Visa policy of Laos



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.

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) - 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:

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):

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.

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.

The Laos e-Visa service was launched in July 2019. It is valid for 60 days from the date of issuance and its holders may stay for up to 30 days in Laos. 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:

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:

Statistics
Most visitors arriving to Laos were from the following countries of nationality: