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Koh Pha Ngan Education Visa Scam: Over 100 Foreigners Scammed

Visa scam in Koh Pha Ngan

A language school in Koh Pha Ngan has ripped off more than 100 tourists by claiming that they were able to provide them with a one-year education visa.

The school promised tourists to grant them an education visa after paying a sum of baht. However, this is not legally possible.

The group of victims made an official report together with the local police about the scam. The tourists were from Russia, France, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Said report explains that people had originally heard that the school could issue them a one-year education visas from the teachers who work there.

Also, according to Manager Online, more than 100 people have been allegedly ripped off by the school in the Sri Thanu area of the island.

Now the group has made an official report and sent documentation to the Koh Phangan district chief, Poonsak Sophonpathumrak, the island’s chief of police, Pol Col Phisit Wisetwong, and the immigration police.

The victims allege that they were asked for 40,000 baht each for courses at the school, understanding that it would issue an education visa for them.

Over 100 Foreigners Scammed

They said that the school would change their Non-B into an ED-Visa in order to extend their time of stay in Thailand.

Besides that, they told the police that they had made a 50% down payment to the school.

The school promised them to issue the visas five weeks ago. However, when no paperwork turned up, the group of tourists headed to the Surat Thani immigration office on the mainland, where they were told that it was not possible to change a Non-B into an education (ED) visa.

They confronted the school, but the response they got was that there were no refunds.

The police assured the victims that they are investigating the case.

It is not the only case of fake visa agents and institutions promising to grant the document that is registered in Thailand.

Scammers often take advantage of the confusion that exists among people about amnesties and visa extension processes.

The immigration police are analyzing a series of similar incidents.