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Is Visa required, if I enter Thailand for 4 hours and have direct flight out?


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Hello,

 

I have the following problem:

 

I am Bulgarian and live in Germany. Soon I have a flight through Bangkok, where I have to stay for 4 hours and need to check in for my next flight to Cambodsha. Do I need some kind of visa for this hours or can I stay in the airport without one, transit visa maybe? After that [three days after] I will be flighting back and staying in Thailand for one week. For this period I will need a Visa on arrival, right? Do you know how it is supposed to be? It would be great, if someone knows it for sure. Thanks!

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For the first question, if you arrive/leave to Cambodia from the same airport, then you will stay in the transit area of the airport and will not need a visa. Note that Bangkok has two airports, Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang. If you need to transfer from one to the other, then yes you will need the visa on arrival (and you will be pressed for time with just 4 hours).

 

For the second question, yes you need a visa on arrival. You can easily find what is needed with a brief search on the internet. Basically, proof of a hotel booking and of a ticket out of Thailand. Usually it helps to show that you have cash worth 20,000 THB with you, but I am not sure whether this is requested for a visa on arrival.

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1 hour ago, arithai12 said:

For the first question, if you arrive/leave to Cambodia from the same airport, then you will stay in the transit area of the airport and will not need a visa. Note that Bangkok has two airports, Suvarnabhumi and Don Mueang. If you need to transfer from one to the other, then yes you will need the visa on arrival (and you will be pressed for time with just 4 hours).

 

For the second question, yes you need a visa on arrival. You can easily find what is needed with a brief search on the internet. Basically, proof of a hotel booking and of a ticket out of Thailand. Usually it helps to show that you have cash worth 20,000 THB with you, but I am not sure whether this is requested for a visa on arrival.

Thanks A lot for the quick replay! ???? Can I ask if you speak from experience? Because at the Thai Embassy in Bulgaria they told my friends, that even in the transit area they first need a visa from Bulgaria, which the Thai officers tear up and later replace with a new visa... 

 

Do you know if I stay in the transit area, when I have to get my luggage from the first flight and check in for the second (the same airport)? Is the whole airport a transit area? 

 

For now I only have the bulgarian passport, otherwise I wouldn't have all the questions ????

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Would you be comfortable sharing the flight numbers? As a general rule, even if the airlines you are using do not have an agreement allowing you to check baggage through to your destination, the transfer desk at Suvarnabhumi can arrange to give you the new boarding card and transfer your checked baggage from the first flight onto your connecting flight without clearing Thai customs. That allows you to stay in the transit area, not traversing Thai immigration. However, this is not always possible with budget airlines.

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1 minute ago, BritTim said:

Would you be comfortable sharing the flight numbers? As a general rule, even if the airlines you are using do not have an agreement allowing you to check baggage through to your destination, the transfer desk at Suvarnabhumi can arrange to give you the new boarding card and transfer your checked baggage from the first flight onto your connecting flight without clearing Thai customs. That allows you to stay in the transit area, not traversing Thai immigration. However, this is not always possible with budget airlines.

Ok, the flight number to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi is TK 068 (Turkish airlines), the next one from Bangkok to Cambodsha is PG 909 (Bangkok Airways). Can you please tel me how I can connect this transfer desk and can I do it before I arrive. I think it might be a problem that I won't have the ticket for the second flight, I mean I also have to check in, or can this be arranged through the transfer desk? Thanks!

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Bangkok Airways has through-check baggage arrangements with Turkish Airlines. But your flight ticket must be a single ticket that covers both flights on the one document. You will be able to book the bags through at your first check-in.  If you have booked the flights as separate tickets you will have to pick up your bag in Suvarnabhumi and recheck onto Bangkok Air at their check in desks. In this case you need to go through Immigration. Bulgarian passport holders do qualify for Visa on Arrival. For full information go to www.thai.lt where you will find everything you need.

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11 hours ago, Ceaa said:

Ok, the flight number to Bangkok Suvarnabhumi is TK 068 (Turkish airlines), the next one from Bangkok to Cambodsha is PG 909 (Bangkok Airways). Can you please tel me how I can connect this transfer desk and can I do it before I arrive. I think it might be a problem that I won't have the ticket for the second flight, I mean I also have to check in, or can this be arranged through the transfer desk? Thanks!

As accurately indicated by @brommers, if you booked your flights at one time on a single ticket (probably the cheapest way to book anyway) you are all set. If you booked the flights separately at different times on separate tickets, you will need to clear immigration (and customs) at Suvarnabhumi. Until a couple of years ago, even with separate tickets, this was avoidable, but not any more with Bangkok Airways.

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47 minutes ago, brommers said:

Bangkok Airways has through-check baggage arrangements with Turkish Airlines. But your flight ticket must be a single ticket that covers both flights on the one document. You will be able to book the bags through at your first check-in.  If you have booked the flights as separate tickets you will have to pick up your bag in Suvarnabhumi and recheck onto Bangkok Air at their check in desks. In this case you need to go through Immigration. Bulgarian passport holders do qualify for Visa on Arrival. For full information go to www.thai.lt where you will find everything you need.

All right, thank you for the info! 

 

But if I get one visa at this trasfer for the 4 hours, will I be able to get another one three days later for a longer stay in Thailand? Or should I apply for a visa now before I get to the airport? I was told, that it is impossible to get two visas at the airport, one of them should exist before I enter the country. Can this be right?

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18 minutes ago, BritTim said:

As accurately indicated by @brommers, if you booked your flights at one time on a single ticket (probably the cheapest way to book anyway) you are all set. If you booked the flights separately at different times on separate tickets, you will need to clear immigration (and customs) at Suvarnabhumi. Until a couple of years ago, even with separate tickets, this was avoidable, but not any more with Bangkok Airways.

All right, thank you for the info! 

 

But if I get one visa at this trasfer for the 4 hours, will I be able to get another one three days later for a longer stay in Thailand? Or should I apply for a visa now before I get to the airport? I was told, that it is impossible to get two visas at the airport, one of them should exist before I enter the country. Can this be right?

 
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13 minutes ago, Ceaa said:

All right, thank you for the info! 

 

But if I get one visa at this trasfer for the 4 hours, will I be able to get another one three days later for a longer stay in Thailand? Or should I apply for a visa now before I get to the airport? I was told, that it is impossible to get two visas at the airport, one of them should exist before I enter the country. Can this be right?

I have no first hand knowledge of this, but I would expect immigration to be amenable to giving you a second visa on arrival when the first was just for a few hours. If you are nervous, get a transit visa before travelling.

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You should check on Thai visa policy , transit section. Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang don't have the same rules. Anyway ,it is ok for passport holders who can get  a  visa on arrival.But without a visa on arrival at Suvarnabhumi you can stay less than 12 hours in transit, unless your next flight is with any of the budget airlines which are named on the list that will deny your transit. At Don Muang you can go as a transit passenger only if you have flight with one of 2 airliners, think it  is TigerAsia , and the other has similar name.. You can find it all on Thai visa policy ,Wikipedia 

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7 minutes ago, looking on the bright side said:

think it  is TigerAsia , and the other has similar name.. You can find it all on Thai visa policy ,Wikipedia 

Actually  Thai AirAsia or Thai AirAsia X

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14 minutes ago, looking on the bright side said:

You should check on Thai visa policy , transit section. Suvarnabhumi and Don Muang don't have the same rules. Anyway ,it is ok for passport holders who can get  a  visa on arrival.But without a visa on arrival at Suvarnabhumi you can stay less than 12 hours in transit, unless your next flight is with any of the budget airlines which are named on the list that will deny your transit. At Don Muang you can go as a transit passenger only if you have flight with one of 2 airliners, think it  is TigerAsia , and the other has similar name.. You can find it all on Thai visa policy ,Wikipedia 

It is appropriate to point out the immigration rules on transit area stay, but (in the OP's case) it does not apply because of Bangkok Airways' own rules that prevent transit unless on a single ticket.

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Are you on a single ticket with a single PNR? In that case, your luggage will be checked through to destination and you’ll be issued a boarding pass for your onward flight. You will be a CIQ passenger in Bangkok and head straight to the international transfer desk without going through Immigration. There are big signs for you to follow. You will clear security in a special line and head straight to your gate. If your incoming flight is late and you miss your outgoing flight, the airline will look after you, getting you onto the next available flight to your destination and issuing food and hotel vouchers if necessary.

 

If these are two different PNRs booked separately (even if they were booked at the same time for you by a travel agent), you will have to clear Immigration, claim your baggage, stand in a line to check in, and go through security and passport control. If you miss your outgoing flight, you’re on your own. Four hours transfer time is adequate.

 

In this case, as a Bulgarian national, you WILL need a visa. There’s no problem getting a visa on arrival (VOA), departing the country after four hours, and then getting another VOA three days later. It’s immaterial how long you have stayed on the first entry (as long as it was less than 15 days). You’re eligible for a VOA each time you enter Thailand.

 

But you could try to get a double entry transit visa in advance, which would cost much less than the two VOAs. Each entry gives you a stay of up to 30 days. You must enter or leave from a third country, as you are doing. Ask the Thai embassy or one of the consulates in Germany if this is possible. I know the embassy in Delhi does issue double-entry transit visas to Indian nationals who are in the same position as you are. At the very least you can get one transit visa and make your second entry a VOA.

 

You can get a brand new pre-approved eVOA at https://www.evisathailand.com/ This dramatically reduces processing time at Immigration.

 

And, if you apply for a visa in Germany as a third-country national, make sure you bring a copy of your Einwohnermeldeschein.

Edited by billp
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1 minute ago, bangkoken said:

You do not need a Thai visa to stay in the airport and continue on a connecting flight.

Some countries restrict transit passengers requiring transit visas. This is to prevent asylum claims while in transit I suspect. Ask a friend who tried to take his Cambodian GF to NZ transiting via Oz without one! The airline would not let her board.

 

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On 1/4/2019 at 6:20 PM, arithai12 said:

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Did you read my post at all? Only if you’re traveling on a protected connection – one ticket, one PNR can you remain in transit. If you have two separate PNRs, you have to clear Immigration, claim baggage and re-check-in. Then you need a visa.

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