Hungarian widow on Koh Samui caught with 4165 days overstay
Multiple Thai news sources report the arrest on Koh Samui by Surit Thani Immigration Police of a Hungarian woman whose husband had recently died.
It turned out that she had been illegally on the island for 4165 days (11 years and 7 months). The Hungarian woman immediately confessed that she had arrived in Thailand on November 30, 2009 with a tourist visa valid until the end of February 2010. She lived with her husband, who ran a business firm on the island, in Bo Phut and never bothered about her visa to extend.
Under the rules in force, the widow could be fined 20.000 baht plus expulsion from the country for a period of 10 years or even life imprisonment.
Thai social media is responding en masse to this incident, because the question is whether the arrest was purely coincidental or deliberate after the recent death of her husband. The woman lived on Koh Samui for years, so she will not be completely unknown. So why wasn't she arrested sooner? This is Thailand, so plenty of rumors and speculation!
In all those reactions also many expressions of support for her from people who believe that some leniency is in order in this case, so that no deportation will take place in any case. Well, who knows can say it!
Source: various websites
I suppose her husband's death has put her in the crosshairs of the Immigration Department.
Furthermore, she herself was responsible for extending her visa, if she had simply done so, nothing would have happened.
That may sound harsh, but ultimately her arrest is the result of not finding it necessary to follow the rules and make sure her visa was in order for 11 years.
Yes, those rules, ruud. They also apply to her, strictly speaking. You follow them and pay the fees so she should do the same.
But we don't know her circumstances. Hubby arranged it all and now hubby has fallen away and nothing is right. Couples fall apart and then it turns out, even in NL, one of the partners doesn't even know how to pay an amount through the bank... It still happens and then pointing the finger is very easy. Things often have two sides.
A difficult case for the Immigration and we will hear what is decided.
I think that the number of people whose “female” or “male” takes care of everything cannot be counted on one hand… Because, as I guess from my chair: “so easy”, “I know the language not/hardly”, he is better at that than me”. And with some critical questions about this: ” .. if my partner drops out? Well, I'm going to die sooner / never thought about it / we'll see”. It is so handy if both partners have mastered at least the basics in terms of money matters, accommodation, cooking, a roof over their heads and health care (insurance). Then you don't suddenly have your back against the wall... Oh and dressing a bit would be a nice bonus, but not strictly essential... 1
For us, behind our keyboard, it is impossible to determine whether it was a '(in hindsight) bit stupid' or pure laziness or intention. And so we hope that the officials of service will give an appropriate follow-up to this.
She was stopped during a routine traffic check. Had nothing to do with her husband's death.
It could be that her husband arranges all this.
And she knows nothing here.
Hans vanMourik
He apparently failed to do that for the last 11 years.
You do not want to learn anything at your own risk, unless her husband wanted to keep her completely dependent on him.
But we don't know that (yet?).
Rules are rules and they apply to everyone. So just a fine and out of the country. Why not one and not the other.
not only has the expiration date of her visa expired, but also that of her passport
Why does everyone talk about the (ir?) responsibility of that woman and/or her husband?
This story says at least as much about immigration police.
Those lawmen are served by most of us at least every 90 days with a good pile of copies of all kinds of documents at their beck and call.
They have an occupation with that, anything but purposeful if you read these kinds of stories.
Exactly right. Those they want to bust don't report every 90 days. They stay under the radar. That is why the statement that the 90-day notification is for combating illegal residence is absolutely a farce.
I would just give it a humane solution by a payment obligation of 11 times the amount of an annual renewal, because I think the lady really didn't know or thought that her husband arranged that every year.
I'm not surprised, I've been living in Thailand for 10 years now, I've never seen anyone from the immigration service. I've never had a passport with me…no problem! everything is fine.
This lady who stayed illegally in Thailand for so long must be fined and deported.
It is hard to believe that she would not have been aware of anything, if you apply for your passport you must be present yourself and then you must decide for yourself for 5 years or 7 years.
I once left the country 2 days late due to illness, but at immigration at Suvarnabhumi I had to pay 2x 500 baht, unrelentingly, been sick or not.
So….. Heavily fined and deported is the only fair solution.
Such illegals ruin it for others.
Have a nice weekend to everyone,
Jozef
Perhaps she wanted to go back to Hungary and she was able to make a nice deal. Both parties are happy, they are said to have been arrested because they have not respected the law and the immigration service who could just catch someone after 10 years, what a tribute .... At least it does provide media attention and that is also worth something.
No one but them and the immigration know what happened and in a country where this is so much in the news I always have some question marks. As a rule, the soup is not eaten so hot if you have the contacts and certainly if you have been living on an island for 10 years. One of the officials always has the right to make exceptions.
We'll probably never find out.
I also think this whole story is a big blow to the immigration there on the small island.
But what do you want, it's a paper tiger with copies and stamps.
I too have lived here for 16 years now and have never seen an immi officer at home or in the neighborhood.
But why would you, better sit on the chair all day behind a computer near the air conditioning, than to walk around in the heat looking for overstaying farangs.
It is not much different with the local gendarmerie, you never see commuters on the street or rarely commute.
Could put together an atomic bomb in my shed without anyone noticing it.
I think they should give this woman a permanent residence permit out of shame for neglecting their investigative powers, issued by none other than Prayut himself.
Jan Beute.
There are already so few Western foreigners in Thailand, just let them stay. The Thais still want as many foreign visitors as possible, 40 million and rising for the corona, then this one is also welcome Or we do a prisoner exchange, sorry an illegal exchange with South Korea: if I can have 1 Westerner illegally, you will get from 100.000 illegal Thai back to me (there are something like 150.000 illegal Thai in South Korea).
Or offer her a job and residence permit as the Thai government because she can inform the Thai authorities why and how she has remained out of the picture for 10 years.
Just picked up a Residence Certificate at my Immigration this week and was allowed to hand in 3 copies of my passport as well as 3x all pages of the passport, waiting for a Thai medal because I already have about 200 equal copies of my holder page (personal details and photo) of my passport submitted to Immigration and that will continue for a few more years.
As I wrote, it's just a paper tiger of endless copies.
At the 90 days every time the same hassle here in Lamphun.
My photo in my passport is already fading from all that light in those many copy machines.
Make it different for once, go with the times.
Jan Beute.
If I would have received 15 Baht for every signature I have put on papers and copies that Thai authorities (immigration, employment contract, work permit, employer, hospital, bank, car dealer) ask me for in 100 years, I could easily get the house from Joe Ferrari in Bangkok.