your teachers illegal. 

 

The way to fix this would be to penalize the both the teachers and schools / employment agencies for allowing teachers to work illegally. 

Edited July 31, 2014 by rrbing

[deepcell]

Nobody can control this sort of thing. Just have sure you are using a good VPN and disk encryption (in case they inspect your home lol).

 

 

 

Many people in Thailand work with no work permit, I have known many over the years, they flagrantly ignore the law, they know what they are doing is illegal , yet continue to do it, then complain when the laws are enforced.

Paid or voluntary, on site or online, if you are working in any capacity for a commercial enterprise, you need a work permit if you live in Thailand.

Everybody knows it, yet so many choose to ignore the law, this is why they are tightening up, because people take the piss.

 

Only partly true. If a farang in Thailand - no matter if tourist or resident - works online for foreign companies, this has not to interest Thailand. And after all: How they can control this?

 

 

[Chang_paarp]

It would be interesting in the crackdown that isn't happening (for now), if the immigration folk prosecuted the folk who hire the "illegal" workers. I am sure there are a few regulations that apply here. I'll bet the teachers would love to be legal, but, many employers seem to be reluctant to fulfil their part in process.

[GeorgeO]

 

Forgive me if I happen to offend ...
but shouldn't teachers have the said documents or be in the process of obtaining them....in order to legally teach.
IMHO. If you are neither of the above but teach.....get your paperwork sorted ASAP.
Consider the Inspector's words as a 'shot across the bow' and ample warning.
It shows he is aware of such practices

 

       You are correct in what you say, but there is another side of the story. I have had several friends who were teachers, who wished to do everything "by the book" and have the correct visa and work permits, yet the Thai schools that they taught at consistently bungled them up as far as their visas went. The schools promised visas and work permits but then did not follow through and hold up their end of the deal, or they were helpful and assisted the foreign teacher in obtaining the correct visas and wp's at first but when It came time to renew they drug their feet, the teachers were then forced to chose....do they just quit and leave or do they try to stay on and teach while using incorrect visas. (sometimes the school directors actually encourage them to "just go ahead and get a tourist visa while we work on getting the correct documents for you".

         They become caught between the students and the laws in a way. Some of these teachers really love their jobs and their students and feel forced to do what they do as far as their visas go. (and no...I am not a teacher, I haven't been blessed with that ability!)

 

 

..."drug their feet" ...? 

[thhMan]

I guess this sums up the Thai Tourist Industry now... I think you get a lighter sentence if you admit to selling meth http://bangkok.coconuts.co/2014/07/31/former-comedy-star-gets-almost-2-years-selling-meth

 

Edited July 31, 2014 by thhMan

[Tanlic]

Geezus there are some amount of negheads on here.

 

Seems obvious to me that it would be counter productive to start targetting teachers.

 

I would imagine on the salaries they are paid more than a few are on overstay.

 

If Thai immigration see fit to turn a blind eye to it then more power to their elbow.

 

All this rubbish about them sneaking up on  them is boring, old hat quips, we have heard a thousand times.

 

Most of these kids teaching, I would imgaine, are decent young guys/girls they are not the ****** mafia nor are they the low life crimials,who should be and hopefully are who all this is crack down is being aimed at.

 

I'm old and past all this but tat's my opinion for what it's worth.

Edited July 31, 2014 by Tanlic