Thailand: visa and entry rules

Thailand's borders: every crossing point

Thailand's land border crossings, listed by the neighbours it shares a border with:

With Malaysia: Sadao - Bukit Kayu Hitam on the main highway, Padang Besar, Sungai Kolok - Rantau Panjang.
With Laos: Nong Khai - Vientiane over the Friendship Bridge, Mukdahan - Savannakhet, Chiang Khong - Huay Xai, Nakhon Phanom.
With Cambodia: Aranyaprathet - Poipet, the main one on the way to Siem Reap; Hat Lek - Koh Kong on the coast.
With Myanmar: Mae Sot - Myawaddy, Mae Sai - Tachileik.

The Malaysian direction is the most workable one for a visa run: the crossings are open around the clock and buses run constantly.

The Cambodian direction is known for its shakedowns. At Poipet foreigners are regularly asked for more than the official fee; the official price of the Cambodian visa is fixed, and it has to be paid at the window itself, not to a middleman.

The Myanmar crossings work erratically because of the situation in the border states — the regime changes without warning.

The sea and air entry points are fully open, with no entry restrictions.

Driving to Thailand

Transit through Myanmar is effectively closed to foreign vehicles, so in practice you can only enter with your own car from Malaysia or Laos.

Import is processed with a permit from the Department of Land Transport, which is requested in advance rather than obtained at the border.

An International Driving Permit is compulsory.

Renting a motorbike without a valid category A is Thailand's main trap. In an accident the insurance pays nothing if the licence has no motorcycle category, and police checks at the resorts are routine.

Traffic drives on the left.

Travelling to Thailand with a pet

An import permit is arranged in advance with the Department of Livestock Development — this is the main difference from the post-Soviet countries, where everything is settled at the border.

A microchip is compulsory, to the ISO standard, fitted before the rabies vaccination.

The rabies vaccination — no later than 21 days before entry and no earlier than a year before.

The veterinary certificate is issued no earlier than 10 days before the flight.

There is no quarantine when the set of documents is complete, but the animal is examined at the arrival airport.

Overstaying your visa in Thailand

A fine of 500 baht for every day of overstay, up to a maximum of 20,000 baht. It is paid on departure, at the airport.

The entry ban depends on the length. An overstay of more than 90 days means a ban for a year, more than a year — for three years, more than three years — for five, more than five — for ten. These are fixed steps, not the officer's discretion.

Being detained inside the country is worse than leaving. If the overstay is discovered by the police rather than by an immigration officer on the way out, the case goes through deportation, and the ban is imposed in any event.

A 30-day extension costs 1,900 baht — cheaper than almost any overstay and done in a single visit.