Chaos at Thai Embassies: digital nomads stranded by DTV visa delays
Visa hopefuls stuck abroad face mounting costs and confusion
Thailand’s new Destination Thailand Visa (DTV), introduced to welcome digital nomads, is off to a rocky start, leaving many applicants stranded across Southeast Asia amid delays, confusion, and inconsistent embassy procedures.
Foreigners in Cambodia, Laos, and Malaysia, many of whom travelled specifically to apply for the DTV, are facing extended wait times, backlogged appointments, and shifting requirements that have turned the application process into a bureaucratic maze.
The Royal Thai Embassy in Phnom Penh is drawing the most complaints, with some applicants reporting silence for over 10 days after submission. Embassies have been accused of resetting application timelines when asking for additional documents days after the original application was filed.
“I’ve been waiting here for five weeks. When they asked for one more document, the 15-day timeline restarted. I’ve run out of money,” one European applicant shared in a social media forum.
In Vientiane and Savannakhet, the problem begins before submission. Interview appointments are reportedly backed up by two to three weeks, creating serious planning issues for nomads juggling accommodation costs and visa expiry deadlines in host countries.
Embassy staff across the region appear to be operating under differing interpretations of the DTV process. While some consulates process clean applications within days, others follow far stricter and slower review protocols, adding to the confusion.
Applicants are required to stay in the country where they applied until a decision is made. Leaving the country, even briefly, can result in an automatic cancellation or delay of the visa request, a rule that has compounded the stress for travellers with tight finances or expiring tourist visas.
The DTV visa was promoted last year as a forward-thinking policy to attract digital workers, content creators, and location-independent professionals. While the concept was praised, the inconsistent rollout is causing a wave of frustration.
Visa agents and applicants alike are calling on Thailand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Immigration Bureau to issue clearer, unified instructions to embassies and implement a digital tracking system so applicants can monitor progress in real-time.
Many hopeful digital nomads remain caught in the visa backlog, with their dreams of moving to Thailand put on pause.
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