At around 2pm on Wednesday (May 29), officers from the Immigration Bureau of the Royal Thai Police apprehended a Swedish man after he was found to have stayed in the country illegally for 113 days beyond the expiration of his permit to stay.
The arrest took place at Phuket International Airport. The Immigration Bureau did not provide a more specific location, such as Departure Hall or Arrivals Hall. The suspect was taken to Sakhu Police Station for further legal proceedings.
According to Immigration Bureau regulations, the fine for overstaying is B500 per day. However, the "Good Guys In, Bad Guys Out" policy, implemented in 2016, stipulates that foreigners arrested for an overstay of less than one year will be deported and blacklisted from re-entering the country for five years. Those arrested for an overstay of more than one year will face deportation and a ten-year re-entry ban.
Foreigners who voluntarily surrender for overstaying receive relatively lenient punishments. In addition to the daily fine, those who surrender for an overstay of more than 90 days but less than one year will be deported and blacklisted for one year.
Overstays of more than one year but less than three years lead to a three-year ban, while overstays of more than three years but less than five years result in a five-year ban. Overstays of more than five years result in a ten-year ban.