Thailand

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Thailand is a comparatively LGBTQ+-friendly country located in southeast Asia

Why Thailand?

• Legal gender recognition: As of February 2025, Thailand does not have gender recognition laws. There is currently a gender recognition bill making it's way throught the Thai legislature and the Thai PM supports it.
• Anti-discrimination laws: Thailand does not have anti-LGBTQ+ discrimination laws.
• Public healthcare: Healthcare is cheap and plentiful.
• LGBTQ+ rights and community: As of February 2025, marriage equality is the law of the land in Thailand. The law was passed by the Thai legislature in 2024 by an overwhelming majority.
• Immigration pathways: Thailand has many pathways to permanent residency, but not citizenship. For Americans:
• Visa on arrival. Americans can get a visa on arrival at Thailand for 60 days and can extend it for an additional 30 days for a $60USD fee. One then must leave the country, but can then pretty much immediately turn about and go back into Thailand and repeat the whole process. One can enter Thailand over a land border using this method twice a year, and theoretically can fly into Thailand an unlimited number of times using this method, although like all Thai immigration, there is considerable leeway with the immigration officer checking your passport.
• Education visa: getting an education visa is relatively easy, one needs only to attend a properly accredited school, studying an approved subject(most common is Thai language studies, and customer service Degrees like hospitality management). You must also actually attend classes. But there is not a grade point average to maintain, just class attendance. Your initial education visa is for three months, then you can get yearly extensions indefinitely.
• Retirement visa: one must be 50 years of agenor order. Trailing spouses are not allowed, so each spouse must get their own visa on their own terms.
• Remote work/nomad visa: a relatively new entry, this was released to take advantage of folks who work remotely

Why not Thailand?

• Legal issues
• Housing issues
• Visa issues
• you name it

Access to Trans Healthcare

Healthcare in Thailand is relatively plentiful and cheap. As of February 2025, Thailand provides HRT free to all trans citizens. Immigrants still have to pay, but the cost is relatively cheap, costing about $20USD a month for an average estrogen and AA blockers Rx. HRT is available OTC.

Thailand is home to some of the most advanced and relatively cheap GAC surgeries in the world.

Immigration Policy

US citizens need/don't need a visa to move to Thailand for. Which languages are the processes done in? What are the options/limitations/etc? Examples are below

• Student Visa: Available to …
• Family-Route: …
• Work Visa: …

Medical Inadmissibility

Does the Thailand in question have immigration laws that would find people with disabilities or health challenges inadmissible to emigrate there?

Permanent Residency

What's the pathway if there is one?

Citizenship Pathway

How do you get to be a citizen if at all?

LGBTQ+ Friendly Cities

What are potentially good places to live in?

• Bangkok! Specifically, the Silom district is a queer area.
• Pattaya City has a small but vibrant queer community

Community & Support Resources

• What local communities and support structures are there?

National Organizations

• please add

Cost of Living

• The cost of living in Thailand compared to the US is remarkable. The CoL in Thailand is relatively inexpensive and the US dollar has a favorable exchange rate with the Thai Baht. It varies, but to give some base examples, the median income in Bangkok(where the cost of living is by far the most expensive )for a citizen is $2500USD/month.
• Rent is cheap. Rent in varies but you can find a place to rent for as little as $150USD/month
• Public transport is good in Bangkok, there is an extensive bus and train system. There are cheap buses and trains to most of the major towns.
• Healthcare is disgustingly cheap compared to the united states. Going to an expensive private hospital and getting over a dozen stitches and all appropriate treatment including medication costs $300 all told. Removing said stitches costs three dollars. Getting a prescription from a doctor can cost as little as ninety cents for a doctor's visit to get the note.
• Grocery prices are also cheap. Tourist areas can be more expensive but it is easy to eat on less than $5/day
• Education is

Housing Access & Cost

• There is discrimination in Thailand, but not generally towards LGBTQ+ and not towards foreigners. Frankly, being an American, Thai folks will assume you are rich and will be willing to work with you because they want your money.
• Non Thai citizens cannot buy property. Renting is as easy as walking in cash in hand, you can have an apartment rented and ready to live in within a few hours if everything lines up

Law Enforcement ("How bad are the cops?")

• Thailand's cops biggest issue is corruption. They will sometimes harrass citizens and/or foreigners to shake them down for "tea money", depending on the situation but it's not necessarily that uncommon to expect to have a cop shake one down for a few hundred USD. Generally Thailand's police are a lot less aggressive than American police. Tldr, they don't want to shoot you, they just might want to shake you down for a hundred dollars or so every so often.

Censorship & Digital Privacy

• Thailand has strict freedom of speech laws compared to the USA. It is very easy to sue and win a slander case against someone here. Thailand is also a monarchy, and saying anything negative about the king and/or the royal family is very highly illegal. Thailand actually has the strictest laws, called Les majeste laws, of any country in the world. Non citizens who violate this will get banned from the country. Citizens face serious jail sentences of decades in length.

Ease of Travel to Other Countries

• Thailand has several nearby and neighboring countries of varying types. Laos is probably the easiest and cheapest to travel back and forth to. Cambodia has corruption issues. Vietnam is very strict visa laws.

Animal Policies

• Is Thailand is pet-friendly or not
• What do you need to do to bring a pet?
• Consider adding a section on the Traveling with pets page