Thailand: Visa wait for tourists could top four hours

Tourists applying for a visa on arrival at Suvarnabhumi airport are likely to face up to a four-hour wait during the New Year period due to a tough screening process to catch undesirables trying to enter the kingdom. Pol Col Cherngron Rimpadee, deputy immigration police spokesman, asked Tuesday for understanding saying the procedures are necessary to deal with criminals that take advantage of the hectic period to enter the country by disguising themselves as tourists. The Immigration Bureau is considering opening more lanes for visa processing to reduce the lengthy queues. Ideally, the process should take three minutes to complete but sudden influxes of applicants can lead to long queues.<br/>