Transcript of the above video:

At the title of this video suggests, we are discussing issues associated with Thai immigration checkpoints and proof of funds. Take this video as something akin to an ALERT because I think this is going that is going to cause some degree of issues. That said let me get into this. 

Quoting directly from a recent posting on X, naoya&star, @naoyanstar, and this posting was initially put up in Japanese, but the Twitter basically automatically translated for me over into English, so I'm going to read that automatic translation, quoting directly: "The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) is issuing a renewed warning regarding proof of funds upon entry." I think they mean "Trouble stemming from being asked to show funds by Immigration Officers = frequent entry denials!! Incredibly, about 30,000 cases in 2026 alone!!"

That would be staggering with 30,000 Denials of Entry based on that issue but it wouldn't surprise me, but it would surprise me a little bit. 

That said, quoting further: "Cash is fine in yen or foreign currency; Bank balance statements are - it seems like kind of okay; available credit card limit is not okay; ATM withdrawals are not allowed. If denied entry, you will face forced deportation, and the return flight is at your own expense (one way ticket at that day's price) Plus, an entry denial stamp will make future entries even harder. 

The required amount varies by entry conditions as follows:

Visa exemption 

Transit Visa 

Visa on arrival: 

   10,000 baht per person, or 20,000 baht per family

In the case of obtaining a Tourist Visa:

   20,000 Baht of person or 40,000 for a family."

Just as a side note here, as I have stated in many other videos, going a ways back, the rule of thumb is 20,000 baht on an individual basis so act accordingly. Quoting further: "As are July 7, 1 baht = 4.86 yen. In other words, about 50,000 yen for one person, 100,000 yen for a family - cash preparation is necessary. 

However, spot checks for proof of funds mainly target those with extremely frequent travel or repeated long stays, from what we hear. It often applies to those traveling 7 to 8 times a year or on their third entry via land route in a year. Please be careful."

Yeah, useful information from that Twitter poster and again, I felt like making the video just because it is kind of pertinent; it is kind of pertinent at all times. But this is the time of year where yeah, this is what happens. We usually see during the low season period, a concerted effort by Thai Immigration to kind of tighten things up. Also, we see people who started off oftentimes at the beginning of the prior year’s high season coming to this point mid-summer of the following year where basically they have decided to live in Thailand after coming here - oftentimes on a vacation - and then they start seeing problems with immigration checkpoints etc., because of this exact issue; they are basically living here. Immigration is starting to think based on their travel history they are starting to live here and this issue pops up, and oftentimes it is used if you will as a pretext to deny entry.

Denial of Entry for any reason is flagged in a person's file, and now that we have biometric systems at Immigration, folks can be double checked down the road for prior entries and their file can be seen, so a Denial of Entry is something you want to try and avoid.

So if you are entirely and you're frequently here for tourism purposes - perhaps it might even be legitimate - this is the time of year to have in the back of your mind that you want to come into Thailand with at least 20,000 baht on you that you can readily produce because if stricter scrutiny is applied at Thai Immigration, you can go ahead and show that you have those funds on hand. Again, that may not necessarily lead to an approved entry if it is deemed that you are trying to live here.

But that being said, I felt that this was worthy of doing an ALERT based on the posting - especially when the Japanese are bringing it up - because for the most part, as a group or a nationality of tourists and travellers here in Thailand, they tend to be assiduously in line with relevant regulations. So, for them to bring up the fact that there seems to be heightened scrutiny associated with this issue, I felt like it was a good reason to make this video. 

That being said, it remains to be seen how all this place out, so we will certainly be keeping folks updated on this channel as the situation evolves.