Pattaya Immigration - submitting the 90-day address report

[Gaybutton]

I ended up at Pattaya immigration to submit my 90-day address report. Why? Because when I submitted it to their online site it was rejected. I have no idea why. I thought maybe they made some sort of mistake since I've had no trouble doing it that way until now, so I submitted it a second time. It got rejected again. I waited few days and tried a third time and it still got rejected.

That meant I was going to have to personally go to immigration to submit the report (although visa services will do it for you for a fee - and don't ask me how much the fee is. I don't know). I was lucky in one way, though - not very crowded when I went. If it helps anything I was there on a Wednesday morning, around 8:45am.

However, all kinds of paperwork is now required. It used to be they would simply tear out your previous report from your passport and replace it with the new report - in and out in about a minute. Not so anymore. Here is what they want now whether you have a previous report or not:

1. Your passport containing the previous report and your TM-30 receipt. Don't forget - without the TM-30 receipt they won't provide any service.
2. Your filled out TM-47 - the address report form, plus one copy of it. You can download the form here (number 17 on the list): https://bangkok.immigration.go.th/en/downloads_en/
3. Copy of your earliest retirement (or other) visa
4. Copy of your most recent visa
5. Copy of your arrival card
6. Copy of your passport main page

Don't forget - each of those copies have to be signed. You can sign them in advance, but if you have to fill out any paperwork or sign documents at the immigration office, bring a pen. The pens they provide never work.

At least you don't have to wait in that long line for a number. If you need additional copies, there is a copy service at the beginning of that line. But you can walk right in to the office that says Address Report (first office on your right when you enter). The clerk will check your passport and take all the paperwork. The clerk will give you a number card. Don't worry if you are given a particular high number. The cards are in some sort of random order. My number was 18, but numbers in the hundreds were mixed in with the pile)

Once you are given your card, now you have to wait for the clerk to call that number after they have processed it all and your new address report receipt is now in your passport. Despite that only about 15 people were there when I was there, it still took the better part of a half hour before my number was called and I could collect my passport and leave.

I sure hope whatever went wrong trying to submit the report online will be resolved so personally going to immigration won't be necessary next time.

Disclaimer: I don't know if all this paperwork is required at any other immigration offices in Thailand, but if you have to go I advise bringing all that paperwork anyway, just in case.

[Jun]

5. Copy of your arrival card

What is this ?
If the TM6, that's abolished, at least for arrivals at airports.
I still had to fill one in when arriving in Thailand by land. TIT

Disclaimer: I don't know if all this paperwork is required at any other immigration offices in Thailand

None of it makes sense.
Unless their main objective is to drive people to agencies & collect more tea money.

[Gaybutton]

None of it makes sense.
Unless their main objective is to drive people to agencies & collect more tea money.

None of it ever did make sense. As we have discussed many times, the only way it would make any sense at all would be mandatory submission of an address report only if your address changes. I don't understand the purpose of these address reports in the first place. Doesn't the TM-30 do essentially the same thing? And with the TM-30, you only need to do another one if your address changes. To me, that makes far more sense than having to do these 90-day reports - especially if the online system doesn't work, which forced me to go personally to immigration.

However, making sense or not, tea money or not, those staying longer than 90 days have to comply or at the very least be fined and very worst, forced to leave Thailand.

And, of course, criminals can hardly be expected to submit a truthful report.

Regarding the TM-6, obviously if you arrive after it was abolished, they're not going to ask for it. But if there is one in your passport, they wanted a copy - at least they wanted mine.

As for driving people to agencies, if I had arrived at immigration only to find that I would have had to be waiting for hours, I very likely would have left, gone immediately to MOTS, and pay them whatever their fee is. Whether tea money is involved or not, I'm glad to have that alternative if I want it.

I'll definitely be going to MOTS next time I need a driving license renewal. Even though it is only once every 5 years, I still would rather pay and let their people get it taken care of. And yes, going through the driving license renewal really is pain-in-the-neck enough that I would much rather just pay their fee.

[thewayhelooks]

Maybe their site is the problem, not you. I have to file my 90 days by Sunday. I'll do it early on Friday though I expect I wont get a reply (fingers crossed) until Monday. See how we go.

[Gaybutton]

Maybe their site is the problem, not you.

I think you're right. Please let us know if yours gets approved or rejected.

However, unless I am the only one with this problem, it would be nice if they post something on their site warning people this might happen - but of course, no such thing posted.

At the immigration office they have a chart posted showing all the reasons why filing online might be rejected. None of those reasons applied to me. I tried to ask the clerk if she had any idea why I was rejected, but I got the usual wordless nasty glance and a finger pointing at the chart. Thanks a lot, lady. Big help. And with their online system, if your application does get rejected, that's all it says - "rejected", but nothing about why you were rejected.

I'll just have to wait and see if it happens again next time with their online system.

At the time I tried filing online, it was still in the midst of that international IT outage. Maybe that had something to do with it. In about 90 days, I'll let you know.

[Jun]

Maybe their site is the problem, not you. I have to file my 90 days by Sunday. I'll do it early on Friday though I expect I wont get a reply (fingers crossed) until Monday. See how we go.

Are there any penalties for late filing ?

I presume there's no incentive for early filing, such as setting the next filing date in 95 days time, if you file 5 days early ?

[Gaybutton]

Are there any penalties for late filing ?

Yes. I think they allow up to 5 days late before imposing fines. After that, you are fined - I don't know offhand how much. I have always made sure to file before the due date. But don't forget, at different immigration offices there might be different policies.

There is no particular incentive for filing early, although if filing online works, it really doesn't make any difference. They send an Email reminding you of the due date. You can file online as soon as you receive that Email. I can't think of any reason to delay.

Actually I think it is better to file online early. If I had waited until the last minute, filed online, and then got rejected, I would have very little time to go to immigration to file personally. By filing early at least I still had several days before the due date to decide when it was the best day and time to go, especially since I had other things to do or could have delayed if it was raining.

[2lz2p]

The Pattaya City Expats Club has "latest immigration information" page on their website - https://pcec.club/LATEST-IMMIGRATION-INFORMATION - for several weeks they have had the following message - scroll down that page for the announcement:

MANY PROBLEMS REPORTED ABOUT 90 DAY ADDRESS REPORT ONLINE

There have been many recent reports about Expats online reporting of their address being rejected with instructions to visit Immigration immediately. Upon doing so, the Immigration Officers cannot explain why the report was rejected (previously it was reported that the online system switched to being completely automated and submission no longer reviewed by an Immigration Officer for approval). It appears there is a glitch in this fully automated system that cause reports to be rejected).

We will appreciate receiving reports from those that went to Immigration as a result of a similar rejection and visiting Immigration to do the report as to their experience on using the online system for their next following report. Please send your report to [email protected].

They have a webpage for address reporting - https://pcec.club/chonbui-90day - in the section for in person reporting at Pattaya Immigration, it shows:

Subsequent Filing

As of 18 October 2023, they require a completed copy of the TM.47 form (Click here to download a copy of the form) with the following documents -sign your name on all photocopied documents:

Copy of passport pages:

Identity page
Page showing the your Visa
Page showing latest extension, if applicable.
Page showing the last entry into Thailand

Copy of TM.6 (Arrival/Departure) card IF you were given one on your last arrival in Thailand.*

Copy of your TM.30 address report receipt (Click here for information about filing the TM.30 report).

* The Thai Government has temporarily suspended the requirement to complete a TM.6 Arrival/Departure Card when arriving by air. In April 2024, the requirement for a TM.6 card was also suspended temporarily when arriving at a land border or seaport until October 2024.

It also notes:

You are allowed to file up to 14 days before and 7 days after the due date. There is a 2,000 baht fine for late reporting.

[Gaybutton]

there is a glitch in this fully automated system that cause reports to be rejected.

Thank you 2lz2p. That certainly explains what happened to me. I hope they fix the problem quickly so nobody else will have to make a trip to immigration. And I don't want to have to do this again. Once a year to do the retirement visa extension is enough for me.

[2lz2p]

That PCEC announcement has been there for at least a month without a fix. The local Immigration Officers know there is a problem but have no answer as to the problem or whether their IT people are working on a fix.

So far, no reports from anyone who was rejected, went to Immigration and filed, and then attempted to do their subsequent 90 day online incurring the same problem again or being successful.