Thailand’s ETA to shake up visa-free visitors

Thailand is tightening its borders with a new Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) system, set to launch between December this year and June 2025. This system will be mandatory for all visa-exempt foreigners entering the country by air, land, or sea.

Though not technically a visa, the ETA will act as a computerised security check, similar to the ETIAS programme for Schengen countries. It’s designed to enhance security, curb illegal migration, and monitor health risks.

Foreign visitors will receive email confirmation of their ETA approval, usually within 24 hours. However, the fine print is still a mystery. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has yet to reveal exactly what documents will be required, though it’s likely travellers will need to show proof of accommodation and outbound travel, much like systems in Malaysia and Cambodia.

Currently, Thailand offers a 60-day visa-exempt entry for citizens of 93 countries. This can be extended to 90 days at a local immigration office, and foreigners can use a border run to reset the clock – a loophole many use indefinitely. But with the new ETA system, it’s unclear if restrictions will be introduced to limit these back-to-back entries.

The ETA is expected to be free and will be issued via the government’s e-portal, www.thaievisa.go.th. Once approved, travelers can pass through electronic immigration gates using a QR code. The system will also run checks on criminal records and passport authenticity, potentially avoiding confrontations at immigration desks, reported Pattaya Mail.

ORIGINAL STORY: Aussies now need an ETA to enter Thailand

Australians planning a getaway to Thailand will soon have an extra step to complete before boarding their flight. The Thai government is introducing a mandatory electronic travel authorisation (ETA), which must be obtained ahead of travel.

This new system, introduced by Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, is designed to enhance the screening and tracking of foreigners entering the country.

“The ETA will be an important tool for screening and tracking the movement of foreigners entering Thailand.”

The Thai ETA is required for travelers from nearly 100 visa-waiver countries, including Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States, Singapore, China, Hong Kong, and most European nations. It’s a system similar to the USA’s ESTA and the upcoming travel authorisation systems in Europe, the UK, and Japan.

Scheduled for a pilot launch by December this year, with a full roll-out by June 2025, ETA applications will be processed online via the official Thai e-Visa website. Unlike other countries’ ETAs, which may allow multiple entries over several years, the Thai ETA must be applied for each time a visitor plans to enter Thailand. However, it’s expected to be free of charge.

Once approved, ETA holders will benefit from the convenience of automated passport gates at immigration checkpoints. This comes alongside the recent extension of stay for tourists and business travelers from visa-free countries, who can now enjoy up to 60 days in Thailand, with the possibility to extend for another 30 days upon arrival.

In addition, Thailand introduced the Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), tailored for remote workers, digital nomads, and visitors attending approved activities. Priced at 10,000 baht (430 Aussie dollars), this visa allows a stay of up to five years, provided applicants can prove they have at least 500,000 baht for the duration of their stay.

The DTV also covers the holder’s spouse and dependent children, offering them a five-year stay with multiple entries, extendable by another 180 days, reported Executive Traveler.

Source: The Thager

#Thailand to open all land border crossings next year

 Thailand is planning to open all land border crossings with neighbouring countries next year. The move is reportedly part of an effort to facilitate the transportation of goods to help restart one aspect of the economy. The Department of Foreign Trade says it will negotiate with Laos, Myanmar, Cambodia and Malaysia to reopen all 97 land borders and hold trade fairs throughout several locations next year.

According to the National News Bureau of Thailand, the DFT Director General says the department will remain committed to facilitating exports through the modernisation of specific laws. Such modernisation includes upgrading department services like permit extensions, geographical indication documents and exporter registrations.

Last year, Thailand brought in around 1 trillion baht in revenue from border trading but trade with Singapore, Vietnam and China decreased as more exporters chose air shipping.

Thai farm products including rice will be promoted at events by the DFT both at home markets and abroad. Thai rice exports exceeded 8.5 million tonnes this year, surpassing the target of 7.5 million tonnes.

Source - The Thaiger

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Thailand Pass: Nearly 40,000 registrations and more than 6,000 approvals since Monday

 The IT specialist and spokesman for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs went online yesterday morning to give the latest figures for people applying for the Thailand Pass.

This is a new one-stop site to collate documents and apply to enter Thailand that came online as Thailand reopened to foreign tourists on Monday.

Tanee Sangrat said that at 6.30 am yesterday a total of 39,506 people had registered and that 6,484 had been approved.

The MoFA has been working with the Digital Government Development Agency to make it easier for people to get the required documentation together for entry into Thailand, noted the Thai business media yesterday.  

Source - ASIAN NOW

 

VISA AGENT  /  How to register for: THAI PASS

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Thailand Pass helps streamline international arrivals

BANGKOK (NNT) - The new travel document submission system known as “Thailand Pass” now being rolled out is helping to better facilitate international arrivals. This online-based system will be replacing the Certificate of Entry from next week.

Mr. Anucha Nakasai, the Minister attached to the Office of the Prime Minister, today inspected the processing of international arrivals at Suvarnabhumi Airport.

Introduced by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to better and quicker process international visitors, Thailand Pass replaces the Certificate of Entry visitors were required to apply at a Thai Embassy or consulate in their country of origin.

The new online-based system allows visitors to upload their required documents with step-by-step explanations to obtain their QR-code equipped pass, which they need to present when entering Thailand.

Mr. Anucha said this new system comes with safeguard measures including data encryption to protect personal information, in accordance with international standards.

He said some issues have been noticed at the early stage of the rollout, but they have already been addressed.

So far, around 10,000 Thailand Pass applications have been submitted, with the entry pass having already been issued for some 4,000 travelers.

Travelers with a valid Certificate of Entry will be able to enter the kingdom during this period. However, the Thailand Pass system will entirely replace the Certificate of Entry in the next 7 days.

Applicable to both Thai and foreign nationals, Thailand Pass is a document required for all international air arrivals.

Source -ASIAN NOW

VISA AGENT  /  How to register for: THAI PASS 

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#Thailand - Immigration overhaul – TM6 disappearing and TM30 App being launched

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“We made the decision last Friday. Within two to three months, life will be much easier for foreign tourists and expats.”

In what appears to be a major overhaul of immigration procedures, dare we say ‘modernisation’, foreign visitors will soon no longer have to fill out the “TM6” arrival forms. 

The white and blue form has been a source of confusion for decades as passengers try to fill them out on planes or in a mad rush when they arrive at immigration desks without them, for decades.

The reason for the decision to go all-digital with the arrival procedure is that, of all reasons, the storage of all the white and blue cards had become an issue.

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But wait, there’s more.

Now khaosodenglish.com are reporting that Thai immigration is not only doing away with the TM6 forms, they’re about to launch a new mobile phone app to make TM30 reporting easier.

Kobsak Pootrakool, the Deputy Secretary-General to the PM, also mentioned on Tuesday that another app is being developed to allow long-stay foreigners to complete their 90 day reporting with their smart phone. And, yes, he said a smartphone App was also going to make the TM30 reporting easier.

The TM30 form, and its companion, the TM28, have been a source of expat displeasure over the past five months since the immigration department decided to enforce a little-used 1979 law that required foreigners to report their whereabouts if they had stayed overnight at an address different from their registered address.

The same applied for landlords or owners of accommodation to report foreigners staying at their venues within 24 hours. Along the way there appeared cracks in the enforcement with all sorts of variations and conundrums being thrown up at organised panel meetings and online, little of which was answered with any certainty from the Thai immigration authorities.

 Kobsak now claims that the changes are designed to attract more visitors and accommodate those already living in the kingdom.
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“We made the decision last Friday. Within two to three months, life will be much easier for foreign tourists and expats.”

“Foreigners will be able to report their whereabouts with just four clicks on their smartphone to fulfill regulations that require them to report to immigration authorities every 90 days.”

Deputy immigration commander Nattapon Sawaengkit has confirmed the move to move the TM30 reporting online when contacted for comment, but assigned another officer to explain the details, according to the khaosodenglish.com report.

 Everyone’s favourite arrival procedure, the TM6 form.
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Source - The Thaiger

Thai immigration to show leniency to foreigners applying for retirement & marriage extensions

Thai immigration say that they’re willing to show leniency to foreigners in the prickly subject of proving income when applying for retirement and marriage visas and extensions.

Immigration chief Police Lieutenant General Surachete Hakparn acknowledges that some applicants may have difficulty in providing the now required 12 months worth of bank statements.

Where this is the case Surachete has instructed immigration officers that, up to the end of 2019, they will have discretion to accept evidence of less than 12 monthly transfers from overseas.

Appplicants given leniency in this case are being told that this is a one-off exemption and that their applications for the next renewal will not be accepted without a complete set of documents according to the order.

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The order comes after revelations last year that a number of embassies in Thailand, including the UK, USA and Australia, would stop issuing income letters or affidavits, which had been used by expats to confirm their income when applying for a retirement or marriage extension.

This was forcing some foreigners applying for ‘retirement’ or ‘marriage’ visas to show 12 monthly transfers of either 65,000 baht or 40,000 baht paid into a Thai bank account.

Those affected by the new requirements are questioning if they will still be able to obtain a retirement or marriage extension even though they were not able to provide the 12 months worth of statements now required.

Best to consult your visa agent or go directly to your local Immigration office for an ‘off the record’ chat before you submit your documents.

Source - TheThaiger & Thaivisa

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Thailand - Four cave footballers stateless: official

The chief of Chiang Rai’s Mae Sai district has emphasised that Thai citizenship shall be granted based on the law and there will be no exemption even for four of the footballers rescued from the cave.

“I understand that society hopes the rescued boys get citizenship. But we have to comply with the law,” Mae Sai district chief Somsak Khanakham said. 

He spoke after news reports said some of Mu Pa Academy’s members are stateless. 

The team, stranded inside the flooded Tham Luang Cave for more than two weeks, miraculously survived. 

According to Somsak, someone gets Thai citizenship when he or she was born in Thailand or born to Thai parents. 

Somsak said the four of 13 rescued footballers who did not have Thai citizenship were coach Ekkapon Chantawongse, 25, and three footballers Pornchai Khamluang, 16, Mongkol Boonpium, 13, and Adul Sam-on, 14.

According to the Mae Sai district chief, the stateless members called on him for help with citizenship claims about two months ago. He said he has already offered them advice. 

Somsak said he heard Ekkapon already contacted the authorities but had yet to submit all the required documents. 

“For children, their parents must be the one to submit the request for citizenship,” he said. 

Somsak said he expected the footballers to officially seek citizenship after they were discharged from the Chiangrai Prachanakroh Hospital. 

All 13 trapped footballers are now being treated and monitored at the hospital.

Source - TheNation

 

#Thailand - Citizenship of three young cave survivors shines light on plight of stateless persons

THE lack of Thai citizenship of three youth footballers who were saved from the Tham Luang cave has highlighted the hidden problems of stateless people.

The Interior Ministry and the Children and Youth Department have confirmed that three of the 13 survivors from the Chiang Rai cave are stateless persons. Authorities have promised to provide them legal assistance in the nationality verification process and if there were no complications in their documents all of them will have Thai nationality within six months.

Ekkapol Chantawong, Phonchai Khamluang, and Adul Sam-on, three survivors from the Tham Luang cave, are among 500,000 stateless persons in Thailand who have to endure limitations in many aspects of their life as they are denied some rights and opportunities.

It was also disclosed that many stateless persons have to wait for a decade to get Thai citizenship because of the slow verification process.

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 Surapong Kongchantuk, a prominent activist on human rights and nationality issues, said that although the Thai government has provided basic rights to all persons in Thailand, ensuring compulsory education and healthcare, stateless persons still face many complications in their lives.

“Theoretically, all people must be under the care and protection of being a citizen of at least one state, but in reality there are more than 500,000 persons in Thailand who do not have any nationality, even though they are born and raised in Thailand,” Surapong said.

He said the lack of citizenship means that stateless persons are denied access to many fundamental rights such as travelling abroad, getting higher education or employment in some careers, so they do not have many opportunities to improve their lives.

According to Surapong, stateless persons can ask for nationality verification at their local administrative organisation to acquire Thai citizenship. They must provide proof of their birth and lineage and that they were born to a Thai national parent. Ethnic minorities born in Thailand are eligible to get Thai nationality.

Otherwise, they can submit a bachelors degree or diploma or ask for a special grant from the Thai government to get Thai nationality, he said.

Nevertheless, he said the procedure to verify and seek Thai nationality is slow and complicated because local administrative organisations often do not have enough staff to deal with the overwhelming number of requests for nationality verification. Some people have to wait for more than 10 years to get Thai nationality and receive a Thai citizen ID card. Legal Status Network Foundation chairman Santiphong Moonphong also said that due to the complications and the long period of time it takes to get Thai nationality, many youths who do not have citizenship lose opportunities.

Santiphong said he hoped that the nationality status of three survivors from the Tham Luang cave would bring the problems of stateless persons to public attention and get prompt solutions from the government.

Source - TheNation

Thai police have broken up a major fake passport ring

Some of the counterfeit passports.

 Cops smash fake passport ring headed by Iranian master forger.

 Thai police have broken up a major fake passport ring led by an Iranian known as "The Doctor" which sent thousands of passports to Middle Eastern customers trying to enter Europe, officers said today.

The kingdom has long been a hub for a forged document industry serving human traffickers and other criminals.

Five years of investigation culminated in Monday's arrest of the alleged Iranian mastermind Hamid Reza Jafary, police said.

The 48-year-old had for many years been crafting sophisticated forgeries from his home in Chachoengsao province east of Bangkok, they said.

"He (Jafary) produced passports for people from countries including Iran, Syria and Afghanistan who were escaping wars and wanted to enter Europe," said immigration police commander Lieutenant General Nathathorn Prousoontorn.

Clients emailed "The Doctor" their photos and specified the country for which they wanted a passport, the commander said, adding he guaranteed customers they would not be detected by border officials.

The forged documents were then sent via private courier companies.

It was not immediately clear if "The Doctor" provided passports to people fleeing to Europe during the current migrant crisis.

"He himself used six different passports — three from Brazil, and one from each of Peru, Portugal and New Zealand. He was wanted by security agencies in many countries, especially the EU and Japan," Nathathorn added.

Jafary's fake passports were the "best quality in the market", an immigration officer who asked not to be named told AFP.

But he could not fake the latest microchipped travel documents, police added.

Five Pakistani middlemen were also arrested in raids in and around Bangkok for assisting the forgery ring, which allegedly shipped passports to overseas clients for up to THB 80,000.

Some of the nearly 200 travel documents found in a Monday raid on Jafary's home were completely forged, while others had been stolen from tourists and doctored, police said.

The raid also uncovered a laser engraving machine, rolls of thin leather for passport covers and metal stamps from various countries.

Thousands of passports are reported missing annually in Thailand, where forged documents of every variety can be purchased on the streets.

The flourishing market has helped establish Thailand as a hub for human traffickers and smugglers.

Two Uighur men awaiting trial for planting a deadly bomb in Bangkok last August have also been accused by police of running a crime group that helped illegal migrants obtain counterfeit documents.

The pair are currently being held in a military prison.

In 2014 the spotlight also swung onto the Thai-based trade when two mystery passengers boarded the doomed Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 using European passports stolen in Thailand.

In 2010 Thai authorities took part in an international police sting that saw two Pakistanis and a Thai woman arrested in Thailand for providing fake passports to groups behind global terror attacks.

Story: AFP

Source: Coconuts 

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