Can I enter Thailand by land from Laos with less than 6 months left on my passport?

I hold a Swedish passport. It expires in March 2013. So, if I try to go from Laos to Thailand (Nong Khai, friendship bridge) in October, you think they will let me pass?

GoGet

It will be much better to get in now. Your trip could be cut short and you could have major trouble if you end up with no permitted entry to Thailand and no visa to stay in Laos having stamped out of there.. Most places do apply the 6 months fairly strictly.

Edited September 17, 201213 yr by harrry

MIn. validity six months..mate..

Yes you can enter Thailand with less than 6 months validity on your Passport.

As long as your intended stay does not exceed your Passport expiry date.

chuang is wrong, litebeer is right-this reqrmt was lifted about 2-3 yrs ago-thats too short for most TV-users to get updated.

BUT; you should-to have gotten a better respionse-have told us how ong it would still be valid- as LAOS does take these 6 monthes seriously-so you might have the trouble before at another border.

I had this problem a couple of years ago, with definitely no time to get a new passport. The local embassy took the passport, stamped in a 30 day visa valid for 3 months and returned it in the same day. Sterling service, and on a weekend, too.

So if you go to the Thai embassy and explain that you won't have time to change the passport, then you should be OK, but you'd better make a window to get a new one or you'll end up in all sorts of mess.

I just went thru the same thing and was told that Laos requires you to have 6 months left on your passport to ENTER the country but Thailand did not so I don't think you'll have a problem leaving Laos or entering Thailand, but might have a problem if you fly international as the Airlines can be sticky on that.

Laos is strict on applying that 6month rule.

To enter Thailand is no problem if your passport is less than 6month valid.

Yes you can enter Thailand with less than 6 months validity on your Passport.

As long as your intended stay does not exceed your Passport expiry date.

That is not what I was told by Mae Sot Immigration when I asked about passport validity. They said minimum 6 months for any type of entry.

chuang is wrong, litebeer is right-this reqrmt was lifted about 2-3 yrs ago-thats too short for most TV-users to get updated.

BUT; you should-to have gotten a better respionse-have told us how ong it would still be valid- as LAOS does take these 6 monthes seriously-so you might have the trouble before at another border.

Your wrong mate, it's minimum 6 months. I got stopped last year at heathrow, had checked in and got through to the gate where they checked passport again, I had 5 months 3 weeks validity and had forgot all about my passport that was soon to be expired. Had to go get a new passport next day and BA got us on following evenings flight, we were only going for a month, in the doghouse with the mrs and felt like right berk..

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This is this year and poster is correct - the requirement for entry into Thailand is passport valid for intended period of stay. You can check this yourself on airline sites linked to IATA database information.

http://www.staralliance.com/en/services/visa-and-health/

Passport required.

- Nationals of United Kingdom can enter with passports and/or

passport replacing documents valid for the period of

intended stay.

Thanks for the info lop and lets hope all immigration officers know that too because the one who told me 6 months minimum obviously didn't.

Best to be safe imho opinion rather than risk being stranded in nomansland between checkpoints.

I think its the airline that makes you have 6 months left before travel

You can check this yourself on airline sites linked to IATA database information.

http://www.delta.com...ation/index.jsp

Is that correct link anymore? Can not find that old version what I used.

It appears Delta no longer wants to pay for this service and is sending you to a commercial site with very poor information rather than using TimaticWeb 2 as before. The below airlines still offer this service.

http://www.staralliance.com/en/services/visa-and-health/

http://www.gulfair.com/English/info/prepare/Pages/VisaInformation.aspx

http://www.aerosvit.ua/eng/index/usflinfonew/impinfonew/visanew.html

If you are only entering on a two week stamp, maybe even a single TR and especially if you have a ticket out, I would not worry. After that - who knows...