I am about to clear 8 years overstay. Do I need a lawyer just in case?

[wabothai]

Overstay of 8 years in Thailand? You should know better than come here and ask for advise as to whether you need the help of a lawyer.

No sympathy from me.

[mesterm]

Curious to know, why have you finally decided to leave?

[darrendsd]

Overstay of 8 years in Thailand? You should know better than come here and ask for advise as to whether you need the help of a lawyer.

No sympathy from me.

I didn't see the OP asking for your or anybody elses sympathy, do you?

He is simply asking for advice not lectures but of course the TV brigade just can't help themselves

[BritTim]

Have the number of the embassy and a lawyer handy just in case, but try to resolve matters at the airport. I would go to airport immigration several hours before check in because locating all the relevant information could take time. Older data is often not readily available on the computers. I predict that the officials will be polite and professional, but they will want to be thorough. Good luck, and please do provide feedback on what happened.

[gilo]

i cleared an 11 year overstay before the new rules and while it is unclear at this moment as to whether the bans are being implemented I can assure you that the immigration officers that I dealt with were wholly courteous and professional throughout. Indeed they seem more capable of empathy and understanding than many of our own compatriots based in Thailand. Best to deal with it sooner rather than later go in plenty of time, be clean shaved and presentable and accept that you are in the wrong and you may hopefully find some degree of leeway being exercised. Good luck.

[tropo]

Wow! Since the new immigration crackdown a lot of overstayers are coming out of the shadows.

There have always been many posts about overstays and how to clear them. The timing here is merely coincidence.

If anything the ban will reduce the number of people leaving voluntarily.

[Monkeyrobot]

One last question. My Embassy told me to go to Suan Phlu and there the Immigration will fined me and I will then pay my ticket. Which way is better ? Airport or Suan Phlu?

Go straight to the airport , just have carry on so you bypass the Airline counter and go straight to customs you will need a online boarding pass to get through security. Tell the customs you gave the police report to the Embassy. Have the 20,000 in your hand vready to pay. Good luck.

[mogo51]

I don't think a lawyer would be of much help.

You will need to show both passports on departure from the country unless you lost or had your passport stolen. If lost or stolen you will need a police report and a letter from the embassy stating that you lost it and etc.

The fine will not be more than 20k baht. You will though more than likely be banned from entering the country for 10 years under the new overstay rules that came into effect on the 20th of this month.

No a lawyer is not much use. A large bottle of 'common sense' would have been handy, but that was 8 years ago.

[1happykamper]

Just how many foreigners living here don't follow the rules and don't seem to care? When choosing my next destination.. I look at the rules for residency status and how long can I stay as tourist. Obviously my intention is to start out on the right foot! The OP intention seems to cry of being special somehow! No!

[D3030]

Tomorrow I intend to go back home. I have 8 years overstay from my previous passport. I will use a new one made at the embassy in Bangkok but without any stamp in it. Should I get a lawyer to deal with the immigration ? I hope the fine will not exceed 20,000 Baht?

After speaking to a IO and your pointed or escorted to the "pay your OS fine" that's it.. Pay your 20000 baht fine and go..

Just stick with the 8 year OS story, then they should use common sense and not dick around with the missing entry stamp or departure card issue.

Give an update, as you're waiting for your flight..

[tropo]

I don't think a lawyer would be of much help.

You will need to show both passports on departure from the country unless you lost or had your passport stolen. If lost or stolen you will need a police report and a letter from the embassy stating that you lost it and etc.

The fine will not be more than 20k baht. You will though more than likely be banned from entering the country for 10 years under the new overstay rules that came into effect on the 20th of this month.

No a lawyer is not much use. A large bottle of 'common sense' would have been handy, but that was 8 years ago.

Not necessarily. The OP saved himself a bundle on visas, visa extensions, border runs, visa runs and immigration visits over 8 years. If he is under 50 without many options, imagine the time and money he has saved, even after the final payment of 20k.

[Lopchan]

Good luck and I hope it work out for you.

[Satcommlee]

They will want to be satisfied you entered the country legally.

If you last entered by doing a visa-runs to places like Cambodia, then 8 years ago they were probably not computerised (is this a problem, I don't know)

I would have a long think and try and gather together as much info that may help them identify you.

Good Luck and don't worry about it too much.

[mongoose11]

Good luck - please keep us posted of if and when they let you out the gate - free wifi at aol ;P

[ubonjoe]

Several posts and replies to them have been removed. If you have nothing useful or helpful to post do not bother to post or they will be removed without notice.

Again

[harrry]

I strongly advise you only to get a refundable and transferable ticket. If there is any problem and you cannot leave on that flight at least you have some chance of getting home even if it does mean getting locked up for a few days.

[sometimewoodworker]

A friend left last week on an ETD (emergency travel document), he had lost his passport years back and was on a similar overstay of more than 5yrs. He had no record of arrival but did have a photocopy of his old passport id page. Embassy advised him just to go to airport with the ETD and embassy letter, he did not go get a police report, nor did he go to immigration prior to the airport, we had expected embassy would tell him to do that based on ThaiVisa reading but they didn't and so he didn't...

Airline checked-in him in no problem. Immigration eventually processed him and took 20k

Slightly different circumstances than yourself but close enough that I would just go the airport and hope for the best.. NickJ idea of an extra cheap ticket for next day isn't a bad idea if you're really worried, check-in for international flights generally opens 3hr before though so I think you'll have enough time to sort it if you're near the front of the queue

Just a FWIW if you fly Thai air you can check in for your flight any time the same day. I was very surprised when the Thai air staff told me that. So if flying Thai air check in 12 hours before the flight and you will have ample time for immigration.

[Autonuaq]

They should have a record of my police report I made 8 years ago. I gave it to the Embassy in order to get a new passeport.

I am not sure in which part of thailand you where staying all the time as well how the news coverage is in that area.

you seen to have missed or become to much thai and thinking it is not true. Probably the immigration of that area also not have got the news and order to implement.

In general and overall the rules are more and more becoming facts that really are implemented.

and you know you overstayed already when you lost you passport.

before 20 march 2016 it was a problem that could be solved even in you case.

now you have to face the facts of being banned for a long time.

even with your story and think especially with your story no one can understand what you tell, did and now want to do .

I hope you have no children and your partner is able as well willing to relocate with you abroad.

wish you all the best and lots of wisdom for the next time.

.

[Time Traveller]

I don't think a lawyer would be of much help.

You will need to show both passports on departure from the country unless you lost or had your passport stolen. If lost or stolen you will need a police report and a letter from the embassy stating that you lost it and etc.

The fine will not be more than 20k baht. You will though more than likely be banned from entering the country for 10 years under the new overstay rules that came into effect on the 20th of this month.

That's great. Your advice is not to take professional advice? Could you pls publish your credentials so you appear to be more than just an anonymous expert on Thai laws. Anyone facing serious consequences should seek the best help their money can buy Edited March 30, 2016 by Time Traveller

[Songlaw]

• If you surrender at Suan Phlu you'll be arrested, detained and deported.
• If you go to a police station with an 8 year overstay there is a high chance you'll be handed over to immigration, arrested, detained and deported.
• Going to the airport without proof of your lost passport will prevent you from immediately leaving. If the airline won't check you in you'll need to surrender at the airport immigration office. What will happen if you surrender at the airport office or passport control is anyones guess. At the very least you'll be detained at the airport for as long s it takes immigration to sort out the problem. Worst case is you'll get arrested and sent through the court/deportation process.

If you do manage to check in there is a high chance you'll miss your flight while immigration sort out the lost passport issue. If it were me I would book a late flight, go to the airport as early as possible and surrender to the airport immigration office. That might give enough time for the lost passport issue to get sorted out. Immigration will detain you until the problem is sorted and until you're able to check in to your flight.

The last two sentences get my vote as having the most probability of mitigating some potentially extreme unpleasantness. Seems to take into account a number of intangibles, the biggest being that life's a crap shoot, even under the best of circumstances. Good post. Best of luck, OP. Hope once the dust settles, you'll share the outcome.

[Songlaw]

I don't think a lawyer would be of much help.

You will need to show both passports on departure from the country unless you lost or had your passport stolen. If lost or stolen you will need a police report and a letter from the embassy stating that you lost it and etc.

The fine will not be more than 20k baht. You will though more than likely be banned from entering the country for 10 years under the new overstay rules that came into effect on the 20th of this month.

That's great. Your advice is not to take professional advice? Could you pls publish your credentials so you appear to be more than just an anonymous expert on Thai laws. Anyone facing serious consequences should seek the best help their money can buy

Ubonjoe is a bit more than, "an anonymous expert." And, he did not say, "Don't do it." He said, and for good reason I might add, "I don't think it would be of much help." This is accurate. There is not a great deal of flexibility built into the immigration statutes. Anyone who has been here for more than 20 minutes knows this. The OP has a narrow spectrum of options from which to choose, and most will ultimately lead to the same place. The 20K would be better spent at the gate. The only question remains, how will he be treated at said gate, as this is a highly personalized, rather than standardized (as in the West) affair. He has the option of banking on the personal leanings of whatever authority figure he has the fortune of drawing, at departure. If UJ's advice is followed, it has a relatively high probability of actually being the outcome. A lawyer, in this particular case, could do no better.

And yes, I realize Ubonjoe does not need me, or anyone else to defend him. Just showing respect, where it's warranted.

[Songlaw]

I don't think a lawyer would be of much help.

You will need to show both passports on departure from the country unless you lost or had your passport stolen. If lost or stolen you will need a police report and a letter from the embassy stating that you lost it and etc.

The fine will not be more than 20k baht. You will though more than likely be banned from entering the country for 10 years under the new overstay rules that came into effect on the 20th of this month.

Ubonjoe, I just had a thought. What would be the difference between a new passport, sans stamp, and an old passport, with say an 8 year, 20 year, 30 year, expired visa? Isn't there a possibility that he would just be assessed the 20K and allowed to go, albeit with the aforementioned ban, as the OP will be leaving post 20 March? Might we, myself included, initially be making this more complicated than it needs to be?

Also, I kinda liked the Emergency Passport/dying father approach (though I would probably forego the onion) proposed farther down the thread, as it could, however improbably, allow the OP an end-run, around the ban... Interested to hear your thoughts. Let's overlook the breach in forum "decorum," for just a moment...

[Jeffkp]

Another moral to this is never to discard any official documents you receive from any government agency. Ever.

[cat handler]

They should have a record of my police report I made 8 years ago. I gave it to the Embassy in order to get a new passeport.

Cute, you actually think they will keep paperwork for 8 years, most places send records to archives or destroy them after 7 years and the archives could be anywhere. It seems wrong that 1 year overstays get fined the same as 8 years.

[brianinbangkok]

J

They should have a record of my police report I made 8 years ago. I gave it to the Embassy in order to get a new passeport.

Cute, you actually think they will keep paperwork for 8 years, most places send records to archives or destroy them after 7 years and the archives could be anywhere. It seems wrong that 1 year overstays get fined the same as 8 years.

I believe 1 year overstay gets the person a 3 year ban.

A 8 year overstay means a 10 year ban

Edit : Yes indeed you are right.

Fine is the same amount.

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?/topic/885811-New-Overstay-Rules-Announced-By-Immigration

Edited March 30, 2016 by brianinbangkok

[Merylhighground]

Another moral to this is never to discard any official documents you receive from any government agency. Ever.

Sage advice there from Jeff. Nice to see some excellent advice amidst the bile.

We have folders of documents from the past ten or so years with everything from my immigration/Min of Labour documents, to wedding stuff, births, making the kids British, her UK visa stuff, her ongoing UK citizenship stuff, moving house, changing address etc, kids school stuff, medical stuff. everything. It took up three shelves and 11 folders and bless my secretary for coming over once every few months to go through everything, date it and file it appropriately and showing Nut how to do it all.

Did we need to keep it all? Every now and again we did need the odd thing but given public official's love of wanting every single shred of documentary evidence it was reassuring to know it was all there and easy to find.

[CRUNCHER]

Another moral to this is never to discard any official documents you receive from any government agency. Ever.

Sage advice there from Jeff. Nice to see some excellent advice amidst the bile.

We have folders of documents from the past ten or so years with everything from my immigration/Min of Labour documents, to wedding stuff, births, making the kids British, her UK visa stuff, her ongoing UK citizenship stuff, moving house, changing address etc, kids school stuff, medical stuff. everything. It took up three shelves and 11 folders and bless my secretary for coming over once every few months to go through everything, date it and file it appropriately and showing Nut how to do it all.

Did we need to keep it all? Every now and again we did need the odd thing but given public official's love of wanting every single shred of documentary evidence it was reassuring to know it was all there and easy to find.

I thought OP said he lost his passport.

[maprao]

I hope you post what happens on here once you are home.

Safe journey and wish you good luck.

[gk10002000]

Have to see reports of bans yet. May still be possible to slip through.

I suspect that many people that get banned won't feel like spending a lot of time posting about it. They either never really wanted to spend more time in Thailand or will be fed up with the whole thing. Of course some may post. It will be interesting to see.

[BritTim]

Ubonjoe, I just had a thought. What would be the difference between a new passport, sans stamp, and an old passport, with say an 8 year, 20 year, 30 year, expired visa? Isn't there a possibility that he would just be assessed the 20K and allowed to go, albeit with the aforementioned ban, as the OP will be leaving post 20 March? Might we, myself included, initially be making this more complicated than it needs to be?

Also, I kinda liked the Emergency Passport/dying father approach (though I would probably forego the onion) proposed farther down the thread, as it could, however improbably, allow the OP an end-run, around the ban... Interested to hear your thoughts. Let's overlook the breach in forum "decorum," for just a moment...

Quite a number of people seem to think that if it becomes too hard to find the original record of the OP's entry, immigration will just not bother. This is fallacious thinking. If it is really hard to find the entry, it will take a long time, and the OP might miss his flight. However, immigration will not process his overstay and let him leave the country until they have ascertained the full facts (even in the unlikely event that it takes days).