Return Ticket Necessary

[Greaver]

Hello.

I rang my local Thai Embassy to enquire about a tourist visa but at the time I was not 100% sure about my final plans. They told me as long as you have 6 months remaining on your passport you will not need to have proof of leaving the country to receive a free 30day visa on entry. Is this the case or will I need to still have a ticket for a flight out of Thailand on me when I try and clear customs?

Thanks.

[Jingthing]

What country are you flying in from? The problem is being allowed on the airplane in the first place, NOT being allowed into Thailand and given a 30 day stamp if/when you arrive. The short answer is YES you need a ticket out of Thailand within 30 days of arrival to be allowed on the airplane to Thailand. If you were lucky enough to make it to Thailand without a ticket out or a visa, there would indeed be no problem getting your 30 day stamp.

[Greaver]

What country are you flying in from? The problem is being allowed on the airplane in the first place, NOT being allowed into Thailand and given a 30 day stamp if/when you arrive. The short answer is YES you need a ticket out of Thailand within 30 days of arrival to be allowed on the airplane to Thailand. If you were lucky enough to make it to Thailand without a ticket out or a visa, there would indeed be no problem getting your 30 day stamp.

Flying in from the UK. So the ticket desk at Gatwick won't let me check in without the outbound ticket? Right looks like I need to buy a ticket.

[guavagirl]

The best thing to do is to get a 60 tourist visa at the Thai Embassy in your country before you leave. With this you should not have a problem getting on any flight....Tourist visa's are free at the moment.

[Jingthing]

What country are you flying in from? The problem is being allowed on the airplane in the first place, NOT being allowed into Thailand and given a 30 day stamp if/when you arrive. The short answer is YES you need a ticket out of Thailand within 30 days of arrival to be allowed on the airplane to Thailand. If you were lucky enough to make it to Thailand without a ticket out or a visa, there would indeed be no problem getting your 30 day stamp.

Flying in from the UK. So the ticket desk at Gatwick won't let me check in without the outbound ticket? Right looks like I need to buy a ticket.

Yeah, the UK will be a problem. There is always the chance of having an incompetent/super busy airport agent who doesn't check but most people wouldn't want to take that gamble. Your other choice of course is to get a visa. The reason I asked which country is that I have a feeling that neighboring countries to Thailand may be more liberal about this.

[Greaver]

The best thing to do is to get a 60 tourist visa at the Thai Embassy in your country before you leave. With this you should not have a problem getting on any flight....Tourist visa's are free at the moment.

Won't have time to get a visa now as I'm flying on Thursday and in transit on Tuesday. So I'll buy an airasia ticket out to Malaysia. Penang has an embassy I believe or KL. I'm meeting people and their plans are all so fluid so getting any details off them have been a challenge.

[buckhumyai]

Flown to Thailand on one way tickets plenty of times. In theory you need a return ticket but it is never enforced, certainly not in Australia. In fact I am here on a one way now as is my family.

[Mario2008]

Without a visa you need a return ticket, if you have a visa (including a tourist visa) you don't need a return ticket.

The enforcement is largely left to the airline and most major airlines do check very strictly. Regarding Australia, I have seen enough reports of people being denied boarding because they didn't have a return ticket. They had to buy a ticket out of Thailand first, before they were allowed boarding.

[Thongkorn]

also it is more expensive to buy an Air ticket in Thailand than the UK ,

[Mario2008]

also it is more expensive to buy an Air ticket in Thailand than the UK ,

I can't speak for the UK, but normally it is cheaper to buy a ticket in Thailand than in Europe.