Deported: a passport problem
May 24, 2005, 8:44 am
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2003
Location: Seoul, Korea
Programs: UA Gold, Starwood Gold
Posts: 36
Deported: a passport problem
The story is almost like a mileage run gone wrong…..
Last Tuesday night, I was sleeping when I was woken up by the ringing of my cell phone at 1230am. It was a German friend living in Taipei and I could tell there was a real problem from her voice. She explained to me that her friend was flying in from FRA on TG and she was stuck at the TPE airport. This was her friend’s first trip to Asia. I believe she is 24 years old.
Apparently the first portion of her trip was fine. In BKK, she boarded TG630 to TPE via HKG. Upon arrival in TPE at around 2200, she headed to the immigration queue. Then the situation started to go downhill. She was holding a German passport which normally allows visa-free entry for 30 days into Taiwan. I have entered numerous times visa-free without a problem. I believe you need to have an onward ticket, but I have never been asked about this. The only other major requirement is that you have 6-months of validity left on your passport. Taiwanese immigration is quite strict about this.
So, she reached the immigration counter and the officer discovered that she had less than 6 months left on her passport. I guess TG never checked this. So, the woman was escorted to a holding cell in the back of CKS Airport. She managed to call my friend and explain her situation and then I got the call. I suggested getting a visa-on-arrival at the airport. It lets you enter with less than 6 months left on your passport, but you have to pay something like 100 USD (at least for American passport holders). Or, she could fly to HKG the next morning on TG (as she was forced to do) and get her passport extended in HK. After that she could buy a return ticket to TPE from HKG for about 250 USD all in. I’m still not sure if visa-on-arrival is available to German passport holders; almost all Taiwanese government websites are blocked here in China.
After spending the night in a holding cell with some “drug smugglers” as she said, the woman just headed back to FRA. Being her first trip to Asia and lacking much previous personal travel experience, she just didn’t want to take care of her passport issues in HK and come back to TPE for her 2-week vacation.
I feel bad for this woman, but she didn’t do her homework before her trip and check the visa situation. I am also a bit surprised that TG boarded her. Will they be fined for this? It is too bad her one night in Asia was in a Taiwanese holding cell. I hope she at least got the miles. Has anyone had a similar experience by not meeting the entry requirements of a given country and been promptly deported/locked up?
Last Tuesday night, I was sleeping when I was woken up by the ringing of my cell phone at 1230am. It was a German friend living in Taipei and I could tell there was a real problem from her voice. She explained to me that her friend was flying in from FRA on TG and she was stuck at the TPE airport. This was her friend’s first trip to Asia. I believe she is 24 years old.
Apparently the first portion of her trip was fine. In BKK, she boarded TG630 to TPE via HKG. Upon arrival in TPE at around 2200, she headed to the immigration queue. Then the situation started to go downhill. She was holding a German passport which normally allows visa-free entry for 30 days into Taiwan. I have entered numerous times visa-free without a problem. I believe you need to have an onward ticket, but I have never been asked about this. The only other major requirement is that you have 6-months of validity left on your passport. Taiwanese immigration is quite strict about this.
So, she reached the immigration counter and the officer discovered that she had less than 6 months left on her passport. I guess TG never checked this. So, the woman was escorted to a holding cell in the back of CKS Airport. She managed to call my friend and explain her situation and then I got the call. I suggested getting a visa-on-arrival at the airport. It lets you enter with less than 6 months left on your passport, but you have to pay something like 100 USD (at least for American passport holders). Or, she could fly to HKG the next morning on TG (as she was forced to do) and get her passport extended in HK. After that she could buy a return ticket to TPE from HKG for about 250 USD all in. I’m still not sure if visa-on-arrival is available to German passport holders; almost all Taiwanese government websites are blocked here in China.
After spending the night in a holding cell with some “drug smugglers” as she said, the woman just headed back to FRA. Being her first trip to Asia and lacking much previous personal travel experience, she just didn’t want to take care of her passport issues in HK and come back to TPE for her 2-week vacation.
I feel bad for this woman, but she didn’t do her homework before her trip and check the visa situation. I am also a bit surprised that TG boarded her. Will they be fined for this? It is too bad her one night in Asia was in a Taiwanese holding cell. I hope she at least got the miles. Has anyone had a similar experience by not meeting the entry requirements of a given country and been promptly deported/locked up?
May 24, 2005, 10:18 am
#2
Join Date: Sep 2003
Location: Los Angeles
Programs: UA MM | BA Silver
Posts: 7,208
On a IAD-GRU flight a passenger did not have the required Visa (dont know if they were a U.S. passport holder though) and UA would not allow him to board. My gut feeling is that it was not the responsibility of TG (or UA) but it makes it easier for both. I could be wrong.
May 24, 2005, 10:44 am
#3
Join Date: Mar 2005
Programs: UA MP
Posts: 1,659
Yes, TG will be fined for this. Penalties in Taiwan can be quite severe, including the possibility of having landing rights revoked for several days.
I am surprised that they care about the passport validity though. I've never seen most requirements enforced (return tickets and passport validity are ones I've rarely heard of being enforced). I had a family member work as a CSR at UA. Once they had someone checking in for a flight to AMS but their passport didn't have the 6 months on it. They wound up calling people in AMS and were told the validity didn't matter. And I've heard of people getting deported from Brazil. Although in some places they fine you too. Lots of stories from UA about people getting deported (and other stuff people do to avoid getting deported).
I am surprised that they care about the passport validity though. I've never seen most requirements enforced (return tickets and passport validity are ones I've rarely heard of being enforced). I had a family member work as a CSR at UA. Once they had someone checking in for a flight to AMS but their passport didn't have the 6 months on it. They wound up calling people in AMS and were told the validity didn't matter. And I've heard of people getting deported from Brazil. Although in some places they fine you too. Lots of stories from UA about people getting deported (and other stuff people do to avoid getting deported).
May 24, 2005, 11:24 am
#4
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Dec 2000
Location: Shanghai
Posts: 42,302
I am a member of that special club. I'd love to go into more detail because it was one of my more memorable travel experiences, but some topics are best reserved for more intimate settings.
May 25, 2005, 7:00 pm
#5
Join Date: Aug 2000
Location: Exile
Posts: 15,671
Originally Posted by azimut95
Will they be fined for this?
Originally Posted by anc-ord772
My gut feeling is that it was not the responsibility of TG (or UA)