What changes for travellers to Thailand on September 15

Effective September 15, 2026, Thailand is making significant changes to its visa exemption policy for travelers. The 60-day visa exemption program, which has been in place since July 2024, will come to an end and be replaced by a new framework. This change affects the entry categories for travelers from different countries.

Under the new system, 60 countries and territories will receive a 30-day visa exemption for tourism purposes. This includes well-known nations like Australia, Canada, Germany, France, Japan, and the United States. India has been upgraded from the visa-on-arrival category to this 30-day exemption category. However, visa-on-arrival is now limited to only three nationalities: Azerbaijan, Belarus, and Serbia.

Several nationalities that previously held the 60-day exemption, including China, Russia, South Korea, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Brazil, Argentina, and Mexico, are no longer covered by the new 30-day exemption. These travelers will need to apply for a visa before entering Thailand, with China, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Laos, Macau, Mongolia, Russia, Timor-Leste, and Vietnam receiving a 30-day stay, and China, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Laos, and Vietnam getting 30 days under their respective bilateral agreements.

Travellers from around thirty nationalities, such as South Korea, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru, Uzbekistan, Sri Lanka, and Colombia, will need to obtain a visa from September 15, as they do not appear on the new 60-country list. The land border entry cap now limits visa-exempt travelers to two entries per calendar year, excluding Malaysian, Bruneian, Indonesian, and Singaporean nationals who are exempt from this restriction.

The 30-day exemption is strictly for tourism purposes, and travellers whose primary purpose is business, remote work, investment, or long-term residence should not rely on visa-exempt entry. Those who have already entered Thailand on or before September 14 will retain their granted stay, and long-term residents must obtain a visa that matches their actual activities in the country.

Options for those staying beyond the visa exemption limits include the Thailand Destination Visa, Non-Immigrant B visa, Retirement Visa, Thailand Privilege Visa, and Long-Term Resident visa.

Before traveling, check which entry category applies to your passport, keep necessary documents ready, track your visa-exempt land border entries, and file the Thailand Digital Arrival Card as usual. The date of arrival determines which rules apply, not the booking date. The visa run era is officially over in Thailand as of September 15, 2026.