The Thai Tourist Visa (TR) gives you up to 60 days in Thailand per entry, with one 30-day extension possible inside the country, and you apply for it online at thaievisa.go.th before you leave home (as of October 2026). It is the standard choice when the 30 visa-free days are too short.
Since 15 September 2026, most visitors who arrive without a visa get 30 days. That cut applied only to the visa exemption. The tourist visa itself was not shortened: Thai embassy pages updated after the change still give a stay of up to 60 days for each entry. For a six-to-eight-week trip, that difference decides whether you need one immigration appointment in Thailand or none.
This page is about applying in advance: who should, which entry type to choose, what the portal asks for, how long it takes and what to expect at the airport. If you are still deciding whether you need a visa at all, start with our explainer on entering Thailand without a visa.
Thai Tourist Visa (TR), October 2026
- Where to apply
- Online only, at thaievisa.go.th (Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
- Who can apply
- People outside Thailand, through the Thai embassy or consulate covering where they live
- Entry types
- Single entry (valid 3 months) or multiple entry (valid 6 months)
- Stay per entry
- Up to 60 days
- Extension
- Once, by up to 30 days, at an immigration office in Thailand; officer's discretion
- Funds on the application
- At least 20,000 baht
- Fee
- Varies by embassy and is charged in local currency, e.g. £30 single / £150 multiple in London
- Processing (London example)
- About 15 working days; apply 6 to 8 weeks ahead
TR visa or visa-free entry: when the visa wins
Visa-free entry costs nothing and needs no paperwork beforehand, so for a trip of up to about four weeks it is the obvious route. The tourist visa makes sense in four situations.
- You will stay longer than 30 days. A TR gives 60 days on arrival. Add the 30-day extension and you reach about 90 days without leaving the country.
- You plan several trips in one year. Visa-exempt entries are capped at two per calendar year. Official sources disagree on whether that covers land borders only or all entries, and the visa-exemption guide sets out both readings. A visa takes the question off the table.
- Your passport is not on any exemption list. Some nationalities that had the old 60-day exemption are not on the new 30-day list. Check the portal's nationality tool first.
- You want certainty at the border. Arriving with a visa that matches your plans means fewer questions about why you are staying so long.
Unsure how your own dates add up? Our visa-free stay calculator counts the days for you. For longer stays, remote work or study, a TR is usually the wrong tool; see the alternatives further down.
Single entry or multiple entry (METV)
The portal offers the tourism-and-leisure TR in two forms on 2 October 2026. The difference is how long the visa stays usable, not how long each stay lasts.
| Type | Validity (time to use it) | Stay per entry | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Single entry | 3 months from issue; enter within 90 days | Up to 60 days | One long trip |
| Multiple entry (METV) | 6 months from issue; entries within 180 days | Up to 60 days each time | Trips that leave and return, e.g. via Laos or Malaysia |
The Royal Thai Embassy in Oslo puts it plainly: a visa is a permit to enter, and its validity is not your permitted stay. With a single-entry TR issued on 1 November, you must arrive by the end of January; the 60 days start the day you land. With an METV, every entry within the six months gives a fresh stay of up to 60 days, and an entry on the last day of validity still counts.
The METV costs much more (five times as much in London) and some embassies are stricter about who gets one, so pick it only if you really will cross a border mid-trip. The family-visit version of the TR is single entry only.
Documents the portal wants for a TR
Every TR application goes through the tourist visa page of the official e-Visa portal. For tourism and leisure, the portal lists these documents (checked 2 October 2026):
- A scan of your passport's photo page.
- A recent photo, no older than six months.
- A document showing where you are now, such as a residence permit, a valid visa for the country you live in, or proof you paid for a flight or accommodation there.
- A travel booking confirmation for the trip to Thailand.
- Proof of accommodation in Thailand: hotel bookings or an invitation letter from a host.
- Financial evidence of no less than 20,000 baht, usually three months of bank statements or a sponsor's letter.
The portal adds that each embassy may want more, and tells you to check that embassy's own site. The London embassy is a good example of the detail that trips people up: it accepts only a confirmed e-ticket from the airline's own website, not a ticket on hold or one bought through a travel agency, and it wants each upload as a PDF or JPG of no more than 3 MB, not a screenshot.
The TR covers more than beach holidays. The portal also lists it for short recreational training (scuba diving, boxing, Thai massage or cooking courses), for visiting family in Thailand for under 60 days, for medical treatment under 60 days, and for MICE participants. A longer Muay Thai stay is a different case; our guide to choosing a Muay Thai camp looks at that.
Applying step by step
The portal works the same way for all Thai visas. You register, complete the form, attach the documents, pay, and then wait for an e-mail with the approved e-Visa. You no longer post your passport to the embassy.
- Pick the right embassy. You can only apply through the mission that covers the country where you live, and only from abroad. London, for instance, handles applicants in the UK, Ireland and UK territories and cancels an application if the applicant leaves during processing.
- Choose "Tourist Visa", then the purpose (tourism and leisure for most readers) and the entry type.
- Upload the documents listed above, in the format the embassy wants.
- Pay the fee online by card. Fees are non-refundable, including when a visa is refused.
- Wait. The embassy can request extra papers or call you for an interview, which adds time.
- Print or save the e-Visa confirmation and show it at check-in and at immigration.
Only thaievisa.go.th issues Thai e-Visas. Look-alike sites that "process" Thai visas for an extra fee are not run by the government. The same scam exists for the free arrival card; if a site asks you to pay for anything other than the embassy's own visa fee, close it.
Fees: set per embassy, paid in local currency
There is no single worldwide TR price. Each embassy charges a fee in its own currency, paid online by card through the portal. Two examples we could read on embassy pages:
| Embassy | Single entry | Multiple entry (METV) | Page date |
|---|---|---|---|
| London (UK, Ireland) | £30 | £150 | Fee page from 2022, still linked in Sep 2026 |
| Oslo (Norway) | NOK 400 | NOK 2,000 | No edit date shown |
The Washington embassy says fees are paid by card in the e-Visa system but does not show the amount as text, so we have not printed a US dollar figure; the portal shows the price before you pay. Under bilateral agreements, the London fee page lists Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, the Republic of Korea and Tunisia as exempt from the visa fee. Most of those passports can also enter visa-free, so the visa mainly matters to them for stays beyond the exemption.
How long processing takes, and when to apply
Timing also varies by embassy. London, which updated its visa page on 8 September 2026, gives about 15 working days, recommends applying six to eight weeks before you fly, and accepts applications no earlier than 90 days before arrival. It warns that some cases take four to six weeks and that a request for extra documents or an interview adds another 15 working days. There is no express service.
Work backwards from your flight. Apply too early and a single-entry visa (usable for three months from issue) might expire before you travel; apply too late and the visa may not arrive in time. Around six weeks ahead suits most trips.
At the airport: arriving on a TR
A visa does not replace the arrival formalities. You still file the Thailand Digital Arrival Card, which is free, in the three days before you land, and immigration may still check that you can support yourself. According to TAT's reminder of 6 July 2026, the figure for tourist-visa holders is 20,000 baht per person or 40,000 baht per family, double the amount asked of visa-exempt visitors. It can be cash or paperwork proving the same amount. Children under 12 are not counted.
Check the date stamped in your passport before you leave the counter. It should be 60 days from arrival. Mistakes are rare but easier to fix on the spot than later.
Extending your stay by 30 days
Embassy pages state that a TR stay can be extended once, by 30 days, inside Thailand. The Oslo embassy notes that the decision is "solely at the discretion of the Immigration officer". You apply in person at the immigration office responsible for your current address, on form TM.7, with your passport, a photo and the fee.
The fee is 1,900 baht according to the Bangkok Immigration fee list (2024 copy) and the state-owned Thailand Privilege Card company's FAQ; we could not read a 2026 Immigration Bureau page because the site blocks automated access. Bring cash and check the office's own requirements before you go. Offices often want proof of your address, which hotels file for you but condo and Airbnb hosts often do not. Our older article on the TM30 address notification explains that step.
Book the extension appointment a week before day 60. Each day beyond your stamped date is an overstay, even if you are queuing at immigration, and the fines and bans for overstaying add up fast.
When a different visa fits better
The TR is built for holidays. If your plans are really about work, study or living in Thailand, another category is likely to be safer:
- Working remotely for clients or an employer abroad over several months: the Destination Thailand Visa (DTV).
- Learning Thai at a school for months: an education visa.
- Aged 50 or over and planning to stay: the retirement visas.
- Any job for a Thai employer: a work permit plus a Non-B visa. No tourist visa allows work.
Planning to leave and come back repeatedly on visa-free entries instead? Our guide to border runs in 2026 explains which crossings still work and why officers question frequent entrants. Visa on arrival is no help here: since September 2026 it covers only three nationalities, as our visa on arrival page explains.
Passports from China, Hong Kong and Macao
China, Hong Kong and Macao passports enter under bilateral agreements that give 30 days per entry; for mainland Chinese citizens there is also a limit of 90 days in any 180. A TR is the route for a longer single trip. Your application goes to the Thai mission responsible for your city of residence; check its document list, which may differ from the examples above. The agreement itself is covered on our page about the mutual visa exemption for Chinese citizens.
Frequently asked questions
What is the maximum stay on a Thai tourist visa in 2026?
Up to 60 days per entry, according to Thai embassy pages updated after the September 2026 changes, with one extension of up to 30 days possible at a Thai immigration office. The 30-day cut on 15 September 2026 applied to the visa exemption, not the tourist visa.
Can I apply for a Thai tourist visa from inside Thailand?
No. The e-Visa portal accepts applications only from people outside Thailand, through the Thai mission for their country of residence. Inside Thailand, the options are an extension of your current stay at an immigration office, or leaving and applying from home.
Is the multiple-entry tourist visa (METV) still available?
Yes. On 2 October 2026 the e-Visa portal still offered the tourism TR as single entry (three months' validity) or multiple entry (six months' validity), with up to 60 days per entry. Some embassies restrict who can get the multiple-entry version, so check yours.
What proof of funds does a Thai tourist visa need?
The portal asks for financial evidence of at least 20,000 baht, normally shown with recent bank statements. At the border, TAT gives 20,000 baht per person or 40,000 baht per family for tourist-visa holders, shown as cash or documents.
What does a 30-day tourist visa extension cost?
The standard extension-of-stay fee is 1,900 baht, according to Bangkok Immigration's fee list (2024 copy) and the Thailand Privilege Card company's FAQ. The extension is up to 30 days and at the officer's discretion. Confirm the fee and documents at your immigration office.
Sources
- Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Thai e-Visa: Tourist visa (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy Oslo – Validity of visa and period of stay (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy Oslo – Tourist visa (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy London – Visa general information (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy London – Visa fees (checked October 2026)
- Royal Thai Embassy Budapest – Types of visas and application fees (checked October 2026)
- Tourism Authority of Thailand – Entry reminder on proof of funds (checked October 2026)
- Thailand Privilege Card – FAQs on living in Thailand (checked October 2026)
- UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office – Thailand entry requirements (checked October 2026)