Foreigners will not be issued visa extension for failing to be registered

Visa extension will not be issued for foreigners who fail to register in the Foreigners Present in Cambodia System by July, the Interior Ministry’s General Department of Immigration said yesterday. The electronic application form, which was created last year, aims to record data about foreigners living in and visiting the Kingdom.

In a statement issued Monday, the GDI said its director-general General Kirth Chantharith has informed municipal and provincial police chiefs to enforce the Interior Ministry’s directive regarding the management of foreigners living and visiting the Kingdom.

“The GDI will not renew visas of foreigners staying in Cambodia who are not listed in the FPCS. This will be implemented on July 1 this year,” said the statement.

In line with the directive, provincial and municipal police chiefs across the Kingdom should inform landlords to report foreigners staying in their houses so they could be listed in the app.

However, the new measure has raised some concerns among some foreign residents.

According to its homepage, the application will record information about foreigners upon their arrival in the Kingdom and again on the date of their departure.

Lieutenant General Sar Thet, chief of Phnom Penh Municipal Police, said yesterday the police have been disseminating information about the FPCS to landlords. “We will implement the law on immigration if they [foreigners] fail to follow the instruction,” he said.

Lieutenant General Sok Veasa, director of the Non-Immigration and Technical Department, said yesterday a working group from the GDI is holding discussions about penalties for foreigners who fail to comply with the directive.

“We have to inform the public first, especially the foreigners,” he said. “As the first step, we will ask landlords to register for them. If they fail to comply [with the regulation], further measures will be taken.”

About 30,000 foreigners have registered in the FPCS since its launch, said Lt Gen Veasa.