Elite visa

[inwardglee]

May I speak of a little occurrence that happened just today, as for the Thai elite visa.

I am a Swiss, speaking basic English, so please forgive me any mistakes. 

 

I have lived with my partner for six years now, she is from abroad, not a Thai, and after the first year of education visa I was up for another better solution, which was the Thai elite visa for her. 

In the time here she studied many things, she speaks Thai and German both fluently by now besides her original fine English, she did trainings in yoga and is a certified yoga teacher and a Thai massage practitioner on high level, and a number of other things that could be said. 

 

Today, we had to report for our 90 days, and the Immigration at Jomtien found on her Elite visa that she would have needed to travel out or renew her visa in April, despite her five year Elite visa. She was not even told this on her last reporting. And for failing to comply with this, as she and me had simply forgotten about that more duty other than the constant 90 day-reporting, she was fined for 20'000 Baht, which we should now deliver on Monday. 

 

My question as stupid farang is now: is this normal that someone gets fined 20'000 Baht for having a miss? She is having a Thai Elite visa to the end of this year, but only missed doing the once a year report, and then this costs 20'000 Baht? Is this an arbitrary fine or the official tariff? 

 

I would wish to hear what you guys say, may be with similar experience. 

 

 

 

[jackdd]

She has been on overstay since April?

Might happen that she will be arrested, deported and banned from Thailand the next time you show up. A bit strange is that they let her go.

20k THB is the maximum overstay fine

We had somebody here on Thaivisa before who signed up for the "5 year visa", but didn't notice that the permit to stay is only for a year at a time and then either has to be extended or he would have to re enter Thailand. He was banned from Thailand after being found to be several months on overstay, Thailand Elite couldn't help him. In his case Thailand Elite as well as the immigration office even processed a 90 day report for him while he was already on overstay, nobody noticed it. When the overstay was noticed they left him alone with his problem, he was banned for a year.

Edited August 16, 2019 by jackdd

[Sharp]

Looks like you basically didn't renew your yearly extension of stay
(Which is stated in the terms and conditions)

ALL 'PE' VISAS OR EXTENSION OF STAYS ARE RENEWED YEARLY EITHER BY LEAVING THE COUNTRY OR LETTING ELITE LIASON ASSIST YOU.

Thus being an overstay and now being required to pay the maximum amount due which is 20k

To be honest i would just pay it and take it as a reminder and lesson learnt to know the Ts and Cs as with all visas

It could easily turn into a 12 month ban due to 'your' negligence or oversight so I would personally do as required.

Hope this helps.

Sent from my SM-P555 using Thailand Forum - Thaivisa mobile app

[jacko45k]

It sounds like she stayed beyond her one year Permit to Stay and should have extended or re-entered Thailand. The fine is 500 baht/day so if beyond 40 days a valid fine, 20,000 being the maximum.

 

A valid Visa, in reality, supports entry into the country, not actual stay. There is a Permit for that given at the airport or border. 

[onera1961]

Just boggles my mind how an elite visa holder does not know the difference between visa validity and permission to stay date. 

[inwardglee]

8 hours ago, jackdd said:

A bit strange is that they let her go.

 

Thank you for your reply, I got a big piece of info by it. 

What I needed to know was perfectly answered by your post. 

[inwardglee]

onera1961, I fully understand that it "boggles" your mind how someone could miss it. It is in a way unpardonable, but if knowing the circumstances how it happened, it is understandable, and even myself I am still trying to digest and to explain how it could have happened. In case of severe accidents it will be called "human failure". 

 

It is by law-abiding people mostly for being concentrated and being deviated to other things that something urgent could get missed. My personal shock of course goes into right that direction, how can something basic and necessary be missed. 70 percent of accidents, my estimate, happen because something is missed, and I am of the mindset that NOTHING must be missed, not even cooking a meal, it will be ugly. In a worse case, accidents are fatal, because something was missed. I don't take the miss on the light shoulder. That is why I am digesting this here in public, to have other people think of misses, and how they happen. 

 

If getting into conflict with the law, which sometimes and often makes sense within the context of the specific country, it can happen by being used to other law from outside that specific place. That can be one reason, and in this case personally I could not imagine having an Elite visa that this yearly renewal was so essential, because it runs to the end of the year. In my perception it was just a detail, like the 90 day reports, that would be fined by 2000 Baht for missing it. So, like in a speeding accident, at the moment of the miss, the wrong-doer wasn't fully aware of the urgency of the rule. 

 

Being concentrated on other things: we were discussing since the beginning of the year about any renewal of the Elite visa, its different options, and we were fully focused on that.

I could give a reason in case of any accident how precisely it happened, it is the piece that is not under control, called human failure. It happens if the mind gets pulled away from the essential to the unessential. My personal mind and sense of responsibility does not allow any misses, but here in this case it was pulled away to other things, and so also the one of my partner.

 

Personally I was fined two times by immigration earlier. One time by use of credit card that ran on the account and the amount necessary was once in one day not reached. After that I opened two accounts, and the credit card was on the second account, same since then. 

Another time, I had believed that the yearly renewal of the visa would go together with the 90 day reports, but I had been outside the country and renewal was on another day, and it cost me 30 days times 500 Baht, so 15'000 Baht. 

In my case the amount of fines does not hurt so much, more the thought something stupid has happened. 

 

In a first reaction yesterday I found the fine overdone for such a miss, but now having gotten the clear statements from Immigration above, about the maximum fine, I am half as annoyed as yesterday. I had thought it was an arbitrary fine, but it isn't. 

 

I hope that none of you honourable guys will have a miss, now or later. One thing is clear, no mercy here if being an alien. The law will hit any alien clearly right into the face for any little miss. 

 

 

 

 

[JohnnyBKK]

The stamp is for 1 year, this is explained each time by the elite staff when you enter the country and also when you buy the visa.

 

The fault is yours as I imagine you told her she has the right to stay 5 yrs now with her visa, but that is untrue. A 5 yrs elite visa gives you the right to enter the country for 5 yrs with 1 yr stamps only.

[BritTim]

As others have stated, this would normally mean a one-year blacklisting as the overstay is more than 90 days. It appears your immigration office is able to clear a long overstay (on payment of the fine) and waive the blacklisting. I am actually surprised they have the power to do this. I thought such long overstays always had to be cleared on exit from the country. I suspect they are embarrassed that they did not detect the overstay at the time of the last 90-day report. Be thankful that a bit of cash can resolve this. It could be a lot worse. Do not rock the boat.

[tgeezer]

These things are easily missed. It is always advisable to check the latest stamps in one’s passport especially on entering a country.  I have been ‘trapped’ by the 90 day report also because I assumed that a report to Immigration was just that, but no, extending the stay does only that.  By creating uncoordinated sections for each report, Immigration has managed to fragment individuals into reporters via TM 6,30,47, etc. each of whom is subject to a fine and this, in the computer age! This is Thailand! 

[inwardglee]

Thanks guys, for your replies, I do not intend to rock the boat, and will receive and take what destiny throws into my basket. No matter if getting removed from the county, I would just need to get creative again about any other next destination if I am still alive. I speak Thai on high level, but I think I could also live within another sacred place, without speaking Thai.  

 

The soil and the worms and insects are sacred the same everywhere, so I think that if I am getting banned even myself from here they will be happy about my presence. I am more in appreciation to life than of the benevolence of any arbitrariness. 

[ubonjoe]

A inflammatory post and a reply to it have been removed.

[xylophone]

1 hour ago, JohnnyBKK said:

The stamp is for 1 year, this is explained each time by the elite staff when you enter the country and also when you buy the visa.

 

The fault is yours as I imagine you told her she has the right to stay 5 yrs now with her visa, but that is untrue. A 5 yrs elite visa gives you the right to enter the country for 5 yrs with 1 yr stamps only.

Well I also have learned something by reading this thread as I thought (or didn't) that the 5 yr Elite visa entitled one to a 5 yr stay without going through all of the rigmarole of the annual visit to the IOs to face whatever they may decide upon the day!!

 

Sympathise with inwardglee on this........and for the record other expats here have had similar thoughts to mine!!

[ThomasThBKK]

3 hours ago, xylophone said:

Well I also have learned something by reading this thread as I thought (or didn't) that the 5 yr Elite visa entitled one to a 5 yr stay without going through all of the rigmarole of the annual visit to the IOs to face whatever they may decide upon the day!!

 

Sympathise with inwardglee on this........and for the record other expats here have had similar thoughts to mine!!

Well, the entry stamps are 1 year, if u leave/travel outside within a year you will never have to see immigration for an extension.

 

The extension for another 1 year is like on a visa exempt, you go to immigration, fill out the form and pay the 1900 baht fee - nothing more.

 

It's not like the annual retirement/marriage extensions where you have to actually do paperwork, it's quite hassle free.