If you’re headed to Thailand after Cambodia, you won’t necessarily need to get a visa in advance. Thailand offers a 30-day visa-free stay for 56 nationalities that can be extended once for an additional 30 days for 1,900 baht, which is about $60. If you’d like to stay longer, or if you’ve already entered Thailand a few times, you’ll need to get a visa for Thailand in Cambodia.
Heading to Thailand?
How to get a visa for Thailand in Cambodia
If you are planning to get a visa for Thailand while you’re in Cambodia, there are two ways to do it. If it is your first Thai visa, you can take you passport to any local travel agent in Phnom Penh and they can get it for you. Most Cambodian travel agents will not deal with customers with multiple visas who may be trying to live in Thailand illegally. If you are thinking of trying Cambodia for a visa run from Thailand, know that the Phnom Penh embassy has a reputation for being quite strict.
If you get your visa directly from the Thai Embassy, it’s possible to get a 60-day tourist visa for Thailand in Phnom Penh for most nationalities, including Americans, Irish, British and Australians. Generally the visas issued are single entry, but some have reported getting double entry visas. Application forms are available online or at the embassy and you’ll need to supply a passport photo, but they can be obtained easily for $2 or less in Cambodia. With your application you’ll be asked to supply your proposed address in Thailand, your date and means of arrival, and proof of onward travel. You may also be asked to show evidence of financial savings of 20,000 baht per person or 40,000 baht per family, but a bank statement will suffice.
The visa takes three business days and costs $40 (remember that the embassy is closed for both Cambodian and Thai national holidays, and there are a lot of them). If you do not have the above information, particularly proof of onward travel, they will not issue you a visa. Those with multiple visas may also be asked for additional proof that they are traveling for the purpose of tourism and intend to return to their home country.
Royal Thai Embassy, Phnom Penh.
If you’d like to use a travel agent instead, one recommended agent is Cina Travel in Phnom Penh. The cost is $55, and you’ll need to deliver it before 10 a.m. to get it back in three days (because they need to get it to the embassy by 11 a.m.). They will only be able to get visas for those who have not had multiple previous Thai visas. You’ll need to bring proof of a hotel booking in Thailand, evidence of a flight out of Thailand to show you aren’t planning on staying, three months of bank statements, and a 4x6cm photo with a white background.
Also, citizens of certain countries including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and any country in Africa, will additionally need to prove that they have the right to live and work in Cambodia and show a copy of their work permit, employment letter, and a copy of business registration and tax patent of the company they work for.
In other words: Cambodia is not the place to get a visa if you are trying to live in Thailand illegally.
If you’re in Siem Reap, you will need to go to Phnom Penh for a visa. We checked with expat favorite travel agent, Sopheak Na Travel, and she explained that they no longer handle Thai visas for customers, and that people must apply themselves at the embassy. It’s possible other travel agents in Siem Reap may be willing to get a Thai visa for you, but it’s probably safer to just go to the embassy yourself.
Cambodian citizens get a 14-day visa-free exemption if they are traveling by air or plane.
You can only do two visa-exempt land border crossings to Thailand per year.
Things to know about crossing the border from Cambodia to Thailand
There are a few things that are important to know about going from Cambodia to Thailand. First, you can only cross overland (ie. by road rather than by plane) twice per year using the visa-free exemption mentioned above. They are very strict about this, and if you have more than two stamps in your passport, you will not be allowed to enter the country. If you have already crossed overland twice, you will need to go to the embassy and get a visa, or it may be easier and cheaper just to fly. You can enter Cambodia through the airport up to 6 times on a visa-free exemption.
There’s also a requirement that has long been on the books but has started being enforced more regularly, particularly at land crossings. It states that you need to have a passport with at least 6 month’s validity, proof of onward travel, and “adequate finances equivalent to at least 10,000 Baht per person or 20,000 Baht per family.” Although it is not specified that cash in hand is required (a credit card with a 10,000 baht limit should theoretically suffice) this is one way that they stop people from entering that they don’t want to enter.
I was once stopped at the Thai border at Poipet/Aranyaprathet and held for an hour with an officer who didn’t speak much English and kept shouting “pocket money! pocket money!” at me over and over. I was unaware of the requirements to enter, and sat there confused, having no idea what they wanted from me. When I finally pulled all of the cash I had on hand out of my purse, I was eventually allowed to enter (and they let me keep all of it).
It’s important to note that the current Thai government is cracking down on expats who are attempting to live in Thailand using successive tourist visas. If you are attempting to do a visa run or live in Thailand illegally, be prepared to be hassled at the border and potentially turned away.
For more details about Thai visas, check out Travelfish. I’m not going into every last detail here because this post is focused on visa issues for those traveling from Cambodia, but not Thai visa issues in general, which are covered on Travelfish.
Royal Thai Embassy, Phnom Penh
Hours for visa applications: 9:30 a.m. to 11 a.m.
Hours for visa collection: 3 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.
196 Norodom Blvd, Phnom Penh
T: 023 726 306
thaiembassy.org/phnompenh
Cina Travel
129Eo Street 130, Psar Cha, Daun Penh, Phnom Penh
T: 023 998 775; 023 998 774
E: cinatravel@cinatravel.com.kh
Hi Lina,
I am currently teaching in Thailand on an ED visa. I have to make a visa run in order to switch to a tourist visa, which I will change over to a Non B once in Thailand. My question is how strict are they on proof of onward travel? I obviously plan on staying in Thailand for a bit, and I didn’t know if there was a way to work around this. I am taking your recommendation and plan on going through Lucky! Lucky! in hopes maybe they can get this sorted out.
Thanks for your help in advance!
You can buy a cheap bus ticket to Cambodia to show proof of onward travel, but I have never been asked to show proof of onward travel. However, they are being much stricter with people who are attempting to live in Thailand on tourist visas, so it might be best for you to get proof of onward travel just in case. Lucky Lucky will be able to tell you if you need it.
regarding the onward travel requirement, I am planning on extending my visa by 30 days once in Thailand, so are they stingy on the date? if I show a ticket 90 days ahead rather than 60 is that going to be an issue?
Hi Lina,
I emailed lucky shop about a 60 day tourist visa. They quoted $50 and 3 day wait but mentioned “we need your fly ticket from thailand to another country”. I’m not sure but i am guessing if i persist or pay a little extra they can get it without that. When i go to board the plane back to thailand though i am worried they will ask to see the ticket there too? How do people work around this? Im sure all these people living on visa runs dont have tickets out as they live here? Right?
i just not sure what i want to do yet so i dont want to book a flight home at this stage.
You don’t need to book a flight home, you can book a ticket back to Cambodia, even a bus ticket if you want. The standard of proof is not high, and there are many easy workarounds to this problem.
Hi Lina
I would like to know if the Lucky!Lucky can issue non o visa for thailand? And if so, how much will it cost?
Thanks
Freanny
I’m currently en route to Cambodia from Bangkok. I was stamped into Thailand two weeks ago with an on arrival 30day tourist visa being from the US. I want to extend my trip for another 7 weeks in Thailand. Can I go to Lucky Lucky to get a 60day visa for this? Or is that not possible since I already had a 30day issued? (I have a flight booked back to Thailand in one week and a flight booked back to the US in 7weeks from now). Thank you!
Thank you.
There are never any guarantees, but I don’t think you’ll having any problems with this.
So going to Lucky Lucky would just relieve the hassle of the embassy? And can rush it?
Right. And usually requires less paperwork.
Thank you so much. This has eased my stress immensely.
Their fee plus the $60, correct?
Sorry, I don’t understand your question. Lucky Lucky fees are listed in the post. Sometimes they change by a couple of bucks depending on who you speak to, but prices quoted above are current.
Hi there, I have just read your page too & have the same question as Kate please, you mention it costs $60 for a 60 day visa from the embassy in PP then lower down the Lucky Lucky prices are listed if you chose to use their services instead of arranging it in person. Can you then confirm that the Lucky Lucky prices is their admin/service fee ON TOP of the official $60 visa fee?? Many thanks for your advise :)
The prices quoted are the total cost, in some instances it’s cheaper to use a travel agent than the embassy.
I am traveling with my girlfriend who holds a (Mexican Passport) and received a single entry visa to Thailand and this was stamped as USED when we entered Thailand. We had plan to visit Thailand only but decided to visit Luan Prabang Laos, Siem Reap Cambodia and back to Thailand. We assumed that we didn’t need additional visas to get back into Thailand until we arrived at the airport this morning and we were told we could not board the plane back to Thailand. We are currently in Siem Reap, Cambodia and will be flying to Phonm Pehn to go to the Thai Embassy. What would you recommend?
Thank you in advance!
Antonio
You’ll need to get a new visa, but I guess you know that now! You might try talking to Hola Travel (http://www.holacambodia.com/) they specialize in Cambodia travel for Spanish speakers, so they may know the visa regulations for Mexican citizens. It’s possible they can take care of this from Siem Reap without you having to go to Phnom Penh.
I am planning to visit Cambodia in December need to know that we don’t have embassy of Vietnam and Laos in Pakistan.can I apply both countries visa in Cambodia.do you know any travel agency dealing with Pakistani passport.
one more thing can i travel by road to vietnam,thailand and laos from Cambodia or not if get visa.
I have just come across this site and found this really helpful. I’d just like some clarification just for my own piece of mind, when travelling to Thailand overland will I be able to get a 30 day visa as I intend to stay around 3 weeks in the south. I’m from the UK and as I’ve read it I can but several other sites and blogs have conflicting information and I’d just like to check before turning up at the border
Hey Ben, my last overland trip from Cambodia was in August, and I got 30 days. My understanding is that the 30 day visa free scheme has been back in place for a year, with an exception of a few weeks. You can check on the Thai Visa forum for more up-to-date info, but as far as I know, it’s 30 days.
Hey Lina,
I wrote some weeks ago to get some information about applying for the Thai Visa at Lucky! Lucky! So, no problem at all! You have to arrive before 11 am to be able to apply for the visa on that same day. You give them your passport, two photos and the money depending on the days. At first they wanted to charge us 65$ for the 2-day processing, but we told them, we had spoken with their boss and he had told us 58$. They agreed and we had our 60 days-single entry-Thai Visa within the next day at 5pm. Professional people with a smile on their faces when attending you. Would definitely recommend them :) Thanks for your help!
Great! Glad to help.
I did 30 days in Thailand in May/June. Then 30 days in Cambodia. 30 days Vietnam. Another 30 in Cambodia. I then did a border cross at Poipet to Thailand and got a 30 day tourist and then got 30 day extension. I am trying to decide if I should go all the way to Phnom Penh to get a 60 day tourist or just cross the border again at Poipet and do the same 30 + 30. Do you think they will be suspicious if I try to do a same day border cross or should I go all the way to Phnom Penh?
Did you get an extension in Poipet or just a second visa-free arrival back-to-back? Honestly, I can’t tell you how Thai authorities will view your case, but I think it you did two back-to-back tourist visas, trying to do another two is probably risky, because it does appear you are trying to live in Thailand for four months without a proper visa. You’ll probably be able to get more detailed information on a forum like thaivisa.com, though.
I got my extension at the Thai immigration office about a week before my 30 days was up.
I didn’t do two back-to-back tourist visas. I did 1 walk-on visa at airport in May. Then I did 1 tourist border crossing in September (Poipet). A couple weeks ago I got a 30 day extension in here in Thailand. It expires in November.