Military draft for Thai cItizen living outside and not speaking Thai

[pmued]

Hello ,

I was born in Thailand and lived in Bangkok for the first seven years of my life.I only hold Thai Passport. After that I moved away and been living and studying in different countries. In between these time I have returned to Thailand but only for a vacations for a month max. Now I have been working in Europe since some years.As far as I know , my name  exists on the Tabien Bahn in Thailand. Last year I got my new passport renewed in the European country while I was not a student anymore and there were no problems . Now I plan to go to Thailand and Cambodia for some weeks for vacations. The letter I received when I turned 21 regarding military draft was not replied. 

Do you think it will be any problems with the  authorities at airport ? I do not speak any Thai at all.

 

Thank you so much for your replies.

Edited May 16, 2017 by pmued
making the question more clear

[BritTim]

Stay well away from the location where you are on the Tabien Baan, and you will almost certainly be fine. If you risk going back to your home village, the military might come across you and decide to arrest you. After that, it is unclear what might happen. Although there are anecdotal reports of those who cannot speak Thai being excused after turning up for the draft, there is nothing in law that guarantees that. Anyway, you failed to turn up, so are definitely liable for arrest, Thai speaker or not.

[Rhys]

Have a Thai relative find out for you...

 

[ubonjoe]

How old are you now?

If 30 or over you a exempt.

[Chicken George]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

How old are you now?

If 30 or over you a exempt.

Is this a hard fact if someone has avoided the draft by being abroad?

Is there still not a chance of being imprisoned?

Does Thai law state this somewhere?

Serious question Ubon Joe.

Thanks in advance

[williamgeorgeallen]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

How old are you now?

If 30 or over you a exempt.

interesting. i have a half thai son. so as long as he uses his nz passport to visit thailand until he is 30 he wont have to go into the ballot for military service?

[ubonjoe]

19 minutes ago, Chicken George said:

Is this a hard fact if someone has avoided the draft by being abroad?

Is there still not a chance of being imprisoned?

If living abroad they should register for an exemption at the Thai embassy for an exemption before they turn 21 which is the first year they would be called for draft.

 

17 minutes ago, williamgeorgeallen said:

interesting. i have a half thai son. so as long as he uses his nz passport to visit thailand until he is 30 he wont have to go into the ballot for military service?

The maximum age for being drafted is 30. That is the law.

[PoorSucker]

Is this a hard fact if someone has avoided the draft by being abroad?
Is there still not a chance of being imprisoned?
Does Thai law state this somewhere?
Serious question Ubon Joe.
Thanks in advance

If you have not reported for the draft before you are 30 you will face a 300 baht fine.

Sent from my Lenovo TB3-710F using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[williamgeorgeallen]

4 minutes ago, ubonjoe said:

If living abroad they should register for an exemption at the Thai embassy for an exemption before they turn 21 which is the first year they would be called for draft.

 

The maximum age for being drafted is 30. That is the law.

great advice. thanks.

[BritTim]

32 minutes ago, williamgeorgeallen said:

interesting. i have a half thai son. so as long as he uses his nz passport to visit thailand until he is 30 he wont have to go into the ballot for military service?

The letter to turn up for the draft, and attempted enforcement if you do not respond, is based on the Tabien Baan. Whether you pass through airports, and passports you use for travel, have no effect on the process. There are various grounds that can be used to defer having to turn up for the draft, but these need to be exercised in advance. The invariably correct @ubonjoe says that being outside Thailand you can request a deferment at the Thai embassy is no doubt true. I would imagine it would preclude you returning to Thailand for a while though, or not?

[phuketrichard]

Yes,u will be in trouble if u dont report,

my friends son lives in the states, he got his letter and told to report, had to pay for flight back , 65,000 to the "right"guy to not have to be placed in the lottery , still had to report thou and than he flew back to the states.

[ubonjoe]

5 minutes ago, BritTim said:

I would imagine it would preclude you returning to Thailand for a while though, or not?

The draw is held once a year. Those that have turned 21 since the last draw are told to report. If they win the draw they are not called again. Those with a deferment would have to renew it every year prior to the draw.

Those living outside the country or who would not be here would have to get the deferment for being outside the country prior to the draw.

[mike324]

2 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

How old are you now?

If 30 or over you a exempt.

 

 This is true over 30 you are exempt. But to be safe you should obtain the official exemption paper. I was able to obtain the exemption paper, but its not easy to obtain one as the soldier in charge at the office frequently wants money. I've tried this couple times before I went in with the district police commander, it was smooth sailing when I went in with the commander and it was all laughs.

[anon467367354]

even if you had to go before the draft committee, I think they would find your not speaking Thai to be a "birth defect" or for not being Thai enough and you'll be excused. Good luck.

[mrwebb8825]

This is actually an interesting topic as I have an adopted little brother who was born in Thailand to Thai parents. My dad met and married his mom when he was around 5. They all moved to/back to America when he was about 7. The Thai mom ended up leaving my dad and giving her son up for adoption so my dad adopted him. He now carries a US passport, has citizenship and currently serving in the US Marine Corps. He may very well have his name (Thai name, his adopted name is American) on some property paperwork somewhere in Thailand.

He and my dad are coming for a visit over Christmas so I was wondering if there would be even a remote possibility of the government knowing he is/was Thai.

It would also be an interesting conflict of interest for the Thai military to try and draft a serving US Marine into the Thai Amy. :)

Edited May 19, 2017 by mrwebb8825

[whatsupdoc]

On 5/17/2017 at 9:11 AM, ubonjoe said:

If living abroad they should register for an exemption at the Thai embassy for an exemption before they turn 21 which is the first year they would be called for draft.

 

The maximum age for being drafted is 30. That is the law.

Ubonjoe, I know you can get the deferment for studying abroad, but it can also be given for residing abroad (when not/no longer studying)?

[ubonjoe]

16 minutes ago, whatsupdoc said:

Ubonjoe, I know you can get the deferment for studying abroad, but it can also be given for residing abroad (when not/no longer studying)?

It does not matter what a person was doing abroad to get the deferment. 

[raptorea]

On 5/16/2017 at 10:11 PM, ubonjoe said:

If living abroad they should register for an exemption at the Thai embassy for an exemption before they turn 21 which is the first year they would be called for draft.

 

The maximum age for being drafted is 30. That is the law.

Hi ubonjoe question? Why is it better to register for an exemption at Thai embassy before age 21? Our son is living abroad and is not yet 21 however he does not plan on going back to Thailand until after age 30. Would the exemption help with explaining to the military for not ever showing up for the drafts? Do you know what the fine would be after age 30? I have read a 300 baht fine and 3 months in prison?? Our son is on my wifes house paper in Thailand so he is on the radar. Thank you so much in advance for a reply...

[PoorSucker]

4 hours ago, raptorea said:

Do you know what the fine would be after age 30? I have read a 300 baht fine and 3 months in prison?

300 baht fine, no prison term. 

Where did you read that... ?

[ubonjoe]

10 hours ago, raptorea said:

Hi ubonjoe question? Why is it better to register for an exemption at Thai embassy before age 21? Our son is living abroad and is not yet 21 however he does not plan on going back to Thailand until after age 30. Would the exemption help with explaining to the military for not ever showing up for the drafts?

The exemption should be done prior to him being called for the draw at the age of 21. If not he could be face punishment for not being present.

He does not have to stay outside of Thailand until he is 30. He could still return for visits.

[samran]

8 hours ago, PoorSucker said:

300 baht fine, no prison term. 

Where did you read that... ?

I got fined 200 baht for reporting late. 

[raptorea]

12 hours ago, ubonjoe said:

The exemption should be done prior to him being called for the draw at the age of 21. If not he could be face punishment for not being present.

He does not have to stay outside of Thailand until he is 30. He could still return for visits.

Thank you. I want to make sure I understand I can call the Thai embassy in Washington DC and get a exemption/ deferment even though he is not in college? Correct? and he should return after age 30 he wont face any issues such as owning land getting a job or problems from amphoe muang? Thank you