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 Tightening the rules from October 1st 2006.

If you are on a tourist visa living or staying in Thailand the days of visa runs are over.
Visa rules MAY be tightened to stop abuse   Maximum stay of 90 days for foreigners Visa-on-arrival (VOA) regulations will be tightened for nationals of 41 countries to prevent abuse of the privilege and curb the rising number of illegal entries, according to the Immigration Police Bureau (IPB). Foreign nationals from those countries, including the US, China and India, will be able to stay longer but with fewer chances of renewing the VOA. 

The VOA is normally renewable once. However, some foreigners including tourists ''tiptoe around the law'' by resorting to  visa runs to extend their stay. Most take a bus to a border, check out of the country and then return the same day to have the VOA renewed. They repeat the practice as many times as they wish, affording them almost unlimited stay in the country. The policy is largely intended to serve tourism. In future, foreigners from those 41 countries will be able to stay in the country for 30 days from the first VOA stamp, which will be renewable twice at most, each time for a maximum of 30 days. In other words, a foreigner will be permitted to remain in Thailand for no longer than 90 days in total after three VOA stamps.

The commissioner said the current system is prone to abuse as many foreign nationals make numerous visa runs so they can stay on long term to do business. In some cases, they have gone unregulated, causing social problems.

Official figures showed that about 400,000 Chinese nationals were granted a VOA last year, and 18,000 of them have stayed behind. Around 200,000 Indians made VOA visits last year and it was found that 16,000 of them have not left. Information technology will be employed in the blacklisting system. The IT-operated immigration clearance system is now in use at 15 out of 55 checkpoints nationwide to check in tourists and screen out undesirable individuals. The technology lets the bureau enlarge its database of foreign visitors to identify those on the blacklist and expel them.
information source-media.

The Word From Thai Immigration and The Royal Thai Consulate in Penang
The Coup in Thailand
Other Thai Visas
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