Southeast Asia UK Visa Statistics: Thailand vs Vietnam, Philippines & Indonesia

Compiled & reviewed by Sunaree Ko, Founder · Source: GOV.UK Home Office statistics

Where does Thailand rank for UK visa approval in Southeast Asia?

Across the larger Southeast Asian applicant nationalities, the UK Standard Visitor visa grant rate in the year ending March 2026 ran from about 89.8% (Indonesia) and 89.2% (Thailand) at the top, down to 85.7% (Philippines) and 85.6% (Vietnam). Thailand sits firmly in the upper band — a few points ahead of its mainland and maritime neighbours — and every one of these countries is above the UK-wide visitor-visa grant rate of roughly 79%.

UK visitor visa grant rates in Southeast Asia, ranked (2026)

This is the headline comparison: the share of UK Standard Visitor visa applications granted and refused by nationality, for the larger Southeast Asian applicant countries, for the latest published year (ending March 2026). Thailand is highlighted.

Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam figures are taken directly from the Home Office's published by-nationality visitor-visa outcomes (Vis_D02, year ending March 2026, released 21 May 2026). *Malaysia is shown as an indicative figure only: Malaysian passport holders are non-visa nationals for short visits, so the visa-applicant cohort is very small and is not separately broken out in the headline tables — treat the ~92% as approximate, not a published rate. Always confirm the latest figures at GOV.UK.

Visitor grant rate by nationality — visualised

Thailand: among the higher rates in the region

Thailand is one of the larger UK visitor-visa applicant nations in Southeast Asia, with 53,346 applications in the year ending March 2026 and an 89.2% grant rate — roughly nine in ten approved. Only Indonesia, with a slightly higher 89.8%, edged ahead among the major regional cohorts. Thailand's 10.8% refusal rate is well below the UK-wide visitor-visa refusal rate of about 21%, which means Thai applicants are refused noticeably less often than the global average. For the full route-by-route Thai breakdown — study, family and Skilled Worker as well as visitor — see our UK visa statistics for Thai nationals.

Indonesia: the regional leader by a whisker

Indonesia recorded the highest Standard Visitor grant rate among the larger Southeast Asian cohorts, at about 89.8% from 42,461 applications — a refusal rate of roughly 10.2%. The gap over Thailand is small (around half a percentage point), so in practice Thai and Indonesian applicants see broadly similar visitor-visa outcomes. Like Thailand, Indonesia is a visa-national country for the UK, so Indonesians cannot use the £20 Electronic Travel Authorisation for short trips.

Philippines: the largest applicant cohort in the region

The Philippines generated the most UK Standard Visitor applications of these countries — 54,108 — at a grant rate of about 85.7% (a refusal rate of roughly 14.3%). That is a few points below Thailand and Indonesia but still comfortably above the UK-wide average. The larger cohort reflects strong family and work links between the Philippines and the UK.

Vietnam: the lowest of the four — but still above average

Vietnam sits at the foot of this comparison, with a grant rate of about 85.6% from 21,484 applications and a refusal rate near 14.4%. The gap to Thailand is roughly 3.6 percentage points. Even so, Vietnam's rate is well above the UK-wide visitor figure of about 79%, so the difference between the top and bottom of Southeast Asia's larger cohorts is modest by global standards.

Malaysia: why it sits outside the main table

Malaysia is a special case. Malaysian passport holders are non-visa nationals for short visits to the UK, which means most Malaysians do not need a Standard Visitor visa at all and travel without one. Because the visa-applicant cohort for Malaysia is so small, it is not separately broken out in the Home Office's headline by-nationality visitor tables. We show an indicative figure of around 92% for completeness, but it is approximate — not a published rate — and should be read with caution. This is exactly the kind of figure we flag rather than present as precise.

How Southeast Asia compares with the rest of the world

Across all routes and all nationalities, the UK granted about 83% of entry-clearance visa applications in the year ending March 2026, and roughly 79% of Standard Visitor visas specifically. Every major Southeast Asian nationality in this comparison sits above the visitor-visa average. The region as a whole is a relatively strong-performing block for UK visitor approvals — a long way from the lowest-ranked nationalities worldwide, where visitor grant rates can fall below 50%. Thailand's place near the top of Southeast Asia therefore also places it well above the global average.

Why do the rates differ between countries?

The published differences between nationalities are driven by the make-up of each applicant pool rather than by any single rule applied differently to one country. Home Office guidance and refusal notices most often cite factual, document-based reasons:

• Financial evidence — bank statements that do not clearly show stable, sufficient funds, or large unexplained deposits.
• Ties and intentions — not enough evidence that the visit is genuine and that the applicant will leave the UK at the end of it.
• Incomplete or untranslated documents — UKVI refuses documents not in English or Welsh without a certified translation.
• Inconsistencies — dates, names or figures that do not match across the application and supporting papers.

These are general, published reasons — not an assessment of any individual application, and not a prediction for any nationality. Getting the document set complete, consistent and correctly translated is the part applicants have most control over. If a visa has been refused, see our information page on reapplying after a refusal.

How these statistics are compiled (sources & method)

All figures on this page are compiled from the UK Home Office's official Immigration system statistics — specifically the entry-clearance visa applications and outcomes data by nationality (the detailed Vis_D02 dataset) — for the year ending March 2026 (released 21 May 2026). This data is published free under the Open Government Licence.

• Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines and Vietnam visitor grant and refusal rates and application counts are read directly from the by-nationality visitor-visa outcomes table.
• Malaysia is shown only as an indicative figure (~92%); its applicant cohort is small (most Malaysians are non-visa nationals) and is not separately published, so it is marked approximate.
• UK-wide comparisons (~79% visitor, ~83% all routes) are from the same release, all nationalities combined.
• Percentages are grant/refusal as a share of decisions; small differences can occur as applications are withdrawn or carried between quarters.

Primary sources — all GOV.UK and Parliament, free under the Open Government Licence:

• Home Office — Immigration statistics quarterly release
• Immigration system statistics: data tables — entry-clearance visa applications & outcomes by nationality (table Vis_D02; filter to each country)
• House of Commons Library — Problems getting a visa to visit the UK (by-nationality visitor-visa grant rates)

Last updated: June 2026. Next update: on the next quarterly Home Office release (year ending June 2026, due ~August 2026). Always confirm the latest figures at GOV.UK before relying on them.

Related guides

Frequently asked questions

Last reviewed: June 2026. This page presents aggregate published statistics from GOV.UK for information only; it is not immigration advice and not a prediction of any individual application. Figures are grant/refusal shares for the year ending March 2026 (Home Office, released 21 May 2026); the Malaysia figure is indicative only. Always confirm the latest data at GOV.UK.