7 Ways Foreigners Get Blacklisted from Thailand (Part 1)

Preamble: It is important to note that the examples below are real examples of foreigners having been blacklisted from Thailand. However, many may read this and say that “someone they know” was not blacklisted for the same offense. Thus is the duality of the legal system of Thailand, and to be fair, many other countries around the world. There are thousands of laws that are enforced most of the time. So, just because you did not get blacklisted for one of these offenses does not mean that others were not. As always, read the relevant laws of the Kingdom of Thailand.

Thai Courts and Prisons During COVID-19 (April 2021 Update)

As COVID-19 continues to cause disruptions in the daily lives of people in Thailand, it has also (again) caused potential delays for the courts and prisons in Thailand. Currently, we are in the middle of the Songkran (Thai New Year) holiday. However, we have reached out to our contacts at various courts in Bangkok, Pattaya, Koh Samui, Chiang Mai, and elsewhere for comment on the situation. At this time, Thailand Bail has been advised that the Courts of Justice has made an announcement encouraging each court to consider further postponements to cases.

Case Visa, Defendant’s Visa, Justice Visa Update 2021

Thailand Bail has been helping defendants get legal again with the case visa (also known by some as a defendant’s visa, justice visa, or visa extension for the purposes of having a criminal case in Thailand) for many years. This post is an update on the case visa situation in Thailand in 2021. Many of the clients we are engaged to support already have other lawyers who just do not know much about visas in Thailand. Many other lawyers have made the mistake of letting people’s visas go on overstay. This is dangerous since the police will typically bring a new charge of overstay against the defendant.

Amnesty December 2020 Announced for Prisoners in Thailand

After months of speculation, the royal amnesty was announced today 04 December 2020. Over the last few months, Thailand Bail had been hearing about the possibility of a clemency to be announced in December 2020, and it is now no longer just a rumour. Our lawyers have obtained a copy of the announcement, and we are reviewing it currently. The royal pardon, as some people refer to it as, is the 2nd one to be announced this year (2020), with the previous amnesty announced in commemoration of the birthday of His Majesty the King. This second clemency is to mark the occasion of the late His Majesty the King Rama 9, whose birthday is 05 December.

Thailand Bail Wins Massive 3.9 Metric Tonne Drug Case in Bangkok !

Today, 24 August 2020, Thailand Bail’s lawyers and international case managers are extremely happy to announce that after 16 months of case preparation and trial, the Criminal Court in Bangkok agreed with us, pronouncing our client “not guilty” (yok-fong) of all charges related to a massive 3.9 metric tonnes of methamphetamine precursor drugs exported from Bangkok to Sydney. Today’s judgment was a yok-fong judgment, which is the absolute best judgment a defendant can receive in a criminal case in Thailand. Facing the Court of First Instance’s stringent criteria for delivering a yok-fong judgment, the judges in this case examined the evidence and witnesses and ruled that our client was innocent. Our client

Thailand Royal Pardon 2020: Many in Thai Prisons Receive Sentence Reductions

A couple of days ago, an announcement was made that certain prisoners will be eligible for sentence reductions as part of a royal pardon. The most prominent case picked up by the media was that of the 2 Burmese convicted of the murder of 2 foreigners in Koh Tao. However, it is currently understood that the pardon will positively affect many. Some details have been released in Thai language, showing that certain prisoners currently on probation or other alternative sentence will have the remainder of their prison terms commuted.

Thailand Lawyer Case Study: Amelia “Amy” Jacobs Avoids Prison on Major Drug Case

Our Thailand Lawyer Case Study series continues today with a brief analysis of the case of Amelia “Amy” Jacobs, a defendant in a drug case in Thailand. Amy is a half-Thai, half-Caucasian celebrity from Thailand who was arrested with her boyfriend on suspicion of dealing in class 1 narcotics. This Thailand lawyer case study will show how Amy managed to avoid prison time, even if it ended up meaning she cannot return to Thailand for most of the rest of her life. Her lawyer

Thailand Coronavirus Update: Visa Amnesty Extended Until 26 September 2020

As Thailand Bail has been providing updates for the COVID-19 situation for the last few months, we now have some good news to announce according to the announcement today, 21 July 2020, on the visa amnesty extension. Whilst it is not official until being published in the Royal Gazette (most likely tomorrow 22 July 2020), the government has announced today that foreigners whose “permission to stay” expired after 26 March 2020, and received a previous visa amnesty extension through 31 July 2020, are now automatically included in the new automatic extension through 26 September 2020. This is very good news for foreigners who are still in Thailand but

What To Do When You Get Arrested in Thailand – 5 Important People

Last year in March 2019, we wrote about 3 things you must do if you get arrested in Thailand. Click here to read that article: http://www.thailandbail.com/the-3-things-you-must-do-if-you-get-arrested-in-thailand/ For this updated article in June 2020, we are focusing on the 5 important people related to your arrest in Thailand. Whether it is in Bangkok, Pattaya, Koh Samui, Koh Phangan, Phuket, Udon Thani, or anywhere else in Thailand, there are always 5 important people who can greatly impact your case in the first 48 hours – the most critical time in your case. Of course, if you do get arrested in Thailand, the very first thing

July 2020 COVID-19 Thai Courts and Prisons Update

Thailand Bail is dedicated to providing loads of free advice and information for people who have questions about the Thai legal system. During this unprecedented time of coronavirus or COVID-19, our lawyers and staff have provided constant updates on the situation and how it affects the courts and prisons. We updated everyone in May 2020 here: http://www.thailandbail.com/thailand-bail-covid-19-update-may-2020/ and April 2020 here: http://www.thailandbail.com/thailand-bail-covid-19-update-april-2020/ so we wanted to continue providing updates as the COVID-19 situation changes in July 2020. Please see below our update on COVID-19 in Thailand and