A new 90 day scam ... or an old one?

[Iamemjay]

I went to my local (up-country) Immigration office today for my non-O 90 day report. I had to go in because (my fault) i had exceeded the date by more than 14 days.

I knew the rules are that I had to pay a 2000B fine and was prepared to cop it sweet.

The officer who dealt with it came out and explained quite apologetically in very good English about the 2000B etc etc and I duly paid up.

Soon he returned my passport, but no receipt. When I asked for the receipt he said that if I insisted on that, they would "have to put an "overstay" (his word not mine) stamp in your passport and that would be very bad for you". He went on to inform me that he and his boss were doing me a "very big favour".

Is this a new scam? I haven't experienced it before. (I gave up on the receipt).

[AlexRRR]

You who does not appreciate, look at it this way, you had to pay a fine, you made someones day, nothing is recorded against your name, and a lesson was learnt.

Buy yourself an iPhone and set the calendar alert.

Go home and give the wife a big kiss and if the 2000 B really hurt look at it this way, its only dinner for 2 at MK twice....she will understand.

Edited June 26, 2015 by AlexRRR

[Lite Beer]

The fine could have been up to 5,000 Baht but is usually 2,000.

OK this from Immigration website:

Note

• The notification of staying in the Kingdom over 90 days is in no way equivalent to a visa extension.
• If a foreigner staying in the kingdom over 90 days without notifying the Immigration Bureau or notifying the Immigration Bureau later than the set period, a fine of 2,000.- Baht will be collected. If a foreigner who did not make the notification of staying over 90 days is arrested, he will be fined 4,000.- Baht.
• If a foreigner leaves the country and re-enters, the day count starts at 1 in every case.

http://www.immigration.go.th/nov2004/en/base.php?page=90days

[KhunBENQ]

"no receipt:, "overstay stamp"?

That sounds like a scam.

Tariff here for "no receipt" is 1000 Baht

Edited June 26, 2015 by KhunBENQ

[Soutpeel]

where is the scam as regards you personally ....?

you were late the going rate is 2K, you paid 2K, if they wish to defraud the department of immigration, that's their business, that's all this is about hence not want to give you a receipt, hardly a scam or even a new scam, but an opportunist way of making an extra few bob off the Department

[sirocco]

Hello,

why, you are a regular on the doing?

Consider yourself lucky that you do not been a significant overshoot date stamp.

This is not of the scam, it is a flower that has been done to you.

[ubonjoe]

I don't think it was a scam. Just an officer not wanting to go through the trouble of doing the paperwork and receipt. Receipts for a fine are not the same as those for fees and have to be singed by you and a authorized officer. I can recall other people getting a stamp for the late reporting in their passport also.

I think the officer just used the wrong word when he said overstay.

[Petchou]

Why really do you need a receipt to make claim for taxes???? Lol

Normally you must pay 4000 and get arrested. What do you prefer?

[Johnnie99]

You who does not appreciate, look at it this way, you had to pay a fine, you made someones day, nothing is recorded against your name, and a lesson was learnt.

Buy yourself an iPhone and set the calendar alert.

Go home and give the wife a big kiss and if the 2000 B really hurt look at it this way, its only dinner for 2 at MK twice....she will understand.

Do you always condone corruption?

Shame on you.

[djlest]

why is it a scam?
why is it corruption?

He paid and they let him go - thats it

The fact that they were either too lazy to write a reciept, dont have any or put the money in their shoe doesn't really matter. You have got your extension stamp.

And before we start preaching about corruption, the only people that lost here would be the GOV lost 2000 baht to one of its employees skimming off the top.
You really care about the most corrupt organization in Thailand losing 2000 baht?

Edited June 26, 2015 by djlest

[quandow]

As an "armchair lawyer," this sounds like they pocketed the money and let you go without any evidence of an overstay.

[Tywais]

As an "armchair lawyer," this sounds like they pocketed the money and let you go without any evidence of an overstay.

He did not overstay, he was late on his 90 day report.

As for the stamp, they usually stamp the passport of the late reporting and the amount paid for the fine.

[dotpoom]

Why care about the receipt. You got what you wanted at the price you expected, with no endorsements Why begrudge the officer and his boss the few bob.....keeps everybody happy.

[Soutpeel]

Why really do you need a receipt to make claim for taxes???? Lol

Normally you must pay 4000 and get arrested. What do you prefer?

I would like to see a legitimate source from a real case where someone who had been late for their 90 day report was arrested

and if you cant stop posting rubbish

[lounger]

A 90 day report is evidenced by a temporary certificate pinned for 90 days in the passport. there is no permanent record on the passport. Why on earth would anyone want to go beyond a certificate and have a permanent record made in the passport of a failure to report at 90 days. Imagine next time at the airport whilst some young goon studies all the misdemeanors.

Pay the fine, get the temp certificate thereby clearing your name and thank your lucky stars there is no permanent record.

I suppose next we will have posters insisting their driving licence is marked when caught speeding....

[SOUTHERNSTAR]

Look at this way, if this happened to you in a country like the UK or Japan you would have been on your way back home. Sit back open a cold one and enjoy the corrupt life in Thailand, but please never complain about corruption again. You commited a crime today, its called a bribing a civil servant and you are now part of the corruption problem in the country.

[worgeordie]

Buy a large calender (too late this year,unless you download it),hang it

right beside the breakfast table,so you see it every morning.

fill in dates to renew visa,90 day reporting days,birthdays etc ect. that way

you will/should never forget another important day,would have saved you

2000 Thb and a lot cheaper than an iPhone.

regards worgeordie

[Soutpeel]

Look at this way, if this happened to you in a country like the UK or Japan you would have been on your way back home. Sit back open a cold one and enjoy the corrupt life in Thailand, but please never complain about corruption again. You commited a crime today, its called a bribing a civil servant and you are now part of the corruption problem in the country.

where was the bribe ?....he paid the appropriate fine in this instance, just because he didn't get a receipt doesn't make it bribe....

[mojaco]

Here is a copy of my five year old 90-day failure stamp in my passport. No immigration officer one has ever made an issue about it when going departing or entering Thailand. On the other hand, not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption. Some people simply don't think corruptionmatters. I do. But to each his own.

Edited June 26, 2015 by mojaco

[Soutpeel]

not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption.

Rubbish...if immigration had asked for THB 500 not to fine him the THB 2000, that would have been bribery/corruption, the fact you don't require a receipt and the fact he has paid the correct amount in this instance, is not bribery or supporting corruption, its nothing to do with the OP

[mojaco]

not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption.

Rubbish...if immigration had asked for THB 500 not to fine him the THB 2000, that would have been bribery/corruption, the fact you don't require a receipt and the fact he has paid the correct amount in this instance, is not bribery or supporting corruption, its nothing to do with the OP

As you wish. But no receipt = corruption on the officer's part, and one condones it by not requiring a receipt.

Edited June 26, 2015 by mojaco

[NancyL]

The fine can be as high as 5000 baht for failure to file a 90 day report in a timely fashion although most offices have a much lower normal fine (like 2000 baht) for someone who comes in on their own as the OP did. Here in Chiang Mai they do indeed write a receipt -- a very time consuming process and put a stamp in your passport. Obviously the official in the OP's office didn't want to go to the bother of writing the receipt and thought the OP would welcome the chance to avoid a nasty-looking red stamp in his passport. It's not an overstay stamp, but perhaps the officer has limited English-language vocabulary. Perhaps if the OP had insisted on a receipt, he would have found that the officer would exercise his "discretion" and the fine would have been increased to the maximum 5000 baht.

[sammygood]

you could have recorded (audio) everything on your phone and dump it on social media

[chrisinth]

not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption.

Rubbish...if immigration had asked for THB 500 not to fine him the THB 2000, that would have been bribery/corruption, the fact you don't require a receipt and the fact he has paid the correct amount in this instance, is not bribery or supporting corruption, its nothing to do with the OP

As you wish. But no receipt = corruption on the officer's part, and one condones it by not requiring a receipt.

I really don't understand how no receipt = corruption. I think the officer was actually trying to help the OP when he made the following statement:

"When I asked for the receipt he said that if I insisted on that, they would "have to put an "overstay" (his word not mine) stamp in your passport and that would be very bad for you".

Possibly (probably) something lost in translation. The only receipt that I got was this, no paper receipt issued:

[mojaco]

@Chris That stamp is an official document to you that you paid 2,000 Baht. In the OP's case it was "pay 2,000 Baht to NOT have a stamp in the passport" which means there is no record at all of the officer receiving the money. Just the same as a traffic officer offering to not give a ticket if you put some unrecorded cash in his hand.

Edited June 26, 2015 by mojaco

[Ghostnigel]

not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption.

Rubbish...if immigration had asked for THB 500 not to fine him the THB 2000, that would have been bribery/corruption, the fact you don't require a receipt and the fact he has paid the correct amount in this instance, is not bribery or supporting corruption, its nothing to do with the OP

As you wish. But no receipt = corruption on the officer's part, and one condones it by not requiring a receipt.

I would condone it, doesn't bother me in the least....if it saves a trip to the police station, and shit load of paperwork, bring it on...no problem here, in fact, i'd be pissed off if i wasn't asked to pay tea money, going by the book sucks!!

[BritTim]

not requiring a receipt means supporting corruption.

Rubbish...if immigration had asked for THB 500 not to fine him the THB 2000, that would have been bribery/corruption, the fact you don't require a receipt and the fact he has paid the correct amount in this instance, is not bribery or supporting corruption, its nothing to do with the OP

One interpretation is that immigration asked for THB 2000 not to fine him officially THB 2000. Would it then fail to be corruption because the bribe was higher? I am not saying it is the only interpretation. It might just have been an attempt to limit the paperwork with the THB 2000 still going to the correct place. In that case, I sympathize and consider it a sensible move by all concerned.

[gary94578]

I had an overstay and got a one time special of 1,000. Everything got stamped. I didn't ask for a receipt, hey thanks lady.

[paz]

I had an overstay and got a one time special of 1,000. Everything got stamped. I didn't ask for a receipt, hey thanks lady.

I had an overstay and paid the full amount, but they pocketed the money gave no receipt, and put a smart stamp to cover the dates. hey thanks thieves..

[jacko45k]

Look at this way, if this happened to you in a country like the UK or Japan you would have been on your way back home. Sit back open a cold one and enjoy the corrupt life in Thailand, but please never complain about corruption again. You commited a crime today, its called a bribing a civil servant and you are now part of the corruption problem in the country.

They can't prove it without a receipt though.