The Thailand Elite visa is now Thailand Privilege: what changed

If you search for the Thailand Elite visa today, you land on a programme called Thailand Privilege. It is the same long-stay membership under a new name. This page sets out what the official site says about the change, what still carries the old name, and what is still unknown.

All facts below were read on the official pages listed under Sources on 26 October 2026.

Same programme, new name

The programme’s own guides say it plainly. One calls it “Thailand Privilege Card, formerly known as the Thailand Elite” and says it was founded in 2003 under a subsidiary of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. Other guides on the same site write “Thailand Privilege Card (formerly Thai Elite Visa)”.

The official pages we read do not say when the name changed. We found no announcement of the rename, so we leave the date out.

What the programme looks like now

The official home page lists these visa tiers, each a one-off membership fee:

Tier	Fee	Validity	Privilege points per year
Bronze	650,000 THB	5 years	0
Gold	900,000 THB	5 years	20
Platinum	1,500,000 THB	10 years	35
Diamond	2,500,000 THB	15 years	55
Reserve	5,000,000 THB	20 years	120

The official list shows a “By invitation only” label next to the Reserve entry. The home page shows Reserve as 20 years. Other parts of the official site write it as “20 years ++”. We show it as 20+ years on our Thailand Privilege page.

The site also has a separate Non-Visa Membership list. This article covers only the visa tiers.

What still carries the Elite name

The rename did not reach every page. On the official Living in Thailand page you still find:

• “Thailand Elite visa” and “Thailand Elite Membership Card” in the stay extension checklist.
• Service names such as Elite Personal Assistance (EPA) and Elite Personal Liaison (EPL).
• Older membership types listed as Elite Ultimate Privilege (EUP), Elite Family Premium (EFP) and similar.

So if an agent, a forum post or an older document says “Elite”, it is very likely about the same programme. That is our reading, not an official statement.

What old members should know

Three points come straight from the official site.

First, packages sold before October 2023 are on the official list as “Existing Membership packages before October 2023”. The fee is shown as “Discontinued”, and validity and points are shown as “Contact Center” and “Please contact Member”. The site does not say what happens to a specific old package, so we do not guess.

Second, the visa itself is described in the official FAQ in terms of two stickers. The Privilege Entry visa (PE, gold sticker) allows 1 year per entry. The Special Entry visa (SE, green sticker) allows 90 days per entry. The FAQ tells members to check the arrival stamp every time and to report a wrong stamp before leaving the airport.

Third, the Living in Thailand page says members with a PE visa are granted a 1-year extension with each application. The page lists a processing fee of THB 1,900 for a stay extension and says it can change.

The Living in Thailand page also lists a 90-day report to immigration and explains how it works for different membership types. It says a late report carries a penalty of THB 2,000. One guide on the same site, the one comparing the card with other long-term visas, instead says there is no 90-day reporting requirement. The official pages disagree, so check with the programme.

The Member Contact Center number on the official site is +66 (0) 2352 3000.

Fixed points in the current official pages

• The membership is a one-time fee for a fixed number of years. One guide describes it as “one-time fees without recurring annual payments”.
• Work is not clear-cut. One guide says members are not allowed to engage in local employment. The guide comparing the card with the LTR visa says members can only work through the Flexible Plus Program, which requires a minimum investment of USD 1 million. The programme’s own FAQ answers “No, not by default”. We cannot resolve this, so ask the programme before you plan to work.
• The official guides say fees, benefits and offers are subject to change, and point to the Member Contact Center for current terms.

Our suggestion

If you read an older article about Thailand Elite, use it for the idea, not the numbers. Check every fee against the current tier list. Our tier page shows the figures we last checked and the date. If you want help choosing a tier or applying, you can send an enquiry and we will pass it to a partner law firm in Phuket.

Facts we could not find

• The date of the rename.
• Whether a specific old Elite package converts to a current tier.
• Whether Bronze or Gold has an end date.