extend tourist visa chiang mai

How To Get A Visa Extension At The Immigration Office Chiang Mai

by Melissa Giroux | Last updated Mar 23, 2023 | Asia , Thailand , Travel Tips

If you’ve been exploring Thailand and you’re thinking about extending your Thai visa – I get it. I’ve been doing it a few times myself.

This time, I was staying in Chiang Mai so it made sense to renew my Thai visa at Chiang Mai Immigration Office .

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Good news: In Thailand, it’s quite easy to extend your visa for an extra 30 days by visiting one of the immigration offices.

Forget about the visa run, you can extend your stay without even leaving Thailand.

From October 1st, 2022, most people will have 45 days on arrival, which is great news!

In Thailand, it’s quite easy to extend your visa for an extra 30 days by visiting one of the immigration offices. Forget about the visa run; you can extend your stay without leaving Thailand.

From October 1st, you might be able to get an extra 45 days extension, but this hasn’t been confirmed just yet.

Not in Chiang Mai? Consult this list of immigration offices . Most big cities have their own offices. You can also check the process for Koh Samui visa extension here .

Chiang Mai Visa Extension | The Process

If you’re planning on extending your Thai visa from Chiang Mai, here’s an easy step by step guide.

Planning your upcoming adventures? Travel by bus! (It's cheap!)

Note that you will need a bit of time, but you should be able to get your visa in one day. It took us about 1h30 to ask for the visa and to get it.

If you need a Chiang Mai residence certificate , you can also get one at the Immigration Office next to the airport (different floor).

Chiang Mai Immigration Office | Opening Hours & Map

Many people have reported that the waiting time in this office is quite long these days. We recently found out that there is an Immigration Office at Central Festival. It opens at 10am.

It’s located on the second floor, and you might need to ask a security agent how to access it (there’s one elevator that can take you there if you arrive before 11am, which is Central Festival official opening time).

We managed to extend our tourist visa there in December 2022 in just 30 minutes.

How to Get to Chiang Mai Immigration Office

You can either rent a motorbike or call a Grab driver to get there. The immigration office is located close to the airport, so it’s not that close to the city centre. You can usually rent a motorbike for about TBH 200 per day.

How to Get the Visa Extension Chiang Mai

Let’s dive into the important stuff – in this section, I’ll give you details on what you need and what to expect when it comes to getting your Thai visa extension.

What You’ll Need to Extend your Visa in Chiang Mai

Here’s a list of the Thailand visa requirements you’ll have to provide:

• Photocopy of your passport
• Photocopy of your current visa and immigration card (if you have one – in 2022, I didn’t receive any immigration card on arrival)
• Visa extension form
• TBH 1900 in cash
• See update below

Just across the street, there’s a shop called the Colonel – you can make photocopies and take photos there. I’d suggest you stop there first, as you will need everything to apply for the visa extension.

You can make a copy for TBH 3 per page, and you get get a photo for TBH 100.

Once you have everything ready, you can cross the street and enter the Chiang Mai Immigration Office. You will see a queue at the front desk – give your paperwork to the staff, pay the fee, and you will then receive a number.

We waited about an hour for our number to get called – the crew verified a few things from our form, and then we waited until the passport was ready a few minutes later.

At Central Festival, you can present your document at the front desk to get a number.

They can do photocopies for THB 2 per page, and they can take photos for THB 120. The whole process took about 30 minutes, which was super quick.

Before you leave the Chiang Mai Immigration Office, make sure to double-check the visa!

Update December 2022 : Many people have reported that the Chiang Mai Office asks for another paper that your hotel or accommodation can provide.

We simply asked our accommodation reception if they could print out the immigration paper for us, and they printed it out. The hotel staff knew what we were referring to.

Chiang Mai Immigration Office Etiquette

It’s important to remember to dress up appropriately when visiting the immigration office in Thailand.

This means you should wear long shorts (tiny shorts won’t cut it) or pants, and you should cover your shoulders. Alternatively, bring a jacket or a sarong to cover up.

If you don’t follow these rules, you might need to leave and return another day.

That said, it seems like the Chiang Mai Office is a bit less strict with enforcing these rules.

Where to Stay in Chiang Mai

Are you planning on staying in Chiang Mai? Here are a few options for every budget.

Hostels: Baan Heart Thai / The Entaneer Poshtel / About a Bed Hostel

Mid-Range: Villa Thai Orchid / Crew Hotel / BED

Luxury: Ping Nakara Boutique Hotel / Akyra Manor / Anantara Chiang Mai

MY TOP RECOMMENDATIONS

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BOOK HOSTEL ON HOSTELWORLD

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• E-EXTENSION

INFORMATION SERVICE

• Organization info

APPLY FOR NOTIFICATION OF STAYING IN THE KINGDOM

Notification of staying in the Kingdom over 90 days. (TM 47) 

NOTIFICATION OF RESIDENCE OF FOREIGNERS FOR BUSINESSES

Notification of residence of foreign national form for house owners and heads of household (TM. 30)

ONLINE RESERVATION

Online reservation for services at Chiangmai immigration

Download the Notification of Residence for more than 90 days form (TM.47)

To make your 90 days report more convenient, here is the QR Code for you to download the form. 

Thailand E-Extension . Save time at immigration by applyin  g here. Easier – Faster – More convenient

*Valid for select visa categories.

New experience with E-Extension!!! Save time at immigration.

Download the Notification of residence for more than 90 days form (TM.47)

WHAT IS LTR VISA

RESIDENCE PERMIT APPLICATIONS (BY YEARLY QUOTA PER NATIONALITY)

Pol.Gen.Torsak Sukvimol

Commissioner General

Pol.Lt.Gen.ITTIPOL ITTISARNRONNACHAI

Commisionner of immigration bureau

Pol.Maj.Gen.Ketchakart Nilpradab

Commander of Immigration Division 5

Pol.Col.Surachai Aeampung

Superintendent of Chiang Mai Immigration

Introduction of CHIANGMAI IMMIGRATION

Related immigration official.

LINKED INFORMATION

Chiangmai immigration 71 M.3 Airport road,suthep sub-district, Muang district , Chiangmai province 50200

[email protected]

0-5327-7510

How to Extend a Thai Tourist Visa in Chiang Mai

by Chris | Last updated Oct 16, 2018 | Published on Sep 28, 2015 | Visa and Immigration | 68 comments

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If you plan to stay in Thailand for a while, chances are you’ll become quite familiar with your local immigration office. Of the many services offered there, getting an infamous visa extension is one of them. In this post, we touch on what you need to know about where and how to extend a Thai tourist visa in Chiang Mai. This process will extend your visa for an extra 30 days if you are staying in or traveling through Chiang Mai Province.

LOCATION UPDATE: The Chiang Mai Immigration Office at Promenada Mall no longer offers Thai tourist visas extensions. As of the end of September 2018, the new Chiang Mai Immigration Office is near the Chiang Mai International Airport.

A Note About Thai Tourist Visas

A single-entry Thai tourist visa conveniently provides visitors 60 days in Thailand. To be crystal clear (and to help you with future travel arrangements) the first day you arrive in Thailand and the last day in Thailand are counted towards those 60 days.

This 60 days can be then extended for 30 extra days for a total of 90 days inside Thailand before having to leave the country. Keep in mind though that  this entry can only be extended once. 

You can apply for a Thai tourist visa extension up until the day it expires. However, you cannot extend your visa once an entry has expired, so be mindful of the date.

To be safe, we recommend giving yourself a few days before your entry expires to apply for an extension. That way, if your expiration date unexpectedly lands on a weekend or a Thai holiday (during which the offices are closed), you won’t be SOL. It’s been known to happen!

Applying a day or two in advance also gives you a bit of wiggle room if there is a hang-up in the application process. We’ve heard tales of people trying to apply only to be turned away because there were too many people in the queue or because the officer handling extensions was not there that day.

What to Bring for a Thai Tourist Visa Extension

To apply for an extension, make sure to apply in person and bring the following to the Provincial Immigration Office:

• Passport with a valid Thai tourist visa (to confirm authenticity)
• Photocopies of the main passport photo page, current Thai tourist visa page, TM.6 departure card, and latest entry stamp (sign all photocopies, too)
• Application for Extension of Temporary Stay in the Kingdom ( form TM.7 )
• One 4 cm x 6 cm passport photo (NOT 2 in x 2 in)
• An application fee of 1,900 baht cash (roughly equal to 60 USD)

Make sure you copy down your current address and your Thai phone number (if you have one). This information is needed to fill out the TM.7 application form.

The TM.7 forms are available at the immigration office. It is not necessary that you print one out and fill it out ahead of time.

Also, bring a black or blue pen just in case the office has run out!

Where to Extend a Thai Tourist Visa in Chiang Mai

Visitors can extend a Thai tourist visa in Chiang Mai at the new Provincial Immigration Office, which is located just before the Chiang Mai International Airport. It’s open from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, Monday through Friday excluding Saturday, Sunday, and Thai holidays.

New Address: 71 Moo 3 Sanambin Road, Suthep, Muang Chiang Mai, Chiang Mai 50200 GPS Coordinates: 18.771430, 98.970973 Phone: (053) 201-755

The office is located less than a 5-minutes’ drive southwest of Chiang Mai’s Old City. Exit the Old City on the southwest corner and drive as if you are going to the airport by driving south on Rt 1141 or Thipanet Road (they run parallel with each other) and then turn right onto Airport Road (Sanambin Road). Drive approximately 500 meters and turn left at the large black and yellow sign that reads, “CHIANGMAI IMMIGRATION,” just across the street from an LPG gas station. The office is in a large white and grey three-story building surrounded by a parking area.

If you are taking public transportation, tell your songthaew, taxi, or tuk-tuk driver, “immigration” or “saw dtaw maw,” which is the Thai acronym for immigration (ส.ต.ม.). Or, book a Grab Taxi (first time users can get 100 baht off by signing up here ) and put in your destination using the drag-and-drop pin function (see our map at the bottom of this post).

Passport Photo and Photocopy Services

If you need photocopies of your passport and/or a photograph of yourself, these services are available on-site.  Photocopies cost 2 baht per copy. A packet of six passport photos cost 200 baht. Although the office will not issue only one photo, hold on to the remaining five photos for future responsibilities involving a passport photo, legalities. because they will be useful for future visa extensions or applications for  re-entry permits or residence certificates .

The bathroom facilities are also quite nice. They are amply stocked with toilet paper and hand soap.

Tourist Visa Extension Application Process

Once you’ve arrived at the Chiang Mai Immigration Office, go to the Information Desk and grab a TM.7 form. Sit at any of the dozen outdoor tables and fill out the form. If you need to, now’s the time to get photocopies of your passport or a passport photo from the shop nearby.

With passport, completed application, single photo, signed photocopies, and cash in hand, go back to the Information Desk and hand everything over to the representative. They will clip the documents together along with a queue number.

On a slow day, the immigration worker may take your packet the Thai tourist visa extension desk themselves. Otherwise, take your packet and hand it to the officer at the desk with the “Tourist Visa Extension” sign above it.

Relax in a chair and enjoy some air conditioning. Listen for your name to be called over the announcing speaker.

Go up to the center desk and have your photo taken. Sit back down. At this point, you will only have to wait another few minutes for your name to be called for a second time. This is when an immigration officer will return a receipt of payment, any change, and your passport with an extension ink stamp inside. Double check that you received an extra 30 days before heading out , and that’s it!

There is no need to arrive at 5 am or 6 am to get a good spot in line to extend your Thai tourist visa in Chiang Mai. However, processing times do vary. During one of our visits, there were hardly any people there. We arrived in the afternoon around 2 pm and saw only two applicants and it took us roughly 30 minutes to extend a Thai tourist visa in Chiang Mai. On another visit there there many people and it took around two hours.

What’s your experience extending your tourist visa at the Chiang Mai Immigration Office? How much better (or worse) was it than other locations?

Thanks for the great guide! Just got my 30 day Airport visa extended for another 30 days. In and out in 1 hour. Really easy!

Here is a question. Let’s say I have a 180 day tourist visa that says “enter by November 22.” And I am on the third entry. If I extend the third entry, now the stamp on that expires on December 22. Which one takes precedence? The date on the original visa or the date on the entry stamp?

The date on the entry stamp.

Thanks so much for your detailed and informative description and the posts. I could extend my 30 days visa which I got at the airport immigration for another 30 days. Without your posts I would haven’t known that this is possible. I arrived today at 1pm and left on 5:45pm. Today the network was slow at the immigration (which could happen sometimes after weekend) and the immigration officers informed about that and asked for understanding and asked those who didn’t need the extension urgently to come the next or at another day. I highly appreciate that the immigration staff was …  Read more »

Spot on information. I was there recently and the dress code is information worth following. I was #6 in line with slacks, freshly shaved and a black shirt (post death of the King). The first five people did not cross all the t’s or dot all the i’s. I had all of my info prepared ahead of time (well worth it) but did not sign all my documents thus leaving a t uncrossed. The first five people in tank tops etc. we’re sent to the back of the line. I was politely asked to sign all the copies and became …  Read more »

Thanks So much Chris & Angela, your article was an amazing reference to help us through the process. We linked it up on our just released vlog, it’s a visual walkthrough of the day, showing key sites, landmarks and providing a visual experience. We hope may be able to help others out :) https://youtu.be/HwG0p-g6zCg

Just checked out your video – nice clips! That was a great walk-through. Thanks for sharing :)

Hi guys. love reading and learning so much from your experiences. Moving to CM has me feeling overwhelmed just with paperwork more than anything else. Coming on a 30 day visa on arrival tourist visa which I will get a 30 day extension on before making a border holiday run. Hopefully on time my retirement visa comes together and I settle in. Keep up the excellent work. Thanks again.

Amazing description. Very helpful. Went today around 9am to extend 30 day (the tourist exempt visa). When I arrived, I was shocked about the long waiting lines outside of the office (about 20-50 Meters).

However, everything ran smooth as written above. I was in and out within 1 hour.

Very helpful guide, thanks very much. Was in and out in 1 hour which included pictures and photocopies being taken, form filling and waiting time. Thanks again!

Hi, I read just now about here in this page, about the immigration office enforcing the reported address. I had no idea about this. I arrived in Thailand in end of November, and have been borrowing a thai friend’s condo in Chiang Mai. But on the arrival card I entered their Mae Rim address, becuse I didn’t know the condo’s address. I have not reported the changed address, and my thai friend has not sent in any paper whatsoever about having an alien staying at their place (neigher their house in Mae Rim nor their condo in Chiang Mai). Will …  Read more »

You probably have nothing to worry about. We were there just a few weeks ago and no one requested those forms from us. We haven’t even heard a single specific case where this happened at the Chiang Mai Immigration Office… just that it happened “somewhere”. We think you’ll be fine :)

DUE TO THE OVERWHELMING NUMBER OF REQUESTS FOR HELP REGARDING INDIVIDUAL VISA SCENARIOS, WE ARE NO LONGER APPROVING COMMENTS ON THIS POST.

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Very useful information, do you know what’s up in this start of the year about tourist visa 30 days extension? are there so many people? my mother needs to extend her visa before Jan. 11 next Monday Thanks!!

No problem. There are quite a bit of people. We went at 1:30pm and waited about 2.5 hours for our extension to be processed. Remember, the office is closed on weekends and all Thai holidays.

Hi Chris and Angela! I have been digging around your blog for a bit now and am incredibly impressed and thankful for the plethora of information you have provided everyone in the digital world with. I am wondering, can you apply for an extension on a Visa Exempt stamp?

Thanks for saying thanks :) Yes, you can apply for a 30 day extension on a visa-exempt stamp. It costs the same and has the same requirements as if you were to extend a tourist visa. Good luck!

Good point. Thanks so much for such great information, in any case.

HI, I have a VOA and extended it for 30 days in Hua Hin. I need anothe 30 day extension. Other then flying out of Thailand and returning the same day and getting another VOA stamp, what other options are their? Thanks!

Rather than fly, you can go the cheaper route and take a van ride to the nearest border (Ranong). You should be able to book a ticket through a travel agent in Hua Hin. There is no option to do a second extension; only one is allowed. Good luck!

Thanks for a fairly comprehensive list and set of procedures. But please amend the section above in which you say the whole process should take only 30 minutes. We spent literally the entire day at immigration today, waiting in line over 2 hours just to get a number (which we were lucky to get right at noon), then waiting till nearly 4:00 p.m to be called up to have the photo taken and then the passport returned all stamped. Lots of people were complaining that they read online it would only take 30 minutes. I’m sure there are good days …  Read more »

Some days, like Mondays and Fridays, are very busy and have much longer waiting times. Same goes with just before or after a Thai holiday. We shared our experience extending a tourist visa (not a retirement or medical visa or a 30 day visa-exempt stamp) at Promenada so there may be different waiting times for different visas. We continually hear that mornings are very busy, which is why we went in the afternoon in the middle of the week and suggest other people to do the same.

Hey, this was really useful for me as I was dreading going to the visa office but I went and did it this morning. Got there around 8.45 and there was already a hug queue, got out around 11.30. A good note for anyone who is going to the visa office from now until the 3rd of January, there’s a free shuttle service currently running for christmas by the promenada mall. It doesn’t start till 11.30 so if you’re going early it’s no use but I used it to get back today. There’s 2 routes, 1 starts at the promenada …  Read more »

Great info, thanks for sharing about the bus routes!

The issue is not what you are trying to do at the immigration office. The issue is that there is a law that says you need to report if you change your address from the one you gave on your arrival card. It’s not a new law, but it hasn’t been enforced in the past. Now that the system is computerised they are able to enforce it if they want to, and issue fines for failure to comply. If you are staying in a hotel or guesthouse you don’t need to worry – the hotel will submit an online TM30 …  Read more »

Hey gigs, thanks a lot for this useful post! Another quest for. About the 30-day visa issued on arrival at the airport: if I want to extend my stay with this kind of visa, would I also need to bring the TM28 – 30 forms? Thanks a lot!

They would know that no TM30 for that address had been submitted. Guesthouses and hotels do them online. If you check into a guesthouse they will submit an online TM30 which will match up with the address you put on your visa extension application and everybody should be happy. Alternatively you could ask your hosts to do a paper TM30 showing that you very recently moved in (and then you submit a TM28) – a receipt for the TM28 goes in your passport so again, it will all match up. But when my landlady went to do the TM30 yesterday …  Read more »

And if I use my friend’s address how would they know it is not a guesthouse? Would it be because it is not on their computer database? I have never heard of this TM30 until i read about it online. No mention of it when i got my visa or when i go through immigration’s passport control at the borders and airport.

Yes, it appears I may have to chance it… or like you said, check-in to a guesthouse. Oh…the joys of being abroad. :)

Both you and your host COULD be fined – it seems that things are now getting more computerised and joined up. If you are in a hotel it seems it’s not an issue – the hotel does the TM30 online and the guest isn’t expected to report. It appears it’s when you rent or stay with friends that they are getting picky sometimes. Depends what mood they’re in I think! You could consider checking into a guesthouse a couple of days before you do your extension and use that address in your application.

Anyone else have to do this? What is up with these TM forms?

Hey, what is with this TM28/30 requirement? I am here on a tourist visa, but stay with a Thai friend and family. I want to extend my visa but never did a TM anything. What will happen?

For starters you can find the TM.28 and TM.30 forms on this immigration bureau page. The consensus is that the rule (generally speaking, you and your hotel manager/landlord must report to police station within 24 hours of your arrival, every time you change location, including when you first come to Thailand) isn’t regularly enforced, so when it is people get really confused and upset.

Hi guys, A word of thanks for making this helpful page about visa extension in Chiang Mai. We followed your advice and had one of the most pleasant visa renewal trips in any country, ever – kudos also to the Thai immigration authorities for making it a good experience! For reference, we’re from the UK and renewed our visas about the middle of November 2015, in advance of when they actually ran out in end-Nov. Special mention of what makes the exercise easier – there is a photography shop for taking the required 4cm x 6cm photos with a blue …  Read more »

Although the Promenada mall is farther for us than the old immigration office location near the airport, we like that there are clean restrooms, several good coffee shops nearby, and shopping to pass the time. Yes, and the photograph and copy room right there is super convenient, too. Glad to hear you had a smooth extension! Too bad that this new location will have a steep drop in extensions now that the new METV is in effect.

We went today, a Monday at 8:15. We paid 100 baht for a songthaw from the old city (Chiang Mai gate). There are four signs with the different services they offer (apart from tourist visa extension there is 90 day reporting etc.) which all had a line of about 35 persons behind them. The one for tourist visa extension is closest to the building. A little bit chaotic which led to some queue jumping (mostly by Chinese). The information desks hands out TM7, just go there and get one, do not queue for it, and that’s where the line for …  Read more »

Thanks for sharing your experience! Not too shabby for the morning queue. Yeah, the new location offers four services: extensions for tourist, retirement, and medical visa holders and visa-exempt stamp; re-entry permits; 90 day check ins; and residency certificates.

As of December 2015 they are apparently enforcing the TM28/TM30 address reporting requirements when people apply for tourist visa extensions (or do 90 day reports). So if you rent an apartment make sure your landlord does the TM30 and you submit a TM28 (supposed to be within 24 hours!), or you could be fined up to 2000 baht when you apply for your visa extension!

Thanks for that bit of info! So much (unnecessary) paperwork :/

Hey guys do u know which form i would need to print out if i were to get it before i arrive at the chang mai visa office ….i know they do the form there but i imagine its gonna be busy with the holidays overbthe weekend and monday and id like to have it done before i get there .. so an extension on the w30 visa i got at the airport for 30 days which form do i need to print out. Im gonna have my five year old daughter with me so id like to get it …  Read more »

We linked to the form in the post :)

Hey again its the 30 day on arrival visa class w30 issued 9th nov admitted untill 8 dec 2015 the one u get at the airport on arrival i got a month extension last time i came to thailand on the same w30 visa in changmai …. ive bee back to australia and came to thaikand again 6 weeks later and am wanting to do the same thinb of extending it or a month but just wondering can u do it on the day it sayy admitted until on the entry stamp…. thanks for your replies and patience guys .

Yes, you can extend your Visa On Arrival up to the same day it expires (in your case, Dec 8th). Please plan accordingly as you can only extend it if an Immigration Office is open, which are Mondays through Fridays. Offices are closed on weekends and all Thai holidays .

No i meant canni renew the visa on then8th the same day my visa passport runs out in my passport

Yes. Be careful though, some visas such as a tourist visa cannot be renewed. You can either extend an entry on your tourist visa entry or apply for a new one completely. It’s hard to give the correct answer without knowing which visa you are on.

If my visa runs out on the 8th of December can I get it renewed on that day as the King’s birthday is observed on the 7th of December this year

Immigration Offices and Thai Embassies and Consulates will be closed on his birthday. If you need to do a border run, van companies will still be open.

Hi Chris and Angela, You guys are doing some very good work! I read through all the letters trying to find relevant information for my wife and I , but am finding it difficult. We have tickets that give us 98 days after arrival in Bangkok. We were planning on spending 60 days in Thailand and then going to Cambodia for 30 days and then returning to thailand for our final days and then flying out from Bangkok back to Europe again. Any ideas about how to make this work?? Hope to buy you guys a drink in Chiang Mai! …  Read more »

When you come back into Thailand for a second time (after your time in Cambodia), get the free visa exempt stamp. Depending what country you are from, you can either get 90, 30, or 15 days upon arrival which will hold you over until to fly back to Europe. They give this type of stamp automatically at the immigration checkpoint after you’ve flown in unless you have an official visa. Have a great trip!

Hi I am super confused..despite your incredibly comprehensive post! I have a 60day 2 entry tourist visa. I have to enter before the 9th feb – no probs as my flight arrives on the 30th November. I will definately want to extend my stay in thailand. How does this work with having the 2 entry type? If I extend by 30 days then leave the country after that (so 90 days from first entering) will the 2nd entry still be valid? Also for how long? Any info would be greatly appreciated! Thanks Abi

You are allowed to extend each entry one time, so in the case for a double entry visa you can apply for one 30 day extension before your first entry expires and then for another 30 day extension after you’ve activated your second entry. In both instances you must apply for an extension before the entry expires (at the 60 day mark). If you choose to extend your first entry, your second entry is still valid as long as you enter Thailand before your “Enter Before” date of Feb 9th. Then you activate your second entry upon re-entering Thailand (good …  Read more »

Hey this is great and I really appreciate the updated info.

I do have a question regarding when the extension becomes active. You mentioned how with a tourist visa the 30 days are tacked on the the day after the 60 days. I have a 30 day voa. Does it work the same way or are there different rules when it comes to voa’s?

Any help is appreciated, thanks!

If you have a Visa on Arrival (applicable to these 19 countries ), then you are also currently eligible for a 30 day extension for 1,900 baht. The same list of required documents is needed to apply. Hope this helps!

Hey thanks for the response. I’m aware I can get an extension but my question is more based around whether or not the additional 30 days is tacked the day after the initial 30 days like it would be with a tourist visa, or if there is a different stipulation with voa’s. Any help or insight is appreciated. Thanks!

It’s tacked on after the original 30 days (as it would be after the first 60 days for a tourist visa).

Sweet thanks you two!

Hey guys, thanks for putting together such a comprehensive piece! I’m just on my way to get an extension (later this afternoon) and it dawned on me — If I came in on a 30-day exempt stamp, will I need to show proof of exit in order to get an extension (ie do I need to book a flight out)? I was originally planning to book one in advance and thought maybe it might be premature if I don’t have an extension yet. Realize this is really short notice but if you could confirm that would be awesome!

No, just the things listed in this post :)

is it possible to extend your stay on a 30 day Visa Exempt stamp in your passport in Thailand, or do you need to make a “Visa run”?

Yes, if you received a visa exempt stamp when you entered Thailand, you can extend it for an additional 30 days at any immigration office.

Chris and Angela, Glad to hear you don’t have to show up so early anymore. I still daydream about living over in CM, but I was hearing horror stories of having to show up in the middle of the night and possibly still not getting in the same day. Just a couple quick questions: 1. I hear that there’s a requirement for 90-day reporting of your address. Does that apply to those living there on tourist visas? 2. Jumping through visa hoops is definitely one thing that keeps me from thinking about heading over there. Is the bureaucracy really that …  Read more »

1) Nope, a 90 day reporting only applies to Non Immigrant Visas. If you are on a tourist visa, you must leave Thailand after a certain amount of time, that being a maximum of 90 days. Therefore, even if you reach the 90 day mark of your tourist visa, you should be leaving Thailand that day. No need for reporting. When you come back into Thailand, it “resets the clock” back to 0 days. 2) There’s a trade off – we no longer have to get emissions tests for our cars, buy mandatory parking permits, file state taxes, file insurance …  Read more »

This post reminded me that I should really extend my visa while I’m here in Chiang Mai! I went today and it was suuuuuuuch an easy experience, especially as after reading this I understood what was going on. Thank you for this post!

You’re very welcome :) Glad to hear it was a breeze!

All good and all correct – except for the misconception about extending a Visa. I dont want to be pedantic (but will) because so many people get this matter confused (and sometimes get into trouble). You cannot extend a Visa – period. What you can extend is your ‘permission to stay’. What you can do is re-new a Visa – that is a whole different matter and a lot more complex. To example the trouble some people have got into with the misunderstanding about their Visa being ‘extended’. Lets say I have a multiple entry Visa that expires in November, …  Read more »

The big sign at the immigration office says “visa extension” but the TM.7 form says “extension of stay.” It’s confusing when the immigration office calls it two different things. But let’s agree to disagree – even Google likes “visa extension” better :)

What about when the tourist visa switches to 6 months in November, assuming that goes as planned. Any word on that yet? Just curious because I have relatives that want to visit me and stay awhile where I now live in BKK.

We’re waiting on word for that, too. We just saw this article but it does not clearly say whether holders of this type of visa will be eligible for an an extension after the 60 day mark (rather than having to do a border run) or how many days the extension will be. We’re keeping our eyes peeled, too.

Hi, I’m Chris and I sold it all, paid off my debt, and left the rat race in the US. Today, I live as a full time, financially independent expat in Chiang Mai, providing future expats and travelers firsthand knowledge about all things Thailand! Learn more about my story here…

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Travel Guide: How To Extend Your ‘Tourist Visa’ or ’30-Day Visa Exemption’ in Chiang Mai

2020 Guide To Extending Your Visa By 30 Days at Chiang Mai Immigration Department

BIG UPDATE FOR CHIANG MAI TOURIST VISAS EXTENSIONS – MARCH 2020

Currently, the Chiang Mai immigration department has moved the Tourist Visa Extensions back to Promenada Shopping Mall, effective 2/03/2020.

After trialling a one-stop service at Chiang Mai immigration office, many tourists were left confused and waiting for 4+ hours to acquire a simple visa extension. Thai immigration is now moving the Tourist Visas 30 Day Extensions back to Promenada Shopping Mall where it was previously located.

You should now travel to:

• Location: Promenada Resort Mall, Zone A, 2nd Floor, Chiang Mai
• Location: Opening Times: 9am – 5pm (Mon to Fri)

While it is a little more difficult to get to, there’s plenty of parking and many shops to visit to kill some time over lunchtime closed hours 12-1pm.

Note: Feel free to skip the now irrelevant parts of this article. The documents needed and process remain the same. Just the location has changed.

If Thai immigration officials make this a permanent change, I’ll update the 30-Day extension guide in full.

———————-

Getting a 30-day tourist extension on your Thai visa may sound like a stressful and long process, but don’t worry, it’s super straightforward and takes less than 1 hour in peak season and as little as 15 minutes the rest of the year.

The first time you extend your tourist it can be a bit scary, so I’ve created a step-by-step guide just for you. As well as some helpful money-saving tips and information.

How To Get To Chiang Mai Immigration Office?

Don’t pay the airport Grab fee. Since the new immigration building is situated close to the airport, you’ll have an extra 100 Baht added onto your Grab fair.

You can now also use Grab to hail a Roddaeng truck . A great budget option if there’s more than 4 of you.

To avoid this, get a Grab taxi to the ‘Suan Pak Restaurant’, it’s a very short walk to immigration office from here.

Alternatively, you can travel by:

• Songtaew (Roddaeng/Red Truck) – you can hail these from any main road and it costs 30 baht each.
• Tuk Tuk – Because why not!? Super Fun right!
• Motorbike – Why You Should Rent A Motorbike in Chiang Mai – Tourist Guide

What Documents Do You Need For A 30-Day Tourist Visa Extension?

• Passport (1 Copy of ID Page, 1 Copy Of TM6 + Visa Page)
• 1 Passport Photo
• TM6 Departure Card (Usually Stapled Inside Your Passport)
• Pen (blue or black).
• 1900 Baht (Change Given At The End)
• Address of Current Hotel/Condo Address.
• Thai Phone Number If Available.

Top Tip: Passport Photos & Passport Page Photocopies are available across the road. You don’t need to use a Visa Service.

Step-by-step Guide: How to get your ‘Tourist Visa’ extended

1. visa extensions are dealt with on the ground floor.

You can pick up the TM.7 Form either before entering the building on the right side, or once inside in the right corner.

Fill in the form completely, both sides, ideally in block capitals. Also add your Thai phone number on the back of the form at the end.

Sign & Date the photocopies of your passport.

2. TM.7 Form Tips

There were several people in front of us in the queue, hadn’t filled out their forms properly so slowed the queue down massively by having to go back through the forms with immigration staff and correct things- don’t be this person!

There are examples of the filled out form on the inside desk. You can use this to check that you’ve filled in your form correctly. Don’t be that person that who holds everyone else up in line.

I’ve annotated a TM7 form to show you a few pitfalls that confused us.

Top Tip: You fill in the details above the English translation. Not below.

3. Hand in your form, photocopies, photo picture, passport & 1900 Baht to the counter directly in front of the entrance.

Don’t worry about glueing your passport photo to the document, at the Chiang Mai office, they will staple this for you.

Now take a ticket and wait for your number to be called. It’s called in both Thai & English. Alternatively, watch the TV screens for your number.

4. Next Step

Take a seat, sit back & relax. Once your number is called, head to across to the tourist desk. Just to the right of where you dropped off your documents.

You’ll then have your photo taken, the same as at immigration when entering Thailand.

Now take a seat again and wait for your name to be called. Then collect your passport, change and receipt.

Check the Visa Date is correct. I’ve not had any issues at Chiang Mai, but at BKK the date has been wrong.

Woohoo! Now you’ve successfully got your visa extended for another 30 days in paradise, why not go and relax at one of these gorgeous pools in Chiang Mai!

What are your experiences of extending your tourist visa? If you have any questions comment below! :)

How Soon Can You Extend Your Tourist Visa or 30-Day Visa Exemption Stamp?

Straight away.

While you might hear that you have to wait until a week or so before your visa expires before applying to extend it by 30 days. This is false.

I regularly extend my tourist 30-day exemption & tourist 60-day visas 1 or 2 days after I arrive into Thailand.

This allows you to plan your trip with peace of mind.

Chiang Mai Immigration Office: Opening Hours

The immigration office in Chiang Mai is open from:

• 7:30 am till 12 pm
• Then reopens after lunch at 1 pm till 16:30.
• Closed Saturday & Sunday.

Top Tip: Check for Thai Holidays before visiting. The Immigration Office will be shut.

Feel free to share this article and comment below if you found it useful, or your experience was different.

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By March 2nd 2020 the office has been moved to:

Promenada Resort Mall, Zone A, 2nd Floor, Chiang Mai

It’s quite a small office and there isn’t yet any signs, so not that easy to find, before you’re right in front of it. It’s located next to the large windows on 2nd floor and opposite DUKE’S.

Hi Søren Esbjørn,

Thanks for the update.

It seems the Immigration Department is going through a lot of changes recently. I visited a month ago to get an extension and the queues were all the way into the car park. Most tourists didn’t have a clue what was going on.

As I was travelling to Phuket in a few days, I jumped straight back on my bike.

Phuket Immigration office was fantastic. In & Out in less than 20 minutes.

Let me know how your experience was at Promenada : )

Thanks for sharing this, for sure you make someone’s trip for a visa extension a little easier!

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• ข้อมูลบริการ
• บริการออนไลน์
• ประวัติ สตม.
• ผังโครงสร้าง สตม.
• แผนผังการบังคับบัญชา
• ภารกิจ สตม.
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• คำถามที่พบบ่อย
• ค่าธรรมเนียม
• ระเบียบคำสั่ง
• วารสาร/รายงานประจำปี
• การตรวจลงตรา
• Visa On Arrival
• การแจ้งที่พักคนต่างด้าว
• ดาวน์โหลดเอกสาร
• ข้อมูลตามหลักธรรมาภิบาล
• คู่มือบริการ
• การรับแจ้งอยู่ในราชอาณาจักร เกิน 90 วัน
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• การขออยู่ต่อ
• การขออยู่ต่อตามมาตรา 15 (ทูต,ราชการ)
• งานทะเบียนคนต่างด้าว
• การขออยู่ต่อแรงงานต่างด้าว
• การรับแจ้งอยู่ในราชอาณาจักร เกิน 90 วัน กรณีแรงงานต่างด้าว 3 สัญชาติ
• บริการอื่นๆ
• ขอรับและเปลี่ยนประเภทการตรวจลงตรา
• ใบสำคัญถิ่นที่อยู่

Visa Extension

1.visa extension - in the case of business necessity, for example, the applicant must stay to carry out work for a company or partnership, in the case of business necessity, for example, the applicant must stay to carry out work for a company or partnership.

Criteria for Consideration

• The alien must have been granted a non-immigrant visa (NON-IM).
• The alien must earn an income per the attached Table of Income (Annex A).
• The business must have a paid-up registered capital of no less than Baht 2 million.
• Said business must have submitted its financial statements as at the end of its fiscal year for the past two accounting years which have duly been audited and certified by a certified public accountant or a tax auditor, to prove that the business is sufficiently secure with actual and continuous operation, according to the guidelines for consideration of business status concerning the actual and continuous operation attached hereto (Annex B).
• Said business needs to hire aliens.
• Said business must have a ratio of one alien employee per four permanent Thai employees.
• The following businesses shall be exempted from the Criteria (3), (4), and (5), and the ratio of Thai employees specified under Criteria (6), shall be reduced to one alien employee per one permanent Thai employee: (a) International trade business (representative office) (b) Regional office (c) Overseas company (branch office)

Documents to be submitted

• Application form TM.7, photograph 4×6 cm., application fee is 1,900  (Application must be made in person)
• Copy of applicant’s passport (copy of passport with your photo, last arrival stamp, Re-entry Permit stamp, Departure card (TM.6) and last extend visa)
• Certificate of employment prepared in accordance with the form prescribed by the Immigration Bureau (Sor.Tor.Mor.1) – A table showing the numbers of all foreigners employed by the company, also their salary on monthly and annually basis, and their total salary, is additionally required.
• Copy of work permit
• Proof of corporate registration e.g. certificate of incorporation of company or partnership certified by the Registrar with validity for 6 months
• Copy of list of shareholders certified by the Registrar with validity for 6 months
• A copy of latest balance sheet and income statement, together with corporate income tax return (Por.Ngor.Dor.50) and receipt.Copy of Sor.Bor.Chor.3  they must be certified by the Revenue Dept. or  by The Department of Business Development.
• Copy of 3 latest monthly withholding tax return (Por.Pro.1) showing the name of employees and the alien applicant, together with receipt.
• Copy of latest personal income tax return of the applicant (Por.Pro.91), together with receipt (or an explanatory letter)
• Copy of 3 latest monthly social security contributions return filed with the Social Security Office (Form Sor.Por.Sor. 1-10)
• Copy of 3 latest monthly value add tax return (Por.Pro.30 or Por.Por.36) together with receipt.
• Proof of the need of the business to employ the alien e.g. no Thai candidate has applied after advertising such a position
• Location map of the place of work
• Other supporting documents required by the competent authority (Sor.Tor.Mor.2)
• Photographs showing the location of the business a. Exterior photographs showing the address and the sign of company name b. Interior photographs showing the employee while working
• Original documents of Nos. 5,6,7,8,9 and 10 must be provided.
• In case the applicant are accompanied by the family member, proof of family relationship e.g. marriage certificate, birth certificate of their children must be provided. If these documents were issued by a foreign government, they must be certified by such foreign embassy.

Remark: Documents required for permission of temporary stay no. 8- 11 must be certified true copy by authorized officer of government unit   concerned

2.Visa Extension - In the case of necessity where the applicant must carry out duties relating to investment approved by the relevant ministry, department, and bureau:

• Must have been granted a non-immigrant visa (NON-IM).
• Must have been confirmed and requested by the relevant ministry, department, and bureau.
• Application form
• Copy of applicant’s passport
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the relevant ministry, bureau, and department

3.Visa Extension - In the case of necessity where the applicant must carry out duties for the government, state enterprise, or other government agency

• Must have been confirmed and requested by said agency or organization.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the government, state enterprise, or other relevant government agency
• Evidence proving the status of the government agency (if any)

4.Visa Extension - In the case of tourism purposes

• Must have been granted a tourist visa (TOURIST)
• Must not be of a nationality or type prescribed by the committee monitoring official proceedings of officers of the Immigration Bureau. ( In case of the following natinalites ,extension of stay permit will not be longer than 7 days ; Sri Lanka ,India,Pakistan,Bangladesh,Iran,Nepal,Togo,Nigeria,Uganda )
• Application form TM.7 (application must be made in person)
• Photo 4 x 6 cm. (not older than 6 months)
• Application fee 1,900 Baht.

Document For case :

In the case of receiving medical treatment :

• Application form TM. 7 (application must be made in person)
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by a physician of the hospital providing said treatment

In the case of attending rehavilitation or taking care of a patient :

In the case of taking care of a patient, the applicant must attach a letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by a physician of the hospital providing said treatment and document stating relationship (in the case that the caretaker is a member of the family), such as a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, registration of child legitimization, child adoption registration certificate, or confirmation letter from the embassy or consulate.

In the case of a person who used to have Thai nationality or whose perent is or was of Thai nationality visiting relatives or returning to his or her original homeland :

• Copy of documents proving that the appicant used to have Thai nationality or that hit/her parent is or was of Thai nationality.

In the case of visiting a spouse or children who are of Thai nationality

• Documents of relationship 3.1 Copy of household registration certificate 3.2  Copy of national ID card of the person having Thai nationality 3.3  Copy of a marriage certificate or copy of a birth certificate

In the case of litigation or court proceedings :

• Confirmation letter from an iquiry official involved with the case, official   paper or document confirming that the applicant is being involved with the litigation or court proceedings of the case.

In the case of performing duties or missions for a government agency, state enterprise, other government agency or embassy or consulate or international organization :

• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary sty issued by a government agency of the departmental level or equivalent; the head of a state enterprise; the head of another government agency; or a police officer of a level equivalent to or higher than the divisional level; or a military officer of a command unit under the Ministry of Defense, Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy, or Royal Thai Air Force, who is a Major General, Rear Admiral, Air Vice Marshal, or officer of a higher ranking; or by an international organization.

In the case of necessity, with certification or request made by an embassy or consulate :

• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay from the embassy and consulate in Thailand
• Only in the case of training, the applicant must have been granted a work permit.

5.Visa Extension - In the case of investment

Criteria for Consideration A. Investment of no less than Baht 3 million: The alien:

• Must have been granted a non-immigrant visa (NON-IM);
• Must have entered the Kingdom before October 1, 2006 and must have been consecutively permitted to stay in the Kingdom for an investment of no less than Baht 3 million;
• Must have evidence of transferring funds into Thailand of no less than Baht 3 million;
• Must have evidence of investing in the purchase of a condominium unit for no less than Baht 3 million issued by a relevant agency or by the government; or
• Must have evidence of investing in the form of a fixed deposit of no less than Baht 3 million with a bank which is registered in Thailand and has Thai nationals holding more than 50 percent of its shares; or
• Must have evidence of investing in the purchase of government or state enterprise bonds of no less than Baht 3 million; or
• Must have evidence of making an investment as set out in Criteria (4), (5), or (6) with a total value of no less than Baht 3 million.

B. Investment of no less than Baht 10 million:

• Must have evidence of transferring funds into Thailand of no less than Baht 10 million.
• Must have evidence of investing in the purchase or rental of a condominium unit for a period of no less than 3 years issued by a relevant agency or government, at a purchase or rental price of no less than Baht 10 million; or
• Must have evidence of investing in the form of a fixed deposit of no less than Baht 10 million with a bank which is registered in Thailand and has Thai nationals holding more than 50 percent of its shares; or
• Must have evidence of investing in the purchase of government or state enterprise bonds of no less than Baht 10 million; or
• Must have evidence of making an investment as set out in Criteria (3), (4), or (5) with a total value of not less than Baht 10 million.

Documents to be submitted A. Investment of no less than Baht 3 million:

• Copy of evidence showing a transfer of funds from a foreign country to a bank in Thailand
• Copy of a condominium purchase agreement and a copy of the ownership registration of said condominium issued by the government or relevant agency (in the case of purchase of a condominium); or
• Funds deposit certificate issued by a bank and a copy of evidence of the funds deposit (only in the case of investment in funds deposit); or
• Copies of bond certificates (only in the case of investment in a purchase of government or state enterprise bonds)
• Copy of a condominium purchase agreement and a copy of the ownership registration of said condominium issued by the government or relevant agency (in the case of purchase of a condominium) or a copy of a long-term lease agreement; or

6.Visa Extension - In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a government educational institution

In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a government educational institution:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the particular educational institution.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the educational institution, specifying the applicant’s title, monthly salary rate, and term of employment
• Copy of a teaching license or a certificate of license issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand or a copy of a letter of waiver issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand or a copy of an acknowledgment of waiver request issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand (except for teachers, instructors, or experts of higher education)

7.Visa Extension - In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a private educational institution

In the case of a teacher, professor, or expert in a private educational institution:.

• Said educational institution is permitted to operate by a relevant government agency.
• The alien must have been confirmed and requested by the particular educational institution.

– For education in school system such as general education, English program schools, vocational

schools that follow the Ministry of Education’s curriculum, and international schools:

• Copy of evidence of permission to establish said educational institution issued by the relevant government agency
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the educational institution, specifying the applicant’s title, monthly salary rate, and term of employment, together with a copy of a letter of teacher appointment in the format required by the Private Education Commission
• Copy of a teaching license or a copy of a certificate of license issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand or a copy of a letter of waiver issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand or a copy of an acknowledgment of waiver request issued by the Teacher’s Council of Thailand

– For education of non-school system

• Copy of a letter of teacher appointment in the format required by the Private Education Commission

– For institutes of higher education

• Copy of evidence that permission has been granted to establish said educational institution issued by the relevant government agency
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the dean of the educational institution specifying the applicant’s title, monthly salary rate, and term of employment

8.Visa Extension - In the case of study in a government educational institution

In the case of study in a government educational institution:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by that particular educational institution.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay, issued by the educational institution, which shows detailed information about the applicant’s years of education, level of curriculum, and educational achievement

9.Visa Extension - In the case of study in a private educational institution

In the case of study in a private educational institution:.

• The alien must have been confirmed and requested by that particular educational institution.
• The alien must have been confirmed by the relevant government agency (except in the case of study in an international school and higher education).
• Copy of evidence of permission to establish the educational institution issued by the relevant government agency
• Confirmation letter issued by a government agency at the departmental level or by the Provincial Governor in charge of that particular institution (except in the case of enrollment in an international school or in the case of higher education)

10.Visa Extension - In the case of conducting training or research in a university or research institute

In the case of conducting training or research in a university or research institute:.

Criteria for Consideration The alien:

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the dean of that university or by the head of that research institution.
• In the case of conducting training or research in a private university or research institute, must have been confirmed and requested by the relevant government agency.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the dean of that university or by the head of that research institution
• Only in the case of Criterion (3), the applicant must attach a letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the relevant government agency.

11.Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of an alien who has been permitted a temporary stay in the Kingdom for study in an educational institution according to Clauses 2.8 or 2.9 hereof

In the case of being a family   member of an alien who has been   permitted a temporary stay in the   kingdom for study in an educational   institution according to clauses 2.8 or   2.9 hereof (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or   spouse’s children):.

• The alien must have proof of relationship.
• In the case of spouse, the relationship must be de jure and de facto; or
• In the case of children, adopted children, or spouse’s children, said children, adopted children, and spouse’s children must not be married, must live with the alien as part of the family, and must not be over 20 years of age; or
• In the case of parents, funds must be deposited in a bank in Thailand, under the father’s or the mother’s name, of no less than Baht 500,000 for the past three months. For the first year only, the applicant must have proof of a deposit account in which said amount of funds has been maintained for no less than 30 days prior to the filing date.
• Copy of the passport of the alien who has been permitted to stay in the Kingdom for education purposes
• Copy of documents showing proof of relationship, such as a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, registration of child legitimization, household registration certificate, child adoption registration certificate, or other evidence issued by the government or relevant agency
• Only in the case of Criterion (5), the applicant must attach a funds deposit certificate issued by a bank in Thailand and a copy of a bankbook.

12.Visa Extension - In the case of performing duties in the mass media

In the case of performing duties in the mass media:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the Government Public Relations Department or the Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the Government Public Relations Department or the Department of Information, Ministry of Foreign Affairs

13.Visa Extension - In the case of studying Buddhism or practicing religious activities

In the case of studying buddhism or practicing religious activities:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the National Office of Buddhism, or Office of the Prime Minister, or Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, or Mahamakut Buddhist University.
• Must have been confirmed by the abbot of the temple where the applicant is studying Buddhism or practicing religious activities.
• Confirmation letter from the National Office of Buddhism, Office of the Prime Minister, Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University, Mahamakut Buddhist University, or other educational institutions for monks
• Confirmation letter from the abbot of the temple where the applicant is studying Buddhism or practicing religious activities

14.Visa Extension - In the case of a missionary

In the case of a missionary:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the Department of Religious Affairs or the Office of National Buddhism.
• Must have been confirmed and requested by the particular religious organization
• Confirmation letter from the Department of Religious Affairs or the National Office of Buddhism
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the religious organization

15.Visa Extension - In the case of a skilled laborer or a medical expert or a practitioner of other professions for the purpose of transferring knowledge to Thai people

In the case of a skilled laborer or   a medical expert or a practitioner of   other professions for the purpose of   transferring knowledge to thai   people:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by a relevant organization or agency.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by the relevant organization or agency

16.Visa Extension - In the case of installation or repair of machines, aircraft, or ocean vessels

In the case of installation or repair of machines, aircraft, or ocean vessels:, 17.visa extension - in the case of an actor, vocalist, or musician working at a hotel or an entertainment company in thailand with a paid-up registered capital of no less than baht 20 million, in the case of an actor, vocalist, or musician working at a hotel or an entertainment company in thailand with a paid-up registered capital of no less than baht 20 million:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by a hotel or an entertainment company in Thailand which has a paid-up registered capital of no less than Baht 20 million.
• Copy of the employment agreement to work as an actor, vocalist, or musician
• Copy of evidence proving company registration, such as a certificate of company or partnership registration, certified by the registrar within the previous six months
• Only for companies in the entertainment business, the applicant must attach a copy of the list of shareholders certified by the registrar within the previous six months.
• Copy of the latest monthly withholding income tax return specifying the applicant’s name together with payment receipt
• Copy of individual income tax return for the latest year together with payment receipt

18.Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of a Thai national

In the case of being a family member of a thai national (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children):.

• In the case of children, adopted children, or spouse’s children, said children, adopted children, or spouse’s children must not be married, must live with the alien as part of the family, and must not be over 20 years of age; or
• In the case of parents, the father or mother must maintain an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month throughout the year or must have deposited funds of no less than Baht 400,000 to cover expenses for one year. For other necessary cases, the Commissioner or Deputy Commissioner of Immigration Bureau is granted the authority to make decisions regarding approval on a case-by-case basis.
• In the case of marriage to a Thai woman, the alien husband must earn an average annual income of no less than Baht 40,000 per month or must have no less than Baht 400,000 in a bank account in Thailand for the past two months to cover expenses for one year.
• Copy of documents proving relationship, such as a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, registration of child legitimization, household registration certificate, child adoption registration certificate, or other evidence from the government or relevant agency
• Copy of evidence proving the Thai nationality of the spouse, parents, children, or adopted children, such as a national ID card, copy of household registration certificate, or other evidence issued by the government or relevant agency
• Only for Criteria (5) and (6), the applicant must attach a funds deposit certificate issued by a bank in Thailand and a copy of a bankbook, or attach documents proving that the parents or alien husband earns an average monthly income of no less than Baht 40,000 throughout the year, such as any particular individual income tax return together with payment receipt, evidence of receiving retirement pension, evidence of receiving interest from funds deposit, or evidence of having other funds issued by the relevant agency. An affidavit must also be submitted confirming the alien’s marital or parental status with a Thai national.

19.Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of a Thai resident

In the case of being a family member of a thai resident (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children):.

• In the case of parents, the father or mother must be 50 years of age or over.
• Copy of residence permit and copy of alien residence certificate

20.Visa Extension - In the case of being a family member of an alien permitted a temporary stay in the Kingdom

In the case of being a family member of an alien permitted a temporary stay in the kingdom under clauses 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, 2.5, 2.6, 2.7, 2.10, 2.12, 2.13, 2.14, 2.15, 2.16, 2.17, 2.21, 2.22, 2.26, or 2.29 hereof or section 34(7) (applicable only to parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children):.

• Must have proof of relationship.
• Copy of the passport of the alien who has been permitted to stay in the Kingdom

21.Visa Extension - In the case of necessity where the alien must stay to perform duties in a public charitable organization, a foreign private company, a foundation, an association, a foreign chamber of commerce, the Thai Chamber of Commerce, or the Federation of Thai Industries

In the case of necessity where the alien must stay to perform duties in a public charitable organization, a foreign private company, a foundation, an association, a foreign chamber of commerce, the thai chamber of commerce, or the federation of thai industries:.

หลักเกณฑ์การพิจารณา

• คนต่างด้าวต้องได้รับการตรวจลงตรา ประเภทคนอยู่ชั่วคราว
• ได้รับการรับรองและร้องขอจากผู้มี อำนาจ หรือผู้ดำรงตำแหน่งสูงสุดในองค์กร นั้น และ / หรือ
• ได้รับการรับรองและร้องขอจากหัวหน้า ส่วนราชการระดับกรมหรือเทียบเท่าขึ้นไป หรือ หัวหน้ารัฐวิสาหกิจ หรือหัวหน้า หน่วยงานอื่นของรัฐซึ่งเกี่ยวข้องกับองค์กร นั้น

เอกสารประกอบที่ต้องใช้

• แบบคำขอ ตม.7
• สำเนาหนังสือเดินทางของผู้ยื่นคำขอ
• สำเนาใบอนุญาตทำงาน
• สำเนาใบอนุญาตให้จัดตั้งองค์กรจากทาง ราชการ หรือสำเนาใบอนุญาตให้เข้ามา ดำเนินการจากส่วนราชการที่เกี่ยวข้อง
• หนังสือรับรองและขอให้อยู่ต่อจากองค์กร นั้น
• บัญชีรายชื่อคนต่างด้าวที่ทำงานในองค์กร
• เฉพาะกรณีตามหลักเกณฑ์ข้อ (3)ให้แนบ หนังสือรับรองและขอให้อยู่ต่อจากหัวหน้า ส่วนราชการระดับกรมหรือเทียบเท่าขึ้นไป หรือหัวหน้ารัฐวิสาหกิจ หรือหัวหน้าหน่วยงาน อื่นของรัฐซึ่งเกี่ยวข้องกับองค์กรนั้น

22.Visa Extension - In the case of retirement

In the case of retirement:, 23.visa extension - in the case of a person who used to have thai nationality or whose parent is or was of thai nationality visiting relatives or returning to his or her original homeland, in the case of a person who used to have thai nationality or whose parent is or was of thai nationality visiting relatives or returning to his or her original homeland:.

(1) There must be evidence that the applicant used to have Thai nationality or that his/her parent is or was of Thai nationality.

• Copy of documents proving that the applicant used to have Thai nationality or that his/her parent is or was of Thai nationality (In the case that the evidence of having Thai nationality is inconsistent with the information shown in the passport, the applicant must submit a confirmation letter from the embassy or consulate, or document verifying the applicant as being the same individual, such as an affidavit from a reliable person.)

24.Visa Extension - In the case of visiting a spouse or children who are of Thai nationality

In the case of visiting a spouse or children who are of thai nationality:.

• There must be proof of relationship.
• In the case of spouse, the relationship must be de jure and de facto.
• Copy of household registration certificate
• Copy of national ID card of the person having Thai nationality
• Copy of a marriage certificate or copy of a birth certificate

25.Visa Extension - In the case of receiving medical treatment, attending rehabilitation, or taking care of a patient

In the case of receiving medical treatment, attending rehabilitation, or taking care of a patient:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by a physician of the hospital providing said treatment with full explanation about the illness, period of treatment, and the physician’s opinion that the illness is an impediment to travel.
• In the case of taking care of a patient, the applicant must have been confirmed and requested by a physician of the hospital providing the examination and treatment or by an embassy or consulate.
• In the case of caretakers who are not the parents, spouse, children, adopted children, or spouse’s children, permission shall be granted for no more than one person.
• In the case of taking care of a patient, the applicant must attach a letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by a physician of the hospital providing said treatment and documents stating relationship (in the case that the caretaker is a member of the family), such as a marriage certificate, a birth certificate, registration of child legitimization, child adoption registration certificate, or confirmation letter from the embassy or consulate.

26.Visa Extension - In the case of litigation or court proceedings

In the case of litigation or court proceedings:.

(1) There must be evidence confirming that the applicant is involved in a litigation or court proceedings as accuser, injured person, accused, plaintiff, defendant, or witness.

• Confirmation letter from an inquiry official involved with the case, official paper or document confirming that the applicant is being involved with the litigation or court proceedings of the case.

27.Visa Extension - In the case of performing duties or missions for a government agency, state enterprise, other government agency or embassy or consulate or international organization

In the case of performing duties or missions for a government agency, state enterprise, other government agency or embassy or consulate or international organization:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by a government agency of the departmental level or equivalent; the head of a state enterprise; the head of another government agency; or a police officer of a level equivalent to or higher than the divisional level; or by a military officer of a command unit under the Ministry of Defense, Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy, or Royal Thai Air Force who is a Major General, Rear Admiral, Air Vice Marshal, or officer of a higher ranking; or by an international organization.
• In the case of necessity on a case-by-case basis, to stay more than 90 days, the application must be forwarded to the Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau or Deputy Commissioner of the Immigration Bureau for consideration.
• Copy of a passport of an applicant
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay issued by a government agency of the departmental level or equivalent; the head of a state enterprise; the head of another government agency; or a police officer of a level equivalent to or higher than the divisional level; or a military officer of a command unit under the Ministry of Defense, Royal Thai Armed Forces Headquarters, Royal Thai Army, Royal Thai Navy, or Royal Thai Air Force, who is a Major General, Rear Admiral, Air Vice Marshal, or officer of a higher ranking; or by an international organization

28.Visa Extension - In the case of necessity, with certification or request made by an embassy or consulate

In the case of necessity, with certification or request made by an embassy or consulate:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by the embassy or consulate.
• In the case of training, said alien must have been granted a non-immigrant visa (NON-IM).

29.Visa Extension - In the case of proof of nationality

In the case of proof of nationality:.

• Must have been confirmed by a relevant government agency.
• Confirmation letter from the relevant government agency

30.Visa Extension - In the case of an actor, vocalist, musician, or performance director, including persons responsible for entertaining performances or plays conducted from time to time

In the case of an actor, vocalist, musician, or performance director, including persons responsible for entertaining performances or plays conducted from time to time:.

• Must have been confirmed and requested by a relevant private entity.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay from the relevant private sector entity

31.Visa Extension - In the case of a person in charge of conveyance and crew of conveyance who entered through a port, station, or locality in the Kingdom, and has not departed from the Kingdom

In the case of a person in charge of conveyance and crew of conveyance who entered through a port, station, or locality in the kingdom, and has not departed from the kingdom:.

• The case shall be considered based on the reasons and necessity of not being able to depart from the Kingdom.
• Letter of confirmation and request for a temporary stay from the relevant government or private organization or agency

32.Visa Extension - In the case of Necessity to Perform Duties in a Juristic Person

กรณี b.o.i. , การนิคมฯ , กรมเชื้อเพลิง , รับรอง.

• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.7 ( ค่าธรรมเนียม 1,900 บาท)
• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.8 ( ค่าธรรมเนียม S= 1,000 บาท, M=3,800 บาท )
• รูปถ่าย ขนาด 4 x 6 ซม. ถ่ายไม่เกิน 6 เดือน จำนวน 2 รูป
• หนังสือรับรองจาก B.O.I. , การนิคมอุตสาหกรรม , กรมเชื้อเพลิงธรรมชาติ
• สำเนาหนังสือเดินทาง พร้อมหนังสือเดินทางฉบับจริง -ใช้หน้าที่มีรูปถ่าย – หน้าวีซ่า Non ครั้งแรก – การเดินทางครั้งแรกของ Non – หน้าวีซ่า ที่ได้รับการอนุญาตครั้งสุดท้าย – หน้า Re-Entry สุดท้าย – หน้าการเดินทางเข้าประเทศครั้งสุดท้าย – บัตร ตม.6
• แบบฟอร์ม สตม.2 ( การรับทราบเงื่อนไขการอนุญาตให้อยู่ในราชอาณาจักร )

ติดต่อที กองกำกับการ 3 กองบังคับการตรวจคนเข้าเมือง 1 อาคารจัตุรัสจามจุรี ชั้น 18 เลขที่ 319 ถ.พญาไท เขตปทุมวัน กรุงเทพฯ โทร. 0-22090 – 1100 ต่อ 1016

33.Visa Extension - In the case for Foreigners Having Rights under the Investment Promotion Act B.E. 2520, the Petroleum Act B.E. 2514, and the Industrial Estate Authority of Thailand Act B.E. 2522

กรณีเข้ามาประจำสำนักงานผู้แทนของนิติบุคคลต่างประเทศในธุรกิจการค้าระหว่างประเทศ สำนักงานภูมิภาคของบริษัทข้ามชาติ และสำนักงานสาขา.

• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.7 พร้อมรูปถ่ายขนาด 4 x 6 ซม. จำนวน 1 รูป
• สำเนาหนังสือเดินทาง และสำเนาใบอนุญาตทำงาน
• หนังสือชี้แจงตำแหน่งของคนต่างด้าวที่ปฏิบัติงานในบริษัท โดยให้ระบุ – ลักษณะธุรกิจ – เหตุผลความจำเป็นในการจ้าง ระบุตำแหน่ง อัตราเงินเดือน คุณวุฒิ – จำนวนพนักงานคนไทยและคนต่างด้าวที่มาปฏิบัติงานในบริษัท
• ใบอนุญาตประกอบธุรกิจ และหนังสือรับรองการประกอบธุรกิจ
• หลักฐานการนำเงินเข้ามาในราชอาณาจักรตามเงื่อนไขใบอนุญาตประกอบธุรกิจ
• หนังสือแต่งตั้งจากสำนักงานใหญ่ ( Power of Attorney )
• รายการภาษีเงินได้ของคนต่างด้าวและพนักงานคนไทย (ภ.ง.ด.1 ) เดือนล่าสุด พร้อมใบเสร็จรับเงิน
• รายการภาษีเงินได้ของคนต่างด้าว ( ภ.ง.ด.91 ) ปีล่าสุด พร้อมใบเสร็จรับเงิน
• สำเนาแบบรายการแสดงการส่งเสริมเงินสบทบตามที่ได้ยื่นไว่ต่อสำนักงานประกันสังคม ( สปส.1-10 ) เดือนล่าสุด
• แผนที่แสดงที่ตั้งของสำนักงาน
• กรณีมีครอบครัวติดตามมาอยู่ด้วย ให้แสดงหลักฐานความเป็นครอบครัว เช่น ใบทะเบียนสมรส ใบสูติบัตร หรือหนังสือรับรองจากสถานทูต
• หนังสือรับทราบเงื่อนไขการอนุญาตให้อยู่ต่อในองค์กร

34.การขออยู่ต่อ - กรณีเป็นสื่อมวลชน ที่ได้รับการอนุญาตจากทางราชการ

กรณีปฏิบัติหน้าที่สื่อมวลชน โดยได้รับการอนุญาตจากทางราชการ.

• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.8 พร้อมรูปถ่ายขนาด 4 x 6 ซม. จำนวน 1 รูป
• หนังสือรับรองจากกรมสารนิเทศ กระทรวงการต่างประเทศ หรือส่วนราชการที่เกี่ยวข้องระดับกรม หรือ เทียบเท่า

35.Extension of temporary stay under Section 15 - For Persons on Diplomatic Missions sent by a Foreign Government to perform duties in the Kingdom

• สำเนาหนังสือเดินทางของผู้ยื่นขออยู่ต่อ
• สำเนาหนังสือเดินทางของคนต่างด้าวที่ได้รับอนุญาตให้อยู่ในราชอาณาจักร
• สำเนาเอกสารแสดงความสัมพันธ์กัน เช่น หลักฐานการจดทะเบียนสมรส สำเนาสูติบัตร หลักฐานการจดทะเบียนรับรองบุตร สำเนาทะเบียนบ้าน หลักฐานการจดทะเบียนรับบุตรบุญธรรม หรือหลักฐานอื่นจากส่วนราชการ หรือหน่วยงานที่เกี่ยวข้อง

36.Extension of temporary stay under Section 15 - For Consular parties and their employees sent by a Foreign Government to perform duties in the Kingdom

กรณีเพื่อธุรกิจ/สำนักงานปฏิบัติการภูมิภาค ( ปีแรก/ปีถัดไป ).

• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.7 พร้อมรูปถ่ายขนาด 4 x 6 ซม. จำนวน 1 รูป (ผู้ขอ,ผู้ติดตามตามลำดับ (ถ้ามี) )
• แบบฟอร์ม ตม.8 พร้อมรูปถ่ายขนาด 4 x 6 ซม. จำนวน 1 รูป (ผู้ขอ,ผู้ติดตามตามลำดับ (ถ้ามี) )
• บัญชีรายชื่อคนต่างด้าวทุกคนในบริษัท
• แผนภูมิแสดงตำแหน่งงาน
• หนังสือรับรองคนต่างด้าวเข้าทำงานตามแบบคำขอของสำนักงานตรวจคนเข้าเมือง(สตม.1)/หนังสือชี้แจงต่าง ๆ/ประกาศรับสมัครพนักงานคนไทย
• สำเนางบดุล และงบกำไรขาดทุน ปีล่าสุด (พร้อมฉบับจริง)
• สำเนาแบบยื่นรายการภาษีเงินได้หัก ณ ที่จ่าย (ภ.ง.ด.1) ที่มีชื่อพนักงานคนไทย และชื่อคนต่างด้าวผู้ยื่นคำขอและสำเนาใบเสร็จรับเงินเดือนล่าสุด พร้อมแสดงใบเสร็จรับเงินฉบับจริง
• สำเนาแบบแสดงรายการภาษีเงินได้ส่วนบุคคลธรรมดาของคนต่างด้าวผู้ยื่นคำขอ (ภ.ง.ด.91) และสำเนาใบเสร็จรับเงิน  พร้อมแสดงใบเสร็จรับเงินฉบับจริง
• สำเนาแบบรายการแสดงการส่งเสริมเงินสบทบตามที่ได้ยื่นไว้ต่อสำนักงานประกันสังคม ( สปส.1-10 ) และสำเนาใบเสร็จรับเงิน เดือนล่าสุด พร้อมแสดงใบเสร็จรับเงินฉบับจริง
• หลักฐานการจดทะเบียนขององค์กรนั้น เช่น หนังสือรับรองการจดทะเบียนบริษัท (ฉบับจริง) หรือ การจดทะเบียนห้างหุ้นส่วนฉบับนายทะเบียน (ฉบับจริง) รับรองไม่เกิน 6 เดือน
• บัญชีรายชื่อผู้ถือหุ้นฉบับนายทะเบียนรับรองไม่เกิน 6 เดือน (บอจ.5) (ฉบับจริง)
• กรณีมีครอบครัวติดตามมาอยู่ด้วย ให้แสดงหลักฐานความเป็นครอบครัว เช่น ใบทะเบียนสมรส ใบสูติบัตร หรือหนังสือรับรองจากสถานทูต (ฉบับจริง)
• แผนที่แสดงสถานที่ทำงานของผู้ยื่นคำขอ
• รูปถ่ายของบริษัทฯ ภายในบริษัทฯ ในรูปถ่ายต้องมีพนักงานนั่งปฏิบัติงาน จำนวน 4 รูป และภายนอกบริษัทฯ ต้องมีป้ายชื่อบริษัทฯ และสถานที่ตั้ง ของบริษัทฯ จำนวน 2 รูป
• เอกสารหรือหลักฐานอื่น ตามที่คณะกรรมการติดตามการปฏิบัติราชการของพนักงานเจ้าหน้าที่ตรวจคนเข้าเมือง ของ สตม.กำหนด (แบบ สตม.2)

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HOW TO EXTEND YOUR TOURIST VISA FOR THAILAND IN CHIANG MAI

by Hungry Backpack | Feb 4, 2017 | ORGANIZATIONAL , THAILAND | 21 comments

GUIDE ON HOW TO EASILY HANDLE YOUR TOURIST VISA EXTENSION IN CHIANG MAI

Just when we thought we left all the paperwork and bureaucracy behind it caught up with us when we realized that our Thai tourist visa was about to expire in less than 4 days and with the weekend coming up we quickly realized we better hit the road and make a trip to the Thai immigration office in Chiang Mai to get our visa extended for another 30 days! So if you find yourself in the same position and have no idea how the tourist visa exension process works in Chiang Mai than keep on reading.

All in all the visa extension process is pretty straight forward and well organized. We’ve put together a little guide below on how to extend your Thai tourist visa when you are in Chiang Mai! Enjoy! 🙂

UPDATE April, 2018 : We’ve received some feedback from fellow travellers about a few changes regarding your visa extension process in Chiang Mai as well as some great tips and info that should make your application process a breeze. We have added these changes to the post below! 🙂

WHY APPLY FOR AN EXTENSION OF YOUR THAI TOURIST VISA

With a German passport we were allowed to enter the country with no visa at all and permitted to stay for a total of 30 days. If you plan on staying longer (and once you’ll see all the beautiful beaches and islands chances are high you WILL want to stay longer 🙂 ) you can extend your visa for another 30 days. PIECE – OF – CAKE!

Same applies when you enter with a single entry tourist visa which allows you to stay for 60 days in total. You could also extend this visa (only ONCE!) for another 30 days without leaving Thailand giving you the possibility to stay for a total of 90 days!

Three months in Thailand? – HELL YA!!!!

Attention! Keep in mind that the first day you are on Thai soil is already counted towards those 30/60/90 days! So always check your passport stamp for your exact expiry date!

WHEN TO APPLY FOR AN EXTENSION OF YOUR THAI TOURIST VISA

Theoretically you can apply for an extension of your tourist visa for Thailand up until the day it expires or your passport stamp tells you to leave if you entered with no visa like we did.

However waiting until the last second is pretty risky. There might be a public Thai holiday you don’t know about or the date falls on a weekend when the immigration office is closed. Also it might be one of those days with just tooooo many people in line in front of you so you simply won’t make it that day.

Whatever the reason, better safe than sorry! So to avoid any last minute heart attacks we recommend paying a visit to the immigration office to extend your visa at least 2-3 days prior.

WHERE TO EXTEND YOUR THAI TOURIST VISA IN CHIANG MAI

Tourists can extend their tourist visas at the immigration office at the Promenada Mall. They have a so called “One Stop Shop” for visa extensions which is open from Monday – Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm (with a 1 hour lunch break from 12pm – 1pm! ) – excluding public holidays!

Just watch out for the big Tom N Toms coffee chain sign – it is located right BELOW that!

Chiang Mai immigration office at Promenada Mall

HOW TO GET TO THE PROMENADA MALL TO EXTEND YOUR TOURIST VISA?

Promenada Mall with the immigration office is located roughly 15 minutes from the Old Town by car so chances are you won’t want to walk 🙂

So simply stop a red Songthaew or Tuk-Tuk and tell them you want to go to “Promenada”. They will drop you of right in front of the mall so you can’t miss the big Tom N Tom sign.

We took an Uber taxi from Nimman area for around 85 THB and it took approx. 20 minutes to get there.

WHAT TO BRING WHEN EXTENDING YOUR THAI TOURIST VISA?

Theoretically your passport with your departure card should be completely enough as everything else is available or can be done right there (forms, passport photo service, copy shop) – it’s not called “one stop shop” for no reason. 🙂

However, here is the full list of what is REQUIRED for extending your Thai tourist visa:

• Passport (including your Tourist Visa or your entry stamp and departure card)
• Photocopies of the main passport photo page
• Photocopies of your current Thai tourist visa page (if you have a tourist visa already)
• Photocopies of your departure card
• Application for Extension of Temporary Stay in the Kingdom (form TM.7)
• One 4cm x 6cm passport photo (they are not flexible here!!)
• An application fee of 1,900THB

Also make sure you know the address where you are currently staying as well as having a Thai phone number – this information is required on the visa form!

WHAT IS THE PROCESS FOR EXTENDING YOUR THAI TOURIST VISA IN CHIANG MAI?

The Process to extend your stay/visa is pretty straight forward and there is always enough staff on site to tell you what’s happening next.

But so you are prepared here is a quick description of all the steps taking place before you can leave when a new stamp in your passport allowing you to stay 30 days longer in this beautiful country. 🙂

1. Find the “one stop shop” of the immigration office below Tom N Toms coffee chain and go to the information desk to pick up the TM 7 form. Note: This is all outside!

2. Check out the examples of how to correctly fill in the form (there are a few examples tucked to the information desk – knowing how to fill this in will safe you some time)

3. Find a seat (there a couple of outdoor tables and chairs) and fill in the form – it’s just 1 ½ page

Note: Bring a pen as there are only a few pens at the information desk so unless you want to wait around for a seat to get free better bring your own blue or black pen!

Filling in our TM7 form to extend our tourist visa

4. Get your passport & departure card copied if you didn’t bring copies with you already – it’s less than 10 THB so I wouldn’t worry about doing it before.

5. Have your passport pictures taken if you didn’t bring a 4 x 6 cm passport picture. You will get 6 passport photos for 200 THB here – not that you will ever need the other 5 again :/

UPDATE APRIL 2018: a tip from a fellow traveller was to skip the lines and high prices and go to BIG CAMERA on the 3rd floor. They charge around 150 – 180 THB for TEN photos whereas the shop near immigration will charge around 200 THB for six photos.

Note: they are not flexible on the size of the pictures and rejected the ones we brought as there were “too small” 🙂 Funny thing was that Martin brought the ones he got taken when extending his visa before at the immigration office in Phuket, Thailand.

6. Take your completed TM 7 Form, one passport picture, the copies of your passport and departure card (both need to be signed again) and the 1900 THB in cash to the information desk . The staff there will check whether you have completely everything correctly and will also take the payment from you. They will hand over everything to their colleagues and you will be asked to wait until they call your name in the (air-conditioned! 🙂 ) waiting room just next door.

Note: If you didn’t bring the exact change you will get your change at the end when they’ll return the passport to you.

7. Wait until they call your name. First time they’ll call you they want to take another picture with you holding up your TM 7 form, second time they’ll call you they return the passport with the next extension stamp along with any change and a receipt – THAT’S IT! 🙂

Note: Depending on how many people are there that day expect to wait around 30 min – 1 hour. If it’s super busy you might have to wait even longer. So bring a book to read or have your phone fully charged so that you’ll have some entertainment while waiting.

IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE TO DO AROUND AFTER YOU HAVE EXTENDED YOUR TOURIST VISA?

Sure, have a bite to eat or enjoy a coffee in the Promenada Mall. There aren’t A LOT of shops but it’s still fun to browse around for a bit. There is a supermarket, some tech and clothes stores, a few restaurants and about 20 coffee shops! So you’ll DEFINITELY get a good cuppa coffee there! 🙂

Inside Promenada Mall

Our snack from the Black Canyon Cafe at Promenada Mall. Delicious!

UPDATE April 2018: A tip from a fellow traveler was to check out the “Amazon Cafe´” on the 3rd floor! They charge reasonable prices, make great coffee AND have a fantastic green tea as well on offer!

HOW TO GET BACK TO CHIANG MAI FROM PROMENADA MALL?

You could either get an Uber (some of the coffee shops offer free Wi-Fi so you can get an Uber while sipping your coffee), check if there are any taxis, tuk-tuks or Songteaws outside OR – and this is a tip for everyone on a budget – use the FREE SHUTTLE BUS !

UPDATE April 2018: A reader informed us that their free shuttle bus service was unfortunately discontinued :-(We currently don’t know if this is a temporary thing or not so have left the information in this post for the time being. Let us know if you see/hear anything. Thanks!!!

Information desk where you can book shuttle bus tickets

There is a free shuttle bus from Promenada Mall to about 6 different stops in town: Amora Tapae Hotel, Imperial Maeping, Night Bazaar/Le Meridien Hotel, Shangri La, The Empress & Holiday Inn.

Promenada Mall Shuttle Service Timetable

They run hourly and you can get your ticket at the information desk inside Promenada Mall. So we just did that! After enjoying some soul food and coffee at the mall we got us a ticket at the information desk, hopped on the next shuttle bus to Amora Tapae Hotel and just walked from there back to our apartment.

So all in all the visa extension process in Chiang Mai wasn’t as bad as we expected – actually they were really efficient and processed our application pretty quickly considering the amount of people there. We are now looking forward to staying another few weeks in Thailand! YEEEAA !!

Also extended your visa? CONGRATS! Make sure to check out our scooter adventures around Chiang Mai for some inspiration and guidance of how to spend your next weeks here 🙂 .

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21 Comments

ATTENTION – we’ve just published an updated post about the NEW visa extension process at the new immigration office in Chiang Mai. If you want to extend your visa in Chiang Mai make sure to check out this post!: https://hungrybackpack.com/extend-tourist-visa-in-chiang-mai-new cheers and happy travels!

Just an update, they have moved back to the airport as of Sept. 24 (yesterday). It isn’t here anymore – we just tried 😉

Hi Graysen! Thanks so much for this info, really appreciate it! We’ve updated this post immidiately! How was the visa extension process at the airport? Did you experience any major wait-times or general changes to the whole procedure? Happy Travels, Berit & Martin

This blog post has been so helpful, thank you so much! Currently waiting to receive my visa. Fingers crossed!

Hi Daisy! Thanks for your comment ! Good luck with the visa process and say hello to Thailand from us – we really miss it! 🙂

Hey, guys! Thank you a lot for sharing this! Today also gonna go there. Can you tell, was there a problem with the photo on a white background? Do they accept such or only on a blue background?

Hi Irina! thanks for your comment! You’re probably already on your way to extend your visa however in case you still read this we quickly wanted to answer the question regarding the photos. They are very strange when it comes to these. We first extended our visa in Phuket and when taking our pictures there they were done with a white background. However these pictures (we still had some left) were not accepted by the Chiang Mai Immigration office – why? no idea! 🙂 One would assume same country – same process – same regulations. But they wouldn’t accept them and took new ones with a blue background.

So you can try and check with them, but we wouldn’t count on it.

Good luck and let us know how it went! Berit & Martin

Great article. Love people who take the time to share these things!

UPDATE: There is no more FREE SHUTTLE BUS. It’s been discontinued…

FEW TIPS 1. For photos, skip the lines and high prices and go to BIG CAMERA on the 3rd floor. They charge 150 (or 180?) Baht for TEN photos (the shop near immigration charges 200B for six photos).

2. Skip Tom Toms and Black Canyon and go to Amazon Cafe on the 3rd floor! They charge more reasonable prices and they make not only great coffee, but excellent green tea as well (for green tea lovers like me!).

3. The photocopy shop next to immigration is efficient and cheap. Charge only 4 Baht for two copies!!

4. Grabbed a Songtaeng from Old City to Promenada for 100 Baht (beware, other drivers quoted 150B and even 300B!).

5. Immigration was super efficient. In and out in 1 hour.

Hi David! You are a star! 🙂 Thanks for sharing your feedback and recent changes! We will make sure to update the post accordingly adding all your notes and comments!

Thanks and keep enjoying wonderful Thailand! Will you be staying in/around Chiang Mai or are you off to explore other parts of Thailand?

Great article very organized! I plan to do my first 30 day extension next week and now i know the process isn’t too bad..

Thank Alot 🙂

Hi Gladys! Thank you so much! It really should be fairly straight-forward! Good luck and keep enjoying Thailand! 🙂

Hi! Very helpful Articel! Thanks so much! My question, if you know it, is if the extension starts the day you get it or, on the day the old visa has run out? Greetings

Hi Fritzi! Thanks so much ! Regarding your question, the extension starts the day your old visa runs out so theoretically you can go and extend it as soon as you know you want to stay longer! 🙂 Easy-peasy!

All the best and enjoy Thailand! Berit & Martin

Hi. Do you know if it’s everyone that gets their visa extended – or is there a risk of not getting it extended? And did you book you flight ticket counting on getting the extra 30 days?

Hi Siggie! We’ve never come across anyone who didn’t get their visa extended so don’t worry too much! 🙂 And yes, we planned according to staying for 60 days in Thailand. Let us know if you need any other information or help!

Are you currently travelling through Thailand?

Hey guys! Thanks for this super cool article. Saved my life! Going to Immigration Office tomorrow morning to extend my visa for 30 days. Thanks a lot!

Hi André! Thanks for this – we’re glad you found it helpful! 🙂 Let us know if you feel anything is missing or if they have made any changes to the procedure worth adding in our post! And of course – keep enjoying Chiang Mai, we miss it! We were actually planning on being there again this January but plans have changed and we ended up in Sri Lanka instead, so no complaining! 🙂 Thanks and all the best, Berit & Martin

I am here on a 30 day tourist visa and wish to extend it for another 30 days. I have just realized that I have lost my departure card. What do I do, I am in Chiang Mai – if I have all the other requested documentation will I be okay, if I explain the situation. Thanks. Anne

Hi Anne! We’ve luckily never been in this situation before however I don’t think it’s such a big problem. Don’t worry too much. We would recommend you just go to the immigration office in Chiang Mai and check with the staff there. Usually they just give you a new form to fill out and no extra fees apply if you explain the situation. Good luck and keep us posted! Berit & Martin

Hi! Thanks a lot for all these precious information.what do you mean by departure card? We plan to do same thing. However we do not have flight ticket to leave the country.we plan indeed to go to Cambodgia by crossing the boarder by walk. Thanks!!

Hi Benjamin, thanks so much for your comment! Regarding your question, you are probably not yet in Thailand, right? Because you will get the departure card when you enter the country (it’s a little piece of paper that you keep in your passport until you leave again). Let us know if you need any more info! Otherwise enjoy your trip, you’ll have a great time! We’ll probably be back in Thailand at the beginning of next year as well as we just like it so much! 🙂 Berit & Martin

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How to Extend Your Tourist Visa at New Immigration Office Location in Chiang Mai, Thailand 22

Renewing a tourist visa in Thailand is everyone’s favorite pastime, and there always seems to be new rules for playing the game… In the latest one, they moved the immigration office in Chiang Mai – from by the airport to a new location at the Promenada Resort Mall. Alyssa and I just went to the new office to extend our tourist visas, and found it was simple and pretty well-organized.

Extend Your Tourist Visa in Chiang Mai, Thailand

A month sure flies by fast! Before we knew it we were coming up on our visa expiration date and had to make sure everything went smoothly the first time so we wouldn’t need to come back and waste another day waiting in lines.

Here’s some tips that helped us get through quickly and painlessly.

Things to Bring With to the Immigration Office

Be sure to have these ready before you go so you don’t get delayed or lose your spot in line. Also, don’t try to save paper by printing everything on one page or double-sided. They are pretty strict about wanting each copy on it’s own page.

• Photocopy of your passport picture page
• Photocopy of your current Thailand visa stamp
• Photocopy of your departure card
• Application form filled out
• Complete residence address (include  tambon, amphoe  (district), province, and postal code)
• Recent “passport-style” picture (4 x 6 cm)
• Thai baht money for fees. Tourist visa extension is 1,900 baht (they do give change).
• Any other proof (medical, retirement, student, etc.) that is required for your specific situation

They also told us to sign all the copies of our passport and put our phone number or email address next to the “Address in Thailand” on the back of the form. An immigration lady had a stack of forms in case we didn’t print it out before, and even had a glue stick so we could stick our photo to the application form. They’ll probably staple it on if you can’t find the glue-stick lady.

There is a print shop right next door, so you can make copies of your passport or take your picture if you need it.

Visa Application Forms

(Click on the forms below to preview or print them)

Tourist Visa Extension Application ( Click here for pdf version )

Re-Entry Permit Application

90 Days Notify  Application

For the latest information and forms, you can also check the Thailand Immigration website .

Getting to the New Immigration Office at the Promenada Mall

The Promenada Mall is about 8 miles to the southeast of the Old Town. It’s close to a few major roads so getting to it is quick and easy. Click here to see it on Google Maps.

We rented a motorbike that cost 200 baht for the day – much cheaper for us than taking a songtaew (red truck taxi) there and back, and we could stop at the grocery store on the way home.

There was no traffic when we left just after 6 in the morning, and made it to the Promenada Mall without a hitch. At the mall, there were “Immigration This Way” signs that directed us to the immigration office. It’s right inside the “A Building” parking lot, so don’t worry it’s not hidden in some dark corner.

I was surprised how simple it was to find! You can even grab a latte from the nearby coffee shop as a reward for finding the place alright!

The old immigration office was by the airport, and was quite a bit smaller than this new place. Be careful if anyone directs you there, because it has definitely moved. They had a free shuttle bus that ran from the old office to the new one, but it only ran for a month so don’t count on that.

Which Visa Line to Stand In?

There are lines for renewing a tourist visa (extension), re-entry permit, retirement and medical, and notify 90 days. If it’s your first time renewing your visa, you’ll probably need to be in the tourist extension line. If you have a different type of visa, then just get in those lines.

The office opens at 8:30am, but we got there at 6:30am to get a good spot in line because we were up against our expiration date and couldn’t chance being delayed. We were 12th in the tourist visa line when we arrived. A few more people came behind us at 7am, and by 8am a big crowd had come, and there were about 50 people in our line. There was a stack of chairs by the door, so the first half had a nice relaxing time waiting. Some were even sleeping!

At 8:30am when the office opened, the immigration officials called each line up in order to check our papers and gave us each a colored tag with a number on it. That was our order, and we could go wait anywhere we wanted. Some people with a high number left to do other things in the meantime. There was no other list to put our names on like in the past.

Extending Your Thai Tourist Visa

They constantly called numbers and colors over a loudspeaker (in English) and Alyssa and I went in to the office separately. They wanted my passport, passport copies, application form filled out, picture, and money. They kept everything with them then sent us outside to wait for another half hour until they called our names.

This time, he gave us our papers and told us to stand in a short line to have our picture taken. We already gave them a photo, so I can’t understand the reasoning here! They took some of the papers and gave us our passport with a new HUGE visa stamp in it, old departure card, a receipt, and our change.

We checked all our papers to make sure we had a new stamp and were off on our motorcycle by 10:30am, 4 hours after we arrived – not bad!

Frequently Asked Questions:

• Q. I flew into Bangkok and currently have a 30 day tourist Visa. Is this renewable? A. Yes, you can renew your 30-day visa for another 30-days at the immigration office for 1900 baht.
• Q. What is the difference between single entry, double, and triple entries? A. A single entry visa is the visa you get when you arrive by airplane valid for 30 days and renewed for 30 more. A double and triple entry is a visa you apply for either before you come or in a neighboring country. It gives you double or triple entires that are renewable every 60 days. For example, if you have a double entry visa you can enter Thailand two times for 60 days each time.
• Q. Do I really need to arrive at 6 a.m. to renew my visa?  A. Most people recommend getting there early. The office is closed for lunch from 12-1 p.m. so if you want to get your paperwork done before then, getting there early is a good idea. Some people arrived around 8 a.m. and had their paperwork done before the lunch break. 

For more questions, please refer to the Thai Embassy or comment below and we will do our best to help you!

Have you been to the new immigration office in Chiang Mai to extend your tourist visa? How was your experience, and do you have any more tips?

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22 thoughts on “ How to Extend Your Tourist Visa at New Immigration Office Location in Chiang Mai, Thailand ”

Hey guys! Thanks for sharing the info. Do you know if I have to show proof when I’m leaving the country to get the visa on arrival in Sukhumvit airport (Bangkok)? I’m going to spend some days in the capital before I get to Chiang Mai but I haven’t planned the exit yet. Last year when I arrived in Singapore they didn’t ask for the departure date but in Denpasar Bali to Bangkok they did. Any idea?

Hi! We had a one-way ticket into Thailand and didn’t have to show a proof of exit. We had to do that in Costa Rica and a few other countries but not in Thailand. I’m not sure if it’s dependent on your nationality or where you are coming from. Let us know how it goes for you!

I recently landed in Bangkok with a visa on arrival without an ongoing ticket, and wasn’t asked for anything. In my experience, it’s usually the airlines that are fussy about the ongoing ticket — they can face large fines if you are stuck in the country without money or a way out.

I usually print off an ongoing itinerary from Orbitz or another booking site to show the airlines (you can view and print this without buying) . Glad I did because Air Asia asked for it this time!

Good to know! Thanks for the feedback Michael! It seems like everyone has a little different experience!

Thanks for sharing this! I have to get my extension done soon and have only done it at the old location. Cheers!

It’s a pretty smooth process. I was pretty impressed and how fast they were able to get it done. Thanks for stopping by!

How many times can you renew your visa? Can you keep doing border runs and keep coming back into Thailand? or do they try to prevent you from doing that?

It depends on what kind of Visa you have. If you enter the country with just a normal tourist visa, you can only renew that once for an additional 30 days. It costs 1900 baht and is a pretty easy process. Once your tourist visa extension expires then you can do a border run and apply for a double entry visa. This gives you a lot more time and you only have to cross to the border to activate your second entry after the 60 days. If you get double entry that means that you can enter Thailand 2 times and each time you can only stay max 60 days. Hope this helps!

First of all, thank you for sharing! But I’m really confused now.

As I know there are two different type of visas: 1. visa on arrival, 2. tourist visa. The tourist visa could be different type (double entry, multiple entry and etc). The visa on arrival is just one, and it allow you to stay in the country for 30 days (this in the majority of the nationality, but not all). So I’m wondering if this is correct.

Secondly, I have information for the Thai Embassy in Italy that you cannot renew you VISA ON ARRIVAL, once you are in Thailand. It means that once you arrive in Thailand and get the visa on arrival, you cannot extend it as you mentioned in the article. Now, I don’t trust 100% any information that is not through experience. So I don’t know if the guy from Italy was right.

My case is: I arrive by flight to Bangkok from Kuala Lumpur. I get the 30 days VISA ON ARRIVAL. –> correct? Or I get the VISA EXEMPTION because I’m Italian? This is very confusing. I stay in Chiang Mai then I have two possibilities to extend my stay in Thailand: 1) Get the extension by the immigration office in Thailand –> is this correct? 2) Go out by land in Myanmar, stay there two days, and then come back to Thailand by land and get other 30 days. — correct? If this is the case, I read that it is difficult to get the stamp to enter Thailand again, because it is not a TOURIST VISA (60days+30days), but is the visa on arrival (or visa exemption). So I don’t really know if it easy to come back to Thailand from Myanmar in my case.

Thank you very much

Hi Alessio,

Good job, you’ve got it down pretty good! I’ll try to summarize what you said and explain what we’ve done.

Both the visa on arrival and single/multiple-entry tourist visas (requested from a Thai embassy in another country) can be extended ONCE for 30 days by going to the immigration office and paying 1,900 baht. This is what we did with our visa exemption/visa on arrival we got when we initially arrived by plane. For completeness, I’ll mention that with a double entry tourist visa, it can be extended one time for each entry.

So, you’re right, you can either extend your visa in Chiang Mai or leave the country. However, when you’re in the other country, you need to apply for a tourist visa at the THAI EMBASSY in the other country before returning. You will only get around 15 days if you attempt a visa on arrival at the land border. You might want to apply for a 2-entry visa that costs 2,000 baht. It will allow you to stay in Thailand for 60 days before you have to either 1.) renew it once for 30 more days, or 2.) leave the country and return to activate the “second entry” part of the visa. If you play your cards right, you can get almost 6 months of visa time in Thailand between having to buy another visa.

You could get 60 days from first-entry + 30 extension + (leave country) 60 from second entry + 30 extension = ~180 days!

Thailand is making a new law for a multiple-entry 6-month visa, and hopefully it’ll be implemented soon.

Thanks for the detailed question. Good luck and let us know how it goes with a comment later on! -Landon

Actually I just need to stay in thailand for 38 days. So if I cross the border by land and then come back by land and get the 15 addictional days for me is still good. The problem is, would they make an issue to me if I have a exemption visa on arrival, and then go out and come back by land? And yes, the new law is coming out in the 13 November and it will cost 5000 bath.

Sure, that would work. The border immigration officials have been taking issue with people trying to cross out and in on the same day for visa renewals/activations, so they may want you to stay out of the country for a few days.

Sometimes it costs less money and time to just pay the 1,900 baht for a renewal and not have to take the time to leave the country, but either way is fine.

Thank you so so much for this! I’m a tad bit cloudy on what to do in my particular situation, if you’re able to clear it up a bit further? I first arrived to Thailand on a single entry visa valid from Aug-Oct. I had traveled out of Thailand, and now I am back on a 30-day allowance. I’ll get it extended which would give me until Dec 15. I’m planning to travel from CM to Japan on Dec. 27, so it’d make more sense to wait and apply for a tourist visa once I’m in Japan, yes? However, what should I do about being in Thailand Dec. 15-27 … do a land-border crossing in Malaysia and get the 15 days?

Appreciate your help!

Great question Kristen. I assume you arrived to Thailand by air on Oct 14th and got a visa-exempt stamp until Nov 15th and plan to extend this to Dec 15th by paying the 1,900 baht at the immigration office.

I’d say you’re probably right to just go for the 15 day land entry visa since you only need a short addition. Depending on your nationality, they sometimes may only give a 7 day visa I’ve heard, so keep that in mind. Also, they’ve been strict at not letting people leave and return to Thailand on the same day, so you should plan to spend a day or two in Malaysia.

They are planning on implementing a new 6-month multiple entry visa mid November, so depending on your plans for when you return to Thailand after Japan, that may be an option to look into starting when you cross into Malaysia. It could simplify things depending on your itinerary.

Thanks for the comment! Let us know how it all goes and what worked best after you return!

Indeed, that is correct, I did arrive by air. And I’m a US citizen. I have read a bit about the new 6 month visa. I’m crossing fingers that it’s something I’ll be able to get to make the process easier. Whew, thank you, now knowing this all feels like a burden lifted :) I’ll let you know!

Wow! Nicely written Landon. This is excellent information. I hope to meet you sometime after we arrive in CM, in May 2016. Regards, Roy Stevenson

Thanks Roy! We most likely will be moved on from CM but maybe our paths will cross another time! Happy Travels!

Great write-up thanks! It’s a little different now:

I decided to go there today (Thursday) at 1pm. There were only a few people in the tourist extension queue so that part only took 5 minutes or so. They took all my paperwork, but gave back no receipt or number. I was told the wait would be about one hour. Over the next two hours, a variety of names and numbers were called out and then my name too! At that point you go to the front and get your photo taken. Then sit back down again and 10 minutes later my name was called again and I collected my passport and change.

Altogether about 2.5 hours. But they were still accepting applications when I left at 3:30pm and only a few people were arriving in the afternoon, so I reckon getting there about 3pm (2:20pm shuttle bus from Amora Thapae Hotel) might have been wiser (though I’d make sure I had a day to spare just in case!).

Frustrating they don’t give you a number when you had in your papers. Then it would be easy to gauge how long you have to wait or whether your turn is about to come up. Also anonymity would be nice! If I’d known it would be well over an hour, I would’ve gone for a coffee.

Coffee: Chic Cafe on the top floor in the electronics shop, is a good bet. Power points and cheap prices too.

Photo: lots of people didn’t have the right size photo, so make sure it is 6cmx4cm. 5cmx4cm ain’t good enough. Background color doesn’t matter. I got mine done at Photo Express in Kad Suan Kaew (basement). 100THB for 4 photos. Not cheap, but I think it’s 200THB at the immigration place. Alternatively use some kind of Passport Photo app and get it done at a photo shop for a few baht.

Forgot to mention: your passport will get a new stamp which is about a quarter of a page in size. A pleasant surprise for me :)

Oh, and the 30 days extension starts from the day AFTER the date of expiry. So, if your entry stamp expires on the 1st January, the extension will end on the 31st January.

This is different from when you arrive (which is considered day 1). So if you arrive in Thailand on 1st January (30-day visa exempt stamp), you must leave no later than 30th January (unless you get extended of course).

That is good to know! Some of those huge visa stickers we got took up the whole entire page! Glad to know they are making them a little smaller!

Hey Mark! Thanks for the more recent feedback on the process! This stuff changes all the time so it’s good to know what the latest game is! Sounds like it all went nice and smooth for you.

Glad you wrote this article, I used it as a guide to navigate immigration. Below is my input.

Concise details on my most recent visit to immigration at Promenada Resort Mall (August 2016):

Arrive at immigration early if you need an extension. It will save you a lot of heartache (read: headache). Get there early, and even more importantly, arrive on a date far removed from a weekend or holiday. The “King Jai Farm” coffee shop is open as early as 6:30 a.m.

I wrote about that morning in an article: http://tinyurl.com/jf2nnhw

Thai Tourist Visa Extension Chiang Mai

by Liam Davies | Jun 19, 2023 | Chiang Mai , Visas

Most visitors to Thailand enter the country with a 30 day visa exemption stamp. For those tourists who wish to extend their travels beyond 1 month its an easy process to apply for an extra 30 days.

To do this you need to visit an immigration office. Here in Chiang Mai there are two options- the main immigration near the airport Chiang Mai Immigration Office (open 08.30 – 4.30 Monday- Friday) or a second office at Central Festival shopping mall (located on the second floor, open 09.00 – 5.00 Monday – Friday).

Before visiting immigration you should prepare a proof of residency, a passport photo and a copy of your passport bio page and 1900 Thai baht cash. There are shops next to both Chiang Mai immigrations to take photos and make photocopies.  For the proof of residency you can show a hotel receipt (note the address, phone number of the hotel) or if you are renting a house or staying with friends, a TM30 form. 

If you are renting a house or staying with friends you will need to ask the landlord to download the ‘Thai Immigration App’.  They will need your passport details and the date you checked into their property, a photo of their Thai ID and proof of house ownership (property registration documents). Once they have booked you into the app they need to screenshot your info which shows your name and address. This address must be for the city or district of the immigration office your applying for the visa to. 

At immigration there are three forms to complete with your information. You can pick these up from a stand inside. Next join the queue and an assistant will check you have the correct paperwork before issuing a queue number. Once you have a yellow queue ticket head inside and wait for your number to be called. Then hand all the documents to the officier, they will check everything and take a photo. After having the photo taken wait around another 10 minutes to receive your passport and receipt. The total time depends on the time you arrive and the number of people. Mondays and Fridays are usually the most busy. Queing before the office opens is often the quickest way, although it’s not necessary to arrive more than an hour early. 

Always keep up to date with the latest Thai visa news and check carefully the date of your visa expiry. The visa extension is only possible once, after 60 days you will need to leave the country. Please note that overstaying your visa is a serious offense and can result in fines or bans from re-entering the country. Always respect the local laws and procedures. Thai immigration offices are closed for public holidays, check the dates for 2023 here Thai Public Holidays 2023

8Adventures Blog

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• Chiang Mai’s Best Pizza? February 13, 2024
• Gibbons spotted in Doi Inthanon National Park February 12, 2024

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How to Extend your Tourist Visa in Thailand

Extending your tourist visa in chiang mai.

This is the step-by-step guide on how to extend your tourist visa in Thailand.

These instructions are written from the perspective of extending your visa at the Chiang Mai main immigration office near the airport. But the general process and the documentation required will be more or less the same, no matter which immigration office you go to.

Note that Chiang Mai now has an additional immigration branch at Central Festival where you can get your visa extended. All reports so far suggest that the general experience and wait times are much better at the new location. For more info on renewing your visa at Central Festival, see the last section of this article.

When you extend your tourist visa in Thailand you will generally be given a 30 day extension. So if you came in on the 30 day visa waiver, you will be given an additional 30 days to make 60 days total.

If you entered Thailand on a 60 day tourist visa, you will be given an additional 30 days to make 90 days total.

The 30 day extension is tacked onto the expiry date of your current visa stamp. The additional 30 days does not start from the day you attain the extension at the immigration office.

So you can go in a couple of weeks prior to your current visa expiring without affecting the total length of your stay. This is what we recommend. Get it out of the way, and then you can relax and enjoy your extended stay in Thailand.

Don’t leave it until the last day. You may have issues with documentation, eligibility or maybe the office will be unexpectedly busy on the day you attend.

Where are the main immigration offices in Thailand located?

These are the main offices but some locations will have more than one office.

Click here to view on Google Maps.

What documents do you have to take to immigration to extend your Thai visa?

When you go to immigration you will need to take the following with you:

• Visa photos – Can get photos taken at a visa photo shop in Chiang Mai town. You can also get photos at Immigration in the Photocopy shop. 1 photo required.
• TM7 – Application for extension of temporary stay in the kingdom. You can download the form here .
• TM6 – Arrival/Departure card. This is no longer required. Thai immigration stopped using arrival/departure forms from 1/7/22.
• Make sure your hotel has done the TM30 . This is the report your hotel will send to Thai immigration notifying them that you are staying at their hotel. Speak to the hotel reception and take a photo on your phone of their TM30 receipt number. If your hotel can’t view the TM30 (the app only allows you to view the last 7 days), get a photo of their hotel registration number. This will be enough to show to the TM30 office at immigration so that they can print you off a receipt.
• 1,900 Baht in cash – this is the renewal fee

What to do at the Chiang Mai immigration office

• TM7 – Application for extension of temporary stay in the kingdom, attach photo to the second page. Download form here .
• STM2 – Acknowledgment of terms and conditions for permit of temporary stay in the Kingdom of Thailand. You can download this form here .
• The acknowledgment of penalties for a visa overstay. Download form here .

• Go inside to the main building, line up at the main information counter. This is straight ahead as you first walk in. They will give you a ticket.
• Take a seat and wait for your ticket number to be called. Here you will hand over your documents and passport as well as the 1,900 Baht visa extension fee. At the Chiang Mai office you will be called to Counter 7 or 8, which are located down the left end of the room.
• Take a seat and wait to be called (by name), to have your photo taken.
• Take a seat and wait to be called (by name), to collect your passport.

Check your passport, there should be a new stamp showing the new date for when you have to leave Thailand.

That’s it. Easy enough?

The first time can be a bit of an ordeal. But once you know how it works it will become easier the next time you return.

Tips to get through a long day at the immigration office

Some immigration offices such as Phuket are known for usually being quite a quick, painless process.

Chiang Mai on the other hand can go either way. Sometimes I’ve been in and out within a couple of hours. But the last time I went there it was just after the Songkran holiday, and it was so busy that I had to come back the next day to finish it off.

Getting through a visa extension can be quite an experience. Try to relax. Don’t get frustrated. The Thai immigration staff are always polite and will help you as much as they can.

Bring water and some snacks in case it does take longer than expected. Although the office does close for 1 hour at 12pm when you will have a chance to go get some food. There are some cheap eateries and a 7-Eleven across the road at the fuel station.

Plan for it to take all day. Don’t expect to be out before lunch. You may be done before lunch if you’re lucky. But it could also take the entire day, so don’t make plans for the afternoon.

Arrive early. The Chiang Mai office opens at 8:30am but you can arrive earlier (Eg 8am) to start filling out your forms and to get a good place in the queue.

The first time you go to immigration to extend your visa it can be quite a confusing process. But there are people there to help you if you are confused as to what to do.

Renewing your visa at the new Chiang Mai Central Festival branch

Office location:  https://goo.gl/maps/ZbisaZMXiPRCGLZP9

Chiang Mai Immigration recently opened a new immigration branch in Central Chiang Mai shopping center. This is a welcome change as the main office is often very busy.

The new office is more streamlined as well as air-conditioned. It’s best to arrive early to give yourself the best chance of avoiding the 12pm to 1pm lunch break.

If arriving before 11am, enter via the food court on the ground floor and take the elevator to level 2.

There is no separate TM30 office or photocopying room, it is all done in two phases. The first phase does the same as the undercover area at the main immigration: verify TM30s and photocopy and organize documents.

The second phase is the same as inside the main immigration building. Just sit down and wait for your number to be called and immigration officers will process your visa extension.

Thanks for reading.

Aaron Parslow

Aaron has been travelling to Southeast Asia for 15 years, these days splitting his time between Bangkok and Melbourne. With a background in business structuring, investment and taxation, Aaron always has his ear to the ground for new opportunities.

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• Extending Your Thailand Visa in 3 Easy Steps + Expert Tips

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Travelers from 64 countries are eligible for a 30-day visa on arrival in Thailand, but often, 30 days isn’t enough.

So, what if you’re not ready to leave?

It’s actually common to extend your stay! Handling the 30-day Thailand visa extension yourself costs 1900 baht (about $51 USD), and paying more for a visa agent is usually unnecessary.

I’ve been to Thailand three times in the past three years and have extended my tourist visa each time—once from a 30-day visa and twice from a 60-day one, amounting to eight incredible months here.

Getting accurate information on the visa extension process is essential. Being unprepared means wasting a day at the immigration office or needing multiple visits to obtain missing documents.

Overstaying your visa isn’t an option either, as it leads to 500 baht/day (about $14 USD) fines and potential entry bans. 

Here’s how you can extend your Thai tourist visa without the stress.

👇Download my FREE Thailand Visa Extension Checklist, so you don’t forget any documents!

Disclaimer: I am not a visa agent, lawyer, or immigration professional, and this content should not be considered legal advice. My insights are based on my personal experience of successfully extending my tourist visa in Thailand three times . While I aim to provide helpful guidance, it’s always best to consult official resources or seek professional advice for your specific situation.

Visa Extension Thailand Key Takeaways

• Eligibility: Travelers from 64 countries are eligible for a 30-day visa on arrival. Find out if you need a tourist visa for Thailand here. Most travelers to Thailand can apply for a one-time extension of an additional 30 days, while some nationalities might have different rules.
• Cost: The 30-day visa extension fee is 1,900 baht (about $51 USD), payable in cash at the immigration office. You do not need exact change.
• Documents Needed: Essential paperwork includes a passport photo (4cm x 6cm), the TM.7 application form, the TM.30 form, and possibly a rental agreement, among others. FULL LIST BELOW.
• Process in Person: All applicants must visit an immigration office in person, even using a visa agent. Note: I have friends who were able to get around this in Koh Lanta, so it seems that sometimes rules can be bent if you’re willing to pay.
• Timing: Apply before your current visa expires to avoid penalties. Arriving early at the immigration office before they open can significantly reduce your waiting time.
• Avoid Overstaying: Overstaying your visa can lead to fines and other penalties , including possible bans on future entry into Thailand.

1. Determine Eligibility for Thailand Visa Extension

Before planning your visit to the Thai Immigration Office, it’s crucial to determine whether you’re eligible for a 30-day visa extension. 

If you hold a passport from one of the 64 eligible countries , you can receive a visa on arrival in Thailand. This visa typically grants a 30-day stay, which can be extended once for an additional 30 days, allowing for a total stay of up to 60 days.

Find out if you need a tourist visa for Thailand here.

The 30-day extension takes effect the day after your original visa expires. Make sure to apply before your current visa runs out to avoid the risk of overstaying. You cannot extend an already-expired visa.

Some passport holders might only qualify for a 7-15 day extension. Always check the official Thai immigration website for the most current information. For instance, in efforts to boost tourism recovery post-pandemic, Thailand has recently extended the stay limit for Chinese and Russian citizens.

60-day Thailand eVisa

If you want to stay in Thailand beyond 60 days (30-day visa on arrival + 30-day extension), consider applying for a 60-day eVisa before arriving. 

I’ve done this twice and it worked out well–I then extended an extra 30 days following this same Thailand visa extension process, for a total of 90 days each stay. 

The caveat is that you have to prove you’re flying directly from the country you apply to in Thailand by sharing your flight itinerary. You cannot apply for a 60-day eVisa from within Thailand.

Using an Agent for Visa Extension in Thailand

While it might be tempting to have an agent handle the 30-day visa extension process, especially to save time waiting in lines or dealing with language barriers, doing it yourself is entirely feasible and cost-effective. 

Most of the process is straightforward if you come prepared with the necessary documents.

The visa extension process officially requires your presence at the immigration office. Even if you hire a visa agent to assist with the process, you must appear in person for the application, per the rules. 

I’ve never used an agent, and I’ve extended my visa three times. However, I have had some complications with my application, and having someone who is an expert in the process and who speaks Thai could come in handy! I’ll explain more about what happened further down.

I’ve seen people use visa agents at the Chiang Mai Immigration Office, but they still had to be there in person. The visa agent helps you put together your paperwork and waits in line for you, calling you when it’s time for you to come to the office. 

That said, my friends found an agent in Koh Lanta who did the whole process for them for a fee. It’s technically not allowed, but in Thailand, anything is possible with the right amount of baht!

2. Prepare Forms and Documents for Thailand Visa Extension

Gathering and preparing the necessary documents before heading to the Thai Immigration Office is crucial to ensuring a smooth process. 

This is the part that many travelers screw up, and they end up having to leave and come back another day. I don’t want that to happen to you!

While copy shops are usually available near the immigration office, I recommend having all your copies and paperwork ready to go in advance, or else expect long wait times to get your Thailand visa extension done.

Here’s what you need to have ready:

Essential Documents

• Passport Photos: You will need a 4cm x 6cm passport-style photo–although I carry extra passport photos already, Thailand requires a different size photo than most countries, so I had to get new ones done. The photo should be recent (not taken more than six months ago) and must resemble your current appearance. You can usually get these done at the mall or near the immigration office.
• TM.7 Form: This is the Application for Extension of Temporary Stay in the Kingdom . It’s a 2-page document that most people fill out in person, but you can speed things up by filling it out before you go. Make sure to sign each page. This is where the agent will glue your passport photo–let them do it.
• TM.30 Form: Notification Form for Housemaster, Owner, or the Possessor of the Residence Where Alien Has Stayed. Ideally, your landlord or accommodation provider should submit this online within 24 hours of your arrival and provide you with a copy. If they haven’t done so, you may need to remind them or submit it yourself .
• STM.2 Form: Acknowledgement of Terms and Conditions for Permit of Temporary Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand. You can fill out this form in person, but it helps to have it done before you go.
• Acknowledgment of Overstay Penalties for a Visa Overstay: This document is important to understand the legal implications of overstaying your visa. Again, you can fill it out in person or have it done before you go to speed things up.

Note: Don’t staple any paperwork.

Passport and Visa Copies

• Passport Copy: You will need a copy of the first page of your passport, which contains your photo and personal information.
• Arrival Stamp: A copy of the page with your arrival stamp and any subsequent stamps or visas received during your stay.
• E-Visa: If you entered Thailand on an e-visa, make sure to have a printed copy with you.

Additional Documentation

• Lease Agreement: If you rent an apartment or house, bring a copy of your lease agreement. This was a surprise for me on my last visa extension visit; luckily, I had a copy on my phone ! 
• GPS Coordinates: Some offices may require the GPS coordinates of your accommodation, so have these ready. They always ask me to write down the GPS coordinates, not exactly sure why.
• Special Cases: You may need additional documentation depending on your specific circumstances (such as illness, caring for a patient, or visiting relatives). 
• Fee: Ensure you have 1,900 baht in cash. Exact change is helpful but not necessary.

Document Preparation Tips

• Signing: You must sign every page of your submitted documents, including copies of your passport pages, at the bottom. This verifies the authenticity of the documents.
• Photo Attachment: Do not staple your photo to any forms. The immigration office will glue it for you.

By preparing these documents in advance and ensuring they are complete and accurately filled out, you can significantly smooth your experience at the immigration office, minimizing the chance of delays or the need for multiple visits.

3. Visit the Thailand Immigration Office

Here’s what you need to know about making your visit efficient and stress-free.

Choosing the Right Location

• Multiple Offices: Larger cities like Bangkok and Chiang Mai have more than one immigration office. For instance, in Chiang Mai, you can choose between an office near the airport and a second office at the Central Festival shopping mall . The mall office is often less crowded and has air conditioning, so I usually go there.
• Smaller Cities: In smaller cities, the process can be simpler and faster due to fewer applicants. Consider the office location and its reviews when planning your visit.

What to Expect at the Immigration Office

• Arrival: Arrive early, ideally before the office opens. This can help you avoid long wait times. Most offices open around 8:30 AM but check specific office hours as they vary. I arrived at the Chiang Mai Central Immigration Office an hour before they opened and was first in line. 
• Initial Document Check: Upon arrival, your documents will likely be quickly reviewed for completeness. If everything is in order, you will be given a number.
• Waiting for Your Number: After the initial check, you’ll wait for your number to be called so that you can have a more thorough document review and processing.
• Final Steps: Once your documents are approved, you’ll wait a bit longer in another line for your visa extension to be processed and stamped into your passport. They’ll call your name when it’s time to have your photo taken and your passport stamped.
• Plan to be There a While: If you go first thing in the morning, expect for the whole process to take about 2 hours. If you get there after they open, expect the wait time to be several hours.

Tips for a Smooth Experience

• Early Arrival: Getting there before the office opens can significantly reduce your overall waiting time.
• Bring All Necessary Documents: Double-check that you have all required documents and that they are correctly filled out and signed. Missing documents can cause delays or require you to return another day.
• Patience is Key: The process can be lengthy, especially after the office opens. Bring something to read or work on.
• Lunch Break: Be aware that the office will close for lunch, usually from 12 PM to 1 PM. Plan your visit accordingly.
• Public Holidays: Thailand’s Immigration Offices close for public holidays, so check ahead.
• Final Check: Once your visa is extended, make sure the information on the stamp is correct before leaving the immigration office. Errors should be addressed immediately to avoid future complications.

If You Encounter Issues

• Document Copies: If you are missing a document or need additional copies, most immigration offices have photocopy services nearby. However, using these services will add time to your visit.
• Ask for Help: If you’re unsure about the form or have questions, don’t hesitate to ask the staff. While there might be language barriers, they are generally helpful in guiding you through the process. On my last visit, I had to call my landlord to talk to them because they found a discrepancy in my TM30 form that he submitted. Luckily, he was able to sort it out.

Extending Your Visa in Chiang Mai (Personal Experience)

All three of my Thailand visa extensions have been done in Chiang Mai since I live there part-time .

Chiang Mai has two immigration offices: one near the airport and another at the Central Festival Mall (second floor). 

While the airport office is where most tourists in Chiang Mai go for their extension and is much closer to the Old City, I’ve found the office at Central Festival to be less crowded and a bit more comfortable, thanks to its air conditioning. This can make a big difference when you’re potentially waiting for several hours.

There are two entrances to the Chiang Mai Immigration Office at Central Festival: Either from inside the mall on the second floor or from inside the parking garage, also on the second floor. 

Annoyingly, they won’t let you park your scooter inside the parking garage, so you have to park it in scooter parking outside and then walk into the parking garage, upstairs to the second floor.

I arrived about an hour before opening this past go-round (I’m an overachiever), and I was first in line. About 20 minutes before the immigration office opened at 9am, agents came into the parking garage to do a preliminary document check and hand out numbers. 

Once the doors open at 9am,  you’ll sit and wait for your number to be called. 

Options for Longer Stays in Thailand

For US Travelers: Starting in March 2024, Thailand expanded its e-Visa system to include 48 Royal Thai Embassies and Consulates-General worldwide. If you’re looking to spend more than the typical 30 days in Thailand, obtaining a tourist visa prior to arrival can be a great option. 

Thailand eVisas must be used within 90 days of issuance and allow for an initial 60-day stay in Thailand. 

I’ve gotten the 60-day e-visa twice now, and it’s worked out great!

Upon arrival, you have the option to extend your e-visa once for an additional 30 days at the discretion of an immigration officer, bringing the total potential stay to up to 90 days. 

Options like doing a so-called “border run” to reset your stay or consulting with a visa agent for other visas, such as the 12-month Education visa, are also available. 

A “border run” is essentially just leaving the country and coming back, getting a new visa on arrival, and resetting your stay. 

This is a pretty common practice in Thailand, but in recent years, immigration agents have started being more strict about this, and I’ve heard stories of travelers being turned away at the border. Being allowed into Thailand is at the discretion of the border agent.

I have several friends who take Thai, self-defense, or Muay Thai classes, which allows them to stay in Thailand on the 12-month Education visa, so that’s a great option for longer stays.

Final Thoughts: Extending Your Thailand Tourist Visa

Extending your tourist visa in Thailand is a practical solution for those who’ve fallen in love with the country and aren’t quite ready to leave. 

It’s true the process involves a fair amount of paperwork and a bit of a wait at the immigration office, but with the right preparation, it can go smoothly. 

For just 1,900 baht (about $51 USD), most travelers can secure an additional 30 days to explore the country—as long as you apply before your current visa expires.

Navigating through this process might give you a headache at first, but it’s quite manageable with everything in order.  If you’re planning to stay a bit longer, especially in my favorite Thai city of Chiang Mai, check out my guide on the best places to stay in Chiang Mai!

Read More About Thailand:

• Caution: Avoid the Worst Time to Visit Thailand
• Do You Need a Motorcycle License in Thailand? 
• 15 Must-Know Tips for Renting a Scooter in Thailand
• Best SIM Card in Thailand for Tourists
• Is There Uber in Thailand? Ultimate Ride-Sharing Guide
• Is Chiang Mai Worth Visiting? + 19 Pros and Cons
• 29 Delicious Thai Fruits You Must Try (And How to Eat Them)
• Best Alternatives to Uber in Bangkok: Getting Around
• Legal Drinking Age in Thailand: A Backpacker’s Guide
• Are Taxis Safe in Thailand? 21 Tips from a Local
• Is Thailand in Indonesia? + 12 Thailand Interesting Facts
• Where is the Coldest Place in Thailand?
• Does It Snow in Thailand?
• Thailand Vs Vietnam: Choose Your Next Destination Wisely
• How Long Does it Take to Get to Thailand?
• Can I Wear a Bikini in Thailand?
• 37 Pros and Cons of Living in Chiang Mai (Expat Guide)
• 123 Thailand Captions to Spice Up Your Travel Posts

📝 Thailand Travel Planning Guide 🇹🇭🌟

Before you embark on your unforgettable journey to Thailand here are the essential tips every traveler should know:

🚑  Should I buy travel insurance for Thailand?

✅ 100% YES!  — My #1 Safety Tip for all travelers is to buy travel insurance for every trip in case anything happens on their visit. I recommend and use SafetyWing  – it’s cheap and comprehensive.

💧 Can you drink the water in Thailand?

🚱 No  — It’s recommended to drink filtered or bottled water in Thailand (but using tap water to brush your teeth is usually fine). I recommend this reusable water bottle! It works great, turning tap water into safe-to-drink water that tastes good.

🚙💨  Is it safe to rent a car in Thailand?

Yes  —  Renting a car in Thailand is one of the best ways to see the countryside! I recommend  Discover Cars , which checks both international companies and local companies, so you get the best rates.

🏩  What’s the best way to book my Thailand accommodations?

My go-to for Thailand hotels is  Booking.com . For hostels, I use  HostelWorld . Or get free accommodations with  Trusted Housesitters!

✈️  What’s the best site to book Thailand flights?

For finding cheap Thailand flights, I recommend CheapOAir .

🎫  Do I need a visa for Thailand?

🙅🏻‍♀️ Likely Not — US, UK, and EU passport holders don’t need visas for stays of up to 30 days in Thailand.

💰 𝗖𝘂𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆: The currency here is the Thai baht, and there are plenty of ATMs if you need cash. I always withdraw from ATMs to get the best rates (select “no” when it asks you if you accept the conversion rate).

🚕 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Getting around Thailand is a breeze! Grab is safe and cheap in major cities like Bangkok and Chiang Mai. Bangkok has a modern metro. It’s easy to use local transport such as songthaews , too.

📶 𝗖𝗼𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆: Thailand has reliable internet connectivity. SIM cards are easy to find and cheap.

Cat is a 35-year-old American solo female traveler on a career break, traveling the world full-time since 2021. She loves meeting new people, considers herself to be a bit of a foodie, and reads a lot.

Thai Tourist Visa Extension In Chiang Mai

So, you’ve come to Thailand on a multi-entry Tourist Visa and you know that each entry allows you to stay for 60 days, but as you get closer to that, you realize you need more time to explore and visit.

Well, the great thing is that you can have 30 more days by asking for an extension on your Visa.

The steps you need to take in order to apply for an extension require very little effort and stress.

We’ve extended our Visas in  Bali and can tell you that this was way easier, and, actually a bit fun.

We just visited the immigration office and wanted to share with you the complete process of applying for a 30 day extension on a Tourist Visa in Chiang Mai as well as our experience of the event.

Gone are the days that one had to visit the immigration office down by the Chiang Mai Airport in the early morning hours in order to get a cue number that would get called in a reasonable time.

Now, there is an immigration office at the Promenada Resort Mall.

Since July of 2015, there is a new service center at this location that has been established in order to improve the efficiency of the permit and visa renewal process for foreigners currently staying in the Kingdom of Thailand.

The Services Provided At This Location

• Retirement Visa
• Tourist Visa
• Medical Visa
• Re-entry Permit
• 90 days reporting service

How And When To Go

The Promenada Immigration office is located on the first floor, just beneath the Tom N Toms Coffee which is visible upon coming in from the front driveway of the mall.

It was easy for us to spot because we took a Red Truck (Songthaew) and they dropped us off right in front off the mall.

We are staying  near Chiang Mai University (about 11 km from Promenada) and the ride cost the two of us 100 THB to get there, but 300 THB to return.

Here is all their information:

What You Will Need To Bring

You now have the choice to either get all of your documents ready once you arrive at the location or have everything all ready beforehand.

If you choose to get all your copies done as well as have your passport-sized photo taken there, you need to make sure you take the following with you:

• Your valid passport (Tourist Visa, entry stamp and departure card inside it, of course)
• 1900 Thai Baht for the Visa extension, 200 Baht for passport photos, about 8 Baht for copies)
• The exact address of where you are staying in Chiang Mai
• Your phone number in Thailand
• A black or blue pen

At the time we made the visit for our Visa extension, they had a desk right in front of the office where application forms were provided.

In front of that desk, there is also a tall desk area where you can stand and complete your form. Please do remember to bring your own pen.

You may have the opportunity to purchase one at the photo and copy store next door to the immigration office, but what if they run out of stock?

How To Apply For A Thai Tourist Visa Extension In Chiang Mai

Here is what you will need to do to apply for the Thai Tourist Visa extension at this immigration office:

• Complete the application form.
• Get copies (services are provided at the shop on the left of the office): photo page of passport, tourist Visa page, entry stamp in passport, departure card.
• Sign and date all of the copies you just got of your documents.
• Have a passport photo taken(services are provided at the shop on the left of the office). They will give you several photos that are 4cmx6cm, but you will only need one for the application.
• Turn everything in to the people at the desk where you picked up your application. They will look over everything and let you know if there is anything missing. They will organize all of your paperwork and staple your photo to your application.
• Pay them 1900 Thai Baht for the processing. They will add a queue number to your documents and take everything inside to be processed.
• Wait inside until your name is called.
• Go up to the desk and look into the camera for your photo to be taken by them.
• Sit down again and wait for them to call you once everything is done.

Upon receiving back your passport, check to make sure that it is yours and that there is an extension stamp inside now.

Also, make sure you have received any change that is due back to you along with your receipt of payment.

That’s it! Now go check out the mall, eat pizza at Duke’s, Get some games at Toys’r’Us…Well, at least, that’s what we did.

Now, we could have just shown up in Thailand without a Visa and been able to stay for 30 days.

There are lots of countries that allow entry without a Visa for Canadian and American citizens like us. However, we need more time to really be able to explore and enjoy the country.

Heck, even the 60 days we got on our Visa before coming was not enough which is why needed to extend it!

The whole process, from completing our forms to getting our passports back with the extension stamp, took about an hour for the two of us.

Now, this may be different for others. It may have helped that we went on a weekday around 11 am during the “low tourist season.”

There were about a handful of people in line waiting before us. We were very impressed with the efficiency and organization of this office.

Taiss Nowrouzi

Taiss Nowrouzi is a writer, photographer, and social media influencer with a passion for dance on the side. Taiss has a Bachelor’s degree in Marketing from San Diego State University. After over a decade in the hotel business, including five years in the management, she left the corporate world to pursue a life of a digital nomad.

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Very thorough article! We too noticed an overall improvement in the process when compared to the Airport immigration office.

We will definitely keep this guide handy as a checklist next time we make our next extension. :)

Super! I’m glad we could provide good info to you. We hope your extensions go flawlessly!

Hi and thanks for this great info! My husband and I will need to extend our regular visa-exempt stamp while in Chiang Mai this November (we are staying just over 30 days in Thailand). We already have copies of passport-sized photos, but someone mentioned that they are now requiring the background to be blue. Was that the case when you went?

Hi Michelle! I’m glad this article was helpful for you. We just had to do another extension about a week ago and our photos did not have blue backgrounds. In fact, my husband did not have any with him, so we just bought some for him there. There is a place right next to the office at Promenade that takes photos and makes copies and the whole thing is coordinated with the immigration office. They take your photo and print it out right there for about 200 THB (they give you tons of pics). When you take all your docs to the desk outside, they check everything and let you know if something is missing or should be different. If, for some reason, the photos you have don’t work, then you have the option of getting them there for a very cheap price.

Hiya, your information is going to be so handy, thank you. But as they only give 30 days of extended visa, do you go there again after those 30 days have finished? Or how do you extend after that? I wouldn’t really want to go abroad – but if I have to I will of course. Best reg

A multiple entry Visa gives you 60 days for each entry. This post explains how you can extended another 30 days onto that. After that, you must leave the country.

Excellent! Mariana and I are off tomorrow for this wonderful event and cannot wait for the excitment that awaits us….. haha

Great guide and very useful. Great stuff.

I’m glad this is useful to you! We’ve always had a great experience at the immigration office. I know it’s not a “fun” thing but they make it as stress-free as this sort of stuff can be. Good luck extending!

We can have a visa extension party tomorrow! ;)

Excellent guide by the way Taiss.

ha ha! It should be a thing in Chiang Mai! and those that found our post useful should bring us Beer!! ;)

Hi guys! Just realized this was your post haha, excellent work and exactly the information I was after! We’ll have to extend our tourist visas this week and you’ve just answered all my questions. Cheers and happy new year! :)

Hi im wanting to get my visa extended about 3 weeks before it expires as im doing a course that runs just past the end of my visa and the location is well out of town… do you think this will be a problem it expires 2nd april and im going 8th march.Otherwise I face a really early rise during the course which finishes at 9pm each day ..thanks

yes, that should be fine. You can do it before the expire date, but not after that time.

Thanks for that ..put my mind at rest

Exactly the information that i needed! Awesome thanks! Even google doesn’t know they have a lunch break hahaha.

Sebastian, glad this was helpful to you! funny how Google can disappoint sometimes :)

Just searching for how to extend my visa in Chiang Mai and look who popped up! Cheers guys!

Ha ah! so glad you were able to find some reliable information on the internet :) Hope the extension is smooth for you so you can enjoy Thailand to max!

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Hi! We’re Rob and Taiss. We set off to live a life in as many places as possible. To actually live in locations around the world long enough to get to know the locals, the culture, and the food, not just a taste of it.

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How To: Extend Your Thai Tourist Visa in Chiang Mai

Posted by: Daniel Roy in Slow Tip February 8, 2014 350 Comments

In addition to border runs and visa runs in neighboring countries, staying for an extended period of time in Thailand involves regular visits to the local immigration office. Good news, though: compared to applying for a tourist visa in Laos , extending your Thai visa in Chiang Mai is a cakewalk.

Here’s all you need to know to get your own visa extension. This blog post details how it takes place in Chiang Mai, and although the process is likely to be more or less uniform across all immigration offices, be sure to check if your local office has specific requirements.

Thai Visa Extensions Explained

Tourist visas can be extended simply by visiting your local immigration office anywhere in Thailand, filling out a form, and paying a fee. Extending your visa should be done before your visa expires; you can get your visa extended on the last day without any problem.

Thai tourist visas and visa exemptions (what people wrongly call “visas on arrival”) can be extended by 30 days at the Chiang Mai immigration office. Visa exemptions used to be only extensible for 7 days, but this changed in August 2014.

At the time of writing, extending your visa costs 1900 Baht. Overstaying your visa costs 500B per day, which might make it a more compelling financial decision than extending for less than four days; however, it’s my understanding that overstaying your visa can compromise future visa applications.

A Note on Attitude

As with all official matters in Thailand, you’re better off dressing in an appropriate manner and behaving yourself while at the immigration office. Showing up in dirty shorts and a Beer Chang t-shirt might complicate matters in ways that are hard to quantify. Not to say that dressing poorly will lead to a denial, but if things get complicated, the way you dress  will  change the way the officials perceive you.

Likewise, getting angry or impatient with Thai officials will never get you anywhere. Stay polite, smile, and relax; if you stay cool, things have a way of resolving themselves. Just stay patient and polite, and state your point clearly and in a respectful manner.

Mind you, the Chiang Mai immigration office is the nicest bunch of officials I’ve seen in Thailand. They’re generally helpful and patient, and speak good enough English to sort you out.

Step 1: Preparation

You’ll need a few things before heading out to the immigration office. Some of these, like the form, you can do once you’re there, but it’ll save you some hassle if you come prepared.

The immigration office is open 8:30 am to 4:30 pm Monday to Friday, except on national holidays. Make sure to check the calendar of official Thai holidays before heading out. If you want to beat the crowds, you’ll want to get there by 8:00 am at the latest. Arriving at 8:15 am will guarantee you at least two hours of waiting, so either go really early or just take your time. Last time I was at the Immigration office, I arrived at 11:00 am and was out by noon. Obviously, this depends on a lot of factors including time of year, proximity to holidays, and political climate. You’re a lot more likely to have to wait during high season.

Do note also that the staff at the Immigration office breaks for lunch between 12:00 an 1:00. If you arrive just before lunchtime, you may be looking at an extra hour wait.

Do note that getting a queue number doesn’t guarantee that your application will be processed on the same day! If there are too many applicants, you’ll have to return the next business day with the same queue number. If your application is time sensitive, you should make sure to arrive as early as possible.

Just to be on the safe side, plan to spend three hours there, depending on time of year. It’s a fairly comfortable wait, so don’t sweat it if you can’t get up early; but do get there a few hours before they close, or you’ll be forced to come back the next day!

What you should have before heading out:

– Passport – Departure card – Passport-sized picture – Thai visa extension request form (TM. 7) – Photocopies (see below) – Complete address of residence

Passport-sized picture

You can get these done in any photo shop in Chiang Mai. There are many in the Old City, since a lot of tourists require them. It’s also possible to get your photo taken at a photo booth right next to the Immigration office, but these are more expensive than elsewhere in town and you might lose your spot in the queue. My suggestion is to get a bunch of them, as these always come handy when you travel around Southeast Asia.

You’ll need a picture that’s exactly 4 cm x 6 cm (1.6″ x 2.4″). Make sure to ask at the photo shop. Just keep the extras, because you’ll need them sooner than later. Smaller pictures might get rejected by Thai immigration.

Note that the dress code matters for the picture as well. Improper clothes, especially for women, might make things complicated for you. No need to dress in a tuxedo, but avoid stuff like tank tops or exposed shoulders for women.

Thai visa extension request form

You can download the form online. Enter the required information, print it, and stick your picture on the second page. I recommend doing this ahead of time because sometimes the process can go really quick; you might not have time to fill a form before your number is called.

Photocopies

You’ll need the following photocopies for your visa extension. Make sure every number and date is clearly legible, as you may be asked to do it again otherwise. I’m not sure you need the visa page, but it doesn’t hurt to include it. The immigration officer will ask you to sign all the copies.

– First page (picture page) of your passport – Current Thai visa stamp – Current Thai visa page (if you have that) – Departure card

Complete address of residence

For some reason, the immigration office requires you to have your complete address of residence, including  tambon, amphoe  (district), province, and postal code. Make sure you have all these in hand when you fill out the form. If you’re in Chiang Mai, they’ll probably be able to help you figure it out at the immigration office.

Step 2: Getting to the Visa Extension Office

Getting to the visa extension office is pretty easy. If you’re anywhere near the Old City, just flag a  songthaew and ask for “Promenada.” Be aware that drivers often try to overcharge foreigners going to the Immigration office, so don’t hesitate to bargain or walk away to find another  songthaew . Expect to pay somewhere around 100-200B. Tuk-tuks are unlikely to charge any less.

Another option is the free shuttle bus that goes to Promenada. You can find more info on the Promenada website . You’ll probably need to go inside the hotel where you want to get on board and ask the front desk.

The immigration office itself is on the ground level of building A, which is connected to the parking garage. Make sure to go in the immigration office that’s attached to the Promenada, and not the one across the street.

Step 3: Getting Your Visa Extension

Once you get to the visa extension office, head inside right away and go to the counter. Tell them you’re here to extend your visa, and they will give you a queue number. Time to wait.

When the officers finally call your number, walk up to the counter and turn in your documentation, along with your 1900B fee. They’ll give you change if you don’t have any, so don’t worry. An immigration officer will check all your documentation, and because you followed my instructions, he’ll begrudgingly admit you got it all right. Go back and sit down.

This part of the wait is mercifully very quick. 10-15 minutes later, you’ll be called to the front again, and you’ll get your passport, your change, and a receipt. (Check that you have your change, as some report that they had to ask for it.)

Your Thai visa stamp should now have an extra stamp next to it stating that you can stay in the country longer. Note that when extending a visa exemption, sometimes they might stamp your passport saying your extension request has been denied. Not sure what’s the deal with this, but as long as your new exit date is good, you’re good to go. Good job!

To head back into town, go inside Promenada and ask at the information desk for a ticket for the free shuttle. Make sure you go on the right bus, as there are two different routes. Also, be aware that the bus leaves strictly on time. The shuttle leaves from the entrance to Building A, near “Wine Connection.” For more details including schedule, check the Promenada website .

Any questions? Any other tips or updates to this visa application guide? Please share in the comments below!

Chiang Mai immigration office image source: Chiang Mai Locator

2014-09-15: Thanks to John Wallen, as well as David Rose of Roses on the Road  for up-to-date details about the extension process.

2015-08-10: Thanks to Karen Kimble for info on the new visa extension office location.

2015-12-22: Thanks to Zaengi for details about the free shuttle to Promenada.

Tagged with: Chiang Mai extension featured immigration Thailand visa

About Daniel Roy

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350 comments

Great article. Very clear.

I would recommend adding the necessary photo size to the article. Places where you can get your photos would be nice too. Thanks!

Great suggestions, thank you. I’ll add this right away.

Hi Daniel. Me and my friends had a bit of a problem with travelling to Vietnam. So we have now used the second entry on our multiple entry visa much earlier than intended. However we want to go to Cambodia for 10days and then come back to Thailand again for another month. When we come back could we claim our original 30days that you normally get free when you enter? As we never used this because we had our multiple entry visa at the time? Or could we buy another 30day visa or would we just not be allowed back in? Thank you

They’ll definitely let you in, but there’s no “claiming” that initial 30 days… You’ll get 15 days overland, unless you’re from a G7 country (U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Italy, Canada, and Japan), in which case you get 30 days overland.

You can visit an immigration office and ask for a 30-day extension to that 15- or 30-day visa exemption. So if you only get 15 days because of your nationality, it’s a simple matter of visiting Immigration and paying 1900B to extend it to 45.

are you sure if im from canada i get 30 days on arrival by laos bus, by land

http://www.chiangmaicitylife.com/news-archive/citizens-of-g7-countries-offered-30-days-at-land-borders/

Don’t worry about getting photos done before getting to the office – You can get them done there for a few bahts. A local with a digital camera and printer provides the necessary in seconds! – It also gives the locals a bit of income. Colette & Roger.

I didn’t know that… I’ll add a note!

Thanks for this post. It’s very helpful!

You’re welcome. I’m happy to know I could help!

Hi, if my visa runs out on a Saturday and I go there on a Friday will the extention be adding after Saturday or friday? Thank you!

Hi Stephanie! I checked in my passport, and the visa extension starts AFTER your initial visa expires; meaning it adds 30 days to your original visa even if you get it done a little bit before your visa is set to expire.

So, in your case, the extension will start for 30 days after Saturday.

i already have tourist visa for 3 month, but i lose one month now at my country and will travel soon., i want ask i still can use this visa ? and how many time i can renew this visa there at thi ?? thx

The “Entry Before” date is the latest date at which you need to ENTER Thailand. Even if you enter on the last day, you’ll still get 60 days, which you can extend to 90 days by visiting Immigration in Thailand. So you’re good!

To “renew” the visa, you need to leave and re-enter Thailand before the “Enter Before” date. The “No of Entry” date tells you how many times you can do this.

Hope that helps!

I’m glad you posted this bit about the “Entry Before” date. My husband and I were trying to figure out how to make our third Tourist Visa entry last longer, but were getting hung up on the “Entry Before” date. It’s good to hear that I can extend my 60 days to 90 days even if I’m past my “Entry Before” date. Phew! I was afraid that the “Entry Before” date was synonymous with “Expiration”.

Very helpful article, bookmarking it for future use! Thanks for posting!

I’m very happy to be of help! Cheers! 🙂

Hi there. I’m still really confused and stressed out about this “Enter before” thing. I have a double entry torus or visa. I entered Thailand March 13 and just did my 60 day renewal for the last 30 days of the first entry. Immigration office in Bangkok gave me a stamp for June 13th. So I thought I had to leave by then and then I would have a new 60 days plus another 30 day extension. The original visa sticker however says “Enter before May 16”. Does that mean I should have entered Thailand initially before that? Or does it have something to do with my second entry and visa expiration?

The “Enter before May 16” is the last day you can re-enter Thailand and activate one of the remaining entries on your tourist visa. That means if you leave Thailand after May 16th and re-enter, you WON’T be able to use the tourist visa; you’ll get a visa exemption (AKA visa on arrival) instead.

My visa on arrival from Australia will expire mon 19 may , have ticket to fly out return to Australia May 31 What is the best way to extend my visa ???

Your best bet is to do a border run and get an extra 15 days for a visa exemption (AKA visa on arrival). Thai Immigration have announced they will clamp down on “out-in border runs” starting in August, but until then, doing this will get you an “O-I” stamp in your passport, that’s it.

If you just leave Thailand for a few days and re-enter, there’ll be no problem at all from Immigration.

Is this border run necessary for someone with an ED visa that will expire 8/10, but whose flight leaves 8/12? Can I just do a 7 day visa extension?

I really don’t know ED visas very well, sorry… Your best bet would be to go to the Immigration office and ask them.

The info in this article is spot-on. Thank you so much for posting this Daniel!

Following the instructions here, I was able to get my visa extension, no problem. The whole process took a little less than an hour.

I have a few things to add from my experience this afternoon:

– Once you get to the immigration compound, there are a few buildings. The building that’s right in front of you as you enter is the wrong one! Look for building #2 across the parking lot from the main entrance (there will be a big sign that says “Visa Extension”; it’s hard to miss).

– When you get to the visa extensions room (no really; that’s what it says on the door), you no longer have to take a number to get a number. Instead, just walk up to the center counter (it has a sign that says “Information” right above it), and tell the person that you want to extend your visa. She’ll ask to see your passport, and then she’ll give you a number.

– They have plenty of blank TM-7 forms available, so if you aren’t able (or don’t want) to print up your own, you can take a blank one and fill it out while you wait for your number to be called. No guarantees that they will have pens available for you to use, though!

– If you do not have a photo or document copies, you can get them at the LPG across the street.

– When you pay for your visa extension, you won’t get your change right away. Instead, they will give you your change (and your receipt) when you pick up your passport. Curiously, they will staple your change to your receipt (I’d hate to see what they do for coins!).

Thanks a lot for your feedback, Phoenix! I’ll add your updates and clarifications to my blog post. Glad this was helpful!

Just wanted to throw my experience from today into the pot. It was very much like Phoenix. Main difference is they checked my filled out forms/passport *before* giving me a number, so account that in your time.

I went on a Friday (today!) and while I meant to show up at 8, we had something come up and didn’t get there till 9. Then it took another 15-20 to get our form, fill it out and get passport copies and pictures. There is a building at the back of the parking lot (it has a sign that says “Photo & Copy”) to do this at. Fine prices, as of today it was 2 baht per copy and 100 baht for 4 photos.

It seemed quite busy (and note, once the waiting room fills you will be outside, so a water bottle some tissues would be good to have!) but I still got called in maybe 90 minutes. Many people are there for more complicated things than an extension, so do not be worried at the crowd. After handing in my papers it was another 20mins before I got called to the counter to have a picture taken, then another 15-20 before I got my passport and change. Altogether maybe two hours of waiting?

Afterwards we took the very short walk to Central Plaza down the road got some lunch and enjoyed the air conditioning before catching a songthaew back home.

Oh one more thing! If anyone is a worrier like me and wondering what to put in “Reason for extension” please do not worry. I think I put “To visit more of Thailand”. They did not ask about it at all, I don’t believe it matters much.

Thank you for this, I was indeed worrying about this 🙂

My boyfriend and I are heading to thailand in october. I got a gig as a teacher so my visa situation is pretty clear. to me. My boyfriend’s however is still unclear. He can apply for a tourist for, which is good for 60 days and then extend it for another 30 days. My question is this: How many times can he extend his visa? My contract with the school is for 10 months. So he needs an additional 7 months. I’ve been researching the web and found this: 1 year multiple-entry visa. Do you anything about this? Any help with this conundrum will be greatly appreciated 🙂 Thanks.

Hi Stephanie,

Congrats on the teaching job in Thailand! 🙂

For your boyfriend, he has a few options:

– He can get a double-entry tourist visa ahead of time. He should get it fairly shortly before arriving in Thailand, because there’s an ‘Enter Before’ date that starts from the moment you enter Thailand. With a double entry, he can stay two months, extend by one month, leave Thailand and re-enter, then do the 2+1 months again, for a total of 6. After that, he an just leave and re-enter once, and he’ll have a total of seven months. Another option is to enter Thailand by air for one month, then travel to Vientiane to get a double-entry tourist visa, which will last him a total of 6 months.

– He can get an ED visa. That’s the one-year multiple entry one. I can’t help you for this, unfortunately, as I don’t know about them very well. But essentially, he can enroll in a Thai language school, and get a one year visa out of it. Some schools are good and WILL teach you Thai, others are more or less a formality to get you the visa.

You can only extend a current visa once per entry. So, for instance, with a double-entry tourist visa, you can extend it once for the first entry, and once for the second.

I think your boyfriend’s best bet is to arrive in Thailand with a visa exemption (visa on arrival) for 30 days, and within these 30 days travel to Vientiane and get a double-entry tourist visa that will sort him out for the next six months after that.

thank you kind soul!

You’re most welcome! 🙂

This helped me out loads today so thanks Daniel and also to Phoenix for the excellent update in the comments.

I arrived at 15:20 and was out for 16:30. A further two people were seen after me but obviously try getting there earlier as I must have been fortunate going off other stories I’ve heard.

Excellent! Glad I could help! 🙂

hi there, my friend has 2 months tourist visa and he can extend for another 30 days. He was supposed to go and extend his visa on June 28, but he totally forgot to do that. What should he do? He is now on his way to Chiang Mai immigration. Any advise please???? thanks a lot!

Hi! I don’t know if you’ll get this message in time… But what your friend should do is indeed go to Immigration. They’ll charge him 500B/day of overstay (so if his visa expired on June 28th, he’ll have to pay 2500B), and then he can extend his visa for 30 days.

Note that the extension will be from the date of the visa expiry, not from today!

They might give him a bit of a hard time, but there shouldn’t be any major trouble. People overstay their visa all the time. 🙂 The fee is unfortunate, but that’s all there is to it!

thanks for the helpful info. but when i download the application form its a lot of squares on the form is that normal ? or is it some kinda of “error” on, it looks weird, just alot of squares all over beside the titles

It sounds like you’re missing the Thai font. How to get them depends on your OS, I believe… I wouldn’t worry too much about it, though; just grab a printed form at the immigration office!

Thanks for this helpful post 🙂 I will be going to Thailand for 4-5 months, and will apply for a double entry tourist visa before I leave. I was wondering if anyone can tell me the easiest way to do the re-entry, after my 2+1 month period expires. I think I will be staying in Chiang Mai, is it an option to just cross the border to Myanmar, and come back? Or do I have to arrive by plane (I think I read that somewhere). Will be thankful for any help 🙂

Hi! Things tend to change quickly these days in regards to Thai Immigration, but normally, to activate the second part of your tourist visa, you just need to leave and come back. If you’re based in Chiang Mai, an easy border is Mae Sai. It’s also possible to fly for cheap from Chiang Mai Airport, if you want to make a trip of it. 🙂

The issue with flying in versus border crossings, so far, has only been about getting a visa exemption (aka visa on arrival).

Enjoy Thailand!

Hey Daniel, thanks for the info! I’m extending my tourist visa in CM as I write this!

With the latest news about the crackdown on in/out and tourist visas, would you still recommend I try the Mae Said border run once my 30 day extension is finished? (It would be after August 12) I’m on a double entry tourist visa that I obtained in Canada.

I’m seriously considering flying to Malaysia, spending a few days or a week there, then flying back in to Thailand hoping that they’d let me in and activate my next entry. But I still can’t find guarantees anywhere that flying in versus land crossing makes a difference, and who knows how strict they’ll be after August 12.

I’m also considering not even chancing activating my second entry , and getting an ED visa as soon as I can. I had planned to do that after my double entry was finished.

Any advice? Thanks!

Hi Matthew!

It’s really difficult to know for sure what Immigration has in mind… They haven’t been very consistent lately. Normally you should be perfectly fine hopping over the border at Mae Sai to activate the second part of your tourist visa, but in recent weeks, in the south, people have been prevented from doing exactly that. You’re probably going to be OK, but if flying is an option for you, I’d say it’s definitely a safer bet. In general Immigration seems much more consistent at airports.

As for getting an ED visa, that sounds like a very solid option to stay a while in Thailand, yes. Don’t have recommendations, though, as I stayed in Thailand on tourist visas before this crackdown started! I would definitely go the ED visa route today, though.

One small error I noticed is the “visa on arrival” you mention. This is actually not a visa at all, but rather a visa-exempt entry. Most articles on the internet make the same mistake though, so you’re not alone.

I’ve read that they will increase the possible extension on the visa-exempt entry to an additional 30 days instead of 7. This will help take away some of the hassle for tourists that the new visa regulations are causing, hopefully.

Yes, thanks for pointing this out. It’s actually a pet peeve of mine (calling visa exemptions “visas on arrival”) and yet you caught me at it. 😀 I go into this at length in my other visa-related blog posts…

Interesting about the extension being lengthened to 30 days. At the same time I read that they’re gonna shorten the visa exemption overland to 15 days again (after extending it to 30 for G8 countries earlier this year.) It’s hard to make heads or tails of it all. 😀

Your imformation is excellent and so easy to understand. One thing I cannot find out anywhere, and Ive left comments on other pages who never replied, was wether or not its possible to attain a 60 day tourist visa in chiang mai. Ive entered the country twice by plane and now just did a visa run to mai sai cause I couldnt afford another flight out then in. They gave me 14 days at the mai sai border. I have a job in pai but I need to prove I can stay longer than 2 weeks. Do you know if this is possible? Thanks again for all your info, it is hugely appreciated.

It’s impossible to get a 60-day tourist visa from within Thailand. To get one, you need to go to a Thai consulate in another country. A very popular option is Vientiane. If you’re short on cash, you can take regular buses to get there. Alas, that’s the only real option for a 60-day visa.

I wrote a guide to getting a tourist visa in Vientiane, which you can find here:

https://www.thewayofslowtravel.com/2013/10/06/khon-kaen-vientiane-visa-run/

Good luck!!

I have been reading through your information and it seems to have brought clarified answers to many. My friend and I are going to Phuket beginning of September to take the 4 week intensive TEFL training course and than hopefully find placement as an English teacher directly after. Charise and I have yet to obtain a visa because we are confused on whether we should take the 30-day entry and re-new it if need be and wait until we get paperwork from a school to get the non-immigrant B visa, or apply for a tourist visa now. I appreciate your help greatly, we have been stuck and confused with this for quite sometime now!

Hi Brittany!

I don’t know non-tourist visas really well, but my advice to you is to bite the bullet and get a 60-day tourist visa. Things are never immediate in Thailand… There might be a delay in getting your B visa, and if you have to do border runs to refresh your visa exemption, you might run into trouble with Immigration, who are clamping down on the practice.

Much better to have a 60-day visa, perhaps even a double-entry, and not have to stress about the paperwork coming through!

Hi Daniel, i am looking at getting a 90 day single entry from my consulate here in australia,If looking at a retiriment visa, when soon can i apply for exstension,i know you have to have finances by way of self funds or 800000,can you inform me when i can apply after i arrive, also are most of the immigration centres, Pattaya, chiang mai. BKK, are they as much as the same when applying for visa extensions.

I’m not familiar with retirement visas… But I’m pretty sure you can get them in Thailand, in most Immigration offices. I’d double-check with someone who knows to be sure… But I think you’ll be OK.

And yes, Immigration offices are fairly consistent. The procedure is pretty much the same.

Hey Daniel,

Wow. Love your site man, a treasure trove of great info!

Like many others, I’m a tad confused about all this visa business. My own situation is I’m on a 60 day triple entry visa here in Chiang Mai, which I’m about to extend by 30 days very soon.

First thing I’d like to know, I don’t have to leave the country to extend my visa another 30 days, do I? The reason I ask is that I rang the Thai consulate in my home country and the lady there was under the impression you do.

I think she is wrong, as it’s not what I’ve been told, but I’d like to make sure.

Second question is, when my 90 days runs out, what are my options?

Can I simply go to somewhere like Malaysia, stay for a few days, come back into the country again with my second entry and get another 60 days…then extend by another 30 days once the 60 days are up?

Or are they clamping down on back to back tourist visas?

Hi Patrick!

The lady at your home country’s consulate is wrong… You do NOT need to leave the country to extend your tourist visa’s entry by 30 days. The procedure I describe here is what you need to do. She might have been thinking about triggering the second entry of your visa, which DOES require leaving the country.

As for triggering that second entry… Yes, you should be fine just leaving the country a few days and coming back. It’s true that they’ve started clamping down on people doing out-and-in visa renewals, which really sucks. It’s more obvious when you just leave and re-enter the same day, but I think you’ll be pretty safe if you leave to Malaysia for a few days. They’re much less likely to give you trouble this way.

Nah she definitely knew I was talking about the 30 day extension, I was very clear as to what I meant.

But yeah, I knew she was wrong when she said it, but thought I’d check here to be 100%.

Anyways man, thanks a mill for the reply, muchos appreciation!

Hi! Just like to ask, if my 60-days visa will end on August 22 when should I need to apply for the 30-days extension. Others are telling me that I should apply with at least 15 working days or 15 days left on my visa, does that mean I should apply for extension on or before August 7?

There’s no requirement as to how early you need to apply for the visa extension. Patrick (below) seems to say there might be issues on getting it on the very last day, but just a few days leading up to expiry is perfectly fine. Absolutely no reason to go out of your way to renew it 15 days ahead!

I got my extension today in CM a few days before it runs out, took 90mins overall. So it would appear you can go right up until the date it expires.

However! (and this is only rumour so make of it what you will..) if you go on the DAY it expires (eg mine says 4th August), they can refuse you.

Now, like I said, it’s only something I’ve heard so it could be BS, if anyone could confirm whether that is actually the case it would be great.

Interesting. First time I hear of this… Especially weird considering that you can show up a day or two AFTER expiry and they’ll grant you the extension and a 500B/day penalty. But with the way Immigration has been tightening their policies lately, who knows… Definitely better safe than sorry.

So it’s a 500B/day penalty fee for overstaying? My ED visa expires 8/10. I leave CM for BKK airport the evening of 8/11, and will leave the country 8/12 in the morning.

Paying a 1000B fee sounds better than extending my stay for 1900B. Can I do this? Will the Thai government/officials be angry at me? Who will charge me and when will I be charged? Do you advise this? Thank you!

Also, if I don’t want to pay a fee at all, is it possible to “check-in” at the airport the night of 8/10, and stay there until the morning of 8/12 and just leave–avoiding any sort of fee?

I’d pay the visa extension fee. For the sake of 900B, you won’t run the risk of dirtying your bib with the Thai authorities.

I agree with Patrick. It’s better to pay the extra 900B to extend your visa properly, rather than risk running into trouble with the Thai authorities. They take overstays pretty seriously, and although 2 days over isn’t usually a big deal, you never know what they might do… It’s technically illegal to overstay, so it’s better just to extend it even if it means paying a bit more money!

Heeded your words, and after 1 hour and 45 minutes, I’m done! Painless! Although, after receiving the initial 115 number blue card (and arriving at 8!) I was a bit discouraged. But it wasn’t so bad after all. Thanks a lot!!!

My pleasure! Glad to know it went pretty fast!

Daniel, any ideas on B Visa extension in the same manor? My B Visa has expired and I have but a few days left on this entry, I won’t need to get a new B Visa as I shall not be spending much time here for the next 6 months, but I would like to extend another few weeks before I head back home. Any understanding on this, is there a process similar – I had heard that you could get a 30 day stamp at the back end of your last 90 days B stamp… any ideas would be appreciated.

Hi Michael,

Unfortunately, I’m not familiar with the workings of the B visa… You can probably extend it in the same manner; wouldn’t hurt to pay a visit to Immigration and ask them!

Super useful! Thanks for this post! Will try this on Monday! Cheers from Chiang Mai!

You’re most welcome! I left Chiang Mai last month, so I envy you a little. 🙂

I hope you’re well.

I hope you can help me, me and my boyfriend travel to Thailand 3rd November so were going to travel round the south for about 6 weeks and then were going to fly to Goa/ India for a few weeks for Christmas however after that we want to fly back to Thailand and travel the north. whats the best visa to get? Can we get two separate single ones or is there one where were allowed re entry?

Any ideas would be helpful! 🙂 thanks! xx

Hi Amy-Rose,

Your best bet is to get a single-entry tourist visa. This will last you 60 days, and you can extend it an extra 30 days if you need, using the method I describe here.

This is the best option if you’re going to stay in Thailand the whole six weeks. If you plan to leave and re-enter Thailand, you could be OK if you watch your stay… Flying in will give you 30 days, and crossing a land border will give you 15 days. Note that Thai Immigration frowns on tourists who stay 30 days, leave, and re-enter the same day… But if you’re going to travel around Southeast Asia and you’ll stay in neighboring countries for a while, then it’ll be perfectly fine.

You can get the single-entry tourist visa in your home country ahead of time.

So, in summary: get a single-entry tourist visa if you’re going to stay in Thailand six weeks. If you’re going to travel around, you’re probably fine just getting the visa exemption as you fly in.

Hi Daniel..need an advice about the visa. I badly count the days when I was in Cambodia.. so I have visa until 2nd September and my flight back is on the 3th of September. To pay 1900THB seems quite a lot, what do you think I should do?

Thanks a lot. Kind regards

It’s better to avoid overstaying your visa whenever possible, BUT for one day you should be fine. You should arrive a bit early at the airport, and expect to pay a fine of 500B for overstaying your visa one day. They shouldn’t give you trouble beyond that, especially considering you’re heading home!

Hello Daniel thank you very much for this post i really like it, but i still have a question to ask. If i miss place my Departure card will it be impossible to still extend my visa Thailand?

From what I understand, that’s not a big deal and it happens. You can just go to Immigration and explain that you lost your card. They should be able to replace it for you and extend your visa!

Me and my girlfriend are flying to Thailand 20 of October and are going to stay for 42 days. Since the 7 days extention of the “Visa on arrival” doesn’t apply in our case we have been looking for other ways.

We have thought of spending 1 week in thailand then take the bus to cambodia and spend a week in Siem reap and afterwards fly back to get another 30 days of “Visa on arrival”. Is that possible or have they changed something after August 2014?

Other choices were to go for a border run Chiang mai Laos or to get a tourist visa. Do you know how it’s currently looking with the border runs? do they still allow it?

What would you recommend doing (preferably the least complicated way)? 🙂

Thanks in advance

By far the easiest option, considering you have plenty of time, would be to get a 60-day tourist visa in your home country before you fly. Is that an option for you?

Otherwise, you’d be perfectly fine flying in, spending a week in a neighboring country, then re-entering by air for an extra 30 days. Thai Immigration is suspicious of people doing border runs to stay a long time in Thailand, but as you’re clearly a short-term tourist they’re not likely to mind at all.

Border runs are getting iffy, though… I wouldn’t recommend this option, since they might frown on the same-day exit and re-entry. Most likely it would be OK, but there have been instances recently where they’ve been difficult about this behavior.

I am currently here in Thailand with Non-Immigrant “B” visa which I got in HK (good for 90 days), to have a business trip in here to support our product launching here in Thailand… But recently, there were some issues with our launching schedule, which lead to the fact that I had to extend my stay here in Thailand… Got any idea if it is possible for me to extend my stay here in Thailand without leaving Thailand.. (it is quite cheaper to re-schedule my flight, than to purchase another round trip ticket).. btw I am a Filipino working in a company located in both China & HK.. Hope to hear some advise from you soon, tnx.

also in addition to my inquiry, got any idea on the maximum days allowed that I can extend my stay in here… tnx in advance…

Hi! Yes, I believe you can extend your visa from within Thailand. Just visit the Immigration office in your local town and ask. I’m not super-familiar with B visas, but I’m pretty sure you can extend them exactly the same way.

Thanks a lot Daniel…

You’re welcome!

Hi! I have been searching the internet for information, but still finds this the most helpful page, so I hope it’s ok that I ask another question about visas.

I am going to apply for a double-entry tourist visa before leaving for Thailand.

I am arriving in Thailand Oct 21st, and I will be going on a trip to Laos around Nov. 28th to Dec. 5th. When I re-enter Thailand, will I have to use the second part of my double entry visa? Or is the first still valid, as it has not been 2 months since I first entered yet?

If I have to use the second visa already when returning from Laos, after those last 2+1 months, is there any possibility of staying longer in Thailand? If I travel to another country for some days, and get back, can I get the 30 days visa on arrival?

You CAN re-enter Thailand on the second part of your double-entry visa… But there’s one catch: it has to be before the visa expiry date. You should get your visa close to your departure date to make sure this date is as late as possible.

If you re-enter Thailand before this expiry date, then you’re all good for a 2-month visit, which you can extend to 3 months.

After you’ve extended your visa for one month for a total of 3, you have to exit Thailand. There’s no other way. But you can exit and re-enter and get a visa exemption, as you describe. (If you fly in, it will be 30 days, otherwise it might be 15.) Since this will be your first time doing it, you should be perfectly OK! It helps if you have a plane ticket showing that you’re going home after.

Hope that answers your questions!

Thanks a lot 🙂

There should be a link to this site from the Thai immigration portal.

I just wanted to clarify one thing.

I have the 60 day tourist visa. I want the 30 day extension but have only two options (as I’m traveling within Thailand). I can do it on the day before or about 14 days before it expires.

Does the extension always add the 30 days to the 60 making the entire stay 90 days… or will I get the 30 days extension from the day I visit the immigration office?

Hi Tom! Haha, that’d be the day. 🙂

The days of the extension add to the END of your visa; so yes, you can make it in advance. I’m not sure if they’d let you apply for an extension 14 days in advance, though. It’s perfectly fine if you apply the day before. As a matter of fact, you could go on the day of expiry and it’d be fine, too.

So, to confirm: the 30 days are added AFTER the end of the visa, not from the day you apply.

Excellent information. I read all the post so hope I did not kiss the answer to this question. I am planning on coming to Thailand with my husband and 3 kids for 90 days. I am going next week to get the 60 day visa and an to extend it by the 30 days. Just a question about location/timing we are in Chiangmai for three weeks the fly/ ferry to koh phangnan for the remainder of the time. Can I renew in the first 3 weeks of the 90 days ? Or perhaps find an office in Koh phangnan?

I’m not sure how much in advance you can get your extension… I’m pretty sure more than a month in advance would be too far. If you’re going to Koh Phangan, you can get your visa extended at the Immigration office on Koh Samui; the process should be fairly similar there.

Enjoy Thailand! 🙂

Hi, i read with interest on the option to extend a 2 month tourist visa and would like to know if it would be acceptable to say ” that i am considering retirement in Chiang Mai ” would be a valid reason for the immigration to say yes to the application .

I think it’s best not to mention retirement while renewing your tourist visa… You don’t need to justify your extension beyond just a cursory statement, and mentioning another type of visa might just complicate matters.

Kudos to you Daniel Roy. Terrific info on the multitude of Thai visa issues.

I am in Chiang Mai on a 30 day tourist visa exemption stamp received on arrival on 17 Sept. This expires 16 October.

My departure flight is at 12:30 AM on 28 October, so will be passing thru immigration in BKK on 27 Oct.

I am planning to obtain the 7 day extension which will expire on 23 October.

I’ll ask about the 10-day extensions when we apply for the extension but don’t have high hopes based on what I read here.

Should we expect issues with just paying the over stay fine for the 4 days we’ll be here beyond the 7 day extension? We plan to return to Thailand in 2015 and wish to avoid visa issues.

Today is 2 October so have time for a trip out of Thailand. Were we to visit Laos would we get another 30 exemption stamp when we return to Thailand?

Looking for the most logical, expedient and economical method, while hoping to avoid future visa problems.

Thanks again for your excellent blog.

I have good news for you! Starting this summer, extensions to the Thai visa exemption is now 30 days!

The price remains the same (1900B). This means you can apply for the extension and stay 30 days longer.

Hi Daniel, I hold an Indian passport and a visa on arrival until the 16th October. I’m looking to extend my visa until 30th October which is another 15days. Will it be the same visa extension rule for me? And I’m looking at getting it done in Chang Mai. Thanks in advance.

I do believe you’re eligible for the 30-day extension as well, but since your visa on arrival is different from the visa exemption that, say, Canadians get, I’m not 100% sure. Your safest bet would be to ask your consulate, or ask Indian nationals who have had recent experience with this.

I am currently waiting for my visa application for a double entry visa to Thailand. It takes some time, and they can not answer me when I call them to ask about the process. I have not booked a return ticket from Thailand yet, and I have only enclosed a copy of my two entry tickets with the application. I am worried that will be a problem, and that I don’t have time to send a new application before I leave the 20th of October in case it won’t be approved. Does anyone know if it’s required to have a return ticket with the visa application?

Hi Marianne,

I’m surprised it’s taking so long to get a tourist visa. I’m guessing they would ask you for a return ticket if they felt it was required, though… Can you get a visa exemption on arrival and simply leave and re-enter Thailand, perhaps?

Thanks a lot for your reply, I finally got my visa yesterday 🙂 Pheeww! All set for Thailand and Chiang Mai 🙂

Awesome! Enjoy Thailand!! 🙂

Great post, very informative. I was hoping you could help me.

I fly out to Thailand in November where we will stay for around 10-15 days before visiting Cambodia, Vietnam & Loas. After we have visited these places we will be re entering Thailand via Loas and travelling down Thailand into Malaysia and Indonesia before returning to Thailand for our flight back to the UK. If I understand correctly we would receive 30 days visa exemption when entering Thailand initially by air and then get a 15 days visa upon arrival back to Thailand from Loas by land, which obviously wouldn’t be long enough to travel down Thailand into Malaysia (we would most likely need 30-40 days), so could we apply for an extension? And would there be any issue with us entering Thailand for a 3rd and final time before we fly home, when we arrive back from our Malaysia and Indonesian travels?

I realise that we could both apply for a triple entry Visa for £75 each which would be for 180 days in total but I was wondering if there would be a more cost effective method, as we are only travelling for 5 months in total.

Any help would be much appreciated.

You can do the trip you described without applying for a triple-entry visa, indeed. Since you’re a tourist and you’re traveling to neighboring countries (and not just hopping in and out to extend your stay) they won’t give you any hassle.

For your stay longer than 15 days, you can apply for a visa extension as described here, in any Thai immigration office. This will grant you 30 extra days on top of the first 15, and it will cost you £36 each. So you’ll be saving a little on visa fees. It’s up to you whether that extra cost is worth it for the flexibility.

Hope that helps! Enjoy Thailand!!

Hi Daniel. Great post btw!

I arrived on a standard 30 day Tourist visa (UK citizen).

If I understand correctly, I can go to immigration in CM and grab a further 30 days by paying the fee? The 30 day extension applies to 30 day Tourist visas?

Also, if I do a visa run tot he border will I also receive an additional 30 days?

Thank you in advance for your reply.

Just to clarify, what you have is called a 30-day visa exemption. Yes, if you go to a Thai immigration office, you WILL get a 30-day extension by paying 1900B. It does apply to visa exemptions as well.

If you do a border run overland, you’ll also get a new 30-day visa exemption, since you are a UK resident. Other countries outside the G7 (and Russia, I believe) receive only 15 days overland, and 30 days if they fly in.

So if your question is, Should I just go across the border and come back? The answer is, It’ll probably be OK, but there’s a small risk that the Thai Immigration frowns on you border hopping to get a new exemption. If you travel to another country, spend a few days there, then come back, then it won’t be a problem at all.

Thanks very much Daniel for your reply. You are awesome! Nev 🙂

Hi, great resource, thanks! I just had a quick question regarding my own trip (sorry if this has already been covered).

I am a UK citizen and am travelling for tourism purposes. I am first entering Thailand (via air, from the UK) on Nov 7th and am then leaving for Cambodia on Nov 8th (2 days). I am then entering Thailand again on Dec 2nd (on land, from Laos) and staying until Dec 15th (14 days).

I had a query on the type of visa I would need, as I know that as a tourist from the UK that the tourist visa exemption is available for 30 days, but I was confused as to whether this would work for me – so I am only spending 16 days in total in Thailand (2 days in Nov & 14 days in Dec), but the time from when I first enter Thailand (Nov 7th) to when I leave for the last time (Dec 15th), is 39 days. Does the 30 day tourist visa exemption only include the days I am in Thailand, or does it count from first arrival on my first entry to my last day on my second arrival (meaning I would need a longer visa)? Or would I get a new one for each entry?

Also, for the second time I enter Thailand (Dec 2nd) – would I need a new visa or would this need to be part of a double entry visa?

Sorry for such a self involved question, I’ve just been finding it hard to get a definitive answer and you seemed to have the most knowledge I’ve been able to find! Thanks!

Hi Chrisy! No problem, I’m happy to help! 🙂

The visa exemption is over once you leave Thailand. So you don’t need to worry about timing if you’re going to Cambodia.

When you fly into Thailand, you’ll get a 30-day visa exemption. It’ll expire as soon as you exit Thailand to Cambodia. Then, when you re-enter Thailand, you’ll get a new visa exemption for 30 days, since you are a UK citizen. (Non-G7 members get 15 days overland).

So no need to worry, you’re all good! 🙂

hi daniel, nices post!!

I tell you, my love and me, have lived in Thailand for 7 and 6 months respectively, our visa expires on 18 December, the last time we went to thai consulate in laos for double entry, we are thinking to do the same, do you know if it is possible?? I mean we can obtain this kind of visa again???

Hi Tararosa,

Yes you can. This is actually what they want you to do, instead of just hopping over the border. I believe you can get three visas in a row before you can’t use this method anymore. A second one will definitely be OK.

Hi! This is a very helpful post. I am just wondering which kind a reason for the extension that will be accepted? And also do i need to have my tickets out of Thailand when i enter the country?

And also can a visa on arrival apply for extension?

To answer your questions:

1) You don’t need much of a reason. Just say you need the extension because you’re staying longer in Thailand or something like this… This is usually what I said. Something like “Leaving later than expected.”

2) You technically need a return or onward ticket to enter Thailand. I say “technically” because Thai immigration NEVER check this. That being said, your airline might give you trouble; sometimes they require a return or onward ticket to let you get on a flight. Doesn’t happen often, and certainly not in Thailand since you can leave easily overland… If I were you, I’d prepare a story about leaving Thailand through a land border such as Cambodia or Laos, just in case.

3) Yes, you can apply a 30-day extension for a “visa on arrival,” which is known as a visa exemption.

Thank you so much for the great reply! My situation is that I would like to stay here for about 90 days and I havn’t got any visa. So therefore, first of all I am applying for at visa exemption, so that gives me a total of 60 days. Then I am planning on going for a 7 days holiday around when the 60 days expire and then re-enter thailand and then get the 30 days stamp for the rest of my trip here. Do you know if that will work or are there any rules about how long I have to wait before i re-enter Thailand?

Hmm, do you mean you’re applying for an actual 60-day tourist visa?

The only thing you need to be careful with is the visa exemption when you re-enter Thailand. If you’re not from a G7 country (I’m guessing you’re Scandinavian?) you’re entitled to a visa exemption when you re-enter Thailand overland. If, however, you re-enter via an airport, you’ll get 30 days.

The way I see it, you have a few options:

1. Get your 60-day visa, and extend it to 90 days in Thaiand; 2. Get a double-entry tourist visa (two entries of 60 days each); 3. Get your 60 days, exit Thailand, re-enter for a 15-day visa exemption, and extend that exemption by 30 days as described in this post.

Okay, I will try to explain you my situation and maybe you can help me sort out which options I have.

I arrived to Phuket, Thailand 2 weeks ago. And I want to stay here for 90 days. I came here without a visa and got the stamp at the airport, so I am allowed to stay here for 30 days. Then my plan is to apply for a further 30 days extenstion of my already 30 days stamp. Before the total of 60 days run out my plan is to leave Thailand by flighr/air to go on a holiday for about 7 days and then return with a flight and then get the last needed 30 days stamp again? Is that way possible?

Yes, the scenario you describe works perfectly. Get your current visa exemption extended by 30 days a little before it expires, then after 60 days, leave to another country and come back by air. This is exactly right!

My girlfriend and I are travelling around SE Asia and doing it all via land, we left the UK under the impression we could get an exemption at the border of Thailand, I hold an Italian and she holds a British passport. These new rules have totally perplexed us! Could you tell us in the simplest form possible if we’re able to get a 30 day exemption at the border or if there’s a possibility of extending it at Chiang Mai if we end up only getting a 15 day exemption. We would obviously go to Vientianne to organise this properly but we have only just found out about this and we’ve literally just stepped off the bus from there a few hours ago. Any advice would be amazing!

You are correct, you can get a 30-day visa exemption when you enter into Thailand via a land border. This is because both you and your girlfriend are citizens of a G7 country. Other countries only get 15 days overland.

So you’re all good. 🙂 You can get a 30-day exemption overland, and if you need it, you can extend for 30 days at the immigration office.

Thanks for the quick reply, we’ve just heard so many different stories about this we didn’t know what to think, thanks for clearing it up.

I’m glad I could help! Things change fast with Thailand immigration, and the system is a bit complicated so people end up with conflicting versions.

Your site is the best I have seen but I am still confused. Not difficult, call it my age. How do we apply for this extension on a ’30 day on arrival visa’ or should we just go to the Chiang Mai Immigration office? We only want to extend for 5 days. If we can extend when we get there it would help so much. I HAVE looked on many sites, I am not being lazy, but it is all so unclear. Thank you.

Hi Vanessa! No problem, I’m happy to clear it up for you!

What you call a “30-day on arrival visa” is what is officially known as a visa exemption. This is what I refer to in this post. If you want to extend it, you can go to Chiang Mai Immigration Office and pay 1900B to extend it for 30 days. They only do it 30 days at a time… So you can just apply for that.

Hope that’s clearer!

Has anyone (or everyone?) told you what an excellent website this is? One of the best and up to date I have found. One last question. We are in Thailand from the 9th December to 15th January and in Chiang Mai over Christmas and New Year. To obtain a 90 day visa in the UK would be very costly as it means a train journey to apply and another to pick the visa up. We cannot apply by post as we work in Spain and would not have sufficient time back in the UK. Can we extend at any time during our stay in Thailand or only at the end when the 30 days have run out? That would mean not being able to extend in Chiang Mai which I presume is a much better option than applying in Bangkok. Thank you once again, from everyone!

Thank you for the kind words! 🙂 I had to do my own research when I first got to Thailand, so I was glad to see this post was helping others by saving them the hassle I had to go through!

You’re supposed to extend your stay near the end of it, I believe. I’m not sure you can just go to the Immigration office in the first few days of your stay. You should definitely go BEFORE your visa or visa exemption expires, however! Otherwise you’ll pay fees for overstaying, and they might give you a hard time.

I think you’ll be totally fine extending in Bangkok. Many foreigners do it there, so it’s not difficult. I haven’t done it myself, but I wouldn’t worry about it… Just go the Immigration office a few days before your visa expires, and apply for an extension. It’ll be a very similar process, and the fee (1900B) will be the same.

Thanks for a great post! I am from Canada and got a 30day visa exemption upon arrival. I already extended my stay once by 30 days at the immigration office in Oct. I want to stay longer. Will the immigration office give me another extension?

No, they won’t. You can only get one extension per entry into Thailand. You’ll need to leave and come back.

Nowadays, what time is it necessary to arrive at Immigration Office in Chiang Mai in order to avoid to wait for many hours to get back the passport with the extension ? I have read on some blogs and forums that it needs to be there before 07.00am or even earlier …

Thank you 🙂

Usually if you arrive early in the morning, you’ll be fine. You may have to wait, especially as we’re getting closer to tourist season; but if you get there in the morning, you’re pretty certain to go through on the same day. Some even get there in the afternoon, but sometimes when Immigration is backed up they’ll give you a number for the next day and ask you to come back.

If I’m just 5 days over it sounds like I can just pay 2500 bhat at the airport? Seems way easier than dealing with this and for the extra $25 completely worth it.

You SHOULD be OK with a 5-day overstay… But do note that it is technically illegal, which means they might give you a hard time for overstaying. You’ll probably be fine, though!

Are there any rules for how long you should stay outside of Thailand before you can go back and get a 30 days stamp/visa on arrival again if that was the way you stayed in Thailand on your first trip?

A few days is definitely OK. Thai Immigration looks down on people who hop over the border and right back into Thailand, because these might be people working illegally and trying to extend their stay in Thailand… But they’re well aware of tourists traveling to neighboring countries and coming back… You’ll have no trouble at all!

You might remember me because I keep asking you questions, but you seem to know a bit about this!! Great, and even though I leave Thailand with a 30-days stamp and a further 30 days extension of this, there should be no problem for me to re-enter Thailand after only 7 days away again without no visa?

Your help is really much appreciated!

Hi! Yes, I remember you… Always happy to help! I know how stressful visas can be… I lived in Thailand for almost a year! 🙂

If you leave the country for seven days then come back, you’ll have absolutely no problem with Immigration. They’re suspicious of foreigners leaving and re-entering on the same day, but what you describe is normal tourist behavior… They’ll have no trouble with it at all.

It’s a good idea to have your ticket home when you enter Thailand, as sometimes Immigration can get picky… It’s highly unlikely in your case, but it’s worth having it printed with you, just to be safe!

But in general, the type of travel you describe is very normal for a tourist… They won’t have an issue with it at all.

Thank you so much for the help! I really appreciate it. And i think now that i got now more questions. Otherwise I know who to contact. 😉

Haha! My pleasure. Enjoy Thailand!! 🙂

My wife and I intend to visit Thailand for two, possibly three months…Dec, Jan, & Feb of 2014-2015. I had intended to use the fly-in visa exemption for a 30 day stay and subsequent visa runs to extend for 30 or 60 days. We also wanted to use the visa runs to see parts of Laos and Cambodia (but the majority of our time will be in Thailand). NOW I have become aware of the “crack- down” on visa runs and I have heard only 15 day extensions are permitted/granted at border locations. Can you clarify the following for me:

Is it possible to enter Thailand by air, get the 30 day entry stamp, and obtain an extension for another 30 days without actually leaving Thailand?

Is it possible to still successful visa run to a border country and extend our time by 30 days each run?

If we try to obtain a 60 day visa in Cambodia or Laos, can we expect to be successful, assuming we meet their requirements? i.e. are visa requirements and regulations enforced uniformly from location to location?

Is it true that people are permitted to re-enter Thailand by air for 30 days visa exempt so long as we do not exceed 90 days in any six month period?

Thanks for any and all clarification you provide. I appreciate the clarity of your responses to other questions.

Yes, that is totally possible. You’ll get 30 days flying in, and you can visit an Immigration office, as described in this post, to get another 30-day extension. You won’t need to leave Thailand to do this.

Yes, although that’s the part where there’s been a bit of crackdown. It’s not the recommended method. If you leave Thailand for a few days before you re-enter, then that’ll be no problem. Remember that Thailand is trying to crack down on illegal workers… Tourists coming in and out are perfectly normal. Especially if you’re there for a limited time and have a ticket home, you should be fine if you bring it with you when doing these runs.

Absolutely. The visa application process is fairly consistent, and you can get one either in Laos or Cambodia, no problem. That’s what I’d recommend, actually. It’s what Thai Immigration prefers for sure.

It’s not clear whether this rule is strictly enforced or not. Flying into Thailand is usually not a problem, especially if you spend a few days abroad before you return. I wouldn’t worry too much in your situation… You’re a tourist, visiting the region for three months. That’s standard behavior, and Thai Immigration is used to it.

Do note that you can get a single-entry tourist visa ahead of your trip… This way, you can enter Thailand on a 2-month visa, then extend it by 30 days at an Immigration office. If you’d rather travel around to neighboring countries, then you should be fine simply re-entering Thailand and getting visa extensions as needed.

Let me know if you have other questions!

Very helpful and clear information. Your blog was the one I referred to while getting this done today. I’ve pointed to your blog on my website too 🙂 Thanks, again…

http://www.sagarsonker.com/travel/thailand/chiang-mai

Glad to know my post was helpful! Thanks for the link! 🙂

hello!! i have 90 days on arrival, can i extend the visa for 30 days without leaving the country??

90 days on arrival? Wow, lucky you! 🙂

I’m not familiar with these 90-day visa exemptions… It’s better if you ask. My impression from checking a few websites is that you CAN’T extend this past the 90 days… You have to exit and come back. But you should ask the Immigration office to be sure!

Very Very helpful article. I’ve gathered all my materials and making the trek tomorrow. Just wondering one thing… What should I put as my reason for the extension?

Thanks – Shay

Just say you want to stay longer in Thailand… From everyone I spoke to, the actual reason doesn’t really matter. You don’t need to worry about it. 🙂

I wish I would have located your site earlier….it could have saved me lots of time. The information is very much appreciated. The Thai website in Canada is very confusing, and it took me a phone call to the Royal Thai Consulate in Vancouver to sort it out (visa extension protocol on the Canadian website said one had to see an immigration official in Bangkok…we had been there before, and found out we could do the extension by seeing an official in Chaing Mai).

Yeah, that sounds like my typical experience with consulates abroad… It’s particularly irritating when you see how easy and straightforward visas are in other countries… In Mexico, for instance, Canadians get 6 months on arrival free, period.

Should there be any problem if I am staying for longer than 90 days in Thailand for a period of 6 months, only with visa on arrival stamps? I have been travelling a lot back and forth to Thailand.

Yes, they will eventually deny you entry if you take successive visa exemptions (aka visas on arrival). I think the limit is 3 consecutive visa exemptions. It’d be best if you applied for a tourist visa in a neighboring country. Officially, you can’t stay for more than 90 days on visa exemptions per six-month period.

Found this extremely helpful, thank you.

I currently have a 30 day exemption which runs out Christmas Day, I would like to spend Christmas/New Year in Thailand if possible… Have heard so many different things about extending the visa, I am getting very confused.. I will be in Chang Mai in a few weeks, will it be possible for me to go to the Thai Immigration Office here to extend?

Look forward to hearing from you

Yes, you can definitely extend your 30-day visa exemption in Chiang Mai, as I outline in this post. It will grant you an extra 30 days on your current exemption. Just follow the instructions in this post!

Many thanks for the detailed information for this visa extension. Superb! Just done my extension today, with complete success. If I may add one detail that hasn’t appeared anywhere above, is that the immigration staff take an hours lunch between 12 and 1pm. I arrived at 11, got my passport back at 2, even though it was very busy today, but it was the lunchtime break that made it longer. Might be worth noting for anyone going at that time.

Also my tourist visa expired on the next day, but ain’t wasn’t a problem. They gave the 30 days continuing from the end of the tourist visa.

Knob khun kap again for all the wonderful details.

Hi! Glad the process went smoothly, and glad I could help. 🙂 I will add the lunch break info to my post, thank you!

Oops….of course meant khob khun kap! So much for predictive text!! 🙂

Great blog, very informative.

Just to be completely clear on things for my situation, I am a UK citizen, been in Thailand since 4th Nov on a 30 day exemption. I had planned to go to Mae Sae next week but read about the clamp downs. I am in Chiang Mai till 3rd March, but heading to HK at Xmas for a week so will re-enter on another visa exemption, and then may need another extension, maximum two before I head home in March. (depending…I may fly somewhere else for business in Jan/feb which will negate needing a second extension)

Is the Mae Sae route closed now? From reading your blog I am thinking I’ll be best off heading to the Visa office by the Airport to extend, would you agree?

But will I be able to do this again in Jan/Feb when I am back in CM and have returned from a week in HK?

Hope that makes sense!

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks Charlie

Hi Charlie!

Mae Sae is risky for visa exemptions. I think you’re MUCH better off visiting the Immigration office near the airport, and getting a 30-day exemption. Then, when you return from HK, you’ll have a fresh visa exemption, which you can extend AGAIN for 30 days.

You can only extend each individual exemption once, but each visa exemption can be extended, no problem.

Great! Thanks Daniel, really appreciate the speedy reply and excellent advice.

Have a great day!

Cheers Charlie

You’re most welcome! Enjoy Thailand! 🙂

Just an update from 1st December 2014.

We went to get our 30 day extensions today and the instructions on this blog were invaluable. We wouldn’t have had a clue what to do otherwise (as evidenced by the dozens of people who hadn’t read this post and quickly got lost and confused).

We both have 60 day tourist visas, and went to get our extensions on day 25. So to answer anyones concerns about when you get an extension, there does not seem to be a minimum amount of time you have to be in Thailand for. Also, to echo someone else’s point, we didn’t get 2 number cards, just the final one.

We arrived at 0750 and it was already packed, though we got numbers 014 and 011 so presumably most of the people in the room were there for other reasons. We didn’t end up leaving until 1120 though, so if you want to get out quickly, you might need to be there even earlier.

We did learn that the extension stamps seem to processed in piles of 10 or so, and then handed out. This meant that my 011 number was processed in the first batch of the day. Whereas my partners 014 number had to wait until there was another 10 to stamp, which added an hour onto the wait.

So like the post says, be prepared to wait a while, no matter how early you get there!

Thanks for the update, James! Really glad to hear my info helped make this a smooth experience.

Thanks for this helpful article,one important question, this visa extension request(1900 baht) how many extra months it gives me? one , two or three months?? And if visa extension is possible then why do people do the visa run??

The visa extension is exactly 30 days. You can do it only once, after which you need to leave and either come back with a tourist visa or enter on a visa exemption.

Which is why people do visa runs… It’s 30 days, and it’s only once per visa/visa exemption. Eventually you have to leave the country anyway.

Hey there Daniel, So there doesnt seem to be a minimum amount of time you need to be in Thailand for before you apply for the 30 day extension? (I’m planning on getting a 60 day Tourist Visa and looking at my Thai massage course schedule, i only have limited weekdays where i can go and line up for the extension..i think i can do it after around a 1 month stay)

Thank you so much! Happy holidays 🙂 -melody

Nope, I don’t believe there is a minimum amount of time you need to be in Thailand before applying. I’ve heard people extending it pretty early. Especially considering your massage course, I’d say you have the perfect reason to extend early if they ask. 🙂

Hello there I wondered if you could help, my visa runs out tomorrow and I am going to the immigration centre with all of the documents you have advised me too but I am missing my departure card do you know if this will cause any king of a problem. Neither me or my girlfriend have it on us at all but both have evidence of us leaving the country withing the month In the form of a flight itinary and e ticket receipt. Kind regards mike.

I’m not sure exactly how Immigration will want to proceed, but in the event of loss of your departure card, you have to go to Immigration to get a new one. It’s a normal procedure, so I wouldn’t worry. You’ll have to see with them how they want to proceed with it, but you’ll be in the right building to do it. 🙂

I was wondering if you are able to advise my boyfriend and I fly out on Wednesday to Thailand for 35 days with a return flight on January 14th we have not got a 60 day exemption visa. Will we be able to obtain and extension when we are in Thailand? We are planning on travelling to Cambodia for a week and I thought I would be able to get an additional 15 days for leaving and re entering, however I am reading conflicting information about ‘border runs’ being banned since may. If you could help I would really appreciate is I am so concerned we might not even be able to get in to Thailand at all without this 60 day visa and we have no time left to get one.

You’ll be fine either way. Don’t worry!

Visiting Cambodia for a week doesn’t constitute a ‘border run’ in the eyes of Immigration. It’s normal tourist behavior. They’ll definitely allow you to re-enter and get a 15-day visa exemption, no problem. If you decide to stay in Thailand for 35 days instead, you can just apply for a visa extension. Note that your visa exemption expires when you leave Thailand, so there’s no point in extending your original visa exemption if you’re going to Cambodia before the end of the 30 days.

Hi Daniel (and anyone else who may be able to help!)

I’m going to extend my non-b visa in Chiang Mai tomorrow for the first time and have been told by other teachers at my school that you need to get to immigration really REALLY early to make sure you get seen that day. Some have said you need to get there as early as 5:30am even though the office doesn’t open until 8:30am. They have said that if you get there later than 7:30 then you won’t get seen that day and will be told to come back the next day. This seems crazy! What is the general consensus?

My visa expires on 14th December so I have a few days to get it sorted but ideally wanted to do it all in one day.

Thanks for your help 🙂

Are they saying this based on recent experience, or in general?

From everything I’ve read and experienced, in general, if you arrive fairly early (around opening time), you’ll wait for sure, but you’ll be processed the same day. You may even arrive late and get a good chance of getting through.

However, this is high season right now, so there’s a chance that they’re getting backed up… Might be worth checking with someone who’s been in the last few days.

Thanks for replying Daniel.

I think the early start is for non-b visas in general. Everyone I had spoken to before had gone really early to avoid being turned away based on stories they’d heard so (begrudgingly) I conformed because I didn’t want to risk it. Unfortunately, I think the rumours are true because I arrived at the immigration office at 6am and there was already a queue of 50+. I think most people were there for non-b, education, retirement and business visas, so based on most comments on here it sounds like the early start isn’t necessary for tourist visas.

The officials started giving out the queue numbers at about 6:45, and by 7:30 I had my second queue number for a non-b extension. I was number 47 and was told to come back in the afternoon so I knew then that it must be a long process if it was going to take all morning to process 46 people. I came back at 1pm and my number was called at about 4:30pm so it really was an all-dayer! I was done by 5:15pm.

I had spent the day before complaining about the early start and blaming it on people wanting to be seen first and avoid the queues. This inevitably means that people end up getting there ealier and earlier which, in most cases, results in people not being seen first and still having to queue only at an ungodly hour in the dark instead of when the place actually opens! But having gone early I actually think that the early starters who I had been calling fools all day previously are actually right. I arrived at 6am, was number 47 and didn’t get seen until 4:30pm when the office was due to close. If I’d have arrived 10 or 15 minutes later in the morning I doubt they would have been able to see me that day.

On the plus side, the people who work there are really lovely. Even by late afternoon when the office should have been about to close the officials were friendly and helpful. And even though it was a really long day, the whole process was well organised. They started handed out the queue numbers well before the office was due to open so it wasn’t a case of getting there at 6am and waiting 2 hours before anything happened.

It’s also worth mentioning that I went the day before a public holiday so it’s likely that it was even busier than most days as the office is shut today.

All in all, not my favourite day in Thailand but it needed doing and in the end, I think the early start was unavoidable.

Sorry, this has turned into an enormous post!

Wow! I didn’t know non B took so long to process. Thanks for sharing! It sounds crazy to have to get there by 6 a.m., only to have to wait the whole day…

Thank you so much! You have been a life saver!! 🙂 Mike

A word about my experience ( yesterday ) : arrived at 13h01. Left at 16h50 with my visa extension which is not so bad I would say.

1 – the youngest girl at counter one is as rude as hell. I wonder if that is made on purpose just to see how you will react. It seemed to be an act or, she should really go and work in the back.

2 – everybody else was really pleasant and, although it was longer than last year ( did the same process last year and was out of there after 2h30 ), I think this is pretty decent time and I didn’t have to get there at 5h00 in the morning!

3 – for some reason, it took 1h00 after I gave my papers to get them back. I read on here that it was a 15 minutes process which was conform to my memories of last year but this time it was way longer.

4 – you receive only one number now. Once you received it, you might as well try to see how many they process in an half hour and depending on your number, go home or shop a little / grab something to eat at Airport plaza which is 10 minutes away walking before coming back for your turn.

5 – there is a photocopy and picture taking place on the compound of the office in case you forgot about something so no big worries.

Thanks Daniel for your site, I checked if I remembered to bring everything and it was reassuring to see that I did. Take care and have a safe trip

Thanks for the report! I’m glad everything went well!

How many days before my tourist visa expires can I get it extended at the Immigration? Is it a few days before it expires, or also weeks before? Thanks!

From what I hear, a week earlier is perfectly OK.

At the visa extension office they cleared stated that you can ask for an extension 45 days before your visa is to expire. So not before 45 days but after that, you go whenever you feel like it.

Thanks for the clarification… I didn’t know the precise period!

Hi Daniel! Thank you so much for this page!

I’m really sorry to ask you questions you’ve probably answered tons of times already, but it’s hard to find the specific answers we need through it all!

My friend and I (both British passport holders) are travelling in India, then onto Thailand, Vietnam, Japan etc. We needed to get Thai visas in India because they start from sate of issue and we are in India for around three months, and planning to stay in Thailand for just under two months.

We tried to apply for the 6 month visa at the Thai Embassy in Goa but were told by the lady there that we needed to provide her with hotel vouchers of hotels booked throughout the whole of our stay in Thailand, including train tickets, internal flights etc. not just the ones we already have booked. She wants proofs of hotels throughout the WHOLE time. And she also wanted them for the rest of our time in India and possibly Vietnam, including proof of flights to Japan and then back home. Considering we already have tourist visas for India and Vietnam, and the very nature of travelling is to go with the flow and have plans change or decide when you’re there,this all seems very extreme.

Basically we are panicking at this point.

From your post and the comments above, we could just get the automatic 30 day visa on entry, and then apply for a 30 day extension once in Chiang Mai (our initial destination)?

Is this correct? Or will it be too risky? Also, (I couldn’t find this answer in the comments) can we apply for the extension as early as possibly, or is the extension valid from issue, so we will need to wait till the end of our initial 30 days..?

So sorry for the hassle! p.s. thank you again!

Hi Abigail,

Wow, that lady at the consulate in Goa is being a total asshole! I’ve applied for Thai visas in a few different countries and they NEVER ask for all that.

If you’re going to stay two months, then you’re PERFECTLY fine with getting a visa exemption. You can apply for an extension at any point during your stay, so you can get it almost as soon as you arrive, if that’s what you want.

If, for some reason, you end up wanting to stay longer, you can just travel for a few days to a neighbor country, and re-enter Thailand. As UK citizens, you get a 30-day exemption across land borders too.

So really, forget the Goa lady… She must’ve had a bad day or something! You’ll be 100% fine without a visa!

WOW, thanks Daniel!

I can’t tell you how much relief your comment gave us. Thank you so much, and for also responding so quickly.

I guess we should have researched this aspect of obtaining the thai visa, but my travel partner had emailed them months prior to see if we were able to get one in Goa, and we were just trying to be organised. I suppose this is our first big lesson as travel newbies. It’s already cost us a bit to attempt that first application (which the lady took by the way, THEN called to say it’s not enough).

You live and learn.

But thank you soooooo much again and we will follow your blog step by step in Chiang Mai, to be sure!

Wow, that woman is a crook! I’m glad you don’t need to deal with her any further. I learned a similar lesson in India myself: sometimes, trying to plan your trip is just asking for insanity and stress. 🙂

Really glad I could help! Enjoy India and Thailand! 🙂

Thanks – a really great post.

We’re in Chiang Mai at the moment for 2 months and then want to head south for a month.

How far in advance can we request to extend our visas? I don’t want to book accommodation / flights etc and then find our visa request is denied.

Any advice would be great.

I believe you can request for an extension 30 days in advance. So on a visa exemption, you can pretty much go from day one.

Great, thanks for the help 🙂

This is great info, thanks for writing this!

I went yesterday and have some helpful hints to add:

Hopefully you read this article at least a week before you have to go. Do not wait until the last day!

I read this Dec 31, and thought I had until Jan 5. But, I really had until Jan 3. Either way, I thought plenty of time.

I was wrong. When I looked at the Thai holidays link he puts here, I saw that the office was closed for 3 days + weekend until Jan 5.

I didn’t have to pay the late fine, but the office was a zoo. There were about 250 people there at any given time. I think they served about 700 people that day.

I went at 9 am. They gave me a ticket and told me to return at 2. I got back at 2, submitted my paperwork, paid, and waited until 4:45 for them to finish it.

The lesson is: read this article well ahead of time, know when their days off are, and go a few days before your visa expires. They stamp you 30 days more from the date of expiration, not when you go renew, so the earlier you do it the better.

Avoid going right after they have had a holiday, even if it means you go renew a week or more early. Usually in tropical nations people don’t work so hard Mon & Fri, and the best time to do bureaucratic stuff is Tues-Thurs.

Also, I’d ignore the advice about dressing nice unless you have to do something more complicated where they might interview you. I wore pants & a nicer shirt, and there were all kinds of smelly, badly dressed people. I was just really hot & uncomfortable. It doesn’t matter what you wear apparently.

Thanks for the clarifications, Joe. You’re right, it’s pretty hellish around Christmas… Must have been unpleasant.

I should clarify what I meant about dressing nice… You’re right that there are tons of people dressed poorly there, and for the most part it doesn’t really matter. But appearance matters to Thais in general, and they WILL pay attention to how you dress when they interact with you. Doesn’t mean they’ll be an ass about it, but if worse comes to worst, dressing simply but smartly can make a difference. Doesn’t mean you need a suit and tie, for sure.

Cheers, and thanks for the added info!

Great post I was able to follow your instructions and have everything prepared when I arrived. I was in about 10 AM and out in less than half an hour. Thanks.

Fantastic! Glad to hear my post was helpful!

Another tip. I went to get my passport picture taken and there was a sign advising women against wearing “rude clothing”for the pictures. For exaple wearing tank tops for the photo, there were no examples of men in tank tops as a no-no. When we got there people said they had been there since 6 am!

Interesting… I’ll add a note in my post about that. In general, when dealing with Thai officials, it’s always a good idea to dress “properly.” Thais put importance on appearance. I’ve heard of foreigners having to produce a lot more paperwork than usual when they’d show up dressed improperly.

Hi there, i got a 60 day single entry visa from the UK for Thailand. Then I got another 30 days from the immigration office here in Thailand. My 90 days is nearly up. Is it true that if I want another 30 days I can just fly to Kuala lumpur, go through customs and then on the same day just hop on a flight back to Thailand? Many thanks Ren

Yep! That’s correct. That’ll give you a 30-day visa exemption, which you can then extend another 30 days at the Immigration office.

There’s a limit to how many times you can do this, but one time should be absolutely no problem. If you plan on staying a while, you might want to consider getting a new tourist visa in Kuala Lumpur.

Hi, thank you so much for the complete and helpful info. A friend told me yesterday that they might ask for a paper from your bank, which shows you have money on your acount, and that is also stamped by the bank? Also i wonder why I, and so many people do the long visaruns, if it ‘s so easy and so much less timeconsuming to get an extention at immigration? Just because it ‘s only 500 baht instead of 1900 maybe? But the minivan also costs 650.. I just didn ‘t know about this option before.

Hmm. First time I hear about them requesting bank statements for a visa extension!

Yeah, I dunno why more people don’t just get a visa extension. Sure, it’s a BIT more expensive, but it’s definitely less of a hassle, and you don’t run the risk of being denied re-entry at the border…

We’re travelling with our two little kids and struggling with visa issues in south east asia…. the guidebook sucks and online its hard to find out specific stuff. we expected to extend our Lao 14day visa-on-arrival (free of charge for swiss people…) for 2$/day in luang prabang. but unfortunately this is only possible with a 30day visa…. So we’re a bit scared entering thailand overland from Lao and have the exact same issue at the chiang mai immigration office with the thai authorities… question: is that granted that we get the 30day extension on top on the 14day that we get in houa xai border? if not we gotta fly in to thailand to get at least 30days… which is simply crazy… putting all the air-pollution in the air just to get a 30day stay in thailand… we did already a visa run over land in nong khai / vientiane 14 days ago, hope that affects not our next entering to thailand by landborder.

Thanx for your help! Reto

Thailand doesn’t work like Laos on this point. If you have a 15-day visa exemption, you can still extend it by 30 days, no problem. It’s a fairly straightforward process, so I wouldn’t worry about it!

I don’t think re-entering Thailand will be a problem either. They might stamp your passport to show you’re doing consecutive border hops without a visa, but since you’ve stayed a while in Laos, this is normal tourist behavior, not serial visa extension!

Hope that helps you relax a little! 🙂

Thank you a lot Daniel! After a yoga session here at the mekong i’m totally relaxed 😉 We even try to extend the waiver visa at the immigration office in Nan first. If its gonna fail we’re heading towards Chiang Mai and do it there. All the best for you. Cheers, Reto

I’m sure it’ll be fine. 🙂 Enjoy!

Just to finish this thread with a happy end, we got the 30day extension here at the Nan Immigration Office. The process was straight forward and no queue/people at all. The Office just moved out of town (6km), which is not so comfortable. The Immigration Officer mentioned another topic, that might be interesting. With a visa weaver/exemption you’re only allowed to enter the country FOUR times per year… we’re gonna stretch this exactly before we return to Switzerland… lucky we did not another run over the border. Thanks four your help. Greetings from lovely Nan, Reto

Yeah, Thai immigration frowns on multiple visa exemptions, though if you’re clearly a tourist wandering around Southeast Asia they’re less likely to cause trouble. My advice is to get a double-entry tourist visa in Vientiane. Costs a bit more (2000B), but it’s what the Thai Immigration people expect people to do. You can also get a triple entry visa.

About to get my girlfriend and my 60-day tourist visas extended in Chiang Mai. Quick question — Do both of us have to show up? Or can I just show up with her passport and documents and get both of our applications processed together by myself?

Then at least only one person has to wait at the immigration office instead of both of us. 🙂

I’m pretty sure you both have to show up. Sorry. 🙂

Thanks Daniel. Off to the immigration office we go then!

Kudos for your site, time, and service! My 60d tourist visa expires on a Sunday. It used to be fine to go in for an extension on the following Monday…without paying a 500b fine. Is it still so??

Thank you for your kind words!

Hmm! I’m not sure about this. I would presume it’s still the same, yes, but this can always depend on the individual handling your case. You can also do it on the preceding Friday… Don’t have to do it on the same day or after.

By far the MOST informative information on the web! One question. I plan on getting an Ed visa after arriving in Thailand. I am assuming upon arrival I will get a tourist visa at the airport in Thailand but am unsure what the rules are as far as a one way vs round trip ticket. Can I be denied in Seattle from boarding the flight to Thailand with a one way ticket?

Hi! Yeah, the airlines sometimes don’t understand how these things work. They’ll read that the country has a requirement for onward ticket and they’ll apply it in a very strict manner, even though Thai immigration itself doesn’t care.

I haven’t had it happen to me for Thailand, but just in case, what I suggest you do is have some sort of documentation showing that you’ll be traveling onward from Thailand. Say, train schedules to Laos, or a flight information showing onward travel. Basically, give them an indication that you’re gonna leave Thailand at some point. It’s silly, but sometimes these airline employees don’t have a clue and they enforce rules without understanding what they’re about…

Hi! I just wanted to add to the posts of thanks. This was super useful information. My husband and I went to the immigration office today around 1:30pm and were out around 3:45 – not so bad, compared to a lot of other folks. We were extending our visa-on-arrival for 30 days.

Some (hopefully) helpful notes: – Across from the UN Irish Pub there’s a photo shop that does visa pictures in about 10 minutes. 100 baht for 4 photos, which they trim for you (tho you only need 1). It’s two doors down from the 7-Eleven – About 5 doors down from 7-Eleven in the opposite direction, there’s a copy shop that does copies for 1 baht a page – At the info desk, we got one number each, and a form to which they stapled our photos – There’s a coffee shop there that sells drinks and pens (10baht) if you forget yours – Around 2pm, we met some folks who were told the queue was full for the day, so best bet is not to get there too late – Counter 1 that you have to go to is all the way on the left. I don’t know why this isn’t labeled – It was about 20 minutes after we handed in our papers that we were called – Weirdly, they were calling people by first name, middle name and country. Since my middle name sounds nothing like my last name, it took a few tries before I realized they were calling me. I thought it was weird when other people ignored their names being called. Then I realized why. – After calling your name, they take a quick photo and then send you back to your seat, but the papers are done about a minute later

Hope that helps others! Thanks again for the great info!

Thanks for the kind words and the additional info, Melissa! That’s good to know.

That picture thing at Immigration is a new one… Wasn’t like that last time I went. Interesting!

thanks a lot for all these informations. The best website over the subject !

Thank you! Glad you found it useful!

Hello Daniel,

Kudos to you for writing this great blog. I found it really useful before I went for a visa extension.

I wanted to let you know about the slightly new process I experienced now in operation at Chiang Mai.

I got there about 7am and two queues had formed already in front of the office. This is the new system. I don’t think it matters which queue you get in though, as atabout 7am the immigration officers come out and work their way down the queue to look at your applications. They give you a numbered ticket of different colours depending what you are there for. I got a yellow ticket for a visa extension.

Tip: I would definitely recommend going early. If you get there later you need to go to the information counter (the middle counter in the waiting room) to have your application checked and get a queue number. People who arrived later had to queue for a while to get this number.

You are then directed inside the office to wait until 8:30am.

Tip: they announced that you should write your tel number or email on your application form, and to sign the photocopies of your passport and departure card.

Tip: it doesn’t make any difference WHERE you sit in the waiting room. Initially I thought it did, but it didn’t.

At this time they start calling people. Visa extensions were handled at counter 1. They announce the numbers over the tannoy in Thai and English. When your number comes up, approach the desk with your application. They will review it, ask for payment and then tell you to sit down and await for your name to be called.

My name was called about an hour later to take my photo via a webcam at the counter. I was then told to sit down again. About 15 mins later my name was called and I got my passport. All in all about 3.5 hours.

Good luck everyone! Andrew

Great. Thanks for the update! I think the length of queues depends entirely on the time of year and the proximity to a holiday… We’re in high season now, so yes, getting there early is a good idea.

Hi Daniel We have a different kind of problem, we left Laos earlier than expected. We received a 30 day waver as we are UK citizens but have flights booked back to the UK on the 15th of April 2015 therefore need an extra 45 days (15 days over the visa extension). We are aware that a ‘visa run’ can be done over to Malaysia which we are prepared to do but is there an easier way i.e. by approaching the Thai immigration department? We have been travelling around SE Asia – Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos and do not want to fly to any of the Capitals in those countries which is what has been suggested by various people. If we do go with the border run into Malaysia can we exit Thailand and re enter on the same day or do we need to stay for a specific period of time? Kind regards Julie

Bad news first: no, there’s no way to stay an extra 45 days beyond your 30-day visa exemption. The only thing you can get is 30 days on top. Overstaying your visa will cost you 500B/day.

This being said, good news, you definitely CAN fly to Malaysia, or cross overland, and you CAN return on the same day. Since 1) this is only your second consecutive exemption, and 2) you have a plane ticket showing your return to the UK, you should have no trouble at all. This is especially true for air travel, maybe a little bit less so for overland crossing.

But yes, tons of people do it… It’s really the best solution.

Hello and thank you so much for your great information 🙂 me and my friends are leaving Thailand 4/3from Bangkok. Our visa exempion expires 23/2 so we are going to extend it. I read on an other website that you hade to bring the original returnticket so they can see that we were planning on leaving earlier but changed Our mind. But we only have The ticket for 4/3. Do you think that will be a problem? 🙂

I’ve extended Thai visas a few times, and they never asked for something like this. I wouldn’t worry about it… They’re not looking for a justification to extend beyond “I decided to stay longer.”

I looked over most of the comments but couldn’t find this info. I’m a family of 5 and was wondering if my entire family needs to go to the immigration office or just myself? Greatly appreciate all your help!

Adventure is out there,

I’m pretty sure adults need to show up in person. I’m really not sure about children, though. You might want to drop by the Immigration office and ask.

Hi Daniel, I am currently in the process of applying for a double entry 60 day tourist visa for Thailand.

I am sure you have been asked a few times now, but how soon after entering Thailand can you apply for the 30 day extension? I plan on doing some remote volunteering a couple of days after arriving and am not sure when id be back in Chiang Mai.

Also on the visa extension form where it asks reason/reasons for extension, what have you found to be the simplest and most generic response to this? Have you ever heard of anyone being denied their extension?

Sorry for all the questions.

You can ask for a visa extension 45 days in advance of your visa expiry, up to the very last day of your current visa. Not sure how that fits with your plans.

For the reason, I always put down something simple like “Decided to stay longer in Thailand.” I don’t think it really matters… I personally have never heard of anyone being turned down for an extension.

Thank you Daniel, I will have to fit my plans around the extension 🙂 provided i receive thumbs up with a tourist visa! This site has been a huge help, your a gem! Thanks.

Thanks for your information. I thought I was lucky in the beginning, because I got there early and they just gave me a final queue number. But unfortunately, they only gave me 7 days instead of 30 days, telling me I should have got a tourist visa in China, not just a stamp on arrival which allows me to stay for only 15 days. With these 7days, my visa will expire on 21st Feb, but my flight is on 5th, May. I wonder whether I can do a visa run, because I have already got my visa extended for 7 days. Thanks. BTW, if there’s any Chinese, don’t fly to Myanmar with the hope to get a Thai visa from the Thai embassy there. I tried and failed. They won’t give you unless you have a FRC. And if you don’t stay in Myanmar for 90 days, the Burmese Immigration office won’t let you apply for FRC. It’s been like this since last year. I feel it ridiculous. It seems it’s only open for business people. Well, For other nationals, you can get a two-month Thai visa there, $40 without any ridiculous things.

Wow, that sucks! I don’t see why they wouldn’t give you 30 days, as it’s really routine… But that’s the thing with Thai Immigration, I guess. Impossible to predict what they’ll do with 100% certainty.

Your best bet, especially considering you’ve only gotten a 7-day extension this time, is to go to a neighboring country and get a proper tourist visa. The best places to do this are Malaysia and Vientiane. Depends where you are in Thailand right now.

With a single-entry tourist visa, you’ll be set until around end of April, and you can extend it then. Pain in the ass, I know…

Hi! Thanks for this it was so useful! Just wanted to let you know that you also need a copy of the passport page with your pic on now! In addition to the stuff you mentioned.

This is what I meant by the first page. Maybe it’s not that obvious… I’ll amend my post. 🙂

Thanks Daniel, your post is amazing. I came to Thailand end of December on a 30 days visa exemption and have been able to extend it to end of February very easy by following your guide.

After two months in Thailand without a visa (only an exemption of 30 days, extended once for 30 more days, 60 in total), I am very tempted to stay one more month before coming back home. Do you know what are the options (ideally without having to leave the country)? I don’t think we can extend the visa exemption to 90 days, so I am wondering if I can get a tourist visa or any other visa suitable my situation from Chiang Mai immigration office.

If ever it is mandatory to go to Vientiane to get a proper visa, do you know how long is the process? Is it 100% sure (basically, can I leave my luggages in Chiang Mai and good there for a couple of days).

Thanks a lot for your help, it is much appreciated!!!

Unfortunately, there’s no way to extend your stay in Thailand without leaving the country. Immigration only gives one extension only. Overstaying your visa by a month would land you in trouble, and cost you a hefty fine of 15,000 Bahts.

That leaves you with two options:

– Cross the border either by air or by land. If you’re from a G7 country (US, UK, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, Italy), this’ll give you 30 days extra either way. If you’re not, you’ll get 15 days by land and 30 by air. Although this is a second consecutive visa exemption, you’re highly unlikely to get in trouble over it.

– Go to a consulate abroad and get a proper tourist visa. That’s the solution Immigration will prefer. It’s usually pretty routine, but with Thailand you never know 100%… I’d advise taking your luggage with you, or at least everything you’re not willing to lose in a bind. This process usually takes about three days, and can be done from Vientiane, but also from Kuala Lumpur, and basically any consulate abroad. (I flew cheap out of Chiang Mai to Hong Kong once to visit friends, and had my visa made there.)

Here’s a guide I wrote about getting your visa in Vientiane. Obviously you can ignore the stuff about Khon Kaen, but it’ll give you a good idea as for how the process goes. Make sure you check the holiday calendar, by the way:

https://www.thewayofslowtravel.com/2013/10/06/khon-kaen-vientiane-visa-run

My recommandation would be to simply go somewhere interesting outside of Thailand for a weekend, and get the visa exemption on the way back.

Excellent, you gave us all the information you need to make the appropriate decision.

Thanks a lot for taking the time to give us such detailed answer!

I was expecting this to be a pain to get done but went really smoothly. Thanks for taking the time to share!

If you extend tourist visa, do you need to provide proof of departure?

Not normally, no. It’s probably a good idea to be ready to provide your intended date and means of departure, though. Just say you’ll take a bus to Laos or Cambodia a few days before your intended departure. 🙂

This post is sooooo extremely helpful! I’m loterally sitting here at the immigration office and waiting for my passport to be stanped and returned! By far the best explanation on how to extend your Visa in Chiang Mai I could find on the Internet!

Thank you so much! Tess

Glad to hear it, Tess! You’re most welcome! 🙂

Hello Daniel!

I was hoping you might be able to clarify a Thailand visa question for me. Last month I extended my Thailand visa for 30 days, so I’m now rolling up on 60 days in the country. Do you know if it is possible to do a second extension, which therefore would give me a total of 90 days in Thailand? Thanks in advance!

No, unfortunately that’s not possible. Your best bet is to exit Thailand and re-enter to get a second visa exemption. Thailand doesn’t do more than one extension for a given visa entry or visa exemption entry.

Hi again Daniel.

Thanks a lot for the response! After a stop at the Chiang Rai Immigration Office today, I found out what your confirming, a 2nd visa extension is not possible. No worries though, Myanmar is less than an hour away! Thanks again.

P.S. – Totally dig your “Ten Principles of Slow Travel”! I’m a big fan of super slow travel as well, hence the visa extension question!

Haha, yeah… Visa limits, the bane of Slow travel!! I’m considering going to Europe right now, and the three-months-out-of-six limit is driving me nuts… “Three months? How can I visit a single city in that little time?” 😀

This was VERY helpful!!!!

We studied your instructions and got our extension today!

We arrived at immigration at 8:30am and were given a yellow queue number (so we skipped the blue one, I guess). Our name was called. We signed all the copies and paid. Got called again to take the picture. Got called one last time to get our change and receipt. An hour and half in total.

Thanks to you helping us prepare, the process was as smooth as these sort of things can be.

Much appreciated!

Really glad to hear it, Taiss! Enjoy Thailand! 🙂

what a fantastic article! awesome mate! Cheers

I came in thailand with two entries visa but i didn’t not know it was two entries because it was my first traveling to thailand i took the enter before date like my visa expired date.when i entered they openned two months at the airport and later i went to immigration to open the last one month for me.after i realised it was two entries visa,i meant 6 months visa how would i do to get my last 3 months before the expired date?

Hi! I’m not 100% sure I understand your question, but from what I understand…

Your “enter before” is the last day you can activate your second entry. If you leave Thailand and re-enter Thailand BEFORE that last day (say, the day before), then you will get two months extra. And, as detailed in this post, you can then extend that two months by one more month.

Does that answer your question?

There’s any way i can rectify my mistake by getting 2 months i jumped up?

Ah, no, I’m sure there isn’t… Sorry. The visa rules are quite clear and inflexible, I’m afraid.

Nice explanations ! Very useful, it’s a nice advice to come fully prepared, i didnt have to queue for photo or photocopy. I just came back from immigration office, it took about 45min from start to finish, and everything went well as you said, thx !

Great! Glad to hear it! 🙂

Hey there, thanks for all the great info. Really helpful.

Can I just ask, I am going to the immigration office in a few days to get my visa exemption extended by another 30 days, do I need to bring a TM.7 as well? or another similar document?

Many thanks!

As I explained in this blog post, yes, you do need to submit a TM.7 form. They’ll have it there for you if you just want to fill it out once there, or you can print it off before and just bring it with you.

The documentation requirements are the same whether you’re extending a tourist visa or visa exemption.

Thanks Daniel! Your post has helped alot!

Hello Daniel What a lot of people you help! I was in Thailand 1 year ago and overstayed my visa by a day. I didn’t realise until it was noticed at the airport, but the man was very sweet and didn’t charge me or even seem to mind at all. I flew back to Thailand from India on the 27th of April, getting a 30day visa at the airport. My boyfriend is flying over from New Zealand on the 28th of May and will get a 30 day visa at the airport. I am visiting Laos for a week and a half and then flying back from Vientiene to Bangkok on the 28th to meet him at the airport. Unfortunately I just realised last night that the tickets back to New Zealand that he has booked are after 31 days not 30. First of all I know he won’t be allowed to even board in Wellington without sorting out another plane or train ticket or something. Do you think for myself that I will be allowed to board in Vientiene using the over by one day ticket to New Zealand as proof of onward travel? And from there I’m not sure what we should do. My boyfriend could always book a bus or train ticket from Thailand to Laos or Cambodia and use that as his proof of onward travel, and then overstay by a day and maybe maybe not be charged 500baht at the airport. Or he could actually Use the ticket and renter Thailand getting another 15days. But as for me, I don’t know how many times I can just go back and forth. If I am already in Thailand and leaving for a week and coming back in, can I go back out and come back in AGAIN? Bearing in mind that I was also here exactly a year ago. Also I know it probably seems silly but I’ve been traveling for more than a year now and am down to the last of my money, so to pay 1900baht just to extend a visa for a day seems too expensive to me. I know there’s no way you can predict what happens at airports, but I’d appreciate some advice! First of all for whether you think I’d be allowed to board in vientiene. Second, what you think might happen at Bangkok airport if I tried to fly out having Already overstayed by a day previously. Third, do you think I’ll be allowed to leave and renter Thailand one more time so as not to overstay by a day…or finally should I just pay 1900 baht. Sorry! I tried to explain that as succinctly as possible but it’s all a bit of a muddle in my head let alone trying to type it out. Thank you, Misma

I initially wrote this blog post from my own notes as I tried to figure out the Thai visa system, and I wanted others to benefit from it… Didn’t expect it to help so many people, though. Very happy about that!

As for your situation…

As you say, it’s impossible to predict totally how immigration agents will react, but I’m pretty sure both you and your boyfriend are in the clear on this.

For yourself, although Thailand frowns on serial visa exemptions, you’re clearly not piling them on and staying in Thailand. You flew in, and will fly in again after spending more than a week in another country. I expect they’ll have no problem at all letting you in.

If they point out the 30-day limit, just tell them you’ll extend it in two weeks. Simple as that. Although mind you, I highly doubt they’ll ask you for your proof of onward travel in the first place. I’ve flown to Thailand countless times and neither the airline nor immigration asked for proof of onward travel, simply because people cross over the Thai border to neighboring countries all the time.

Which is the same for your boyfriend. My advice would be to have an itinerary prepared in his head for how he’ll depart Thailand. That could be as simple as taking the train down to Malaysia. Just have a story ready to show how you’ll depart Thailand. If you want, you can print out bus or train schedules to back that claim. Again, Immigration has never ever asked me for proof of onward travel. I know airlines demand it, but they’ve never asked me about flights to Thailand either, simply because it’s so easy to leave the country by other means than flying out.

Finally, for the one-day overstay… While it’s never advised to overstay a visa, one day is really not that big of a deal. You already saw how it went the first time… I say you guys should just show up at the airport and pay the 500-baht fee. The ideal would be to take a side-trip and get an overland visa on arrival, but it’s not the end of the world if you leave one day late.

There, I hope that puts your mind at ease! As always, this is based on personal experience so who knows if a certain Thai immigration officer won’t wake up grumpy that day… But I’m pretty confident you guys will be OK.

Thank you thank you thank you x

If I have been told two separate times in Bangkok immigration office my elgibilty for retirement VISA will be a snap when 50 years old, would it be necessary for a VISA run if having a “VISA on arrival” that will begin third week of May, or you feel some form of extension would be available until second week of September, which will be my 50th birthday, so no VISA run is necessary? I know a bus across the border from Chiang Mai is inexpensive, but I am trying to finish some writing and would rather find a base much sooner than later. Packing and moving is beginning to wear me down in a huge way. You seem very up on recent changes there as for immigration, so I thank you now for input and advice.

No, you won’t be able to stay in Thailand with a visa exemption (visa on arrival) up until September. Visa exemptions give you 30 days when you fly in or if you’re from a G7 country crossing the border, and can be extended by a further 30 days. So if you arrive the third week of May, and you extend your visa exemption within 30 days, then you’d be able to stay in-country until mid-July.

Not only that, but you’re likely to need some time to get your retirement visa in order, so I don’t think you’ll have it in hand for the second week of September. It’s certainly better not to plan on this… You might have a second visa run to anticipate in September if things don’t go as swimmingly as you thought. This is Thailand, time can be a bit fluid sometimes…

I know the bus sounds daunting, but you can do it in a day and leave most of your stuff back in Chiang Mai. It’ll waste a day, which sucks, and it’s a lot of busing just for a silly stamp… But it’s the way things go in Thailand, I’m afraid.

Hi I am going to go from a 60day tourist visa single entry to a non-imm o visa, I did this before, and all seemed ok at CM. I have heard conflicting reports that the only place I can do this is BKK. do you know if it can currently be processed in Chiang Mai Thank You

I’m sorry, but I don’t know about O visas. You might want to ask on the forums at ThaiVisa.com… They’re up-to-date and pretty responsive.

Presently I have a 60 day Thai Visa, and would like to expend it another 30 days. At this point I’m admitted until the 21st of May. I believe I need to go to the border to request the extra 30 days. Is that right? I have misplaced my Departure Card from Thailand. Will that be a problem at the border when I request the additional 30 days? Thank you in advance for your reply. Galen

Nope… Read this very blog post. You can get a 30-day visa extension at any Immigration office.

As for your departure card, you can also get it replaced at Immigration.

Hey there! I was just wondering. . .My visa runs out in 10 days. If I extend at immigration tomorrow will the new visa start from tomorrow or the end of my current visa?

The extension is added to the end of your current visa duration… So it’ll be 15 days beyond your current 10 days. You’re good. 🙂

Excellent post! Thank you.

I was wondering how many days prior to my visa expiration date can I already ask for an extension ?

You can ask for an extension at any point in the 30 days before it expires. So one month in advance at the earliest.

Thank you so much for this post. Super clear and to the point. My husband and I just finished the process a few hours ago and wanted to mention one thing that you may want to update. As of July 20, the office where they’re processing visa extensions has been moved to the Promenada (about a 10k drive from the Immigration office). There is a free shuttle running between the two locations until August 20. The new office is at the ground level if Building A which is connected to the parking garage. The process remains mostly the same, however when you arrive, go straight to the desk to get a colored queue number corresponding to your request type. The entire process took about 2 hours today.

Good to know: there is a copy store right next to the new office as well as a place to get passport photos, and a small coffee shop. 🙂

Thank you! Very useful advice. I will update my post!

Hi, i have the following situation, i have plane tickets for Thailand 22 august-14 September and i might not get the tourist visa on time or be able to change my tickets. If i get a round trip from BKK to Cambodia for 10 days and then come back to Thailand to get my flight do you think it might work? Even if I have to pay the visa twice?

You don’t have to worry… When you fly into Thailand, you get a 30-day visa exemption, so this’ll cover your entire trip.

Hi Daniel, I’m half way through my third tourist visa of 30 days, (I’ve been here for 75 days and have done two border runs to Malaysia). I want to stay longer because i am trying to obtain a work permit so I can get a non-immigrant visa. Do you know of any way I can stay longer without a work permit or anything else? Thanks

By “tourist visa,” since you mention border runs, I suppose you mean visa exemptions at the border?

The way for you to stay longer in Thailand is to get an actual double-entry tourist visa. These will last a total of six months with two extensions and one border run to activate the second part. You can get them from Thai consulates in neighboring countries.

I’ve written a post about getting a tourist visa from Vientiane, Laos. Just ignore the stuff about getting there from Khon Kaen… The rest should be informative. I especially recommend this as at one point Immigration might give you trouble for successive border runs.

can I get a visa exempt on arrival with a oneway ticket if I plan to go to a close country by land? can I get a visa exempt on arrival if I have a flight to myanmar/laos/vietnam/cambodia 59 day after my arrival?

Thank you for answer

Generally, yes. Thailand requires proof of onward travel to fly in, but in my experience Immigration has never asked for it, since it’s so easy to leave the country overland. Note, however, that airline companies will sometimes enforce this policy and not allow you to check in if you don’t have proof of onward travel.

In other words: it’s very unlikely, but it is possible.

In your case, if you have an onward ticket to a neighboring country within 59 days, you should be perfectly fine. If there’s an issue with the length of your visa exemption, just explain you’ll get it extended for a total of 60 days, thus covering your intended stay.

I wouldn’t worry too much about it… 99% chance it will be a non-issue. But I always prefer to have some sort of printed bus schedule to show I know how to get out of the country should it ever come up. I’ve been to Thailand many times and it never has.

Hi… Great informative article…this may be a re-hash so my apologies in advance, but here goes anyway.

My wife and I are arriving in Thailand (from Canada) in late Nov-2015 on a one way ticket. We plan to buy a ticket to from Bangkok to Sydney AU once we get there. That flight will leave sometime late March 2016. (We have to be in Sydney in early April and have an itinerary that shows that). From Nov to March we are going to be touring. Our current plan is to travel from Bangkok to Chiang Mai and the area, then into Laos for a couple weeks, Vietnam (for at least a month), then into Cambodia for a few weeks before returning to Thailand for probably 3 or 4 weeks before leaving for Sydney…I’m tired already! I should mention that the current plan does not involve any other flights. We are planning to do this all via land transportation, although that too may change. We are not bound to any schedule and just plan to go where the mood takes us. The only accommodations we will have booked is our first week in Bangkok.

I have started getting concerned with all the visas we are going to need. Do you think we will have any issues, or is there anything we need to plan for other than wait times? Do we just take our 30 day Thai visa, get out before its done and then reapply to get back into Thailand from (where ever we cross) in Cambodia?

Thanks for your opinion!

From a visa standpoint you won’t have any problem. You’ll get a 30-day visa exemption when landing in Bangkok, which you can extend for an additional 30 days if you need to. When you return from Cambodia overland, as Canadians, you’ll get a new 30-day exemption, which could be extended too. Since you will have been in bordering countries for that time, there will be no problem with Thai Immigration.

The only potential problem would be if you had successive back-to-back visa exemptions, because that could indicate you’re actually staying in Thailand on tourist visa exemptions. If you’re getting them in the course of traveling around the region, there’s absolutely no problem!

Hi Daniel… wow…. fast response! Thank you. We went to the Thai embassy here in and they have a 60 day, double entry visa for $80 CAD (Sept. 2015). This visa gives us the option to arrive and stay up to 60 days. We can then leave and come back in a second time for an additional 60 days. This visa is good for 6 months. While not free, it does save us the hassle(?) of worrying about how many days we have left. This being our first excursion of extended travel, I think we are going to take the path of least resistance.

Thanks again! This is a great site with lots of useful information and advice (even if we don’t follow it *grin*)

A proper tourist visa is always a good option if you have the foresight to get it, yes. 🙂 You’ll need to make that second entry into Thailand before the expiry date on your visa, by the way. But as long as you activate the second part before the date, you’re good for the full length of the visa (60 days, extensible to 90.)

Enjoy Thailand!!

Thank you so much for this site!

We currently have a 60-day single entry tourist visa. When we tried to apply for a multiple entry visa in Bali, we couldn’t because we didn’t have a second ticket into and out Thailand.

Here’s our situation: We will be traveling to Japan 5 days after our current visa expires. And we would like to return to Thailand.

Is there a way to convert our single entry visa to a multiple entry at Thai Immigration before it expires?

If so, I assume we would still need to file for an extension to cover us before we leave for Japan?

If we can’t covert to multiple entry in country, do we need to have two plane tickets out of Thailand when we apply for a new visa in Japan?

Thanks so much for your help!

Refusals of visa issuance vary from consulate to consulate… Other consulates besides Bali usually don’t have a problem issuing a multiple-entry tourist visa.

If your current visa is set to expire 5 days before you leave, you’ll need to apply for an extension as described in this post. This will give you 30 extra days, so plenty enough.

There’s no way you can “convert” your single-entry visa into a multiple-entry, unfortunately. What you can do instead is either get a new tourist visa in Japan, or just get a visa exemption when you land in Thailand (30 days, extensible to 60).

Normally the Thai consulate in Japan won’t ask you for proof of onward travel… But it does happen randomly. What you can do is have a “story” ready of how you plan to leave Thailand. For instance, are you planning on going back home after Thailand, or perhaps travel to Cambodia or Laos? That should usually do the trick.

Depending on how long you plan on spending in Thailand when you come back from Japan, you should be fine with just the visa exemption on arrival. This would last you 30 days which you can extend to a total of 60 days by doing a visa extension as outlined in this post.

Thanks for these clear instructions. Just one point about the photo. I went today with all forms filled out as suggested. The passport photo exactly fitted the size of the blank space provided on the form. However, this was too small and was not accepted. I had to produce another photo from the shop next door at a cost of 200 baht. Sounds a bit like a scam to boost photo sales!

Also note that the return songtaew to Thapae Gate was 200 baht, not 20 baht mentioned. Thanks.

I’ll clarify the picture size issue. I believe a “passport-sized photo” would be slightly oversized for the document, but you might have gotten a smaller version for ID cards. I remember having to cut my passport photo make it fit the form.

As for the songthaew, woah… Sounds like that driver knows there are stray tourists there and took you guys for a ride. :/

Just a quick heads up: For Westerners the immigration building is at the actual Promenada mall. There is another building, which our redtruck took us to, that is across the street. That station is for Loas and Cambodian citizens only as I understand it now. Luckily a very nice lady came up to us after not too long and pointed us in the right direction.

Also, the redtrucks waiting at the promenade when we finished were really taking advantage of the situation. Even after haggling they were still asking taxi prices. We went out to the street and even then it was more than normal. Other than that the experience was even smoother than at the old building, very straight forward and easy.

Thanks for the update! I’ll amend my post with your information. A pity about the songthaew drivers taking advantage of the stranded foreigners…

Hi, I have used visa exemption(UK PP) a few times this year, never overstay and usually not return for at least a month, my next trip 15Nov will be after two months home UK but I want the 30 days and have tickets already, do you know if I will have trouble to get another exemption? (since 03May a total of 69 days in Thailand, total over six months 15May to 15Nov will be 53, does the 90 days over six months apply?). Thanks

Normally you should be all good! Immigration really frowns upon successive, back-to-back visa exemptions, which is not what you’re doing. Leaving and entering Thailand like you’re doing is perfectly fine.

Also, regarding the 90 days every six months, this rule has been dropped and is no longer being applied. It’s been dropped in 2008, if memory serves.

http://www.thaiembassy.com/thailand/new-visa-rules.php

What about proof of an onward ticket? Not required?

Onward ticket is not required as a general rule for applying for a visa extension. If you ever get asked, you can always explain you will leave overland to a neighboring country.

Me and my boyfriend (we are from Belgium) arrived in thailand by bangkok airport on the 22 of october so we had a visa good until the 20 of novembre but we decided to go to cambodia by bus for 5 days only and then come back to Thailand but we didn’t known that the visa we get after was only for 2 weeks !! So now the visa is only good until the 14 november and our flight is on the 19 november ! Do we have to pay an extension ? Or the first visa until the 20 of november is still good ?

Thank you !

I’m afraid you’ll have to pay for an extension. Your original visa exemption until November 20th was canceled when you crossed into Cambodia.

Another option is to take another bus trip outside Thailand after the 6th of November!

Great info, thanks! Just a quick correction, the visa extension photo size is not 3.5cm x 4cm as you state, it’s actually 4cm x 6cm.

There is a photo booth at the Promenada right next to the Immigration office but they charge 200 baht, double what they do outside.

Thanks for the info, Gene! I double-checked and you’re absolutely right. I’ll amend my post and add the photo booth info as well. Cheers!

Hi! I have a question, my passport is kept by the motorbike company that I rent my bike from, and when I checked it my visa expired today. I went by the immigration office, but it was closed for the Kings birthday which is a holiday here, it will be closed Monday too. Do you think I might still be able to extend my visa on Tuesday? That’ll make it 3 days over expired? Thank you so much!

Hello! I’m on a two month tourist visa and the company I rent my motorbike from keeps my passport as a deposit. Today when I went to check my visa date, it expired today. I went to the immigration office but it is closed due to it being the Kings birthday, it will also be closed on Monday.

Do you think they will still let me extend my visa for 30 days if I am three days expired? ;(

Thank you so much, Cindee

First, you should never leave your passport with anyone for an extended period of time. That motorbike rental company is wrong to do this. I’m not sure it’s illegal, but you should definitely not agree to this. It means that if they want to cause you trouble they can withhold your passport.

It seems you have your passport in hand right now, though, which is good! I suggest you change rental companies ASAP. A passport is NOT a valid deposit.

As for the visa… You can go Tuesday and extend it 30 days, no problem. You’ll be expected to pay a fine of 1000B for the two days you’ve got over the date, but they won’t make a fuss about it since it’s a short time.

Best of luck!

Just arrived back from immigration office this morning, Monday 21st December 2015

I arrived at 6:15 and found 4 queues with people waiting on seats. Reentry had no-one 90 Days had 20 people Retirement and Medical had about 20 people Tourist Extension had 6

At 8:30 an immigration guy walked the lines telling everyone to have their documents signed and ready, if not, don’t bother waiting. His was very strict about photograph sizes. Mine was a standard UK passport photo, but it was too small so had to jump into shop next door as someone held my spot in the queue, because by this time the Tourist Extension queue was now 40 people long. The tourists appear to like a lie-in!

The copy shop next door does photographs for 200 baht, but I would suggest you get them done beforehand because it takes forever to print an A4 size of photos and then cut them up.

I got back to the queue about 20 seconds before reaching the first desk, where I thought we would get a number, but this is where you need to hand everything to the officer, so be ready. They didn’t give out numbers for extensions, but other queues were given numbers.

You have to listen out for your name. It is best to listen for your first and middle name and country.

After that I waited for about 30 minutes, got called to the counter for another photo, then 5 minutes after that I was handed my passport with extension. Don’t forget to thank them!

I was out by 9:20. As I left there was about 20 people still in the queue for extensions and they were still passing the payment point, so not sure how they will all have to wait.

Be prepared before you arrive. Make sure your photos are the right size. You only need one copy of everything else as mentioned above in the post.

Thank you to all here with such good advice.

Thanks for the update, I’ll use it to tweak my post. Really glad the info was useful!

The 20 THB fee for a Red-Cab is a fairy tale: Meanwhile the drivers all know to ask for 100-200 THB one way. I bargained on 100, and only gave 70 THB upon arrival, blaming him for not going there directly (the ride was 30min from Nimmanhaemin) I consider that fair: They want to cheat you, so cheat them back! He didn’t really complain.

For a FREE SHUTTLE BUS check out the Promenada Website. http://promenadachiangmai.com/en/news-events I can recommend to use it for your trip back to the city. Be aware, that the shuttle leaves ON TIME, so be at the waiting point (Building A entrance near “Wine Connection”) 5-10 min prior to scheduled departure. Tickets for the shuttle will be issued at the information desk inside, but it seems not an issue, if you hop into the cab without that. Just be aware to choose the right one for your destination (Route 1 or 2).

Thanks for the updated info. I’ve paid 20 THB a few times to go to and from the old Immigration office, but I think that’s heavily dependent on where you take the songthaew, as well as your Thai skills.

Hi Daniel, I’m currently on a 3 month tour of South East Asia. I landed in Bangkok for 5 days and obtained a visa on arrival from Thai immigration (I have a British passport). I then moved on to Cambodia etc. I plan on re-entering Thailand around the 20th January and have a flight out of Bangkok back to the UK on the 25th February. I plan on staying in Thailand the whole time. Can I get a 60/90 day visa at the airport when I arrive on 20th January or should I try and get one before? Also, I’m looking at flying into Myanmar, connection via Bangkok on the 3rd January. Will this affect my future visa or will I not need to worry as I’m only in Bangkok for the flight? I’ve emailed the Thai embassy in the Uk, but have had no reply. Many thanks in advance. James.

The only visa you can get upon arrival in the airport is a 30-day visa exemption, sometimes called a “visa on arrival.” If you plan on staying longer than 30 days at a stretch in Thailand, you have three options:

1) Visit a Thai consulate in Cambodia and apply for a 60-day, single-entry tourist visa;

2) Get the 30-day visa exemption, then get it extended at any time for an extra 30 days, as outlined in this blog post;

3) Plan on leaving and re-entering Thailand overland while you’re there to “refresh” your visa exemption. (As a British citizen you’ll get a 30-day exemption overland too.)

As for your flight through Bangkok, no need to worry. You won’t get a visa exemption if you just transit through the airport. Besides, even if you did, it would still not be a problem.

Thank you so much. I still haven’t heard back from the embassy! People like you and other bloggers do such a great service, the embassy should give you guys a commission! All the best for the new year and keep up the good work!!!

Thanks for your kind words! The Thai visas are such a headache… It took me a while to figure them out, so I had to share my hard-earned wisdom!

Hello Daniel. You have probably posted this already, so apologies if so. Please could you advise me of the best and cheapest place to go to from Bangkok to apply for a 60 day Thai visa? Also, how much time should I give myself for the process. My visa runs out Feb 2 and I want to start a yoga teacher training course on Feb 7. Many thanks and kind regards Kerry

From Bangkok, you have many options to fly out and get a new tourist visa in a neighboring country. There’s also a possibility to get a bus, but some flights from Bangkok can be incredibly cheap! Check out Air Asia for deals, for instance.

I think the most popular destination to do runs for new visas is Vientiane, Laos. You can get to Laos via an overnight train from Bangkok. You should probably allow 4 days to be on the safe side… You’re unlikely to get to the consulate early enough on Day 1, and you then need to apply on the morning of Day 2 and pick up your visa early afternoon of Day 3. It’s usually tight to get your visa and then get a transport, so my advice is to plan four days and leave on Day 4.

Here’s a blog post detailing how to apply for a visa in Vientiane. Note that they only issue single-entry tourist visas nowadays:

Best of luck!!

Hey Daniel, thnx for the helpful post! My 60 day tourist visa runs out next tuesday and I will need 30 day more.

When I came to Thailand I had address in Bangkok area, but now I’m located in Samut Prakan providence in Bangkok that has it own immigration office. Which immigration office I should go for the extension: main office in Bangkok or the Samut Prakan corresponding, or does it matter?

It really doesn’t matter which Immigration office you go to. Just go to the one that’s most convenient for you. 🙂

hi there, Wondering if you can help on a triple entry visa (from September last year which takes me through to March this year) as I’ve seen a lot on the double entry in your blog but wondered if it was the same? I arrived in September with my 60days and got my 30 day extension, I then activated my second entry by crossing the border at Myanmar and got an additional 30days, but can i now get an extension on this or do I need to do another border run for 30days and use my final entry? Any help much appreciated.

I’m guessing you mean you got a second 60 days when you re-entered, correct? Not 30 days?

To answer your question, yes, you can apply for an additional 30 days on each entry of your visa, not just on the first one. So for your second entry, you can get a visa extension for 30 days again.

My advice to you if you’re looking to maximize your time in Thailand is to get the visa extension, then leave Thailand and re-enter the day before your triple-entry visa expires. This way you’ll activate your third entry and you’ll be good for three more months if you extend it by 30 days again.

Thanks for this – really helpful. On my second entry (of my triple), I was only given 30 days as I did the walk over the border to Myanmar and granted only 30days, but am looking to get this extended – and am hoping I can extend by another 30days this week (so a total of 60) and then I still have my final third entry to use, which from what you say, works in the same way e.g. Leave Thailand and get 30days and I can still get an extension on the final triple entry? Is that right? So although it’s a six month visa based on the first entry (60+30days) and second entry (30+30) the third entry will grant me a further 30 + 30 extension?? Not that I can use the whole 30 days as my triple entry will expire just before then?

Does that make sense?

Thanks Daniel! 🙂

It’s strange that they only gave you 30 days. That must have been a mistake by Immigration, as usually triple-entry tourist visas have 60-day entries. But regardless, yes, you can get your current 30-day visa extended by an extra 30 days, that’s correct.

As long as you re-enter Thailand before the expiry date on your visa page, you can get another visa (normally 60 days, but be sure to show your visa page so Immigration knows you have one) that will take you beyond that expiry date. It only matters that you enter Thailand before the date on the visa to get an extra 60 days, extensible to 90.

Hope that’s clear. 🙂

You were absolutely right. I went in to get my extension today and told them that I thought the last entry was wrong and they agreed and changed it to 60 days! And can still apply for my 30 day extension next month. 🙂 So now i’m going to stay until just before my third entry expires and then pop over the border again to get my final 60 + 30. Huge thanks for your help!! Really appreciate!

Ah, so nice of them to change it for you!! Really glad I could help! 🙂

I am really quite confused on Visas having never had to get one before. I hope you can help with this query.

Me and my girlfriend(from UK) intend to head to Thailand 7/11/16 (How long in advance should I apply for a Visa?). We were planning on getting the multi entry visa, does this mean I get the option to enter Thailand as many times as I want within the six month period but also have to leave no later than the final day of those six months? I keep seeing abouth the 60 days you get(I understand this just means the duration of a single stay cannot exceed 60 days) Does that mean if I entered Thailand 1 day before my visa runs out I still have 60 days in Thailand?

We are planning on doing the ‘banana loop’ and then heading further south through Malaysia, Indonesia etc and then eventually heading back to Thailand with the likelyhood of flying out from Bangkok not too long after arriving. As I expect this final entry to Thailand will be after the 6 months multi-entry has expired do I need to apply for another Visa from another country prior to arrival or would I just be given the 30 day visa-exemption on this final leg of the trip?

Or is there a much simpler method you would suggesting for what we intend to do?

I hope that all makes sense and appreciate and help you can provide.

Kind Regards

You should apply for the visa about a month in advance to make sure there’s no issue. I’m not sure how long in advance you need to apply for the new multiple-entry tourist visa, so it might be worth asking your consulate.

And yes, you understand the way it works perfectly. You’re allowed to enter and exit Thailand as many times as you like during the six-month validity period, as long as you exit before 60 days (or 90 days if you apply for an extension, as detailed in this post). Note, however, that the visa is valid for six months from the day it is ISSUED, not the day of first entry into Thailand.

If you re-enter Thailand one day before the end of the validity period, you’ll still get a 60-day stamp, which you can extend to 90 days. But you shouldn’t worry too much about it either: if you enter after your visa has expired, you’ll get a 30-day visa exemption at the border, which you can extend to 60 days. I really wouldn’t worry about entering Thailand for one last time after the expiry of the multiple-entry visa! You’ll get 30 days without any hassle this way.

Hope that clears things up!

Hi Daniel, Me and the girlfriend are leaving Bangkok on the 5th feb at 5am and flying back to the uk. However our visa runs out on the 4th Feb. Do we need to extend? Can we just do it at the airport as we need to be there for 2am? Cheers Alex

I would say that technically, if you pass Immigration at 00:05 the next day you’d still be overstaying your visa by one day… However, this is certainly a case where you should give it a shot! I’d just show up at the airport and see how Immigration decides to handle it. Worst case scenario they’ll ask you to pay a one-day fine of 500B, so be ready for that. It’s by no means a major offense!

Your alternative solutions would be to either get it extended beforehand for 1900B (which is more expensive than the potential fine) or arrive real early at the airport and go through Immigration before midnight. As soon as you’re stamped out of Thailand and in the international zone you’re good! But I wouldn’t worry about it and just chance the 500B fine.

Cheers mate. We braved it and got through without paying anything haha. Home bound

Excellent! I suspected as much! 🙂

Hello, great info… but I have a question… we have a tourist visa for 60 days that we would like to extend for another 30 days. Normally, you do the extension 1 or 2 days before the end of the visa but for personal reasons, we will have to do at least 12-15 days before the end of the 60 days validity. Do you think this is acceptable? We thing of doing it either in Bangkok or Chiang Mai… which one would you suggest? Thanks for your help. Regards, Roxane

Hi! You can do a visa extension 30 days prior to the expiry of your visa, so you’re perfectly fine doing it 2 weeks ahead. 🙂 As for whether Bangkok or Chiang Mai is better… I have no idea, sorry. I only ever did my extension in Chiang Mai, but I don’t think there’s a clear advantage for one over the other.

Thank you for your post, incredibly helpful! Would appreciate your advice on the following:

I arrived in Bangkok from the UK on the 1st March and would like to volunteer for 7 days at an Elephant Reserve in Chiang Mai. Unfortunately I did not pre-book and the first available slot is the 28th March. As I understand it my visa exemption will run out mid way through this period?

As I see it I have two options:

1. Book my place on the volunteer program then apply for a visa extension (and hope it’s successful). 2. Travel out of Thailand to say Cambodia or Vietnam etc. and then re-enter Thailand shortly before the 28th March and receive a new 30 day visa exemption. (Best to do this by plane?)

Is this correct and if so which would you recommend?

Yep, your read of the situation is exactly right. Your visa exemption will expire on March 30th or 31st, but you can extend this by 14 days at any point in March.

There’s not really any reason to visit a neighboring country unless you want to. If you do want to visit a neighboring country before March 27th, you don’t have to worry about doing so by air or anything… If you spend a few days in the neighboring country, Thai Immigration will definitely have no problem letting you back in with a fresh new 30-day exemption. It’s the people doing multiple same-day border hops who are facing issues.

There’s no point in doing so by air, either. As a UK citizen (which I presume you are) you get a 30-day exemption overland, too.

Enjoy Chiang Mai!

Brilliant, at least I have options then.

Thanks very much for the detailed reply Daniel (and kudos for still replying to comments on a 2 year old post!)

Hehe! You’re most welcome! 🙂

I entered Thailand in the middle of January with a single entry 60 day visa. I will soon have to extend it more 30 days. Can I just go to the Immigration office and just get an extension there or do I need to leave the country in order to get another 30 days?

Thanks, Hannah

No need to leave the country. You’re allowed one extension without leaving the country per time you’re in Thailand, so you just have to visit the Immigration Office sometime in the 30 days before your visa expires, and you’ll get an extra 30 days.

If you were to leave Thailand and re-enter, you’d be getting a new 30-day visa exemption, which you can then extend by 30 days using the method outlined in this post.

Hope that clears it up!

I arrived with my wife and baby on 14th March and got a 15 day visa exemption. I was under the impression that 15 visa exemption can be extended to 30 days by the immigration at the airport. Unfortunately i had planned my thailand stay for 18 days but the immigration made me buy another ticket returning on 28th to grant me my visa on arrival. Now i want to return on 31st but that is 18 days of stay. What should i do…get extension or pay the fine at the airport. The immigration officer told me herself that if i stay 3 days more i can just pay fine. I calculate that if i take extension it would cost me 1900×3=5700bhat, if i pay the fine then t would be 500×3 for 3 people which is 4500 bhat. Should i not take chance and get an extension or pay the fine and just fly out of thailand. Im worried that u wrote in some cases visa can be denied for no reason, so why waste time trying to get one. Also i read somewhere that there should be valid reason for extension like sickness etc. But i wonder if overstaying will cause my passport to get flagged or blacklisted for next time. Your thoughts??

Hmm, it’s a tough one. Usually extensions are pretty routine, so I wouldn’t worry too much. The “reason” can be as simple as you changed your departure ticket… They’re not very strict about it.

As for just paying the fine, three days is still short so it might be a good option, but I recommend arriving at the airport early to avoid getting delayed.

Another option is to visit a neighboring country, and get another 15-day visa on arrival. If you have your onward ticket for the 31st then there should be absolutely no trouble.

I’m sorry, I’m familiar with how Thai Immigration operates with Western nationals, but I know they can be more difficult to deal with for South Asians (which I presume you are from your name.) Best of luck to you!

Hi Daniel, I flew into Chiang Mai at the beginning of March, and as a US citizen received the airport visa exemption stamp. I have heard visa border runs have changed a lot recently and am trying to find out the latest accurate info. I want to extend my visa exemption. Is it still allowed for US passport holders to cross and reenter at Maesai to receive a fresh 30 day visa exemption? Or is it now 15 days? Is the same-day reentry an issue? If not Maesai, which border crossing locations would allow this? My understanding is, if the overland same-day exit/reentry option is not available, I must exit to a nearby country to apply for a proper tourist visa, and expect to get just single entry. I’d appreciate any updated info. you have on this. Thank you for your time!

No, Mae Sai is NOT an option anymore, sorry. They only allow multiple-entry visa holders to leave and re-enter there.

If you want to extend your exemption, why not apply for a 30-day extension as described in this post? It’s simpler and cheaper than a border run.

As for same-day exit-entry border runs, I’m not fully up to speed on the topic, but I understand that a lot of border crossings now disallow exit-entry border runs:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/topic/855508-reports-thai-cambo-border-check-points-closed-to-visa-runners-with-immediate-effect/

I think your best bet if you want to take this course would be to visit a visa agency and ask them. Sorry I can’t be of more help here.

If you do a border run overland, you will get a 30-month visa exemption as an American citizen. Visiting a neighboring country and spending a few days there is a perfectly legit, safe option; it’s the same-day exit/entry that is being frowned upon.

As for visas, yes, you are correct: if you go and apply for a visa abroad, the only one you can get is a single-entry tourist visa. The visa system has been overhauled in recent months.

Hope this helps!

This is wonderful clarification. Thank you so much, Daniel!

Glad I could help! 🙂

I have a 60 day tours it visa. It expires on a Sunday and I don’t think I’ll be able to extend it before. What happens if I go to get a 30 day extension 1 day after my visa expires??

You’ll simply have to pay a fee of 500 THB on top of the visa renewal fee. One-day late renewals aren’t a big deal, so I wouldn’t worry about it. Note, however, that you can get it extended any time in the 30 days prior to the expiry, so you have plenty of time.

Hi Daniel, I hold an Indian passport and have a 15 day tourist visa (on arrival), is it possible to have it extended for 30 or more days? preferably at Chiang Mai Immigration?

Hi! Yes, you can, as per the instructions in this post. You can get it extended by 30 days at any point during your allotted 15 days.

First thanks for helping me and other travelers with this post.

I only have the 30 day stamp that you receive when you arrive at Thailand by air. Is this stamp extendable? (I have not fully understood if this stamp is same as visa on arrival or whatever.)

Thanks and regards.

Yes, your stamp is definitely extensible by thirty days. The stamp you got is what’s called a “visa exemption,” sometimes misnamed “visa on arrival.”

Just a big thank you for providing the most concise and helpful explanation of extending a stay in Thailand that I have found on the net. you da man!

My pleasure! Really glad I could help!

Hi Daniel…great infos here!!! Thank you!

I will be travelling to Thailand with a tourist visa on Dec. 5th, which I plan to extend for 30 days already. That will make 90 days until the end of February. I’ll be up north in Chiang Rai/ Chiang Mai then… So far so good.

Now I’m additionally (!) planning on taking a month long training in March/ April 2017 on the island Koh Phangan. Do you have any experience in applying for another/ second Tourist Visa with the same passport in this short length of time??? I could for example leave to Malaysia Mid February to do so and then re/enter Thailand in March!? would very much prefer that to a simple “visa-on-arrival”, since the training is already 30 days (I guess I could extend, but then again I don’t really have free days to do so in that month). What do you think!?

Second thought is, that I do have dual citizenship (german/ USA). The Thai tourist visa, which I already have is in the german passport. So maybe it would also be an option to apply for a second Tourist Visa in Malaysia in Feb (or Bali where I am now) with the second passport?! Or do you think they go by name and would find out anyway, that I have been in T. already three months before?!

Appreciate your expertise :)!!!

You don’t need to worry about getting a second tourist visa from Malaysia. This shouldn’t be a problem at all. Consulates limit the number of consecutive tourist visas you can get, but that’s usually three or four. A second one, especially one from a different consulate, should be fine.

I don’t know how Thailand deals with people getting visas on different passports… I don’t think it’s worth the risk.

Wow, thank you VERY much…that’s comforting to know. That I could even get more consecutive visas :)))! Well for now, one is enough! And then I can do it all with one passport. I feel better doing so, too!!! You are awesome, great work! Thank you!

You’re welcome. Enjoy Thailand! 🙂

Our situation is that we would like to stay in Thailand for up to 6 months next year, so if I apply the above does that mean we can get a 60 visa, and then extend it a number of times to cover the full 6 months? We will be in Chiang Mai, Koh Samui and possibly Phuket during that time.

Thanks, Maureen

Hi Maureen,

If you want to stay six months in Thailand, your best option is to apply for a six-month, multiple-entry visa from your home country. This will allow you to stay in Thailand for 60 days, extend your visa by 30 days following the method I outlined here, then exit Thailand and re-enter to activate another 60+30-day period.

Otherwise, you can just fly in to Thailand and get a 30-day exemption, but that will require you make two visa runs during your time here:

1. Stay 30 days, extend by 30 days; 2. Exit, re-enter, get 30+30 days more; 3. Exit, re-enter, get 30+30 days.

Note that Thai Immigration frowns upon these serial border runs. A safer bet would be:

1. Stay 30 days, extend by 30 days; 2. Exit, go apply to for a single-entry tourist visa in a neighboring country, then get 60 days + 30 days by extending; 3. Exit and re-enter one last time.

This last solution will most likely cause no issue with Immigration.

As to your question: no, you can’t do multiple extensions. You can only do one per visa or visa exemption, which means you have to exit and re-enter Thailand once your visa extension expires.

Hi! I have a question that I can’t seem to find the answer to. My husband and I were unable to make it to the visa office before it expired. So our tourist visas have expired by a day now and it’s the weekend. What happenes if we go to attempt to renew them? Will we be denied or just fined? We leave in 9 days and don’t have the option of doing a border run. Any advice is greatly helpful.

For short overstays such as a few days, you will be fined 500 Baht per day you overextended. Since you could have made it on Friday, they will most likely charge you for the weekend as well. It’s not ideal, but it’s no big deal. Just make sure to go there Monday and expect to pay the fine!

Great post! Since this post is from 2014, can you advise if this process still stays the same as of June 2017? I am hoping to be in Chiang Mai in September, and then extend my visa… also, how much does it cost approximately to get passport photos done in CM?

I haven’t been in Chiang Mai for quite some time so I can’t personally vouch for the continuing accuracy of the post, unfortunately. I encourage you to continue your research to corroborate it.

As for the photos, I really don’t remember how much it was, but they were pretty cheap. If you’re debating whether to have them taken in your home country or in Thailand, I suggest getting it done in Thailand as the visa photo format is very specific (both in terms of size and what’s appropriate or not), and a Thai employee will be in a better position to ensure you have exactly the right thing.

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Resource Center » Digital Nomads

Thailand Digital Nomad Visa: Eligibility, Taxes, & More

For remote workers seeking warm weather, beautiful nature, and a low cost of living, the Thailand digital nomad visa may sound like a dream come true. While Thailand has long been a US expat hotspot, previous long-term visa options had higher fees and stricter income requirements. With the new digital nomad visa, moving to the Land of Smiles is easier than ever.

But who exactly qualifies for Thailand’s digital nomad visa? What does expat life in Thailand look like? How does it affect US expats’ taxes? We’ll go over all of that and more below.

• Snapshot of expat life in Thailand
• Population: 71.7 million
• Capital city: Bangkok
• Currency: Thai Baht (THB)
• Official language(s): Thai
• Approximate number of American expats: 100,000
• Background of the Thailand digital nomad visa

Thailand has been home to a large US expat community for years, particularly in cities like Bangkok, Chiang Mai, and Phuket. This is due in large part to the 2003 launch of the Thailand Privilege Card (formerly called the Thailand Elite Visa), an investor visa. Today, the costs of the Thailand Privilege Card range from 900,000 THB (~$25,000) to 5 million THB (~$136,110).

Thailand saw a large influx of American workers in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic when remote work became the norm, but many pandemic restrictions had been lifted. Most of them came in on tourist visas, with stays limited to 30 days or 60 days.

Taking note of these visitors, Thailand launched a long-term residence visa in 2022 to attract high-income remote workers, retirees, and highly skilled professionals. Still, the requirements were fairly strict, requiring at least $80,000 of income per year to qualify unless applicants met additional savings, investment, or educational requirements.

With the June 2024 announcement of the Destination Thailand Visa — the digital nomad visa — Thailand will soon offer a more accessible, affordable visa alternative for a much broader audience.

See also: How to Become a Digital Nomad (Updated for 2024)

• Why you should consider the Thailand digital nomad visa

Some of the top benefits of applying for the digital nomad visa and living in Thailand include:

• Climate: Thailand has a tropical climate with warm weather year-round
• Natural beauty: From idyllic beaches to dense rainforests, cloud-covered mountains, steep waterfalls, impressive caves, and picturesque rice paddies, Thailand is full of breathtaking sites
• Affordability: The cost of living in Thailand is approximately 51.5% lower than that of the United States, allowing for great work-life balance
• Safety: The Global Peace Index 2024 ranks Thailand as the 75th-safest country (11 places up compared to 2023) in the world, 57 places above the US
• Culture: Whether you want to explore ancient temples, sample delicious curries and noodle dishes, take a Muay Thai class, or buy traditional crafts at a market, Thailand offers plenty of rich cultural activities
• Expat community: With tens of thousands of Americans calling Thailand home, US expats living there are in good company
• Ease of travel: Living in Thailand gives residents easy access to the rest of Southeast Asia, including Vietnam , Cambodia, Indonesia , Malaysia , Singapore , and the Philippines

Related: The Top 7 Countries For Digital Nomad Visas in 2024

• Understanding the Thailand digital nomad visa requirements

Eligibility & requirements

To qualify for Thailand’s digital nomad visa, you must:

• Be at least 20 years old
• Work for a company located outside of Thailand
• Have at least 500,000 THB (~$13,599) in savings

Application process & documentation

While detailed application information for Thailand’s digital nomad visa is still pending, most digital nomad application processes involve: 

• Passport 
• 2 passport-size photos
• Completed visa application forms
• Proof of employment (e.g. offer letter, contract)
• Proof of savings (e.g. bank statements)
• Criminal background check
• Application fee of 10,000 THB (~$272) 
• Submitting your application at your nearest royal Thai embassy or consulate (appointment may be necessary)
• Receiving approval and collecting your visa

Within 30 days of your arrival in Thailand, you may need to apply for a residence permit.

Duration & renewal options

Thailand’s initial digital nomad visa lasts for 180 days and allows for multiple entries (i.e. you don’t have to stay in Thailand the whole time). Upon expiration, you can request a visa extension for an additional 180 days by paying the 10,000 THB (~$272) visa fee.

You can stay for up to five years total on the Thai digital nomad visa.

See also: Best Countries to Teach English & Save Money as a US Expat

• Digital nomad lifestyle in Thailand

Cost of living in Thailand

As mentioned earlier, the cost of living in Thailand tends to be significantly lower than that of the US. While exact figures will depend on your location and lifestyle, many expats can live comfortably in Thailand for under $2,000 per month. 

Average monthly prices for common expenses in Thailand include:

• 1 BR: ~$453
• 3 BR: ~$1,006
• 1 BR: ~$234
• 3 BR: ~$619
• 3-course meal for 2 at mid-range restaurant: ~$24.48
• Utilities: ~$71.17
• Gym membership: $45.13
• Public transportation pass: $32.65

Read more: Your Complete Guide to Budgeting as a Digital Nomad

Best places in Thailand for digital nomads

While there are many great places to live in Thailand, a few of the top digital nomad hotspots include:

Nestled among the mountains of northern Thailand, Chiang Mai is a serene yet lively city that has become home to one of the country’s largest digital nomad communities. 

Chiang Mai offers the best of both the old world and the new, with ancient ruins, temples, and street markets existing alongside trendy co-working spaces and chic bars. When you need to recharge, head just outside of town for excellent hikes, wildlife sanctuaries, and national parks.

A few of the most popular areas in Chiang Mai for expats include Nimmanhaemin, the Old City, and Riverside.

City lovers will feel right at home in Bangkok, home to a metro population of over 11 million people. 

Thailand’s capital has a little bit of everything, from world-class museums to rooftop bars, luxury malls, and sprawling parks. Creatives will appreciate the thriving arts scene, while foodies will enjoy the Michelin-starred restaurants and endless street food vendors.

Some of the top expat neighborhoods in Bangkok include Ekkamai, Sathorn, and Phrom Phong.

If you’re seeking island living, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better option than Koh Samui. With endless white-sand beaches, turquoise waters, and palm trees, Koh Samui has a distinctly paradisiacal feel to it. 

If you’re feeling up for an outdoor adventure, try scuba diving, ziplining, parasailing, or even swimming alongside the island’s famous pigs. For a more leisurely option, head to one of Koh Samui’s many resorts, beach clubs, or spas.

A few of the most popular expat areas on Koh Samui include Lamai, Chaweng, and Bophut. 

See also: The South Korea Digital Nomad Visa: A Guide for US Expats

Healthcare system & insurance requirements

Thailand has not explicitly stated that digital nomad visa applicants need private health insurance, although they may do so as more details on the visa become available. Even if you don’t need to purchase private health insurance, it may be a good idea.

Typically, digital nomads can choose from a few different kinds of plans:

• Travel medical insurance (e.g. SafetyWing ): Costs around $40 to $80 per month, depending on your age and health. Often covers accidents and illnesses only. 
• International health insurance (e.g. Cigna, GeoBlue, IMG): Costs around $500 to $8,000 per year depending on age, coverage, and health.
• Local health insurance (e.g. AXA Insurance Thailand, The Viriyah, ThaiLife): Costs around $1,532 to $7,462 per year depending on age, coverage, and health. Typically only offers coverage within Thailand.

If you do end up needing to use the Thai healthcare system, you should be in good hands. Thailand tends to have high-quality facilities, well-trained staff, and modern treatment options. This is particularly true in big cities and areas frequented by expats and tourists.

5 things to put on your Thailand bucket list

In Thailand, you’ll have a nearly endless list of things to do and places to go — but a few that should take top priority include:

• The Grand Palace: An up-close look at how Thai royalty lived. Don’t leave without checking out the Temple of the Emerald Buddha, the most sacred temple in all of Thailand.
• The Damnoen Saduak Floating Market in Bangkok: Buy snacks and souvenirs from boats floating along a 19-mile canal.
• Khao Yai National Park: For unbeatable hikes, waterfall views, and wildlife spotting. Some of the many wild animals you can find there include elephants, gibbons, crocodiles, and jackals.
• A trip to the Phi Phi islands: For unspoiled beaches, sunset cruises, spelunking, and even shark-watching tours.
• The Yaowarat night market in Bangkok: For the best street food in the country. Some of the most popular dishes include noodle soup, grilled seafood, and sweet stuffed buns.
• Tax implications for digital nomads in Thailand

Thailand taxes for US expats

Whether or not you owe taxes in Thailand depends primarily on how much time you spend there.

The Thai government considers anyone who stays in Thailand for more than 180 days out of the year to be a tax resident. Tax residents are subject to Thai taxes on worldwide income, while non-tax residents are subject to Thai taxes only on Thai-sourced income.

Tax rates in Thailand vary from 0% to 35%, depending on overall taxable income. Some income—like employment benefits, certain types of retirement/social security/long-term equity funds, and certain types of gift income—is exempt from taxation.

Anyone who pays Thai income taxes must complete a Thai tax return, most commonly Form PND 91 (regular employment income only) or Form PND 90 (employment plus other income).

Other common types of taxes in Thailand include:

• Value-added taxes (VAT): Thailand’s VAT — the tax placed on the sale of most goods and services — is 10%, with certain items (e.g. staple foods, real estate, education/healthcare expenses) exempt 
• Capital gains taxes: 10% to 15%, depending on asset type. Some types of capital gains — such as those derived from the sale of Thai stock and certain securities — are exempt

US taxes for expats

Unfortunately, just because you don’t live in the US anymore doesn’t mean that you aren’t subject to US taxes. The US’s citizenship-based taxation system requires all Americans who meet the minimum income reporting requirements — even those living abroad — to file a federal tax return, and possibly pay US taxes. 

It’s not all bad news, though. American expats can claim almost all of the same tax breaks that they would if they were in the US, as well as a few additional ones:

• The Foreign Tax Credit (FTC) : The FTC gives US expats dollar-for-dollar credits on any foreign income taxes they’ve paid, which can be applied to their US tax bill.
• The Foreign Earned Income Exclusion (FEIE) : The FEIE lets Americans abroad who pass either the Physical Presence Test or Bona Fide Residence Test exclude a certain portion of their foreign-earned income from taxation. For tax year 2023 (the taxes you file in 2024) you can exclude up to $120,000; for tax year 2024, it increases to $126,500.
• Foreign Housing Exclusion/Deduction (FHE/FHD) : Anyone who qualifies for the FEIE also qualifies for the FHE (or FHD, if you’re self-employed). This provision helps US expats offset certain foreign housing expenses like rent, utilities, renter’s insurance, and more.

However, living abroad may add to or change your reporting obligations. A couple of reports US expats must commonly file include the:

• Foreign Bank Account Report (FBAR) : Mandatory for anyone with over $10,000 across foreign financial accounts.
• Note: Americans living stateside must sometimes file this report as well, but the thresholds are significantly lower ($50,000 instead of $200,000 and $750,000 instead of $300,000).

Read more: Digital Nomad Taxes: A Complete Guide for US Nomads

Set your US expat taxes to easy mode

Don’t let complex taxes hold you back from your dream of living abroad. At Bright!Tax, we’ve helped thousands of clients in hundreds of countries around the world navigate US expat taxes. Partner with us, and we’ll assign you a CPA who’s uniquely qualified to help you file your taxes easily, accurately, and optimally.

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• Thailand Long-Term Resident (LTR) Visa
• Cost of Living Comparison Between United States and Thailand
• Global Peace Index 2024
• A Guide to the New Destination Thailand Visa (DTV)
• Cost of Living in Thailand – Example Table of Expenses in 2024
• Cost of Living in Thailand
• How Much Medical Travel Insurance Do I Need?
• International Health Insurance Plans
• Thailand Health Insurance For Long-Term Visitors

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Thailand Digital Nomad Visa FAQs

Is it legal to be a digital nomad in Thailand?

Working in Thailand as a digital nomad is perfectly legal as long as you have the right visa. Technically, the standard 60-day tourist visa doesn’t allow for a work permit. While some digital nomads visiting Thailand on a tourist visa work while there regardless, they risk fines if caught.

The safest, most legal way to be a digital nomad in Thailand is to apply for a visa like the Destination Thailand Visa, Long-Term Residence Visa, or Thailand Privilege Card.

When will the Thai digital nomad visa be available?

While Thailand has announced the digital nomad visa, they have not yet officially launched it. The visa will likely go live very soon: in late June or early July 2024.

Is 30 too old to be a digital nomad in Thailand?

No! Thailand is home to digital nomads of all ages. As long as you go into the country with an open mind and a sense of adventure, you should have no problem fitting in.

More Essential Reading

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Digital Nomads

China Expands Visa-Waiver Program List: More Countries Added

Peden Doma Bhutia , Skift

June 17th, 2024 at 6:06 AM EDT

For years, China has been the gift that kept on giving to global tourism, sending millions of its citizens to explore, shop and snap selfies worldwide. Now, it's telling global travelers, "Your turn!" And if visa hassles are a deal-breaker, the country knows that removing them can only sweeten the deal.

Peden Doma Bhutia

China is opening its doors even wider to the world. Australia is now the latest country to join China’s expanding visa waiver program.

Chinese Premier Li Qiang made the announcement on Monday during an official visit to Australia, marking a significant step in strengthening ties between the two nations.

“We agreed to provide each other with reciprocal access to five-year multiple entry visas for tourism, business, and visiting family members to better facilitate personal exchanges. China will also include Australia in its visa waiver program,” stated Premier Qiang.

Australia’s national airline Qantas announced last month it was leaving Mainland China just six months after returning to the market. Speaking to Skift, the carrier’s International CEO said “Getting out of China at that point was the right call from our perspective.”

China has yet to detail the specifics of the new visa waiver arrangement, but the announcement closely follows a similar decision concerning New Zealand passport holders.

Just last Thursday, Premier Qiang declared visa-free entry for New Zealand citizens. “China is ready to discuss with New Zealand to introduce more measures to facilitate two-way travel,” Qiang mentioned, highlighting China’s move to ease travel restrictions.

In the past year, China has incrementally broadened its visa-free access to various countries.

China’s Visa-Free Travel Initiatives

In November, China introduced a one-year trial for visa-free travel for citizens of France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and Malaysia. In March, China expanded this program to include Ireland, Switzerland, Hungary, Austria, Belgium, and Luxembourg.

China initially announced the visa-free policy for a trial period until November 30 this year, but has now extended it until December 31, 2025.

With the recent additions of Australia and New Zealand, the number of nations enjoying visa-free entry to China now totals 14. Passport holders from these countries can stay in China for up to 15 days for tourism, business, family visits, or transit purposes.

China also signed a 30-day mutual visa exemption agreement with Singapore and a similar arrangement with Thailand, effective March 1, allowing visa-free visits of up to 30 days per entry. It has also eased visa requirements for U.S. citizens visiting the country on tourist visas, removing the need to provide proof of round-trip air tickets, hotel reservations, itineraries, or invitation letters.

The Chinese government has also relaxed entry regulations for tourists arriving via cruise ships. As of May 15, such visitors can stay in China visa-free for up to 15 days.

China’s Inbound Recovery Lags Behind

The initiatives are part of a broader strategy to rejuvenate China’s tourism sector, which has been struggling to regain its pre-pandemic momentum.

China’s inbound recovery has been gradual. In 2023, China welcomed 35.5 million foreign visitors, which is only about 36% of the 97.7 million recorded in 2019.

However, Chinese online travel agency Trip.com Group notes promising signs of resurgence. During the Lunar New Year in February, the group reported a tenfold increase in inbound travel bookings compared to the previous year, with significant interest from Japan, the U.S., South Korea, Malaysia, Australia, the U.K., Canada, Vietnam, Germany and Thailand.

Moreover, Trip.com Group noted that international travelers are extending their stays in China. The average duration during the Spring Festival increased to just over two days, compared to under two days the previous year. The booking window for travel to China had also expanded from six days in 2023 to 39 days in 2024.

More Inbound Boosters

To further enhance the travel experience for international tourists, China has strengthened partnerships with major payment organizations like Ant Group and Mastercard. The International Consumer Friendly Zones program in Shanghai, has been launched in collaboration with 12 overseas payment partners of Alipay+ and other major international card organizations.

It aims to make transactions smoother for global travelers.

Statistics from the first quarter of this year show a threefold increase in foreign travelers to China compared to the same period in 2023. During this time, China issued 466,000 visas and documents to foreigners, marking a 119% year-on-year increase, and nearly 1.99 million foreigners entered China visa-free, a 266% year-on-year rise.

Highlighting the economic potential of inbound tourism, Jane Sun, CEO of Trip.com Group, stated, “China’s inbound tourism has huge potential, and if it is raised to the international median of 1.5% of GDP, it could yield a growth of over RMB 1.3 trillion ($179 billion).”

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Tags: alipay , asia monthly , australia , booking windows , china , china travel , Mastercard , new zealand , trip.com group , visa waiver , visas

Photo credit: China’s inbound recovery has been gradual. XiXinXing / Getty Images