Immigration is cracking down on the visa-run loophole that let people stay indefinitely on tourist stamps—here's what's changing.
Thailand is tightening rules on visa-free entries to block the long-running practice of exiting and re-entering the country every 30 or 60 days to reset tourist stamps. The move targets both scammers running illegal work operations and ordinary expats who've relied on visa runs to stay long-term without a proper visa.
The crackdown stems from two problems: tourists abusing the system to work illegally (often in call centers or online scams targeting other countries), and the administrative burden on immigration. Thailand's immigration authority is now flagging travelers with multiple entries in short periods and denying re-entry to those deemed to be abusing the system. There's no hard rule yet—it's discretionary—but expect scrutiny if you've done more than three visa runs in a year.
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Visa runs still work for occasional travelers, but if you live in Thailand, immigration expects you to have the right visa.
If you're in Thailand on a tourist stamp and your visa is about to expire, don't assume you can just leave and come back. Get a proper visa: the Non-Immigrant B (for work), Non-Immigrant O (for retirement or family), or the LTR. Visa runs still work for occasional travelers, but if you live in Thailand, immigration expects you to have the right visa. The penalty for overstaying is 500 baht per day, but repeated visa runs now risk deportation and a multi-year re-entry ban.
Source: original report ↗
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