Do I need to show 20,000 baht when passing through Thai immigration?

Dec 14, 2024
4 days ago
Taisto ***********
ORIGINAL POSTER
I will arrive at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport on Monday evening. I have a connecting flight on Tuesday morning, so I'll be staying overnight (one night) at a nearby hotel.

Do I need to have 20,000 baht with me when I go through immigration?
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TLDR : Answer Summary
Based on community responses, you generally do not need to have 20,000 baht in cash when going through immigration at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport, especially if you are just transiting for one night. While there is an official guideline that suggests carrying this amount for tourists, in practice, most travelers report never being asked to show cash. However, it is advisable to be prepared in case immigration officers ask for it, as outcomes can vary depending on individual circumstances.
Steve **********
No one asked me, ut I had just in case
Will ******
No not at all. I think it's a rule they keep just incase they need a reason not to let someone in
Brian *********
No one cares
Dennis **********
No
Duncanc **********
Yes
Colin *******
No
Michael *******
In 22 extended vacations over the past 24 years, sometimes with a visa and some on walkin visa exemptions, I have never ben as to show cash or onward tickets. But that doesn't mean they can't or won't ask.

My cash is in USD not Thai Baht.

Does anyone know if cash can be in any currency or if it must be in Thai Baht?
Tim *********
@Michael ******
you want be asked unless they have some other reason to challenge you. If they do ask, any currency is fine
Bill ********
No...
Jacq *****
None needed but ATMs charge an arm and a leg.
Jacq *****
@Tim ********
Has to? WOW, as if there never been a bank in Thailand.
Tim *********
Jacq *****
@Tim ********
you keep doing you. No need to know anything.
Tim *********
@Jacq ****
huh??? I transfer by Wise to my Thai bank. But the OP sounds like a tourist so has to use ATMs.
Tim *********
@Jacq ****
220 baht, £5, $6.50. You have cheap limbs
Leigh ************
No .. but inalways use the ATM machine in the airport anyway and with draw 20,000 baht without conversion
Carsten ************
@Leigh ***********
There's no ATM before passing Immigration
Michael ******
Never been asked in 15 years 3 times a year.
Bullock *********
yes
Anneleze *************
No. I have been visiting Thailand annually for the past 20 years and have never carried any cash. Never asked for it.
Baz *********
That's the official immigration policy but in multiple entries over many years I have never once been asked about funds or anything else.
Ralph *******
Officially you need it but they rarely ask. Same with an exit ticket out of Thailand, which you should have.
Bart **************
It's a law from 5 decades ago. An immigrations officer thinking he can still use it today has a bigger problem at the end of his (then last) working they than you. Can you imagine the headlines if one person got refused for having money in the bank?

It actually happened a year or so ago. They Thais started an investigation about what actually happened. It was clearly toned towards the immigrations officer's decisions being under scrutiny, not the fact that someone held money in the bank. The investigation concluded by the way the the claims were false and that the person in question was not refused entry, i.e. also not for having money in the bank. She was just a sensation seeking YouTuber. The statement dismissed the requirement as "secondary". But in the end, the headlines and media outrage that I imagined also before the incident, it was actually there ;)
Brandon ************
@Bart *************
they stamp this in passports every day. It's neither antiquated nor an incident.

Often they use this stamp without even asking about money, especially at Poipet but happens at the airports too.
Bart **************
@Brandon ***********
I'm talking about requiring to bring money cash instead of using a bank account.
Duncanc **********
@Bart *************
Bank statements or credit cards are NOT accepted. Cash only.
Bart **************
@Duncanc *********
then how do people make it in? We live in the 21st century.
Duncanc **********
@Bart *************
If you’re asked to show the money and you don’t have cash. You don’t make it in.

Hence all of these posts here about this issue.

No ATMs airside!
Bart **************
@Duncanc *********
it's a decades outdated requirement, no one can reasonably be asked to show cash entering a country. Everyone knows that, immigrations does too. Hence why they don't enforce it. And where did you see "all these" posts? Imho it is just this one.

Did you read my story and the investigation about the supposed refused entry? It was directed not at the entrant how she came without cash, it was directed at the immigrations supposedly refusing her for it. And it turned out it was made up, she wasn't denied. The to be expected outcry in the (social) media and the headlines, it was all there.
Duncanc **********
@Bart *************
OK Genius - keep telling Thai immigration they can’t decide what rules to enforce

😂

I’m sure you’re a great lawyer
Brandon ************
Steven *******
If you are dressed like a homeless person, that would be a good idea. If you’re not, you should be OK.
Bobby *******
99.9% they won’t ask for any money to be shown unless you have an extensive history in Thailand and they want a reason to deny you entry.
Juanda ****
The chance of being asked,

is minimum.

but the decisions is up to the Immigrations officers.
Tony *********
Yes just incase you get asked
Brandon ************
That's only a requirement if you're entering as a tourist, and it's only asked to show if they are looking for a reason to deny you entry. So if you've spent a large amount of time in Thailand already or made many entries, then it's a good idea to have it. Otherwise it's not something 99.999% of people need to worry about.
Byron ********
@Brandon ***********
is arrived Dec 4 on tourist visa and wasnt asked
Byron ********
@Brandon ***********
why would they
Brandon ************
@Byron *******
then they weren't trying to deny entry to you
Thomas *******
@Brandon ***********
2018-2020 3 times a year, back again after covid, 2023 3 times a year since and have never been asked about finances at all. Actually, I've never been asked about onward travel or finances. It's exactly as you say, if they're looking for a reason to deny you because of past habits then you should be prepared to show proof of whatever they might want.
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