Thailand is a close neighbour, and a popular tourist destination for Malaysians. It’s also an attractive place to work, study or retire for many people. While you won’t need a Thai visa for many short tourist trips, you may need a Thailand visa for Malaysian workers, retirees or students if you're planning on being in the country for a longer time.
This guide walks through when Thai visas will be needed for Malaysians - and when they won’t. We’ll also look at where to find the Thailand visa application form, the appointment booking process and documents needed for a longer term stay. No matter whether you’ll be in Thailand for a short break or for the foreseeable future, the Wise card can also offer a good way to spend in THB as well as MYR with low fees¹ and the mid-market exchange rate - we’ll look at that in more detail later, too.
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Malaysian passport holders don’t need a Thai visa for tourist trips of up to 30 days².
However, if you’re planning on going to Thailand to work, study, retire or seek medical treatment, you might need a specific visa. Options include:
We’ll walk through some of the common options and how to apply in just a moment.
If you’re going to Thailand for a short break as a tourist you might not need a visa - but you will need to check your passport has at least 6 months of validity left at the point you travel.
Other important notes include that your passport must be stamped by Thai authorities on entry and exit - and you’re obliged to keep hold of the arrival card. You may be asked for this as you leave the country, and if it is lost you must report it to police.
Other visa types have rather more complicated requirements including documents you’ll need to gather before you apply. We’ll look at some of these next.
To give an example of the sort of paperwork that’s needed for a Thai visa, let’s look at the non-immigrant visa for employment. That’s a popular visa choice for Malaysians going to Thailand to work. To apply you’ll need a job offer already lined up, and your employer must have usually applied on your behalf for one of various types of permissions - most commonly a work permit.
Once you’ve got all the details lined up from your employer, it’ll be your turn to gather documents, complete paperwork and get your visa application rolling. Here’s what you’ll usually need³:
As we’ve already mentioned, there are actually quite a few different types of Thai visas for Malaysians, depending on whether you plan to work, study, retire or get medical treatment. Each visa type has its own set of required documents, and an application form you’ll have to complete. The Royal Thai Embassy in Malaysia has a very helpful set of checklists⁴ which show all the documents you need to collect for each visa type, as well as the application form you’ll need to complete yourself.
Once you’ve gathered all your documents it’s time to make an appointment to visit the Thai Embassy and apply for your visa. Appointments can be arranged online⁵, or you can get in touch with the Consulate using consular@thaiembassy.my, if you have questions. As the exact process to follow may vary based on your specific visa type, it’s a good idea to get in touch before you apply so you know exactly what steps you need to take.
The good news is that in many cases, Malaysians don’t actually need a visa for Thailand. Sometimes, even where a visa is needed, bilateral agreements may mean that the fees are waived for Malaysian passport holders.
The fees for Thai visas are very varied based on the type of visa, duration and how many times you may need to come and go from the country - as an example here are the costs for non-immigrant and long term visas⁶:
As we’ve mentioned these costs may be reduced or waived for Malaysian applicants - but if you do end up needing to pay a fee you’ll need to take ringgit in cash along to the Embassy when you have your appointment. Double check what - if anything - will be needed, before you go to your appointment.
No matter whether you’re going to Thailand for a short break or to live permanently, you don’t want to get ripped off by bad exchange rates and high fees when you spend in THB. One good option for anyone living an international lifestyle is the Wise card.
You can open your Wise account easily online or in the Wise app from Malaysia, and add money in MYR to spend in Thailand - or in 150+ other countries around the world. Just order your Wise card and spend and make withdrawals freely - with no need to find a currency exchange office or money changer before you go.
When you use the Wise card, your ringgit will be converted to THB using the mid-market exchange rate, with low fees from 0.43%¹ - and you’ll get a notification showing you the cost every time, so there are no surprises.
Wise can be handy outside of Thailand too. Your Wise account supports over 40+ currencies to hold and exchange, and comes with free bank details for up to 9 currencies so you can get paid conveniently by others.
Depending on the length and reason for your stay in Thailand you might find you don’t need a visa at all if you have a Malaysian passport. If you’re moving to Thailand for a longer time, this guide gives a flavour of what you’ll need to arrange your Thai visa for Malaysians in Thailand for work, study or retirement. Use the information here as a starting point for your own research - plus, remember you can get the Wise card to spend easily when you’re away in Thailand or 150+ other countries.
Sources:
Sources checked on 26/09/2023
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