Moving to Thailand
Visas and residency, citizenship, tax, company and banking, cost of living and the places to live in Thailand, in one place.
South-eastern Asia
Navid lived hereThinking about moving to Thailand?
I lived in Thailand.
Here's how long you can stay, the ways to live there for good, what you'd pay in tax and what everyday life costs, each figure from an official source.
In this guide, I'll show you:
- How long you can stay, by passport
- The visas and residency routes that let you live there
- How long citizenship takes
- How tax works, with the rates
- What it costs, and the internet and safety
- The best places to live
- The basics: capital, currency and languages
Pick your passport at the top of the page, and the stay rule shows for you.
TL;DRKey takeaways
Thailand at a glance
How long can you stay in Thailand?
It depends on the passport you hold.
Here's the rule for the most common ones:
US passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 60 days
UK passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 30 days
EU passport (German)- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 60 days
Canadian passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 30 days
Australian passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 60 days
Indian passport- Rule
- Visa-free
- Stay
- 30 days
For any other passport, pick yours at the top, or see every country on the visa-free countries map.
Visas and residency in Thailand
Thailand has 2 visas for people who work remotely:
- Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), workcation, for 6 months
- Long-Term Resident visa: Work-from-Thailand Professional – an income of $80,000 a year, for 60 months
Compare them with every other country in the digital nomad visa finder.
These routes don't need a local job either:
- Non-Immigrant O visa for retirement (retirement visa) – THB 65,000 a month
- Long-Term Resident visa: Wealthy Global Citizen (golden visa (residency by investment)) – USD 500,000 in Thai bonds, companies or property, with USD 1 million in global or Thai assets
- Long-Term Resident visa: Wealthy Pensioner (retirement visa) – $80,000 a year
- Long-Term Resident visa: Highly-Skilled Professional (talent visa) – $80,000 a year
See the investor routes side by side in the golden visa finder, and the ones for retirees in the retirement visa finder.
Citizenship in Thailand
Naturalization takes about 5 years of residence.
Dual citizenship is allowed in some cases.
Work out your own timeline with the second passport calculator.
Tax in Thailand
Thailand taxes foreign income only when you bring it into the country.
See where it sits among every country on the territorial tax map.
The main rates:
- Lowest income tax band – 0%
- Top income tax rate – 35%
- Corporate tax – 20%
- VAT or sales tax – 7%
Where you're a tax resident usually comes down to days.
Count yours with the 183-day rule calculator.
Company and banking
Compare the banks and cards that work for people abroad in the bank account finder.
Move money for less with the money transfer comparison.
Setting up a company here?
See the fees and yearly costs in company formation compared.
Many people who live abroad run a US LLC instead; check yours with the US LLC for non-residents checker.
Cost of living in Thailand
Everyday prices in Thailand are about 31% of US prices.
That's the World Bank's price level for 2025: its purchasing power conversion factor divided by the exchange rate.
That makes it one of the cheaper places to live on a foreign income.
A night's stay in a whole place, by Inside Airbnb's median:
- Bangkok – $52
Convert what things cost with the currency converter.
Is Thailand safe?
The US State Department rates Thailand Level 1 ("Exercise normal precautions", updated 2026-07-07), the same level it gives Austria, Portugal, Japan and Australia. Level 1 is normal travel. Some advisories are stricter for parts of a country, so read the full advisory before you go.
See every country's level on the travel advisory map.
Internet in Thailand
In M-Lab's open speed tests across Thailand over the last 12 months, half came in above 27 Mbps download.
The fastest quarter of lines came in above 92 Mbps, closer to a good fiber connection (5,707,070 tests).
By place:
- Bangkok – 21 Mbps typical
- Chiang Mai – 33 Mbps typical
- Koh Lanta – 45 Mbps typical
- Koh Phangan – 48 Mbps typical
- Phuket – 46 Mbps typical
Test your own line when you arrive with my internet speed test.
The best places to live in Thailand
Compare them with places everywhere in digital nomad locations.
Thailand: the basics
| What | Thailand |
|---|---|
| Capital | Bangkok |
| Currency | Thai baht (THB) |
| Languages | Thai, English |
| Population | about 69.4 million |
From GeoNames' country data (CC BY 4.0).
More tools for Thailand
- Passport index and compare passports
- Time zone overlap calculator for calls with home
- eSIM finder for data when you land
- Card fees abroad calculator before you spend
Thailand FAQs
Visa-free, for 60 days.
Pick another passport at the top of the page to see its rule.
It depends on your passport.
Pick yours at the top of the page to see the days, and whether you need a visa first.
Yes: Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), workcation and Long-Term Resident visa: Work-from-Thailand Professional.
Yes: Long-Term Resident visa: Wealthy Global Citizen.
USD 500,000 in Thai bonds, companies or property, with USD 1 million in global or Thai assets
Yes, with Non-Immigrant O visa for retirement and Long-Term Resident visa: Wealthy Pensioner.
Each asks for a steady income; the section above lists the amounts.
About 5 years of residence.
In some cases.
Check the rules for your situation and your own country's.
Thailand taxes foreign income only when you bring it into the country.
Check the details with a tax adviser before you move.
Everyday prices are about 31% of US prices, by the World Bank's price level for 2025.
Rent in the biggest cities can be higher than that suggests.
The US State Department rates it Level 1.
Levels 1 and 2 are everyday travel; read the full advisory for any regions it warns about.
Half of M-Lab's tests there came in above 27 Mbps download over the last 12 months.
The fastest quarter of lines passed 92 Mbps.
The places I cover there are Bangkok, Chiang Mai, Koh Lanta, Koh Phangan and Phuket.
Each has its own guide with the weather by month, internet and costs.
The Thai baht (THB).
The main languages are Thai and English.
Navid Moazzez
AI business strategist & AI OS builder
Navid Moazzez helps creators and founders master AI and build their own AI Operating System (AI OS) to automate their business and life.
Navid.me is reader-supported. When you buy through links on this site, I may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
Places to live in Thailand
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