Phuket visa run
Phuket is a bit of a ‘leisure magnet’ and there are a many people who end up here for a lot longer than originally intended. What do you do when your visa is about to expire but your enjoyment hasn’t? You do a visa run. The Phuket visa run is one of the prices you pay for living in a tropical paradise. Resign yourself to the fact that you’re going to lose a day, spend about 1,500 baht and have to pay a visit to the incredibly smelly border town of Ranong.
The Ranong visa process is a bit complicated. Upon arrival in the border town you have to check in at Thai immigration to receive your exit stamp. This is also when you pay any overstay fees. The fee for overstaying your visa is 500 baht per day. Although you shouldn’t make a habit of overstaying your visa don’t worry about being deported; officials at the checkpoint see copious amounts of overstays and the visa run is an accepted practice. Just bring your fee and a photocopy of your passport. Photocopies are available at the immigration office. The irony of the overstay is that once you’ve paid your fee, you’re on the fast track to getting your exit stamp.
After you’ve paid any necessary fees and received your exit stamp you have to cross a small channel to get to Myanmar. The dock is a five minute walk from Immigration and there are plenty of boatmen vying to take you. The boat trip costs about 300 baht, whether there is one person going or five. There are still a couple of stops to make along the way. The first stop is at Myanmar immigration where you receive the right to enter the country for a fee of $5 US or 300 baht.
Having paid your admission fee your next stop is the dock in Myanmar where the exports are cheap cigarettes and Viagra. Shop around for a bit if you like and then head to the Immigration checkpoint located right at the dock to receive your Myanmar exit stamp and head back to Thailand.
Back in Ranong, return once more to Immigration to get your entry stamp and another 30 days in Phuket. Sometimes they may ask for proof of finances, insisting on seeing either a up-dated Thai bank book or at least 10,000 baht cash.
If all this sounds a bit complicated, don’t fret. There are plenty of companies in Phuket that run daily visa runs. Visa run services charge from 1,000-1,500 baht, which usually includes breakfast, lunch and all boat fares and immigration charges (except overstay fees). The food is less than stellar so you might want to bring along munchies of your own to nosh on.
Most of the Phuket visa run companies operate mini buses that pick you up at about 06:00 and drop you back off at around 19.30 depending on traffic, weather, and the degree of death wish that the driver possesses. Another option is the Executive Visa Run, which costs the same as the other visa runs in Phuket. This company operates a double decker tour bus with smoking section and movies. No door-to-door service here, instead there are pick-up points at landmarks all around the island. The trip takes a little longer, but many people feel that the extra comfort is worth it. Read more information on our visa forum.
