Thailand: Briton arrested after 25 years without a visa, a record

A 60-year-old British man who arrived in Thailand in 2000 was arrested for overstaying his 30-day tourist visa by 25 years, a "record" according to police.

The man, whose identity has not yet been released, arrived in Thailand on a tourist visa and never left.

On Monday, February 24, he was finally arrested in the province of Chiang Mai, in the north of the country, during an operation by the immigration services against illegal foreigners.

Officers, who were carrying out checks in areas regularly frequented by foreigners, found the Briton who admitted during questioning that he had arrived on a 30-day tourist visa in early 2000 and had remained in Thailand since.

According to checks made against the immigration service's database, "he entered Thailand in 2000 and has never had another stamp in our system since then," said an officer who took part in the operation.

"He stayed in Thailand for 9,135 days, which is a record. The previous longest overstay was by a Pakistani, at 10 years," he added.

The man, who will be deported to Britain, even managed to renew his passport in 2018, although the document was completely empty of immigration stamps, according to police. He lived in Bangkok for 13 years, and had a child with a Thai woman. They moved to Chiang Mai 12 years ago for economic reasons, although police said the man was unemployed and living off his family's money in Britain.