Thread: How many days is 90 days?

I am planning a 90 day stay next year and am about to book flights. I have more than 90 days off work, we need to arrive on a certain day and will want to stay as long as possible due to Songkran. So I want to stay 90 days, but don't want to inadvertently stay 91 days and be sent to the naughty corner.

How does Thai immigration calculate the days you've stayed? Logic tells me if I arrive on Monday and depart on Tuesday I have stayed one day, but that word 'logic'...

Our flight will arrive at 01.00 and we'll depart in the evening anyway, so it is not a stretch to count both arrival and departure days as one day each.

I'd rather cut the trip one day short than stuff around with a border run.

Cheers.

You must depart the day before your 90 days expires. The date of validity stamped in your passport does not belong to you, it belongs to immigration and they will charge you Bt 1000 if you leave on that date.

I'm pretty sure your "arrive on Monday and depart on Tuesday" scenario would count as two days, ie, the days in country, not the hours.

Originally Posted by chassamui

You must depart the day before your 90 days expires. The date of validity stamped in your passport does not belong to you, it belongs to immigration and they will charge you Bt 1000 if you leave on that date.

Thank you for the reply.

Good reply too - I was going to ask to clarify with examples, but I have looked at my passport instead and see what you are getting at:

My last visit was on a 30 day visa-free entry.
- Date of arrival 8 April
- Admitted until 7 May

Counting 8 April itself there are 23 days left in the month. Plus the seven days in May gives us 30 days. But I am only admitted until that 30th day, so really only allowed 29 nights in the country.

Both arrival and departure days are counted as one day each. Arrive on Monday, depart on Tuesday = two days.

Bugger.

They have a rocket scientist at immigration...He's Thai, but he usually does a good job...

^ But you are not intending to come here until next year, so that will give immigration the time to change the system a few times by then

Nev is correct.
It's 500 baht per day if you overstay, and if it's just a few days then the process to pay it is routine. Takes five minutes just the other side of the immigration desks.

Originally Posted by cyrille

Nev is correct.
It's 500 baht per day if you overstay, and if it's just a few days then the process to pay it is routine. Takes five minutes just the other side of the immigration desks.

Yeah I know the fine is not much, but I'd rather avoid any "black marks" due to overstay lest it causes me problems down the track when I'm on a spouse or retirement visa. You never know, they may be looking for excuses to toss us out one day or something.

Well take Nevs sterling advice then and count the day you enter as day one, even if its 11.55pm

I think it goes by "roots"...According to SP, anyway...

Pull a single entry tourist visa from a thai consulate BEFORE you wing your way here.

You'll get stamped in for 59 days when you arrive it's really 60 days, BUT the day you arrive (no matter what time) is day ONE.

Then go to the immigration office and get a 30 day extension for 1900baht. <-They add 30 days onto your existing admitted until stamp.

That's as close to 90 as you're gonna get.

The reason I suggest you get a tourist visa BEFORE you come here is; since Dec 31st, 2016 they passed a rule were you can only "border-bounce" for a 30 day visa exempt stamp by a land border crossing TWO times in a calendar year.

Getting the tourist visa buys you as close to 90 days as you can get (stamped in for 60 + a 30 day extension at the immigration office for 1900baht)

PLUS if you needed to you could apply for another extension (which would be denied) BUT they'd sell you the "extension denied" 7 days to get outta dodge stamp for another 1900baht

^ The 60 days single entry + 30 day extension was always the plan. I've used that same visa before, but for a 50-something days stay (didn't need the extension).

Food for thought re the seven day 'get out of dodge' though, thanks. Ideally I'd like to have around 94 days in Thailand. When I apply for the initial 30 day extension though, are they going to want proof of my onward travel? Coz I'll only have a ticket for a flight 35 days later.

A day is a day to Thai Immigration. I had a 2 month Visa. I was thinking 2 months, forgetting there was 31 days in October. Cost 1000 thB fine ... essentially they give you a nother 30 day visa for 1000 thB ... but I was at Friendship Bridge enroute to Laos.

Originally Posted by cdnski12

A day is a day to Thai Immigration. I had a 2 month Visa. I was thinking 2 months, forgetting there was 31 days in October. Cost 1000 thB fine ... essentially they give you a nother 30 day visa for 1000 thB ... but I was at Friendship Bridge enroute to Laos.

I don't quite follow your comment. I take it you had a 60 day tourist visa, mistakenly thought it was for two months and were on a 2 day overstay when you stamped out of thailand.

Your statement "essentially they give you a nother 30 day visa for 1000thb" is incorrect.

If all you were doing is "border-bouncing" <-stamping out of thailand, stamping in&out of another country, then back into thailand, to get a 30 day "visa exempt entry" there is NO cost associated with it.
You were fined for a 2 day overstay it would seem

Yes, the confusion there seems kind of multi-layered.