Extension of the Period for Permission of Certain Groups of Aliens to Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand as a Special Case
On 20 September 2022, the Cabinet has approved a draft “Notification of the Ministry of Interior regarding the Extension of the Period for Permission of Certain Classes of Aliens to Stay in the Kingdom of Thailand as a Special Case” which was proposed by the Ministry of Interior.
This notification is intended to stimulate the tourism industry in Thailand and the tourist spending during their stay in the Kingdom of Thailand in order to restore the economy in regard to the tourism industry and remedy the impact of the epidemic Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) situation.
This notification was issued by virtue of Section 17 of the Immigration Act B.E. 2522, with important principles of extending the period of permission for certain types of aliens to stay in the Kingdom of Thailand as a special case as follows:
- For aliens who entered the Kingdom of Thailand temporarily for tourism purposes under Article 6, paragraph 2 of the Ministerial Regulations prescribing Rules, Procedures, and Conditions for Inspection, Exemption and Change of Type of Visa B.E.2545 (2002) (“Ministerial Regulations”), i.e.aliens who apply for a visa at the immigration checkpoint or visa on arrival, are permitted to stay in the Kingdom of Thailand not exceeding 30 days.
- Aliens holding a passport of countries whose government has entered into an agreement with the Thai government in regard to visa exemption regarding the period of stay of not exceeding 30 days according to Article 13(1) of the Ministerial Regulations are permitted to stay in the Kingdom of Thailand not exceeding 45 days.
- Aliens entering the Kingdom of Thailand for temporary who are exempted from visa type Por. 30 according to Article 13(3)(a) of the Ministerial Regulations are permitted to stay in the Kingdom of Thailand for a maximum period of 45 days.
This notification will be enforced from 1 October 2022 to 31 March 2023, in order to encourage visitors to Thailand and increase tourist spending. This will help to restore the economy in regard to the tourism industry and remedy the impact of the epidemic COVID-19 situations.
Author: Panisa Suwanmatajarn, Managing Partner