Hi , can I get advice please, I exited Thailand on 23-3-25 after a eight month stay , (broken up by a boarder run and two weeks in Vietnam) so in that eight month period I was in Thailand for over seven months …. I was told by immigration I cannot re-enter Thailand for a six month period….. I’m now in The Philippines wanting to book a trip to London / Heathrow,, nearly all the flights go via Bangkok ,, self transfer ….. Will I be allowed to enter Thailand as technically I have to go through customs to claim my baggage to rebook on connecting flight ?? TIA..

Is this a good time to go to Bangkok? I’m looking to spend a couple months in Asia.. was thinking of Vietnam 🇻🇳 instead since the earthquake. Thoughts?

For border run on DTV, can you go in and out in two days and its fine? I was planning to be out longer but now health situation requires me to be back. Any advice or past experience will help.

Edit: I found a lot of info already.. but which city is nicer to visit, is my remaining question..

Who would like to share their experience with application in Vietnam?

Which city would you recommend?

How long was the process?

Any peculiarities, that I should know of?

Thanks in advance for any advice!

Journey of APPROVED DTV & more.

Ho Chi Minh City, DTV Soft Power (Muay Thai), Italian passport.

Visa background:

- 2022: 60d TR + 30d extension from Italy.

- 2022: 1 year of ED visa, language.

- 2023: 60d TR + 30d extension from Laos, at DMK the officer took my passport and disappeared for 1 minute and came back without questioning.

- 2023: 1 year of ED visa, language.

- 2024: I went to HCMC for 5 days and came back Visa free (60d), at DMK the officer asked me few questions in Thai and let me go.

- 2025: I went 3 days in HCMC and came back Visa free (60d), at DMK again few questions in Thai and let me go. I extended another 30d.

- 13-03-2025: I went 3 days in HCMC and tried to enter again Visa free at DMK. The officer at the queue called other officers and they pulled me over to the back office behind the queues. They made me fill the form and I handed it to the lady sitting at the laptop. The lady never talked to me, but she wrote something on the back page of the form and my passport disappeared for more than 1 hour. I knew by then something bad was to happen. They brought me to another proper office where officers were ready with the deportation form. They were all nice to me and they listened to my explanations. All the conversations were in Thai, as I can really speak decent Thai. They phoned the big boss for let her talk to me. The big boss arrived and she was the lady who was sitting at the computer before. She wasn’t as nice as the others. Always in Thai she said that I had had enough time to travel already so she denied my entry. She said that if I wanted to come back, I had to do DTV. They made me buy the first ticket for the morning after back to HCMC and I spent the night in the detention center. Awful experience. They don’t have an ATM inside the airport, only exchange boots so I couldn’t withdraw cash from anywhere. I was aware that I couldn’t go on visa free anymore and I had already some plans to make something longer but they stopped me before. They kept my passport until I was landed in HCMC and in the queue for Vietnamese immigration. The Vietnamese officer didn’t asked me anything but stamped my passport. I was free again.

Thanks to a friend I contacted a Muay Thai gym and paid for 1 year course.

On Sunday 16/03 I applied for the visa. I submitted:

- Bio data page.

- Passport style picture.

- Proof or residence in Vietnam (screenshot of Airbnb booking).

- Letter from the school, payment receipt and school registration document combined in a single pdf.

- Statement of Italian bank account with >500k THB of 4Q24 in Italian. My bank doesn’t provide English version and they issue the document only after the quarter is ended.

- Selected “Unemployed” and filled other minor infos which I don’t remember.

The preview of the uploaded document in the system shows only the first page of the pdf.

At 5pm of Monday 17/03 I got an email asking:

- Passport pic of the Vietnamese entry stamp, which I provided. Probably I should have attached as single pdf to the bio data page.

- As the financial evidence, they accept only documents in Thai or English. If necessary, I had to make my Italian documentation translated. So I switched my Italian back account with my WISE bank account statement of last 6 months, which is in English and up to date (I didn’t think about this account before).

- Since i selected unemployed, they asked me how I think I could sustain myself. I wrote a cover letter saying that as full time student of Muay Thai I wasn’t planning to do any job in any country and I intended used my liquid funds for my living expenses. I attached again the balance of my wise account from the statement, the balance of my Thai bank account from the statement and a screenshot of my Italian bank account from the bank app (which is in English).

On Monday 24/03 at 12:30pm (5 working days after I uploaded the additional documents) they sent me the email with the approved visa.

Today 25/03 I arrived at SUV airport. At the immigration line, the officer pulled me over and brought me at the back office. A fast video recorded interview in Thai and I got stamped 180d. They only wanted to see my TM30 to verify my accommodation. No documentation needed for my visa was asked.

To be honest reading other people experience, only made me more anxious as I was afraid my history of visas and the denied entry could work against me.

I’m writing my experience to give some hope to others who might be in my similar condition.

All the best and good luck!

Hi everyone! I’m planning my move from the U.S. to Thailand later this year and would love some advice from those who’ve already made the leap. What are some important things to consider or take care of before the move and shortly after arriving?

Specifically wondering about:

• Should I bring electrical adapters or buy them there?

• Is it better to change my phone to an international plan or get a Thai SIM card?

• Should I get health insurance before leaving the U.S. or wait until I’m in Thailand?

• Any essentials I should pack that are hard to find there?

• Any unexpected surprises or tips you wish you’d known ahead of time?

Thanks so much in advance for sharing your wisdom!”**

I need your help

I bought a ticket to thailand for just less than 60 days. Now thailand will be only doing 30 day visa for canadians. Is there any suggestions please.

Just a reminder—if you frequently visit Thailand and stay for several months, like some of my wealthy friends, you might want to secure a tourist visa or DTV as soon as possible. That said, even that isn’t always a guarantee, so it’s wise to keep extra cash on hand for immigration officials. Otherwise, you could find yourself in a holding cell or on a flight back to wherever you came from. A French guy I came on my flight with was denied entry, put in the dirty detention room and had to pay $1500 for return flight @ Phuket. 

Sorry to be a pain guys , I’ve tried to find the information I wanted but couldn’t find it , some advice given was for 3 must haves you should buy in Thailand, I’m arriving on the 24th , can someone tell me the other 2 to buy ( I think one was a keep cool cream ) ? Thank you for your time & patience

I've heard that Thailand is currently making it challenging for travelers to enter the country, even for those who have obtained a visa. Can anyone provide more information or insights on this issue? Has anyone recently traveled to Thailand and encountered difficulties upon arrival? I'd appreciate any updates or advice on what to expect when planning a trip to Thailand.