Thailand launches THIM app for foreign visitors

Thailand's Immigration Bureau has officially launched the THIM app, a digital platform intended to bring immigration and travel services for foreign nationals into one place.

The application, available since 1 August 2026 through the App Store, Google Play Store and Huawei AppGallery, currently gives users access to the Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) and travel promotions. It has recorded more than 600,000 downloads and over 580,000 users, or 97.2% of total downloads, according to the bureau.

Pol Lt Gen Panumas Boonyalug, commissioner of the Immigration Bureau, said rising visitor numbers were placing pressure on the capacity of airports and border checkpoints. The bureau, which operates under the Royal Thai Police, is using digital technology to simplify procedures while maintaining national security.

He said the goal was to make entering and staying in Thailand "more convenient, faster, safer, and more seamless" for foreign nationals.

More immigration services are planned

For now, the TDAC remains available through the Immigration Bureau's website, but THIM offers another way for travellers to complete and submit the digital arrival card before their journey.

This is the immediate practical benefit for tourists and short-term visitors: the app provides a single channel for the required arrival-card process alongside travel information and promotions.

For expats and longer-stay visitors, the more significant changes are still planned rather than available. The Immigration Bureau expects eventually to add queue bookings, certificates of stay, visa extensions, 90-day reporting and visa-on-arrival services at authorised immigration checkpoints.

If introduced as outlined, those functions could reduce the need to use separate online systems or attend an immigration office for some routine processes. Travellers should nevertheless continue to follow current Immigration Bureau requirements until individual THIM services are formally activated.

Identity checks and personal-data protection

The bureau said THIM has been designed with data accuracy and security as central features. It can read passport information and electronic passport chips through Near Field Communication (NFC), and uses liveness detection and facial comparison for identity verification and authentication.

Its stated safeguards include encryption while information is transmitted and stored, the separation of biometric details from other personal data, access controls and activity logging.

Personal information is protected under Thailand's Personal Data Protection Act BE 2562 (2019) and other applicable laws, the bureau said. The application uses Amazon Web Services through the AWS Asia Pacific (Bangkok) Region, with measures covering threat detection, monitoring, encryption and communications between systems.

Travel offers through Explore Thailand

THIM's Explore Thailand feature links users to participating businesses offering coupons and privileges, redeemable by QR code or promotion code under each company's terms and conditions.

Launch partners included The Mall Group, GrabTaxi (Thailand), Wipay, True Corporation, The Minor Food Group, Minor International and Bangkok Dusit Medical Services. The bureau plans to broaden the feature to include details of attractions, accommodation and activities.

More information is available from the Immigration Bureau at www.immigration.go.th.

Pictures courtesy of The Nation

Related story

Thailand-tests-THIM-app-for-foreign-arrivals

Join the discussion?

26 September 2026

View full article