Thailand's cabinet approved on May 19, 2026, the termination of its 60-day visa-free entry program for travelers from 93 countries and territories introduced after the pandemic. The move replaces most of these visa-free stays with 30-day limits, with some nationalities reverting to visa on arrival or shorter 15-day stays [1, 2, 3, 4, 5].
The 60-day visa-free scheme was launched about two years ago to revive tourism following COVID-19 disruptions. It aimed to boost the sector that accounts for over 10% of Thailand's GDP and roughly one-fifth of the economy according to some estimates [1, 2, 6, 7, 4].
The rollback was driven by concerns over illegal employment, criminal activities such as drug offenses, sex trafficking, unauthorized businesses, and visa abuse by foreigners exploiting the longer allowed stays. "The current scheme has allowed some people to exploit it," government spokesperson Rachada Dhanadirek said [1, 2, 8, 4, 5].
Tourism and Sports Minister Surasak Phancharoenworakul explained the change, saying, "When the 60-day visa-free scheme for tourists from 93 countries and territories is cancelled, each country will return to its previous visa arrangement. In most cases, this means a 30-day visa-free stay, which is sufficient for the majority of tourists, whose average stay in Thailand is no more than nine days" [3].
India may receive a special 15-day visa-free stay to keep the market active, while China will keep a 30-day visa-free stay under a reciprocal agreement [3]. Tourists with 30-day visa-free stays will be able to renew once for an additional 30 days at immigration officers' discretion before needing to leave. Visitors may take one visa run per year for an extra 60 days but must re-enter with a different visa type afterward [6, 7].
The rollback accompanies a downgrade in Thailand's foreign arrival forecast for 2026, from 35 million to 32 million, marking a second consecutive annual decline [1, 2]. Tourist Alex Brady commented that the new limits "would really restrict you in what you can see" [6].
The government plans to regularly review visa policies to balance tourism recovery with security concerns. The effective date for the new visa-free stay limits has not been announced, as procedural steps like notifying foreign governments and publishing in the Royal Gazette are still pending [3, 6, 7, 4].
