Marriage visa crackdown: Immigration officers who demand ‘extra fees’ to face criminal charges

[webfact]

Marriage visa crackdown: Immigration officers who demand ‘extra fees’ to face criminal charges



BANGKOK:-- Immigration officers who demand ‘extra fees’ from foreigners in order to process visa/extensions of stay applications can expect to be disciplined and face criminal charges, Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn Prousoontorn, head of Thailand’s Immigration Bureau has warned.

Last Thursday, Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn warned officers nationwide that dishonest acts will not be tolerated.

According the the Bangkok Post, Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn has told his immigration officials that “if officers demand 'extra fees', they will be subject to both disciplinary and criminal punishments”, with disciplinary action also being extended to officers’ commanders.

The move to get tough on corrupt immigration officials comes as the Immigration Bureau has started to crackdown on bogus marriages used by foreign criminals in order to stay in Thailand long term.

It is due an increasing number of these sham marriages that Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn has been forced to look internally at the practices of immigration officials nationwide to see if any have colluded with foreigners in order to issue sham marriage extensions.

The Bangkok Post also reports that out of the 7,770 foreigners who were granted a marriage extension in Bangkok and surrounding provinces, 819 applications were flagged as having irregularities.

As a result of this, Thaivisa understands that Immigration officers nationwide are being told to be more stringent when it comes to processing marriage extensions.

Hua Hin immigration for example has recently announced that any foreigner applying for or wishing to renew their marriage extension will be visited at home by immigration officers in order to confirm the marriage is legitimate.

While this requirement has been in practice at some immigration offices in Thailand for many years, it has not always been enforced or has been at the discretion of immigration officials.

The crackdown on corrupt immigration officers and those involved in sham marriages is the latest in the Bureau’s efforts to rid Thailand of foreign criminals and those it believes are involved in transnational crime.

As part of its Good Guys in Bad Guys Out, the Immigration Bureau has introduced tough new rules for anyone who overstays their permission to stay in the kingdom.

As of the 20th March 2016, anyone who overstays in Thailand can expect to be blacklisted and barred from re-entering Thailand.

Immigration has said previously that the crackdown on foreigners overstaying their visas is in the interest of national security.

The Good Guys in Bad Guys Out campaign has also resulted in foreigners who wish to stay in Thailand long term being placed under more scrutiny than ever before by Immigration officials.

In April, the controversial ‘Foreign National Information Form’ started being given to foreigners at the One-Stop Service Center at Chamchuri Square in Bangkok.

The form requests such details as bank account numbers, the addresses of social media accounts and information of places foreigners visit frequently, is given to all foreigners who extend their visas or complete a 90 day report.

Due to be rolled out nationwide in the coming months, the Foreign National Information Form is already in use in a number of immigration offices across Thailand including Chaeng Wattana, Lad Prao, Jomtien, Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai, Phang Na, Phuket, Samut Prakan and Nan.

Anyone who feels they are a victim of corruption in Thailand can contact the National Anti Corruption Commission by calling 1205.

-- 2016-07-25

[Andrew65]

Last year a friend of mine managed to get a UK visit visa for his girlfriend after forking over 35k Baht to an "agent".

She would almost certainly not have been able to get a visa without the "fee".

There were no British staff in evidence at the Embassy on my last visit there.

[taichiplanet]

good, i hope they follow through especially with the "subject to both disciplinary and criminal punishments”. Too often officials get off with a sideways posting or forced holiday. Unfortunately will make it a little more difficult for the legitimite marriages, but sounds like the house check is already being done in some provinces.

[baboon]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Edited July 25, 2016 by baboon

[robblok]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Visits for marriage are normal but annoying, when i was married i had them visit 3 times. Problem is if you keep to yourself and not have too much contact with your neighbors its hard to get people to vouch for you. Also if your wife works and they come unannounced it will cause problem.

I am not sure how stupid you are though , the title is misleading.. just a little bit about officers facing charges and a lot about sham marriages.

The stupid thing is that I had pictures of my (ex) wife and my parents and me enjoying a holiday and stuff like that. They were not interested only wanted a picture in the bedroom,, picture of clothes in a cupboard (mixed) a picture of us on the sofa and in front of the house. These pictures show nothing.. but real pictures of showing a couple doing stuff are not accepted.

Its the rules we live by, must say the elite visa I am on now was a lot easier (more expensive too but less of a hassle. Can't wait till im an old fart and qualify for retirement.

[dcnx]

Hmmm... I feel like I am a victim of corruption in one form or another almost daily here. Who do I call?

[dcnx]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Visits for marriage are normal but annoying, when i was married i had them visit 3 times. Problem is if you keep to yourself and not have too much contact with your neighbors its hard to get people to vouch for you. Also if your wife works and they come unannounced it will cause problem.

I am not sure how stupid you are though , the title is misleading.. just a little bit about officers facing charges and a lot about sham marriages.

The stupid thing is that I had pictures of my (ex) wife and my parents and me enjoying a holiday and stuff like that. They were not interested only wanted a picture in the bedroom,, picture of clothes in a cupboard (mixed) a picture of us on the sofa and in front of the house. These pictures show nothing.. but real pictures of showing a couple doing stuff are not accepted.

Its the rules we live by, must say the elite visa I am on now was a lot easier (more expensive too but less of a hassle. Can't wait till im an old fart and qualify for retirement.

It really is a shame you can't easily get your marriage visa and extended it without a headache. Of all visas, that one should be the easiest of them all once you pass their initial **** test.

[leeneeds]

2 for 1

or 1-2

some one will aways take the money !

until cash payments are removed and are paid

directly to the government bank account,

corruption will remain.

[baboon]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Visits for marriage are normal but annoying, when i was married i had them visit 3 times. Problem is if you keep to yourself and not have too much contact with your neighbors its hard to get people to vouch for you. Also if your wife works and they come unannounced it will cause problem.

I am not sure how stupid you are though , the title is misleading.. just a little bit about officers facing charges and a lot about sham marriages.

The stupid thing is that I had pictures of my (ex) wife and my parents and me enjoying a holiday and stuff like that. They were not interested only wanted a picture in the bedroom,, picture of clothes in a cupboard (mixed) a picture of us on the sofa and in front of the house. These pictures show nothing.. but real pictures of showing a couple doing stuff are not accepted.

Its the rules we live by, must say the elite visa I am on now was a lot easier (more expensive too but less of a hassle. Can't wait till im an old fart and qualify for retirement.

I'm sure my neighbours would vouch for me but still land me in trouble: 'Yes, that's him, you know that already. What are you here for? He doesn't bother anyone so why don't you f### off and leave him alone?' But that is by the by.

So you would agree the title should be more along the lines of 'Immigration officers who do not make life difficult enough for foreigners to face charges'?

[somo]

I have been doing marriage extensions for the last 17 years and still they feel the need to come round my house to confirm I am still married despite my wife signing a form and attending my application interview. KK is using the information forms. About 10 pages of stupid questions. I just signed every page and handed it back without answering any of the questions. The officer kindly did that bit for me

[NongKhaiKid]

When will we read ' have been charged and appeared in court ' instead of the usual ' to face / may face ' charges which may or may not happen ?

[evadgib]

Last year a friend of mine managed to get a UK visit visa for his girlfriend after forking over 35k Baht to an "agent".

She would almost certainly not have been able to get a visa without the "fee".

There were no British staff in evidence at the Embassy on my last visit there.

What does your last comment have to do with your first 2?

[rkidlad]

So, it's more about cracking down on 'sham' marriages. That's fine. If it's not a legit marriage, then prosecute, etc. But I wish they could just have a crackdown on corruption because it's 'corruption'. Nothing to do with foreigners being involved. Purely because immigration officials are not allowed to take bribes regardless of the situation.

[Ronuk]

Corruption is only possible because people are willing to pay to obtain something they are not entitled too.

Get rid of the element that creates the corruption to start with and it's problem solved.

[PREM-R]

Should the OP be removed? It seems to break Thai Visa posting rules:

26) The Bangkok Post and Phuketwan do not allow quotes from their news articles or other material to appear on Thaivisa.com. Neither do they allow links to their publications. Posts from members containing quotes from or links to Bangkok Post or Phuketwan publications will be deleted from the forum.

[evadgib]

2 for 1

or 1-2

some one will aways take the money !

until cash payments are removed and are paid

directly to the government bank account,

corruption will remain.

...along with disbanding the Ministry of inactive posts

[robblok]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Visits for marriage are normal but annoying, when i was married i had them visit 3 times. Problem is if you keep to yourself and not have too much contact with your neighbors its hard to get people to vouch for you. Also if your wife works and they come unannounced it will cause problem.

I am not sure how stupid you are though , the title is misleading.. just a little bit about officers facing charges and a lot about sham marriages.

The stupid thing is that I had pictures of my (ex) wife and my parents and me enjoying a holiday and stuff like that. They were not interested only wanted a picture in the bedroom,, picture of clothes in a cupboard (mixed) a picture of us on the sofa and in front of the house. These pictures show nothing.. but real pictures of showing a couple doing stuff are not accepted.

Its the rules we live by, must say the elite visa I am on now was a lot easier (more expensive too but less of a hassle. Can't wait till im an old fart and qualify for retirement.

I'm sure my neighbours would vouch for me but still land me in trouble: 'Yes, that's him, you know that already. What are you here for? He doesn't bother anyone so why don't you f### off and leave him alone?' But that is by the by.

So you would agree the title should be more along the lines of 'Immigration officers who do not make life difficult enough for foreigners to face charges'?

Yes I agree.

[somo]

Corruption is only possible because people are willing to pay to obtain something they are not entitled too.

Get rid of the element that creates the corruption to start with and it's problem solved.

You are brilliant. Any ideas on how to implement your solution? We might be able to wipe out corruption worldwide by the end of next week.

[GeorgeCross]

Corruption is only possible because people are willing to pay to obtain something they are not entitled too.

Get rid of the element that creates the corruption to start with and it's problem solved.

i wish it was that simple, all too often bribes are requested for doing their job as well in the form of 'guaranteed acceptance', 'express service' etc..

it's the mug expats who pay these bribes, even though their documents are in order, who encourage the practice (and make life harder for the honest expats out there)

[evadgib]

Corruption is only possible because people are willing to pay to obtain something they are not entitled too.

Get rid of the element that creates the corruption to start with and it's problem solved.

In SE Asia the payment is invariably for something that you ARE entitled to. That's what happens when responsibility that would fall to Ministers elsewhere is delegated to someone not much higher than the bloke blowing a whistle & waving his arms like an olympic swimmer in a car park Edited July 25, 2016 by evadgib

[NUUM]

So tell us how to report it...without getting our fingers burned...

Increased transparency and removal of "immigration officers judgement" might help...

And this doesn't happen only for marriage visas...

[Andrew65]

Corruption in Thailand generally.

Also, if we want to get to the root of the problem, we might consider, as an example, that the entry-level salary for a police officer here is around 8k Baht a month.

Last year a friend of mine managed to get a UK visit visa for his girlfriend after forking over 35k Baht to an "agent".

She would almost certainly not have been able to get a visa without the "fee".

There were no British staff in evidence at the Embassy on my last visit there.

What does your last comment have to do with your first 2?

[Kwasaki]

Never had a problem with marriage extensions at immigration if you have all the required paperwork why should there be a problem.

That said it wouldn't surprise me in the least if some immigration offices have some personnel within doing deals with dodgy people.

I've enquired about changing marriage to retirement pay the fee they ask and it's done straight away how is that possible sounded dodgy to me.

[hansnl]

And there was me thinking for a moment it was to be a welcome crackdown on officials abusing their positions and making life needlessly difficult for honest foreigners by making up rules as they go along and/or demanding extra money for absolutely no reason whatsoever, but no. How stupid am I (rhetorical)?

Indeed, rather off the mark.

Remember, it is always blameable on the farang.

[PattayaBoy]

Would that have any effect on Non O holders with year extension, unmarried with kid.?

[kekalot]

Would that have any effect on Non O holders with year extension, unmarried with kid.?

I would assume its not only related to marriage visas, I was charged 11,000 baht at immigration to do a change of visa from Tourist to Non-Immigrant ED visa (yes it's possible) and it was a lot of paperwork apparently but the fee should have been 1900 baht. I think they are very unwilling to process that paperwork due to the amount of work needed vs just an extension but I remember seeing the little form and I received a 1900 baht receipt.

I am sure you can figure out where the other 9100 baht went.

[roobaa01]

gdaya folks,

how much does an immigration officer earn ranked police captain 50k to 60k a month not included lurks and perks like health insurance, public servant housing scheme ????

wbr roobaa01

[zaphod reborn]

So, instead of cracking down on and investigating all the corrupt immigration officers collecting cookie boxes, they make foreigners jump through more hurdles to get their visa extensions. Thus, the real purpose of the rule is to get more immigration officers involved so there will be more cookie box collection opportunities for immigration. Funny how things work in Thailand.

[cocorico2558]

I can only gratulate the Immigration Police to use whatever means to crack down on those farang who are responsible to make Thai look at us in a different way these days. We used to be highly respected and admired, probably a bit too much in my view, but these days things changed and we are almost asked if we are one of those criminal farang. Round them up and throw them out!

[williamgeorgeallen]

Corruption is only possible because people are willing to pay to obtain something they are not entitled too.

Get rid of the element that creates the corruption to start with and it's problem solved.

some times it is people needing to pay extra fees to get something they are entitled too. need to stop that first.