Planning a trip outside Thailand while you have permission to stay here? A re-entry permit can preserve your existing permitted stay when you leave and return. It does not add any extra days, renew your visa, or guarantee entry if you no longer meet the applicable conditions.
Before booking or checking in: open your passport and find the date Immigration currently permits you to stay. Then check whether you already have an unexpired re-entry endorsement and whether your actual immigration category requires a new TM.8 re-entry permit. The answer depends on your current admission or extension, not simply whether someone calls your visa “Non-B”, “Non-O” or “multiple entry”.
Choose the situation that applies
| Your situation | What to check before leaving |
|---|---|
| You have a one-year extension based on work, marriage, retirement or another ground | Normally protect the still-valid extension with the appropriate re-entry permission before departure. Check both dates. |
| You plan one international trip | A single re-entry permit may be the suitable option if you are eligible. |
| You expect several trips before the same stay expires | Compare a multiple re-entry permit with repeated single applications, using the same underlying expiry. |
| You have a multiple-entry visa rather than an extension | A visa's entry validity and a re-entry permit are different documents. Have Immigration identify which admission/stay you are actually using; do not buy TM.8 blindly or assume that you are protected. |
| Your job-sponsored stay may end before you return | Re-entry permission cannot restore a stay whose underlying employment basis ends. Resolve the stay status first, even if the endorsement looks valid on paper. |
Single or multiple: exact published fees
The Immigration Bureau's published fee schedule lists:
| Permit | Official fee | Travel covered |
|---|---|---|
| Single re-entry | 1,000 THB | One departure and return under an otherwise valid stay |
| Multiple re-entry | 3,800 THB | Repeated eligible trips within the remaining period of that same permission to stay |
Simple cost example: If you expect four eligible trips before your current stay expires, four single permits would cost 4,000 THB while one multiple permit is 3,800 THB. But if your extension expires soon and you plan trips after renewal, the current multiple permit does not run for another full year by itself. Check the actual stamped dates rather than choosing only by the fee.
How to apply before travel
The Immigration Bureau's public re-entry handbook lists TM.8, your passport and a recent 4 × 6 cm photograph. It also lists relevant passport copies; older versions mention TM.6, whose practical availability can vary with current entry-processing arrangements. Prepare the copies and extra papers requested by your responsible office rather than assuming an old universal TM.6 checklist still applies.
- Identify your local Immigration office and ask whether it handles your TM.8 application for this stay category and whether you must appear personally. You can use the official Immigration office information to locate the authority for your address.
- Complete TM.8 with passport details, travel information and single/multiple choice. Have your passport, any existing stay-extension or re-entry endorsements, photograph, copies and the official fee.
- Submit before leaving Thailand, pay only the official charge and inspect the endorsement placed in your passport. Check single versus multiple, your name/passport details and the last valid date.
- When you return, check your new entry stamp and permitted-until date before leaving passport control. If it does not match the permission you expected, raise it with the Immigration officer immediately; do not assume the stamp will correct itself later.
Airport counter? Some immigration checkpoints offer re-entry processing, but counter availability, operating hours, accepted categories and required arrival time can vary. Do not depend on a particular airport service without confirming it with that checkpoint in advance. Applying through the responsible Immigration office before the trip gives more time to correct documents.
Three examples of avoidable mistakes
1. “My work extension expires next year, so I can fly without re-entry.” If the applicable category requires TM.8, departing without an appropriate re-entry permit can cause the current permitted stay to end. Your return may be treated under a different admission, rather than preserving the old extension. The old future expiry date is not sufficient.
2. “I bought a multiple permit, so I can stay another year.” No. A re-entry permit preserves, rather than extends, the stay. Suppose a family-based extension expires 30 June 2027. A multiple re-entry permit linked to that extension does not give you a new permission through June 2028. Arrange any stay renewal separately.
3. “The old employer cancelled my stay, but I still have a re-entry permit.” A re-entry permit is not a workaround for employment-based cancellation. Ask Immigration about the actual underlying status and any lawful replacement. See job exit and employer change.
Checklist to use before every trip
Save or photograph the passport stay-until date and re-entry endorsement; check the passport validity and any entry rules at the destination. Confirm the re-entry permit covers your intended return before the current permission-to-stay end date. After returning, check the entry stamp, then note that 90-day TM.47 reporting ordinarily counts anew from the latest arrival in Thailand.
Before departure: Note your current stay-until stamp, the re-entry endorsement you need and the documents and fee for the actual office or counter. If your immigration history complicates the route, show Immigration your current entry and extension stamps. Check the stamp again when you return.
Check the source and service details before you travel: Immigration's fee schedule was readable, but the full detailed handbooks could not be independently reviewed. Confirm that your current stay is eligible for the requested re-entry endorsement, and check current counter locations, service hours and required documents with the responsible Immigration office or airport. An endorsement never extends your existing permitted stay.