Have you ever been stopped by Customs coming INTO Thailand ?

[chatkeow 28]

I was having a disagreement with one of the Moderators on Thaivisa who claims at least one in ten people are searched after picking up your bags from the Carousel.....

 

I had to take exception as I have never to my knowledge even seen anyone from customs inbound, let alone be searched !! (maybe they are indeed there !)

 

They claimed they are constantly checking for Alcohol and Cigs rather than anything more sinister.

 

Any of you guys been stopped over time ??

[gimmble 144]

I was checked once many years ago, about 10 but never since. There is nothing to declare on incoming cards so why would they check you?

 

 

cheers

Rodney

[bigmick 840]

Yes, twice, each time i was carrying card board boxes. The guy told me they always search card board boxes I had 39 bottle of wine in them and when the guy pulled me aside and said i had to pay tax to bring them in, i just put 500 baht into his shirt pocket, he then ordered the young lad to pack them back up and put them on my trolly and off i went

[chatkeow 28]

I was checked once many years ago, about 10 but never since. There is nothing to declare on incoming cards so why would they check you?

 

 

cheers

Rodney

 

Well there is certainly a quota on booze and fags and no doubt electricals etc, but my point was than in 20 years of trips Ive never seen anyone searching.

[Gabor 296]

I was never stopped in 11 years.... and non of the people I know.

[Norfloxacin400 87]

ocassionally (maybe once every 18 months) my bags are put through the xray machine but never searched. But i do enter the country about 6 times a year.

[Idefix 2,275]

Any of you guys been stopped over time ??

Happened twice in more than 10 years to me. Both at old airport. Just a Xray scan of my bags.

 

But the moderator can be not so far from the truth if and only if your consider

ONLY PEOPLE WITH DUTY-FREE BAGS !

For maybe 1 year now there is a very strict control on alcohol and cigarettes.

There was already a control before, but very "light". Not now!

I warned my friend about cigarettes. Don't remember the price but the fee is very expensive !

[aussiechic 209]

No never and nobody I know

[MM 6,562]

About 6 years ago, a friend of many expats and BM, came into arrivals with a duty free bag containing 14 cartons of various cigarettes he was delivering as a favor around town.

 

He was allowed to proceed to the outside of the arrivals area (Don Muang) where he was surrounded by, he says, gun wielding police. They took him to downtown BKK to await a court hearing, confiscated all but 1 carton of cigarettes, and charged him 2000b for each carton over the regulation 200 cigarettes.

 

If you buy cigs or booze beyond the allowable amount at duty free, toss the bag and pack what you buy in your carry-on baggage.

 

BTW, I've never been stopped or x-rayed.

[joekicker 53]

You may not have seen it because the agents who do this are in plain clothes and fairly discreet. If you watch for 2-3 Thai men (almost always men) sort of sidling up to people who have just sauntered through the green line, you will see it too. It is done in the "hall" between Customs and the public area, and it is done in public areas all the way out to the sidewalk in front of the airport building.

 

I have no idea if it is one in 10, but it is common.

 

Next time, after you've gone through Customs and you're in that "hall" on the way out to meet your friends or taxi or whatever, look along the sides and you will almost always see people opening their suitcases while Thai men in mufti watch or direct them.

 

 

.

[danboy 151]

Never been stopped nor seen anybody stopped although it doesn`t surprise me Joe has!

[bigl 0]

I was searched once travelling in from Hong Kong. I had a duty free bag stuck up on top of my trolly..The uniformed agent virually ran up to me and said How much Whisky you got. You travel alone???

I had 2 x 1ltre Bottles of Chivas Whisky. I was travelling with a chinese lady friend but she got caught short by having to go take a pee. Luckilly she turned up just as I was going to try and explain the situation.

So it seems they are worried about you bringing in over the duty free quota,

Cheers n Beers,

Bigl

[joekicker 53]

Never been stopped nor seen anybody stopped although it doesn`t surprise me Joe has!

 

Yes it is definitely all about me. Well, me and the government of Thailand, that is. This is a warning issued by the government, by every Thai embassy and consulate, and it used to be (probably still is) in many of the airline in-flight magazines and, of course, around the Suvarnabhumi airport and land customs offices.

 

Quote:

Visitors enter Thailand through the "Nothing to Declare" customs channel despite carrying tobacco or alcohol far in excess of the amount allowed. As a result, they could afterwards be subjected to inspections and fines by the Thai Excise Department.

Unquote

 

There is a reason you were given that warning, which you were.

 

.

[marleyboy 140]

Ive been stopped once....................in about 30 years! I had a bottle of duty free whisky . They asked me if I had any more! (which I didnt!).

[cannonball83204 78]

I was stopped once in my 10 or so trips to Thailand. I was coming from Iraq via Dubai where I bought 8 bottles of booze. Stupid me, the lady cashier tried to tell me that I could only have one, but I bought them anyhow. Over $200 USD in value. Arrived at the airport, went through passport control, etc, picked up my luggage and put everything on the trolley and headed to meet my ride to Pattaya. At customs, with all my booze in plain sight I got stopped and the old guy there admonished me (rather nicely) and he confiscated one bottle (my choice) as a penalty. Of course the bottle wouldn't fit into the box there at customs, so he just said leave it on top of the box. I am sure it never made it into the box. BTW it was the least expensive bottle I had purchased, Polish Vodka. I think I got off rather easily now that I look back on it.

 

CB

[frostfire 1,279]

Never been stopped... and I had expected to when I moved to Thailand. I had 4 suitcases and 2 computer monitors in their cardboard boxes, and even with a trolly had a hell of a time packing it all myself. Still tho, not a blink as I went thru the "nothing to declare" line. In all the times I have come thru I dont think I have seen anyone stopped at the declare line for anything...

[tko 219]

Never stopped in 30 years of travelling to Thailand. My upcoming trip goes through Dubai, though, and I understand they've got a hardon for Dubai duty free bags, so I may get stopped this time. I'll be within the limits though, so no problem.

[Fireman Sam 336]

Was told to put my suitcase on the xray machine once when I had a cylinder head for an Yamaha XJR 1300cc motorbike in the case, customs guy never batted an eyelid and I went on my merry way. The head didn't even belong to me, was transporting it for a mate cause the ebay seller won't post it.

 

Had my bags x-rayed a few other times and seen plenty of people being told to do the same. I transit Swampy between 10 -12 times per annum.

 

Some horror stories going around about fines when people are caught with extra ciggies.

 

Regards

[Siam Sam 964]

Coming into England I have a few times but never coming into Thailand.

[grayray44 49]

17yrs from 1st and last trip never stopped carrying duty free and boxes,last trip got to customs and older bloke in dark blue uniform looked at the sydney tags and said"sydney safe" and waved me thru.

did get asked once if i had anything to declare because i had 3 duty free bags said no and was just waved thru.

 

regards

grayray

[Regyai 415]

Conversely the inbound flights from China (esp Guangzhou) virtually everyone gets their bags xray'd

 

 

 

.

[joekicker 53]

Well, here's a website that further explains it.

The chances of you getting stopped at Suvarnabhumi Airport's customs green channel are very slim, but in accordance with international standards a quota of inbound travellers are stopped and checked. The procedure will take the form of either your suitcase and hand luggage being x-rayed or a manual search by one of the customs officers present.

Over the past couple of years Thai customs have stepped up their efforts to stop excess import of cigarettes and alcohol. Staff routinely stop and search travellers prior to entering immigration control and also in the arrivals terminal after passing through customs red and green channels. I have been stopped five times on my last ten trips both before and after customs control but have always been within the law. You would be quite surprised at the number of people entering the Kingdom who are unaware of the maximum personal allowances for tobacco and spirits.

 

This is a press report on a person who wishes she was as lucky as some of you cowboys.

Above right, Filipina Icoy Betlehem Mamontong after her arrest at Suvarnabhumi airport with 4.2kg of cocaine brought from Lima, Peru.

 

 

The Bangkok Guide also has some useful info.

If you have nothing to declare use the Green channel. You can expect to be waved through but if you are stopped and importing banned items the consequences are serious.

 

TripAdvisor also says that if you think there are no stops made after you've passed Customs, you should learn more.

... I quickly discovered that the base issue at hand was that the passenger had used the GREEN channel for his customs 'declaration'. For some unknown and undisclosed reason, he was told to place his bags thru the x-ray machine. ...

.

[jacko 8,822]

Once stopped and had my suitcase opened. But that is a lot lot less than one in 10 for me.

Somedays everyone is strolling past and they let the xray machines do the work. Now and again I see some people having their underwear displayed.

[ozibill 546]

I have never been stopped or my bags xrayed - even when I moved here and arrived with 2 very overweight suitcases , but when my 2 crates arrived later , the customs people broke into both crates , fortunately not damaging anything but charged me 4000 baht duty . I made the mistake of addressing it to my son who is a PR , when I should have addressed it to myself apparently .

 

[baht_miser 9]

In 13 trips I have never been checked in Thailand, but I have only 1 bag. I was checked in San Francisco once when coming back.