Thailand has been the classic winter sun destination for years: warm when home is grey, affordable, and well connected by air. Two things changed this year about getting in, and you notice both before you have properly landed. You can stay for less time without a visa, and you have to fill in a digital arrival card in advance.
What changed on 15 September 2026
Thailand published new rules in the Royal Gazette at the end of August 2026. Since 15 September, travellers entering visa-free may stay 30 days instead of 60. It affects visitors from around sixty countries and territories, including most of Europe, the UK, the US, Canada and Australia.
A few things worth knowing:
- Extensions are usually still possible. At an immigration office in Thailand you can generally ask for another thirty days. It costs a fee and a morning of your holiday.
- Tourism only. The visa exemption is explicitly meant for holidays, not for work or business meetings.
- Staying longer? Sort it before you go. For two months or more, look into a tourist visa at a Thai consulate before departure. That is a lot calmer than arranging it on the road.
Entry rules change more often than you would think, so check your own government's travel advice shortly before you leave.
The digital arrival card (TDAC)
The paper slips you used to fill in on the plane have been replaced by the Thailand Digital Arrival Card. It is mandatory for everyone entering the country, whether you travel visa-free or already hold a visa.
How it works:
- You submit it online, within 72 hours of arrival. Not earlier.
- It is free and goes through the official Thai immigration website.
- You get a confirmation with a QR code, which you show on arrival.
Watch out for the many sites offering to "handle it for you" for twenty or thirty euros. It is the exact same form with a middleman attached. Find the official immigration page and fill it in yourself, it takes five minutes.
If you fly through Bangkok on to Koh Samui or Phuket, you fill in the card once for your arrival in Thailand. If you leave the country later in your trip and come back, say for a few days in Laos or Cambodia, that second entry needs its own arrival card.
Why you want data for this
You fill in the arrival card at home on your own wifi. In practice it always resurfaces at a moment when you have no wifi at all:
- Your flight is rebooked, your arrival date no longer matches, and you have to resubmit from the airport.
- The border officer asks for the QR code and your mail refuses to load.
- You want to fill in the card for your second entry at a land border, halfway through a bus ride.
With an eSIM you are simply online in all of those situations. You set it up at home, and on landing you switch on data roaming for your eSIM profile. Your own SIM stays in the phone, so your regular number keeps receiving bank codes and messages from home.
How much data for Thailand?
| Type of trip | Estimated usage |
|---|---|
| Two weeks of beaches and islands | 5-10 GB |
| Bangkok, Chiang Mai and islands (3 weeks) | 10-20 GB |
| Longer stay or working remotely | 20 GB or more |
On the islands you lean on your own data more than you expect: bungalows and beach bars do have wifi, but rarely fast wifi. Not sure what you need? The data calculator works it out in half a minute.
How to sort it before you go
- Order your bundle. Pick an eSIM for Thailand that matches your trip length.
- Scan the QR code at home, on your own wifi. Installing takes a couple of minutes.
- Submit the arrival card in the 72 hours before your flight, and keep a screenshot of the confirmation.
- Switch on data roaming for your eSIM when you land. That is it.
Frequently asked questions
Do children need their own arrival card? Yes, every traveller needs one, including babies. You can submit them together as a group in one session.
What if my flight is delayed and I arrive a day later? Submit the card again with the correct date. It is free, so there is no downside.
Can I make calls with the eSIM? Our bundles are data-only. You call over WhatsApp or through your own SIM. Immigration only needs data.
Is 30 days tight for a longer trip? For most holidays, no. If you are really touring Southeast Asia, look at a regional bundle that also covers Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia.
Conclusion
Thailand has not become harder to enter, it has become more of a "sort it in advance" destination. Thirty days visa-free and a digital arrival card within 72 hours of departure are both easy enough, as long as you do not forget them. And make sure you are online from the runway, because arrival is exactly when you do not want to depend on airport wifi.
Heading to Thailand? Compare the eSIM bundles for Thailand and set one up before you leave.