"Phuket Immigration clarifies crowded checkpoints due to system malfunction—no special lanes for fee collection"

Phuket Immigration officials on March 29 clarified that heavy congestion at airport checkpoints was caused by a temporary system malfunction during an abnormally busy period and not by the creation of special lanes for fee collection, as alleged in online reports. The agency confirmed that no extra charges or unofficial payments were solicited at Phuket International Airport during the incident.

System Disruption and Passenger Management

Immigration’s information system slowed and malfunctioned between 08:55 and 13:40 on March 28, coinciding with 52 outbound flights and about 8,500 departing passengers, officials said. The main immigration hall can hold only 600 people at once, leading to queues spilling outside the designated area.

Officers switched to offline procedures and streamlined exit checks under standard operating protocols to ease the backlog. All 18 available counters were staffed, though some equipment was under maintenance due to prolonged use.

The average processing time was kept to 33 seconds per passenger, and normal operations resumed at 14:00 when the system was restored. Immigration authorities reiterated that all staff acted within legal and regulatory frameworks, and encouraged the public to report any unlawful conduct directly.

Phuket airport and immigration authorities are currently installing automated border control lanes to improve future passenger flow and service speed.

Source: https://www.dailynews.co.th/news/5731932/