Transcript of the above video: 

As the title of this video suggests, we are discussing so called “rip-off” TDAC sites. For those who are unaware, TDAC is the Thailand Digital Arrival Card. Unfortunately, like with many other places, Thailand is getting in line with the future or something on all of this travel documentation that in my opinion is redundant and Orwellian, but we have to deal with it, so I am making videos on it. 

I thought of making this video after reading a recent article from the Thai Examiner, that is thaiexaminer.com, the article is titled: Immigration Bureau warns that rip-off entry TDAC sites stand to make up to $100 million from visitors. Quoting directly: "Immigration warns travellers: TDAC entry registration for Thailand is free, yet 10% of foreign arrivals use rip-off websites charging between $20 and $90. Officials say fake platforms are offshore, not linked to the system, and may stand to take about a $100 million from visitors." Quoting further: "Senior Immigration Bureau Officers are warning travellers to Thailand not to be fooled by offshore sites offering the required QR code for clearance to enter the Kingdom under the Thailand Digital Entry Card System introduced in May 2025. They say they are baffled" - I love the word "baffled”. That has been a particularly interesting word going all the way back into COVID. "Baffle" means to be muzzled. There are different definitions for the word. It's like, "oh it's something that can't speak" or it's "something that is forcibly, like sort of effectively muzzled, or "self-muzzled". Baffled! - "They say they are baffled that 10% of visitors, amounting to millions, have paid between $20 and $90 for a service that is in effect free. Officers say the success of these "rip-off" services is striking and they could net up to $100 million or Baht3 billion from the scheme by May 2026." 

You know what I love about all this digitization is it was all brought in to make us safer, to make things easier, make things more convenient and it's the exact opposite. And now we have rip-off TDAC. Why not just not have this step at all? We have the old paper arrival/departure cards, and we had none of these problems; there were no scams by any offshore websites. And meanwhile, scamming to do what? To do something that was already done anyway when we were stamped into Thailand. Biometrics I sort of get it from a law enforcement side. It makes it more convenient to basically track, and you see foreigners entering, you get their fingerprints, you get a face scan; what's the point of this? Now going back, I do remember my history here in Thailand, the TDAC was effectively rolled out to forestall the creation of the tax man-traps that were being rolled out by the Pheu Thai faction of the formerly governing coalition government some 18 months, 2 years ago, and that Anutin rolled out TDAC to sort of push that off. So in terms of like tactically, okay, yeah, I like TDAC over man traps at Thai Immigration where they cross-reference banking data with how much time you've been in-country and then hit you up for money on your way out the door. I think honestly TDAC probably a better look “optically”, to use technocrat speak from back in the West.

But that said, why have any of this at all? Do we need it? Is it helping? Is it doing anything more? And now they're saying it's creating an avenue for a bunch of scammers to get money off people for something that should be a free service. Where is the value add by any of this digitization? I haven't seen it anywhere. I haven't seen it in a banking. I haven't seen it in the Immigration System of the United States. I haven't seen it in any of the Immigration Systems that are here in Thailand as this is being rolled out. And if anything, I keep hearing about more problems that are added by all of this. Ever since OECD, it reared its ugly head some 2 years ago, nothing in the banking system in Thailand has gotten better. And now I'm seeing the same thing in the digitization of Immigration. And we were all told it was supposed to be better, more convenient. I mean this is the prime example of nothing else. They've added on this system and now there are a bunch of scammers or whatever, that are sort of accreting on to this system that has already accreted on to a system that really didn't need the addition, but they are operating to the detriment of the people that are trying to do things in good faith. Again, what's the point of all this digitization? Because it seems to only add more room for problems, obstacles and more opportunities to scam people.