Domaine des Eléphants Blancs - Your Trip

Formalities… minimal

Short stays of 30 days without visa

The Thai government authorizes the citizens of some countries to enter its national territory without visa for a stay of maximum 30 days. The only condition to fulfill to obtain such exemption is that the passport must be valid for at least 3 months upon arrival in Thailand. It is possible to obtain an extension of stay, but only by leaving the country upon end of duration and coming back again. Moreover, since 1 October 2006, the overall duration of the stay in Thailand without visa cannot exceed 90 days over a period of 6 months. In case of overstay, a fine of THB 500 per day of overstay (with a maximum tolerance of 20 days) must be paid to the “Overstay” booth at the airport.

The countries concerned by this possibility are the following:

AUSTRALIA	FINLAND	IRELAND	MACAU	PHILIPPINES	SWITZERLAND
AUSTRIA	FRANCE	ISRAEL	MALAYSIA	PORTUGAL	TURKEY
BAHRAIN	GERMANY	ITALY	NETHERLANDS	QATAR	UAE
BELGIUM	GREECE	JAPAN	NEW ZEALAND	SINGAPORE	UK
BRUNEI	HONG KONG	KUWAIT	NORWAY	SOUTH AFRICA	USA
CANADA	INDONESIA	LAOS	OMAN	SPAIN	VIETNAM
DENMARK	ICELAND	LUXEMBOURG	PERU	SWEDEN

Stays of 90 days without visa

The Thai government authorizes the citizens of some countries to enter its national territory without visa for a stay of maximum 30 days. The only condition to fulfill to obtain such exemption is that the passport must be valid for at least 3 months upon arrival in Thailand. It is not possible to obtain an extension of stay without visa. In case of overstay, a fine of THB 500 per day of overstay (with a maximum tolerance of 20 days) must be paid to the “Overstay” booth at the airport.

The countries concerned by this possibility are the following:

ARGENTINA	BRAZIL	CHILE	KOREA, Rep of	PERU

Courts séjours de 15 jours avec visa à l’arrivée

Le gouvernement thaïlandais autorise les ressortissants de certains pays à obtenir un visa de tourisme à leur arrivée sur le territoire national pour un séjour de moins de 15 jours. Les voyageurs demandant ce visa doivent prouver qu’ils ont les moyens de dépenser au moins 10,000 THB par personne et 20,000 THB par famille, et doivent présenter un billet de retour paye et valable dans les 15 jours. Ils doivent remplir le formulaire de demande de visa auquel ils doivent ajouter une photographie d’identité récente et 1,000 THB. Il n’est généralement pas possible d’obtenir une extension de séjour, sauf en cas de force majeure.

Les pays concernés sont les suivants :

BHUTAN	CYPRUS	KAZAKHSTAN	OMAN	SAUDI ARABIA	TAIWAN
CHINA	HUNGARY	MALDIVES	RUSSIA	POLAND	UKRAINE
CZECH REPUBLIC	INDIA	MAURITIUS

Stays of 60 days with tourist visa

The tourist visa gives the right to a stay of up to 60 days. It is issued by the Thai Embassies and Consulates abroad. Travelers applying for such visa must present a passport that is valid for at least 6 months from the application date, 3 passport photos and a completed application form. They must also be able to prove that they can afford to spend at least THB 20,000 per person and THB 40,000 per family, and show a fully paid return ticket. Fees depend on the number of entries requested (single entry or multiple entries). It must be noted that if the traveler wishes to go out of Thailand and come back to Thailand again within the visa’s validity, the visa must be a multiple entry visa. The visa is valid 3 months, which means that the first entry in Thailand must be effected within 3 months of the visa’s issuance. This visa can be extended by 30 days, in Thailand, by the Immigration services located on Soi Suan Plu in Bangkok (tel 02 287-3101-10 or http://www.immigration.go.th). Will be required a passport photo, a copy of the passport and THB 2,000 fees.

The citizens of the following countries are exempted of visa fees:

KOREA, Rep of	MALAYSIA	PHILIPPINES	SINGAPORE	TUNISIA

For more information on types of stays and visas in Thailand, visit http://www.thaiembdc.org/consular/visa/visa.htm et http://www.mfa.go.th/web/12.php.

Health: vaccinations, certificates, insurance

In normal conditions, no specific vaccination is required to enter Thailand. However, travelers coming from the following countries must present a yellow fever certificate upon their arrival in Thailand:
ANGOLA	CENT. AFR. REP	ETHIOPIA	GUYANA	PANAMA	SUDAN
BENIN	CHAD	FRENCH GUIANA	KENYA	PERU	SURINAME
BOLIVIA	COLOMBIA	GABON	LIBERIA	RWANDA	TANZANIA
BRAZIL	CONGO	GAMBIA	MALI	SAO TOME	TOGO
BURKINA FASO	COTE D' IVOIRE	GHANA	MAURITANIA	SENEGAL	UGANDA
BURUNDI	EQ. GUINEA	GUINEA	NIGER	SIERRA LEONE	VENEZUELA
CAMEROON	ECUADOR	GUINEA-BISSAU	NIGERIA	SOMALIA

	Although no vaccination is compulsory, it is recommended to ask medical advice regarding DT polio (3 injections with one month-interval, booster after 1 year then every 10 years), typhoid fever (one injection, then booster every 3 years) and hepatitis A and B if no immunization (2 injections with one month interval and booster after 1 year for Hepatitis A, 2 injections at one month interval, booster after 6 months and every 5 years thereafter if necessary for hepatitis B). For kids who have not been vaccinated yet, it is recommended to proceed with BCG (once between 1 month and 6 years of age, no ulterior control) and the measles/mumps/rubella vaccination.
	It is highly recommended to contract, prior to your departure, a medical and accident insurance that includes advance payment of expenses on-site. It is preferable that you always keep your international credit card in your hand bag to ensure that whatever emergency happens, you will receive proper treatment. It is also recommended that the insurance includes emergency repatriation.

	Customs: what you should know
		As tourists, you should have nothing to declare at your arrival in Thailand; you can therefore proceed through the green passage “nothing to declare” after claiming your luggage. If by any chance you are submitted to an inspection of your luggage, clearly explain that everything in them are your personal items (in case you carry expensive new items such as cameras, it is advisable that you carry purchase invoices with you).

	You can bring to Thailand items purchased in duty free for up to THB 10,000. However, you can buy only 200 cigarettes and 1 liter of alcohol per adult.
	It is strictly forbidden to bring to Thailand (or to take out of Thailand) drugs, fake money and/or pornography. You would risk fines and imprisonment, and Thailand is not joking in this respect.
	You can ask for refund of the VAT paid on items purchased in Thailand if you are not a resident in Thailand, if you have stayed less than 180 days in Thailand and if you are levaing the country through an international airport. To this purpose, you must contact the Customs office prior to check-in and present them with your passport, the VAT refund application form (which you will have received from the shop), the receipt of your purchase, and the purchased goods themselves (which you will be able to put back in your luggage before checking in, except in the case of small expensive items such as jewelry that you will need to keep in your handbag). Once the Customs have approved your application, you can submit it to the VAT Refund Office within the airport, beyond immigration.
	You may bring in Thailand an unlimited amount of cash in any currency. When going out of Thailand, the same flexibility applies except on the Thai currency, the baht (THB). You are then requested to declare any amount exceeded THB 50,000 in baht.