free visa run to laos

[colz]

Last week i headed to laos to do my visa run, crossed over the bridge paid my 35 dollars and got my laos visa,all good . decided to stay for a few days , went tubing ,great, anyways on the way back got talking to fella from germany he was sayin he goes there and gets a 5 or 6 day stamp for laos free of charge, he showed me the stamp,no laos visa only a stamp for so many days , he says just go up to the window , and just say your only goin for a few days or your just crossin over and they give you a stamp and theres no waiting to get your passport back , you get so many days free for laos he said,the only balls is i did nt meet on the way in there, anyone heard of this before , and if anyone needs to cross over in d next few weeks let us know how ya get on ,

[Texpat]

Was he a dual citizen?
Was this stamp in his German/EU passport?

[jorg]

Did not see any evidence, but yes i heard about this before the last time i went to Laos. A (also) German guy told me that he seen people crossing the Laos border without a visa, indeed stating they only would stay there for a few days. It sounded rather strange to me, so didn't really give it any thoughts...

Have to go again in about one month, i'll give it a try.

[jorg]

Maybe its this?

Transit visa

* Maximum five days for stay (in Vientiane only).
* Proof of an entry visa and air ticket to the third country.

source

[Texpat]

Interesting.

So if someone wanted to fly from Vientiane to Hanoi, they would only need to get a visa for Vietnam, not Laos (assuming they had tix and visa to fly to Vietnam within five days)

[nkstan]

Is the German saying that you can avoid paying the $35,by doing this?

[BobHelm]

Interesting.
I have never heard of this - although that certain does not mean to imply it is untrue.
Same as Thailand the Laos Immigration system is on computer, so, in theory, they can analysis the data concerning people coming & going & for how long they stay. I would be amazed if many visitors who pay $30 odd for the 1 month visa actually stay anything like that time. I imagine the majority are either same day returnees (people kicking in the next n days of an existing visa) or 2-5 days (people go to the Thai Embassy for a new visa). I cannot believe that the Laos Government are willing to give up this much foreign money coming into the country without a very,very good reason to do so. I just cannot imagine what that reason could possibly be.
It will be VERY interesting to see how colz (or anyone else who goes before him) get on with this request.

[jorg]

Yes, was thinking the same. Maybe it is possible, but they just don't make it public because it would cost them a lot of money. But if now and then some people ask for it they don't bother about it.

[nkstan]

Absolutely,my wife would appreciate my help when she does the ''Wine ,Baileys and Beer Lao'' run!!

[papaguido]

Absolutely,my wife would appreciate my help when she does the ''Wine ,Baileys and Beer Lao'' run!!

You may still require a reentry permit, don't you get stamped out on the Thai side before entering Laos

[nkstan]

Absolutely,my wife would appreciate my help when she does the ''Wine ,Baileys and Beer Lao'' run!!

You may still require a reentry permit, don't you get stamped out on the Thai side before entering Laos

Not sure what your point is Rito.Of course I would need a re-entry permit to not lose my visa status!
My point was if it is true that there is no need to pay the $30+ fee,I would accompany my wife to the duty store as I have very little interest in anything else about Laos!

[papaguido]

Absolutely,my wife would appreciate my help when she does the ''Wine ,Baileys and Beer Lao'' run!!

You may still require a reentry permit, don't you get stamped out on the Thai side before entering Laos

Not sure what your point is Rito.Of course I would need a re-entry permit to not lose my visa status!
My point was if it is true that there is no need to pay the $30+ fee,I would accompany my wife to the duty store as I have very little interest in anything else about Laos!

My point is it's not totally free and wasn't sure if you were aware of the reentry permit

[nkstan]

I was only posting to the info that the OP was talking about.The way I read it,someone was getting around the $30+ fee paying.If that is true,I would take advantage of it by doing the duty free runs with my wife that I don't do now because of the fee!

[papaguido]

You read correctly Stan, maybe I wasn't clear. What I meant is that you still have to pay for the reentry permit. But if the story is true than your saving $30/35.

[Benzman2]

Isent this a borderpass they get then? Sounds like it.

[Texpat]

To get the free transit visa (on the link) you'll also have to buy airline tickets out of Vientiene.
That could prove to be a showstopper depending on how badly you needed your Baileys and Beer Lao.

[colz]

ya i guess its like a border pass for a few days and ya thats what he was explaining to me i could of saved myself 35 dollars ,the way it happened was i got talkin to him on the bus back, and we were both after being to veng vieng for a few days and he asked me did i pay to come to laos , i told him i payed my 35 dollars and cross at the friendship bridge , he did the same and told me you dont have to pay for a few days,in other words i did nt need to get a 30 day visa and explained how its a free visa run for any of us crossing over, he had no reason to lie about it,from what i could see, i think who ever has to do it next try it , and find out, there s nottin to loose, their either goin to say no or just stamp your passport , i think the best thing is walk up and let on you ve done it a few times before , and dont wipe out any cash , like someone said they not going to advertise it but its prob there and its deff worth a try and hopefully save us a lot of money and hasel in the future

[jackspratt]

Perhaps this is relevant:

Laos to waive visa fees for over 65s

The government has agreed to waive visa fees for elderly and young foreigners entering the country, as part of efforts to promote tourism.

The Ministry of Finance’s Taxation Department Director General, Ms Manivone Insisiengmay, said yesterday the waiver would apply to foreigners aged over 65 and under 15.............

http://laovoices.com/2009/02/20/laos-to ... -visitors/

[jorg]

Maybe, but I don't think so. Besides of that it is an interesting article, but it is 1 year old and I don't think it is enforced. But, gives some insights about how they think...

The government has agreed to waive visa fees for elderly and young foreigners entering the country, as part of efforts to promote tourism.
The Ministry of Finance’s Taxation Department Director General, Ms Manivone Insisiengmay, said yesterday the waiver would apply to foreigners aged over 65 and under 15.
<>
She said the government considered the visa fee waivers an attempt to reduce the financial burden on people in these age groups, pointing out that neither elderly people nor young people earned an income.
“Most people over 65 are retired so they do not make any money,” she said.
<>
... The government is planning to charge an additional tourist fee next month. Passport holders will be required to pay US$2, while those who enter the country on a border pass will pay only US$1.
<>
While this age group [older people] is mostly retired, he said, they like to stay in top-end accommodation.
“These people have a lot of money and like to stay in luxury hotels.”
<>
Most visitors to Laos were in their 30s, Mr Sila said.

So to promote tourism children under 15 get free entry, this is nice for the parents but they still have to pay, I doubt these children travel on there own. Also older people, 65 and up, get free entry, the reason being they have no income, but they like to stay in top-end accommodations because they have a lot of money .

The biggest group of visitors, according to their figures, has to pay some more money, because next to the visa fees they are introducing a tourist fee. Yes... that will sure promote tourism.

[Texpat]

Not much of a demographic, is it?

All blue-eyed, blonde Thais ...