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Flag of Austria — Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) for Austrian citizens: visa, immigration and entry requirements
For Passport Holders: Austria 🇦🇹

Austrians in Thailand 2026:30 Days, TDAC & Passport vs ID Card

Visa rules, TDAC arrival card, customs, currency, vaccines and embassy contacts for Austrian travellers heading to Thailand in 2026.

Visa Status: Visa Exempt (30 Days)

Entry Requirements

If you hold a passport from Austria, you must submit a Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) before entering the Kingdom of Thailand. The TDAC replaced the paper-based TM6 form and is now required for all international arrivals — regardless of your visa status or purpose of travel.

As an Austrian citizen, you are eligible for visa exempt (30 days) entry. Your passport must be valid for at least 6 months from your date of entry. The TDAC collects your personal details, travel information, and accommodation address in Thailand.

⚠️ Common Issue for Austrian Passport Holders

Passport vs. ID card confusion — this is the most common reason for TDAC rejections from Austrian travelers. Our system automatically detects and corrects these issues before submission, ensuring your arrival card is accepted without delays at immigration.

How to Apply

  1. 1Have your Austria passport ready with at least 6 months validity from your planned entry date.
  2. 2Complete the online form on TDAC.info with your personal details, travel itinerary, and accommodation address in Thailand.
  3. 3Our team reviews your submission for errors and you receive your approved QR code via email before your departure.
  4. 4Present your QR code at Thai immigration upon arrival — no paper forms needed, skip the queues.

Visa Status

Austrian citizens: Visa Exempt (30 Days). No visa application required for tourist stays within the allowed period.

Visa Duration for Austrian Citizens

Austrian passport holders can stay in Thailand for 30 days from 15 Sep 2026 under the current visa exemption. Extensions are available at local Immigration offices.

Flights to Thailand from Austria

  • Vienna (VIE) → Bangkok (direct via Austrian/Thai Airways)

Common TDAC Mistakes by Austrian Travelers

  • Personalausweis (ID card) is NOT valid — passport required
  • Austrian passport numbers: 1 letter + 7 digits
  • Umlauts must be converted for MRZ match
Confirmed 30 October 2026 - 33 countries and territories

Auto Gates at Suvarnabhumi: Austria Passports Can Use the Arrival Gates

The arrival auto gates at Bangkok Suvarnabhumi Airport now serve 33 countries and territories, up from two (Singapore and Hong Kong), and Austria is one of them. The Ministry of Tourism and Sports confirmed this on 30 October 2026. The rollout is phased, so an eligible passport does not guarantee an open gate on every flight: if no gate is open for you, use a staffed counter.

When the arrival gate will take you

  • You enter visa-free. The gates are for travellers under the visa exemption. If you hold a visa, you still clear immigration at a staffed counter.
  • You have visited Thailand before. The gate matches a face scan against biometrics already on file, so first-time visitors give their biometrics at a staffed counter.
  • You filed your TDAC before landing. The gates do not replace the Thailand Digital Arrival Card. Since 15 October 2026 the TDAC confirmation email shows ELIGIBLE or MANUAL PROCESSING for the gate.
  • Your TDAC matches your passport. The gate reads the passport chip and checks it against your arrival record, so a different name spelling, passport number or date of birth sends you to a staffed counter.

Leaving Thailand is a separate system: the departure Auto Channel at Suvarnabhumi is open to e-passport holders of all nationalities. Arrival gates at Don Mueang and Phuket are planned but not yet confirmed as open.

Royal Thai Embassy in Vienna

For visa enquiries beyond the visa exemption period, contact the Royal Thai Embassy in Vienna.

Visit Embassy Website

The 90-Second Version

Austrians are winter travellers to Thailand — Phuket, Khao Lak and Samui from December to March — with Austrian Airlines and EVA Air flying Vienna–Bangkok non-stop in about eleven hours. Austrian passport holders get 60 visa-free days. Visa-free days for Austrian passports: 30 days, tourism and short business visits. Flight time: about 11 hours non-stop from Austria. Where you land: Suvarnabhumi (BKK), Bangkok.

What Immigration Checks on Austrian Passports

  • Reisepass, not Personalausweis. The ID card is valid only in Europe; Thailand needs the passport with six months' validity from entry. Children's passports are shorter-term documents — check theirs first.
  • Onward ticket. Long-stayers on open tickets should carry proof of a flight out within your permitted stay or a Tourist Visa.
  • First-night address. Required on the TDAC; write the resort name and street.

Your Name on the TDAC

Umlauts and ß do not exist in the MRZ: ICAO transliterates them as AE, OE, UE and SS — Jürgen Größinger is JUERGEN GROESSINGER on the bottom of the data page — and the TDAC must use that spelling. Academic titles printed on Austrian passports (Dr., Mag., DI) are not part of the name and must be left out. The passport number is one letter followed by seven digits.

Practical Notes for Austrian Travellers

  • Cards. Austrian Maestro-only cards are poorly accepted in Thailand; bring a Debit Mastercard, Visa or credit card. Every Thai ATM charges a flat 220 THB per withdrawal.
  • Time zone. Thailand is six hours ahead of Austria in winter, five in summer.
  • Help in Thailand. The Austrian Embassy is on Sathorn Road in Bangkok. The Royal Thai Embassy in Vienna issues visas for stays beyond the exemption.

Sources

The facts on this page were checked against these primary sources. Each link opens the publisher's own website.

  1. Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) portal, Immigration Bureau — tdac.immigration.go.th
  2. Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Thailand — mfa.go.th
  3. Royal Thai Government Gazette (Ratchakitcha) — ratchakitcha.soc.go.th
  4. Thai Customs Department — customs.go.th
  5. World Health Organization (WHO): international travel advice — who.int

Links checked on 8 October 2026.

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