Thailand at a Glance

Visa and Registration in Thailand

Sort out your visa for Thailand and move to places like Koh Phi Phi Ley!

Do you plan on moving to Thailand as an expatriate? Be aware – it takes more than a holiday mood, with dreams of white beaches and turquoise seas, to move to Thailand. InterNations informs about the various aspects of moving to Thailand, from safety advice over popular destinations to visa types.

Visa Requirements

Before you come to Thailand, please make sure to contact the nearest Thai Embassy or Consulate to enquire which visa regulations apply in your case. If you are simply a private traveler, a tourist visa should suffice.

Tourist Visa

There are over 40 countries whose residents do not need to apply for a tourist visa. However, if you do not fall under the Visa Exemption Category, you always need to acquire a visa before coming to Thailand.

A tourist visa is valid for up to 60 days, and depending on the type of tourist visa you have chosen, it’s possible to go back and forth across the border for up to three times. Every time you do this, your visa will be renewed for another two months, so you may end up staying in Thailand for up to 180 days altogether.

Applying for a Tourist Visa

In order to obtain a tourism visa, you need a valid passport, a completed application form, two recent passport photographs, a round-trip ticket, and proof of sufficient financial funds. In some cases, you may need to bring additional documents. Medical tourists, for instance, have to enclose a letter from the hospital in Thailand where they are going to receive treatment.

Please do keep in mind that a tourist visa is valid for tourist purposes only. If you go to Thailand for different reasons, the so-called non-immigrant visa will apply to you.

Non-Immigrant Visa

Non-immigrant visas for Thailand cover different categories including:

F (official duties)
B (business and work)
ED (education)
EX (experts and specialists)
IB/IM (investors)
M (media, film producers and journalists)
O (family visitors, NGO volunteers, retirees etc.)
R (religious purposes)
RS (researchers and scientists)

You are required to provide the following documents: a valid passport, a completed application form, two recent passport photographs, a recent bank statement, and others, according to your specific category and situation.

Business Visa

Foreigners coming to Thailand on a B-visa to do business with a Thai company normally need the following:

a letter from your company, stating the purpose of your business trip
a letter of invite from a Thai company or business association
the corporate paperwork of said Thai company (business registration, business license, shareholder list, company profile, details of business activity, and more)

Work Visa

However, a B-visa national who will be taking up gainful employment in Thailand needs a slightly different array of paperwork:

a letter of approval from the Ministry of Labor (obtained by the Thai employer from the Office of Foreign Workers Administration)
a letter of invitation from a Thai company allowed to employ foreigners
employment contract
CV, educational records, and references from previous employers
the corporate paperwork of their employer in Thailand (business registration, business license, shareholder list, company profile, details of business activity, and more)

There are different regulations for each visa category. For further details, please contact the embassy or consulate.

Most non-immigrant visas are valid for 90 days, but you can (and often will) apply for an extension at the Office of Immigration Bureau in Bangkok or one of its local branches. In most cases, the visa is then valid for up to one year, but can be renewed. To apply for an extension or renewal of your visa, please get in touch with:

Immigration Division

Government Center B

Chaengwattana Soi 7

Laksi

Bangkok 10210

+66 (0)-2141-9889

Alien Registration

Do not forget to fill out your arrival and departure card on the plane before queuing at the airport immigration desk. It should be kept in your passport all the time, as your hotel staff or landlord might want to see it. They are obligated to notify the local police within 24 hours if you move out and your address in Thailand changes.

At hotels, pensions, and hostels, this notification happens automatically. However, when you rent an apartment, make sure to ask your landlord to take care of it. Moreover, if you are planning to stay longer than 90 days, you will have to undergo a separate process of alien registration with the Office of Immigration Bureau within a week and re-register every three months.