Return flight needed to enter Thailand

[bazza60 10]

Hi all I live in Laos and am traveling to Thailand this month and back to England before Christmas but I haven't booked my flight to the UK yet. Will I have a problem entering Thailand.

Thanks for your answers.

[Goodwoodjohn 53]

It is better to have an onwards ticket too somewhere that has full cancelation refund.  Then to be risked being turned away from Thailand and having to take the next flight back to the UK $$$$.    That being said I wasn't asked for any proof of a return flight,  but how they enforce that is just up to whim of the person behind the desk. 

Edited November 14, 2022 by Goodwoodjohn

[katana57 103]

On 11/14/2022 at 12:47 AM, bazza60 said:

Hi all I live in Laos and am traveling to Thailand this month and back to England before Christmas but I haven't booked my flight to the UK yet. Will I have a problem entering Thailand.

Thanks for your answers.

This might help you out:

https://onwardticket.com

[pennybridge 1,012]

4 hours ago, katana57 said:

This might help you out:

https://onwardticket.com

I've used it myself in the past. Its a legit ticket with assigned pnr. i would highly recommend in a case like this.

[bazza60 10]

So no need to have a return ticket because no more paperwork I found out last week 

[CanadaVisitor 559]

Has anyone been required to show their return ticket at immigration to prove that they weren't going to stay longer than their Visa allowed? I'm now allowed to stay for 60 days under the Visa exemption agreement.

I've never been asked to show my return ticket in 4 trips.  On my last trip the immigration officer just asked me how many days I was staying.

I'm going to spend almost 6 months in Thailand my next trip.  My plan would be to travel to other countries/do border runs to make sure I stay legal.

I read that immigration officers can tell if you arrived on a one-way ticket.  That is the case for me this upcoming trip.  I'm arriving on a one-way ticket because I was able to get it using points.  My return ticket is also a one-way ticket with a different carrier but my departure date from Thailand is 6 months after my arrival.

So if I get checked it would look like I am deliberately planning on illegally overstaying.

It wouldn't be that big of a deal for me to buy an onward ticket and cancel it or to use the website that @katana57 and @pennybridge mentioned, but if I don't need to do those things I would rather not go through the extra hassle.

So...has anyone been asked for proof of onward travel when arriving? 

[oliver17 11,592]

1 hour ago, CanadaVisitor said:

It wouldn't be that big of a deal for me to buy an onward ticket and cancel it or to use the website that @katana57 and @pennybridge mentioned, but if I don't need to do those things I would rather not go through the extra hassle.

Thai immigration cards have a date of departure field that you are required to fill out, so you will have to come up with a stated departure date to enter the country. 

Out of curiosity, I just looked at google flights for a one way to ticket BKK to Vientiane on Sept. 20 and it was only $53 (Air Asia). I agree that's money tossed down the rathole, but at least you will be covered in case they do ask for a departure ticket at immigration. 

 

[kifd 10]

2 hours ago, CanadaVisitor said:

Has anyone been required to show their return ticket at immigration to prove that they weren't going to stay longer than their Visa allowed? I'm now allowed to stay for 60 days under the Visa exemption agreement.

I've never been asked to show my return ticket in 4 trips.  On my last trip the immigration officer just asked me how many days I was staying.

I'm going to spend almost 6 months in Thailand my next trip.  My plan would be to travel to other countries/do border runs to make sure I stay legal.

I have entered before on a one-way ticket and wasn't asked anything. But i had a onward ticket if needed.

The immigration officer may ask, but it is more likely being asked by your airline when you are checking in for your flight. They can ask for proof of onward travel and deny boarding because ultimately if you run into trouble entering Thailand they will be responsible for bringing you back. 

[Denbosch1971 4,724]

3 hours ago, CanadaVisitor said:

Has anyone been required to show their return ticket at immigration to prove that they weren't going to stay longer than their Visa allowed? I'm now allowed to stay for 60 days under the Visa exemption agreement.

I've never been asked to show my return ticket in 4 trips.  On my last trip the immigration officer just asked me how many days I was staying.

I'm going to spend almost 6 months in Thailand my next trip.  My plan would be to travel to other countries/do border runs to make sure I stay legal.

I read that immigration officers can tell if you arrived on a one-way ticket.  That is the case for me this upcoming trip.  I'm arriving on a one-way ticket because I was able to get it using points.  My return ticket is also a one-way ticket with a different carrier but my departure date from Thailand is 6 months after my arrival.

So if I get checked it would look like I am deliberately planning on illegally overstaying.

It wouldn't be that big of a deal for me to buy an onward ticket and cancel it or to use the website that @katana57 and @pennybridge mentioned, but if I don't need to do those things I would rather not go through the extra hassle.

So...has anyone been asked for proof of onward travel when arriving? 

I've never been asked about my return flight.

But since you're planning to do visa-run anyhow, why not book the first on already before entering LoS. When asked, you can show them this one! 

[CanadaVisitor 559]

17 hours ago, oliver17 said:

Thai immigration cards have a date of departure field that you are required to fill out, so you will have to come up with a stated departure date to enter the country. 

Out of curiosity, I just looked at google flights for a one way to ticket BKK to Vientiane on Sept. 20 and it was only $53 (Air Asia). I agree that's money tossed down the rathole, but at least you will be covered in case they do ask for a departure ticket at immigration. 

 

Thanks @oliver17, but I haven't had to fill out any arrival forms for a few trips now. Usually immigration just asks to see your passport and boarding pass. Get your fingerprints taken and maybe a question or two..."How many days are you here for?" "Where will you be staying?" Etc.

Yeah, maybe I'll just book something that is either super cheap or refundable that departs before my 60 days are up 

[CanadaVisitor 559]

16 hours ago, Denbosch1971 said:

I've never been asked about my return flight.

But since you're planning to do visa-run anyhow, why not book the first on already before entering LoS. When asked, you can show them this one! 

I'm probably going to do a Visa run by land. (Aprx 8 hours from Bangkok to the Cambodian border and back).  

Last time I checked immigration requires onward air travel booking and they didn't accept land tours or a booking on a speed boat (from Phuket to Malaysia for example)

[gainsbarre 2,395]

travelling up and down all the time sometimes with a single ticket, nobody has ever asked me for a return ticket (except when leaving for PH)

 

 

[CanadaVisitor 559]

In the end I did not bother to buy an onward ticket.  I arrived in BKK on Thursday on a one way ticket and there were no issues whatsoever.

The customs agent took my boarding pass and passport and motioned me to scan my right hand fingerprints.  Didn't even bother scanning my thumbs or my left hand. (I guess they're already on file from my 3 other trips in the last year and a half?)   

He stamped my passport showing me good for 60 days and that was that.     

[j2226k 13]

Never been asked by immigration for a return ticket, even when arriving on a one way.  The issue I have had is at check-in they almost always want to see a flight out of the country if you are on a one way.    Some check in agents will flat out refuse to check you in with out this.  

However there is a 'hack' (sorry, I hate this expression) that you can use:

In the US, the DOT have a rule that all travel agents must offer passengers a 24 hour penalty free cancellation period when booking a flight, even restricted/non refundable ones.  The only exception is that this does not apply to budget airlines.   So, go to any US based online travel agent e.g. expedia, priceline etc (it must be the US based one, not the local one that the site sometimes redirects you to).  Search for any one way flight out of thailand to somewhere nearby like HCMC, KL etc.  Look for one of the normal airlines (not budget like air asia) and you will usually see a indication that the flight offers free cancelation within 24 hours.    Book it as close to check in time as you can.  If asked, show them the ticket (they can even search it and will see it is a valid issued ticket).  In theory, you could cancel it right after check in, but i normally wait until i have cleared immigration in Thailand (or where ever im travelling).   Ive screenshot an example below.

 

This has never failed to work and the money is usually reverted back to my card in a day or two. 

[Gambino 341]

8 hours ago, j2226k said:

Never been asked by immigration for a return ticket, even when arriving on a one way.  The issue I have had is at check-in they almost always want to see a flight out of the country if you are on a one way.    Some check in agents will flat out refuse to check you in with out this.  

However there is a 'hack' (sorry, I hate this expression) that you can use:

In the US, the DOT have a rule that all travel agents must offer passengers a 24 hour penalty free cancellation period when booking a flight, even restricted/non refundable ones.  The only exception is that this does not apply to budget airlines.   So, go to any US based online travel agent e.g. expedia, priceline etc (it must be the US based one, not the local one that the site sometimes redirects you to).  Search for any one way flight out of thailand to somewhere nearby like HCMC, KL etc.  Look for one of the normal airlines (not budget like air asia) and you will usually see a indication that the flight offers free cancelation within 24 hours.    Book it as close to check in time as you can.  If asked, show them the ticket (they can even search it and will see it is a valid issued ticket).  In theory, you could cancel it right after check in, but i normally wait until i have cleared immigration in Thailand (or where ever im travelling).   Ive screenshot an example below.

 

This has never failed to work and the money is usually reverted back to my card in a day or two. 

My experience has been that the DOT rule only applies to flights that either originate or terminate in the US. 

The DOT does not have any authority over flights from (for example) Bangkok to KL.  

However, some booking sites may offer this as a perk. So I would stick with those sites, as opposed to booking directly with the airlines if this is your goal. 

[racing35 1]

I checked 3-4 hours ago. The German Swede opposite me did not ask, but since I was a Turkish citizen, he wanted to see my return ticket.

[j2226k 13]

15 hours ago, Gambino said:

My experience has been that the DOT rule only applies to flights that either originate or terminate in the US. 

The DOT does not have any authority over flights from (for example) Bangkok to KL.  

However, some booking sites may offer this as a perk. So I would stick with those sites, as opposed to booking directly with the airlines if this is your goal. 

I wasnt aware of that.  I only really use expedia.com when doing this and never had an issue.  The key is to make sure that the 24hour cancelation is clear advertised.  Maybe screenshot it in in case you need to show evidence that you booked on this basis.  

[monko 46]

Note that no airport in the world has any way to check if your exit ticket is valid or not. A hand edited word or PDF doc printed out showing a supposed exit ticket will always suffice.

[CJ-BLF 232]

On 11/13/2024 at 4:49 PM, monko said:

Note that no airport in the world has any way to check if your exit ticket is valid or not. A hand edited word or PDF doc printed out showing a supposed exit ticket will always suffice.

Maybe, but they see more than we do. What that would be is blatant visa fraud. There are onward ticket vendors that will provide a real reservation for 300 baht.