Thailand has reinstated its 30-day visa exemption policy for tourists from roughly 60 countries, effective April 1, 2023, marking a reversal of a previous regulation that allowed visitors from these countries to stay up to 45 days without obtaining a prior visa.
Tourists from mainland Europe, the UK, the US, Australia, Saudi Arabia and other countries will now only be granted a 30-day stay in Thailand if they choose to enter the kingdom without obtaining a prior visa.
According to the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), visa-exempt visitors will still have the option to extend their stay once for an additional 30 days if they go through immigration, allowing them to travel the nation for a maximum of 60 days.
Visa-exempt countries will also have another option to obtain a 30-day extension by briefly leaving and re-entering the country. However, land border crossings can only happen twice per calendar year. While there are no official restrictions on entry by air, immigration officers have the discretion to refuse tourists entry and require them to obtain a formal visa from a Thai embassy beforehand.
Additionally, the visa-on-arrival period, which had been extended from 15 to 30 days, has now reverted back to 15 days for countries considered visas on arrival.
The TAT reportedly plans to approach the new government after the general election to potentially revise the visa program again to attract more tourists. (NNT)
