Visas to Thailand
Regulations covering the issuance of Thai visas are found in Immigration Act B.E. 2522 (1979) section 5, 12 (1), 34 (15). Essentially, although every visitor to Thailand requires a valid passport, whether you need a visa to enter Thailand is dependent on the period of time you are expecting to stay in the kingdom and your nationality.
Visitors from a number of countries must obtain their visas before entering Thailand. Other visitors will be issued with a visa on arrival at an international airport, a border crossing, or an immigration checkpoint. A limited number of countries have agreements with Thailand that enable their citizens to enter Thailand without a visa. Visas are issued either by consulates and embassies outside Thailand, or the Immigration Bureau of the Royal Thai Police within Thailand.
| 30-day visits: |
Most visitors are able to stay in Thailand for up to 30 days without the need of a visa. This includes the citizens of the following countries:
* Algeria
* Argentina
* Australia
* Austria
* Belgium
* Brazil
* Bahrain
* Brunei
* Canada
* Denmark
* Egypt
* Fiji
* Finland
* France
* Germany
* Greece
* Iceland
* Indonesia
* Ireland
* Israel
* Italy
* Japan
* Djibouti
* Kenya
* Korea
* Kuwait
* Luxembourg
* Malaysia
* Mauritania
* Mexico
* Morocco
* Myanmar
* Netherlands
* New Zealand
* Oman
* Papua New Guinea
* Philippines
* Portugal
* Qatar
* Saudi Arabia
* Senegal
* Singapore
* Slovenia
* South Africa
* Spain
* Sweden
* Switzerland
* Tunisia
* Turkey
* UAE
* UK
* USA
* Vanuatu
* Western Samoa
* Yemen
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| 60-day visits: |
| If you want to stay longer for a longer period you can obtain a two-month tourist visa from the Thai consulate or embassy in your country. However, if you are in Thailand and wish to extend your stay this can be done by obtaining a one-month extension from an immigration office (cost: 1,900 Baht). |
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| Visits longer than 60 days: |
| People wishing to stay in Thailand longer than two months require a ‘Non-Immigrant Visa’ – this is not a tourist visa and a person must meet certain requirements before being granted one (e.g. having family members in Thailand, etc.). A ‘Non-Immigrant Visa’ is issued for three months and can be extended to one year under certain circumstances. |
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| Full details: |
| For full details contact your country’s Thai Embassy. A detailed description of visa requirements is provided by Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. More concise details are provided by the Thai Embassy in Washington DC. |
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| Visitors to Thailand who hold valid passports or travelling documents issued by any country included in an officially issued list of eligible countries are permitted one-month visa-free visits. If planning a longer stay, a Tourist Visa valid for 60 days must be obtained from a Royal Thai Embassy or Consulate abroad. Visa extensions can be applied for at the Immigration Department in Bangkok |
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| List of eligible countries |
AMERICAS
Argentina, *Brazil, Canada, Chile, Cyprus, Mexico, *Peru, U.S.A. |
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ASIA
Bahrain, Brunei, Hong Kong,Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Myanmar, Oman, Philippines, Qatar, *Republic of Korea, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Turkey, United Arab Emirates |
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PACIFIC
Australia, Fiji, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Western Samoa. |
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AFRICA
Djibouti, Egypt, Kenya, Mauritania, Morocco, Senegal, South Africa, Tunisia, Yemen. |
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EUROPE
Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovene, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K. |
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* Persons meeting the above conditions are exempted from a visa and are permitted to remain in the Kingdom for a period not exceeding 30 days, except for the nationals of the Republic of Korea, Brazil, and Peru who are permitted to stay in Thailand for a maximum of 90 days from the day of entry. |
