Service to Apply for a Medical Treatment Visa| Thailand Medical Visa

Both options are possible. If your treatment is planned in advance, a Thai hospital can issue an invitation letter so you can apply for a Non-O visa from the Royal Thai Embassy through the Thai E-Visa system before you fly. Alternatively, if you entered on a Tourist Visa and your condition worsens or a doctor states that you need ongoing treatment, you can apply for a “change of visa type” to Non-O inside Thailand.

Your existing Tourist Visa or visa exemption stamp (P.30, P.60, P.90, TR) must have no fewer than 15 working days of permitted stay remaining on the day you submit the change of visa type application at immigration. If less time remains, the system will not allow the visa category to be changed.

You must apply at the immigration office covering the area where your treating hospital or medical facility is located. For example, if you are being treated at a hospital in Bangkok, you must apply at the Chaeng Watthana immigration office.

The fee for an extension of stay application (TM.7) is 1,900 THB per person, per application, the same for both the patient and the caregiver.

The “medical certificate from the hospital”. It must be issued by an accredited hospital and state the patient’s full name, the medical condition and the need for continuing treatment. Most importantly, it “must clearly state how long the treatment will take” (for example, continuous treatment for 90 days or 180 days), and it must be signed by a specialist physician and bear the hospital’s official stamp.

Unlike the Retirement or Marriage Visa, immigration does not set a fixed amount, but it does want to see that you are financially prepared. The patient or caregiver must provide a Bank Statement showing enough funds to cover the medical costs estimated by the hospital, plus enough left over to live in Thailand during treatment.

The hospital must attach a copy of its medical facility operating licence, a copy of the appointment letter of the signing physician and a Treatment Plan, so that immigration is satisfied the facility is legally licensed.

Yes, this is essential. If the documents were issued by a foreign government, they must be translated into Thai or English and fully legalised by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the issuing country or by its embassy in Thailand. Only then will immigration accept that the caregiver is a genuine blood relative.

Immigration grants a stay based on the need stated by the doctor in the medical certificate. In most cases, approval is for 30 days, 60 days or a maximum of 90 days per application. If treatment is not finished when that period ends, you can obtain a new medical certificate and keep applying for further extensions.

The law sets no maximum limit in years. As long as the doctor confirms that the patient still needs treatment and cannot travel home (for example, intensive physiotherapy, cancer or dialysis), immigration will consider extensions as needed at the time of application.

The caregiver’s visa always expires on the same day as the patient’s visa. If the patient is granted another 90 days, the caregiver will also receive an approval stamp for the same 90 days, in parallel every time.

Yes. Anyone who stays in Thailand continuously for more than 90 days, whatever their visa type, is required by immigration law to complete 90-Day Reporting. ETHAIVISA can handle the online submission for you.

You may leave the country, but you “must obtain a Re-entry Permit” at immigration or the airport every time before departing Thailand. If you leave without a Re-entry Permit, your Medical Treatment Visa will end immediately, and when you return you may be stamped in as a tourist instead, meaning you lose your existing status.

No. Once the patient’s medical treatment status ends, the caregiver’s visa ends with it. Both must prepare to leave Thailand or plan to change to another visa type (such as a Tourist Visa or Retirement Visa) instead.

This is possible. However, for the next extension you must submit the medical certificate and licensing documents from the “new” hospital instead, together with a referral letter or treatment summary from the previous hospital, so that immigration can see the continuity of the case.

This situation is common and understandably very worrying. Immigration makes an allowance for it: the hospital issues a letter certifying that the patient cannot be moved, and an agency such as ETHAIVISA can then act as representative, taking the original passports of the patient and caregiver to immigration to have the extension stamped on their behalf, without the patient having to appear in person.

Yes. By law, the overstay fine of 500 THB per day still applies, even if you are in hospital. So if you know your treatment timeline will run past your visa expiry, contact ETHAIVISA as soon as possible so we can coordinate with the hospital to arrange the extension in advance. Never allow yourself to overstay.

It is rather difficult, and immigration scrutinises these cases very strictly. Immigration mainly gives weight to large General Hospitals or medical facilities with inpatient beds. Applications backed by small clinics or alternative medicine spas are often rejected, as immigration considers that such treatment can be received on a Tourist Visa and does not require a Non-O visa.

In practice, this is very difficult, because a Medical Treatment Visa is granted solely on medical grounds. Immigration’s policy is usually that once recovered, foreigners should return home first and apply afresh for a visa for the new purpose. The exception is a genuine marriage to a Thai national backed by strong evidence, which should be handled with the help of a specialist.

Because the treatment timeline and the visa expiry date must be aligned precisely, and the hospital’s documents must use medical wording that matches the conditions immigration will approve. If the patient cannot move, handling the process on their behalf also involves many complex details. The ETHAIVISA team has long experience coordinating with leading hospitals and the Immigration Bureau. We know how to prepare a medical document set that is approved smoothly the first time, easing your stress so you can focus fully on caring for the health of your loved one.