Thai Overstay Rules and Penalties

The rules and penalties for anyone who overstays their current visa in Thailand

We have been receiving a lot of emails following the article we did about overstays last week. If you are unsure about the rules and penalties, please read below for a detailed explanation.

If you are in need of any help or advice with an overstay problem, we will be happy to help with this and you can get in touch at [email protected]

1. If you have already overstayed beyond the permitted date and do not leave the country before the order’s enforced date (20 March 2016), you will be banned from re-entering the Kingdom of Thailand as shown in the details below:
   

   Alien Surrendered to Authorities:

   1. An alien who overstays more than 90 days beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 1 year, starting from the departure date.
   2. An alien who overstays more than 1 year beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 3 years, starting from the departure date.
   3. An alien who overstays more than 3 years beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 5 years, starting from the departure date.
   4. An alien who overstays more than 5 years beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 10 years, starting from the departure date.

   Alien Being Arrested and Prosecuted:

   1. An alien who is caught overstaying less than or exactly 1 year beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 5 years, starting from the departure date.
   2. An alien who is caught overstaying more than 1 year beyond his/her permitted date will be banned from re-entering the country for 10 years, starting from the departure date.
2. If you have already overstayed beyond your permitted date before the order’s enforced date (20 March 2016), you may surrender to the authorities at the Immigration Checkpoint (land border, seaport, and airport). You must pay a fine of 500/day, but not exceeding 20,000 baht before you are allowed to leave the Kingdom of Thailand.