Thailand Cuts Visa-Free Stay From 60 To 30 Days For UAE & 92 Other Countries

Anyone in the UAE planning a long Thailand holiday may need to rethink their itinerary a bit. Thailand has decided to end its 60-day visa-free stay scheme for travellers from 93 countries and territories, including the UAE, and bring the limit back down to 30 days.

Thailand Cuts Visa-Free Stay For UAE Travellers From 60 Days To 30

The decision was approved by the Thai government earlier this week as part of wider visa rule changes aimed at tightening entry controls and reorganising how foreign visitors enter the country.

So basically, the temporary 60-day arrangement is going away, and the older 30-day system is coming back instead.

Longer Holidays May Get Harder Now

For many travellers from the UAE, the 60-day visa-free period has made Thailand an easy option for extended breaks, remote work trips or even multi-city travel around Southeast Asia.

Once the new rules officially take effect, visitors from countries covered under the revised policy will mostly be allowed to stay for only 30 days without a visa. Authorities said the changes will start 15 days after they are formally published.

Also, Thailand is trimming down the number of countries eligible for some visa exemptions altogether. Visa-on-arrival access is being reduced quite heavily too, dropping from 31 countries to only four.

UAE Residents Will Need To Check Their Passport Rules

One thing that may confuse some people in the UAE is that residency status won’t matter here. Thailand will look at your passport nationality, not where you currently live.

So a UAE resident holding an Indian, British or Lebanese passport, for example, will need to follow the rules linked to that nationality.

The affected list includes several major travel markets like the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom, Japan and France.

That said, travellers who want to stay longer than 30 days still have options. Thai authorities confirmed that electronic visas and other extension routes will continue to be available.

Also Read: UAE: Here’s How You Can Find Out If You’re Eligible For An Entry Without A Visa

More Planning, Probably More Spending Too

For frequent travellers, this may not sound huge at first. But shorter visa-free stays usually mean extra paperwork, visa fees or tighter travel schedules.

Some people may simply shorten their trips. Others might apply for additional visas before travelling, especially if they have already booked longer stays or plan to work remotely from Thailand for a while.

Also, travel agencies expect many visitors to start reorganising their plans over the next few weeks, especially families travelling during school holidays or people combining Thailand with nearby destinations.

Cover Image Courtesy: CanvaPro/ carmengabriela from Getty Images