Thailand Visa & Passport Information
*The visa information on this page is a snapshot of the current situation 03/05/2017. All information could be subject to change without prior notice. Research your options and what is available to you well in advance of travelling, any questions you can email us at:
Also remember that everything is at the “discretion” of a Thai immigration officer.
‘Visa on Arrival / Transit Visa / Visa Exemption’ – 15 / 30 / 90 Days on Arrival
New! from 31st December 2016 a new rule will limit us to two 30 day exempt stamps overland per calendar year. Each visa exempt stamp can be extended at Samui by 30 days. Currently even with just a 15 day visa exempt they will give 30 days extension at Samui for most countries. Sometimes more visa exempts are allowed, if you have too many in your passport, about 4 or 5 the officer will probably not allow you anymore and you’ll have go to apply for a 60 day tourist visa.
Visa Exempt, 30 days at Airport and TWO times 30 day overland in a calendar year: Australia, Austria, Bahrain, Brunei, Belgium, Canada, Czech, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Malaysia(unlimited), Monaco, Netherlands, Norway, New Zealand, Oman, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, Russia, Slovak, Slovenia, Singapore, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UAE, United Kingdom and USA
Bilateral Agreement, 30 days: Laos, Macau, Mongolia, Russia and Vietnam.
Bilateral Agreement, 90 days: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, South Korea
Countries which cannot make the land border visa run i.e. Victoria Point/ Andaman Club to get visa on arrival (but can go border run here if they already have METV visa or 1 year NON Immigrant M visa);
Andorra, Bhutan, Bulgaria, China, Cyprus, Ethiopia, India, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Maldives, Malta, Mauritius, Namibia, Romania, San Marino, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan.
Extending visa on arrival:
Most countries can extend their 15/30 day stamp by 30 days at any immigration office cost 1900 baht (EXCEPT India & Russia see below)
Countries which only get 7 days extending a tourist visa:
India, Pakistan
Countries which only get 7 days extending a 30 day stamp but get 30 when extending a 60 day tourist visa:
Russia
Closest Immigration office to Koh Tao is on Koh Samui
Single Entry Tourist Visa – 60 Days
Can be applied for in your home country and at Thai Embassies & Consulates in all countries bordering Thailand, please note India & China passport holders cannot go to Laos, Malaysia, Cambodia or Vietnam to apply. If you have had many Thai tourist visas before, let’s say more than 4 best not to go Malaysia to apply. At time of writing still the easiest embassies are in Laos, you can continue going to apply here until you get a red stamp saying something like “you cannot apply for visa here anymore”.
You must ensure you enter Thailand before the “enter before date” on the visa. All countries can extend the 60 days by 30 more days at Immigration office except India & Russia (only 7 days extension possible)
New Multiple Entry Tourism Visa (METV)
Starting from November 2015, a new tourist visa was introduced to replace the old visas that had 2 and 3 entries (now discontinued). The new METV is valid for 6 months from the date of issue and allows the holder to enter Thailand as many times as they wish within the 6 months.
The METV can normally only be applied for in your home country, all or some of the following documents might be required (check with you local embassy as their requirements often differ)
- Minimum 6 months validity of passport
- Bank statement showing the equivalent of 200,000 baht retained for 6 months
- Proof of letter of employment
- Copy of confirmed air travel ticket
- Copy of hotel reservation in Thailand
- Flight reservation out of Thailand at the end of first 60 days (not at all consulates)
It works like this; each entry is valid for 60 days, when the entry stamp finishes you can “border run” for another 60 days OR extend by 30 days at immigration office (Indians & Russians most likely only get 7 days extension), you can perform the action mentioned before as many times as you wish but remember you must (re) enter Thailand before the “enter before date” to get 60 days.
How to work the METV “smart”; make a border run so you re-enter 1 day before the “enter before date” then extend this entry by 30 days! You will get approximately 9 months total time in Thailand if you work the visa like this.