The days of living and working in Thailand without a visa are over, if the Immigration Bureau lives up to its promise. No longer will language teachers, restaurateurs or anyone else working in Thailand be able to jump over the border every fortnight, month or three months to get a fresh stamp under the pretence they are tourists.
The question should not be why, or why now, but what took them so long?
Immigration Bureau Commissioner Pol Lt Gen Pharnu Kerdlarpphon was forthright when speaking about the crackdown on the so-called visa run in this week’s edition of Spectrum. “We have seen this problem for a long time but we have never bothered dealing with it before. But now we will, as some seem to be abusing the rules.”
Better late than never, perhaps, but the situation should never have been allowed to deteriorate to this point purely because the authorities had no enthusiasm for enforcing the law. The Immigration Bureau now has to follow through with its promise, and do so in a transparent and even-handed manner.
The announcement, and the haphazard implementation of the policy at certain border crossings despite a grace period until Aug 12, sent a wave of concern through expat communities. It was also greeted with a fair amount of cynicism, and suspicion that some immigration agents could be persuaded to look the other way. But the answer is simple: Don’t break the law.
The onus should be firmly on employers to ensure their workers have legitimate visas, rather than forcing them to catch a van to Cambodia. Those who live here as retirees or spouses should have the correct visas.
The companies charging 2,000 baht per person per visa run have for too long been allowed to exploit a loophole that was left open. Some operators believe their close relationship with immigration makes them immune, and others say the crackdown will last only weeks or months. However, it is to be hoped the visa run is truly at an end and these companies operating on the fringes of the law will have to migrate to other forms of business.
The Immigration Bureau should go further and reform other aspects of its operations. If the crackdown on visa runs is the stick, the carrot should be finding ways to make the visa process more convenient, modern and efficient. Currently, visa runs are attractive, even to employers, because the visa process is unnecessarily convoluted and expensive.
The key to this is modernisation. Anyone who has been through the process of applying for a visa, renewing it and paying for re-entry permits knows the system of paperwork, requirements for photographs and long queues involved is as frustrating as it is antiquated. There is no reason, other than a lack of investment or forward thinking, for the system to be so heavily based on paper this far into the 21st century. The start of the Asean Economic Community in less than 20 months only gives further impetus to reform.
The requirement for residents under the non-immigrant visas to report their address every 90 days is a frankly unnecessary burden. The need for long-term residents to apply for the right to re-enter a country where they live, work and pay taxes is almost insulting — re-entry should be automatic.
Hong Kong has long used a Permanent Identity Card for everyone over the age of 11 who lives in the territory for more than 180 days. It not only allows for easy transit into Hong Kong, but is also useful at banks and can be used as identification when arranging payment for utilities such as gas and electricity. Since 2003, the Hong Kong resident's card has also been a smart card, slashing the reliance on paperwork and making life far more convenient for expats.
What Hong Kong was doing a decade ago makes the system in Thailand today seem ancient.
Even in Thailand there is no real need to get new photographs for each re-entry permit. At Suvarnabhumi airport, a digital camera is set up and the queue is much shorter — but this service comes at a higher price. Expanding this facility to all immigration checkpoints and centres would be a small step forward. Overhauling the system and introducing a Hong Kong-style resident's card would take longer and require greater investment, but would mark a profound step towards a modern, efficient and reliable immigration system.
With its crackdown on visa runs, the Immigration Bureau has taken one belated and small step towards a better and fairer system. But there are many more steps to be taken to drag the system into the 21st century.