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Getting Lao visa is easy and much easier
than before. Apart from getting visa of
Lao PDR through traditional ways at
Embassy or Consulates, travelers of most
nationals can now obtain Lao visa upon
arrival - at International airport of
Vientiane, Luang Prabang and Pakse, and
at various border crossing points with
the neighboring countries such as
Thailand, Vietnam and China. Normal
entry tourist visa is valid for 30 days.
General visa fee upon arrival is US$ 30
- prepare one Passport size photos for
visa application form and another for a
back up. For longer stay tourist, a
60-day visa should be obtained at
Embassy/Consulates before entry to Laos.
Extension of stay is possible for
another 30 days, but you should apply
for extension before expiry at the
Immigration Office. Overstay fine.
Your Passport must be valid for at
least 6 months with at least 1 empty
page for visa stamp. Refusal of entry to
travelers who had less than 6 months
validity or no empty page in Passport
for visa stamp had happened before, so
this should not be a surprise.
Some tourists may prefer to have visa
stamp before the arrival, so visa is all
set and no worry upon arrival. This
could help to save time from long queue,
especially during holidays when some
group tours arrive Laos without visa.
With visa already stamp on your
Passport, you still need to fill arrival
application form to the Immigration
office, but procedure is shorten. To get
Lao visa before arrival, contact the
nearest Embassy/Consulate from your
country. Visa stamp fee at
Embassy/Consulate ranges from US$ 8-40
depending upon the country.
As tourism in Laos grows during the
past decade, so do the International
airport. A decade ago, there is only one
International airport in Vientiane, the
capital city of Lao PDR. Only old
Russian planes flied during those time
to and from Bangkok of Thaiand, Hanoi of
Vietnam and Phnom Penh of Cambodia.
Nowaday, there are two more
International airports in addition to
the one in Vientiane, one in Lunag
Prabang and another in Pakse. Several
International airlines have been flying
to these airports and the lists are
growing. At these three International
Airports - Vientiane, Luang Prabang and
Pakse, you can obtain Lao visa upon
arrival.
Lao PDR is a landlock country and is
surrounded by Thailand, Vietnam,
Cambodia and China. There are totally 15
border crossing points between Laos and
its neighboring countries. Out of these
15 points, only 9 of which are allowed
for foreigners whereas the rest only for
locals.
These nine crossing/check points
where foreign travelers can travel by
land are as followed:
Border Check Points between
Thailand and Laos
- Nongkhai - Thai-Lao Friendship
Bridge at Nongkhai (close to
Vientiane)
- Chiang Khong / Huay Xai
- Xayabouly / Nam Heuang
Friendship Bridge
- Friendship Bridge II at Mukdahan
/ Suvannakhet
- Chongmek / Champassak
Border Check Points between
Vietnam and Laos
- Nam Kanh / Nong Haet in Xieng
Khouang Province
- Kao Cheo / Nam Phao
- Lao Bao / Dene Savanh
Savannakhet Province
Border Check Point between China
and Laos
- China - Mohan / Boten (Luang
Namtha)
Border Check Point - between
Cambodia and Laos (No Laos Visa upon
arrival)
- Dong Calor - Veun Kham -
Unfortunately, no visa on arrval for
laos is available at this crossing
point between Cambodia and Laos.
Travelers can obtain Cambodia visa
at this border when travel from Laos
to Cambodia, but not vice versa.
Laos visa should be stamped from Lao
Embassy in Phnom Penh before arrival
at this crossing point.
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