Immigration Bureau denies allegation on foreigners’ biometrics data

Senior official assures all arrivals to Thailand have their data recorded in several IT systems

The Royal Thai Police’s Immigration Bureau on Friday refuted allegations of not collecting biometrics data of some 17 million foreign arrivals in 2024, which could be an opportunity for illegal groups to infiltrate the country and engage in criminal activities.

The allegation was made in a Facebook post by opposition MP Rangsiman Rome from the People’s Party. Rangsiman also chairs the House of Representatives' Commission on National Security, Thai Border Affairs, National Strategy, and Country Reform.



Bureau spokesman Pol Colonel Katatorn Kamthiang on Friday insisted that all arrivals to Thailand have their data recorded in several IT systems.

He said the bureau’s biometrics system, which collects data from both incoming and outgoing travelers, can cross-check with databases of domestic and international security agencies for persons with prohibited characteristics or arrest warrants. The system also records data on date and time of arrival, mode of transport, type of visa and objective of entry, as well as departure date and channel, he added.

Katatorn said that after foreigners are granted entry, the Immigration Bureau will use the PIBICS system to monitor their travels and stay in Thailand, with residential data being collected in 24 hours after entry.

Those who apply to stay for an extended period, will have all their activities in Thailand recorded on this platform, including reasons for stay, visa extension records, residential address, working address, work permit details, income records, saving accounts, tax payment, as well as registrations made by foreigners, such as marriage and legitimation of child.

Katatorn said the PIBICS system will check and update foreigners’ residential data every 90 days, making it possible to detect overstay, as can be seen from frequent reports of the bureau’s arrests on overstaying foreigners nationwide.

He added that foreigners caught breaking laws in Thailand would be blacklisted on all the bureau’s IT systems, with their violations along with biometrics data recorded. This will prevent foreigners from fabricating their passport to avoid detection when re-entering Thailand in the future.

“The system can record additional data without any limitation, therefore collecting data from high volume of foreign arrivals will never be a problem,” he said.

Katatorn pointed out that data on certain IT systems may suffer some processing capability issues as the bureau has not yet obtained a licence, but this will not affect the overall collection of foreigners’ biometrics data. He added that the bureau is in the process of establishing the Thailand Immigration System, which has high efficiency and is comparable to the systems used by several countries.

(2025/02/22-00:00)