60 DAY VISA-FREE IS NOW CUT TO 30 DAYS

We all knew it was coming.

Read the article... Guess the actual date it is implemented is still to be determined.

10 minutes ago, DrJack54 said:

We all knew it was coming.

Read the article... Guess the actual date it is implemented is still to be determined.

Could be some time, there's a committee working on it......"Further announcements and further details are expected once the committee completes its country-by-country review."

good news 👏

12 minutes ago, Mentors65 said:

good news 👏

why?
wont solve the assh@les arriving
actually for embassies its is good news as now they can get more revenue selling the 60 day tourist visa again

Edited May 19May 19 by zzzzz

Im sure many on 60 days visa +extensions get stressed noe.

Pretty sure this "country-by-country review" is a load of BS. They're just going to revert to the old list pre July 2024. The only review they are going to do is if the special dispensation they made for China to move them from Visa on Arrival to Visa Exempt separately should be revoked.

Does that mean Indians may go back to Visa on Arrival? And the Chinese?

I will be interested to see what they decide as there are competing factors pulling in opposite directions for both these huge leviathans of the "tourist" industry.

4 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

Does that mean Indians may go back to Visa on Arrival? And the Chinese?

I will be interested to see what they decide as there are competing factors pulling in opposite directions for both these huge leviathans of the "tourist" industry.

The most recent report says they are reducing the Visa on Arrival list to 4 countries. I'll believe it when I see it. But yes, India was only added to visa exempt in the July 2024 change, so it would not remain as visa exempt if the list is reverted.

China was made visa exempt completely separately from the July 2024 change, so the status of China on the new list will remain to be seen pending final regulations.

12 minutes ago, Briggsy said:

Does that mean Indians may go back to Visa on Arrival?

If they don't even remove the visa exempt privilege from the beach-camping Indians, these entire changes are basically useless.

This move is utter tosh.

The criminal, disruptive and illegal types don't give a damn if they're stamped in for 60 or 30 days. They have no intention of honoring either. Once they're through the gate they're in and that's it - they're off to the races for as long as they feel like.

The problem is enforcement. It's effectively non-existent.

15 hours ago, zzzzz said:

why?
wont solve the assh@les arriving
actually for embassies its is good news as now they can get more revenue selling the 60 day tourist visa again

Will not change anything. The vast majority of the crap are locals anyway. Then looking at the rest it's long term bums... oh I mean expats... or 1-2 week blowout visitors. The most decent people overall in Thailand are snowbirds who come from 3-5 months, which oddly enough this change will affect the most.

14 hours ago, BrandonJT said:

Pretty sure this "country-by-country review" is a load of BS. They're just going to revert to the old list pre July 2024. The only review they are going to do is if the special dispensation they made for China to move them from Visa on Arrival to Visa Exempt separately should be revoked.

Unofficial list

Entry eligibility by country

The following is an unofficial list from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of applicable tourist entry eligibility by country after the abolition of 60-day visa exemptions:

54 countries and territories granted 30-day visa exemption:

Europe: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom.

Asia and Oceania: Australia, Bhutan, Brunei, Georgia, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, Turkey.

Middle East: Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates.

Americas: Canada, United States.

Africa: South Africa.

Three countries eligible for a 15-day visa exemption: Seychelles, Maldives, Mauritius.

Four countries (reduced from 31) eligible for visa on arrival: Azerbaijan, Belarus, Serbia, India.

Bilateral agreements

14-day visa exemption: Myanmar (air arrivals only), Cambodia.

30-day visa exemption: China, Hong Kong, Macau, Laos, Mongolia, Russia, Kazakhstan, Timor-Leste, Vietnam.

90-day visa exemption: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, South Korea.

from the bangkok post

17 hours ago, DrJack54 said:

We all knew it was coming.

Read the article... Guess the actual date it is implemented is still to be determined.

And, IMHO, it makes totale sense. I am surprise that they don't limit visa free to one or two entries a year, as they [rightly] want to eliminate visaless long stays.

Edited May 20May 20 by Peter Crow

39 minutes ago, Peter Crow said:

I am surprise that they don't limit visa free to one or two entries a year, as they [rightly] want to eliminate visaless long stays.

For sure.

Would eliminate all the cat and mouse games at airports for folks entering "few times" Visa exempt.

It would be so easy to make simple definitive rules.... Such as X visa exempt per year etc OR Max # of visa exempt days per certain period.

But hey io wouldn't be able to ask..

"Why you come Thailand many time"

" You spend too much time in Thailand "

2 hours ago, zzzzz said:

Unofficial list

Entry eligibility by country

Europe: Austria, Belgium, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Ukraine, United Kingdom.

Looks like Romania finally got upgraded to visa exempt after so many years.

2 hours ago, Peter Crow said:

And, IMHO, it makes totale sense. I am surprise that they don't limit visa free to one or two entries a year, as they [rightly] want to eliminate visaless long stays.

That wouldn't make any sense. The number of entries you do has nothing to do with long stays. There are people who work in the region who visit for a week or so every month when they have some time off. That's only about 3 months total. If they were only allowed to enter 2 times they would be limited to 2 weeks total.

It should always be about the amount of time spent in Thailand, not the number of entries. Set a firm number of days people are allowed inside Thailand as tourists, and then don't let them in again if they will exceed that by entering, or if they've already exceeded it and try to enter again.

Per below linked Bkk Post article, it seems that they indeed want to limit visa excempt entries to two per year.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/3257808/thai-visa-exemptions-cut-by-cabinet

I do not see that much issues with it, under one important condition, and that it should be sufficiently easy to get yourself a multiple entry visa fitting for your purpose.

So for starters, they should bring back the multiple entry non immigrant visa's, both retirement and familly (married/children) ones.

They used to be available in multiple entry, now not anymore, not sure when they stopped those, maybe in 2024 with the introduction of the 60 day excempt?

Applying now through the e-visa platform already makes thinks way easier to get a visa, no mre getting to an embassy or consulate needed in the majority of the cases.

That would then cover a few of the frequent visitors, like mentioned above, people working in certain industries (dredging, oil & gas, FIFO workers down under, ...), many of whom come over for short periods but very often (as mentioned in a post above).

The METV also only has 6 months validity, so at least two needed per year for frequent visitors, starts to get a tad expensive and cumbersome.

It's al good limiting entries, but then you have to be able to sufficiently easily accomodate genuine frequent visitors. Not everybody is married to a Thai national or retired, many in O&G or in FIFO jobs are on something like a 6 week work, 2 weeks off rotation, usually very good spenders, you do want to make it easy for them as well, if needed with some extra checks such as financials, for that group surely not an isuue!

Edited May 20May 20 by pdebuck456

6 hours ago, pdebuck456 said:

Per below linked Bkk Post article, it seems that they indeed want to limit visa excempt entries to two per year.

https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/3257808/thai-visa-exemptions-cut-by-cabinet

I do not see that much issues with it, under one important condition, and that it should be sufficiently easy to get yourself a multiple entry visa fitting for your purpose.

So for starters, they should bring back the multiple entry non immigrant visa's, both retirement and familly (married/children) ones.

They used to be available in multiple entry, now not anymore, not sure when they stopped those, maybe in 2024 with the introduction of the 60 day excempt?

Applying now through the e-visa platform already makes thinks way easier to get a visa, no mre getting to an embassy or consulate needed in the majority of the cases.

That would then cover a few of the frequent visitors, like mentioned above, people working in certain industries (dredging, oil & gas, FIFO workers down under, ...), many of whom come over for short periods but very often (as mentioned in a post above).

The METV also only has 6 months validity, so at least two needed per year for frequent visitors, starts to get a tad expensive and cumbersome.

It's al good limiting entries, but then you have to be able to sufficiently easily accomodate genuine frequent visitors. Not everybody is married to a Thai national or retired, many in O&G or in FIFO jobs are on something like a 6 week work, 2 weeks off rotation, usually very good spenders, you do want to make it easy for them as well, if needed with some extra checks such as financials, for that group surely not an isuue!

The wording they are using still is not clear.

"Under the draft of the new regulations, individuals entering Thailand for a third time within a calendar year after using their two full-stay privileges would be denied entry immediately."

What does two FULL-STAY privileges mean? Meaning they stayed for 30 full days? Or they stayed for 30 days and also got a 30-day extension? Or does it just mean that they entered? Clear as mud, as usual for Thailand.

9 minutes ago, BrandonJT said:

The wording they are using still is not clear.

"Under the draft of the new regulations, individuals entering Thailand for a third time within a calendar year after using their two full-stay privileges would be denied entry immediately."

What does two FULL-STAY privileges mean? Meaning they stayed for 30 full days? Or they stayed for 30 days and also got a 30-day extension? Or does it just mean that they entered? Clear as mud, as usual for Thailand.

Yeah, clear as mud, and not just for the foreigners, but also for the immigration officers.

Then you get the side effect that every entry point starts to interpret the rules as they see fit.

8 minutes ago, BrandonJT said:

What does two FULL-STAY privileges mean? Meaning they stayed for 30 full days? Or they stayed for 30 days and also got a 30-day extension? Or does it just mean that they entered? Clear as mud, as usual for Thailand

Yep I was on that page.

I took it as 30 day + extension + another visa exempt exempt entry + extension = 4 months.

Your point earlier is valid.

Many folk eg Singapore visit for weekends a 2 entry limit would be ridiculous.

Reward for honest travelers: EU opens its doors to Thailand with a new cascade system

The European Commission has officially given the green light to the so-called EU visa cascade system for Thai nationals residing in their home country.

This decision marks a historic milestone in relations between Thailand and the European Union and promises a significant reduction in bureaucracy.

The measure, adopted on May 8, 2026, is effective immediately for Thai passport holders applying for a short-term Schengen visa at embassies or consulates within Thailand.

The stated goal of the initiative is to drastically simplify travel to Europe. Those who can demonstrate a verifiable, legitimate travel history will benefit from visas with significantly longer validity and multiple entry permits. For frequent travelers, this means the end of repetitive, expensive, and stressful application processes.

Source:

https://www.schoenes-thailand.at/2026/05/18/belohnung-fuer-ehrliche-reisende-eu-oeffnet-mit-neuem-kaskadensystem-die-tore-fuer-thailand/

If Europe had as strict a visa and immigration policy as Thailand, human rights activists and others would resort to roadblocks in Europe.

How long can they stay European tourists in Thailand without a visa?

And how long can Thais stay in Europe without a visa?

Is it fair?

Edited May 20May 20 by Paris333

On 5/20/2026 at 12:15 PM, BrandonJT said:

Looks like Romania finally got upgraded to visa exempt after so many years.

But no mention of Bulgaria anywhere on these lists, though!

It's really going to affect the 31 visa on arrival countries that are now cut down to just 4 meaning the rest of the countries formerly on that list have to buy a visa from the Thai consulate online before they come here.

On 5/20/2026 at 10:27 PM, DrJack54 said:

Many folk eg Singapore visit for weekends a 2 entry limit would be ridiculous.

They wouldn't be using their full stay allocation if just entering for weekends.

The article goes on to state;

Under the draft of the new regulations, individuals entering Thailand for a third time within a calendar year after using their two full-stay privileges would be denied entry immediately, unless they are from exempted countries such as Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Singapore.

Please credit and share this article with others using this link: https://www.bangkokpost.com/business/general/3257808/thai-visa-exemptions-cut-by-cabinet. View our policies at http://goo.gl/9HgTd and http://goo.gl/ou6Ip. © Bangkok Post PCL. All rights reserved.

60 DAY VISA-FREE IS NOW CUT TO 30 DAYS

Lucky we even have that, reading the stuff below

https://thethaiger.com/

I can understand as no tourist has 60 days holiday.

But to make a intelligent step, the Non O retirement visa that is given for 3 months, would be far better to be given on similar criteria but valid for 4 months and with no absurd 90 day reporting. Make some smart decisions if you want to get back the biggest spenders in Thailand who are the western retirees and who own homes. And stop all the fuss and hassle during the visa processing as most people from western europe have compulsory health insurance that pays for bills abroad

Not to forget that the French, the Swiss or the Germans etc.... usually have extra travel insurance for emergency repatriation back to their homelands in case of an issue. Unlike the Brits or Americans. Sorry.

Thank you so much. 🙏

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by Sigmund