The bans for foreigners who “surrender themselves” to immigration for overstays range from one year for overstays of 90 days or more to 10 years for overstays of five years or more.
The penalties for those caught overstaying in the country are even harsher. (See story here.)
But the story this week that the blacklist re-entry bans might also apply to children has set the cat among the pigeons.
Some people say that the ban affects only those who have long broken the law, and are most likely to be those attempting the get away with not reporting themselves to immigration.
Others say that the ban should not apply to any minors at all.
Which one are you? The hardliner? Or the person who thinks “softly, softly” is the best approach?
To this our latest poll asks, “How harsh should the immigration overstay re-entry ban be?”
Responses available are:
- The ban is entirely appropriate. It should apply equally to all foreigners, both adults and children.
- The ban is understandable against adults, but should not apply to children under 18 years of age.
- The ban is too severe for overstays. For this, there should be no ban, just fines and deportation, as Immigration used to do for years.
To cast your vote, click here.
If your preferred response is not available, feel free to add it in the comments section below.
To view the results of our previous poll, which asks, “Should Phuket ban RVs?”, click here.