DO YOU NEED A VISA?

30 days visa exemption 

South African passport holders (and certain other nationalities) can enter Thailand for 30 days visa free for tourism purposes.

Please note:

-Passport must be valid at least a minimum of 6 months.

-You must have a return ticket.

-You may apply for a 30 day extension on the stay, but it's at the discretion of the Immigration Bureau in Thailand if it's approved. 

Submissions from applicants outside South Africa can only be accepted applications resident in:

The Royal Thai Embassy in Pretoria will grant visas for non-SA residents, only for these countries (if the applicant is not in South Africa at the time of the application): 

Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Swaziland, South Africa, Zambia & Zimbabwe.

**Special Requirements for People Holding Passports from The Following Countries: -

*Nigerian passport holders  

–  Must apply in person at Royal Thai Consulate in Abuja, Nigeria.

–  If you can’t go to that embassy, we have to get approval to issue the visa from Pretoria and this process takes 2-3 months.

*Central African, Cameroon, Republic of Congo, Democratic Rep. of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Guinea, Ghana, Liberia, Sao Tome & Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan  

–  Must apply in person to the Royal Thai Embassy in the country accredited to your country.

– If you can’t go to that embassy, we have to get approval to issue the visa from Pretoria and this process takes 1-2 months.

Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Benin, Burundi, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, Chad, China, Comoros, Cote d’ Ivore, Djibouti, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethopia, Gabon, Gambia, Guinea Biseau, Kenya, India, Iran, Iraq, Mali, Niger, North Korea, Lebanon, Libya, Nepal, Pakistan, Palestine, Rwanda, Seychelles, South Sudan, Sri Lanka, Syria, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Yemen

• Must hold permanent residence in South Africa or one of our accredited countries, namely Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Namibia, Swaziland, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
• Please submit an ORIGINAL Police Clearance Certificate from your country of residence, no older than 3 months.

Please be aware that the visa processing time can be longer than normal if you hold a passport from the countries above. 

Please download the document hereunder for the nationalities where the Visa Exemption Scheme and Visa on Arrival Scheme apply.