Thailand visa for Uruguayans 2026: e-Visa needed

What changed for Uruguayans on 15 September 2026

Until 14 September 2026, Uruguayan passport holders could fly into Thailand and receive 60 days on arrival with no visa at all. That arrangement, part of a wider exemption rolled out for 93 nationalities in July 2024, was withdrawn under a Royal Gazette notice, and Uruguay was left off the shorter list of 60 countries that kept the privilege. In practical terms, this means you can no longer turn up at a Thai airport without paperwork and expect to be waved through. Airlines are checking visa status at check-in, so travelling without one now risks being refused boarding rather than facing problems only after you land.

Before you fly

• Check that your Uruguayan passport is valid for at least six months beyond your arrival date and still has a blank page, since Thai immigration checks both before letting you through.
• Apply for your e-Visa through thaievisa.go.th well before departure, as processing usually takes between three and ten working days, and Uruguayans cannot board without an approved visa in hand.
• Carry enough cash or card access to cover a spot check, since officers can ask Uruguayan travellers to show 20,000 baht per person or 40,000 baht for a family group.
• Complete the Digital Arrival Card in the 72 hours before you land, using the Immigration Bureau's free portal, since every Uruguayan entering Thailand must have the QR code ready for scanning.

Staying longer than the visa allows

If 60 days is not enough, Uruguayans holding a tourist e-Visa can extend once, for a further 30 days, by applying at a Thai immigration office and paying 1,900 baht. Those planning a longer stay to work remotely or study should look at the Destination Thailand Visa instead, which runs for up to five years with a 180-day stay per entry, though it asks for proof of 500,000 baht in funds and must be arranged before you leave Uruguay. Since Uruguayans no longer qualify for visa-free entry, repeated dashes across a land border are not a workaround: that allowance only ever applied to visa-exempt travellers, so it offers Uruguayan visitors nothing once a visa is already required.

At the airport

Uruguayan passport holders are not included among the nationalities allowed to use the automated e-gates at Suvarnabhumi, so head for the Foreign Passport counters instead and expect a staffed check. An officer will scan your passport along with the QR code generated when you filed your Digital Arrival Card, so have that saved and ready to show on your phone or as a printout. Keep your passport, visa approval and arrival card details together so the counter check moves quickly.

Facts checked on 30 September 2026. Sources: Royal Gazette notifications of 31 August 2026, the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs bilateral list, the Immigration Bureau. Rules change; your embassy has the final word.