60-days on arrival waiver

[reader]

From The Nation

 

Signing on a waiver extension that allows citizens of 93 nations to enter Thailand without a visa or obtain a visa on arrival and stay for up to 60 days will be conducted on Monday, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin said on Sunday.

He said he expects immigration and security agencies’ measures to screen foreign arrivals will go smoothly in the long term. “Actually, we implemented measures last year as preparation of visa waivers for travellers from China, India and Kazakhstan,” he said. 

In a move to boost tourism and bring tourist dollars into the country, the Cabinet agreed on May 28 to waive visa measures for a total of 93 nations.

The 57 nations or regions that were already enjoying a visa waiver and can now get a 60-day stamp on arrival are: Canada, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, the Republic of Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kuwait, Latvia, Lichtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malaysia, Maldives, Mauritius, Monaco, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Oman, the Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Qatar, San Marino, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, South Africa, South Korea, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, the United States, Peru, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Saudi Arabia, Andorra, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Bahrain, Brazil and Brunei.

The 13 nations whose citizens were already getting a 30-day stamp upon arrival and will now be getting a 60-day stamp: India, Kazakhstan, Malta, Mexico, Papua New Guinea, Romania, Uzbekistan, Taiwan, Bhutan, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Fiji and Georgia.

The six new nations or regions whose citizens now enjoy a visa waiver and a 60-day stay are: China, Laos, Macau, Mongolia, Russia and Cambodia.

The 17 new nations that are now eligible for visas on arrival and will get a 60-day stamp are: Guatemala, Jamaica, Jordan, Kosovo, Morocco, Panama, Sri Lanka, Trinidad and Tobago, Tonga, Uruguay, Albania, Colombia, Croatia, Cuba, Dominica, the Dominican Republic and Ecuador.

 

 

[10tazione]

Does this mean less border runs for Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese workers? It will save them some money and time.

[siriusBE]

Very cool... because I will stay longer than 30 days next visit

[reader]

2 hours ago, 10tazione said:

Does this mean less border runs for Lao, Cambodian and Vietnamese workers? It will save them some money and time.

I believe it’s still TBD

[Patanawet]

1 hour ago, reader said:

I believe it’s still TBD

Check daily on TNT  (Tim Newton) on YouTube.
His daily Thailand news reports contain comments from people currently arriving.

 

 

[TMax]

And as reported on a Facebook group Thailand Visa Advice - And Everything Else it can be extended for an extra 30 days, that was one question a lot in that group was asking in the build up to this decision

[reader]

Just learned that one of the transport services that takes clients to Cambodia and back on border runs is telling subscribers on its Facebook page that it will be 60-day stamps, effective July 15th. It certainly comes as great news for many of the guys we know if it turns out to be official.
 

 

[macaroni21]

43 minutes ago, reader said:

Just learned that one of the transport services that takes clients to Cambodia and back on border runs is telling subscribers on its Facebook page that it will be 60-day stamps, effective July 15th. It certainly comes as great news for many of the guys we know if it turns out to be official.
 

 

What a disaster for the transport company 😂 The new policy has halved the number of trips the boys now need to make for their visa runs.

[reader]

Companies may compensate by upping the current 2,000 baht fee. Somehow I’m not inclined to take their word for it until I hear it confirmed that arrivals by air, land or sea are actually receiving 60-day stamps. When the news first broke about the change a while back, arrivals were disappointed to find that they were still getting 30 days only. Bureaucracy tends to move slowly when implementing new rules.

[vinapu]

With 60 days stamps more people may find it worthwhile to go to Thailand looking for employment opportunities. Less hassle may  be tempting.

on unrelated note - I know quite a few well travelled people who are going only to countries where there's no requirement for visa, missing great destinations like Cambodia or India in process 

[floridarob]

1 hour ago, vinapu said:

With 60 days stamps more people may find it worthwhile to go to Thailand looking for employment opportunities

You'd make a great mamasan....just don't hang outside the shop doing your nails like @reader does.

[vinapu]

3 hours ago, floridarob said:

You'd make a great mamasan...

I missed that boat already

[hojacat]

12 hours ago, vinapu said:

on unrelated note - I know quite a few well travelled people who are going only to countries where there's no requirement for visa, missing great destinations like Cambodia or India in process 

Most probably people over 60s that don't have much domestication with online things. Don't think any seasonal traveler under 40s would make a decision just based on visa policy. I mean, Vietnam is still very popular with Americans, Aussie and Canadians even though they have to apply online for a visa.

Have to agree though that some visa websites are not easy to navigate, the photo requirements are ridiculous or they are just plain buggy. Was applying for an Uzbekistan visa around two months ago and got stuck at the photo validation step. Thankfully Reddit came to my help.

[Patanawet]

Today --- 16th July
Visitors from 93 countries and territories can now enter Thailand without a valid visa under a new policy effective from Monday this week.
Implementation came after the signing of the directives by Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul and Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin.

Also check Tim Newton TMT on Youtube to see if any of his correspondents have arrived this morning.

 

[Patanawet]

I missed the ALL IMPORTANT sentence-----
The list of countries and territories was published in the Royal Gazette on Monday night, with immediate effect.

 

[gerefan]

How long are they issuing these 60 day visas for, or is it going to be permanent? 

[vinapu]

7 hours ago, hojacat said:

Most probably people over 60s that don't have much domestication with online things. Don't think any seasonal traveler under 40s would make a decision just based on visa policy. I mean, Vietnam is still very popular with Americans, Aussie and Canadians even though they have to apply online for a visa.

 

Your world's view is very optimistic and  I like it but unfortunately reality is not that rosy.

First ,not all travellers are seasoned, there are many who dream about travelling but work, kids , ailing parents and so on stop them from doing it for good while.

Second, language issue. We English speaking people ( whatever degree of fluency we have) assume  that it's spoken everywhere which is not  a case. I was surprised how scarce it was when travelling in South America last year. And plenty of visa websites will be in English and English only. Not to mention difference between spoken and written language ( we have member who speaks but doesn't read Thai for example ).

Third , not every visa  is so easy to obtain as few clicks on the website. I strongly doubt , even affluent Uzbekistani wanting to see New York can apply for visa that easily. Most likely all what he can do on website is to book an appointment in consulate in Tashkent 5 weeks from now and when lucky day comes , travel overnight from his Bukhara for an embassy interview without guarantee his visa will be granted. Often we don't have any idea how rocky is the road to obtain our country visa simply because if never concerned us.

Fourth , some visas can be ridiculously expensive and even moneyed people may balk at 200 $ cost if they can go somewhere where visa is 30$ only. 

Of course for determined person those obstacles are not unsurmountable but we we people tend to take easy roads. 

Fifth, specially for people from Europe who can travel from country to country  without any hassle , barely noticing border was crossed,  allure of visa free travel  is overwhelming.

If one would be shopping for sugar and knew that one store requires to show id and another not , which one you think he went to ? 

so I stick to my theory that need for visa is serious obstacle when one considers his next vacation destination, idea borrowed from me recently by Thai government , hence recent relaxation of visa regime for 93 countries.

 

[Patanawet]

4 hours ago, gerefan said:

How long are they issuing these 60 day visas for, or is it going to be permanent? 

Look at Tim's vlog ------ he thinks it is unclear.

[reader]

The Thailand News Service is reporting that foreigners wishing to stay in the kingdom beyond the stipulated period must apply for an extension, which can be granted for up to an additional 30 days. 

[Patanawet]

3 hours ago, reader said:

The Thailand News Service is reporting that foreigners wishing to stay in the kingdom beyond the stipulated period must apply for an extension, which can be granted for up to an additional 30 days. 

 

How unlike Thailand to confuse things.   Talk about left hand and right hand.
I think it's so that ministers can say "Farang's fault -- they understand wrong"

[reader]

The “stipulated period” is 60 days. You can apply for additional 30:days for total of 90.

[kokopelli3]

I can confirm that a gentleman who resides in same condo as myself did arrive today, July 17,  and was given 60 days, visa exempt.

[vinapu]

8 hours ago, kokopelli3 said:

I can confirm that a gentleman 

aren't you overestimating him?

thank you for confirmation new rule work

[ChristianPFC]

On 7/16/2024 at 6:35 AM, hojacat said:

Don't think any seasonal traveler under 40s would make a decision just based on visa policy.

When I started traveling in SEAsia 2014-2016, I first went to countries where I could enter visa free (for Germans: Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Vietnam), and once I had seen them and no particular reason to return, I went to countries that require a visa (Lao, Cambodia, Myanmar). Now the offerings of Cambodia and Myanmar more than compensate for the effort and expense to get a visa, but starting from zero, visa free countries first for me.

[hojacat]

5 hours ago, ChristianPFC said:

Now the offerings of Cambodia and Myanmar more than compensate for the effort and expense to get a visa, but starting from zero, visa free countries first for me.

I agree, that's why i mentioned seasoned traveler compared to more sporadic ones. I still think that in light of Thailand extending the visa free period and the number of countries it offers it too and even Indonesia removing the need for a visa on arrival for many countries, the visa policy of Cambodia and Vietnam is pretty shortsighted.

I believe Cambodia still maintains the requirement for a visa because it doesn't want to give up the income that it generates. It can probably be solved by implementing an arrival/departure tax. Vietnam's policy is a bit more peculiar as they allow a good number of European countries to travel without visa but not citizens of the US, Canada, Australia, France which represent quite a big market. I assume is because these countries have large Vietnamese diasporas, including opponents of the ruling party, so the visa is there just to filter out any "agitator".