Do Thai citizens receive passport stamps when traveling to Laos, Cambodia, and Malaysia?

@Ni**

Except when using autogates.

@Jack ***************

Yes absolutely and Thai officials love their stamps anyway.

@Brook *******

Thai citizens don't "surrender" their passport. Either they use a passport, for which they are required to get stamped out, otherwise the neighboring country won't stamp them in. That stated, with the new autogates going up at some land border crossings, stamps might soon no longer be required.

For local travel using a border pass, no passport is required as an ID card is used instead. For such travel, only short visits to either the neighboring city (in the case of Myanmar) or province (in the case of Laos) is allowed. For Cambodia and Malaysia, a border pass may allow travel across one or two provinces or states but only for residents of border provinces. Everyone else must have a passport.

@Steve *******

yes that's why I was surprised as I've crossed most land borders Thailand shares with its neighbors at one point or another hence I'm quite familiar with the procedures including also what Thais require. How many years ago did you cross there with your wife? Anyway, free border pass or not, avoid Chong Mek for now, mainly because the Lao side is such a mess! Didn't have the greatest experience leaving there recently. The Thai side was great though.

@Steve *******

must be one of the few crossings where a border pass is free for Thais though. At most others, there's a fee involved. I've crossed with Thais through Chong Mek and many times alone or with friends of other nationalities. Thais always with passports though. Right now the Lao side of the border is undergoing renovations, with a new building just finished but the second one yet to take shape..it's a mess. You can't even exchange Kip back to Baht except via ladies that come up to you at immigration or unofficially through the duty free store.

@Paul ******

I can talk only of Chong Mek. I've not looked at other crossings

@Steve *******

that is interesting because border passes almost always cost something. Each border seems to have different rules and costs and it depends on whether one applies for a day pass or week pass (or in some cases a 2 week pass is offered). At the Mae Sai and Mae Sot border crossings, Thais pay 30 Baht for a day pass. I'm not sure how much a weekly pass costs, might be 50 Baht..at Tachilek, the Burmese side grants foreigners 2 weeks, so presumably Thais can request a 2 week pass from the border pass office there. Lao borders are similar but yeah each one is different. Since my wife and Thai friends I've traveled with to neighboring countries (all 4 of them) generally travel with passports I don't normally pay attention to border pass requirements except at the Burmese borders. This is due to the dual system Myanmar employs- border pass for short stays using an ID card. Passport must have a visa in it for travel beyond the border (for Thais). Currently, Thais can only use the border pass option for entry into Myanmar by land except for Mae Sai, where a passport is recognized.

@Steve *******

One time, 3 Thai friends and I went to Laos. With passports, since we were intending on heading out of Vientiane capital. In the end, we drove up to Nam Ngeum lake but stayed overnight for the 2 nights we were there in Vientiane.

Anyway, out of our party, one girl didn't realize her passport was about to expire, with just 4 months left. She was forced to get a border pass, which cost 120 Baht, took half an hour to process and allowed a stay in Vientiane prefecture only of 3 days and 2 nights, sufficient for our trip. On the Lao side another fee of something like 100 Baht was applicable. My other Thai friends didn't pay anything on either side of the border. This is further proof that a border pass just isn't worth it, except at locals only crossings or those with Myanmar, which operate a dual system, one for local travel and a secondary one, which is the same as for other foreigners, which requires a passport and visa.

@Steve *******

even for a border bounce, she would have been better off using a passport, which is free. Otherwise, fees are applicable for both the border pass on the Thai side and entry on the Lao side.

@Steve *******

Passports are needed for most travel - unless as you say it's a quick one day trip to a neighboring town or city, but even then a passport is better. This is because with a border pass, the applicant usually has to apply in a nearby office before the border, pay a fee and wait for it to be processed. So even if just a border bounce, a Thai is better off using a passport.