Thailand’s tourism growth has been linked to a rise in foreign travellers becoming homeless in Bangkok, with charities reporting more stranded visitors unable to return home after losing access to money. An investigation published by “The Disclosed” on June 24, 2026, highlighted a growing humanitarian challenge involving tourists affected by scams, job losses and poor financial preparation.

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The Bangkok Community Help Foundation said it had assisted around 45 homeless foreign nationals over an eight-month period. The figure only includes people who requested help or were referred by foreign embassies, with support groups warning that the actual number may be higher.

Many affected travellers arrive in Thailand attracted by visa-free entry policies and the country’s affordable lifestyle. Friso Poldervaart, co-founder of the Bangkok Community Help Foundation, said some visitors arrive without enough savings, insurance protection or a return ticket.

“The entry restrictions in Thailand are a little bit too lax at the moment. It’s very easy to enter for a long time. They’re not asking for a return ticket and insurance, plus usually doesn’t ask whether you have enough funds. A lot of people come completely unprepared,” Poldervaart said.

Picture courtesy of The Nation

The Issarachon Foundation said many stranded foreigners became homeless after falling victim to romance scams or cryptocurrency fraud. In some cases, international banks froze their accounts after detecting suspicious activity, requiring customers to appear in person in their home countries before funds could be released.

Without access to money, some travellers cannot afford flights home and overstay their visas. Once undocumented, they are unable to legally work, rent accommodation or access public healthcare services.

Adchara Saravari, Secretary-General of the Issarachon Foundation, said the trend was a new challenge for government authorities. She also highlighted cases involving retirees who sold assets in their home countries to settle in Thailand but later lost their financial security.

The Centre of Dreams shelter, operated by the Bangkok Community Help Foundation, has become a support centre for stranded foreigners as well as Thai citizens. It currently assists people from countries including Germany, the United States and Japan.

One resident, identified as “Jane”, a 57-year-old American whose real name was changed for privacy reasons, said she faced homelessness after losing her remote counselling job three to four weeks after arriving in Thailand. She had previously worked on Wall Street and spent five years working online before moving abroad.

“Right before I found Centre of Dreams, I wasn’t really thinking I was going to make it,” Jane said. She described suffering from malnutrition and dehydration before receiving help.

Support organisations said there is no formal social safety net for non-citizens in Thailand. They continue coordinating with families, airlines and foreign consulates to arrange assistance and repatriation, while embassies often have limited authority and funding to provide free flights.

The Nation reported that as Thailand continues promoting international tourism, charities and advocates are calling for greater cooperation between Thai authorities, foreign governments and diplomatic agencies to address cases involving stranded visitors.

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11 July 2026

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12 minutes ago, Georgealbert said:

One resident, identified as “Jane”, a 57-year-old American whose real name was changed for privacy reasons, said she faced homelessness after losing her remote counselling job three to four weeks after arriving in Thailand. She had previously worked on Wall Street and spent five years working online before moving abroad.

“Right before I found Centre of Dreams, I wasn’t really thinking I was going to make it,” Jane said. She described suffering from malnutrition and dehydration before receiving help

It sounds like she was living from one paycheck to the next.

No back up plan can be dangerous. If it looks to be to good to be true, it probably is. Poor planning. We have been living in Thailand for 15 years, retired from the US and living on our retirement income from the US. You must plan when you move to a foreign country.

"In some cases, international banks froze their accounts after detecting suspicious activity, requiring customers to appear in person in their home countries before funds could be released."

This is the really scary one. The banks are free to act as judge and jury with little or no regard to the owner of the account.

Supposing a bank froze an account thus requiring the owner of the account to appear in person. Would the bank accept costs incurred in the event of said suspicions proving to be groundless?

The answer to that is "of course they wouldn't"

The wording "suspicious activity" is actually "unusual activity" which means unexpected withdrawals. So for example, if you have an expensive car repair bill to pay using your Thai bank account which you then need to top up from your home country bank, this could be deemed to be unusual activity.

I don't have a high opinion of banks.

Easy to fix these problems: scrap the DTV visa, and soon those losers will have to look for another place or stay home, looking for a proper job.

But unfortunately it would affect their

"Work-life -balance".

So sad💔

So they don't have any family that can send some money , or plane ticket ?

How is this a crisis? They're easily identified as they're not hiding in some apartment. Pick up, process, deport.

Just now, FlorC said:

So they don't have any family that can send some money , or plane ticket ?

Or they don't know how to set up a #gofundme😂. Ask people who are experienced😁

21 minutes ago, pchansmorn said:

No back up plan can be dangerous. If it looks to be to good to be true, it probably is. Poor planning. We have been living in Thailand for 15 years, retired from the US and living on our retirement income from the US. You must plan when you move to a foreign country.

22 minutes ago, pchansmorn said:

No back up plan can be dangerous. If it looks to be to good to be true, it probably is. Poor planning. We have been living in Thailand for 15 years, retired from the US and living on our retirement income from the US. You must plan when you move to a foreign country.

I did and still got f'ed over. I've been battling this for 13 years.

10 minutes ago, FlorC said:

So they don't have any family that can send some money , or plane ticket ?

Get real ... not everyone does.

The bank thing happened to me.

At least the bank contacted me and communicated before they froze my account

It cost me a lot in phone calls and solicitor fees here Thailand.

And caused was >

I asked my bank in my home country bank if I could use my home country bank to transfer money to my bank account in Thailand.

That is what caused it.

I have been with that bank for 50 years and have been living in Thailand for 16 years.

So be aware. It can be quite scary when it happens and it doesn't take much.

Edited July 11Jul 11 by Deerculler

The first lesson to learn before arriving in Thailand is that most Thai people worship money more than they worship anything else.

33 minutes ago, FlorC said:

So they don't have any family that can send some money , or plane ticket ?

All my family and friends are dead, at age 70 I'm the last man standing.

Some mental probblems could be involved ? 🤔

Edited July 11Jul 11 by OneManShow

6 minutes ago, BritManToo said:

All my family and friends are dead, at age 70 I'm the last man standing.

Someone get this guy a comfy lounge chair!

10 minutes ago, OneManShow said:

Some mental probblems could be involved ? 🤔

Almost certainly the case.

If there is was thing that can absolutely save your a** in any dire emergency , it is a credit card from your bank back home.

I seldom use mine , just enough so that it is not withdrawn from lack of use. I keep it in a very safe place and it seldom sees the light of day.

This one thing is more than enough to cover a ticket home , some accomodation and evenlow rate medical bills. I don't need it but it a great comfort that it is available in an emergency.

This is another major problem being caused by all these pesky, dirty foreigners.

Around 45 homeless foreign nationals over an eight-month period, which gives an annual total of around 68 people.

Assuming that there are 31,000,000 visitors during the year, it gives an alarming rate of 0.000219354%. Absolutely disgusting! 😉

The last thing Thailand needs is to import the pathetic Western victim culture.

"I am poor, I am helpless, I have no job. Give me money, give me a flat, give me food, give me a motability BMW! It's my right."

The road to hell is paved with good intentions.

1 hour ago, Muhendis said:

"In some cases, international banks froze their accounts after detecting suspicious activity, requiring customers to appear in person in their home countries before funds could be released."

This is the really scary one. The banks are free to act as judge and jury with little or no regard to the owner of the account.

Supposing a bank froze an account thus requiring the owner of the account to appear in person. Would the bank accept costs incurred in the event of said suspicions proving to be groundless?

The answer to that is "of course they wouldn't"

The wording "suspicious activity" is actually "unusual activity" which means unexpected withdrawals. So for example, if you have an expensive car repair bill to pay using your Thai bank account which you then need to top up from your home country bank, this could be deemed to be unusual activity.

I don't have a high opinion of banks.

I, too, have a low opinion of banks, but don’t forget that they act on the instructions of their government. From my own experience, I can tell you that the government in the Netherlands is one of the worst in this regard: all transactions exceeding 300 euros that are not declared – and are therefore considered suspicious – must be investigated.

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Hello embassy, here is your citizen. Not allowed to live as homeless person in the Kingdom, they are not a citizen here. You need to send them home to your country to deal with this person's living status.

I wonder what percentage of these guys got scammed by expert women who knew exactly what to say and exactly what strings to pull?

I always advise guys before coming here to read a few of the books on Thai romance scams.

The secondary aspect of this is that Thailand has been so obsessed with the numbers that they've lowered the visa standards to the point where they're attracting truly the bottom of the barrel, when it comes to tourism and this is just one of the many repercussions.

I've always said quantity over quality only works if you're selling $2 items at a swap meet, the intellectually challenged Thai officials have no understanding of this concept. Their CJQ (creative juice quotient) is under 3.

Edited July 11Jul 11 by spidermike007

43 minutes ago, trucking said:

If there is was thing that can absolutely save your a** in any dire emergency , it is a credit card from your bank back home.

I seldom use mine , just enough so that it is not withdrawn from lack of use. I keep it in a very safe place and it seldom sees the light of day.

This one thing is more than enough to cover a ticket home , some accomodation and evenlow rate medical bills. I don't need it but it a great comfort that it is available in an emergency.

Nah.

20000 us dollars work best.

Credit card is second.

Ps Having both is the best.

Edited July 11Jul 11 by rocketboy2

11 minutes ago, Peterphuket said:

I, too, have a low opinion of banks, but don’t forget that they act on the instructions of their government. From my own experience, I can tell you that the government in the Netherlands is one of the worst in this regard: all transactions exceeding 300 euros that are not declared – and are therefore considered suspicious – must be investigated.

The government instructions are probably along the lines of :-

"if a bank gives an account holders money to the wrong person the the bank will be held liable for the account holders loss."

That works fine if the account holder lives near the bank but if the account holders address is thousands of miles from the bank your on your own.

7 hours ago, Effective altruism said:

It sounds like she was living from one paycheck to the next.

This is how most people live, not only in Thailand, but also in the USA, for example.

2 hours ago, pchansmorn said:

No back up plan can be dangerous. If it looks to be to good to be true, it probably is. Poor planning. We have been living in Thailand for 15 years, retired from the US and living on our retirement income from the US. You must plan when you move to a foreign country.

Thailandtourism packages

Agree, planning is wisest. For myself, things are currently fine in my 16th year retired in the Kingdom but ... While not obsessing there remains a threat to mu US earned social Security. The system I retired from changed the Medicare Advantage carrier and I think not help there. Further the same system has changed the 403(b) plan investments and I am now concerned on that retirement investment matter. Point being, "the best laid plans of mice and men often go agley" - R. Burns

2 hours ago, Muhendis said:

I don't have a high opinion of banks.

Banks are only slightly trailing insurance companies on the spectrum of useless, deplorable pond scum.

1 hour ago, Deerculler said:

The bank thing happened to me.

At least the bank contacted me and communicated before they froze my account

It cost me a lot in phone calls and solicitor fees here Thailand.

And caused was >

I asked my bank in my home country bank if I could use my home country bank to transfer money to my bank account in Thailand.

That is what caused it.

I have been with that bank for 50 years and have been living in Thailand for 16 years.

So be aware. It can be quite scary when it happens and it doesn't take much.

1 hour ago, Deerculler said:

The bank thing happened to me.

At least the bank contacted me and communicated before they froze my account

It cost me a lot in phone calls and solicitor fees here Thailand.

And caused was >

I asked my bank in my home country bank if I could use my home country bank to transfer money to my bank account in Thailand.

That is what caused it.

I have been with that bank for 50 years and have been living in Thailand for 16 years.

So be aware. It can be quite scary when it happens and it doesn't take much.

A current related issue for me. System I retired from is changing investments in my 403 (b). Call investment company, how to remove past employer control over funds? Can do a "rollover" into an individual IRA. OK, let's do it. Uh, sorry you are resident outside USA so we cannot do it, you have to be resident in USA (which, of course I cannot afford). Catch 22 situation ...

1 hour ago, trucking said:

If there is was thing that can absolutely save your a** in any dire emergency , it is a credit card from your bank back home.

Mmm.... not necessarily.

Mine froze my card when I tried to buy a Bangkok Airways ticket online.

Also, their 2-factor authentication is antiquated. They have no option to set up a mobile phone authenticator app.

Idiots!