[draguer]

I'm sure this will be of interest to some of you here.

Quote:

Final crackdown for border runners - New strict Immigration regulation in force from today

BANGKOK: -- From today, foreign nationals residing in Thailand will no longer be able to exit and then re-enter the kingdom via a land border crossing in order to gain another 30 or 15 day stay in Thailand.

Thaivisa has been in contact with the Immigration Bureau who confirm the new regulation starts from today Saturday May 10, 2014.

This latest news follows reports from earlier in the week of an Immigration crackdown at the land border checkpoint in Ranong.

Non-Immigrant Visa or Tourist visa holders with remaining entries on their visa can exit and enter Thailand as before.

However, these new measures are targeting foreign visitors without a visa who are regularly entering and exiting the kingdom every 15 or 30 days as a way of extending their stay in Thailand.

From today visitors can only enter into Thailand via a land border once, after that they will be refused entry to the Kingdom and are advised to fly out and return with a visa obtained from a Royal Thai Embassy or Consulate in a neighbouring country or overseas.

The Immigration Bureau has also confirmed to Thaivisa.com that further restrictions are to be enforced from August 12, 2014.

It is understood that the new regulation is to prohibit back-to-back border runners who stay for an extended time in the country without a proper visa from a Consulate or Embassy abroad or an extension of stay granted by the Immigration Bureau in Thailand.

With regards to the new restrictions on land border crossing, which as mentioned above are effective as of today, a number of Thaivisa members have confirmed to us that these restrictions are being enforced at the Mae Sai border crossing in Chiang Rai province, with some members commenting they are stranded at the border unable to enter Thailand.

Keep up to date with the very latest from Mae Sai here.

The reports from Mae Sai have also been confirmed to us by Khun Tony, Managing Director of Puchlee Travel Company in Chiang Mai, who is a minibus service operator from Chiang Mai to the Mae Sai border.

Thaivisa will publish any further updates on this visa story as and when we get them.
Subscribe to Thaivisa Newsletter with Breaking News updates here:
http://www.thaivisa....ter-signup.html

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/7250...rom-today/

This seems quite harsh and is going to affect a lot of tourists.

[Afarang]

Yeah its stupid, the country is going to lose a lot of money from this. Maybe they will see there stupidity and cancel it or make them pay an entry fee or something.

I always have a tourist visa anyway so no big deal for me.

[draguer]

It makes travelling in the area much less flexible. Early next year for example I had the idea of landing in Bangkok to move on to Myanmar, then coming back into Thailand to relax on the beaches for a week or so before coming home. It seems like more of a hassle now.

Compared to a lot of other places it's still relatively straight forward however given the importance of tourism to the Thai economy it's a strange move.

[Cattle Rustler]

They're just trying to protect their country from farangs and western culture.

Either way, if that's the way they want to run Thailand.....little I can do about it.

[Rutting Elephant]

Didn't McNamara help Thailand establish an entire economy built on tourism in exchange for their cooperation during Vietnam? Can't remember where I read this.
Might this visa tightening have to do with their domestic politics somehow, i.e. for security? Or just scapegoating foreigners for their problems, as governments love to do?

[bacon]

The tourism industry took and continues to take a big hit because of the "political unrest" over the last 6 months. This latest move just proves how inept policy makers are in this country by making decisions to further harm the tourism sector which is one of the biggest industries in a poor country.

[Satoshi]

They want people to go to an embassy and get a proper visa instead of crossing the border every 15 day. Not a big deal.

[WanderingSoul]

They change this stuff all the time. They changed land crossings from 30 days to 15 days, then a handful of months later back to 30 days, and now another handful of months later they scrap them all together.

Incompetence runs deep in this country. Who knows what they will decide next.

That's why I'd be very skeptic about buying a condo here. People say in crazy, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if one day the government up and decides to reclaim all foreign owned assets in the name of preserving Thai culture.

I think it's unlikely, but definitely not impossible.

[Afarang]

(05-10-2014 11:37 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

They change this stuff all the time. They changed land crossings from 30 days to 15 days, then a handful of months later back to 30 days, and now another handful of months later they scrap them all together.

Incompetence runs deep in this country. Who knows what they will decide next.

That's why I'd be very skeptic about buying a condo here. People say in crazy, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if one day the government up and decides to reclaim all foreign owned assets in the name of preserving Thai culture.

I think it's unlikely, but definitely not impossible.

The new condos they build look nice but are pretty badly built from what I can see (im no expert). After 5-6 years you can see cracks forming and the tiles falling off from bathrooms in some condos. I don't know the first thing about rules and regulations for structures in Thailand, but it doesn't look like they follow any.

Having said that a mate of mine bought a nice unit in Pattaya, only time will tell.

[svenski7]

(05-10-2014 11:37 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

That's why I'd be very skeptic about buying a condo here. People say in crazy, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if one day the government up and decides to reclaim all foreign owned assets in the name of preserving Thai culture.

An old uni classmate bought an apartment in Ekkamai. He thinks the price will just continue to skyrocket. It seems like a risky gamble now that he wants to TEFL in another country.

The Thai immigration system is pretty complicated. I definitely wasted some money figuring out the different between a 7-day tourist stamp extension, a 30 day visa extension and a 14 day "border run."

Some Thai friends told me that the convoluted system was so that Thailand could MAKE money off the farang who don't pay taxes.

This will scare some folks off -- which is great because I'm willing to go to the consulate to come back.

[username]

If they want to make more money off tourist, and they have all the right in the world to do so, they should just raise taxes and fees on things like international airport arrivals, hotels, etc. By making it more difficult to get a visa sure they will make more money but it will also drive a lot of people away. Seems they are thinking emotionally... stick it to the farangs and not logically... keep it easy for the farangs to visit but don't kill them will mountains of regulations.

[Chaos]

Can any forum member confirm this?
Can you get a Thai visa in Thailand or do you need to get it abroad?

[Satoshi]

(05-11-2014 05:09 AM)Chaos Wrote:  

Can any forum member confirm this?
Can you get a Thai visa in Thailand or do you need to get it abroad?

abroad only

Quote:

The Immigration Bureau has also confirmed to Thaivisa.com that further restrictions are to be enforced from August 12, 2014.

Wonder what that's about

[Beyond Borders]

Not a huge deal. Just means you need to do the two-month visa and extend for a month before getting another one instead of jogging out to the border every single month.

The only guys going for long periods of time on 15 and 30-day back-to-back visas at this point are the ones who really don't have their shit together.

I also agree with Rio that they make these announcements all the time and nothing ever changes.

[davyjose]

(05-11-2014 06:25 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

Not a huge deal. Just means you need to do the two-month visa and extend for a month before getting another one instead of jogging out to the border every single month.

The only guys going for long periods of time on 15 and 30-day back-to-back visas at this point are the ones who really don't have their shit together.

I also agree with Rio that they make these announcements all the time and nothing ever changes.

I'm heading to Thailand in a few weeks. So just to be clear: I get my visa here before I go for two months, extend it within Thailand for another month, then fly to Vietnam or somewhere abroad and get another two month visa, extend within Thailand for another month...rinse, lather and repeat?

Sorry if the answers are obvious, just want to make sure I'm prepared before I go.

[Afarang]

(05-11-2014 07:10 AM)davyjose Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 06:25 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

Not a huge deal. Just means you need to do the two-month visa and extend for a month before getting another one instead of jogging out to the border every single month.

The only guys going for long periods of time on 15 and 30-day back-to-back visas at this point are the ones who really don't have their shit together.

I also agree with Rio that they make these announcements all the time and nothing ever changes.

I'm heading to Thailand in a few weeks. So just to be clear: I get my visa here before I go for two months, extend it within Thailand for another month, then fly to Vietnam or somewhere abroad and get another two month visa, extend within Thailand for another month...rinse, lather and repeat?

Sorry if the answers are obvious, just want to make sure I'm prepared before I go.

correct, you may be better to get a double/triple entry now rather than later

[davyjose]

(05-11-2014 07:12 AM)Afarang Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 07:10 AM)davyjose Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 06:25 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

Not a huge deal. Just means you need to do the two-month visa and extend for a month before getting another one instead of jogging out to the border every single month.

The only guys going for long periods of time on 15 and 30-day back-to-back visas at this point are the ones who really don't have their shit together.

I also agree with Rio that they make these announcements all the time and nothing ever changes.

I'm heading to Thailand in a few weeks. So just to be clear: I get my visa here before I go for two months, extend it within Thailand for another month, then fly to Vietnam or somewhere abroad and get another two month visa, extend within Thailand for another month...rinse, lather and repeat?

Sorry if the answers are obvious, just want to make sure I'm prepared before I go.

correct, you may be better to get a double/triple entry now rather than later

Nice one mate. Just out curiosity can you keep on doing this ad infinitum? Does there ever come a point, lets say after 3 years of border hopping where they just won't let you back in?

[berserk]

(05-11-2014 07:46 AM)davyjose Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 07:12 AM)Afarang Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 07:10 AM)davyjose Wrote:  

(05-11-2014 06:25 AM)Beyond Borders Wrote:  

Not a huge deal. Just means you need to do the two-month visa and extend for a month before getting another one instead of jogging out to the border every single month.

The only guys going for long periods of time on 15 and 30-day back-to-back visas at this point are the ones who really don't have their shit together.

I also agree with Rio that they make these announcements all the time and nothing ever changes.

I'm heading to Thailand in a few weeks. So just to be clear: I get my visa here before I go for two months, extend it within Thailand for another month, then fly to Vietnam or somewhere abroad and get another two month visa, extend within Thailand for another month...rinse, lather and repeat?

Sorry if the answers are obvious, just want to make sure I'm prepared before I go.

correct, you may be better to get a double/triple entry now rather than later

Nice one mate. Just out curiosity can you keep on doing this ad infinitum? Does there ever come a point, lets say after 3 years of border hopping where they just won't let you back in?

Yes, 3 back to back tourist visas might net you a red stamp and no more. Most people choose an education visa at that point, but they're cracking down on those too.

The Thai elite really don't want foreigners in Thailand with their ideas of meritocracy, free markets and democracy. They prefer their de-facto feudalist society. If you speak to Thais you will notice most are very unaware of what happens outside Thailand and that is how the elite would like to keep it. Thailand has been ruled by a very small number of families for a long time, they're not about to bring in unwanted competition.

If you're not broke, you can also just buy Tiger Airlines or Jet Airlines to Singapore every month at around $120 USD, go through passport control in Singapore, get a stamp and go right back. Can be done easily in 10-12 hours. Stupid rule all around though.

[kazushu]

Money makes everything possible in Thailand. The authorities figure that people who are doing border runs every 15 or 30 days don't have much money to contribute anyway.

[Satoshi]

This seems to be the full story.

http://asiancorrespondent.com/122578/tha...or-expats/

From 12 August no one will get 30days if doing flying visa run either.

If applying in the Embassy in another country one could be refused. So might be best to get a student visa to be safe. But they're like 17k฿ or more? I think tourist visa will be about the same totally in a year or little more? I don't know.

[berserk]

I read somewhere else that this is a response to growing foreign organized crime in places like Pattaya and Phuket, from Russians among others, what do you think?

[El Chinito loco]

(05-10-2014 11:37 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

That's why I'd be very skeptic about buying a condo here. People say in crazy, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if one day the government up and decides to reclaim all foreign owned assets in the name of preserving Thai culture.

I think it's unlikely, but definitely not impossible.

This is the #1 reason why I never invested in a Thai condo despite entertaining the idea of basing out of there several times over the past 10 years. The bureaucracy in Thailand is too sketchy and at the surface level Thais are very ethnocentric and xenophobic. This means any fuckwit in office can impose weird and crazy restrictions at a moment's notice because there isn't much rational dialogue when it comes to these things. On top of that there are many many fuckwits in high positions in Thailand.

If you invest in a condo in Thailand I imagine it could be a real nightmare to sell if you get caught in the bureaucratic paper shuffle. I know there are expats who make good money buying/flipping and renting but it's usually through a Thai spouse or some trusted legal representative. Plus even Thai banks are kind of untrustworthy when it comes to large amounts of non-thai citizen held money. That's way too much trouble for a (maybe) 6-8% yield on a condo.

If you get screwed in Thailand there's very little you can do too. No one cares about you losing money.

[JayMillz]

What emerges is not a “crackdown” as such, but a more stringent application of existing rules being applied at all border posts in the country.

The Superintendent of Ranong Immigration, Pol Col Ekkor Butsababodin explained to The Phuket News that the tightening of the rules comes in response to the growing number of crimes committed by foreigners in Thailand, and the number of tourists who are thought to be working illegally,

Tourists on visa runs are now being required to provide checkable details of where they are staying, with address and contact numbers. They will also be asked what they will be doing while in Thailand.

- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/immigration...sw8zY.dpuf

[JJJames]

(05-12-2014 10:00 PM)JayMillz Wrote:  

What emerges is not a “crackdown” as such, but a more stringent application of existing rules being applied at all border posts in the country.

The Superintendent of Ranong Immigration, Pol Col Ekkor Butsababodin explained to The Phuket News that the tightening of the rules comes in response to the growing number of crimes committed by foreigners in Thailand, and the number of tourists who are thought to be working illegally,

Tourists on visa runs are now being required to provide checkable details of where they are staying, with address and contact numbers. They will also be asked what they will be doing while in Thailand.

- See more at: http://www.thephuketnews.com/immigration...sw8zY.dpuf

lol - Asked what we're doing by immigration officers that don't speak a lick of English?

[Jaydublin]

(05-10-2014 11:54 PM)Afarang Wrote:  

(05-10-2014 11:37 PM)RioNomad Wrote:  

They change this stuff all the time. They changed land crossings from 30 days to 15 days, then a handful of months later back to 30 days, and now another handful of months later they scrap them all together.

Incompetence runs deep in this country. Who knows what they will decide next.

That's why I'd be very skeptic about buying a condo here. People say in crazy, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if one day the government up and decides to reclaim all foreign owned assets in the name of preserving Thai culture.

I think it's unlikely, but definitely not impossible.

The new condos they build look nice but are pretty badly built from what I can see (im no expert). After 5-6 years you can see cracks forming and the tiles falling off from bathrooms in some condos. I don't know the first thing about rules and regulations for structures in Thailand, but it doesn't look like they follow any.

Having said that a mate of mine bought a nice unit in Pattaya, only time will tell.

And they are being thrown up all over the place. Its unreal. I just started a thread about this the other day. Look at the listings, half are pre construction.