Foreigners must still fill in ‘TM6’ immigration form for security reasons

[rooster59]

Foreigners must still fill in ‘TM6’ immigration form for security reasons

By THE NATION

 

 

FOREIGNERS travelling to and from Thailand still need to fill in the “TM6” immigration form for security reasons, the Immigration Bureau chief maintained yesterday.

Pol Lt-General Nathathorn Prousoontorn, commander of the agency, said that despite overcrowding at immigration counters, foreign travellers are still required to complete the TM6 arrival and departure card for authorities to collect information on their travel.

 

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has ordered the Royal Thai Air Force to dispatch personnel to help immigration officials.

 

In a Facebook Live interview with The Nation’s founder Suthichai Yoon yesterday, Nathathorn explained that under Thailand’s policy to promote tourism, authorities allow citizens of more than 60 countries to travel to Thailand without a visa, so Thai authorities do not have their information prior to their arrivals.

 

“For Thailand, the form is important as it is the tool for us to get and keep information about foreign visitors when they stay in Thailand,” he said.

 

 

In response to criticism that travellers to several European countries do not require such a form, the immigration chief said those countries require travellers to apply for a visa before entering, which provides all their details. “Their authorities know in advance whom they allow to enter their countries,” he said. 

 

The Immigration Bureau is in the process of amending the immigration law to exempt Thais from filling in the TM6 form, because basic information of Thai citizens is available on their passport. 

 

“We already proposed the amendment of the exemption to the agency concerned. But if it cannot be exempted we may shift to require them to fill in electronic forms before travelling,” he said. 

 

Prayut in July instructed the Immigration Bureau to decide whether to cancel the requirement for visitors to use the TM6 form as part of measures to improve immigration procedures at airports and reduce waiting times. However, starting on October 1, a new immigration form will replace the existing one in line with a Cabinet resolution in January approving a Tourism and Sports Ministry request. 

 

The new form has only one side for visitors to record both arrival and departure information, with an “automatic channel” barcode for more convenience.

 

Shortage of manpower

 

Heavy congestion at Don Mueang International Airport’s immigration checkpoints last weekend prompted an urgent investigation to determine why thousands of visitors were kept waiting for nearly five hours.

 

Prayut yesterday said he had instructed the Immigration Bureau to open all counters for service. 

 

In dealing with a shortage of manpower, the PM said he ordered Air Force commander-in-chief ACM Jom Rungsawang to dispatch his officers to help at the immigration counters.

 

“If all-out efforts by the Immigration Bureau, Airports of Thailand and the Ministry of Transport cannot deal with the congestion, we will find another solution,” he said.

 

 

Prayut said there were several reasons why the process was very slow, including limited space at the passenger terminal, which has a capacity for 1,000 to 2,800 people but sometimes has to deal with as many as 4,000 passengers arriving at the same time. “We will have to see if the existing terminal space could be expanded,” the PM said. 

 

In a related development, national police chief Pol General Chakthip Chaijinda yesterday said he has ordered the Immigration Bureau to set up operation centres at five major international airports – Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Hat Yai – to help with the backlogs of arriving passengers.

 

He warned that if there was further chaos at any of the airports, those in charge must be held responsible.

 

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/detail/national/30323574

 

 

-- © Copyright The Nation 2017-08-12

[ezzra]

Bureaucracy is the name of the game here, if both entry and leaving will be made

easy for all, than many of those khaki wearing guys and gals of the immigration

department will have to go home, and god forbid they will make a foreigner life

easy even for those who has residency permit, long terms permits and even those

with Thai citizenship, you will stand in line and endless ques for hours if need

be.... lots of things can be done to alleviate this unnecessary burden, but than

it wouldn't Thailand.....

[Somtamnication]

Bad bad foreigners.

[Thian]

They already have ALL my details when i apply for a multiple visa, i do it every year for a decade.

 

Why do they want to waste my time with filling in the same details again?? And even on a tiny card which is too small to write on.

[BangkokNicky]

more bloody excuses

[ChrisY1]

So they'll have something like 25 million TM6 forms to scrutinise...sure...that would work!

Averaging ~69K form per day :))

[kaorop]

11 minutes ago, ChrisY1 said:

So they'll have something like 25 million TM6 forms to scrutinise...sure...that would work!

Averaging ~69K form per day :))

hey overwhelming numbers never gets in the way of overwhelming bureaucracy.. 

[PhuketSarah]

Ok fair  enough to state an address upon entry - but then why the necessity of the TM 30 address report? The 90 day?  I'm told by  Bangkok  ( by phone )  and Phuket IO personally  that   I must report in person to report my address within 24 hours of arriving home after ANY travel  in or out of Thailand.  (And I need original company stamps and Director signatures on any leases on property owned  by foreigners each and every time. ) 

So I count   four  90 day reports a year +  two  visits to extend an O visa +  one visit any time  I  stay  a night outside my  registered address. That's a bare minimum of  SEVEN visits per year to immigration- on par with what criminals must do  with parole officers.

Retirement?  More like hassle-ment. 

[Thunder26]

13 minutes ago, PhuketSarah said:

Ok fair  enough to state an address upon entry - but then why the necessity of the TM 30 address report? The 90 day?  I'm told by  Bangkok  ( by phone )  and Phuket IO personally  that   I must report in person to report my address within 24 hours of arriving home after ANY travel  in or out of Thailand.  (And I need original company stamps and Director signatures on any leases on property owned  by foreigners each and every time. ) 

So I count   four  90 day reports a year +  two  visits to extend an O visa +  one visit any time  I  stay  a night outside my  registered address. That's a bare minimum of  SEVEN visits per year to immigration- on par with what criminals must do  with parole officers.

Retirement?  More like hassle-ment. 

It's true. They've come up with another silly rule. If you exit Thailand using a reentry permit, then you have to report your address withing 24 hours when you come back to Thailand. This is really silly in my opinion.

[PhuketSarah]

Just now, Thunder26 said:

It's true. They've come up with another silly rule. If you exit Thailand using a reentry permit, then you have to report your address withing 24 hours when you come back to Thailand. This is really silly in my opinion.

It's not just travel outside Thailand, if you spend the night elsewhere, such as in a hotel that is going to report you were there, you have to make a NEW TM- 30 with all the requisite paperwork. 

Meanwhile crooks just payola to do what they want.

 Bad Guys Pay, Good Guys (and Gals) Harassed.

 

[rijb]

Many a time I've come close to robbing a 7-11 or stealing a soi dog.  But, that TM6 stops me every time.

[Artisi]

1 hour ago, Somtamnication said:

Bad bad foreigners.

Correct, cluttering up our airports and screwing up our modern streamlined procedures. 

[InMyShadow]

It's not just travel outside Thailand, if you spend the night elsewhere, such as in a hotel that is going to report you were there, you have to make a NEW TM- 30 with all the requisite paperwork. 
Meanwhile crooks just payola to do what they want.
 Bad Guys Pay, Good Guys (and Gals) Harassed.
 

No you don't

[Thian]

56 minutes ago, rijb said:

Many a time I've come close to robbing a 7-11 or stealing a soi dog.  But, that TM6 stops me every time.

Don't steal a soidog mate, you might get in deep trouble for that.

 

Also they have rabies and lick their balls all day.

[Ricardo]

1 hour ago, PhuketSarah said:

It's not just travel outside Thailand, if you spend the night elsewhere, such as in a hotel that is going to report you were there, you have to make a NEW TM- 30 with all the requisite paperwork. 

Meanwhile crooks just payola to do what they want.

 Bad Guys Pay, Good Guys (and Gals) Harassed.

 

After the first few months when this was so, that one isn't currently being applied up here in Chiang Mai, it's only for return home after having left the country.

 

So they don't need a TM30 if you've been travelling to other provinces for a few weeks, but they do if you've just come in from overseas, when you completed a TM6 for Immigration at-the-airport.

 

Don't try to understand it, your brain will overheat, and may even explode !

[PhuketSarah]

6 minutes ago, Ricardo said:

After the first few months when this was so, that one isn't currently being applied up here in Chiang Mai, it's only for return home after having left the country.

 

So they don't need a TM30 if you've been travelling to other provinces for a few weeks, but they do if you've just come in from overseas, when you completed a TM6 for Immigration at-the-airport.

 

Don't try to understand it, your brain will overheat, and may even explode !

It is in Phuket.   Agree,  completely alien thought processing 

[Ricardo]

The apparent inconsistency in applying rules, between different offices, was of course a major reason why ThaiVisa was so useful in the old-days, and remains so even now !

[trainman34014]

1 hour ago, Thunder26 said:

It's true. They've come up with another silly rule. If you exit Thailand using a reentry permit, then you have to report your address withing 24 hours when you come back to Thailand. This is really silly in my opinion.

Wrong; the requirement is to report within 7 days.  The 24hrs is a written rule that is not acted upon.

[Wiggy]

3 hours ago, ChrisY1 said:

So they'll have something like 25 million TM6 forms to scrutinise...sure...that would work!

Averaging ~69K form per day :))

Yes, but if you own the print shop that sells them to immigration it's a nice little earner for you. That's what this is about. Money. As usual. 

[Wiggy]

I've put a dozen diffferent addresses on the TM6 over the years just for a laugh. Nothing has happened, so I reckon it's not even looked at. 

[dotpoom]

What's the big deal, you fill out the form on the aeroplane in a few seconds.

  Same with the 20,000 Bt. ....a big fuss about nothing.

   Maybe Mammy can do it for those who have problems with it....Opps forgot.....she's busy today being made a fuss over.....now she IS something worth fussing over.

[OmegaRacer]

2 hours ago, Ricardo said:

After the first few months when this was so, that one isn't currently being applied up here in Chiang Mai, it's only for return home after having left the country.

 

So they don't need a TM30 if you've been travelling to other provinces for a few weeks, but they do if you've just come in from overseas, when you completed a TM6 for Immigration at-the-airport.

 

Don't try to understand it, your brain will overheat, and may even explode !

TM30? Strange, never done it and was never asked to do it at the IO.

[HiSoLowSoNoSo]

They should have a Chinese translation on the TM cards, most of the Chinese don't understand to fill in the cards and they create long cues in the airports.

[KC 71]

Always get 2 forms if you can
That way you can pre-fill it before hand !
[emoji106]


Sent from my iPad using Thaivisa Connect

[Proboscis]

What about frequent arrivals? Even when I have a multiple entry visa, I have to fill out form and stand in line.

 

Hong Kong has a great solution - first time arrivals have to fill out form and provide fingerprint and photo. After that, fingerprint gets you through.

Any problem, such as overstay, pattern indicative of illegally working and you get shunted off to a real immigration officer

 

[Ricardo]

4 minutes ago, OmegaRacer said:

TM30? Strange, never done it and was never asked to do it at the IO.

Perhaps you're not on a long-stay visa ?

 

There are numerous threads on it, they began enforcing it a year or more ago, and these days it's difficult/impossible to get an annual-extension (mine's by-reason-of retirement) unless your landlord/wife has done a TM28 and registered you as an alien, living at your long-term home-address.

 

Mine got fined the usual B1600 for not having done so.

 

You then get a TM30, which is stapled (like a TM6) in your passport, and return to your local IO within a few days(they don't currently insist on 24-hours) to report you're home again, they date-stamp your having reported once again, on the slip in your passport.

 

 

[JAG]

So they'll have something like 25 million TM6 forms to scrutinise...sure...that would work!
Averaging ~69K form per day :))

If we assume that it takes as long to examine and extract and enter into a database the information written on that card as it does for the Immigration Officer to examine and stamp your passport there must be a huge "back office team" beavering away with this information, together with a gigantic storage facility with huge numbers of people cross referencing all the hotel registrations, 90 day report forms and so on. Mind boggling!

[coulson]

The new form has only one side for visitors to record both arrival and departure information, with an “automatic channel” barcode for more convenience.

So just no need to say how much you earn??? That'll save no time at all entering.

[bkkcanuck8]

5 hours ago, ezzra said:

Bureaucracy is the name of the game here, if both entry and leaving will be made

easy for all, than many of those khaki wearing guys and gals of the immigration

department will have to go home, and god forbid they will make a foreigner life

easy even for those who has residency permit, long terms permits and even those

with Thai citizenship, you will stand in line and endless ques for hours if need

be.... lots of things can be done to alleviate this unnecessary burden, but than

it wouldn't Thailand.....

Going home is not the problem.  One of the major reasons for the shortage of staff at the airports is that given the option the vast majority of immigration officers do not want to be posted out there.  As soon as they have served their dues -- they move somewhere more acceptable to them. It is why when they talked about hiring new people to alleviate the problem they said it was conditional on working out at the airport for a minimum amount of time before they had other options.  If they are going to keep the card information they should push the airlines to collect the information  at the time of reservation and have some sort of e-form for immigration.  As a backup a government web portal to enter the information after the reservation based on the passport number, name etc.  Then the forms would just be left to stragglers.  

 

Of course we all know that the "security" angle is b.s.  I don't have the same forms on entry to Malaysia - they just scan the information from the passport, photo and fingerprint you.  I am sure they get reports from hotels on where you are currently residing.

[strawpanda]

Unless of course people decide not to go to Thailand.