To shorten the long lines at immigration, the filling of immigration cards may be scrapped for passengers entering and leaving Thailand, as the cabinet has instructed the Immigration Bureau to come up with a better system.
A letter from the cabinet dated July 20 suggested that the discontinuation of the immigration cards would mean less airport congestion and more convenience for travelers, and the Immigration Bureau was asked to rethink its procedure.
Pol. Maj. Gen. Apirat Niyomkarn, deputy commander of the Immigration Bureau, spoke to The MATTER that this week, saying that immigration officers will meet to discuss the termination of the cards. In the beginning, this will apply only to Thai citizens, but they will consider scrapping the cards for foreigners in the future and may obtain newer technology to allow them to log their address in Thailand.
Since 1979, the Immigration Act has required international travelers to fill out the departure and arrival cards.
At the beginning of the year, the cabinet’s resolution for this inconvenience was to modify the two-page immigration card into a one-page card with a bar code. The new form will be used, starting on Oct.1.
The Airports of Thailand Public Company stated that in 2016, there were a total of 67.1 million travelers who had to fill in immigration cards, and of that number, 32.5 million were foreign visitors.
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