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Which visa you need for Thailand in 2026 depends on your passport and how long you stay. Travellers from 60 countries and territories, including the US, UK, Canada, Australia and the EU states, enter visa-free for up to 30 days, for tourism only. For longer you extend once, or you move to a DTV, a retirement or marriage Non-O, an ED, a Non-B, an LTR or a Thailand Privilege membership. Rules are as of 6 October 2026.
In short
- Since 15 September 2026, 60 countries and territories get 30 days visa-free, Mauritius and Seychelles get 15 days, only Azerbaijan, Belarus and Serbia can get a visa on arrival, and 21 nationalities need a visa (Tourism Authority of Thailand, TAT, 1 September 2026; VisasNews, September 2026).
- One 30-day extension costs THB 1,900 at an immigration office, and the officer decides (Thaiger, 16 September 2026). At land-border checkpoints you may generally enter visa-exempt no more than twice a calendar year (TAT, 1 September 2026), and air arrivals have no numeric cap (Thaiger, 6 September 2026).
- A DTV gives 5 years and up to 180 days per entry. Since 31 August 2026 you apply where you are a national or permanent resident, with a police certificate.
- Retirement routes start at age 50: Non-O (THB 800,000 or THB 65,000 a month), O-A (adds insurance) and O-X for nationals of 14 countries.
- The LTR gives 10 years, and Thailand Privilege sells 5 to 20 years of membership.
- Only the LTR carries tax relief. The DTV, retirement, marriage and Privilege routes give none.
Which exemption group is your passport in?
Check your passport against four groups. Sixty countries and territories get 30 days. Mauritius and Seychelles get 15 days. Azerbaijan, Belarus and Serbia can get only a visa on arrival (THB 2,000, 15 days, no extension). Twenty-one nationalities need a visa before travel. Bilateral exemptions are legally separate and did not change (TAT, 1 September 2026; Thaiger, 6 September 2026; VisasNews, September 2026).
| Group | Countries our sources name | Stay | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 30 days | US, UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, EU and EFTA states, Japan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines, Israel, Türkiye, the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Ukraine, Georgia, Kyrgyzstan, Taiwan, South Africa and others | 30 days | Tourism only; one extension; land cap of two entries a year, except for nationals of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Singapore |
| 15 days | Mauritius, Seychelles | 15 days | Tourism only; the same land-border cap of two entries a year |
| Visa on arrival only | Azerbaijan, Belarus, Serbia | 15 days | THB 2,000, no extension |
| Visa required | Albania, Andorra, Colombia, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Guatemala, Jamaica, Kosovo, Mexico, Monaco, Morocco, Panama, Papua New Guinea, San Marino, Sri Lanka, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Uzbekistan | n/a | Apply through the e-visa system before travel |
| Bilateral exemptions | Russia (30 days), China, Kazakhstan, Laos, Mongolia, Vietnam, Hong Kong, Macao, Timor-Leste and others | Set by each agreement | TAT says bilateral periods are 90, 30 or 14 days |
Sources: TAT (1 September 2026), Royal Thai Embassy London (8 September 2026), Thaiger (6 September 2026), VisasNews (September 2026). TAT prints the full list of 60 from the Interior Ministry notifications in the Royal Gazette of 31 August 2026.
What are your options for staying longer than 30 days?
Match the visa to your purpose. Remote work for foreign clients fits the DTV. Age 50 or older opens the retirement Non-O and O-A. Marriage to a Thai citizen supports a marriage Non-O, study needs an ED, and employment needs a Non-B with a work permit. Capital opens the LTR and Thailand Privilege.
| Purpose | Visa | Length | Main requirements |
|---|---|---|---|
| Holiday up to a month | Visa exemption | 30 days | Tourism only, TDAC; an officer may ask for an onward ticket and THB 20,000 per person |
| A few more weeks | Exemption extension | +30 days, once | THB 1,900, officer decides |
| Holiday over a month | Tourist visa (SETV single entry, METV multiple entry) | Up to 60 days per entry, 30-day extension | e-Visa; no work |
| Remote work for foreign clients, soft power | DTV | 5 years, up to 180 days per entry, 180-day extension | THB 500,000, police certificate, apply where you are a national or permanent resident, THB 10,000 fee |
| Age 50 or older | Retirement Non-O and O-A | Non-O: one-year extension; O-A: one-year visa | THB 800,000 in a Thai bank or THB 65,000 a month; O-A adds health insurance of USD 100,000 or THB 3 million |
| Marriage to a Thai citizen | Marriage Non-O | One-year extension | Registered marriage, THB 400,000 or THB 40,000 a month |
| Study | ED | Language schools: extensions of up to 90 days, one year at most; universities: up to a year | Enrolment and attendance; university short courses capped at 180 days |
| Employment or your own company | Non-B and work permit | As the permit allows | Benchmarks: THB 2 million capital and 4 Thai employees per foreigner; e-Work Permit mandatory since 13 October 2025 |
| Capital and assets | LTR | 10 years (5+5) | THB 50,000 fee, four categories with thresholds |
| Paid membership | Thailand Privilege | 5 to 20 years | THB 650,000 to THB 5 million; no work, no land ownership |
Sources: Royal Thai Embassy London (8 September 2026), Thaiger (16 September and 14 July 2026), ThaiLawOnline (2026), BOI and Thailand Privilege (6 October 2026).
The LTR has four categories: Wealthy Global Citizen (USD 1 million in assets and USD 500,000 invested in Thailand, no income test), Wealthy Pensioner from age 50 (USD 80,000 a year in passive income, or USD 40,000 plus a USD 250,000 investment), Work-from-Thailand Professional and Highly-Skilled Professional (USD 80,000 income, or USD 40,000 with a master's degree). You also need USD 50,000 of health cover, Thai social security or a USD 100,000 deposit (BOI, 6 October 2026).
Thailand Privilege sells membership as one payment: Bronze at THB 650,000 for 5 years, Gold at THB 900,000 for 5 years, Platinum at THB 1.5 million for 10 years, Diamond at THB 2.5 million for 15 years and Reserve at THB 5 million for 20 years, by invitation. Sources disagree on when the Bronze price ends, 30 September or 31 December 2026, so confirm it with the operator (Thailand Privilege, 6 October 2026).
Which route fits a UK, US, Australian or EU passport?
Passport holders from these countries can use routes that are closed to many others. A DTV is filed at your own country's mission: London asks for a police certificate issued within six months and proof of permanent residence, and Washington for an FBI check issued within three months (Royal Thai Embassy London, 8 September 2026; ThaiLawOnline, 5 October 2026).
The O-X retirement visa is open to only 14 nationalities: the UK, US, Canada, Australia, Japan and nine European states (Royal Thai Embassy document, 18 March 2024; Thaiger, 14 July 2026).
The O-X needs THB 3 million on deposit in a Thai bank, or THB 1.8 million plus THB 1.2 million of income a year, and a Thai-issued insurance policy with THB 40,000 outpatient and THB 400,000 inpatient cover (Royal Thai Embassy document, 18 March 2024). After the first year the balance may not fall below THB 1.5 million (ThaiLawOnline, 28 September 2026).
Here are the main thresholds in pounds and dollars, at illustrative rates of THB 33 to the dollar and THB 43 to the pound (check the day's rate):
| Threshold | THB | About USD | About GBP |
|---|---|---|---|
| DTV funds | 500,000 | 15,100 | 11,600 |
| Retirement Non-O deposit | 800,000 | 24,200 | 18,600 |
| Retirement Non-O income, monthly | 65,000 | 2,000 | 1,500 |
| Marriage Non-O deposit | 400,000 | 12,100 | 9,300 |
| Marriage Non-O income, monthly | 40,000 | 1,200 | 900 |
| O-X deposit | 3,000,000 | 90,900 | 69,800 |
What changed in the visa rules since 2025?
Since 2025 the application system, the arrival card, the visa categories, the DTV rules and the exemption length have all changed. Some changes tighten conditions, while others only rename them, so match each date to your own status. The main dates:
- 1 January 2025: the e-Visa became the only way to apply at Thai missions worldwide.
- 4 February 2025: BOI eased the LTR, dropping the income test for Wealthy Global Citizens (ThailandStarterKit).
- 1 May 2025: the TDAC replaced the paper TM6 card.
- 31 August 2025: Non-Immigrant categories fell from 17 to 7 with no change in criteria (Fragomen, 10 September 2025). On our reading O-A and O-X now file under category O, though sources do not confirm it and many guides keep the old names.
- 31 August 2026: the DTV tightened, with a police certificate and filing only where you are a national or permanent resident.
- 15 September 2026: the exemption fell to 30 days.
- 28 February 2027: the Apostille Convention enters into force for Thailand, but not for states that object by about 30 December 2026 (the HCCH status table showed no objection on 6 October 2026).
What we could not confirm
- How the "tourism only" wording of the exemption applies to remote work. The DTV is a separate visa, but there is no official statement.
- How strictly officers apply the word "generally" in the two-entry rule. TAT ties the cap to land-border checkpoints, but the London embassy notice only says "twice within a calendar year" and does not name the border type.
- Whether a same-sex spouse of a Thai citizen qualifies for a marriage Non-O. ThaiLawOnline and Emerhub say yes since 23 January 2025, while Thailand Privilege says spousal visa categories were not extended. Confirm with the Immigration Bureau.
- The end date of the Bronze tier at Thailand Privilege.
Date checked: 6 October 2026. If a rule changes, we update this article and the date.
What next
- Choosing and filing the right visa: Stay in Thailand longer than 30 days and DTV visa for Thailand.
- A typical one-visit extension in Phuket: A 30-day exemption extended in Phuket in one visit.
- The exemption in detail: 30-day visa exemption in Thailand (2026).
- DTV and retirement routes one by one: DTV visa 2026 and Thailand retirement visa in 2026.
