Entering Thailand on Tourist Visas multiple times in one year

[BW87]

Hello everyone,

I am new here and have some questions about entering Thailand on a Tourist Visa multiple times in one year. I am from The Netherlands.

I have searched the website and the forum but was unable to find answers to my questions. My apologies if the information is already out there, if this is the case then please close this topic.

So far this year, I have entered Thailand 3 times already and got a visa on arrival all 3 times. There are also multiple entry stamps (about 2 full pages) already in my passport, dating from 2012 until now. All standard visa on arrival.

- March 2015: entered by plane from Vietnam and got 30 days of stay

- April 2015: entered by land from Myanmar and got 15 days of stay

- June 2015: entered by land from Laos and got 15 days of stay

Never had any problems or questions asked so far.

Obviously they were not visa runs or consecutive entries. There's a few weeks between each of them where I was visiting neighbouring countries.

What is bothering me is the following. A local friend from Bangkok told me there is a new law, which was apparently implemented about 2 months ago. The law states that any foreigner can only enter Thailand 3 times a year, and then has to wait 12 months until being allowed entrance again.

I have already entered the country 3 times this year, but I am planning to come back at least 2 more times (probably in July and September, again between visiting other countries).

I have never worked in Thailand nor do I intend to. I'm just traveling long term in the South East Asia area and like Thailand as sort of a "home base" from which to travel to other countries.

Is it true that there is such a law, and if so, are they really enforcing it? (I know Thailand has a history of implementing laws like this but the immigration officers tend to not care about it and let you in anyway)

I know they don't want people to work illegally on a tourist visa. I have no intention to do so, but I understand my passport might look suspicious because it's already full of Thailand stamps (although most of them are 1-3 years old and none of them consecutive).

Do you think they will refuse to let me enter the country a 4th and 5th time, or will I be fine? Might it be wise to get a Tourist Visa beforehand at the local Thai Embassy in another country, instead of going for the visa on arrival and taking the risk of being denied entrance?

[Mario2008]

There is no 3 times in a year rule. But immigration put persons frequently travelling to Thailand on visa exempt entries increasingly under scrutiny and tell frequent travelers to get a proper tourist visa.

People are rarely denied entry, mostly only warned to get a tourist visa next time. Next time they then can ask you for a ticket out within 30 days and to show the required amount of cash and deny you entry if you cannot show it.

[nzexpat]

Seems as though completely unnecessary risk is being taken .

There is no "law" but those thought to be abusing the visa exempt entry are being actively scrutinised .

Obtain an appropriate visa from a Thai Embassy / Consult .......................

[JDGRUEN]

OP - unless it is an absolute problem in getting a tourist visa - then get one ...

You can fly (from wherever you are originating) and go to Vientiane, Laos... and get a one or a two entry tourist visa.. With 30 day extensions - good for 90 or 180 days ... 60 + 30 or 2 times that...

Or go to Bali, get a 3 entry Tourist Visa... 3 x 90 (60+30) x 3 = approximately 270 days depending on timing.

Or even get to Panang, Malaysia - Single Entry Tourist Visa...

Or get a tourist visa in your home country ...

[Jeff Bangkok]

Your friend is correct but had the number of entries wrong. I just entered Thailand for my sixth time in one year. I do not live here or work here and have never had any intentions of living here full time. I did have some retina surgery in Thailand and have been coming back to let the original doctor do the follow up.

Returning from a weekend tourist trip from Cambodia, I suddenly was called aside and handed to a supervisor who immediately started quizzing me with questions like "do you have a girlfriend in Thailand?". It was late and I was tired, and I as I explained the eye surgery I took my passport out of her hand and flipped to the medical visa that had been granted in July of 2014. She studied that carefully, and then asked if I had a current letter from the doctor (I did not). She admonished me for not having the letter, but based on the medical visa decided to let me back in after reviewing my ins and outs and seeing that I did not even stay through half of the granted medical visa.

She did tell me that there was a new law and the computer now flags your sixth entry within 12 months and requires the immigration agent to turn you over to a supervisor for questioning. She also told me I needed a different visa other than a tourist visa on my next entry.

[plaloma]

I've been on tourist visa for the last five or six years as I am living and not working (at that time, now on visa non and never had any problems. As long as the embassy or consulate delivers you a visa you can come in Thailand as much as you want. Some embassy (like Singapore) are more strict with visa application like you can't apply for a visa if the last visa you applied for was less than 6 months ago. But if you go in embassies or consulate in Penang, Savannakhet or Kota Barhu, they give you tourist visa non question asked. Hope that helps.

[barryw52]

So your entering on Visa exemption not on a tourist visa. From what i can tell on the 6 entry you will be called aside and question and it likely to be your last entry but not sure if its just in that year only or for 12 months. As other have advised you can easily get a tourist visa or double entry tourist visa which can be extended at immigration for 1900 Baht for a further 30 days. Not sure how many tourist visas you can get before they ask you questions on entry. Please be aware that regulations have changed several times since the coupe and may change again.

[nzexpat]

So your entering on Visa exemption not on a tourist visa. From what i can tell on the 6 entry you will be called aside and question and it likely to be your last entry but not sure if its just in that year only or for 12 months. As other have advised you can easily get a tourist visa or double entry tourist visa which can be extended at immigration for 1900 Baht for a further 30 days. Not sure how many tourist visas you can get before they ask you questions on entry. Please be aware that regulations have changed several times since the coupe and may change again.

Please provide details of the "regulations" that have changed together with links to relevant legislation and police orders .

[gandalf12]

It seems silly to stop entry because of a lot of 30 day entries. Thailand needs the money (just like most other countries) so why make it difficult for people to come here? If they are worried about illegal working then let them get tougher on fines for companies hiring people without the correct visa.

Something about the goose that lays the golden egg springs to mind here.

[mango66]

Your friend is correct but had the number of entries wrong. I just entered Thailand for my sixth time in one year. I do not live here or work here and have never had any intentions of living here full time. I did have some retina surgery in Thailand and have been coming back to let the original doctor do the follow up.

Returning from a weekend tourist trip from Cambodia, I suddenly was called aside and handed to a supervisor who immediately started quizzing me with questions like "do you have a girlfriend in Thailand?". It was late and I was tired, and I as I explained the eye surgery I took my passport out of her hand and flipped to the medical visa that had been granted in July of 2014. She studied that carefully, and then asked if I had a current letter from the doctor (I did not). She admonished me for not having the letter, but based on the medical visa decided to let me back in after reviewing my ins and outs and seeing that I did not even stay through half of the granted medical visa.

She did tell me that there was a new law and the computer now flags your sixth entry within 12 months and requires the immigration agent to turn you over to a supervisor for questioning. She also told me I needed a different visa other than a tourist visa on my next entry.

So finally , yes , there is a limit on yearly entrances !!

And whats now ? TV always give the advice to get a proper tourist visa,

now the officer tell him to get some other visa, not tourist visa ?

And last not least - he asked him, do you have a girl friend - girl friend means not married -

so you should not tell that you have a girl friend -?ß otherwise what visa would you need to have a girl friend in Thai ??

Please TV can you give answer .- advise on this questions ?ß

[ubonjoe]

Just another post calling visa exempt entries tourist visas, That creates lots of confusion.

[nzexpat]

Your friend is correct but had the number of entries wrong. I just entered Thailand for my sixth time in one year. I do not live here or work here and have never had any intentions of living here full time. I did have some retina surgery in Thailand and have been coming back to let the original doctor do the follow up.

Returning from a weekend tourist trip from Cambodia, I suddenly was called aside and handed to a supervisor who immediately started quizzing me with questions like "do you have a girlfriend in Thailand?". It was late and I was tired, and I as I explained the eye surgery I took my passport out of her hand and flipped to the medical visa that had been granted in July of 2014. She studied that carefully, and then asked if I had a current letter from the doctor (I did not). She admonished me for not having the letter, but based on the medical visa decided to let me back in after reviewing my ins and outs and seeing that I did not even stay through half of the granted medical visa.

She did tell me that there was a new law and the computer now flags your sixth entry within 12 months and requires the immigration agent to turn you over to a supervisor for questioning. She also told me I needed a different visa other than a tourist visa on my next entry.

So finally , yes , there is a limit on yearly entrances !!

And whats now ? TV always give the advice to get a proper tourist visa,

now the officer tell him to get some other visa, not tourist visa ?

And last not least - he asked him, do you have a girl friend - girl friend means not married -

so you should not tell that you have a girl friend -?ß otherwise what visa would you need to have a girl friend in Thai ??

Please TV can you give answer .- advise on this questions ?ß

I perhaps should ignore this rant .....................however

1. There is no " limit on yearly entrances" ( whatever that means )

2. No visa is required for a person to have one or even many Thai friends

3. The OP makes the mistake of calling a "visa exempt" entry tourist visa . If a VISA had been presented there would have been no problem.

Edited June 10, 2015 by nzexpat

[mango66]

Just another post calling visa exempt entries tourist visas, That creates lots of confusion.

Dear Joe !

I thanks always for a lot of good information we get from you about Visas for Thailand;

Most confusion I think over ALL IS COMING FROM THIS;

THAT ONE PART OF VISA RULES are settled by law, on ehich officials should work,

on granting visas in embasys and immigration on entering on boarders

and all local immigration offices,

But many of this officials have their "OWN interpretation " of this laws;

Much more confusion I guess is coming by additional " special orders "

generated by ministerium or police - like an ammendment to this articles of laws;

And to get more confusion - when i read this law articles - of cause i read only english translations ,

they are not clear in several points - or just the translations are not containing the complete content ;

( At least its in my european country, if you read only the law, you are lost, you have to read - and have available -

all amendments and special Ministeries orders to a specific article of law !! )

Thanks Joe!

[BW87]

Just another post calling visa exempt entries tourist visas, That creates lots of confusion.

I'm sorry joe, yes I was talking about visa exempt entries. I want to edit my original post to correct this mistake but I don't seem to be able to.

[BW87]

Thanks everyone for the very useful information.

The next time I enter the country I will not use a visa exempt entry, but I will get a proper Tourist Visa instead. Which leads to one more question.

I am flying from Manila (Philippines) to Bangkok somewhere in late July. Then in August I am planning to go to Singapore for a few weeks, and then return to Thailand again in September.

This is what I would like to do:

- Get a 60 day Tourist Visa (2 entries) at the Royal Thai Embassy in Manila (is this possible?)

- Fly to Bangkok (1st entry) and extend the visa by 30 days, so total would be 90 (extensions can only be done while in the country, right?)

- Fly to Singapore and then back to Bangkok again a few weeks later (2nd entry)

All of this will happen within the 90 days.

Is this possible? The website of the Thai Embassy in Manila is not very clear about this.

Or would it be better to get a 30 day single entry tourist visa in Manila, and then another 30 day single entry visa in Singapore? I've read somewhere on this forum that the Singapore embassy is not a very reliable bet to get your visa at.

I guess for some of you the answers to these questions would be very obvious, but I'm very new to this.

[ubonjoe]

Thanks everyone for the very useful information.

The next time I enter the country I will not use a visa exempt entry, but I will get a proper Tourist Visa instead. Which leads to one more question.

I am flying from Manila (Philippines) to Bangkok somewhere in late July. Then in August I am planning to go to Singapore for a few weeks, and then return to Thailand again in September.

This is what I would like to do:

- Get a 60 day Tourist Visa (2 entries) at the Royal Thai Embassy in Manila (is this possible?)

- Fly to Bangkok (1st entry) and extend the visa by 30 days, so total would be 90 (extensions can only be done while in the country, right?)

- Fly to Singapore and then back to Bangkok again a few weeks later (2nd entry)

All of this will happen within the 90 days.

Is this possible? The website of the Thai Embassy in Manila is not very clear about this.

Or would it be better to get a 30 day single entry tourist visa in Manila, and then another 30 day single entry visa in Singapore? I've read somewhere on this forum that the Singapore embassy is not a very reliable bet to get your visa at.

I guess for some of you the answers to these questions would be very obvious, but I'm very new to this.

Manila will do a 2 entry entry tourist visa. You will need to show ticket out of the country for each entry.

You would use the 2nd entry of the visa on your return from Singapore.

There are no 30 day tourist visas.

Singapore has been reported as not doing a tourist visa if you have recently been in Thailand.

[BW87]

Thanks everyone for the very useful information.

The next time I enter the country I will not use a visa exempt entry, but I will get a proper Tourist Visa instead. Which leads to one more question.

I am flying from Manila (Philippines) to Bangkok somewhere in late July. Then in August I am planning to go to Singapore for a few weeks, and then return to Thailand again in September.

This is what I would like to do:

- Get a 60 day Tourist Visa (2 entries) at the Royal Thai Embassy in Manila (is this possible?)

- Fly to Bangkok (1st entry) and extend the visa by 30 days, so total would be 90 (extensions can only be done while in the country, right?)

- Fly to Singapore and then back to Bangkok again a few weeks later (2nd entry)

All of this will happen within the 90 days.

Is this possible? The website of the Thai Embassy in Manila is not very clear about this.

Or would it be better to get a 30 day single entry tourist visa in Manila, and then another 30 day single entry visa in Singapore? I've read somewhere on this forum that the Singapore embassy is not a very reliable bet to get your visa at.

I guess for some of you the answers to these questions would be very obvious, but I'm very new to this.

Manila will do a 2 entry entry tourist visa. You will need to show ticket out of the country for each entry.

You would use the 2nd entry of the visa on your return from Singapore.

There are no 30 day tourist visas.

Singapore has been reported as not doing a tourist visa if you have recently been in Thailand.

Thanks for your answer. Will this 2 entry tourist visa be 60 days with the option to extend to 90 days? I have a flight ticket out of the country that will not be within 60 days, but it will be within 90 days.

[ubonjoe]

You can extend each 60 day entry for 30 days.

They should accept a ticket out within the 90 days.

[flyingdoc]

They certainly are looking at passports with a lot of Thai entry stamps, and are querying the purpose of so many visits, but in my experience have not denied entry. I do not exceed 30 days on a Visa Exempt, but have a lot of them, and am wondering if it is time to get a fresh passport?!

[nzexpat]

They certainly are looking at passports with a lot of Thai entry stamps, and are querying the purpose of so many visits, but in my experience have not denied entry. I do not exceed 30 days on a Visa Exempt, but have a lot of them, and am wondering if it is time to get a fresh passport?!

A new passport will not help !

The computer system will link the old and new passports thus "exposing" the whole of your "visa" history to the immigration officer !

I have friends who regularly enter Thailand "visa exempt" and not one of them has experienced any difficulty.

[Maestro]

Removed a nonsensical post.

[Dee Mac]

Hi every one,

I'm a British Expat and have been living in Phuket for almost 7 years.

I have held multiple types of visas from tourist visas, Non-B and presently an Ed-visa.

My current 1 year Ed-visa is due to finish on July 4, 2015 and I would like to apply for a 3 month or 6 month tourist visa at this time, so I may extend my time in Thailand for relaxation, I will not be working.

Can anyone tell me if this is possible to do, with already having multiple tourist visas in my passport before applying for my 1 year Ed-visa?

And, where is the best country to travel to for receiving this tourist visa, I have been told this can be done in Laos or Cambodia?

Also, will I need to show proof of funds before re-entering Thailand, and any idea of how much would this be?

Thanks in advance for any assistance

[nzexpat]

How many times do you intend making this post ?

If you want a TV then apply for one .

There is as far as I know no reason for refusal .

Laos is probably the best place to apply for a double entry TV

[notmyself]

If you do get a double then keep an eye on the expiry date as it is only 3 months from date of issue.

I personally do 3 entries per years using a triple obtained from the UK along with a visa exempt to get me 10 months ish, every year for 6 years. Never had a problem though I could have just been lucky. Always have 20k on me at each entry and a ticket out of Thailand (to UK actually) for the visa exempt entry but never been asked for either. I also try to avoid any 'out-in' issues with the visa exempt entry by remaining outside the county for 48 hours.

[Welshboy89]

So my tourist visa expires on the 14th (Sunday) is it possible to go and extend it then or will I have to wait until 15th (Monday). I'm not able to go today as I'm travelling. Will I just be given a 500 baht fine? Will I get an overstay stamp in my passport? What's my best plan of action.

[ubonjoe]

So my tourist visa expires on the 14th (Sunday) is it possible to go and extend it then or will I have to wait until 15th (Monday). I'm not able to go today as I'm travelling. Will I just be given a 500 baht fine? Will I get an overstay stamp in my passport? What's my best plan of action.

Visas are not extended.

I assume you mean the 60 day entry you got ends on the 14th. You do not have to wait until the last day to apply for the 30 day extension of stay.

If you go to immigration on Monday you will not pay an overstay fine since your permit to stay ended on a day that immigration is closed.

If you don't do it on Monday you will be fined for every day after the 14th.

[nzexpat]

So my tourist visa expires on the 14th (Sunday) is it possible to go and extend it then or will I have to wait until 15th (Monday). I'm not able to go today as I'm travelling. Will I just be given a 500 baht fine? Will I get an overstay stamp in my passport? What's my best plan of action.

The "best plan of action " would have been to apply for an extension earlier.

Immigration offices are closed at weekends.

IF your permission to stay ends on 14/6/2015 and an application is made made on Monday there will be no fine and the extension will be granted.

[Welshboy89]

Yeah sorry I meant the extension of stay. Great, thanks for your help as always guys!

[docbay]

Sorry this question may be answered elsewhere in other Topic areas but I could not find a recent post. Are the visa runs currently in operation? I am needing to come in on a 30 day visa to finalize some paperwork to go onto a Non-B visa and then work permit processing. I am concerned that maybe my sponsor could not get all his ducks in a row in the 30 days so would possibly do a visa run if possible verses leaving the country else wise.

Thanks

Bay

[ubonjoe]

Sorry this question may be answered elsewhere in other Topic areas but I could not find a recent post. Are the visa runs currently in operation? I am needing to come in on a 30 day visa to finalize some paperwork to go onto a Non-B visa and then work permit processing. I am concerned that maybe my sponsor could not get all his ducks in a row in the 30 days so would possibly do a visa run if possible verses leaving the country else wise.

Thanks

Bay

You get a 30 day visa exempt entry not a visa.

There would be no need to do a border run. You can now extend a visa exempt entry for 30 days at an immigration office for a fee of 1900 baht.