Thailand visa run from 15 September: only two land entries a year
From 15 September 2026, visa-exempt travellers can enter Thailand through land checkpoints only twice per calendar year; arrivals by air do not count. Which border runs still work, how to extend your 30 days locally and what overstaying costs.
Visa runs to Thailand by land are limited from 15 September 2026: under the visa exemption you can enter through land-border checkpoints no more than twice per calendar year. The rule applies to travellers on the 30-day visa exemption, including Russian and Kazakh citizens. Arrivals at airports are not subject to the limit.
Nationals of Malaysia, Brunei, Indonesia and Singapore are exempt - they can keep crossing by land without a cap. The count resets on 1 January; it is not a rolling 12 months. Once both entries are used, a third land entry is only possible with a visa.
The classic visa run from Pattaya via Cambodia is not an option anyway: all land checkpoints between Thailand and Cambodia have been closed since June 2025. From Bangkok and the northeast, Laos via the Friendship Bridge at Nong Khai remains; from Phuket and the south, Malaysia via Sadao and Padang Besar. The two-entry limit applies to both routes.
Leaving and returning by air does not count towards the limit: you can fly to a neighbouring country and fly back. With frequent back-to-back entries, the officer at passport control may ask about the purpose of your trip, a return ticket and funds, and can refuse entry if in doubt.
If you simply need to stay a little longer, you do not have to leave. The 30-day exemption can be extended once by up to 30 days at an immigration office for a fee of 1,900 baht:
Pattaya - Chonburi Immigration Office in Jomtien
Bangkok - Immigration Division 1 at the Chaeng Watthana Government Complex, Building B
Phuket - Phuket Immigration Office in Phuket Town
Do not stay longer than permitted. Overstaying costs 500 baht per day, up to a maximum of 20,000: a month of overstay comes to 15,000. If you overstay by more than 90 days and report to immigration yourself, you will be barred from re-entering for a year. If an overstayer is arrested, the entry ban is 5 years even for an overstay of less than a year.
The land-entry limit does not apply to visa holders. Visas are issued before the trip on the official e-Visa portal: a tourist visa, or the DTV for remote workers. All other visa exemption changes from 15 September are covered in our news about the 30-day visa exemption.
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