Thailand overstay fine: what it costs and what to do right now
Under 90 days over and surrendering at the airport, there is no ban. How you leave matters more than how long you stayed.
The short answer: take a breath. If you have overstayed in Thailand by less than 90 days, the position is straightforward: the Thailand overstay fine is 500 THB per day, capped at 20,000 THB, and you pay it in cash at the immigration counter when you leave. Turn yourself in at the airport, pay, and you exit with no re-entry ban. Bans only begin when an overstay passes 90 days, or if immigration catches you before you present yourself.
- 500 THB per day of overstay
- 20,000 THB cap, reached at day 40
- No ban under 90 days, if you surrender
- 5 years if immigration catches you first
Get free help with an overstay
Tell us roughly how long over you are, and we will match you with a specialist who can map out your best route.
The schedule is fixed by Ministry of Interior Order 1/2558, in force since 20 March 2016. It is not a negotiation: people in your position pay and fly out every day, and the fastest clean exit is almost always the best one.
The Thailand overstay fine: 500 THB a day, 20,000 THB cap
The fine is 500 THB for every day of overstay, up to a maximum of 20,000 THB. The meter stops at day 40: whether you are 40 or 400 days over, the money owed is the same 20,000 THB. What keeps rising is the ban risk, covered below.
You pay at the immigration counter at your departure airport or land border, in cash, Thai baht. Officers handle overstay payments all day; the process is administrative, not an interrogation. Arrive an hour earlier than usual so a queue at the counter does not cost you the flight.
For a single day over, the Royal Thai Embassy in Washington notes that officers sometimes waive the fine on accidental overstays of a day or two. Treat that as discretion, not a rule: bring the cash and be pleasantly surprised if you keep it.
The ban ladder: surrender versus caught
How you leave matters more than how long you stayed. The re-entry bans under MOI Order 1/2558 split into two tracks: surrender (you present yourself) and caught (you are picked up before you can leave). The Immigration Bureau’s published schedule sets them out as follows.
| Overstay length | Surrender at departure | Caught by immigration |
|---|---|---|
| Under 90 days | Fine only, no ban | 5-year ban |
| More than 90 days | 1-year ban | 5-year ban |
| More than 1 year | 3-year ban | 10-year ban |
| More than 3 years | 5-year ban | 10-year ban |
| More than 5 years | 10-year ban | 10-year ban |
Every row also carries the fine, capped at 20,000 THB, and bans run from your departure date. Being caught adds prosecution to the ban. The lesson is blunt: a person 6 months over who surrenders takes a 1-year ban; the same person caught in a spot check takes 5 years.
What to do right now
Your next move depends on how far over you are.
1 to 7 days over. Book the next reasonable flight out. Bring cash for the fine (500 THB per day), go early, and tell the immigration officer before they tell you. No ban applies. This is an errand, not a crisis.
Weeks over, under 90 days. Same playbook, less delay. Every day adds 500 THB until day 40, and another chance of a check that moves you to the caught column. If anything is unusual (a lost passport, no funds for the fine), get help before the airport.
90 days or more over. Do not simply turn up at the airport. You are in ban territory even when you surrender, and ban length depends on thresholds measured to the day. Get professional advice before you move.
Detained or arrested. If immigration picks you up, expect to be held at an immigration detention centre (the IDC in Bangkok for most cases) until the fine is paid and deportation is arranged at your own cost. This is the outcome to steer away from, and why acting before day 40’s 20,000 THB cap matters if money is tight.
Overstayed and unsure? Confidential help, fast. Tell us roughly how long over you are and a visa specialist will come back with the safest exit for your case, without judgement. Get confidential help
The longer-term record
Paying the fine does not erase the event. Your passport gets an overstay stamp on departure, and overstays past the ban thresholds are recorded on Thailand’s blacklist as an “undesirable alien” for the ban period. Immigration officers see the record on every future entry.
For a few days paid at the airport, the practical effect is small: an extra question at the desk on your next visit. Longer overstays follow you: future Thai visa applications ask about immigration history, and some other countries’ forms ask whether you have overstayed anywhere. Lying on those forms is a bigger problem than the overstay ever was.
Not over yet: keep it that way
If you found this page in time, prevention is cheap. Three habits cover almost every accidental overstay.
Read the stamp, not the visa. Your permitted stay is the date the officer stamped at entry. Visa-exempt entries currently give 60 days (a cut to 30 days is approved but not yet in force), and tourist visa entries have their own lengths, so check the date in your passport, not your assumptions.
Extend before expiry, never after. Most tourist-type entries can be extended by 30 days at a local immigration office for 1,900 THB, but only while your current stay is still valid. Once the stamp expires, the overstay exists and no extension can cure it.
There is no grace period, not one day. People confuse this with 90-day reporting, a separate address-reporting duty for long stayers with its own filing window; that flexibility does not apply to your permitted stay.
What to do next
Work out your exact overstay from the date stamped in your passport, then act on the band you are in: under 90 days, book the flight, bring 500 THB per day in cash and declare it at the counter yourself. At 90 days or more, take advice before you book anything, because surrendering in the right order is what keeps the ban at 1 year instead of 5. And if you are not over yet, put your stamp expiry date in your calendar today and file the extension while the stay is still valid.
Thailand overstay FAQ
I overstayed one day, what happens?
You pay 500 THB at the immigration counter when you depart, and there is no ban. Officers sometimes waive the fine for an accidental day or two, but that is discretion, so bring the cash.
Where do I pay the Thailand overstay fine?
At the immigration counter at your departure airport or land border, in cash. Arrive earlier than usual so the extra stop does not cost you the flight.
Will I be banned from Thailand?
Not if you are under 90 days over and surrender at departure. Bans start past 90 days (1 year, rising to 10 for the longest overstays) and apply at any length if you are caught.
Can I extend my visa after it has already expired?
No. Extensions only work on a valid stay. Once over, the overstay is locked in; pay, leave cleanly, and re-enter later on a fresh entry.
Does an overstay affect future Thai visas?
The record exists, and long overstays with bans certainly do. A short overstay paid at the airport usually means an extra question at the desk in future, nothing more, but that is officer discretion, not a promise.
What if I cannot afford the fine?
Immigration can hold you until the fine is settled, so do not let it get that far. The fine caps at 20,000 THB on day 40; if money is short, leaving sooner is the single most effective thing you can do.
Is there any grace period for overstaying in Thailand?
No. Fines start the first day after your permitted stay ends. The flexibility people half-remember belongs to 90-day reporting, which is a different obligation with its own filing window.
I have overstayed for months and I am scared. What is the safest way out?
Surrendering at the airport is always safer than waiting to be caught: compare a 1-year ban with 5 years for the same overstay. At 90 days or more, get professional advice on sequencing before you book anything. That one conversation is what the form above is for.