Visa policy of Laos

External image
External image
	Map of entry points with Visa on Arrival facility

Visitors to Laos must obtain a visa from one of the Laotian diplomatic missions unless they are citizens of one of the visa-exempt countries or citizens eligible for a visa on arrival or an e-Visa. All visitors must hold a passport valid for 6 months.^[1]

Visa policy map

Visa exemption

Ordinary passports

According to the Ministry of Public Security of Laos, holders of ordinary passports of the following countries (including all ASEAN member states) may enter Laos without a visa for stays up to the duration listed below:^[2]

30 days

15 days

14 days

Myanmar

_{# - Temporary visa exemption policy from 1 July 2024 to 31 December 2024.}

Date of visa changes
2004: Vietnam^[4]^[5] 2004: Cambodia^[6] 2004: Singapore^[7] 2004: Malaysia^[7] 2004: Thailand^[8] 2005: Brunei^[9] 12 July 2005: Philippines^[10] 1 January 2007: Japan 1 September 2007: Russia 14 October 2007: Mongolia^[11] 1 September 2008: South Korea 7 July 2009: Luxembourg and Switzerland 2009: Myanmar^[12] 2011: Indonesia^[13] 1 August 2018: Sri Lanka (visa on arrival) 1 July 2024 - 31 December 2024: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Greece, Norway, Spain and Sweden^[14] Cancelled: 1 January 2018 - 31 December 2018: Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden

Tour groups

From 1 July to 31 December 2024, Laos is implementing a 15-day visa-free policy for visitors with documents of following jurisdictions who are visiting Laos through approved tour groups:^[15]

Non-Ordinary passports

Holders of diplomatic, official or service passports issued by following countries may enter Laos without a visa for up to 30 days (unless otherwise noted):^[2]

ASEAN member states (except Indonesia)

_{D - Diplomatic passports only.}
_{1 - 90 days}
_{2 - 14 days}

Laos signed a visa-free agreement with Kazakhstan for holders of diplomatic and official passports in July 2024 and it is yet to come into force.^[16]

Visa on arrival and e-Visa

The official Lao e-Visa logo

Visa on arrival for Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone

Most nationals of other countries may obtain a visa on arrival in Laos or an e-Visa online for a fee, except those who are ineligible for either facility.

The duration of stay of a visa obtained upon arrival in Laos is 30 days, but can be extended twice, for a maximum stay of 90 days. Visa extensions are handled by the province immigration office inside Laos for a fee.^[17]^[18]

The Laos e-Visa service was launched in July 2019.^[19]^[20] It is valid for 60 days from the date of issuance and its holders may stay for up to 30 days in Laos.^[21] e-Visa can be issued within 3 business days.

Travellers eligible for a visa on arrival or an e-Visa can enter Laos through one of the following ports of entry:^[22]^[23]

Port of entry	Opposite side	VoA	eVisa
Luang Prabang International Airport	—
Pakse International Airport	—
Wattay International Airport (Vientiane)	—
Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge I (Vientiane)	Nong Khai, Thailand
Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge II (Savannakhet)	Mukdahan, Thailand
Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge III (Thakhek)	Nakhon Phanom province, Thailand
Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge IV (Houayxay)	Chiang Khong district, Thailand
Samliemkham	Thailand and Myanmar
Khamsavath railway station (Vientiane)	Nong Khai railway station, Thailand
Daensavan	Lao Bảo, Vietnam
Veunkham	Nong nok khian, Cambodia
Vang tao	Chong Mek, Thailand
Boten (road checkpoint)	Mohan, China
Boten railway station	Mohan railway station, China

All other ports of entry not listed above neither accept visa on arrival nor e-Visa. Some of them are closed to third-country visitors, while others require visitors from non-visa-exempt countries to present visas obtained in advance from one of the Laotian diplomatic missions around the world.

Visa required in advance

Nationals of the following countries are ineligible to obtain a visa on arrival nor an e-Visa. They must thus obtain a visa from one of the Laotian diplomatic missions in advance. However, if they are traveling on an official visit, they may still obtain a visa on arrival, provided they are holding an official letter of guarantee issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Laos:^[1]^[24]

Statistics

Most visitors arriving to Laos were from the following countries of nationality:^[25]

Country	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011
Thailand	1,797,803	2,009,605	2,321,352	2,043,761	2,059,434	1,937,612	1,579,941
Vietnam	891,643	998,400	1,187,954	1,108,332	910,164	705,596	561,586
China	639,185	545,493	511,436	422,440	245,033	199,857	150,791
South Korea	170,571	173,260	165,328	96,085	81,799	53,829	34,707
United States	38,765	58,094	63,058	61,460	61,608	53,380	50,092
France	36,760	54,953	55,151	52,146	52,411	46,903	44,399
Japan	32,064	49,191	43,826	44,877	48,644	42,026	37,883
United Kingdom	27,723	39,170	41,508	39,061	41,741	35,964	35,622
Germany	23,776	34,018	31,897	29,800	29,250	23,417	21,280
Australia	20,886	33,077	34,655	44,964	35,441	33,878	31,874
Total	3,868,838	4,239,047	4,684,429	4,158,719	3,779,490	3,330,072	3,330,072

References

^ ^a ^b "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 1 April 2017.
^ ^a ^b "Visa exemption – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ". The Department of Immigration of Lao PDR. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
^ "Laos - Travel Page". www.mfa.gov.sg. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Singapore). 12 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 05 March 2004
^ "Lao Airlines". www.laoairlines.com. Retrieved 17 June 2019.
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 10 May 2004
^ ^a ^b Under the Visa Agreement on 1 July 2004
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 28 October 2004
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 1 April 2005
^ "Under the Visa Agreement on 10 April 2005" (PDF).
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 14 September 2007
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 20 November 2009
^ Under the Visa Agreement on 23 September 2011
^ [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1biBWE9Y026IOQDWpBybsjvPQIo5yrLPr/view Implementation of Visa exemption policy and determination of length of stay in Lao PDR for target country tourists during the Visit Laos Year 2024 - Reg. No. 2520/IMM - Ministry of Public Security General Department of Public Security Department of Immigration]
^ Laos to grant visa-free entry for Chinese tourists starting in July
^ Laos, Kazakhstan sign deal for visa exemption
^ "How to apply the visa extension". immigration.gov.la. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
^ "Law On EntryExit, And the Management of Foreigners in the Lao PDR Article 41 Section 5". Laoservicesportal.gov.la. Retrieved 17 July 2019.
^ "Laos launches e-Visa service in Vientiane". 9 July 2019.
^ "Lao E-visa launched for foreigners". Archived from the original on 2019-07-09.
^ eVisa Laos
^ "Checkpoints – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ". immigration.gov.la. Department of Immigration of Lao PDR. Retrieved 2023-04-29.
^ PDR, Consular Department-Ministry of Foreign Affairs LAO. "Lao e-Visa / Faq". laoevisa.gov.la. Retrieved 2023-04-16.
^ Who can Apply for Lao e-Visa
^ "Statistical Reports on Tourism in Laos".

External links

[tim-1] "Visa and passport". Timatic. International Air Transport Association through Emirates. Retrieved 1 April 2017.

[visa-2] "Visa exemption – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ". The Department of Immigration of Lao PDR. Retrieved 10 August 2023.

[3] "Laos - Travel Page". www.mfa.gov.sg. Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Singapore). 12 July 2024. Retrieved 20 July 2024.

[4] Under the Visa Agreement on 05 March 2004

[5] "Lao Airlines". www.laoairlines.com. Retrieved 17 June 2019.

[6] Under the Visa Agreement on 10 May 2004

[ReferenceA-7] Under the Visa Agreement on 1 July 2004

[8] Under the Visa Agreement on 28 October 2004

[9] Under the Visa Agreement on 1 April 2005

[10] "Under the Visa Agreement on 10 April 2005" (PDF).

[11] Under the Visa Agreement on 14 September 2007

[12] Under the Visa Agreement on 20 November 2009

[13] Under the Visa Agreement on 23 September 2011

[14] [https://drive.google.com/file/d/1biBWE9Y026IOQDWpBybsjvPQIo5yrLPr/view Implementation of Visa exemption policy and determination of length of stay in Lao PDR for target country tourists during the Visit Laos Year 2024 - Reg. No. 2520/IMM - Ministry of Public Security General Department of Public Security Department of Immigration]

[15] Laos to grant visa-free entry for Chinese tourists starting in July

[16] Laos, Kazakhstan sign deal for visa exemption

[17] "How to apply the visa extension". immigration.gov.la. Retrieved 17 July 2019.

[18] "Law On EntryExit, And the Management of Foreigners in the Lao PDR Article 41 Section 5". Laoservicesportal.gov.la. Retrieved 17 July 2019.

[19] "Laos launches e-Visa service in Vientiane". 9 July 2019.

[20] "Lao E-visa launched for foreigners". Archived from the original on 2019-07-09.

[21] Visa Laos

[Checkpoints-22] "Checkpoints – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ". immigration.gov.la. Department of Immigration of Lao PDR. Retrieved 2023-04-29.

[23] PDR, Consular Department-Ministry of Foreign Affairs LAO. "Lao e-Visa / Faq". laoevisa.gov.la. Retrieved 2023-04-16.

[24] Who can Apply for Lao e-Visa

[25] "Statistical Reports on Tourism in Laos".

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v t e Visa policy by country
Visa Passport Travel document
Africa	Algeria Angola Benin Botswana Burkina Faso Burundi Cameroon Cape Verde Central African Republic Chad Comoros DR Congo Djibouti Egypt⁶ Equatorial Guinea Eritrea Eswatini Ethiopia Gabon Gambia Ghana Guinea-Bissau Guinea Ivory Coast Kenya Lesotho Liberia Libya Madagascar Malawi Mali Mauritania Mauritius Morocco Mozambique Namibia Niger Nigeria R Congo Rwanda Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha¹ São Tomé and Príncipe Senegal Seychelles Sierra Leone Somalia Somaliland³ South Africa South Sudan Sudan Tanzania Togo Tunisia Uganda Zambia Zimbabwe
Americas	Anguilla¹ Antigua and Barbuda Argentina Bahamas Barbados Belize Bermuda¹ Bolivia Brazil British Virgin Islands¹ Canada Cayman Islands¹ Chile Colombia Costa Rica Cuba Dominica Dominican Republic Dutch Caribbean (Aruba, Caribbean Netherlands, Curaçao, Sint Maarten) Ecuador El Salvador Falkland Islands¹ Greenland⁵ Grenada Guatemala Guyana Haiti Honduras Jamaica Mexico Montserrat¹ Nicaragua Panama Paraguay Peru St. Kitts and Nevis St. Lucia St. Vincent and the Grenadines South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands¹ Suriname Trinidad and Tobago Turks and Caicos Islands¹ United States Puerto Rico⁴ Virgin Islands⁴ Uruguay Venezuela
Asia	Abkhazia² ³ Afghanistan Akrotiri and Dhekelia¹ ² Armenia² Azerbaijan² Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia China Hong Kong Macau Cyprus² East Timor Egypt⁶ Georgia² India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan² Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal North Korea Northern Cyprus² ³ Oman Pakistan Palestine³ Philippines Qatar Russia² Saudi Arabia Singapore South Korea South Ossetia² Sri Lanka Syria Taiwan (Republic of China)³ Tajikistan Thailand Turkey² Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen
Europe	Abkhazia² ³ Akrotiri and Dhekelia¹ ² Albania Andorra Armenia² Austria Azerbaijan² Belarus Belgium Bosnia and Herzegovina Bulgaria Croatia Czech Republic Cyprus² Denmark Faroe Islands Greenland Estonia Finland France Overseas Georgia² Germany Greece Hungary Iceland Ireland Italy Kazakhstan² Kosovo³ Latvia Liechtenstein Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Moldova Monaco Montenegro Netherlands Overseas North Macedonia Northern Cyprus² ³ Norway Svalbard Poland Portugal Romania Russia² San Marino Serbia Slovakia Slovenia South Ossetia² ³ Spain Sweden Switzerland Transnistria³ Turkey² Ukraine United Kingdom Overseas Vatican City
Oceania	American Samoa⁴ Australia Cook Islands Fiji Guam⁴ Kiribati Marshall Islands Micronesia Nauru New Zealand Niue Northern Mariana Islands⁴ Palau Papua New Guinea Pitcairn Islands¹ Samoa Solomon Islands Tokelau Tonga Tuvalu Vanuatu
Historical	Artsakh² Russia²
¹ British Overseas Territories. ² These countries span the conventional boundary between Europe and Asia. ³ Partially recognized. ⁴ Unincorporated territory of the United States. ⁵ Part of the Kingdom of Denmark. ⁶ Egypt spans the boundary between Africa and Asia.

v t e Visa requirements by citizenship
Visa Passport Travel document
Africa	Algerian Angolan Beninese Botswana Burkinabe Burundian Cameroonian Cape Verdean Central African Chadian Comorian Congolese (Democratic Republic) Congolese (Republic) Djiboutian Egyptian⁴ Equatorial Guinean Eritrean Ethiopian Gabonese Gambian Ghanaian Guinea-Bissauan Guinean Ivorian Kenyan Lesothan Liberian Libyan Malagasy Malawian Malian Mauritanian Mauritian Moroccan Mozambican Namibian Nigerian Nigerien Rwandan Saint Helena¹ Santomean Senegalese Seychellois Sierra Leonean Somali (Somaliland) South African South Sudanese Sudanese Swazi Tanzanian Togolese Tunisian Ugandan Zambian Zimbabwean
Americas	American Anguillan¹ Antigua and Barbuda Argentine Bahamian Barbadian Belizean Bermudian¹ Bolivian Brazilian British Virgin Islands¹ Canadian Caymanian¹ Chilean Colombian Costa Rican Cuban Dominica Dominican Republic Ecuadorian Greenlandic Grenadian Guatemalan Guyanese Haitian Honduran Jamaican Mexican Montserratian¹ Nicaraguan Panamanian Paraguayan Peruvian Saint Kitts and Nevis Saint Lucian Saint Vincent and the Grenadines Salvadoran Surinamese Trinidad and Tobago Turks and Caicos Islands¹ Uruguayan Venezuelan
Asia	Abkhaz² ⁵ Afghan Armenian³ Azerbaijani² Bahraini Bangladeshi Bhutanese Bruneian Cambodian Chinese Hong Kongese Macau Cypriot³ East Timorese Egyptian⁴ Emirati Georgian² Indian Indonesian Iranian Iraqi Israeli Japanese Jordanian Kazakhstani² Kuwaiti Kyrgyzstani Laotian Lebanese Malaysian Maldivian Mongolian Myanmar Nepalese North Korean Northern Cypriot³ ⁵ Omani Pakistani Palestinian Philippine Qatari Russian² Saudi Singaporean South Korean South Ossetian² ⁵ Sri Lankan Syrian Taiwanese⁵ Tajikistani Thai Turkish² Turkmen Uzbekistani Vietnamese Yemeni
Europe	Abkhaz² ⁵ Albanian Andorran Armenian³ Austrian Azerbaijani² Belarusian Belgian Bosnian and Herzegovinian British (BOTC · BN(O) · BOC) Bulgarian Croatian Cypriot³ Czech Danish Faroese Greenlandic Dutch Estonian (Non-citizens) EU Finnish French Georgian² German Greek Hungarian Icelandic Irish Italian Kazakhstani² Kosovar⁵ Latvian (Non-citizens) Liechtenstein Lithuanian Luxembourg Maltese Moldovan Montenegrin Monégasque North Macedonian Northern Cypriot³ ⁵ Norwegian Polish Portuguese Romanian Russian² San Marino Serbian Slovak Slovenian South Ossetian² ⁵ Spanish Swedish Swiss Transnistrian⁵ Turkish² Ukrainian Vatican City
Oceania	Australian Fijian Kiribati Marshallese Micronesian Nauruan New Zealand Palauan Papua New Guinean Pitcairn Islands¹ Samoan Solomon Islands Tongan Tuvaluan Vanuatuan
Other	Crew members Sovereign Military Order of Malta Green Card
¹ British Overseas Territories. ² Azerbaijan, Georgia, Turkey, Kazakhstan, Russia and the partially recognised republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia each span the conventional boundary between Europe and Asia. ³ Cyprus, Armenia, and the partially recognised republic of Northern Cyprus are entirely in Western Asia but have socio-political connections with Europe. ⁴ Egypt spans the boundary between Africa and Asia. ⁵ Partially recognized. Immigration law