Nabbed at immi counter

[oncearugge]

Come Thai every mth & this time pulled from entry counter (have done this for long time)

Was told i do more than 6 times a year

Immi officer asked me that i not know this was law (that require visa if more then 6 times)

So she ring wife (who is waiting at arrivals)

Tells her i need visa or no come in again

Am red flagged (since officer in booth called for her)

She wrote message in my passport as well

Is this all ligit ?

Despite that per written law (as explained above) you can do that, Thailand is taking progressive steps to do away with repeated visa exempt entries. They even introduced a "new" visa with which you will have to pay to have the same privileges - tourist multi-entry bt 5,000. I do not have have seen a report about people trying to enter again once given the red stamp, but I have no problem in believing they would be denied entry no matter what the appropriate section of law.

What "RED STAMP"? What does this stamp say ?

Please post a picture of the stamp

[elviajero]

Come Thai every mth & this time pulled from entry counter (have done this for long time)

Was told i do more than 6 times a year

Immi officer asked me that i not know this was law (that require visa if more then 6 times)

So she ring wife (who is waiting at arrivals)

Tells her i need visa or no come in again

Am red flagged (since officer in booth called for her)

She wrote message in my passport as well

Is this all ligit ?

Despite that per written law (as explained above) you can do that, Thailand is taking progressive steps to do away with repeated visa exempt entries. They even introduced a "new" visa with which you will have to pay to have the same privileges - tourist multi-entry bt 5,000. I do not have have seen a report about people trying to enter again once given the red stamp, but I have no problem in believing they would be denied entry no matter what the appropriate section of law.

Regardless of what immigration might decide, I would be extremely nervous of what the airline I was using would think about such a stamp. If I was the airline supervisor, I would be very reluctant to take the risk.

The OP doesn't mention a "red stamp" just that the supervisor wrote something in the passport. I wonder if this is the same female supervisor that has seen reported on before that seems to think she has special powers!

If Thailand wants to impose a limit of some kind then they should do it officially. Personally I think they should so that people know where they stand.

It would be useful if the OP could post a picture of the note written in the passport.

[oncearugge]

Come Thai every mth & this time pulled from entry counter (have done this for long time)

Was told i do more than 6 times a year

Immi officer asked me that i not know this was law (that require visa if more then 6 times)

So she ring wife (who is waiting at arrivals)

Tells her i need visa or no come in again

Am red flagged (since officer in booth called for her)

She wrote message in my passport as well

Is this all ligit ?

Despite that per written law (as explained above) you can do that, Thailand is taking progressive steps to do away with repeated visa exempt entries. They even introduced a "new" visa with which you will have to pay to have the same privileges - tourist multi-entry bt 5,000. I do not have have seen a report about people trying to enter again once given the red stamp, but I have no problem in believing they would be denied entry no matter what the appropriate section of law.

Regardless of what immigration might decide, I would be extremely nervous of what the airline I was using would think about such a stamp. If I was the airline supervisor, I would be very reluctant to take the risk.

The OP doesn't mention a "red stamp" just that the supervisor wrote something in the passport. I wonder if this is the same female supervisor that has seen reported on before that seems to think she has special powers!

If Thailand wants to impose a limit of some kind then they should do it officially. Personally I think they should so that people know where they stand.

It would be useful if the OP could post a picture of the note written in the passport.

Agree

It would be interesting to see a picture of the note.

I have a friend, married to a Thai lady, who works overseas. He always uses visa exempt entries and never stays more than 28 days. He was "interviewed" by an IO but was able to provide a coherent response to the question about why he was using visa exempt entries. He has never been stopped again and continues to use VEE's

[Zedder]

Has anyone else experienced this recently?

I travel every other month to Thailand on visa exempt because I work for about 5 weeks in UK and then come for about 4 weeks. I've never been interviewed before but I'm due to travel again on 3rd October.

I do qualify to apply for either the marriage or retirement options but don't see much point as I don't stay long enough. I'm also slightly confused about 90 day reporting if not in country and re-entry stamps so plan on applying for either of these options when I stop travelling back and forth so much.

Think I will avoid the female IO for the time being.

[PoorSucker]

The reason you have problems.

[roobaa01]

so conclusively spoken to be safe better to obtain a new passport.

wbr roobaa01

[jacksam]

Pretty sure a new passport does not prevent io from seeing your entry history to los

[roobaa01]

@jacksam

entry history correct but red stamp no to my knowlegde.

also with a new id the airline has no questions.

wbr

roobaa01

[elviajero]

@jacksam

entry history correct but red stamp no to my knowlegde.

also with a new id the airline has no questions.

wbr

roobaa01

What "red stamp"?

[mgjackson69]

<snip>

IMO an individual IO has absolutely nothing to gain by denying entry to someone just for the hell of it, and those in charge of immigration have no reason to give authority to IO’s to unilaterally decide rules for who can and can’t enter.

You are thinking logically here, and forgetting the human element.

An individual officer may have something to gain by denying entry, if only in their own mind. Maybe they are having a bad day and want to take it out on someone...there is a whole queue of potential victims right in front of the officer.

The fact that an officer has not been given the authority to 'decide rules' does not mean it will not happen.

Just as likely, the officer may not clearly understand the rules.

[khunyod]

Legal arguments with immigration officers may or may not work. A perhaps more useful tactic is to have a hi-so/govt official's phone number on speed-dial, who can vouch for your character. Thai people use this all the time to get out of traffic police shakedowns or other kinds of bureaucratic roadblocks. Definitely a new passport can help. While it is true all the immigration history is in the database, that is not what they consult to try and sort you into go/no-go, only the passport itself.