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Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC): the free official form, step by step

The Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) is free on the official website. Who needs it, the 3-day window, what to enter and how to spot paid look-alikes.

  • 19 min read
  • Published
  • Last reviewed
  • By Voyfaro

For: every passport

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Whether you are landing in Bangkok from London, crossing into Thailand by land from Malaysia or arriving in Phuket from Sydney, there is one form almost every foreign visitor must complete before entry: the Thailand Digital Arrival Card, or TDAC. It replaced the paper arrival card, it takes a few minutes, and on the official website it is free.

The problem is finding that official website. Search results for the TDAC include travel companies and look-alike sites, some of which charge a fee for a form you can submit yourself at no cost. This guide starts with the official address, then covers who needs a TDAC, when to submit it, what to enter, and how to fix a mistake.

We last checked the official TDAC website, its user guide and FAQ, and Thai government notices on 5 October 2026. Voyfaro is not affiliated with any government or embassy. Rules can change, so confirm on the official pages in the Sources list before you travel.

Thailand Digital Arrival Card: quick answer

  • Official website: tdac.immigration.go.th, run by Thailand’s Immigration Bureau. Type the address yourself rather than clicking an advert.
  • Cost: free. The official site’s own title reads “No Fees Required”, and the Royal Thai Embassy in Abuja says the TDAC “is free of charge”.
  • Who needs it: all non-Thai nationals entering Thailand by air, land or sea, including children, infants, visa-exempt visitors, e-Visa holders and foreign residents. The main exceptions are transit passengers who do not pass through immigration, Border Pass holders and airline crew.
  • When: within 3 days before you arrive. Official pages word this slightly differently, so the safest choice is the 2 days before your arrival date or the arrival day itself. You need a new TDAC for every entry.
  • How long it takes: about 3 to 5 minutes per person if you have your details ready, according to the official FAQ.
  • What you get: a digital arrival card with a QR code, available to download straight after you submit and sent to your email.
  • It is not a visa: if your passport needs a visa for Thailand, you still need one.

Is the TDAC free? The official website vs paid look-alikes

Yes. The Immigration Bureau does not charge for the TDAC. The Royal Thai Embassy in Abuja asks travellers to submit their details only on the official website, to be aware of fraudulent attempts and not to make a payment if asked to.

Official TDAC Look-alike or paid service
Web address tdac.immigration.go.th (go.th is used by Thai government sites) A different address, often with “tdac”, “thailand” or “arrival” in the name
Cost Free A “service”, “processing” or “express” fee
What happens after you submit You download your card with its QR code straight away, and a copy is emailed to you You may wait for someone else to submit your details and send the card on
Where your passport data goes To Thai immigration and border authorities. The FAQ says it is not shared outside Thai government border control To a private company first

Some companies offer to submit the TDAC for a fee. The official FAQ says a travel agency may submit it for clients who have authorised it, so not every paid service is a scam. But you never need to pay: the official form is free and quick. As general guidance, search ads can appear above the official site, so typing the address yourself is the safest habit.

Who needs a TDAC, and who does not

Traveller TDAC needed? What the official pages say
Visa-exempt tourists Yes The TDAC applies regardless of visa type, including the visa exemption scheme
e-Visa or other visa holders Yes It is required in addition to your visa
Visa on arrival Yes The FAQ says the TDAC works with all visa types
Children and infants Yes The FAQ says all travellers, including infants and children, need a TDAC
Arriving by land or sea Yes The rule covers air, land and sea arrivals
Diplomatic passport holders Yes, if not Thai nationals Listed in the official FAQ
Foreign residents of Thailand returning from a trip Yes The Tourism Authority of Thailand and the Royal Thai Embassy in Colombo say it is mandatory for all foreign passport holders, including long-term residents
Entering with a Border Pass No The same two sources list entry with a Border Pass as an exception
Transit passengers who stay airside No Not needed if you do not pass through immigration
Transit passengers who leave the airport Yes Leaving the airport means passing through immigration
Technical landings and transit flights No Listed in the official FAQ
Airline crew No Listed in the official FAQ
Thai nationals No The TDAC is for non-Thai nationals

When to submit: the 3-day window

Official pages describe the window in slightly different ways:

  • The official FAQ says the TDAC should be submitted “within 3 days in advance of arriving in Thailand (including the date of arrival)”.
  • Another answer in the same FAQ says you can submit it up to 72 hours before your entry.
  • The Tourism Authority of Thailand’s April 2025 launch notice gave the example that for a 5 May arrival, submission could begin on 2 May.

To stay inside the window under every version, submit in the 2 days before your arrival date or on the arrival day itself. For example, if you land in Bangkok on 20 October, submit on 18, 19 or 20 October, before you reach immigration.

Three things catch travellers out:

  • Use your arrival date in Thailand, not your departure date. Thailand is on UTC+7. Long-haul flights, for example from North America, can land a calendar day or even two after they leave.
  • One TDAC covers one entry. If you leave Thailand for a side trip to Cambodia, Laos or Malaysia and come back, submit a new one before you re-enter.
  • There are no reminders. The FAQ says the TDAC system does not send alerts before your trip, so add it to your own checklist.

What you need before you start

You cannot save a half-finished form and come back later, so gather these first. The fields below are the ones the official form showed when we checked.

  • Passport: full name, date of birth, gender, nationality and passport number. You can scan the machine-readable zone (MRZ) or upload a photo of your passport’s photo page to fill these in.
  • About you: occupation, city or state of residence, country of residence and phone number, plus your visa number if you have one.
  • Trip: arrival date, the country where you boarded, purpose of travel, how you are travelling, and your flight or vehicle number. Departure details are optional. The form also has a tick box for transit passengers who do not stay in Thailand.
  • Where you are staying: type of accommodation, province, district, sub-district, post code and address.
  • Health declaration: the countries or territories you stayed in during the two weeks before arrival. The form may also ask whether you have a yellow fever vaccination certificate.
  • Email address: where the card is sent. Check it carefully.

Tips from the official user guide and form:

  • Enter everything in English. The name fields accept only the letters A to Z.
  • If your passport shows only one name, type a dash in the family name field. The form’s hint says to enter a dash if you have no family name.
  • In drop-down lists, type the first three letters to see matching options.
  • If you used the passport scan, check every field afterwards. The guide asks you to recheck MRZ data each time.

How to fill in the Thailand Digital Arrival Card, step by step

These steps follow the Immigration Bureau’s user guide (version 1.19, for application version 2026.09.00).

  1. Open tdac.immigration.go.th and select “Arrival Card”.
  2. Enter your personal and passport details, or use “Retrieve with Passport” to scan or upload your passport page. Select “Continue”.
  3. Enter your trip and accommodation details, then select “Continue”.
  4. Complete the health declaration. Extra health questions appear only if the countries you visited in the past two weeks, where you boarded, your nationality or your flight are on the Ministry of Public Health’s list. Then select “Preview”.
  5. Check everything. Use “Edit” to correct any mistakes.
  6. Enter your email address, tick the box to accept the terms and conditions, and select “Submit”.
  7. Download your Thailand Digital Arrival Card. It shows your TH Digital Arrival Card number and a QR code. A copy is also emailed to you.

Submitting for family or a group

One submission can include up to 10 travellers. After the first person’s health declaration, select “Add Other Travelers”. If others share your trip and accommodation details, choose them from “Same as Previous Traveler” instead of typing them again. The FAQ says you can complete the TDAC for family members, children or a group, and every traveller, including infants, must be covered.

How to change or fix your TDAC

Plans change, and the form allows for that. To update a card:

  1. On the official website, select “Update Arrival Card”.
  2. Search with your TH Digital Arrival Card number, date of birth and nationality.
  3. Edit the details, check them, enter your email, accept the terms and select “Submit”.

Some details cannot be updated. The user guide lists your full name, nationality and date of birth. The FAQ also lists your passport number. If one of these is wrong, or you have a new passport, make a new submission with the correct details. The FAQ says only the most recent submission counts.

If your flight or hotel changes, update your TDAC or submit a new one before you reach immigration. The FAQ says your submission must be accurate and complete before entry, and that passengers who give incorrect information may be denied entry at immigration’s discretion, so do not leave old details on the card.

At the airport or border

  • Show your QR code on your phone, or on a printout. The FAQ says you do not have to print it, but suggests carrying a copy if you will not have a device with you.
  • No email arrived? Download the card from the confirmation screen when you submit. If you still have no QR code when you land, the FAQ says to contact the immigration officer at the checkpoint.
  • No smartphone or internet? The FAQ says kiosks and Wi-Fi are provided on arrival, and lists kiosks at five airports: Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, Chiang Mai and Hat Yai. A kiosk does not print a QR code. You take a photo of it, and the card is sent to your email. Do not rely on a kiosk: submitting before you fly is calmer.
  • Website not working? The FAQ suggests saving a screenshot of the error and asking airport or immigration staff for help.
  • Health checks: if your health declaration flags it, the form tells you to go to the Department of Disease Control counter before immigration. Thai embassy pages, such as the London embassy’s health certificate page (last updated 29 November 2022), say travellers who come from or through countries Thailand lists as yellow fever infected areas must show a yellow fever vaccination certificate on arrival. That list includes Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Brazil, Colombia and Peru. Check the current list with the Thai embassy that covers where you live.
  • Ebola screening: the Tourism Authority of Thailand said on 27 May 2026 that travellers arriving from or through the Democratic Republic of the Congo or Uganda may enter only through Suvarnabhumi Airport, face health screening, and must complete at least 21 days of quarantine or isolation. It also said foreign nationals from these areas must register through the TDAC before travelling. GOV.UK still listed Ebola screening for Thailand when we checked. If this applies to you, check the latest rules with the Thai embassy before you book.

What the TDAC is not

The TDAC is only an arrival registration. It sits alongside other rules, and some of these changed in 2026.

What it is Status when we checked (5 October 2026)
TDAC Free online arrival card, required for each entry In force since 1 May 2025 (Royal Thai Embassy, London)
Visa or e-Visa Permission to enter, for passports that need one Apply on the official e-Visa site, thaievisa.go.th
Visa exemption Visa-free entry for tourism for some passports Revised from 15 September 2026: a 30-day scheme for 60 countries and territories, a new 15-day scheme for 2, and visa on arrival for 3 (Thai Government Public Relations Department). Some other passports have separate bilateral visa-free agreements (Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs)
THIM app The Immigration Bureau’s app, linked to the TDAC system Optional during its June 2026 pilot and not a replacement for the TDAC (Tourism Authority of Thailand). Nation Thailand reported on 25 September 2026 that the Immigration Bureau had officially launched THIM as another channel for submitting the TDAC, and that the TDAC website remains available
Proposed tourism fee A separate fee of 450 baht per foreign visitor A proposal only, not in force (Thai Government Public Relations Department, 17 August 2026). Thai media reported a public hearing on the draft from 24 August to 28 September 2026. Under the proposal, air arrivals would pay from 180 days after an announcement in the Royal Gazette. The government announcement does not mention the TDAC

Two examples of how the visa exemption changed: GOV.UK says British passport holders can now stay up to 30 days for tourism, normally limited to two entries a calendar year. The Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs summary lists India among the 60 countries and territories on the 30-day scheme, and the Royal Thai Embassy in New Delhi says Indian passport holders who want to stay longer than 30 days for tourism may apply for an e-Visa. For your own passport, check with the Thai embassy that covers where you live, or on our visa guidance page.

The notice on the TDAC home page also reminds visitors of two Thai immigration rules: foreigners staying longer than 90 days must report their address to immigration every 90 days, and foreigners may not work without a work permit.

Common mistakes to avoid

  • Paying a look-alike website for a form that is free on tdac.immigration.go.th
  • Submitting too early, outside the 3-day window
  • Counting from your departure date instead of your arrival date in Thailand
  • Forgetting a TDAC for a child or infant
  • Typing a name that does not match the passport, or leaving the family name blank instead of entering a dash
  • Not updating the card after a flight or hotel change
  • Reusing an old TDAC after a side trip out of Thailand
  • A typo in your email address, with no downloaded copy of the card
  • Treating the TDAC as a visa

Planning your Thailand trip

Flights

Bangkok Suvarnabhumi (BKK) is the main international airport. Don Mueang (DMK) also has international flights, and Phuket (HKT) and Chiang Mai (CNX) serve the beaches and the north. Your flight number goes on the TDAC, so book before you submit. Compare flights to Thailand.

Hotels

The TDAC asks for your accommodation address, down to province and post code. Keep your booking confirmation handy when you fill it in. Compare hotels in Bangkok, Phuket and Chiang Mai.

Mobile data on arrival

Your TDAC QR code lives in your email. Download the PDF before you fly, or make sure you have data when you land. A travel eSIM installed at home works as soon as you arrive. See eSIM options for Thailand or read eSIM vs roaming vs local SIM.

Travel insurance

The TDAC does not ask for insurance, but hospital bills for visitors can be high, and scooters and water sports add risk. Check the medical limit and the exclusions. Compare travel insurance for Thailand.

How Voyfaro can help

  • TDAC: we do not fill in, submit or check your TDAC, and we never charge for it. It is free and quick on the official website.
  • Visas: we point you to official Thai sources and explain them in plain English. We do not apply for or issue visas, and only the Thai authorities decide. See our visa guidance.
  • Bookings: we help you compare flights, hotels, eSIMs and travel insurance through partner links, including links from the Travelpayouts affiliate network.
  • You stay in control: you book and pay directly with the partner. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you. See our affiliate disclosure.
  • Questions? Contact us with where you live, the passport you hold, your dates and who is travelling.

FAQ

What is the official website for the Thailand Digital Arrival Card?

The official website is tdac.immigration.go.th, run by Thailand’s Immigration Bureau. Type the address yourself. Sites with other addresses are not the official form, even if they look similar.

Is the Thailand Digital Arrival Card free?

Yes. The official site says “No Fees Required”, and the Royal Thai Embassy in Abuja says the TDAC is free of charge and warns travellers not to pay if asked. A separate tourism fee has been proposed, but when we checked on 5 October 2026 it was not in force, and the announcement did not link it to the TDAC.

How many days before arrival can I fill in the TDAC?

Within 3 days before you arrive. Official pages word the window slightly differently, so to be safe, submit in the 2 days before your arrival date or on the day you arrive.

Do Indian passport holders need the Thailand Digital Arrival Card?

Yes. The TDAC applies to all non-Thai nationals, whatever their passport, apart from a few exceptions such as transit passengers who do not pass through immigration. That includes Indian passport holders, who are on Thailand’s 30-day visa exemption list from 15 September 2026. The same applies to British, American, Filipino, Nigerian, Saudi and all other foreign passport holders.

Is there an official TDAC app?

The Immigration Bureau has an app called THIM (Thailand Immigration Management), linked to the TDAC system and available on the App Store and Google Play. The Tourism Authority of Thailand said in June 2026 that it was optional and did not replace the TDAC, and Nation Thailand reported in September 2026 that the TDAC website remains available alongside it. You do not need any app: the official website works on a phone or computer.

Do children need a TDAC?

Yes. All travellers need one, including infants and children. A parent can include them in a group submission of up to 10 people.

Do I need a TDAC if I am transiting through Bangkok?

Not if you stay airside and do not pass through immigration. If you leave the airport during your layover, you need one.

Do I need to print my TDAC?

No. You can show the QR code on your phone. The official FAQ suggests a printed copy if you will not have a device with you.

I made a mistake on my TDAC. What should I do?

Use “Update Arrival Card” on the official website. The user guide says your full name, nationality and date of birth cannot be changed, and the FAQ adds passport number. For those, submit a new TDAC: the most recent submission is the one that counts.

I paid a website for my TDAC. Is it valid?

If the site submitted your details to the Immigration Bureau, you should have a card with a TH Digital Arrival Card number and a QR code. If you are not sure, submit your own TDAC on the official website before you travel, since the most recent submission counts. If you think you were misled about the fee, contact your bank or card provider.

Can Voyfaro fill in my TDAC for me?

No. We do not submit the TDAC, and you do not need anyone to do it for you. It is free on the official website and takes a few minutes.

Sources

Official pages we checked on 5 October 2026:

Reports we also read:

Last reviewed Report a correction

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