Chinese passport sale billboard in Bangkok raises legal concerns

Police and Thai government officials are investigating a puzzling billboard in Bangkok‘s Huai Kwang district advertising the sale of passports from different countries in Chinese.

A Thai Facebook user shared a picture of the billboard with the caption, “This is at Huai Kwang Intersection. I guess it’s about passport sales. You’re committing a crime, obviously. In case you don’t know, Google Translate is available in Thailand.”

The advertisement on the billboard stated that passports from Indonesia, Vanuatu, Cambodia, and Turkey could be obtained within 30 days, with service fees ranging from 30,000 to 150,000 baht. It also claimed the process was safe and confidential, that the company had been operating for 13 years and it was government-approved.

The billboard also invited applications for agent positions and appeared to target Chinese nationals, as no other languages were included. It was installed above a Chinese restaurant. Huai Kwang area is known for its large Chinese community.

A motorcycle taxi rider reported that two men installed the sign a few days before it went viral and it was removed shortly after. He and others did not care much about the sign until they learned of its translation from the Facebook post.

Deputy Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, Phantana Nutchanart, clarified that the billboard was not illegal as it did not include Thai passports and the advertised passports of each country could be legally obtained by foreigners.

Legality remains unclear

Many Thai netizens and a Move Forward Party MP, Wiroj Lakkhanaadisorn, expressed concerns and called for a thorough investigation into the company behind the service.

Wiroj highlighted the uncertainty of whether the passports could be issued legally and warned that if not, Thailand could be seen as a centre for transnational crime.

The Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand, Anutin Charnvirakul, voiced his opinion that the sale of passports is illegal in many countries and ordered an investigation into the matter.

“We welcome foreigners who come to Thailand but we hate those who come for illegal operations. This act degrades Thailand. Anyone who commits illegal acts must be deported. We always support foreign business operators who follow the laws to make them confident that Thailand is safe and the economy is expanding.”

Huai Kwang District Director Paithun Ngammuk confirmed the billboard was installed illegally and said the building owner would be fined 5,000 baht. The Thai owner of the company behind the billboard was hit with an 84,000-baht sign tax bill, a hefty fine given it was only up two days and the yearly sign tax total is 160,000 per year.

According to Paithun, the legality of the company’s operations remains unclear and is under further investigation.