Visas for Koh Phangan Thailand
Remember your passport and tickets!
Tourists heading for Koh Phangan and Thailand have lots of choices when deciding which visa is best for them. The length of time that a visitor wishes to stay is the primary factor when choosing whether to enter the country on a visa-exempt entry upon arrival, pre-arranged tourist visa or a non-immigrant visa that can be converted to a long stay permit.
Visa-exempt entry
Visitors from 42 countries arriving in Thailand on international flights without a visa stamped into their passports can get a visa-exempt entry which will allow them to stay for 30 days. When checking in for flights, some airlines require passengers who do not have a visa to show proof in the form of an air-ticket that they will be flying out of Thailand to a third country before the end of the 30 days.
Visitors from the 42 countries entering Thailand via a land crossing from Malaysia, Cambodia, Laos or Myanmar with this option are now only given a 15-day permit. The regulations were changed in late 2008 to encourage more people to obtain visas.
The 42 countries that Thailand gives visa-exempt entry to the citizens of include the UK, Ireland, France, Germany, the Netherlands, the US, Canada, New Zealand and Australia. Visitors not included in the full list available from Thai embassy websites need to obtain a visa prior to travelling to Thailand.
Tourist visas for Koh Phangan
Tourists need pre-arranged visas for over one month
A second option which will give tourists a 60-day stay in Thailand and on Koh Phangan is a tourist visa. These visas can be applied for at Thai embassies or consulates in home countries or in other Southeast Asian nations. The closest places to Koh Phangan for tourist visas are in Malaysia. Consulates in Georgetown on Penang Island and in the town of Kota Bharu are just south of the Thai border.
Tourist visas cost the equivalent of 1,000 Baht and are payable in local currency. For example a tourist visa in Malaysia is 110 Ringgit and in the UK it costs £28.00. Some embassies will allow tourists double or triple entry visas of this type, not usually in Asia, which require people to exit and re-enter after 60 days.
Non-immigrant visas for Koh Phangan
People with the correct supporting documentation can get a non-immigrant visa that will allow them to remain in Thailand for a 90-day period without leaving. These again are best obtained prior to travel in the applicant’s home country as regional Thai diplomatic missions are notoriously stringent about seeing the correct paperwork before issuing this type of visa.
There are two options for non-immigrant visas - single entry and multiple entry. A single entry gives one 90-day stay in Thailand from date of admission while a multiple is good for use one year from its issue date. People wishing to get the most out of a multiple should enter Thailand after the visa has been issued and make a final entry a few days prior to expiry. This gives another 90 days and stretches the visa out for almost 15 months. Single entry non-immigrant visas are 2,000 baht and multiples are 5,000 baht. The different categories and jreasons for issue of non-immigrant visas are listed below.
Non-immigrant visa types
Type O: Issued to people with family or over the age of 50.
Type B: For those with a letter from an employer with a job offer.
Type ED: Issued to people studying in Thailand.
Type M: Official press representatives are given media visas.
Type IM: Issued to investors who have been approved by the Thai Board of Investment.
Visa overstays
A word of warning – overstaying any visa results in a fine which accrues at the rate of 500 baht a day. The maximum fine is 20,000 Baht. Overstayers are violating Thai law and could be imprisoned if caught.
Extending your Koh Phangan visa
A visitor on a visa-exempt entry can extend it by an additional seven days. A 60-day tourist visa can be extended by 30 days. People in Thailand with non-immigrant visas based on marriage to a Thai national can extend it by one year if they have 400,000 baht in an account at a Thai bank. Those wishing to extend this visa on the basis of retirement have to show proof of 800,000 baht. All extensions cost 1,900 baht and are available at Immigration Department offices.
