Thailand launches digital arrival card to slash immigration wait times

Thailand's Immigration Bureau will launch a mobile application for international visitors to complete their arrival card digitally before they land.

Known as the Thailand Immigration Management System (THIM), the platform is expected to launch on Oct 1 and will reduce the arrival card completion time to about three minutes, reported the Bangkok Post on Friday (May 29).

The bureau is currently using the web-based Thailand Digital Arrival Card, which was introduced in 2025 and has reportedly been used by more than 10 million visitors.

However, frequent travellers have complained about having to input their details in all 20 fields for every trip, according to the report.

With THIM, they only have to complete their full profile once and simply update new information such as the flight number and return date for future visits.

Tourists will also not need to present a QR code at immigration, as the data will be synced to the system and accessed by officers upon passport scanning. 

The app is available for pilot download on both Apple and Android mobile stores, and also supports English, Russian, Japanese and Chinese, with plans to expand to 15 languages.

Authorities anticipate THIM to be a super app that will reduce paperwork for expats and long-stay workers.

Other possible features include appointment booking and electronic document requests.

Thailand recorded nearly 33 million foreign arrivals in 2025.

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helmy.saat@asiaone.com