**** April 2023 Update: THIS CONSULATE HAS NOW FULLY MOVED TO AN E-VISA SYSTEM AND FOR HONG KONG CITIZENS / FOREIGNERS WITH RESIDENT HONG KONG VISAS ONLY!! If you are a Hong Kong citizen or foreigner living in Hong Kong (or anyone else living anywhere else that is eligible to apply online), I advise you to go to https://www.thaievisa.go.th/ to apply for your visa. Thank you for all your comments and updates over the years to help me keep this article relevant and helpful! ****
June 2021 Update: Hello again to all returning Vagabond Disposition followers and welcome to you if you are a new reader here! As traveling has been well near impossible for the last year, things here have been pretty quiet! As covid finally starts to dwindle down and folks begin traveling to Thailand again, I am 100% in need of some updated accounts of your experience at the Hong Kong Thai Embassy. I imagine conditions at the embassy may have changed and perhaps in a bid to boost tourism in Thailand, the requirements may not be as strict and the officers may perhaps be a little more pleasant than you all have reported in the last few years! With that being said, please do continue to comment below about your experience in getting your Thai tourist visa or any other type of visa to keep us all updated. Thanks very much for all of your input and support over the years, I really appreciate it!
May 2019 Update: I am in need of some updated accounts from readers about their success (or lack of success!) getting their visas. Please comment below with your nationality and how your overall experience was. Thanks!
April 2018 Update: After 3 consecutive in-and-out border runs in Thailand, I went to the Hong Kong Thai Consulate to apply for a proper 60 day Tourist Visa – and was interrogated heavily. I was asked what I was doing in Thailand for so long (I work online), and was asked to show a bank statement, or they would not process my visa application. It seems Thai immigration is getting tougher these days for those of us doing non-stop tourist visas. However, for those of you applying for your first or second Tourist Visa, your Non-B (work visa) or Non-O (marriage or retirement visa), you should still have no problem applying in Hong Kong and I continue to recommend it.
How to Get a Thai Tourist Visa in Hong Kong
If you are in Hong Kong ahead of traveling to Thailand, or you’re a long-term expat looking for an alternative visa run location, I (still!) recommend applying for your 60 day tourist visa in Hong Kong. I have done the Penang, Kuala Lumpur, Savannakhet, and Vientiane visa runs several times and the Hong Kong Consulate has been the quickest, most convenient, and least crowded location of them all (though the crowd part has changed in recent years!). Although the flight may be slightly more expensive, if you have exhausted the prior three locations, make a mini vacation out of it and head to Hong Kong!
The Thai Consulate in Hong Kong is located at the Fairmont House on Hong Kong Island. They are open weekdays from 9:30am – 12:30pm and the current tourist visa fee is 300 HK dollars. Before deciding on this consulate, be 100% sure that they are not closed due to a Thai or Hong Kong public holiday and check the consulate’s holidays for 2021.
Documents Required for 60-Day Thai Tourist Visa
- 1.5 x 2 inch passport photo
- 1 totally completed visa application form (available in the lobby of the consulate)
- 1 copy of your passport (black and white is fine), signed at the bottom of the page in BLUE ink
- 1 copy of your Hong Kong entry slip from airport immigration (you’ll get this when entering Hong Kong at the airport), signed at the bottom in BLUE ink. (I don’t know why but ALL official docs in Thailand / Thai embassies are super anal about this. Bring a blue pen!) December 2019 Update: Several readers have told me the consulate has changed this policy and they don’t care if you use black or blue ink!
- Depending on the officer you get (or your country of citizenship), a copy of your flight itinerary in/out of Thailand may be requested, as well as a copy of your hotel accommodation for your first port of call, and even your most recent bank statement.
- June 2021 Update: Several readers have commented that they HAVE been requested to provide 1. Round trip flight ticket 2. Bank statement (I am assuming from the last 3-6 months, I would print 6 months worth to be safe) and 3. Proof of accommodation for the first hotel you will stay at. I would HIGHLY recommend bringing ALL 3 of these, just to be safe!
Need to book a room for Hong Kong? I highly recommend Pacific Guesthouse or Good Fortune Inn. Both hotels are among the cheapest and highest-rated in all of Hong Kong, and also just across the bay from the Thai Consulate.
To start with, you’ll need to take the MTR to the Admiralty station on Hong Kong island.
Take Exit B. It is the absolute closest exit regardless of what any subway attendant might tell you. Walk up the stairs and immediately turn left. In a few meters you’ll see as in the photo above these steps which lead to the main entrance of the Lippo Centre Shopping Mall. Go to the far right entrance and walk through the doors.
You’ll immediately see this escalator straight ahead and the copy shop on your right. The copy shop is super convenient if you still need to make copies of your passport or other supporting documents for your visa. If not, proceed straight up the escalator and immediately turn to your right.
You will see a 7-11 (have received news from readers that this is closed now) glass double doors and a Pacific Coffee shop directly ahead of you. Walk through the doors and follow the footpath until you see this coffee/gelato shop (this is now a Circle K mini-mart) and turn left.
Cross this walking bridge and turn left at the end to reach the Fairmont House.
Walk inside and you will see the main directory of the building. The Thai Consulate is on Floor 8F. The elevator you’ll need to take is on the left side.
Once inside, visit the receptionist and take a number on the inside of the main room on your left.
I arrived at about 10:30 on a Thursday morning. There was only 1 other person applying for a tourist visa and I was called up within 3 minutes! After paying, I was given my receipt and all was done. I spent an entire 5 minutes at the consulate. The next day, Friday, was no different. I was in and out in less than 5 minutes. For those who have done visa runs elsewhere, I’m sure you can relate to my utter disbelief!
To conclude, if you want a totally painless Thai tourist visa, Hong Kong is the place to rest easy!
ONE LAST REMINDER!! Before deciding on this consulate, be 100% sure that they are not closed due to a Thai or Hong Kong public holiday and check the consulate’s holidays for 2021.
VD’s Hotel / Hostel Recommendations for Hong Kong
I’ve already scoured Agoda top to bottom for you and these spots have the best overall combination of rating / location / low price in the city.
Hotels / Private Rooms
Check Inn
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Sleep Inn
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Hop Inn
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Modern Hotel
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Hostels
Trouble viewing on mobile? Turn your phone to the side 😉
Rainbow Lodge HK |
Hop Inn on Mody |
Hoho Hostel |
Check Inn |
Check out all other hotels in Hong Kong here.
Heading to Thailand right after you get your visa? Check out all my articles about the Land of Smiles for some great tips and recommendations 🙂
Exploring Southeast Asia beyond Thailand? Check out fellow travel blogger A Mary Road and her incredibly extensive guide to Southeast Asia!
I religiously use my Chase Sapphire Preferred Card when traveling and I 100% endorse it for those who want to get into the frequent-flier-miles-game. You can get 60,000 miles after using the card for 3 months and spending $4000 on it. That’s enough miles for 1-2 round trip tickets in the US or a 1 way international ticket. I recently used only 40,000 miles to fly 1 way from Orlando – Frankfurt – Bangkok – Phuket, and only paid airport fees! There’s also no foreign transaction fees whatsoever so you can use it anywhere abroad. ($95 fee per year, though that can be paid using 9,500 points!). Check out more about the card here.
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Hi – May I ask if you need to have a photocopy of the passport page of the last HK visit with the stamp?
I saw it in the consulate website and since I will be heading straight to the consulate to catch before the 12.30 closing time, I am worried about looking for the photocopy service to do the last page
Do they have such service at the consulate office? Or is it really required in the first place?
This is the exact wording from the website
2. A copy of main pages of a passport including the last arrival Hong Kong stamp.
Hey Victor, I definitely did not provide a copy of my last HK arrival stamp. Perhaps the requirements have changed since I last went though I believe you will be fine. Please comment again with what happens as I would like to know myself!
Hi Craig !
Very interesting informations, thanks !
Did you provide them a copy of a confirmed air ticket to leave Thailand?
Because as a long-term expat in Thailand, I could not provide them this.
Hi Will! I did not provide this for them in the past though I am aware they are becoming much more strict! However, if you have a Non-B or Non-O visa (not a tourist visa), then they should not ask you for that.
Hello, I’m holding British (Overseas) passport and shared the similar records that had several land visa-runs and until the latest flight back to Bangkok from Yangon, the immigration staff asked me what am I doing in Thailand and interogated me a bit before chopping another 30-day visa free stamp.
In such case, I have bought air ticket to HK by early July and will apply for a METV with 6-month validaity, will I be successful? or better I should rather apply for a 60-day tourist visa? Another question is that the listed requirements are to show the go-and-return tickets to/from Thailand, is it necessary? Please let me know, many thanks!
Hello Johan, in my opinion, if you were interrogated upon your last entry into Thailand, I would highly recommend having as many supporting documents as possible when going to the Hong Kong consulate in July. You should be able to do the METV, but definitely have your itinerary of departing/returning flights to/from Thailand. I was also asked to show my latest bank statement to show evidence of sufficient funds, so I also definitely recommend you bring that with you as well. The more documentation, the better!
Hi, me and my partner are going traveling in September and arrive in Bangkok 10th September I have been told it is the wet season around this time so we was going to spend 3 nights in Bangkok then fly over to Vietnam for 2-3 weeks then to Hong Kong for around 3-4 nights and back to Thailand for around 45 days leaving mid November!
Your article is great and just wanted to ask what exactly do you need when going to get the Thai visa? also, would you recommend doing the above and leaving Thailand while the wet season settles down or just take a gamble?
Thanks in advance for your help
Hey James! Good to hear from you, and sorry for my slow response – I did not receive any notification through my website from your comment! Always fixing something here, haha…
To apply for the standard 60 day tourist visa, you’ll simply need 1. 1.5 x 2 inch passport photo 2. Copy of your passport, signed at the bottom of the page in BLUE ink 3. Copy of your HK entry slip from immigration (you’ll get this when entering Hong Kong at the airport), signed at the bottom in BLUE ink. (I don’t know why but ALL official docs in Thailand / Thai embassies are super anal about this. Bring a blue pen!) Depending on the officer you get, a copy of your flight itinerary in/out of Thailand may be requested, as well as hotel accommodation for your first port of call. Although this kind of info is normally only requested for visa runners (like myself!), I doubt you will be asked to show these documents, though it of course would not hurt to have them on hand, just in case.
Your trip sounds awesome! However, the rainy season lasts from June-December, with the end months of October & November usually seeing the most rain – sometimes floods! I have spent 4 out of the last 5 rainy seasons in Thailand and October was always the heaviest for rain. Not to rain on your parade, so to speak, but it will be unlikely that you will avoid the rain completely! With that being said, you should make your plans regardless of the rain, and do what is most convenient/cost effective for your trip. The upside to this is that you should get MUCH cheaper flights/accommodation during this time! Best of luck and feel free to comment here should you have any more questions!
Hello,
Your update says you were interrogated heavily. My question is, did you get the visa after all? Or did they deny you after asking all these questions.
Thanks,
Michelle
Hi Michelle, they asked me for my most recent bank statement and as I only had 2 days in Hong Kong to do this (which is normally all you need), I did not have enough time and I actually ended up not getting it unfortunately. I simply re-entered Thailand later on with a Non B Ed Visa that I got from the embassy in Kuala Lumpur. If this will be your first or second Tourist Visa, you should be fine to apply in Hong Kong.
Hi, thanks for very usefull info! Mainly because it s all gootpath to reach that place.
As addition i d say that you can make pictures and photocopie at paul s ballet shop inside admirilty center (exit A), then get back in mtr to get to exit B and follow instruction.
7-11 doesn t exist at location no more so look for pacific coffee instead. Then the coffee shop gelato is now a circle k.
Pam, many thanks for this updated info! I will edit the article accordingly.
Also be prepared to wait. It took me 30+ min to get attended
Quick Question – I am an American traveling with a friend who is a Honduran national. We would like to go to Bangkok for a long weekend from Hong Kong, BUT I hate to buy tickets if we are not sure he will get a Thai visa. The Thai Consulate in Hong Kong SAYS you have to have a Hong Kong/Macau Resident Card to apply. Is that true?
Hi Megan, thanks for your question. That is definitely not true for a Tourist Visa! Perhaps for longer stay/work visas they may have changed the requirement, but as far as I know, the consulate will grant Tourist Visas to other nationalities. Also, as a US citizen, you do NOT need to apply for a Tourist Visa in advance. You will be stamped for 30 days free at the airport in Thailand upon arrival. However, your Honduran friend will need to apply for a Tourist Visa in advance.
Hey I am Jamaican student studying in China, do you think they’ll ask for a proof of study there? The weird thing is it’s really difficult just to get my uni to mail me something when i am not over there. I’m going to try and apply in February.
Hi Michael, proof of study isn’t a listed requirement for a Tourist Visa so you definitely should not be asked for it. However, please do comment again here if they do ask for it or any additional paperwork so I can update the article accordingly! Best of luck!
Hi! How long do you think the Hong Kong embassy will take to issue my Thai visa? Just so I know how many days to stay in Hong Kong for.
Hi Mesh! If you apply in the morning on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, you can pick up your visa the next day. However, if you apply on Friday morning, you have to wait until Monday to pick up your visa, as the consulate is closed on Saturday and Sunday. Also, be sure to check the list of official Thai and Hong Kong holidays for 2019 here: http://www.thai-consulate.org.hk/internet/attachments/715.pdf If you apply the day before a holiday, you will have to wait until the following weekday to pick up your visa.
hi.
May I ask :
can apply non-o (thai wife) visa in HKG thai embassy ?
Hi Ozan, to be honest, I am just not sure. After scanning the official Royal Thai Consulate website (which is overall not very helpful and hasn’t been updated since September of last year!), it seems that they do grant Non-O visas for retirement, however for a Non-O marriage visa, it is just not clear. I looked through these 2 links for Requirements of Non-O Visa, and it does state further down the page about requirements for a marriage visa: “In the case where the accompanying spouse is not eligible to apply for the Category ‘O-A’ (Long Stay) visa, he or she will be considered for temporary stay under Category ‘O’ visa. A marriage certificate must be provided as evidence and should be notarised by notary organs or by the applicant’s diplomatic or consular mission.” This is under #2, Required Documents, very last bullet point: http://www.thai-consulate.org.hk/web/3015.php?s=4264 So, it does seem that you can possibly apply for this. Do make sure you have ALL required documents ahead of time, though!
Hi,can i ask you something
i am Moroccan and i will visit Hong Kong next month,i want to apply for tourist visa from Hong kong,but Thai Consulate in Hong Kong SAYS you have to have a Hong Kong/Macau Resident Card to apply. Is that true?
because i don’t have it,and i need to get my visa from there.
Eyad, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have comments! Can you tell me what happened? Did they require you to have a Hong Kong Resident Card?
Hey, I have recently been to the Thai Consulate in Hong Kong this past June. I didn’t need to sign anything in blue ink, surprisingly. However, I was applying for an education visa for my internship in Chiangmai, everything seemed to have smoothly basically. Even asked me for a hotel/place of stay in Thailand when I told the officers the company will provide accommodations (just basically wrote the company’s work address, and no troubles). They even requested a round trip ticket, but no bank statement and my Student ID with transcript etc.
Hey Vagabond, I’d like to ask do you know anything or if it’s possible to swap the education visa for a work permit? The company said they may hire me full time if I do well. Kind of figuring out how to process that.
Besides that, everything else matched the exact description as you said. While I was there queuing in line, didn’t see anyone with a bad temper as I’ve heard or seen on other sites.
Thanks a lot!
Hey there, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have all these comments! Glad to hear your visit went smoothly. Could you please tell me your citizenship? I am in the process of updating this article to let readers of different nationalities know what to expect in terms of required documents/etc. Thanks!
P.S. It is definitely not possible to swap the Education Visa for a work permit. You’ll need to have a Non-Immigrant B visa processed, which means leaving Thailand again to visit a Thai embassy abroad, and when you return to Thailand, the company will begin processing your work permit.
Hey vagabond, I am Jamaican. Sadly I didn’t get accepted full time but I found some another Thai company willing to hire me, I’d have to ask do u know the requirements for a Thai company to hire a foreigner?
Hey vagabond, I am Jamaican. Sadly I didn’t get accepted full time but I found another Thai company willing to hire me, I’d have to ask do u know the requirements for a Thai company to hire a foreigner?
For those interested in an updated experience (July 2019), my boyfriend and I just got our 60-day Thai tourist visa in Hong Kong in July 2019. We are from the USA and it was our first time applying for a 60-day Thai tourist visa. Fairly smooth process, lines moved quickly on a Monday mid-morning and we were able to pick up our passports on Tuesday morning before 12:30pm. They definitely required a printed flight itinerary (one copy for each person), and we saw them turn away multiple people in front of us in line for not having one.
We were not asked for a bank statement or accommodation reservation, but another American couple appeared to be getting a hard time for not having a bank statement to show. I’m unsure what kind of visa they were applying for, but they did say “but we always get our visa here” so they seemed to have done this before and were surprised by the request.
We were asked go get a new photo taken because the photos we brought apparently did not have a white enough background. There is a ballet shop in Admirality Center nearby that also takes ID Photos. You get 6-8 photos for $70 HKD ($9 USD) and it takes about 5 minutes. Admirality Center is huge, the easiest way to find the ballet shop is to just keep asking people “ID Photo?” and they will point you in the right direction. Other than that minor hiccup, getting the visa was pretty simple and painless.
Thank you for this article, it definitely helped us know where to go, what to expect and what to bring with us!
Hey there, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have all these comments! Good to hear your visit went relatively smoothly and you were able to get the visa. As first-time applicants, I would expect you to have no problems and that is probably why they didn’t ask for a bank statement. It’s for us serial-visa runners that they start to ask for this document, to ensure we can support our stay in Thailand! 😉 Things are truly changing at this consulate, thanks very much for your comment!
I did the process today (monday)in hk thai consulate. Around 50 people in waiting rooms. Definitely bring your own for the q in front of the information both ,where you get the firm was long. Very friendly staff-300hk$ for the tourist visa. I provided and was prepared for any request of document. Handed them over and was out after 30 min since entered. I dont know what all the other 50 people did there but it definitely not affected my waiting time much.
Hey there, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have all these comments! Glad to hear your visit went well. It makes a huge difference when you come prepared with any document they might ask for. Just a few questions: How many previous visits have you had to Thailand? And could you please tell me your citizenship? I am in the process of updating this article to let readers of different nationalities know what to expect in terms of required documents/likelihood of application approval and denial/etc. Thanks Klaus!
Hi, so update from 28.08.2019. I got questioned and had to show aditional documents… to be eventually told that I can’t apply because I don’t have hong kong id card… I have 2 tourist visas already and 1 land border crossing.
Lars, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have all these comments! Wow, sorry to hear your application was unsuccessful. How recent were your 2 tourist visas and 1 land border crossing? Could you please tell me your citizenship? I am in the process of updating this article to let readers of different nationalities know what to expect in terms of required documents/likelihood of application approval and denial/etc. Thanks Lars!
Hey! This post has honestly just saved the day for me!
I was stressing about where I should go to for a visa run when my Non-O visa is cancelled on Monday, and now I have decided to go to Hong Kong (THANK YOU!).
I am a Zimbabwean passport holder, who wants to apply for a tourist visa to re-enter back into Thailand until my new work permit comes through at the end of September. Do you think this will cause any issues?
I figure, I can go next week, get the tourist visa, then hang around Chiang Mai until my school has cleared my new visa. This would mean I would have to go back right? Would that cause any issues do you think? Going twice in one month?
Really really super grateful for people like you who share info on things like this, if you are ever in CMX I owe you cupcake!
Hey there Courtney, so sorry for my late reply, I didn’t receive any notification on my website that I have all these comments! How did your visit go? Did you get approved for the tourist visa? As long as you are going for a Non-Immigrant B (Non-B) Visa on your 2nd trip, that should be fine. You are very welcome, thanks for your kind words! I will hold you to that cupcake! 😉
Just tryed to get tourist visa with 2 kids. All documents (bookings, tickets, fund..) were with us. We were rufused even to apply. The woman in charge went to consul and told that we need to apply in home country, or go for visa on arrival. Possibly the reason was our new possports having only one visa to France.
Hello, sorry for my late reply! I’m so sorry to hear that. What is your citizenship? And why would a visa to France affect the decision to deny your visa application to Thailand? Do you mean you had 1 previous visa to Thailand already?
From fellow ThaiVisa.com members reports it looks like HK consulate started strictly demanding Bank statemends AND Letter from employer… if this is the case, it will be very bad news for many tourists who apply visa in HK consulate during their Asia trip… This week I’ll go there to check, and will update here.
Alex, thanks very much for your update, keep us all posted here after your visit!
Thanks so much for the post! I am from USA & thought I could only get a travel visa within US (Los Angelas), but since Hong Kong is one of our stops on our way to Thailand, this will work out much better & not have to mail my passport around & hope it arrives back to me in time for my trip (ugh!). Going to Hong Kong next month, thanks again for the info!
Hi there, you’re very welcome! Is this your first trip to Thailand? As I’m sure you’ve read, Hong Kong is experiencing a bit of political turmoil, so do check with your hotel/hostel reception about where any protests will be held during your stay. Feel free to ask any additional questions here later on! Good luck!
So I went to Thai consulate in HK last month, fully armed with all required and semi-required documents after I read some scary reports (Bank statements, Employer’s letter, together with usual round flight tickets and hotel booking), and to my positive surprise they didn’t bother with anything except flight tickets, I even asked do they need other documents which I had already, they said “no need for your passport” (Bosnia)… It probably helped that my passport was new, so they couldn’t see I had 3 entries in past year and 1 day overstay (not big deal anyway). Oh and I asked them if they need application written in blue or black pen, they said either is fine, and they didn’t require signature on passport copy. It was noon and consulate was not busy.
Alex, big thanks for your detailed account here. I did some quick research and it seems the governments of Bosnia and Thailand have a strong relationship, so this could be why your experience was so easy (and pleasant!). However, applying with a fresh passport is always a huge help, as Thai embassies/consulates do not use the biometric scanning system that Thai immigration uses when you enter the country, to check your entry/exit history. However, this could very likely change in the future. Let me know here if you encounter any difficulties at all with immigration upon your upcoming entry to Thailand, as I am curious to know. Best of luck!
Thanks for reply… Oh I wish it’s true, but really Bosnian government & passport is rating very low globally (mandatory visa required for many travel destinations like Thailand, Philippines, Japan, Taiwan, UK, Brazil etc etc etc.)… I think my Thai entry will be fine because my last 3 stays in past year are just around 50-60 days total, and 1 day of overstay was less than 24 hours, so no any red flags really, but I will update it here no problem… People in trouble are those who stay in Thailand more than 180 days a year, that’s seem unofficial limit for Thai immigration officers (which is absolutely ridiculous as those people spend much more money than short-term tourists)… As for getting visa in HK consulate, I hope it will stay the same (low requirements) like it always was, and not adopt new “online application” system like in China, UK and France (this system has higher requirements, and it’s even not working properly, people are going crazy while trying to make appointment online and upload the files, app is crashing all the time), recently Taiwan also switched to this system, which made Taiwanese travel agencies furious… And in meantime, Thais are wondering why their hotels & restaurants are not as full as before :-))) Cheers, Alex
You are absolutely spot on, my friend. I’m living in Koh Chang now and folks here are saying business is the slowest it’s been in the past 6 years. I applied at the Taiwanese consulate back in 2016 and even back then, that place was an absolute madhouse, so I can understand why they switched to the new online application system. But wow, didn’t know faraway embassies in Europe are doing it that way now too! Times they are a’changin’ 😉 Thanks again for filling me in here!
Can I authorize anyone/someone to submit my application for Thailand tourist visa(single entry)on behalf of me?
I’m working in Macau and my passport is Nepal.
Hi here! Unfortunately, no. You must go to the consulate in person to apply.
@Vagabond – But I need a visa to visit HongKong too! ?
Oh wow ? Well, I suppose you’ll need to secure a visit visa for Hong Kong first, then. Is that possible for you?
Awesome! Its actually awesome post, I have got much clear idea concerning from this article.
Thanks Ralf!