If you are visiting Thailand from India as a tourist, this up-to-date visa guide will give you complete step-by-step information on the Thai Visa application process. You can also visit their website for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for more information regarding the same.
A foreign citizen who wants to enter the Kingdom of Thailand is required to have a visa from the Royal Thai Embassy or Royal Thai Consulate-General. However, national of few countries have the criteria of visa exemption as per their bilateral agreement with Thailand. These nationals can enter Thailand without a visa for tourism purpose. However, they have to apply for a visa on arrival at the airport.
India is one of the countries which is entitled to this visa exemption. Indian travelers are permitted to enter Thailand post getting a visa upon their arrival at the airport. Once you get the visa at the immigration checkpoint, it lets you stay in Thailand for up to 15 days.
On Arrival Visa checklist for Thailand:
A Visa on Arrival is a category in which you can get the visa stamped onto your passport once you arrive at the airport of your destination, if you are from one of the 21 countries (India included) listed by the Thailand government. The visa fee is 2,000 Thai Baht (Approximately 4,472 INR) and it allows you to stay for 15 days.
Currently Thai government has decided to waive off the 2,000 THB fee for Indian citizens in order to boost tourism revenue and it is valid up to April 2020.
Documents required for VOA:
- Valid Indian citizen Passport
- A Return / onward journey air ticket for flying out of Thailand within the next 15 days.
- A passport size photograph
- Filled-in Visa-on-arrival application (You can also download it online and take a print out)
- Thailand Arrival Card (provided during the flight).
- Visa on Arrival fee for Indians is 2,000 THB (currently Visa fee is 0 THB as it is exempted until 30 April 2020.
- Hotel voucher in Thailand (Booking confirmation of hotel)
- A proof that you have funds of at least 10,000 THB per person and 20,000 THB per family during your stay in Thailand. Funds can be shown in Thai and US currency. The proof of fund is seldom asked but it may happen.
Note: If you forget to bring your photographs, there is no need to worry. A photo express service is available at the airport for 200 Baht per person.
Sample for Departure Card.
Here are images to guide you through the process of filling the arrival and departure card.
Click here to view the sample of on arrival application form
How to extend your 15 days On-arrival tourist VISA in Thailand?
Tourists can extend their visas by visiting an immigration office to apply for their visa extension by filling a form and paying an additional amount of 1,500 THB per person as extension fee. You’ll be granted 7 days extension visa.
Some people stay in Thailand without extending visa. However, while returning they have to pay 1,000 baht at the airport as an overstay fee. This will also have a negative impact on your future international travel as your passport will have a black mark as an overstayed tourist. Charges will not be levied on your passport for 3-4 days if it was due to any valid medical condition. But you will have to provide documents to validate the same.
Hence it’s highly recommended to always apply for the extension by visiting an immigration office, as it is just an hour’s work to get 7 days of extension.
E-visa to Thailand:
You can apply e-Visa to Thailand by filling the online application forms. You can also get your advance on-arrival visa by using the Thai e-Visa website. Fill the form and pay the visa fee online. Use a multi-currency credit or debit card as the fee is taken in Thai Baht, to avoid bank exchange fees. You’ll get your on-arrival e-Visa within the next 3 days.
Requirements for the application:
- Scanned copy of your passport
- Arrival and return flight tickets
- Proof of accommodation in Thailand (Confirmed hotel booking)
When you arrive at the airport, you need to look for special e-visa lines in immigration. Since e-Visa on Arrival doesn’t verify the shown money, you have to again wait in the VoA immigration queue to cross-check the money. However, this system is still under development.
You can use your e-visa only at the following airports:
- Suvarnabhumi Airport
- Don Mueang Airport
- Phuket International Airport
- Chiang Mai International Airport
- Krabi International Airport
eVISA for Thailand is temporarily closed for service improvement, from 23 April 2019.
How to get an on-arrival visa at DMK Airport in less than 45 minutes?
If you’re an Indian citizen and want to get Thailand Visa, you can easily do so at the Visa on-arrival counters at the airport.
You will see separate lines for group tourists and individual travelers. You need to provide the required documents at the document check counter. The officers will put a stamp on it after checking the documents. If everything is ok then they will issue a queue number.
Proceed to visa on-arrival counters and line up in the queue. Present your passport to the immigration officer for further processes and then you will be allowed to enter the country.
The Don Mueang (DMK) Airport, Bangkok is well-connected by many domestic and international flights. As most of the tourists from Southeast Asia reach this airport early morning, the Visa on Arrival will be a time-consuming process.
Don’t worry about the visa formalities at the Don Muang Airport. We will guide you through the procedure to get the service within a shorter duration of time. Take the advantage of premium service (Fast track services) to complete your immigration process.
You will get priority treatment on arrival at Don Muang Airport that helps you skip the queue. You also get a personal assistant to help you complete all the formalities within 45 minutes and help navigate throughout the airport.
Your host will assist you with the visa application and then take you through customs via the premium immigration lane. When you move towards the exit, your checked baggages will reach you. Then your host will escort you and your guests to your onward transportation.
You need not wait in line for departure. Your concierge pre-arranges your check-in and prints your boarding passes and luggage tags. After clearing the immigration and customs, the concierge will help you reach through the VIP airport departure gate.
Fast track service fee will be 2,500 THB Per Person.
How to get an on-arrival visa at Suvarnabhumi Airport in less than 30 minutes?
Many of the International flight arrive at Suvarnabhumi airport. Major international airlines fly to this airport, but you must check the websites before flying from the airport. Some carriers fly from both the airports.
If you travel from India in low-cost airlines such as Indigo and Air Asia, it will arrive at DMK airport. However, some expensive airlines like Thai Airways and Air India will reach Suvarnabhumi Airport.
Duly fill the visa on arrival documents and reach the on-arrival visa counter. There are two groups of counters at the Visa on Arrival area; A fast service counter which will be on your left and an ordinary service counter which will be on the right. If you are willing to pay 200 THB per person extra, choose the counters on the left and you will get your Visa in few minutes as there will hardly be any queue in this counter.
The Fast Track Meet and Assist Service at Suvarnabhumi Airport will make passing through the airport fast and easy.
What is the best currency to use in Thailand?
You can use the below currencies in Thailand
- US Dollars
- Thai Baht
- Carrying Indian Rupees and converting them in Thailand.
You can convert INR to USD and load it in a Forex card or take in the form of currency notes to Thailand. Some places in Thailand don’t accept US dollars. So, you have to convert it into Thai Baht. Again, converting from US Dollar to Thai Baht means double the currency conversion charges. Thus, it is better to convert from INR to THB for an easy and convenient transaction.
Where do I change Indian INR money in Thailand?
You can change the Indian INR money in currency exchange stores in any of the cities like Bangkok, Pattaya, Phuket, Chiang Mai or Krabi. You will find certain money exchange and foreign currency exchange outlets like T. T. Exchange in Phuket, Pattaya, and Bangkok where you get the best currency exchange rates.
Where do I get the best exchange rate: INR to THB in India?
- Thomas cook is one of the options that gives the best exchange rates while converting from INR to THB.
- Maharaja Forex in Chennai is also a pioneer agency that offers foreign exchange services.
- The Srivari Money Exchange in Chennai is also a prompt, reliable, and customer-friendly agency for exchanging the currency.
Final Thoughts:
In this article, we have provided detailed information about how to get the on-arrival visa and related queries. If you need more details or have some additional queries, do feel free to contact us. Our experts will help you in every manner.