Visa policy of Laos explained

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.

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:^[1]

30 days Cambodia Indonesia Malaysia Mongolia Philippines Singapore^[2] 15 days Austria Belgium Denmark Finland valign=top Greece Japan Luxembourg Norway valign=top Spain Sweden Switzerland 14 days Myanmar

1. - Temporary visa exemption policy from 1 July 2024 to 31 December 2024.
   

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:^[14]

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):

ASEAN member states (except Indonesia) Azerbaijan Bangladesh Belarus^1 Brazil China Hong Kong^2 Cuba^1 Czech Republic^1 Ecuador Hungary^1 India Indonesia^2 Japan^1 Kyrgyzstan Kuwait Mexico^1 Mongolia Norway^D Pakistan^1 Peru^1 Poland^1 Serbia^1 ^1 Slovakia^1 Switzerland Timor-Leste Turkey^D 1

_{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.^[15]

Visa on arrival and e-Visa

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.^{[16] [17]}

The Laos e-Visa service was launched in July 2019.^{[18] [19]} It is valid for 60 days from the date of issuance and its holders may stay for up to 30 days in Laos.^[20] 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:^{[21] [22]}

Port of entry	Opposite side	VoA	eVisa
Wattay International Airport (Vientiane)
Thai-Lao Friendship Bridge I (Vientiane)
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
Khamsavath railway station (Vientiane)	Nong Khai railway station, Thailand
	Chong Mek, Thailand
Boten (road checkpoint)
	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:^[23]

Afghanistan Algeria Bangladesh Burundi Cameroon Congo

Ghana Guinea-Bissau Iraq Jordan Lebanon Lesotho

Liberia Mozambique Nauru Niger Nigeria Pakistan Senegal

Sierra Leone Sudan Suriname Tonga Zambia Zimbabwe

Statistics

Most visitors arriving to Laos were from the following countries of nationality:^[24]

Country	2017	2016	2015	2014	2013	2012	2011
	1,797,803	2,009,605	2,321,352	2,043,761	2,059,434	1,937,612	1,579,941
	891,643	998,400	1,187,954	1,108,332	910,164	705,596	561,586
	639,185	545,493	511,436	422,440	245,033	199,857	150,791
	170,571	173,260	165,328	96,085	81,799	53,829	34,707
	38,765	58,094	63,058	61,460	61,608	53,380	50,092
	36,760	54,953	55,151	52,146	52,411	46,903	44,399
	32,064	49,191	43,826	44,877	48,644	42,026	37,883
	27,723	39,170	41,508	39,061	41,741	35,964	35,622
	23,776	34,018	31,897	29,800	29,250	23,417	21,280
	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

See also

• Visa requirements for Laotian citizens

External links

• Lao PDR Immigration Department
• Lao eVisa

Notes and References

1. Web site: Visa exemption – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ . . 10 August 2023 . en.
2. Web site: Laos - Travel Page . www.mfa.gov.sg . . 20 July 2024 . en . 12 July 2024.
3. Under the Visa Agreement on 05 March 2004
4. Web site: Lao Airlines . www.laoairlines.com . 17 June 2019.
5. Under the Visa Agreement on 10 May 2004
6. Under the Visa Agreement on 1 July 2004
7. Under the Visa Agreement on 28 October 2004
8. Under the Visa Agreement on 1 April 2005
9. Web site: Under the Visa Agreement on 10 April 2005.
10. Under the Visa Agreement on 14 September 2007
11. Under the Visa Agreement on 20 November 2009
12. Under the Visa Agreement on 23 September 2011
13. https://drive.google.com/file/d/1biBWE9Y026IOQDWpBybsjvPQIo5yrLPr/view Implementation of Visa exemption policy and determination oflength 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
14. https://agbrief.com/news/laos/27/06/2024/laos-to-grant-visa-free-entry-for-chinese-tourists-starting-in-july/ Laos to grant visa-free entry for Chinese tourists starting in July
15. https://english.news.cn/20240705/e50fb348dd1e4647bd96fd5ad12d80cc/c.html Laos, Kazakhstan sign deal for visa exemption
16. Web site: How to apply the visa extension . immigration.gov.la . 17 July 2019.
17. Web site: Law On EntryExit, And the Management of Foreigners in the Lao PDR Article 41 Section 5 . Laoservicesportal.gov.la . 17 July 2019.
18. Web site: Laos launches e-Visa service in Vientiane. 9 July 2019.
19. Web site: Lao E-visa launched for foreigners. https://web.archive.org/web/20190709162016/http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2019-07/09/c_138212654.htm. 2019-07-09.
20. https://laoevisa.gov.la/faq eVisa Laos
21. Web site: Checkpoints – ກົມຕຳຫຼວດກວດຄົນເຂົ້າ-ອອກເມືອງ . 2023-04-29 . immigration.gov.la . Department of Immigration of Lao PDR.
22. Web site: PDR . Consular Department-Ministry of Foreign Affairs LAO . Lao e-Visa / Faq . laoevisa.gov.la . 2023-04-16 . en.
23. https://laoevisa.gov.la/article/Who%20can%20Apply%20for%20Lao%20eVisa Who can Apply for Lao e-Visa
24. Web site: Statistical Reports on Tourism in Laos.