New Form Required (?) for 90 Day Renewal

[Gaybutton]

For those who do feel that the form is too intrusive into your personal information, for the 90-day address report don't forget that you don't have to go in to immigration personally. You can send someone else to take care of it for you. You can also do it by "snail mail." I would imagine that many resident farang living out in the provinces, nowhere near an immigration office, do take care of it by "snail mail." I'd like to know if, using either method, the form somehow becomes part of it.

As for obtaining and renewing the retirement visa, you still have to appear personally. Since 2lz2p is doing just that today, I'll be interested to know if they ask him to do this form then or if it is done only when submitting the 90-day address report.

Abe Cady (talking to the Polish Chief Inspector): "How do you know about my son?"
Zaminski: "Oh, we specialize in acquiring the same kind of useless information that your intelligence people do."
- Ben Gazzara (Cady), Julian Glover (Zaminski), 'QB VII'

[mahjongguy]

Went to Jomtien Immigration just now for my 90 Days. No one was ahead of me. The Info form was not mentioned. Out the door in 90 seconds.

In three weeks I'll go back for my annual extension. I'll take my already-completed form with me again. With a photo, in case they want it.

[2lz2p]

GB:

As for obtaining and renewing the retirement visa, you still have to appear personally. Since 2lz2p is doing just that today, I'll be interested to know if they ask him to do this form then or if it is done only when submitting the 90-day address report.

Mahjong:

Went to Jomtien Immigration just now for my 90 Days. No one was ahead of me. The Info form was not mentioned. Out the door in 90 seconds.

I went in about 8:15am, #6 in queue (no Information form given to me - also, they didn't check paperwork before giving me my queue ticket), counters opened for business at 8:30am starting with #801 for retirement counter - within 5 minutes my number was called (2 Immigration Officers checking documents and collecting fee), all paperwork in order, signed two documents (one warning about overstay and the other in Thai), given my claim check to pick up passport after 2pm tomorrow. No Information form mentioned at Counter #8 (I had it completed and with me with extra photo, but waited to be asked to provide the form). I was finished and out the door by 8:40am -- going out, I did see a stack of paper with what appeared to be the blank Information form on top of the stack at the counter where you get your queue number -- they were not handing them out to anyone based on my short observation period.

As to renewal of my annual retirement extension, all documents in order, and consisted of:

TM7 Application

Original Passport

Photocopy of main page (identity) and stamps (only 2 pages as info from my old passport was transferred shortly before my last renewal with all stamps on one page; the other page was my Extension of Stay stamp from last year).

Photocopy of TM6 Departure card

Letter from USA Embassy showing monthly income - original

Photocopy of my lease in which the Landlord who included a copy of their Thai ID card as part of the lease.

Photocopy of Landlord's Housebook for the house I rent (I was provided a copy by the landlord
2 1/2 years ago when I first moved in as I needed it for Truevision to move my Satellite antenna to the new location) -
I did note that the Immigration Officer highlighted information on the housebook as part of their review.

I will post whether the information form was required tomorrow for picking up passport or doing 90 day report.


Tomorrow, when I pick up my passport I will do 90 day report (I will still have my completed form in case I am asked for it).

[Gaybutton]

No Information form mentioned

Good. Maybe they already realized how absurd it is and are not bothering with it.

[2lz2p]

No Information form mentioned

Good. Maybe they already realized how absurd it is and are not bothering with it.

I spoke too soon - today when I went to pick up passport (no form asked for) at desk 8, I then asked for queue number for 90 day address reporting at the front desk - they also handed me the Information Form and said "bring back next time" - I told them I already had it and they told me to give it to the Officer at 90 day reporting desk. The address reporting was as usual, scan bar code, print out new form, and staple it into passport - he didn't ask for the Form, but I offered it and he took it without looking at it and placed it on a stack of other Information Forms he had received.

Hmmm, I wonder if you take the form and then never turn it in, would they ever know

[Gaybutton]

Hmmm, I wonder if you take the form and then never turn it in, would they ever know

Unless they make some sort of notation on your records, I doubt it. Based on the way you describe what they do with the form when you hand it over, my guess is it's the last thing they give a damn about. For them, just another piece of useless paperwork to collect and file away, never to see the light of day again.

If immigration really wants to work on something, how about working on getting their online reporting system to actually work?

Does anyone really believe that somebody is going to sit there and make a record of what is on everybody's forms, much less actually check to see if the information is accurate? I can see it now. "This man said he regularly eats at Bruno's. I checked. He lied. He has never even been there." Or perhaps, "Ooooh, take a look at this. This farang regularly visits the 'Reginald's House of Cocks' web site."

Or for those who worry that they might take your banking information and rip off your account, I can just see a Thai walking into a bank and trying to convince the teller his name is Dieter Foostblapft.

I read somewhere that if a farang refuses to submit the form, then immigration will be suspicious of him. I suppose you could tell immigration to be as suspicious as they want, but you're not filling out anything until they tell you what they intend to do with the information - a question that has been asked several times, but so far nobody seems to know the answer. I'm curious about it. I've said, and meant, that I have no problem about filling out their form, but I'd like to know what they want to do with the information - assuming they are even going to bother looking at it.

I'd also like to know who came up with the idea for this form in the first place. I'd love for whoever it was to have to explain it. I still have never figured out the purpose of the 90-day address report, let alone this form. To me, it would make much more sense to require foreigners to initially provide their address and report to immigration only if their address ever changes.

[2lz2p]

Hmmm, I wonder if you take the form and then never turn it in, would they ever know

Unless they make some sort of notation on your records, I doubt it

I agree, Jomtien Imm. Off. seemed to be just going through the motions without really caring what was or was not answered on the form - I wonder what unlucky Imm. Off. will be stuck with completing their portion (at the top of the form) - As to locating the information, although the Imm. General that developed the form indicates they will have a "secure" database, pity the poor souls that may have to enter the information in such a database, which is apparently not developed yet, considering that in most cases the information is being handwritten on the form; so deciphering some will no doubt be an awesome task.

Here are some extracts from various source identifying the General that developed the form and what he says it will accomplish:

http://www.bangkokpost.com/learning/wor ... violation-

Pol Maj Gen Chatchawan Wachirapaneekhun, deputy chief of the bureau, who initiated the idea, said the information, plus an additional picture to be affixed to the form, would be useful for security measures measures

A source at the bureau said the move is being implemented on a trial basis and was initiated by Pol Maj Gen Chatchawan and approved by Pol Lt Gen Nathathorn Prousoontorn, chief of the bureau.

http://www.khaosodenglish.com/life/2016 ... 460977949/

Maj. Gen. Chatchawan, who wrote the new form, said he personally urged immigration offices nationwide to collect the information on March 22. It is purportedly for recording information of all foreigners entering and living in the kingdom. It indicates the information will be used to record of residence in the country according to articles 37 and 38 of the 1979 Immigration Act.

He said that the information would soon be integrated under the same linked information system. Some of the information such as bank account details, he said were already required for extended stays.

https://asiancorrespondent.com/2016/05/ ... on-phuket/

Immigration Bureau’s crime suppression unit Deputy Commissioner Maj Gen Chachaval Vachirapaneegul said the details to be filled in the “Foreign National Information Form”, released last Monday, was now a mandatory requirement.

However, Chachaval did not confirm whether failure to provide certain information would form a basis for applications to be rejected and clarified that the social media account details was optional. He said all other sections were mandatory.

“We will not force people to provide their social media details,” he said.

http://www.thephuketnews.com/new-person ... QkCR1Mi.97

Another May 21 Article from Phuket from a different source, saying much the same.

[thewayhelooks]

I did my retirement visa today and had to sign a new form. It listed all the penalties for those who overstay. e.g. If you overstay your 90 days, this is what will happen. If you overstay by six months or a year or more, this is the penalty, including deportation or being banned from returning for X number of years. It's all been mentioned before in the Bangkok Post. I guess the point of the exercise is that you can't use the excuse 'I didn't know" if you overstay as the signed form stating you read it and understood the consequences, is in your file.

[Gaybutton]

you can't use the excuse 'I didn't know"

That was never an acceptable excuse in the first place. Anyone who tried that got a response something like "Now you know." It didn't help a thing.

[RichLB]

I did the 90 day reporting today and advise leaving extra time. What was usually a 10 minute event took an hour and a half today. The problem seemed to be the damn new form. One of the two Immigration guys was going over each completed form with a fine toothed comb, asking for additional information that the form had no place to write - stuff like the name of the condominium, the floor you lived on, etc. The other officer just took the form without even glancing at it. I lucked out and got the speedy one. I did ask if we have to complete this form every time. She said, "No, only once." That's different from what other sources have said, so take you pick who you believe.