Moving to Thailand from the US

Visiting

Since 15 September 2026, US passport holders can enter Thailand without a visa for tourism only, for up to 30 days. One extension of up to 30 days is at the immigration officer's discretion. Entries by land on the exemption are limited to two a calendar year.

• Every foreign visitor, including those entering visa-free, completes the Thailand Digital Arrival Card online within three days before arriving.

Sources: Royal Thai Embassy, Royal Thai Consulate-General, Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT Newsroom). Checked 15 October 2026.

Staying longer

The Destination Thailand Visa (DTV) lasts five years with multiple entries. Each entry allows 180 days, and you can apply once at immigration to extend by another 180 days. After that you must leave and re-enter. The embassy pages do not say whether you may serve Thai clients, and the DTV is not a Thai work permit.

• The test is a balance, not an income. The Washington embassy asks for savings or checking statements for the last three months, each ending with the minimum balance. To be safe, hold more than THB 510,000 at the end of every month, about US$15,200 at the Bank of Thailand rate of 9 October 2026.
• The Long-Term Resident (LTR) visa is set as an income instead. To be safe, plan for more than US$81,000 a year on average over two years, or more than US$41,000 with a master's degree or higher.
• The LTR Work-from-Thailand category is for employees of a listed company, or of one with at least three years of operation and US$50 million in combined revenue over three years. Freelancers do not fit it as written.
• Working for a Thai company needs a Non-Immigrant B visa with a Ministry of Labour approval letter (WP32).

Sources: Royal Thai Embassy, Thailand Board of Investment (BOI), Bank of Thailand. Checked 11 October 2026.

Documents, fees and timing

All three visas are applied for online through the Thai e-Visa system and paid by credit card. The fees are $400 for the DTV, $1,600 for the LTR after Board of Investment endorsement, and $80 for the Non-Immigrant B. The Washington DTV page gives no processing time and warns that unclear or missing uploads delay it.

• DTV: a passport valid for six months, a recent photo, proof of current location, three months of bank statements, proof of work (an employment contract or certificate, or a portfolio for freelancers) and a criminal record clearance such as an FBI certificate issued within three months.
• LTR: a Board of Investment endorsement letter, valid for 60 days, addressed to the Washington embassy.
• Non-Immigrant B: the WP32 approval letter and three months of statements, each ending above a minimum balance. To be safe, plan for more than US$1,100.

Sources: Royal Thai Embassy, Thailand Board of Investment (BOI). Checked 11 October 2026.

Tax

Thailand treats you as a tax resident after about 180 days in a calendar year, and a resident is taxed on foreign income brought into Thailand. The Revenue Department's 2024 return guide applies this to foreign income earned from 1 January 2024 onwards and remitted to Thailand in the same or a later year. US citizens abroad generally file on worldwide income, and you can usually take Thai tax as a credit, but not on income you exclude.

• Thai rates on net income: nothing on the first THB 150,000, then 5% rising in steps to 30% between THB 2 million and 5 million, and 35% above THB 5 million.
• The 2026 foreign earned income exclusion limit is $132,900. The physical presence test needs 330 full days abroad within 12 months.
• Foreign accounts above $10,000 in total at any point in the year need an FBAR. A Thai account counts toward that threshold.
• The treaty settles dual residence by permanent home and then centre of vital interests, but its saving clause lets the US keep taxing its citizens.

Sources: The Revenue Department (Thailand), Internal Revenue Service, Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), US Social Security Administration, Royal Thai Embassy, Thailand Board of Investment (BOI). Checked 15 October 2026.

Setting up

The US State Department highly recommends travel insurance and asks you to check that it covers evacuation assistance and medical care. The Washington DTV page lists no insurance requirement, and the LTR asks for health insurance of at least US$50,000, or current Thai social security benefits, or a bank balance held for 12 months (to be safe, more than US$110,000). We found no official prices for private insurance, so that cost is unknown.

• If you have income taxable in Thailand, apply for a tax identification number on form L.P. 10.1 within 60 days of first earning it, at a revenue office.
• Your landlord must notify immigration within 24 hours of your arrival at the property (form TM.30).
• If you stay more than 90 days, report your address to immigration every 90 days, within 7 days either side. Reporting late carries a fine of THB 2,000, and at least THB 4,000 if you are arrested before you report.

Sources: The Revenue Department (Thailand), Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), Royal Thai Embassy, Thailand Board of Investment (BOI), Royal Thai Consulate-General, US Department of State. Checked 16 October 2026.

Living in Chiang Mai

The US State Department's advice for Thailand is Level 1, exercise normal precautions, with increased caution near the Cambodian border and in the Yala, Pattani and Narathiwat provinces. We found no official source for the weather, rents or other living costs in Chiang Mai, so they are unknown here. We also found no official source for rents or conditions in Bangkok or Phuket, the other two places the research looked at.

Sources: US Department of State. Checked 16 October 2026.