The cabinet approved an edict of the Interior Ministry today (Tuesday) extending the period of stay, from 30 to 45 days, for tourists from countries and territories entitled to visa exemptions and from 15 to 30 days for those eligible for a Visa on Arrival.

 

The extension is, however, only temporary, from October 1st until end of March next year, to coincide with the traditionally tourism high season in Thailand, when more tourists, especially from Europe and the US, are expected to escape the cold weather and head to Thailand.

 

Currently, though, most foreign arrivals in Thailand are from Malaysia and India.

 

Full Story: https://www.thaipbsworld.com/thai-cabinet-approves-45-day-stay-for-tourists-entitled-to-visa-exemption-and-30-days-with-visa-on-arrival/

 

-- © Copyright Thai PBS 2022-09-20

 

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Thai cabinet approves 45-day stay for tourists entitled to visa exemption and 30 days with Visa on Arrival. Tourists may use this if they can get past the Immigration officer and the multitude of ignorant questions.

 

FTFY

15 minutes ago, BonMot said:

Thai cabinet approves 45-day stay for tourists entitled to visa exemption and 30 days with Visa on Arrival. Tourists may use this if they can get past the Immigration officer and the multitude of ignorant questions.

 

FTFY

They have never uttered a word to me in more than 25 trips.

Admitedly most of those were with a tourist visa.

I would be interested to hear what kind of remarks they have made to you.

Lucky otherwise people who booked in advance would have to change plans. 6 months makes no sense. They need more tourists in low season!

3 hours ago, BonMot said:

Thai cabinet approves 45-day stay for tourists entitled to visa exemption and 30 days with Visa on Arrival. Tourists may use this if they can get past the Immigration officer and the multitude of ignorant questions.

 

FTFY

The last time I entered on an exempt, I felt like smart mouthing the IO <deleted> back "I thought you need tourists to come and spend money. Wasn't that the reason for your government easing the entry requirements? Would you like me to take my thousands of USD to Cambodia instead?"

 

It was only my second entry since the pandemic started, for crying out loud. Right now I'm on a 60-day SETV and not a word uttered this time. $40 is definitely cheaper than 1,900B, and more importantly not having to deal with the hassle of going to immigration, time savings, etc. Definitely a no brainer going forward, at least for me.

Edited September 20, 20223 yr by worldexpress

4 hours ago, Padthaigoong said:

I would be interested to hear what kind of remarks they have made to you.

I doubt white tourists are subjected to any harassment, but two weeks ago someone I know was told she had to pay 10,000 baht as “entry fee”, she managed to get it down to 2,000 baht. They would not allow her to enter Thailand, if she did not pay. This was in Suvarnabhumi, and she did not already have a visa.

At the moment Cambodians only get 15 days whether by plane or land crossing , does this mean if they fly in they get 30 days with the new decree ?

Again. There is not a single word in this post that states the 45 day visa exempt can be EXTENDED for 30 or 45 more days in country at immigration. One expert mentioned it would be 30 days. But can someone FINALLY let all of us know what the exact extension can be for?  I completely understand that a 30 or 45 day extension at any immigration office can be denied for some reason. My question is can it for SURE at least be attempted for 30 or 45 days more?  Can you please prove it? Thanks! 
Just because the 30 day visa exempt can be extended 30 days does not equal that the 45 day visa exempt can be extended 45 or 30 days. Do you know why? TIT 

 

With TIT in mind. Is this 45 day visa exempt ( for countries that have been given 30 in the past) be available until EXACTLY 3/31/23 or as the article states " the end of March" the end of March can be March 26 th! 
Thanks again. 
 

Edited September 20, 20223 yr by alex8912

Stupid country will never get anything right! 

So months of discussion and then it’s for a few months only. So exactly how many extra tourists do they think they’ll get for all their debating? 100? 1000? 10,000?

Good thing I didn't book my flights yet!

It won't make an iota of difference.  Most tourists come for a maximum of two weeks.

1 hour ago, Fairynuff said:

So months of discussion and then it’s for a few months only. So exactly how many extra tourists do they think they’ll get for all their debating? 100? 1000? 10,000?

What on earth makes you think they think there will be any more?

If the plan was to shut the whingers up, it didn't work, did it?

45 days, big deal.  If they really wanted tourist money, give all tourists a 6 month visa.

Seems to me, immigration is more interested in generating visa revenue than helping the

Thai economy.

11 minutes ago, koolkarl said:

45 days, big deal.  If they really wanted tourist money, give all tourists a 6 month visa.

Seems to me, immigration is more interested in generating visa revenue than helping the

Thai economy.

Visa exempt doesn't generate visa revenue imho. 

This is a step in the right direction but why not make it permanent? Hopefully, they will decide to do just that as we get closer to the cut off date in March. Or better yet, just give everyone 90 days at the border and make the Tourist Visas 6 months. I wouldn't even mind if they charged double or triple for the TVs to make up for lost revenue. Just make it easier for tourists to come and spend money in Thailand. And remove that crazy rule of 4 Thai staff for 1 work permit. Make Thailand business and investment friendly and play the numbers game instead of trying to squeeze as much money out of as few foreigners as possible. 

4 hours ago, alex8912 said:

can someone FINALLY let all of us know what the exact extension can be for

30 days

And will an extension on the 45 day Permission be available for tourists, and how long/ how many would that be?

11 hours ago, Padthaigoong said:

They have never uttered a word to me in more than 25 trips.

Admitedly most of those were with a tourist visa.

I would be interested to hear what kind of remarks they have made to you.

I agree with you whole heartedly.  There seems to be an element of people on this forum who I would describe as "well balanced".. They have a chip on both shoulders!  Issue of a Visa is a privilege, not an entitlement.  If you are unhappy about the County's Laws, I would suggest that you don't come here - simple!

4 hours ago, alex8912 said:

Again. There is not a single word in this post that states the 45 day visa exempt can be EXTENDED for 30 or 45 more days in country at immigration. One expert mentioned it would be 30 days. But can someone FINALLY let all of us know what the exact extension can be for?  I completely understand that a 30 or 45 day extension at any immigration office can be denied for some reason. My question is can it for SURE at least be attempted for 30 or 45 days more?  Can you please prove it? Thanks! 
Just because the 30 day visa exempt can be extended 30 days does not equal that the 45 day visa exempt can be extended 45 or 30 days. Do you know why? TIT 

 

With TIT in mind. Is this 45 day visa exempt ( for countries that have been given 30 in the past) be available until EXACTLY 3/31/23 or as the article states " the end of March" the end of March can be March 26 th! 
Thanks again. 
 

Do you get that nervous / anxious over every single thing you read??

A step in the right direction, but it comes across as half-baked.

 

They should just change visa exempt to 90 days permanently, same as Malaysia, and get rid of tourist visas and 30-day extensions for tourists. Much simpler and would give visitors more flexibility, without the hassle having to apply for a visa or extension.

3 hours ago, henry213 said:

Stupid country will never get anything right! 

a comment worthy of a teenager

12 hours ago, snoop1130 said:

The extension is, however, only temporary, from October 1st until end of March next year, to coincide with the traditionally tourism high season in Thailand, when more tourists, especially from Europe and the US, are expected to escape the cold weather and head to Thailand.

Just make it permanent.. 

 A lot of westerners here don’t understand that many government officer are, not to put too fine a point on it, far right-wing nationalists and really don’t love foreigners as many believe they should. However, their superiors tell them to allow foreigners in, so there is often a gnashing of teeth at the counter.

The best advice is to smile without looking directly in their eyes, be very polite, call them sir (or madam) and keep smiling until the passport is stamped and returned.

15 to 30 days is pretty good for most people so the way to ensure you get it is to smile until your jaw locks.

 

Edited September 21, 20223 yr by Purdey

11 hours ago, Sparktrader said:

Lucky otherwise people who booked in advance would have to change plans. 6 months makes no sense. They need more tourists in low season!

You're looking for logic, a futile exercise in Thailand. Why do they even want to roll back to 30 days? To what purpose? What benefit can that possibly give to the country. You're only welcome for 30 days, then p**s off.

Well, they did *something.* History does not support giving 90-day or 6-month visas; too many backpackers (like me at the time) used it to work without authorization, and that really bothered the government. 

 

That said... liberalization of the whole Visa process would go a long way towards appealing to a broader demographic. This is not that change. 

22 hours ago, BonMot said:

Thai cabinet approves 45-day stay for tourists entitled to visa exemption and 30 days with Visa on Arrival. Tourists may use this if they can get past the Immigration officer and the multitude of ignorant questions.

 

FTFY

 What does FTFY mean? Nothing wrong with initials for the usual things, but some of these initials are very annoying, just being made up by the poster.

8 hours ago, lkn said:

I doubt white tourists are subjected to any harassment, but two weeks ago someone I know was told she had to pay 10,000 baht as “entry fee”, she managed to get it down to 2,000 baht. They would not allow her to enter Thailand, if she did not pay. This was in Suvarnabhumi, and she did not already have a visa.

I think there is more to this than what you are saying, though it does look like there is some sort of corruption involved. Did the person you know want to enter by visa exempt? From a certain country, or some sort of tourist visa?

I have made many entrances into Thailand in the last 20 years, and never as much as even asked a question.

Edited September 21, 20223 yr by possum1931

5 hours ago, henry213 said:

Stupid country will never get anything right! 

That's what happens when you have a Banana Republic run by soldiers with no more mentality than a person with the low Thai IQ.

2 hours ago, edogthong said:

This is a step in the right direction but why not make it permanent? Hopefully, they will decide to do just that as we get closer to the cut off date in March. Or better yet, just give everyone 90 days at the border and make the Tourist Visas 6 months. I wouldn't even mind if they charged double or triple for the TVs to make up for lost revenue. Just make it easier for tourists to come and spend money in Thailand. And remove that crazy rule of 4 Thai staff for 1 work permit. Make Thailand business and investment friendly and play the numbers game instead of trying to squeeze as much money out of as few foreigners as possible. 

So you think the soldiers will have the mentality to understand that?