The major-general said investigations had so far identified 193 foreign men who had registered bogus marriages in the northeastern province of Nong Bua Lamphu. He continued by saying that the men were mostly of Indian extraction, but there were others in the group from Nepal, Iran, Nigeria and Cameroon.
Major-general Saengiam observed that Thai visa and entry requirements are more stringent for visitors from these countries than for nationals of countries such as the UK and the US. He continued by saying the bogus marriages to the Thai women had allowed the so-called husbands to claim rights to longer stay permits to stay.
The major-general finished off with the statement that fake marriage registrations were not possible without the connivance of marriage registrars. He added the warning that any district office employee found to have been involved with registering a sham marriage faced punitive action.
The sham marriage scandal hit the headlines recently when a woman living in Nong Bua Lamphu tried to register her marriage. To her surprise and dismay she found that she had already married a foreigner. An in-depth investigation disclosed that the marriage registrar had registered more than 600 fake marriages.
Thai marriage scammers face visa cancellation
News in Asia
Thai Immigration Department officials are set to cancel the visas of almost 200 foreign nationals. The department’s Chartchai Saengiam said the individuals concerned had colluded with a corrupt local government officer in registering sham marriages to enable them to stay longer in the country.