How long can you stay in Thailand without a visa?

It depends on your passport. 54 countries and territories get 30 days, extendable once by another 30 at an immigration office for 1,900 THB, making 60 days the practical maximum per entry. Three get 15 days, four get Visa on Arrival, and sixteen more enter under separate bilateral agreements ranging from 14 to 90 days.

How many times can you do a border run to Thailand?

Visa-exempt entries across a land or sea border are capped at two per calendar year. Arrivals by air are not capped, but repeated exemption stamps draw questions at immigration and are eventually refused, so a long stay built on border runs is not a reliable plan.

How many times can you extend a Thai visa exemption?

Once per entry. A 30-day visa-exempt stay can be extended by 30 days at an immigration office for 1,900 THB. There is no second extension on the same entry — to get more time you have to leave and come back.

Immigration

Visa cost calculator

How long can you stay, and what will it cost you?

Most people arrive knowing roughly how long they want to stay and nothing about whether that is allowed. This works it out: what your passport gets at the border, how many times you would have to leave and come back to stretch it, and what the fees add up to.

The border-run figure is yours to enter, because there is no honest average for it — what an agency charges depends on which city you leave from and who you book with.

Your passport

How long do you want to stay?

6 months180 days

What your passport gets on arrival

30-day visa exemption

Tourism only. One 30-day extension at an immigration office, so 60 days is the practical maximum per entry.

Staying 6 months on entry rights alone

How you arrive each time

Cost of one border run (THB)

Yours to fill in. Agencies charge very differently depending on which city you leave from, and flying out is a different number again.

Use the 30-day extension on each entry, at 1,900 THB from an immigration office. One extension per entry — there is no second one.

Days per entry: 60
Entries needed: 3
Border runs: 2

Day 1 — Arrive — 30 days, freecovered to day 30
Day 30 — Extend at an immigration office — 30 more dayscovered to day 60 · 1,900 THB
Day 61 — Leave and re-entercovered to day 90 · cost not entered yet
Day 61 — 30 days on the new stamp, freecovered to day 90
Day 90 — Extend at an immigration office — 30 more dayscovered to day 120 · 1,900 THB
Day 121 — Leave and re-entercovered to day 150 · cost not entered yet
Day 121 — 30 days on the new stamp, freecovered to day 150
Day 150 — Extend at an immigration office — 30 more dayscovered to day 180 · 1,900 THB

Extensions (3 × 1,900 THB)	5,700 THB
Border runs (2 × your figure)	—
Total for 6 months	enter a run cost

Flights, hotels and time off are not in here — only the fees the stay itself costs.

Visas that cover 6 months outright

Sorted by how long you can actually stay, not by the validity printed on the visa — those are different numbers, and confusing them is how people rule out the visa that would have suited them. Thresholds are money you must be able to evidence, not money you spend. Embassy fees are set per mission in local currency, so check the fee page of the one handling your application.

Education visa (Non-Immigrant ED)Thai language school, Muaythai, a degree, a seminar, monastic study, or a curricular internship. Seven separate ED categories, each with its own required letters.The visa gives you: 3 months, single entryStamped on arrival: 90 daysStaying longer: Extended in 90-day blocks at an immigration office for as long as your course runs, on paperwork your school prepares. Language programmes commonly support a year per enrolment, and one to two years in total before immigration starts asking why you have not finished.Evidence needed: No fixed baht threshold — tuition and living costs evidencedWatch out: It is single entry. Leaving the country without buying a re-entry permit first — 1,000 THB for one trip, 3,800 THB for unlimited — cancels your extension and you start over. Schools also expect at least 80% attendance, and that is checked.Destination Thailand Visa (DTV)Remote workers and freelancers paid from outside Thailand, people here for Muaythai or cookery training or medical treatment, and their spouses and children.The visa gives you: 5 years, multiple entryStamped on arrival: 180 daysStaying longer: 180 days per entry, extendable once by another 180 at an immigration office, so up to 360 consecutive days before you must leave. Multiple entry, so a new 180 days starts each time you come back — no re-entry permit needed.Evidence needed: 500,000 THB evidenced, per applicantWatch out: Since 31 August 2026 you must also show proof of permanent residence where you apply, plus a criminal record certificate — and embassies are reading that requirement differently.Retirement visa (O / O-A / O-X)Over 50, not working in Thailand.The visa gives you: O-A: 1 year, multiple entry. O-X: 5 years, renewable onceStamped on arrival: 365 daysStaying longer: Renewed annually in country against the same financial test. The O-X runs five years and renews once, for ten in total.Evidence needed: 800,000 THB in the bank or 65,000 THB a month; O-X needs 3,000,000 THB fixedLong-Term Resident (LTR)Wealthy pensioners, remote workers for large overseas employers, high earners in targeted industries, and wealthy investors.The visa gives you: 10 years, multiple entryStaying longer: Issued as five years, extended once for another five. The 90-day report becomes an annual one.Evidence needed: From USD 80,000 a year income to USD 500,000 invested, depending on category · Visa fee 50,000 THBWatch out: The Board of Investment assesses eligibility free of charge, and warns about agencies charging for what it does for nothing.Business visa (Non-Immigrant B)Taking a job here, visiting on business, teaching, coaching, or an internship.The visa gives you: 3 months single entry, or 1 year multiple entry for business visitsStamped on arrival: 90 daysStaying longer: Extended in country in step with your work permit, so the real limit is your employment rather than the visa.Evidence needed: 30,000 THB evidenced for most categories; 3,000,000 THB for the 3-year B3Watch out: The employment route starts with your employer obtaining a Ministry of Labour approval letter, before you can even apply. And the visa is permission to enter, not permission to work — the work permit is a separate application made in Thailand.

Where these numbers come from

Entry rights and country lists: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs' summary of the 2026 revision. Extension and re-entry fees: the Immigration Bureau's published fee list.

One thing the arithmetic cannot capture: an immigration officer decides whether to admit you, every time. A plan that adds up on paper can still be refused at the counter, and a stack of back-to-back exemption stamps is exactly what draws that attention.

Leaving and coming back

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SafetyWing Nomad Insurance CompleteSafetyWing's higher-coverage plan, with extended medical and home-country coverage options.

This planner is a budgeting and orientation tool, not immigration advice. Confirm requirements with the Thai embassy or consulate handling your application before you book anything.