Boy from Shan

AR15 · #1 17th November 2006, 11:39 PM

Hi to all,

Met a boy from Shan state in Chiang Mai few weeks ago. I was told that they need to spend about 30,000 to 50,000 baht to make a passport for international travel .. any expert here can advise?

wowpow · #2 18th November 2006, 02:38 AM

"SHAN ... are an ethnic group of Southeast Asia. The Shan live primarily in the Shan State of Myanmar (sometimes known as Burma), but also inhabit portions of Mandalay Division, Kachin State, and Kayin State, and in adjacent parts of China, Thailand, Cambodia and Vietnam. The Shan number approximately 6 million, but a population census has not been taken.

The Shan dwell mostly on the plains of the Shan Plateau, which is drained by the Salween River. The capital of Shan state is Taunggyi, which is a small city of perhaps 150,000 people. Other main Shan cities include Kengtong and Tachileik." Wikipedia

If the boy that you met in Chiang Mai told you he was Shan he is probably from Myanmar and may be in Thailand legally though a lot of Myanmar citizens come illegally into Thailand.

I have heard that it is very expensive and that it takes a long time for a Myanmar person to get a passport. The actual price I cannot help you with.

It may be that the boy was intending to get a Thai passport in which case the amount would be ludicrous unless it was an 'under the counter one'.

icon513 · #3 18th November 2006, 04:11 AM

I have friends in Myanmar; I'll ask them for you.

AR15 · #4 19th November 2006, 07:07 AM

Wowpow,

I suppose he is legal in Thailand as he told me he has a working permit to work in Thailand .. He has expressed the interest to work in other asian countries like Malaysia, Korea, Japan, Taiwan.

I am contemplating to bring him overseas but learnt from him that it will cost him a "bomb" to get a passprt .. He told me his friend got it for 30,000 baht ...

Icon,

Thanks in advance ...

icon513 · #5 19th November 2006, 07:28 AM

I've sent a message to my friends, and will let you know if/when I get a response.

But I don't see how your friend could be legally in Thailand and working without a passport.

Taoboxer · #6 19th November 2006, 07:43 AM

If he lived at a border town, he might have got a restricted passport which allowed him to move only between Thailand and his own country at the nearest border checkpoint. Such restricted travelling documents are exactly that - a single piece of paper which is stamped each time he crossed the border. It would probably have a shelf life of no more than either three or six months but would be easily renewable many times for a similar period. We used to have them for Malaysia/Thailand travel but ours were only valid up to Hatyai and not if you went further north than that, not even to Phuket, but most people ignored the restriction since no official on either side of the body ever checked.

pong · #7 19th November 2006, 07:21 PM

1.determine his original nationality (slim chance he has not any!)
2.assuming he is not Thai,or ''restricted hill-tribe Thai'' (RED ID-card, can only legally stayib border-near provinces, incl ChMai-ChRai): WHAT papers does he currently hold? Most likely there is an addittonal paid toThai fee'' to get out of Thaild/back home to Burma.
3.IF he's legal Burmese,AND if he is registerd there (a lot of those hilltribes are not and wander around as if borders are not for them really),then its true that a FULL 5 (or3?) yr passpt cost like 500-1000 US$ (no baht,please for this) in additional underthetableteamoney to get it processed.
4.Next hurdle: He has then to apply for a visum for your country IN MYANMAR.
5.in the meantime:buy that new T-shirt showing the Karen (other word for Shan) national flag - like I did yesterday here in BKK

icon513 · #8 19th November 2006, 09:27 PM

According to my friend in Myanmar, the official passport fee is 35,000 kyats, and it takes five weeks to receive the passport.

For more "expedited" service, you need to pay 150,000 kyats under the table.

That's about $25 and $115, respectively, at current black market rates.

njdaddybear · #9 20th November 2006, 01:10 PM

I went with a boy from the shan state of Burma, he was from Keng Tung, but stayed in Tachilek which is right over the border from Mae Sai, thailand. We were together for 3 yrs and 8 months, until his death from a motorcycle accident in Tachilek on the kings birthday dec 5th 1997.
He stated that he is NOT burmese, he is Shan and they speak Shan, although they speak burmese also. More than likely, your boy is in thailand illegally, they r only allow to cross the border into thailand up to 30 kilometers, after that, they try to sneak pass the border police post, late at night. I have done many travels on that road and its pretty easy to sneak by them. I remember him telling me it costs a lot for them to get a passport and he told me not to spend that kind of money, that it was too much of a hassle and red tape to go through. But the price that was mentioned on this thread sounds about right, around 30,000 baht close to 1,000 US dollars. Mae Sai is about a 3 and a half hr drive, north of Chiang Mai. Good Luck to u

AR15 · #10 21st November 2006, 08:47 AM

Thank you all for the responses and valuable info. He told me he has a valid working permit but I didn't ask to take a look at it ... I might when I meet up with him again. Even if I see it, I might not be able to recognise that it is a valid working permit since it will be work permit will be either in Thai or Burmese, I suppose?

NJ, I am sorry to hear about your boy's death, it must have been a blow to you. I am even more sorry if my post has reminded you about the incident. Please take care ....

njdaddybear · #11 21st November 2006, 01:04 PM

It's OK Ar15, It will be 9 yrs this comming Kings Birthday, Life goes on, but he will always be in my heart, it was a wonderful relationship that lasted 3 yrs and 8 months and i cherished every moment of it, your thread did not remind me of it, I was just trying to help u out. Take care and good luck to you

BillyHouston · #12 4th December 2006, 05:20 AM

Most of the guys working in the various bars in Chiang Mai are Shan working illegally. There are also many Shan working in restaurants and in the various markets. They are badly exploited by the Thais because of their lack of papers. Out of a population of 25000 in one Shan town, 12000 are believed to have fled to Thailand because of the activities of the Burmese Tatmadaw.

Before Adam's Apple closed (opening again in Feb, I hear) there was only a single Thai amongst the gogo boys.

My Shan bf is the source of this info, and we (=he) regularly chat, in Shan, with the guys. They get quite a fright when a farang addresses them in Shan. BF has a wicked sense of humour.

Mai soong ka

asntp · #13 5th December 2006, 07:40 AM

Assuming that he can get a valid Thai passport, will it be easy for him to get a visa to work in other Asian countries such as Japan, Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, etc? I would assume that a tourist visa is relatively easy to get to these countries, but a work visa may be more difficult. Any advice from experts?

icon513 · #14 5th December 2006, 08:11 AM

Thais don't need visas to visit Singapore and Hong Kong as tourists. Your friend will probably find it impossible to obtain tourist visas to Japan and Taiwan -- they are difficult. Can't advise about work papers, but likely extremely difficult.

pong · #15 6th December 2006, 08:08 PM

was in Myanmar last week, also have a few straight Shan/Karen friends here in BKK. Yes, they make always a big point of their independent nation.
Info from Myanmar: a proper passpt cost was stated as 40/50 US$ for SLOW service=wait 1 month or so, pay more for speed (under the table).
What most Myanmar people confuse/or hardly know anything else; most go out for work, and this is done via local agencies. Price for that really depends on country (SING being most expensive) and waiting time, nomal is 1 year (apparently some system of ''permitted nrs'' per year). Cost for this is in the region of 400/500 US$ ''commission''.
Illegal in BKK staying/.working Burmese told me to get an ''under the table'' THAI passpt/or rather white ID first (nam baht prachachuen) will cost well over 1000 US=say 40/50.000 baht.
Rather unattainable for them. Most have sneeked illegally over the border at night, with the paid help of ''those in the know''.
A semi-legal card for Thai/hilltribe is either pink or red and allows travel/stay in ALL borderprone chaingwat of thailand, but not all along the border, restricted to north/mid/south.
Myanmar is quite different from Thailand, often reminded me at both Nepal and Indonesia!