Thailand’s location in the heart of South East Asia makes it one of the area’s busiest yachting hubs and bluewater crossroads. As with every major yachting destination, Thailand has its fair share of regulations, rules and requirements for visiting boats, pleasure crafts and superyachts that wish to enter its waters.
Basic information for incoming yachts, including length of stay and dealing with the Customs Department.
Make sure that all your documents are in order and follow our simple checklist and guide.
Find out which visas are available on arrival and in advance to captains, crews and passengers.
This is by no means a comprehensive description and we strongly recommend all visitors to visit the official Thailand Immigration Bureau and the Custom Department.
Within 24 hours of arrival, the vessel’s captain and / or owner must report to the Customs Department with the following documents:
Copies of the Customs form and the Declaration & Guarantee form will be given to the captain and / or owner. This will need to be safely kept and produced when checking out.
If checking in or out during working hours, there is no fee. However, if checking in or out on Saturdays / Sundays or Public Holidays, there will be a fee.
Thai legislation now states that a vessel entering Thailand may stay for up to two and a half years. On arrival a six-month stay will be granted whilst the remaining one and a half years can be applied for via extensions. Simply wanting to stay in Thailand as a tourist is reason enough.
The Thai Yachting Business Association has provided a useful and simple infographic for easy reference.
For yacht captains and / or boat owners, they will need to provide the following documents when checking in and out of the ports of their choice:
Checking-In
Checking-Out
NOTES
If sending a representative / official agency to clear your vessel in or out of Thailand, make sure to send them with an authorisation letter from the captain to do so on their behalf.
Upon arrival, all people on board (captain, crew and passengers) must report to Immigration to have their passports stamped and where they will be granted a 30-day stay on arrival.
All people onboard the vessel will be granted a 30-day stay on arrival. Known as a “transit visa”, it is not easy to extend this visa and, should you wish to stay longer in Thailand, you will need to travel out of the country by plane or overland to obtain a new via upon re-entering. If you overstay your visa, you will need to pay a fine before your vessel is permitted to leave the country.
Visas for longer stays can be issued and are accepted if you have been signed on as a passenger, not crew. Each boat needs to have at least one crew (normally the skipper). This means that the remaining crew can be classed as passengers, who will then be granted a 30-day visa on arrival. This can be renewed twice (by plane or overland), but only for 15 days at a time, making a total stay of 60 days.
Please note, that all persons arriving by boat are expected to leave on the same vessel. It is possible for crew or passengers to leave by different means of transport but this involves extra paperwork and expensive (although slightly more straightforward for passengers).
Life is much easier if you obtain a 60-day visa (which can then be extended for another 30-days) before you arrive in Thailand. 60-days visas can be obtained at almost all international Thai Embassies and, although you will to provide significantly more documents than a normal 30-day visa, the process is (usually) pain free. If you need to extend this visa for an additional 30-days, you will need to go to the local Immigration Bureau with two passport photographs, a copy of your passport ID page, a copy of the page with your entry stamp and a copy of your 60-day visa itself. Prepare to wait for a couple of hours and pay an additional 1,900 Baht.
All yacht crew (not passengers) leaving Thailand not on the vessel they arrived in must declare the dates of departure with the local Immigration Bureau and pay a security bond. This refundable bond is 20,000 Baht and can be paid at any Thai bank by opening a special account. This bond is in case the person decides to not leave the country and, therefore, overstay their visa. If this happens, the bond is confiscated by the Immigration Bureau and can be used to deport the person when found or, alternatively, held as a fine for breaking their original declaration.
When applying for permission to sign off your vessel, crew members will need to bring their outgoing air ticket – or bus ticket – to show from which airport – or border crossing – they are leaving from. This will allow Immigration to fill out a document that is specific to the airport – or border crossing – of departure and date. This document must then be handed to Immigration at the airport – or border crossing – to allow them to stamp crew members out of the country.
Please note that the bond only applies to whoever Immigration consider as crew and that there must be at least one crew left on the boat. All other passengers can leave the country anyway they like without requiring a security bond.
When a crew member returns to Thailand, their bond money will be refunded to them by Immigration in their port of entry, minus a 200 Baht fee.
There are a wide range of different visas issued by various Thai embassies and consulates. Incoming yachts are advised to check with their nearest Thai embassy or consulate for the latest information and which visas are available. There is now a Thai consulate in Langkawi, however, the long-established Penang is still more convenient and has a good reputation for granting visas.
Immigration
Immigration charge between 200 and 300 Baht for clearing in and for clearing out. On Saturdays and Sundays or on Public Holidays this goes up to 500 Baht. The bond for someone arriving by yacht and listed as crew but who plans to leave the country by other means is 20,000 Baht (cash).
Customs
Customs charge between 200 and 300 Baht on departure only. However, on Saturdays and Sundays or on Public Holidays this goes up to 800 Baht on inward clearance and 1,000 Baht on departure.
Harbour Master
The Harbour Master (Port Control) charges 100 Baht on departure only (although this varies with the port). All provide correct receipts. If you check in on Saturdays and Sundays or on Public Holidays extra fees apply with both Customs and Immigration. Make sure you have the correct money and try not to turn up with 1,000 Baht bills.
Other Fees
There is a daily charge for visiting National Parks (including National Marine Parks). These increased in February 2015.
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