Vientiane: Stamp Out, Stamp In

[park]

i have a type 'o' multiple entry visa which requires i am stamped out of thailand then back in again every 90 days.

most recently i spent a couple of nights in vientiane. next time i would prefer not to actually enter laos. ie: get stamped out at the thai side, walk across the road while in "no mans land" and join the queue to get stamped back in again.

i've heard this can be done but has anyone actually had experience of doing it?

cheers

[lopburi3]

You heard wrong. If you do not obtain a Laos stamp you will be arrested for illegal entry into Thailand and deported.

[KireB]

I remember the Mae Sot (or Mai Sot, close to Tak) where I used to pay 500 baht for a Myanmar stamp and could just wait at the border,stamped in and out. This was 3 years ago.

[lopburi3]

You do not have to go to Vientiane but you do have to obtain the entry/exit stamps at the border before you return. It has become enough of an issue that Aranyaprathet Immigration notes it on there web site home page as Cambodia has evidently not been happy to accept some people with overstay stamps and upon return to Thailand without obtaining stamps the traveler is subject to detention.

http://www.aranimmigration.com/eng/main.htm

[jstumbo]

Don't you love it when the government uses the wrong terms for the types entries. They just confuse everybody. On that website they call the 30 day visa exempt entries "30 day on arrival visas". But there already is something that is a visa on arrival. And it is only good for 15 days and not for most western countries.

They then go on later on the page to say that "visa on arrivals" is not possible at the Khlong Luek border pass. I believe here they are actually talking about visa on arrival and not visa exempt stamps. They need to keep their terminology the same or they will confuse everyone.

Not sure what this statement means:

- Visa that have not been obtained by the traveler personally are considered incomplete documents. The passport holder will not be allowed to stay in Thailand according to the visa but only according to the rights of the nationality of the passport holder.

Seems to say that if you use a visa service, your visa would not be valid?

[keg]

Park,

I did just that this morning and it is no problem. You go to the bridge and stamp out of Thailand. If you don't have the exit form still stapled in your passport go ask for one of those and fill out prior to stamping out. Pay 15 baht for the bus across the bridge. On arrival on the other side go to the windows on the left and get your 2 forms to fill out, one for application for Lao visa and the other for entry and exit to Laos. After filling out the application take it along with passport, photo and $35 US or 1500 baht back up to the window. They take it and a short time later they call your name at the window next to it and you get your passport and it will now have the Lao visa in it. Now go to the line and stamp into Laos and will need your passport and entry exit form. After stamping into Laos you will then come to a desk and a 10 baht Laos entry fee will be paid. You are now in Laos. Go out the through the opening in the silver fence where all the drivers are picking up passengers to go into Vientiene and turn to your left and walk about 20 feet and enter the opening in the same fence but now into the exit Laos area. Get stamped out of Laos then buy your 15 baht bus ticket and travel back across the bridge to the Thai side. On arrival back on the Thai side get your new entry exit form and fill it out and get in line and stamp back into Thailand. No problems and takes about 2 hours on the average, this morning it was 1 hour 45 minutes. Bring your own pen.

Craig

[jstumbo]

I did just that this morning and it is no problem.

Craig, what you did is fine. What Park is asking about is just leaving Thailand, but never getting a Laos visa, never going through Laos immigration. Just going from exit immigration of thailand, right back to the inbound immigration of thailand, without every going to laos. This is not possible or legal and will get you in trouble.

[smartecosse]

having just come back from vientiane i can confirm that thai immigration want to see an exit stamp from lao in your passport, if you dont have one they make you go back across and get one

i know this for a fact as the lao side had not stamped our baby's passport for some reason so i had to go back across the bridge and have it stamped before they would let us in