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Contents
- What changed on 15 September 2026, and who it affects
- Tourism only: can you work or work remotely?
- The entry limit: two land-border entries a year
- Extending by 30 days: THB 1,900 and the officer's call
- Before each trip
- What to do if you need more than 30 days
- If you hold a UK, US or Australian passport
- Entered on or before 14 September 2026
- What we could not confirm
Since 15 September 2026 the visa exemption gives 30 days instead of 60 to 60 countries and territories, and only for tourism. Four Ministry of Interior notifications set the rules, and the Royal Gazette published them on 31 August 2026. This guide covers what changed, who is affected, the entry limit, the extension and what to do in Phuket if you need longer. Rules are as of 6 October 2026.
What changed on 15 September 2026, and who it affects
The 60-day scheme, introduced on 15 July 2024 for 93 countries, has ended. Four rules replace it (Royal Thai Embassy London, 8 September 2026; Tourism Authority of Thailand, 1 September 2026):
- 60 countries and territories get 30 days, among them the US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the EU and EFTA states, Japan, India, Israel, the UAE, Ukraine, Georgia and Taiwan;
- Mauritius and Seychelles get 15 days;
- only Azerbaijan, Belarus and Serbia get a visa on arrival: THB 2,000, 15 days, no extension (Thaiger, 6 September 2026);
- 21 nationalities now need a visa, among them Albania, Colombia, Mexico, Sri Lanka and Uzbekistan (VisasNews, September 2026).
The Cabinet decided on 19 May 2026 (ABC News, 20 May 2026) and refined the details in July; sources give two dates for that July step, 14 July and 16 July 2026. Bilateral exemptions are legally separate and unchanged: Russia, China, Kazakhstan, Laos, Mongolia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Macao and several others keep their own terms.
Tourism only: can you work or work remotely?
The new notification allows visa-exempt entry for tourism only. The old scheme also covered short business trips and urgent work, and the new text does not repeat that. As a general rule, you cannot work on the exemption (Royal Thai Embassy London, 8 September 2026; Fragomen, 18 September 2026).
There is one caveat. Fragomen reports (18 September 2026) that the Department of Employment confirmed that visa-exempt entrants may still file a notification for urgent work of up to 15 days. Vialto says visa-on-arrival holders cannot use the route, so check each case separately.
Remote work is less clear: we found no official statement on how "tourism only" applies to working for foreign clients. The DTV is a separate visa built for long-term remote work. Overstaying costs THB 500 a day, capped at THB 20,000 (ThaiLawOnline, 5 October 2026).
The entry limit: two land-border entries a year
At land borders you may enter visa-exempt no more than twice per calendar year. Air arrivals have no numeric cap, but officers can refuse repeat visitors. Thaiger (6 September 2026), VisasNews, Siam Legal and Vialto describe the limit this way.
One discrepancy matters. The Royal Thai Embassy London announcement (8 September 2026) and the TAT article (1 September 2026) say "no more than twice per calendar year" without naming the border type, and TAT adds "generally". We follow the law-firm reading of the gazette text, which says land borders, but check the condition with immigration before you travel.
For context (Thaiger, 14 July 2026), immigration screens passport history, and entry was refused 29,490 times from January to May 2026. A spokesperson said one or two trips a year are no problem; the target is people who chain tourist entries to live or work in Thailand.
Extending by 30 days: THB 1,900 and the officer's call
You can extend once, by 30 days, at an immigration office, for THB 1,900. The officer decides (Siam Legal and Vialto, 2026). VisasNews notes that the extension comes from the Cabinet framework, not from the text of the gazette notifications, so the procedure may be clarified. Apply early.
Before each trip
Complete the Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) before every entry, including a visa-exempt one. It is free, you submit it no earlier than 72 hours before arrival, each entry needs a new card, and sites that charge for it are unofficial intermediaries (Thaiger; ThaiLawOnline, 6 October 2026). Guides for 2026 say an officer may ask for a passport valid for six months with a blank page, an onward ticket and proof of THB 20,000 in funds per person (Thaiger, 19 August 2026).
What to do if you need more than 30 days
| Your situation | What fits | What to note |
|---|---|---|
| A tourist who needs a few more weeks | One 30-day extension, THB 1,900 | The officer decides; apply before your stay ends |
| Remote work for foreign clients, or soft-power activities (Muay Thai, cooking, medical treatment), age 20 or over | DTV: 5 years, up to 180 days per entry | Apply where you are a national or permanent resident, police certificate, THB 500,000, THB 10,000 fee; no work for Thai companies, no tax relief, 180 days or more makes you a tax resident |
| A retiree aged 50 or over | Retirement Non-O or LTR for pensioners | Non-O: THB 800,000 in a Thai bank or THB 65,000 monthly income, no work |
| A family | DTV: spouse and unmarried children under 20 apply as dependants; Non-O through marriage to a Thai | Each pays the full DTV fee; Non-O on marriage: THB 400,000 or THB 40,000 monthly |
| A winterer with no work or activity | The extension, then a choice by age and budget: retirement visa from 50, LTR or Thailand Privilege | A DTV does not fit without work or an activity; LTR and Privilege have their own thresholds |
Table sources: ThaiLawOnline (DTV, September 2026; retirement visa, 28 September 2026; marriage visa, 2026), Royal Thai Embassy London (8 September 2026), BOI (LTR, 6 October 2026).
How we match a visa to your situation is on the page Stay in Thailand longer than 30 days. A typical example of rebuilding a file after a refusal is in the case study A DTV refused over a bank statement.
If you hold a UK, US or Australian passport
You are on the 30-day list, with tourism only and one extension. If you plan a DTV, you apply where you are a national or permanent resident. London asks for a police certificate issued within six months (ACRO or an Irish police certificate), Washington and Los Angeles ask for an FBI check within three months, and Washington asks for three months of bank statements while London names no period. The fee is set by each mission: GBP 300 in London, USD 400 in Washington (Royal Thai Embassy London, 8 September 2026; ThaiLawOnline, September 2026; Thaiger, 30 July 2026).
Entered on or before 14 September 2026
If you were admitted on or before 14 September 2026 under the 60-day scheme, you keep the period granted at entry (Vialto and Fragomen, September 2026).
What we could not confirm
- Which border type the two-entry cap covers: the official English summaries do not say.
- Whether the extension and the land-border cap work the same way on bilateral tracks such as Russia's: the sources that describe it are press reports, not a Thai official text.
- How "tourism only" applies to remote work: there is no official statement.
- The exact date of the July refinement of the Cabinet decision: 14 July or 16 July 2026.
Date checked: 6 October 2026. If a rule changes, we update this article and the date.
