Passport carrying

[krml]

I remember seeing pictures of the Lucifer raid. They popped quite a few people. The BGs were all squashed together trying to escape through the front door. Of course this raid was for drugs not passport violations. The passport violations just became the effect after the cause.

 

I have never carried my passport. I usually keep it locked in the safe deposit box at the hotel and have never had a problem. Maybe I have just been lucky.

[rickfarang]

 

Thank you for the reports. It sounds like people are getting nabbed for not having passports down there. Better to be safe than to be bummed out.

 

I guess that mean, technically, at least, one should take his passport to the beach, too. :-(

 

Not my country, so I can't make the rules...

[shygye]

You are probably 1000 times more likely to lose/stolen passport.

[jitagawn]

Yesterday in the jewelry district on Mahesak a friend of mine was accosted by two Thai who claimed to be with immigration and demanded to see his passport.One of them had a small video recroder with him???He requested ID at which point they quickly flashed a badge that said in ENGLISH???HUH?

"IMMIGRATION"

He just happened to have his passport and then they wanted to look in his bag (He is a gem dealer but has no goods on him)

They let him go

Both he and I dont know what to make of this except that this area has many scams because of the very wealthy gem dealers strolling about with millions of baht and gems in their pockets.Were the police legit? -NOt sure ::

FYI ::

Anybody else had this issue???

[rickfarang]

 

I posted the question below on the Immigration Police website on Thursday. Here is the answer they posted today.

 

http://www.imm.police.go.th/nov2004/base.php

 

POSTED QUESTION

I will be traveling to Pattay wiith my brother from the U.S. next month and would appreciate it if you would answer these two questions:

1. When we change from our Bangkok hotel to the one in Pattay, then back to the Bangkok hotel is it necessary to notify the Immigration Bureay each time we change hotels?

2. We are afraid of loosing our passports and have been advised to keep them in the hotel safe. We have also heard stories of people being arrested for not carrying their passports. What is your recommendation for our stay in Pattaya? Is it necessary to carry our passports to the beach?

Thank you sincerely for your consideration.

  RickF

 

ANSWER RECEIVED

1. If each place you stay more than 24 hrs. you neet to report at the Immiration office.

2. If the beach is not far from the Hotel it not necessary to carry passport., or carry the copy passport.

[khunsanuk]

Hi,

 

"1. If each place you stay more than 24 hrs. you neet to report at the Immiration office."

 

I wonder how many people bother doing this

 

Sanuk!

[Guest]

Exactly zero.

 

I can also see now the immigration police realizing that farangs at the beach probably do not have their passports on them, not stuffed down their Speedos or anything ("Is that your passport, or are you just glad to see me?"). Photos published world wide of fat 60-ish farangs being hustled into paddy wagons, nabbed in mid-afternoon under the beach umbrella.

[shotover]

khunsanuk said:

Hi, "1. If each place you stay more than 24 hrs. you neet to report at the Immiration office." I wonder how many people bother doing this Sanuk!

 

At the last 2 apartments/condos I stayed at (at least 3 month leases), the managers gave me a paper to fill out for immigration, telling me they are required by law to do this.

 

I've never heard of anyone checking into a hotel for a relatively short stay registering with immigration. Does the arrival form still request address while staying in Thailand?

[danish30]

I think all hotels and aparment buildings are required by law to inform immigration about the forigners staying at their place, but I have never been asked to fill out any forms during the time I've lived here.

 

Usually I carry my thai tax id, the little blue credit card sized one, or my thai health care card, that should be enough for people living here. For tourists I would not worry too much about carrying my passport all the time.

 

The only place I have ever been asked for id/passport was traveling by road from Nong khai to the airport in Udon Thani, never happened in Bangkok.

[shotover]

danish30 said:The only place I have ever been asked for id/passport was traveling by road from Nong khai to the airport in Udon Thani, never happened in Bangkok.

 

Same here, the only time I have been requested to produce my passport was when the police boarded our bus between Udon Thani and Nong Khai, asking everyone, including myself for ID. I was a bit nervous when they carried my passport off the bus for a higher-up to peruse, but it was returned with no additional questions. No doubt, their focus was looking for illegals from Laos and Myanmar.