Thailand's 60-day visa exemption ended on 15 September 2026. The Ministry of Interior published the new rules in the Royal Gazette on 31 August 2026, and the Tourism Authority of Thailand has confirmed them. If you planned a trip under the old rules, check again. Most visitors now get a shorter stay, and citizens of 21 countries can no longer arrive without a visa.

What changed at a glance

WhoRule since 15 September 2026
Citizens of the 60 countries and territories on the new exemption listVisa-free for 30 days (it was 60)
Citizens of Mauritius and SeychellesVisa-free for 15 days
Citizens of Azerbaijan, Belarus and SerbiaVisa on arrival, up to 15 days
Citizens of countries with a bilateral agreement with ThailandUnchanged: 90, 30 or 14 days, depending on the agreement
Everyone else, including the 21 nationalities belowApply for a Thai e-Visa online before you travel

The 21 nationalities that lost visa-free entry

These countries were covered by the old 60-day exemption. None of them is on the new lists published in the Royal Gazette, so their citizens now need a visa before they travel:

What to do: apply for a Thai e-Visa on the official site, thaievisa.go.th. It has been open to applicants from every country since 1 January 2025. Thai embassies and consulates process the applications, but the whole process is online and you don't need to visit an embassy. Apply before you book anything you can't cancel.

If you hold a Moroccan passport, our guide to visa-free countries for Moroccans in 2026 lists the destinations that remain open to you without an embassy visa.

The 30-day list: 60 countries and territories

Citizens of these countries and territories can still enter Thailand without a visa, now for 30 days instead of 60:

Land borders: if you enter by land under the 30-day exemption, you can generally do so no more than twice per calendar year. The limit does not apply to citizens of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Singapore, or to other nationalities the Minister designates.

This matters most for travelers who used to leave Thailand by land and come back to start a new visa-free period. Arriving by air is not affected by this limit.

15 days: Mauritius and Seychelles

Citizens of Mauritius and Seychelles keep visa-free entry, but only for 15 days. The same limit of two land-border entries per calendar year applies.

Visa on arrival: only three nationalities left

Thailand now offers visa on arrival only to holders of passports from Azerbaijan, Belarus and Serbia. A visa on arrival allows a stay of up to 15 days. A fee may apply; check the current amount with the Thai embassy before you travel. If your country used to be on the visa-on-arrival list and is not one of these three, you now need an e-Visa before you fly.

Bilateral agreements still apply

The reform replaces Thailand's own exemption lists. It does not cancel visa-exemption agreements between Thailand and other countries. According to TAT, these "will continue to apply where relevant, providing visa exemption periods of 90, 30 or 14 days."

Thailand's Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists these agreements:

  • 90 days: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Peru and South Korea
  • 30 days: China, Hong Kong, Kazakhstan, Laos, Macau, Mongolia, Russia, Timor-Leste and Vietnam
  • 14 days: Cambodia and Myanmar (arrival at international airports only)

Check your own passport

Thailand's rule for your passport appears on your Wandava passport page, next to every other destination you can reach without an embassy visa. Choose your passport to see it.