Where can i write a formal complaint about immigration officer?

[SpoonZie]

Quick summary: had terrible experience with immigration officer today at bangkok while trying to get 1 month extension on tourist visa. Want to write a complaint but not sure where is the appropriate place. Also.
Im curious if TV members feel this lady was jusy doing her job or was being a pain in the ass.


Hi everyone, i visited bangkok immigration today to extend my tourist visa by one month and was met by an extremely irritating lady. I think she went way over the duty of her job and i want to know where the correct place to write an official complaint is.

I have been in thailand on and off for the last 7 years. I have lived in phuket, hua hin, and pattaya and never had any problems with the one month extension.

Was visiting friends in bangkok and rather than go back to phuket or hua hin to extend my visa i wanted to extend it at bangkok so i could stay with my thai friends.

So i filled out the application for extension of stay and listed my hua hin address. Sat and waited for the queue when the officer <name removed> looked at the form and told me to go back to hua hin. I disagree with this completely .. but maybe its their rules.i dont know. I left, filled out a new form and had my thai friends write their address where i was staying in bangkok. Sat through the queue again. My thai friends were waiting outside. Bad luck .. i got the same officer again ... <name removed>. She looked at the paper. Asked me why i had written a thai address. I told her it was the address of my friends where i was staying for a few days in hua hin.
She then aksed me for the address which i had no idea what it was. Then she still did not want to help me with my visa extension. She must of thought i had made the address up ... fair enough. So i asked her if she wanted me to bring my thai friends in to confirm address. Which we did.
After all that she sent us to another officer to fill out registration forms to say i was staying at their address.

By the time we were done with everything it had been over 3 hours.
I saw a suggestion box and complaint forms so i went to pick up the sheet. But when trying to fill it out she refused to give me her officer number and told me to ask her superior for it. So i went and asked ... and she would not give me it either

Worst visa extension i have had in my life so far. So much hassle. Put the slip of paper with her name instead of officer number into the complaint box .. but im convinced they will just throw it in the trash.

Edited July 22, 2015 by ubonjoe

[steven100]

' but im convinced they will just throw it in the trash. '

That's the one thing you got correct all day ..... welcome to thailand ...

Questions for you : do you think they want to have an easy way for farangs to complain about any government office ? do you think even if you eventually lodge a complaint it will be acted upon ?

I'd forget about it and go and have a beer ....

[skippybangkok]

Maybe ur not a tourist ?

[beachproperty]

"....but im convinced they will just throw it in the trash." As well they should .....you are the one who made the mistake , ie put down your Hua Hin address first.

As I understand immigration process (and I'm no expert) you are supposed to go to the immigration office where your address is.

[elviajero]

What do you want to complain about. You were in the wrong.

[slipperylobster]

You did receive the extension?

By the way...it sounds like you were "working around" the system. First one address..and then another.

7 years on tourist visas? That probably did not go over well, and probably raised some kind of red flags (especially if there were some consecutive back to back visas).

You should not be "living" at those addresses... better to be "visiting".

Edited July 21, 2015 by slipperylobster

[NickJ]

Best place to author you complaint would be on the plane leaving.

[FBlue72]

It's wrong she would not give you her number, and neither would her superior. The rest sounds like she was going by the book and you are lucky to have gotten the extension.

Besides, any officer can do whatever they want, whenever they want to.

[SpoonZie]

Let me rephrase... my dad has a thai wife and i have been visiting normally 3-6 months every year for 7 years.

As for the address. I normally stay in hua hin. After leaving and completing a new form with the address i was living at in bkk she still wanted to be a pain in the ass.

What i couldnt undersrand was making me register my friends and say i was living there ..

Its just impractical. Do they legitimately expect us to fill iut this paperwork for a 2-3 night stay at a friends house ?

Under this system would backpackers be expected to go to police staton every day to inform them about change of address.

At the end of the day i agree with current posts ... yes i shouldnt of written hua hin address.. but i didnt have an issue with that in phuket.

Yes .. not much i can do about it. Im a foreigner, its their country. So yoy shut up and take it.

But my 3 thai friends were there and she was being a pain in the ass to them as well.

[animatic]

Let me rephrase... my dad has a thai wife and i have been visiting normally 3-6 months every year for 7 years.

As for the address. I normally stay in hua hin. After leaving and completing a new form with the address i was living at in bkk she still wanted to be a pain in the ass.

What i couldnt undersrand was making me register my friends and say i was living there ..

Its just impractical. Do they legitimately expect us to fill iut this paperwork for a 2-3 night stay at a friends house ?

Under this system would backpackers be expected to go to police staton every day to inform them about change of address.

At the end of the day i agree with current posts ... yes i shouldnt of written hua hin address.. but i didnt have an issue with that in phuket.

Yes .. not much i can do about it. Im a foreigner, its their country. So yoy shut up and take it.

But my 3 thai friends were there and she was being a pain in the ass to them as well.

Actually yes they DO expect your friends to register your stay in a private home, even for a few days. If you don't they will assume you are still at the address you wrote when you entered the country. So trying to extend stay elsewhere raises flags, your showing visible upset or anger with the immigration officer compounds your mistake.

If they find you elsewhere unregistered, hotel or home, they will' By The Book ' you, as you just found out, for not playing by their rules. Thus they forced your friends to register you before you could LEGALY be considered in Bkk and thus legally applying.

Edited July 21, 2015 by animatic

[kaorop]

Perks of the job: Having a bad day? Take it out on the farangs.

Learn to give the "fxxk you" smile that thais use and recognize.

[elviajero]

As for the address. I normally stay in hua hin. After leaving and completing a new form with the address i was living at in bkk she still wanted to be a pain in the ass.

What i couldnt undersrand was making me register my friends and say i was living there ..

Its just impractical. Do they legitimately expect us to fill iut this paperwork for a 2-3 night stay at a friends house ?

As you now realise the problem was using your Hua Hin address. If you'd used the Bangkok address to begin with your application would have been accepted.

Your friends are legally bound to advise your stay with 24 hours of arrival. The reason the IO got your friends to confirm you were living with them was to cover herself as you changed your application. I expect they were asked to complete form TM30.

You were fortunate to get the extension. The IO was in her right to send you to Hua Hin. Take steven100's advice. Chill and have a beer!

[SpoonZie]

Fair enough then i guess. Just got too used to freedom of travel =/ i can understand why a system like that would be in place to track illegals.

My only real complaint left is she wouldnt tell us her officer number and was being rude. But not the end of the world.

[Kitsune]

Sorry to read about your misfortune.

Chaeng Wattana has an awful reputation especially when it comes to stropy officers.

Like it was suggested it is very unlikely that your complaint will go anywhere.

Worse it could fall back on you.

Edited July 21, 2015 by Maestro
Deleted unfounded speculation about intent of criminal activity.

[harrry]

Let me rephrase... my dad has a thai wife and i have been visiting normally 3-6 months every year for 7 years.

As for the address. I normally stay in hua hin. After leaving and completing a new form with the address i was living at in bkk she still wanted to be a pain in the ass.

What i couldnt undersrand was making me register my friends and say i was living there ..

Its just impractical. Do they legitimately expect us to fill iut this paperwork for a 2-3 night stay at a friends house ?

Under this system would backpackers be expected to go to police staton every day to inform them about change of address.

At the end of the day i agree with current posts ... yes i shouldnt of written hua hin address.. but i didnt have an issue with that in phuket.

Yes .. not much i can do about it. Im a foreigner, its their country. So yoy shut up and take it.

But my 3 thai friends were there and she was being a pain in the ass to them as well.

Actually yes they DO expect your friends to register your stay in a private home, even for a few days. If you don't they will assume you are still at the address you wrote when you entered the country. So trying to extend stay elsewhere raises flags, your showing visible upset or anger with the immigration officer compounds your mistake.

If they find you elsewhere unregistered, hotel or home, they will' By The Book ' you, as you just found out, for not playing by their rules. Thus they forced your friends to register you before you could LEGALY be considered in Bkk and thus legally applying.

Your friends can be fined a couple of thousand baht for not doing so within 24 hours

[coulson]

You got the visa so all's well that ends well. Only thing you achieved by complaining was worsen your next visit should you ever end up having to go agaim

[konying]

You can start with 1111 hotline, though not sure if I would want attract attention when living in Thailand for 7 years on tourist visa.

[Maestro]

So i filled out the application for extension of stay and listed my hua hin address.

That was your mistake number one.

What i couldnt undersrand was making me register my friends and say i was living there

You could not understand why you were asked to give the address of the place where you were staying on the date you were applying for the extension and argued with the officer about it instead of just following her advice to write your Bangkok address on the form? The officer would have had every right to throw you out then and there.

But my 3 thai friends were there and she was being a pain in the ass to them as well

It would have been the officer's legal right to fine the "house master" of the residence where you stayed in Bangkok for not having notified immigration of your arrival within 24 hours with form TM.30 and you say she was being a pain in the ass? Do you want to complain to immigration that she neglected her duties by not issuing this fine?

[SpoonZie]

Just to clarify .. i wasnt being a pain in their ass .. they say jump, my response is how high ... wasnt aware of the notifying requirements at the time as i have always stayed in hotels or rented a house. I did not argue with the officer. I was quiet and polite and tried to give her an easy day. But every time i did what she asked for she was trying to cause more problems. First visit she said i needed an additional photocopy and bangkok address. Fair enough. I left quietly to go get those. 1 hour later i was up again and had everything she asked for. Then she tried to cause problems with the address and in the end i called my thai friend in to help. After confirming address that still wasnt good enough for the officer, and she wanted us to fill out registration forms, all these postponements .. started at 1pm after their lunch, was done about 20 minites before they close.

[comfortablynumb1]

" If you piss into the wind you will only wet yourself"...

[nowretired]

Just to clarify .. i wasnt being a pain in their ass .. they say jump, my response is how high ... wasnt aware of the notifying requirements at the time as i have always stayed in hotels or rented a house. I did not argue with the officer. I was quiet and polite and tried to give her an easy day. But every time i did what she asked for she was trying to cause more problems. First visit she said i needed an additional photocopy and bangkok address. Fair enough. I left quietly to go get those. 1 hour later i was up again and had everything she asked for. Then she tried to cause problems with the address and in the end i called my thai friend in to help. After confirming address that still wasnt good enough for the officer, and she wanted us to fill out registration forms, all these postponements .. started at 1pm after their lunch, was done about 20 minites before they close.

It would seem the majority of people consider this to have been a self inflicted problem .

The IO was entirely correct as Maestro, in post number 18, very ably indicated .

[bwpage3]

Welcome to Thailand. If you have been in Thailand on and off for 7 years, you should realize this is normal behavior. I always hated going to immigration in Bangkok. Very stressful time, however it is their rules and their country. Complaining is never an answer and never leads to a favorable solution.

Edited July 21, 2015 by bwpage3

[Suradit69]

Perks of the job: Having a bad day? Take it out on the farangs.

Learn to give the "fxxk you" smile that thais use and recognize.

And all the farang having a bad life blame all their woes on Thailand and if they are wrong about anything to do with immigrations they claim the immigrations officers are at fault.

Amazing that most immigrations officers are so patient and even-tempered while having to deal with the daily parade of clueless, rude farang (along with the vast majority of farang who are polite ... as opposed to those who think they must "act" polite because it's an alien concept to them ).

[SpoonZie]

Didnt realise it would be such a touchy subject for everyone. I can see everyones point of view. I accept full responsibility for not being correctly informed about the procedure. I incorrectly assumed visiting bangkok immigration would be easier than visiting my local hua hin branch because i was already here for a shopping trip.

And then i incorrectly assumed the foreigner registration procedure wasnt an issue due to the fact i was only going to be here for 2-3 days while my van was being repaired in hua hin.

And after hearing everyones opinions and getting more information .. yes i was lucky to be granted extension, yes i was lucky they didnt fine my friends for me staying there.

What irritated me was not the actions of the IO, but her attitude. She offered no help or explanations and that is what left me so angry, and at the end of it all she didnt want to give out her officer ID, if she had a clear conscience and believed she had done nothing wrong i dont see why she would refuse to provide the officer ID. Thanks for the advice guys it helped cool me down.

Maybe she was just having a bad day.

We all have bad days =/ grab a beer and relax i guess.

[Oceanbat]

Didnt realise it would be such a touchy subject for everyone. I can see everyones point of view. I accept full responsibility for not being correctly informed about the procedure. I incorrectly assumed visiting bangkok immigration would be easier than visiting my local hua hin branch because i was already here for a shopping trip.

And then i incorrectly assumed the foreigner registration procedure wasnt an issue due to the fact i was only going to be here for 2-3 days while my van was being repaired in hua hin.

And after hearing everyones opinions and getting more information .. yes i was lucky to be granted extension, yes i was lucky they didnt fine my friends for me staying there.

What irritated me was not the actions of the IO, but her attitude. She offered no help or explanations and that is what left me so angry, and at the end of it all she didnt want to give out her officer ID, if she had a clear conscience and believed she had done nothing wrong i dont see why she would refuse to provide the officer ID. Thanks for the advice guys it helped cool me down.

Maybe she was just having a bad day.

We all have bad days =/ grab a beer and relax i guess.

I feel your pain. It's an archaic and outdated system and has a lot of hoops that don't need to be there mainly I think to make one feel unwelcome. Unfortunately you just have to deal with them and work within the system and suck it up. It sucks but it is what it is. Working in Singapore/HK/Japan and dealing with immigration is almost a pleasure compared to here.

OB

[Kitsune]

Welcome to Thailand. If you have been in Thailand on and off for 7 years, you should realize this is normal behavior. I always hated going to immigration in Bangkok. Very stressful time, however it is their rules and their country. Complaining is never an answer and never leads to a favorable solution.

I agree although I think it's a Bangkok thing,so the OP might have been lucky living in provinces and dealing with smaller immigration offices where things are much more relax.

As for "their rule their country", in my opinion, this attitude just make thing worse for everyone. Live here as if it was your country, care enough to want it to be abuse and corruption-free, otherwise you're only making it harder for the next person.

[technologybytes]

However hard you think it is, consider this... its much easier for you coming to Thailand than it is for a Thai going to your country!

[AlQaholic]

As for the Bkk immigration, it is the worst in the country.

According law every foreigner must be registered by the entity that accommodates them within a day of arriving at the accommodation. not doing this, there is a fine. The responsibility for registering rests on the owner of the accommodation.

According current policy, foreigners should go to the nearest immigration office to where they are staying, this is not law, just policy, it is up to individual officer to take whatever course of action case by case if a foreigner comes to the wrong office.

Just as in most other countries, a lot of authority lies with the individual immigration officer, who in effect can decide just about anything they want in each individual case, so be nice to them.

[Chang Pattaya Services]

Its more better next time, if your doing your visa extension in BKK ,use the address in BKK. if you go in Jomtien/Pattaya Chonburi Immigration use Chonburi address..

[roobaa01]

what i cannot understand is about the immis officer name for in jointiem every officer has a name plate placed in front of him with rank, telef. nr. written in latin on it , as far i remember chaengwattana has got it also.

wbr

roobaa01