Thailand visa for software developers
If you write code for a company outside Thailand, the DTV was written for you — five years, 180 days a stay, no Thai employer required.
Developers are the cleanest DTV cases we run, and the ones most often refused for avoidable reasons. Salaried engineers have a contract and payslips, which is exactly what an embassy wants to see. The difficulty starts with contractors, and with anyone paid through their own limited company: an invoice by itself proves you sent someone a bill, not that a real employer pays you a real income.
The other thing developers underestimate is the money. The DTV asks for 500,000 THB sitting in a personal account for at least three months. High earners routinely fail this, not because they lack the funds but because the funds are in a brokerage, in company reserves, or in a currency account they opened last week.
The documents an embassy expects from this occupation. Missing one is the usual reason a case stalls.
- An employment contract or master services agreement with a non-Thai company
- Three to six months of payslips, or invoices matched to credits in your named bank account
- 500,000 THB held in a personal account for at least three months
- If you contract through your own company: incorporation documents and a letter on company letterhead
- A GitHub profile, portfolio or employer letter as corroboration of the role
The specific failure modes we see for this occupation, and how they are avoided.
Invoices without a contract
A folder of invoices reads as self-employment with no counterparty. Pair every invoice with the signed agreement it was raised under, and with the bank credit that settled it. Two of the three is not enough.
Your own limited company looks like a shell
Contracting through a UK Ltd or a Hong Kong company is normal and accepted, but only with the registration certificate and a director's letter confirming your role and salary. Without them the entity reads as a vehicle created for the visa.
Counting equity as income
RSUs, options and unvested equity carry no weight. Only money that has actually landed in your account counts, so a package that is 60% equity can evidence far less income than you earn.
The DTV is not always right. These are the situations where we would steer you elsewhere.
Long-Term Resident Visa (LTR)
On USD 80,000+ a year with an established employer, the LTR gives you ten years, a digital work permit and a 17% personal tax cap instead of five years and no work rights.
Full details on this visa →Business Visa & Work Permit (Non-B)
The moment a Thai company pays you — even one client, even a contract — you need a Non-B and a work permit. The DTV does not cover it.
Full details on this visa →Common questions
Can I take on a Thai client while I hold a DTV?
No. The DTV covers work performed for people and companies outside Thailand. A Thai-registered client makes it Thai work, which needs a Non-B and a work permit regardless of where you sit while you do it.
Will I pay Thai tax?
If you spend 180 days or more in Thailand in a calendar year you become tax resident, and foreign income you remit into Thailand is assessable. It is one of the main reasons high-earning developers look at the LTR, which caps personal income tax at 17%.
Does my employer have to know I am in Thailand?
For the application, yes in practice — the contract or employer letter is central to the evidence pack. We have workable approaches when an employer is cautious about a formal relocation letter, but a case with no employer confirmation at all is a weak case.
Reviewed against Thai immigration practice current in 2026.
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