What are the current rules on visa-exempt entries and border crossings into Thailand for 2024?

@Native ***************

Govt issued no such thing as 4 Visa Exempt entries per year. Its unlimited until immigration reject you from entering Thailand.

Reports are land entries easier than air. Also very easy when assisted by border bounce companies

it works until it doesn't.

Milking free visa exempt entry stamps will raise suspicion of living here and not travelling here. You basically asked the same question regarding your Filipino gf 4 months ago, nothing has changed.

There is no more rule in the writing that says how many times within a calendar year you can enter Thailand on a visa-exempt entry.

There aren’t any 2-times limits nor are there any 4-times limits, regardless if you enter by land, sea or air

You can take one 30-days extension on a 60-days visa exempt entry for 1900 Baht at the immigration office serving the area where you stay.

Keep in mind, after your first visa-exempt entry, across any land border you're going to run into problems trying to bounce yourself out/back to get a new free 60-days entry stamp AND even bouncing by air you could run into problems.

You could post your question on a group related to where you stay in Thailand and ask for recommendations for a service that bounces people out/back from there.

These “visa-run agencies” have it set up with the Thai side of border control, so you can benefit. They grease the palms so you can get out and back on the same day.

If you try to bounce by yourself, you should know that some crossings with Laos and Cambodia require you spend at least one night and sometimes 2 nights out of Thailand before you can come back

Flying isn't all that much better, because a short bounce out/back (a few days) isn't going to fool the Immigration officials at the passport control when you go to stamp back in. They'll know you're doing it just to get a new free 60-days entry stamp and you could be questioned about your entry.

These Immigration officers all have their own say in the matter. If you are allowed consecutive visa-exempt entries is upon their sole discretion. If Mr. Officer Somchai has a bad day, he might not like your trousers and deny entry.

To answer your question about how many times can I do a visa-exempt entry into Thailand within a calendar year, the point is, any visa exempt entry, by air or across a land border or by sea, gets you 60 days now (since July 15th, 2024) so it doesn't matter where you enter - you will get 60 days stamped – IF (!) the border officials come to the conclusion to let you back in

I am not trying to scaremonger at all, just letting you know this isn't the Thailand it was back when they were giving 30-days admitted stays when you were doing yearlong consecutive visa-exempt entries.

Even some time back, when you were guaranteed to do 2 visa-exempt entries by a land border in a calendar year, they were really easy on entries by air

But - since July 15th, 2024, when they went to 60 days for 93 countries, they got really really hard on people trying to live in Thailand long term on visa-free stamps.

They look at it as you got 60 days, you could have extended that for 30 more giving you three MONTHS here. This makes you a real tourist and not someone who tries to milk the visa-free system.

In case the officers at passport control feel you should have either applied for a long-term visa. Or they might think, if you were a real tourist, you should be going back to where you come from after these three months

That's why I say look for a service to bounce by land, as they have the wheels greased so you get out/back without hassle, that's why they cost some money for what they do.

But you should expect problems if you try that too many times consecutively. A longer stay abroad between two visa-exempt entries makes you look better. It might work or might not work. We don’t know for sure.

Best is, always have the 3 famous proofs with you:

That’s 20,000 THB or equivalent in cash, a few pre-booked nights accommodation and an onward travel proof out of Thailand within those 60 days you will get stamped in

As of July 2024 the limit was removed. There is now no limit cited in any policy. But that doesn't mean it's unlimited. Every entry is at the discretion of the immigration officer you are standing in front of, and if they feel you're not a tourist and/or you are abusing short term entries by trying to stay in Thailand long term, you'll be questioned and possibly denied entry. Many reports of this happening to people after only a single 60-day visa exempt entry with a 30-day extension.

It was not changed to 4 per year. The limit of 2 per year was removed and now it's the same as flying in

No limit on entries during the calendar year until your entries history looks suspicious to the IO and you will be questioned and/or denied entry