New Overstay Rules Announced By Immigration

[JLCrab]

Every year the banks and the drug stores give out free calendars. Next year, maybe get one.

It was a deliberate overstay. Laotians don't consider it a big deal at all, unlike farang on messageboards. Strange that.

I was not referring to your Lao girl who obviously has other means at her disposal than does most of the rest of us. I just read the regs -- I let others be concerned about their implementation as it does not affect me.

[lkv]

Every year the banks and the drug stores give out free calendars. Next year, maybe get one.

It was a deliberate overstay. Laotians don't consider it a big deal at all, unlike farang on messageboards. Strange that.

There's nothing strange. An older report on another recent thread was estimating overstay foreigners at about 60,000 and people without documentation and their families from Lao, Cambodia and Myanmar at 1.4 million if I recall correctly. Go to many restaurants and you will find Burmese serving at the table not Thai.

Why are the authorities allowing it? Because they like cheaper labor from neigboring countries for jobs that Thai people have become too fussy to do.

Edited March 23, 2016 by lkv

[elviajero]

@jspill

It's not worth potentially getting someone into trouble just to prove a point to people on a forum.

Agreed. Or posting a comment about a Laos national that has probably paid her way, like many others, into the country. She didn't use her passport so the blacklisting is not even worth mentioning.

[elviajero]

Can someone explain something to me please.If someone is on overstay now even for a week they will get banned for a year or 5 if caught.If dont get caught and provided they have not overstayed for 90 days then there will be no ban?

Probably because the authorities want to reduce overstaying without banning tens of thousands of overstaying visitors. The risk of bans will deter many.

If caught you have to be prosecuted, via the court, before getting banned.

What happened to you has happened countless times in the past and the new bans don't change anything. IMO people will be treated exactly the same if caught, but I do expect those that go through the court system to get banned.

[JLCrab]

It seems if you show up at an airport or maybe other port of exit with less than a 90 day overstay there is no ban imposed -- just the fine. But that takes away the financial incentive for someone to deliberately go on overstay because there was a calculation that 20K would be less than you would spend on visas and extensions let alone other related expenses for multiple years.

Also the penalties may be different for the airport vs. being caught elsewhere because, if you are at the airport, then you were obviously intending to end your overstay but, if you are caught elsewhere, then you may have had no intention to do so.

Edited March 23, 2016 by JLCrab

[D3030]

I guess it should be noted, the new overstay policy is in effect starting NOW!!!!!

Did you have a mild thrill of self importance when you typed that? Do you march about your house making 'official' sounding statements?

"The fridge is now CLOSED!!!'' "The bog is officially FLUSHED!!!'' "The wife has now left ME!!!"

A great shame.

Boasting and bragging about how you break laws and manage to get away with it does not impress the majority of us who make great efforts to live within the law.

I don't see the problem with those boasting... Even if it's to boast and brag of their supposed "efforts" to live within the law(s) that you feel the need to share with everyone..

You felt the need to share your story... Less of an impressive accomplishment to just obey the laws.. But if it was an effort for you to follow, then I do see your point of whining of what others got away with..

Those that have cleared mulitiple years on an overstay, -- Now is the time to share their stories..

Share their stories, especially to those that refused to clear their overstays and should really be living in fear of getting caught and not being able to return for years..

Edited March 23, 2016 by D3030

[brewsterbudgen]

Every year the banks and the drug stores give out free calendars. Next year, maybe get one.

It was a deliberate overstay. Laotians don't consider it a big deal at all, unlike farang on messageboards. Strange that.

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

[sunnyjim5]

Every year the banks and the drug stores give out free calendars. Next year, maybe get one.

It was a deliberate overstay. Laotians don't consider it a big deal at all, unlike farang on messageboards. Strange that.

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

Maybe you should warn the family !

The new overstay rules apply to everyone ---------not just Western "guests" !

[lkv]

Maybe you should warn the family !

The new overstay rules apply to everyone ---------not just Western "guests" !

I think they're ok, the rules are targeted to "wealthier Western guests".

Wealthy=Falang in Thailand.

No, it's not a joke nor an inflamatory post, it's the reality.

Edited March 23, 2016 by lkv

[Merylhighground]

Those that have cleared mulitiple years on an overstay, -- Now is the time to share their stories..

Share their stories, especially to those that refused to clear their overstays and should really be living in fear of getting caught and not being able to return for years..

I already shared the tale of the two people I personally knew/assisted who were on then cleared lengthy overstays earlier in this thread, One has returned to Thailand since, one has yet to return but will do later in the year.

Do you have anything to share?

[brewsterbudgen]

Every year the banks and the drug stores give out free calendars. Next year, maybe get one.

It was a deliberate overstay. Laotians don't consider it a big deal at all, unlike farang on messageboards. Strange that.

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

Maybe you should warn the family !

The new overstay rules apply to everyone ---------not just Western "guests" !

I make sure my immediate family follow the rules. The rest of them look after themselves! In the past, even long-term overstayers only paid a token fine. I can't see many bans being given.

[BritTim]

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

Even if blacklisted, it would be pretty easy for them to sneak back in. They also tend to blend in pretty easily. Their only major problem with being here illegally is that they are easily exploited by employers.

[JLCrab]

So the message (at least some want) to convey here is that, if you are a Lao citizen on overstay, blacklisted from entering or having otherwise entered The Kingdom illegally, no-big-deal -- but most likely those reading here ain't no Lao citizen.

Edited March 23, 2016 by JLCrab

[jspill]

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

Even if blacklisted, it would be pretty easy for them to sneak back in. They also tend to blend in pretty easily. Their only major problem with being here illegally is that they are easily exploited by employers.

Right, and really it'd be easy for anyone to just walk across the border at Nong Khai, it's been done before by Thaivisa posters (not for devious reasons). Well documented how easy it is.

So the message that (at least some want) to convey here is that, if you are a Lao citizen on overstay, blacklisted from entering or having otherwise entered The Kingdom illegally, no-big-deal -- but most likely those reading here ain't no Lao citizen.

No, the message is that pure overstay - i.e. not being one of 'transnational criminals' while on overstay that Thailand is most concerned about - is just an administrative infraction, and not the crime of the century. The reason I point it out is because some posters here want any overstayer to be banned for life, out of some ethical stance - because it 'shows disrespect to the host nation you're a guest in' or other platitudes.

[JLCrab]

It is the regulation. How you choose to characterize it is up to you. If you overstay for more than 90 days now, whatever the circumstance, you will receive a minimum one-year ban on re-entering the Kingdom which was not the case before this past March 20.

Edited March 23, 2016 by JLCrab

[pistachios]

http://www.chiangmaimail.com/current/news.html#hd23

Guy was jailed for a year because of a false rape claim. He was freed when evidence of the false accusation was discovered, but was sent to straight to IDC bangkok because of his overstayed visa. He faces now a 3 year ban thanks to those new rules. What a dreadful situation.

[JLCrab]

Good luck to the gent and his friends with his administrative infraction.

[ubonjoe]

http://www.chiangmaimail.com/current/news.html#hd23

Guy was jailed for a year because of a false rape claim. He was freed when evidence of the false accusation was discovered, but was sent to straight to IDC bangkok because of his overstayed visa. He faces now a 3 year ban thanks to those new rules. What a dreadful situation.

I don't he will be banned from the country. The judge hearing his case will likely taking into consideration that his overstay was not due to negligence.

[jucel]

http://www.chiangmaimail.com/current/news.html#hd23

Guy was jailed for a year because of a false rape claim. He was freed when evidence of the false accusation was discovered, but was sent to straight to IDC bangkok because of his overstayed visa. He faces now a 3 year ban thanks to those new rules. What a dreadful situation.

I don't he will be banned from the country. The judge hearing his case will likely taking into consideration that his overstay was not due to negligence.

Would he really want to come back anyway?

[JLCrab]

From the linked story, it sounds like Chiang Mai Immigration could have had options to be far more lenient instead of sending the gent to IDC in Bangkok. They chose otherwise.

[Fabricus]

From the linked story, it sounds like Chiang Mai Immigration could have had options to be far more lenient instead of sending the gent to IDC in Bangkok. They chose otherwise.

The "gent" was a French woman. She accused a Thai man of raping her, and shared the details on Facebook. The Thai man was later found guilty.

Sending her to Bangkok's IDC after a period of unwarranted incarceration seems unduly harsh.

[JLCrab]

From the linked story, it sounds like Chiang Mai Immigration could have had options to be far more lenient instead of sending the gent to IDC in Bangkok. They chose otherwise.

The "gent" was a French woman. She accused a Thai man of raping her, and shared the details on Facebook. The Thai man was later found guilty.

Sending her to Bangkok's IDC after a period of unwarranted incarceration seems unduly harsh.

From the linked above story in Chiang Mai News:

Update: Michael's friends and family have set up a webpage to collect funds to support his legal defense. You can support Michael by visiting the following address

Original Story:

Weeks after the woman who accused him of rape confessed she made up the claims, a French expatriate still languishes in jail and is now at risk of being deported and banned from the Kingdom for three years.

“Well, all I know is what I read in the papers.” -- Will Rogers, 1923

Edited March 24, 2016 by JLCrab

[jspill]

From the linked story, it sounds like Chiang Mai Immigration could have had options to be far more lenient instead of sending the gent to IDC in Bangkok. They chose otherwise.

The "gent" was a French woman. She accused a Thai man of raping her, and shared the details on Facebook. The Thai man was later found guilty.

Sending her to Bangkok's IDC after a period of unwarranted incarceration seems unduly harsh.

From the linked above story in Chiang Mai News:

Update: Michael's friends and family have set up a webpage to collect funds to support his legal defense. You can support Michael by visiting the following address

Original Story:

Weeks after the woman who accused him of rape confessed she made up the claims, a French expatriate still languishes in jail and is now at risk of being deported and banned from the Kingdom for three years.

“Well, all I know is what I read in the papers.” -- Will Rogers, 1923

What?

It's Marjorie not Michael

http://www.chiangmaimail.com/current/news.html#hd23

'This should have marked the end of Marjorie's legal trouble if not for the Chiang Mai Immigration Office's tougher stance on visa overstayers. Having been jailed for the past year, Marjorie had, as a matter of course, been unable to extend her visa and, upon her release , was therefore technically illegally residing in Thailand. Based on this, the Immigration Office detained Marjorie upon her release and transported her to the infamous Bangkok Immigration Detention Center (IDC) where she has now been incarcerated for over a week.

[JLCrab]

So the Chiang Mai News got it wrong and then corrected the story. But as I noted above, there is possibly more going on here than just an administrative infraction. Good Luck to HER nonetheless.

[D3030]

Now what? I read both stories...

One story, a woman falsely accuses Michael of rape and he may be banned for 3 years for overstaying his visa?

The other story Marjorie is actually rapped... Post her story on FB and was jailed under the Kingdom's draconian defamation laws.

Charges were eventually dropped, but she still may be deported/banned for years for overstaying her visa?

Anyway, I couldn't see in either story, victim Michael or Marjorie being banned..

Which ever story is true, he or she should get some monetary compensation or an indefinite visa to stay in Thailand if they want to..

[Tomtomtom69]

Very true. My family are all Laotians living in Thailand. Some do monthly border runs, some just overstay and some don't even have passports. None of them seem very concerned about anything visa related!

Even if blacklisted, it would be pretty easy for them to sneak back in. They also tend to blend in pretty easily. Their only major problem with being here illegally is that they are easily exploited by employers.

Right, and really it'd be easy for anyone to just walk across the border at Nong Khai, it's been done before by Thaivisa posters (not for devious reasons). Well documented how easy it is.

So the message that (at least some want) to convey here is that, if you are a Lao citizen on overstay, blacklisted from entering or having otherwise entered The Kingdom illegally, no-big-deal -- but most likely those reading here ain't no Lao citizen.

No, the message is that pure overstay - i.e. not being one of 'transnational criminals' while on overstay that Thailand is most concerned about - is just an administrative infraction, and not the crime of the century. The reason I point it out is because some posters here want any overstayer to be banned for life, out of some ethical stance - because it 'shows disrespect to the host nation you're a guest in' or other platitudes.

It may be easy, but they are starting to crack down on it. Laotians, along with Vietnamese and certain other nationalities are actually more likely to be scrutinized when entering the Kingdom regularly, except if they come on border passes or just stay a few days at a time, which continues to be no problem at all. In 2014, my Vietnamese friend was not given an exit stamp by Cambodian immigration at Koh Kong until he went to the Thai side to ask for permission if he could enter. After the all clear was given, he walked back to the Cambodian side, received his stamp and entered Thailand.

Thailand regularly deports Lao, Cambodian and Myanmar citizens who have overstayed back to their countries in black immigration vans. Now how they will keep them out altogether is another story (unless better checks are put in place even for holders of border passes), but at least in the case of Laos, there are not a whole lot of illegal border crossings that are successful there and indeed there is very little reason for it. Lao citizens can get 30 days visa free if they hold a passport, or 1-3 days if they hold a border pass that costs a small fee. In either case, if they wanted to slip under the radar all they need to do is enter legally and then overstay. It's way less risk than attempting an illegal crossing.

Checks on passengers at checkpoints are very rare on the roads to the Lao border, however, Lao registered vehicles and Thai/Lao registered public transport vehicles such as buses and minivans are more likely to be inspected, though still quite rarely. Lao travelling as passengers in vehicles driven by Thais or westerners aren't as it will be assumed that the Asian passengers are all Thai. It's a different story near the Burmese and to a lesser extent Cambodian borders, but Lao aren't likely to be found in those areas.

In any case, the vast majority of overstayers of any nationality are short overstayers and assuming they aren't caught beforehand, will continue to be allowed to pay their fines, exit and come back to Thailand. Up to 90 days seems to be allowed so really, all these new rules will do is prevent long-term overstayers from returning and scare short term overstayers into getting in line with the law.

[BangkokKen]

Has anyone been banned yet??

[Tywais]

Today I received a 4 page letter from the university. The cover page was from the main university office and distributed to all department heads and secretaries. They then supplied copies to each expat workers. It was also to inform departments to keep watch out for those working without work permits and/or on overstay. The other pages, one in English, went over the new rule and penalties.

[brewsterbudgen]

Many people doubted that the much publicised overstay penalties would actually be enforced. Good to have some first-hand reporting.

[Maestro]

Thank you. Before the new rules that are the subject of this topic, then.