Do not be surprise if you called a Laos Embassy, and they inform you to contact a travel agent to arrange the visa stamp for you. This is because they do not accept direct visa application from individual travelers (at least at the time of writing – in good faith, we believe that in the future, the Laos Embassy will accept direct application).

In the past, the Laos visa could be issued to the foreign tourists only if the package tours were purchased through one of its authorized travel agencies. Nowadays, it is not necessary to buy a package tour in order to obtain the Laos visa, but the procedures remain almost unchanged.

Many travelers or travel agents, unacquainted with the system or procedure, seem to be confused on how to get the Laos visa, and the process had been lying ambiguous for years. Here is our explanation on the procedures, costs, and validity

Step 1: You need to have a visa approval letter that is approved by the Foreign Ministry of Laos.

Step 2: The Laos visa will be stamped onto your Passport only if you submit your application with a letter of visa approval

In other words, you need to have a letter of visa approval before you could get the Laos visa stamp from the Laos Embassy.

1) Application for Letter of Visa Approval

You can do it by sending us your Passport details either by e-mail or by fax with the following information:

1. Last Name and First Name
2. Sex
3. Nationality
4. Passport Number
5. Date of Passport Issued
6. Date of Passport Expiry
7. Date of Birth
8. Occupation
9. Date of Arrival

We will forward your details to the Laos Authority to get the approval.

 2) Getting Laos visa stamp into your Passport after receiving approval

Normally it takes us 2-3 working days to approve your visa after we officially submit your Passport details to the Laos Authority in Vientiane. In urgent cases, we could do it within 1 working day.

Once approved, we will fax this letter of visa approval to you; then you can obtain the visa stamp from the embassy in your country with the other required documents described above. It normally takes another 2-3 working days.

For those obtaining the visa stamp in Bangkok, Thailand, it takes another 2 working days to get the visa stamp.

COST OF VISA ARRANGEMENT & FEES

There are two separated costs – Visa approval letter & Visa stamp fees

1.  Costs for Visa Approval Letter

Our arrangement fee for getting the Visa Approval Letter is USD 50 per person including services and fax communications. We require pre-payment before we start visa processing, and kindly note that it is non-refundable if you change your mind not to obtain it later.

2.  Cost for Laos Visa Stamp Fee

This fee has to paid separately and additional to the Embassy (or to the Immigration) for issuing the visa stamp.

	In Bangkok, Thailand – 300 Baht (US$ 8) per person to Embassy
	In other countries – between USD 12-16 per person to Embassy
	Upon arrival at Airport/Bridge or Border points in Laos: USD 50 per person to Immigration

Note:  If you have booked the package tour with us, the costs of visa approval and visa stamp fee are already included, except the one issues upon arrival.

VISA VALIDITY

You can stay up to 15 days after entry. One visa extension for another 15 days in Laos is possible.

Please note that you have to utilize the Laos visa within 2 months from the issued date, otherwise, it is expired.