Thailand forum

Flying into Bangkok then leaving for a month - visa question?

chicoelnino

tout
Posts: 61

I will be flying into Bangkok and spending 2 days there before flying to Singapore and then travellling around Indonesia before returning to travel around Thailand for a month.

How does visas work for this in Thailand? I presume I get the 30 day visa on arrival, but then when I return over a month later what is the Visa story?

#1 Posted: 17/1/2011 - 21:40
Captain_Bob

under-employed
Posts: 950
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"I get the 30 day visa on arrival, but then when I return over a month later what is the Visa story?"

You get another 30 day visa (visa exemption actually). Read about it here:
http://www.mfa.go.th/web/2482.php?id=2490

#2 Posted: 17/1/2011 - 22:39
chicoelnino

tout
Posts: 61

Thanks for the info.

So just say I then want to stay more than 30 days when I return(say 45 days)....can I get an extension to my visa easily enough while there?

#3 Posted: 18/1/2011 - 02:40
pilastr

newbie
Posts: 1

I'm not concerned with the 90 day limit on total days accrued. For me the ambiguity of this new rule is whether or not the visa exemption functions the same as a multiple entry visa. In other words:

Suppose I land in Bangkok and take an immediate 5 day trip to rendez-vous with friends finishing their trip in Cambodia. If I return five days later by land to Thailand, has my 30 day visa-exemption now expired (albeit replaced by a 15 day exemption)? I can find no clear explanation so have to assume worst. That means I'll have to limit my time in Thailand to fifteen days.

It certainly seems strange, given the prosperity Thailand enjoys as a travelers hub, that they should suddenly impose arbitrary restrictions on short-term travel based on whether you arrive by air or by land.

If anyone can confirm/refute the multiple-entry visa exemption, please do!

#4 Posted: 18/1/2011 - 03:47
joenerf

longtail driver
Posts: 10

Quick follow up question to this:

If you (a Canadian) land in Thailand, get your 30 day visa, then take-off to Cambodia the next day, for 4 days, and then fly back into Thailand (only 5 days after originally arriving): Is there any problem with the multi-entry? Will you just get another 30 days, no problem?

I'm guessing your original 30 days is voided, then you start fresh when you return from Cambodia? I just know some countries have issues with multiple trips in and out of the country. Is that the case in Thailand? Or can I come and go say 3 or 4 times in a short period (by air) and always get antoher 30 days? Even if the original 30 days has not yet expired?

#5 Posted: 9/9/2011 - 03:30
Captain_Bob

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Posts: 950
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chicoelnino
"can I get an extension to my visa easily enough while there?"

The "visa on arrival" is actually a visa exemption, allowed for certain nationalities (30 days arrival by air, 15 days arrival by land) and is only extendable by 7 days (at Thai Immigration offices for 1900 baht). To stay longer get a proper Thai visa at a Thai consulate overseas (Singapore issue them but are very strict, probably have to show proof of air ticket out and maybe a hotel booking).

pilastr
"If anyone can confirm/refute the multiple-entry visa exemption, please do!"

Visa exemption (allowed for selected nationalities) is very straight-forward: 30 days if arriving by air, 15 days if by land, and each time you leave it is expired, but you get a fresh one each time. There is no practical limit to the number of times you can enter but if planning to stay longer you should get a proper tourist visa.

joenerf
"Is there any problem with the multi-entry? Will you just get another 30 days, no problem?"

Yes, you get a fresh visa-exempt entry each time (30 days by air, 15 days by land) and each entry expires when you leave, but you just get a new one upon each re/entry.

Read about visas, visa exemption, and visa on arrival on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs website.

#6 Posted: 9/9/2011 - 16:16