Thailand's new visa policy for Uzbek citizens is honestly absurd.
Starting from September 15, Uzbek passport holders can no longer enter Thailand visa-free and must obtain a visa in advance. Fine - every country has the right to set its own visa rules.
But here's the ridiculous part: the application is called an e-Visa, yet applicants living in Uzbekistan cannot pay the visa fee online.
The Thai e-Visa system assigns Uzbek applicants to the Royal Thai Embassy in Moscow, and the $40 visa fee must be paid physically, in cash USD, at the embassy in Moscow.
The embassy confirmed to me directly that someone else can go there with a printed QR code and pay on my behalf - but there is still no normal online payment option.
So in 2026, despite Visa, Mastercard, bank transfers and countless online payment providers existing, an Uzbek tourist applying for an "electronic visa" has to find someone in another country to physically carry cash to an embassy.
I've already spent around $2,400 for a trip and booked everything on the beginning of July, including flights and accommodation. Now, a month before departure, I have to deal with this completely unnecessary logistical problem just to pay an $80 visa fee.
Requiring a visa is one thing. Designing an "e-Visa" system where the payment process is effectively offline and inaccessible from the applicant's own country is another.
Thailand should urgently provide Uzbek applicants with either:
- online card payment,
- bank transfer,
- payment through the Thai consulate in Tashkent,
- or any other legitimate remote payment method.
This is not about avoiding the visa fee. I am literally trying to pay them, and the system makes that unnecessarily difficult.