PATTAYA, THAILAND – Long-term foreign residents raised fresh concerns over how Thailand’s new Destination Thailand Visa works for visa runs to Cambodia after last year’s border closures.
Letter from a concerned Pattaya resident
A long-time foreign resident in Pattaya wrote to a local outlet describing confusion over his first visa run under the new Destination Thailand Visa. In earlier years, he said, the routine had been straightforward: book a minivan, cross into Cambodia by land, get a passport stamp and return the same day at low cost.
According to the letter, this option was no longer available. The writer noted that the land border with Cambodia had been closed since a dispute between the two countries the previous year and, based on what he had heard, there was little sign that the situation would change soon.
The resident calculated that flights to Phnom Penh currently cost around 6,000 baht for a return ticket. He compared this with travel to Malaysia at more than 10,500 baht, calling the Cambodia option “still somewhat bearable” in relative terms, even if it remained a significant expense for “just a stamp” in his passport.
Uncertainty over re-entry to Thailand
The writer said his main concern was what would happen when re-entering Thailand by air after such a trip. The new visa was supposed to allow multiple entries, so he assumed this should not be a legal problem in itself.
However, he questioned whether the origin of the exit stamp would matter. In expatriate circles, he said, people often claimed that immigration officers scrutinised arrivals from certain countries more closely, and he wondered whether this might apply to Cambodia.
The resident asked for recent, concrete experiences from others using the Destination Thailand Visa for a flight-based visa run to Phnom Penh. He ended his letter by saying he would be grateful for any reports from fellow travellers.
Editorial note: borders closed, questions remain
In an editorial note, the outlet confirmed that the reader’s concerns reflected a broader debate among experienced visa-run travellers in the region. It stated that land routes to Cambodia were effectively off the table for now, as all border crossings had been closed since last year’s conflict.
Citing a statement from the Royal Thai Navy dated 15 April, the outlet reported there were no concrete plans to reopen the crossings. Travellers wishing to use Cambodia for a visa run therefore had to rely on flights.
The editorial explained that the Destination Thailand Visa formally allowed multiple entries, meaning that, in principle, returning from Cambodia should not pose a legal obstacle. At the same time, it noted that immigration officers always retained discretion over how closely they questioned arriving passengers.
The outlet said it could not say with certainty whether an exit stamp from Cambodia would prompt additional questions from border staff. It therefore passed the issue back to its readership, asking those who had recently undertaken an air-based visa run to Cambodia on the new visa to share their experiences in the comments.
“Does anyone recently have done a flight visa run to Cambodia with the Destination Thailand Visa? How did the return to Thailand go? Please tell us about your experience in the comments!”
said the editorial team, in its closing appeal.