Passports and Visas
All visitors to Laos require valid Passports and need to obtain the Laos visa. Despite being a strongly regulated country, Laos has relaxed some of its rules about getting the visa. Check with the Lao Embassy nearest you for the current information on how to obtained your Visa for Laos.
Passports
All visitors entering Laos must possess valid passports.
Visas
Visitors traveling to Laos for the purpose of tourism need a visa, which can be obtained in different ways. An easy way is to book a tour to Laos with an authorized travel agency abroad who has a formal contact with one of local tour operators. This agency will provide you with the necessary form, enabling you to apply for the visa at your nearest Lao embassy or consulate (a list of these is provided at the back of this brochure) or you can make contact directly with local tour operators.
If you book a tour to Laos and you are resident of a country that does not have a Lao embassy or in case of urgency, you can obtain the visa upon arrival at the International border checkpoint through the service of Travel Agencies. Of course, you will need to be carrying documentary evidence that your visa has already been approved.
Primarily, all foreign visitors need to book the tours through a travel agent, and need to have a pre-approval letter from an authorized Laos agency (few bureaucratic minority). The Laos Embassy will issue the visa only if the above mentioned letter was attached. Currently, the embassy/consulates in certain countries do not require this letter, but some may do.
Recently, Laos authority has intended to boost tourism and allow travelers to obtain visa stamp at their Wattay International Airport in Vientiane, Luang Prabang Airport, and at the overland border crossing points of Thai-Laos Friendship Bridge near Nongkai.
- Holds return/onward ticket and all documents required for next destination,
- Holds Certificate of Bank Statement (USD 400 minimum) or life insurance policy
- Has a contact (individual person or organization) based in Laos
- Holds confirmed hotel reservation in Laos.
- Pay visa stamp fees.
As of February 28, 2007, the revised fee for all countries can be found at the Lao Embassy in Bangkok, Thailand.
