Amnesty to be extended to October 31

[Jackcwba]

all this is gonna do in a months time is make people call their bluff even more...... they will never get everyone out now!

[fondue zoo]

1 hour ago, audaciousnomad said:

There was a post somewhere that MTT was a ghost town today.

Was CW open today?  We phoned them twice this morning and got their usual "closed today open Monday" message. <deleted>!

[overherebc]

Anyone have a list of illnesses that would stop you flying?

Just asking.

[CorpusChristie]

3 minutes ago, Caldera said:

I don't get the negativity of some posters here. Prolonging the automatic extension is the sensible thing to do, as it has become obvious that immigration offices cannot handle the onslaught of applicants.

 

By announcing this decision late, they simply ensured that those who were willing and able to leave did just that. Or maybe being proactive isn't their strong suit. Whatever.

Or just lazy people who didnt want to spend time and  money getting a visa extension and they now get rewarded for being nonchalant .

   You can understand some people being irked when they used up their 30 day extension and the nonchalant get rewarded with an extra 30 days free 

[trappedinasia]

1 hour ago, TheFreqFlyer said:

Almost expected this to happen. Indonesia and Vietnam have previously extended their amnesties literally in the last minute for similar reasons. 

 

Let's wait to see what happens on Monday, but obviously this had to happen. As much as the conspiracy theorists wanted to be proven right on this one, but the government simply doesn't have the resources to round up 150,000 foreigners nor the political will. It would be a PR disaster of unprecedented proportions. Malaysia already received flak for conducting it's own illegal immigrant round up under the cover of covid a few months back, which Al-Jazeera reported on and subsequently was sued for defamation. 

Yes. Amnesty or not, at the very least they would have to go easy on overstayers. Enacting even a fraction of the morbid fantasies that many TVF pundits have would be a diplomatic disaster and would hurt tourism for years, long after the pandemic. Even the people desperate enough to apply for the new STV might reconsider if they saw farangs getting rounded up and packed into prisons in the news. 

[JacksSmirkingRevenge]

I said Harold, but meant Herald in the first few posts.  Maybe the mods can change it. Thanks. 

[CorpusChristie]

2 minutes ago, trappedinasia said:

. Even the people desperate enough to apply for the new STV might reconsider if they saw farangs getting rounded up and packed into prisons in the news. 

That wont happen though , people will just get fined when they do leave .

If the odd person gets caught overstaying , they would just get deported as usual .

[Rockbottom]

22 minutes ago, Caldera said:

I don't get the negativity of some posters here. Prolonging the automatic extension is the sensible thing to do, as it has become obvious that immigration offices cannot handle the onslaught of applicants.

 

By announcing this decision late, they simply ensured that those who were willing and able to leave did just that. Or maybe being proactive isn't their strong suit. Whatever.

1) I've been here 25 years and IMHO there is NO SENSE to many of the gov'ts decision on anything in this country. They are basically uneducated hacks with a whistle.

2) If this is real, the "sensible thing to do" is make a timely announcement! But of course their racist presuppositions preclude informing foreigners.

3) If this is real, Immigration should be held accountable for extortion, heads should roll and this under the table BS needs to be exposed and expunged.

4) Don't be duped into thinking this amnesty announcement if it is real, is based upon crowd control. Wake up and smell the coffee! Everythin in this country is driven by greed. They couldn't care less about YOU, unless you have a bulging wallet full of cash.

 

Yeah "whatever"...wow you're really on a roll here. 

Edited September 26, 2020 by Rockbottom

[overherebc]

Tomorrow will be interesting on Thaivisa.

Just sayin'.

[edwardandtubs]

40 minutes ago, 2530Ubon said:

They haven't even announced it on the final day - apparently, according to the ONLY source - the bangkok herald, it'll be announced on Monday - after the final day, and without cabinet approval, which is the usual process. A quick google search of the bangkok herald revealed nothing other than the website, it's not listed on wikipedia under Thailands mass media, and it's 'about us' page is blank. I strongly suspect this is clickbait.

It is a bit odd that this previously unheard of website has these "sources" while others are not reporting it at all. Why would these sources not leak the information to a better known newspaper or website? Then again, there do seem to be on the ground reports that immigration offices are not open as planned.

[ehgnyc]

1 hour ago, Bell1234 said:

So if this is true the Agents and their masters have milked thousands and made alot of loot.

And a whole month to do it all again!

[trappedinasia]

2 minutes ago, edwardandtubs said:

It is a bit odd that this previously unheard of website has these "sources" while others are not reporting it at all. Why would these sources not leak the information to a better known newspaper or website? Then again, there do seem to be on the ground reports that immigration offices are not open as planned.

"This previously unheard of website" was the first to report they had a source for an extension to the end of September, on July 16th. Turned out to be Sept 26th instead of Sept 30th, but pretty close. The thread on this forum in July was even opened by the same person as this thread. 

[Rockbottom]

58 minutes ago, jackdd said:

You need a certificate from a hospital

And make sure it is in Thai language from a hospital doctor. Remember they will grant 30 days from the DATE of the letter not the end of amnesty date in this case (i.e. Sept. 26). If your letter is dated Oct. 10 then you have until Nov. 10, even if the next 30 day extension period ends Nov. 25.

 

Of course this information was not announced by IM. And to add more confusion to the mix, procedures may vary depending on IM location.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Rockbottom

[Seik]

4 minutes ago, vkuehne said:

As someone who caved and shelled out 1000€ for a 6 month ED visa yesterday,

You and me both, brother. Let's take comfort in the peace we bought for 6 months instead of being perpetually begging for another month, they seem to take great pleasure in keeping our ass between two chairs.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Seik

[vkuehne]

7 minutes ago, Seik said:

You and me both, brother. Let's take comfort in the peace we bought for 6 months instead of being perpetually begging for another month, they seem to take great pleasure in keeping our ass between two chairs.

Yeah man, it was actually the despair and stress of my gf that made me do it. We were sitting by the sea, Thursday afternoon, and then I took the final decision. Felt dirty the entire time, but yes...knowing that we will spend a happy winter in Ao Nang, paradise without tourists...relaxing. Still...supporting the evil in this country big time directly...I am still disgusted at myself. 

[impulse]

25 minutes ago, vkuehne said:

Yeah man, it was actually the despair and stress of my gf that made me do it. We were sitting by the sea, Thursday afternoon, and then I took the final decision. Felt dirty the entire time, but yes...knowing that we will spend a happy winter in Ao Nang, paradise without tourists...relaxing. Still...supporting the evil in this country big time directly...I am still disgusted at myself. 

 

You think you're feeling dirty now after popping for an ED visa.  Wait until Immigration visits the school and asks for their attendance records.

 

Edited September 26, 2020 by impulse

[Kuzbidon]

IF confirmed this will be an exelent news for all the people who could not get an extension for many good reasons.

Like

Yacht owners who entered as crew or captain and don't have any stamps in their passport.

Husband of wife of foreigner legally in Thailand (whatever visa even PR) who entered the country as tourist and can only get a dependent visa outside Thailand.

People who's principle prevent them to apply for an education or volonteer visa if that will not correspond to their activity.

People who don't have 4 Thai employee anymore due to covid.

People that have an embassy who refuse to play the second round of embassy letter game.

And all the other who are bringing currencies and not doing any harm in the kingdom, whatever the reason they are staying in the kingdom.

I don't know what the future will be but I already saw advertisements for Bali visa targeting foreigners currently Thailand (smart as they are covid free) so it seems some assume that people who can afford it will go where they are treated best.

We are not in a normal situation but this may be the new normal for many years, frightening people who are good guys without offering adequate alternative is probably not beneficial to the country.

Only a few hundred million thb that will enter the economy once  via the agents and other beneficiaries but does it worth the thousands of good guys who have fly out spending their money somewhere else?

 

Are embassy letters a way to filter people who try to escape from their homeland justice? Or have a forged passport? then iI should be a one time think.

 

In the current situation the best would be STV visa with ONE embassy letter saying you are a good citizen. 

Showing you have the money not to be a charge to Thai society would be also arequirement that make sense to apply to STV visa inside Thailand. 90 days at the time won't overload immigration office and allow distanciation.

 

 

[impulse]

1 minute ago, Kuzbidon said:

IF confirmed this will be an exelent news for all the people who could not get an extension for many good reasons.

Like

Yacht owners who entered as crew or captain and don't have any stamps in their passport.

 

Ummm....  If they have no stamp at all in their passport, how do they qualify for an amnesty that's targeted toward people whose permission to stay expired after March 26?

 

[ehgnyc]

6 minutes ago, Pattaya46 said:

Nearly everything in this quote is wrong/false !

- My Thai debit card (KasikornBank) can be used abroad in ATMs. No problem

- A virtual web Visa card is associated with the account of the debit card, and can be used for Internet purchases, in Thailand or abroad

- There is no problem to transfer such an amount towards another country. You can even do it just from the App on your phone 

New account? Or one you've had for a while? A lot of things are different right now.

[fondue zoo]

On a side note, what happens to the people who did not get one of the 800 golden tickets CW issued at the end of the day for Saturday?

Edited September 26, 2020 by fondue zoo

[Promula]

3 hours ago, TheFreqFlyer said:

How long does it take to reach a decision on something like this? I'd say 5 minutes. There is no time to deliberate. It just has to be rubber stamped and approved. Should have been done 2 weeks ago, because everyone could see this coming. 

You're not thinking from a politician's point of view. You're thinking from a foreigner's point of view. Perhaps most Thais want foreigner tourists that have had a half year free extension kicked out. And perhaps it's seen as a long overdue cleansing of border runners.

[2530Ubon]

4 minutes ago, BritTim said:

I am always cautious of accepting isolated press reports. However, the reports of Chaengwattana suddenly not seeing processing extensions as an urgent priority lends credence to the reports. I would not say the new amnesty is certain, but it does now seem likely, albeit there may be restrictions.

It’s likely some clickbait that gets money from ad clicks. None of the stories are original on the site, on top of all my other reasons on the previous page. This is a fake article on a fake site. I did the research and checked the source. Where are these reports of CW shutting down - the only report is from this article. No one has actually verified it.  

[sometimewoodworker]

1 hour ago, ehgnyc said:

1) Bring 800,000 baht, which I can well afford, into a country that is behaving like a banana republic. That Thai bank account would have come with a debit card that could only be used in Thailand, not even for internet purchases. And not even the remotest chance of ever transferring it out of here.

It would be good if you actually posted truth rather than making up your own fake miss information.

 

I have a Thai debt card. 
I use it for internet purchases, the largest was an iPhone a couple of months ago.

I have used it in other countries.

Once transferred into Thailand you should get a document showing that you brought it in, with that document you can transfer it out anytime you want.

[EricTh]

6 hours ago, Oldie said:

If so they will end up with the same situation at the end of October what they have now. And the people will be quite sure that there will be another amnesty. People that departed already might feel like idiots because they cared about the existing regulations. 

 

And what happens with the people that payed the 1900 Baht for an extension already? Money back? 

 

 

The cycle continues, people won't go to extend their visa because they will expect another amnesty.

 

Thai immigration just can't get things right.

 

It's not the immigration fault that people extend at the last minute, it's the tourists' fault, they were given advance notice.

 

Edited September 26, 2020 by EricTh

[sncoem]

Hi, I am late to apply for a new visa, so it means that destiny is with me and I don't need to go ? Please confirm ?

[sncoem]

2 minutes ago, EricTh said:

 

The cycle continues, people won't go to extend their visa because they will expect another amnesty.

 

Thai immigration just can't get things right.

 

It's not the immigration fault that people extend at the last minute, it's the tourists' fault, they were given advance notice.

 

if they had made it easier like just pay a fee and get billions revenue for Thailand, people would have have done it earlier.

 

[2530Ubon]

48 minutes ago, 2 is 1 said:

Everybody who know anything understand this "news" not real before it's in Royal gazette.

But have to be really stupid "internet magazine" to do so much material in they page's! If only want give bs story! Ok maybe they want more "hit" they page's to get more money from advert. But almost all is normal new's! If they new's now going to be bs, then they not get any "hit" nomore (and no money) !So why mix bs news there if all others is "ok"? But like i say: so far it's hear say!

That’s really easy to fake too - you can use an app to take all of those stories from another website - it’s actually how most homepages work, they take the stories from other people as a wall of news - such as yahoo/bing etc. the difference here is they try and make it look like it’s theirs. 

[sncoem]

6 hours ago, Max69xl said:

If you read the article the reason would be crowded immigration offices, nothing else. The requirements will probably be exactly the same. So, if you don't meet the requirements to extend the stay now, what will change next month? 

maybe embassies will be less idiot and will give us the requested letter ?

[Promula]

They need to break the cycle of everyone turning up in the final 2 days of the amnesty. Easy way to do is it to say that anyone that turns up on 1 Oct gets an extension until 30 November (60 days), anyone that turns up on 2 Oct gets an extension until 29 Nov (58 days), etc etc. Give an incentive to go early, and also prevent the same problem in November.

Edited September 26, 2020 by Promula

[ehgnyc]

2 minutes ago, sometimewoodworker said:

It would be good if you actually posted truth rather than making up your own fake miss information.

 

I have a Thai debt card. 
I use it for internet purchases, the largest was an iPhone a couple of months ago.

I have used it in other countries.

Once transferred into Thailand you should get a document showing that you brought it in, with that document you can transfer it out anytime you want.

I asked at a Bangkok Bank if I could open an account. They really didn't want to do it now, but after proving I had ample funds in the US said they would consider it, to come back the next day. I then asked if it would come with a Visa or Mastercard card. They said initially no, but perhaps in the future. I thanked them for their time and said I wasn't interested. That's all I know. Perhaps they don't really want to open accounts right now. I also met a group of French people at the same bank who were having a lot of problems transferring their money out of the country as they had to leave.