Reasons for Immigration Crackdown

[flattop]

Last Winter on 2 visa runs over the Nakhon Phanom-Thakhek Friendship bridge I witnessed minibuses constantly arriving from Vietnam at Thakhek international bus station carrying apparently organised groups of young Vietnamese on there way to Bangkok to find work. About 200 were waiting for every Thai-Laos bus which arrived every 30 mins rather than the scheduled hourly bus. The bus companies and immigration were really cashing in as it appeared that on top of the purchased bus ticket, the bus drivers were taking 100bt from each migrant as they scrambled to get on the bus. At the bridge Laos and Thai immigration were also each taking 100bt inside every passport, and on the Nakhon Phanom side they were made to change buses probably paying another 100bt for the short trip to NP bus station. I counted 120 reboarding my bus at the bridge. Do the maths! Strangely, given the numbers, they seemed to be clearing immigration really quickly. I wonder why!

 

With immigration on this scale it is no surprise that there has been a crackdown.

 

Maybe it has little to do with a few farangs abusing the system.

 

[sustento]

So it's not the round eye's fault then? That's a relief!

[Frampleton]

every country has their own immigrant status in a particular country. this is because the absence of certain regulations could mean destabilization. if the usa lifted all visa requirements to latin americans you can imagine how that would affect the state. however if thailand lifted all visa regulations for developed states such as in the west or japan etc, there would be very little economic impact. none of these people would be flocking to thailand in search of economic oppurtunity the same way they would other immigrants come to their country. for that i think farrang an an exestential threat at best and are realistically just a minor annoyance. they are not in danger of affecting thai society to any great degree and probably do more good as they go about spilling money everywhere.

Sent from my GT-I8160 using Thaivisa Connect Thailand mobile app

[Deacon Bell]

What crackdown?

[ubonjoe]

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

[ubonjoe]

Some off topic posts and those not in English plus replies to them have been removed. 

[MarkmBha]

It is a good idea.

Clean up the country.

[ovenman]

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

Indeed. Back when I first came to Chiang Mai in 1993, the nearest open land border to my knowledge was Malaysia(!). There were no low-cost carriers that would fly you abroad and back for a few thousand baht, Laos was off limits as was Cambodia from what I recall. Myanmar was something of a non-starter as well. What I am getting at is that I don't think the Thai authorities ever envisioned how the visa-exempt entry would eventually get used as easy border hopping was non-existent. 

 

[lemonjelly]

The cause has become irrelevant; it's the effects we are concerned with.

[ParadiseLost]

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

[AYJAYDEE]

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

and thats why they arent being arrested

[LuckyLew]

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

 

Your first sentence says it all ... Thailand is not a developed country ...they are stuck in same same land

[Suradit69]

The cause has become irrelevant; it's the effects we are concerned with.

 

Hardly irrelevant. It was the effects of visa abuse that caused the crackdown and it ought to be a cautionary message. Even now people are scurrying to find new ways to circumvent the rules. And it's the newly exploited loopholes of today that will be the crackdown targets of tomorrow.

 

If you've been playing by the rules, in most cases there are no effects for you.

[sustento]

 Even now people are scurrying to find new ways to circumvent the rules. And it's the newly exploited loopholes of today that will be the crackdown targets of tomorrow.

 

 

 

[thairookie]

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

[thairookie]

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

 

Precisely.  The very evidence (as in legally obtained Tourist Visa or entitled visa exempt) that is supposed to prove the legitimacy of your stay is now being used to cast aspersions on the legitimacy of your stay.

 

[AYJAYDEE]

 

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

 

Precisely.  The very evidence (as in legally obtained Tourist Visa or entitled visa exempt) that is supposed to prove the legitimacy of your stay is now being used to cast aspersions on the legitimacy of your stay.

 

 

the visa exempt was not intended to enable a long stay

[thairookie]

 

 

My 2 cents worth - the current situation is self-inflicted. Thailand could have avoided the entire mess by defining what most developed countries make very clear - the maximum number of days one can spend inside the country for tourism purposes in one year, 12 months, whatever.

 

For too long the authorities have given the impression that as long as you keep getting tourist visas you can effectively live here year-round. This is still not clarified anywhere, and the recent announcement of free tourist visas for some conflicts entirely with the 'clampdown'.

 

Unsurprising that so many people feel badly treated that they are now effectively being ejected and treated like wrongdoers, by the authorities and many people on social media. Perhaps it was foolhardy to invest here as a tourist, but it was not illegal. The fact so many used the loophole to find employment illegally is as a consequence of poorly thought out policy. Treating all as abusers is not fair, until there are clear rules for everyone.

 

The real abusers are over-stayers. People working on tourist visas at least make the effort to leave and get visa'd up. Not saying I support anyone working illegally - I don't but they are chancers, not criminals.

 

Precisely.  The very evidence (as in legally obtained Tourist Visa or entitled visa exempt) that is supposed to prove the legitimacy of your stay is now being used to cast aspersions on the legitimacy of your stay.

 

 

the visa exempt was not intended to enable a long stay

 

 

Precisely.  Which is why one needs to exit Thailand every 30 days.

 

[SunsetT]

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

Im very glad it did, as it would really mess up the lives of those like me who like to escape Winters in Northern latitudes by coming to Thailand.

[Tomtomtom69]

Vietnamese coming to work illegally in Thailand are being heavily cracked down upon and are one of the target nationalities for this immigration crackdown. Indeed, given that there is no special visa for them (unlike Lao, Cambodians and Burmese) I don't know why they keep trying thinking they can blend in simply due to their physical appearance and work illegally at some shoe factory or on a fishing boat (or whatever kind of work they do - no idea what is it). I would like to know where they are working as I have come across only a tiny handful of them in Thailand, mainly at the Cambodian border heading back to Vietnam.

 

The abuse needs to stop and of course every foreigner who works illegally, overstays etc. is partly responsible but clearly Vietnamese and citizens of other neighboring countries are the biggest abusers as they typically come in larger numbers and are willing to work for peanuts. The Vietnamese are also known to be amongst the biggest group of illegal workers and overstayers in southern China, particularly in Guangxi province and Guangdong, both in close proximity to northern Vietnam and offering a higher standard of living and higher wages than in impoverished Vietnam. The large number of illegal Vietnamese prompted Hong Kong to end visa free stays for Vietnamese there a few years ago and now all Vietnamese need a visa even for a short trip to Hong Kong, thanks to the abusers.

[AYJAYDEE]

 

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

Im very glad it did, as it would really mess up the lives of those like me who like to escape Winters in Northern latitudes by coming to Thailand.

 

why wouldnt a triple entry tourist visa overcome that problem?

[ParadiseLost]

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

My guess - people simply got tourist visas for the other 90/180 days, thereby circumventing the limit.

Edited August 8, 2014 by ParadiseLost

[SunsetT]

 

 

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

Im very glad it did, as it would really mess up the lives of those like me who like to escape Winters in Northern latitudes by coming to Thailand.

 

why wouldnt a triple entry tourist visa overcome that problem?

 

Yes if it only applied to visa exempt entries, but I interpreted thairookie's post, maybe wrongly, as meaning NO tourist could stay more than 90 days in 180 days Perhaps he can clarify it. Doesnt really matter as he says it was never implemented anyway.

[AYJAYDEE]

Yes if it only applied to visa exempt entries, but I interpreted thairookie's post, maybe wrongly, as meaning NO tourist could stay more than 90 days in 180 days Perhaps he can clarify it. Doesnt really matter as he says it was never implemented anyway.

 

i dont ever remember that being the case

[SunsetT]

 

Yes if it only applied to visa exempt entries, but I interpreted thairookie's post, maybe wrongly, as meaning NO tourist could stay more than 90 days in 180 days Perhaps he can clarify it. Doesnt really matter as he says it was never implemented anyway.

 

i dont ever remember that being the case

 

No it wasn't. Neither rule was ever implemented. Thairookie says they 'dropped it'. 

[SunsetT]

 

 

Yes if it only applied to visa exempt entries, but I interpreted thairookie's post, maybe wrongly, as meaning NO tourist could stay more than 90 days in 180 days Perhaps he can clarify it. Doesnt really matter as he says it was never implemented anyway.

 

i dont ever remember that being the case

 

No it wasn't. Neither rule was ever implemented. Thairookie says they 'dropped it'. 

 

Or if u r Thai........'Yes it wasnt'....... !

[ubonjoe]

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

They dropped it because it created problems for immigration. Having to go back through a passport to count how many days somebody had been here wasted a lot of time.

It also created problems for legitimate tourists traveling here on a regular basis.

They dropped it and limited land border crossing entries to 15 days for everybody unless a person was on a bilateral agreement. Then in November of last year they started allowing 30 days for those from the G7 countries.

[thedemon]

 

The "crackdown" is about people taking advantage of the visa exempt entry that is allowed for those from several countries to stay here long term.

This has been covered in many topics already.

 

 

At one time the Immigration came up with an excellent policy that would have prevented people from using visa exempt entries to stay here long term, i.e. the 90 days within last 180 days policy.

 

I wonder why they dropped it.

 

 

Strangely, to this day, the TIMATIC system used by airlines to check entry requirements still list the maximum 90 days in 6 months rule for visa exempt entry.

[JDGRUEN]

Vietnamese coming to work illegally in Thailand are being heavily cracked down upon and are one of the target nationalities for this immigration crackdown. Indeed, given that there is no special visa for them (unlike Lao, Cambodians and Burmese) I don't know why they keep trying thinking they can blend in simply due to their physical appearance and work illegally at some shoe factory or on a fishing boat (or whatever kind of work they do - no idea what is it). I would like to know where they are working as I have come across only a tiny handful of them in Thailand, mainly at the Cambodian border heading back to Vietnam.

 

The abuse needs to stop and of course every foreigner who works illegally, overstays etc. is partly responsible but clearly Vietnamese and citizens of other neighboring countries are the biggest abusers as they typically come in larger numbers and are willing to work for peanuts. The Vietnamese are also known to be amongst the biggest group of illegal workers and overstayers in southern China, particularly in Guangxi province and Guangdong, both in close proximity to northern Vietnam and offering a higher standard of living and higher wages than in impoverished Vietnam. The large number of illegal Vietnamese prompted Hong Kong to end visa free stays for Vietnamese there a few years ago and now all Vietnamese need a visa even for a short trip to Hong Kong, thanks to the abusers.

 

You are on to something there Tomtom...Where are the Vietnamese in Thailand?  Go to Nong Khai and head down river towards Nakhon Phanom ... stop at Phon Phisai and other small towns along the way.  In Phon Phisai one can hear Vietnamese music on loud speakers and spoken Vietnamese on the streets.  There are small Vietnamese food stalls all over the area and especially at the Open Air Markets.  In Phon Phisai most of the movie channels on the local cable service have English language movies with Vietnamese subtitles - not Thai.  The largest restaurant in Nong Khai is a huge waterfront place called Daeng's ... I attended a Vietnamese wedding in Phon Phisai with a 1000 guests in attendance.  Those clever Vietnamese are out there hiding in plain sight... :)

[thedemon]

 

Vietnamese coming to work illegally in Thailand are being heavily cracked down upon and are one of the target nationalities for this immigration crackdown. Indeed, given that there is no special visa for them (unlike Lao, Cambodians and Burmese) I don't know why they keep trying thinking they can blend in simply due to their physical appearance and work illegally at some shoe factory or on a fishing boat (or whatever kind of work they do - no idea what is it). I would like to know where they are working as I have come across only a tiny handful of them in Thailand, mainly at the Cambodian border heading back to Vietnam.

 

The abuse needs to stop and of course every foreigner who works illegally, overstays etc. is partly responsible but clearly Vietnamese and citizens of other neighboring countries are the biggest abusers as they typically come in larger numbers and are willing to work for peanuts. The Vietnamese are also known to be amongst the biggest group of illegal workers and overstayers in southern China, particularly in Guangxi province and Guangdong, both in close proximity to northern Vietnam and offering a higher standard of living and higher wages than in impoverished Vietnam. The large number of illegal Vietnamese prompted Hong Kong to end visa free stays for Vietnamese there a few years ago and now all Vietnamese need a visa even for a short trip to Hong Kong, thanks to the abusers.

 

You are on to something there Tomtom...Where are the Vietnamese in Thailand?  Go to Nong Khai and head down river towards Nakhon Phanom ... stop at Phon Phisai and other small towns along the way.  In Phon Phisai one can hear Vietnamese music on loud speakers and spoken Vietnamese on the streets.  There are small Vietnamese food stalls all over the area and especially at the Open Air Markets.  In Phon Phisai most of the movie channels on the local cable service have English language movies with Vietnamese subtitles - not Thai.  The largest restaurant in Nong Khai is a huge waterfront place called Daeng's ... I attended a Vietnamese wedding in Phon Phisai with a 1000 guests in attendance.  Those clever Vietnamese are out there hiding in plain sight...

 

 

Most medium to large sized restaurants in Nonthaburi province employ Vietnamese serving staff. There must be several thousand of them and they're also completely in plain sight and many speak very little Thai.

 

I haven't noticed this phenomenon in Bangkok and have wondered why the situation is so different in an immediately adjacent province that is part of Greater Bangkok. I assume that the Immigration and Labour departments in Nonthaburi turn a blind eye. But that's just a guess.