Tourists will now be deported from Thailand according to “football” rules – for violating local laws, a tourist will first receive a yellow, warning a card, then a red card, followed by immediate deportation. Phuketexpress received this information from the Phuket Immigration Service, where the system is being pre-screened. It is already known that two foreigners received red cards and should be deported, and four foreigners have so far received yellow “warning cards”.
At the same time, there are no Russians among them. According to the service, from March 1 to March 15, citizens of Sweden and France managed to receive “red” cards. Their visas were revoked and they themselves were deported. Two Frenchmen, a citizen of Ukraine and a citizen of Sweden, received a warning card. At the same time, as reported by the Phuket Immigration Service, there are 181 foreigners in criminal proceedings. Most of them are Russian, French, British, Myanmar and Cambodian. Most tourists are caught for drunk driving and related accidents, as well as overdue stay, illegal entry and work without a work permit.
The service explained that the system “really looks like a football match.” “Red cards in sports means leaving the playground, and from an immigration point of view, this means revoking a visa and requiring the foreign national to leave Thailand immediately. Moreover, the duration of the ban on entry into Thailand under the red card rule depends on the severity of the crime,” experts said. In turn, a yellow card will be issued to those who violated Thai laws for the first time without serious consequences. Also, the behavior of tourists will be reported to the consulates of their country. If the violator disgraces again, he will receive a “red” card and will be deported.
The reason for the introduction of the card system was that many foreigners, caught in violations, assure that they do not know the laws and rules and no one clearly explained anything to them. Some assure law enforcement officers that they saw others break the rules, but for some reason they didn’t get anything for it. However, according to the assurances of the service, each tourist is responsible for his actions, and also that all arriving in Thailand should familiarize themselves with the laws of the country and no one is obliged to specifically inform each tourist or foreigner individually about each law and regulation. As a result, a simple and understandable tool will be applied to tourists.
This system is currently being tested in Phuket, but if successful, it can be extended to other areas popular among tourists, such as Pattaya, Chiang Mai and Koh Samui . True, it has not yet been decided for which offenses a tourist will receive yellow cards – however, the Phuket Immigration Service said that if foreigners comply with the laws and regulations of Thailand, they will not have problems. “Only a very small percentage of tourists and foreigners have ever gotten into trouble that we consider suitable for a yellow or red card,” they assured.
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