The one page that adds up the real out-of-pocket cost of every UK visa route from Thailand — government fee, NHS health fee (IHS), VFS service menu, TB test and certified translation — in pounds and indicative baht, correct to the 8 April 2026 fee table. We also separate what the visa COSTS from how much money you must SHOW in your bank.
Written & reviewed by Sunaree Ko, Founder · Sourced from GOV.UK
A Standard Visitor (tourist) visa for 6 months is £135 — about ฿5,900 at an indicative rate.* Visitor visas have NO NHS health fee. Long-stay routes cost far more once the health fee (IHS) stacks on top: a spouse/partner visa is £2,064 (about ฿89,800) plus IHS, and a student visa is £558 (about ฿24,300) plus IHS. Every figure here is from the 8 April 2026 gov.uk fee table.
* The pound figure is the price you actually pay; baht is an approximate conversion at ~฿43.5 per £1 and changes daily — see the live calculator below.
| Route (snapshot) | Gov fee £ | Gov fee ฿ (approx) | NHS fee (IHS)? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Visitor — 6 months | £135 | ≈ ฿5,900 | No |
| Spouse / Partner (entry) | £2,064 | ≈ ฿89,800 | Yes (large) |
| Fiancé(e) | £2,064 | ≈ ฿89,800 | No at entry* |
| Student | £558 | ≈ ฿24,300 | Yes (student rate) |
| Skilled Worker — up to 3 yrs | £819 | ≈ ฿35,600 | Yes |
| Family dependant | same as main route | per person | Yes, per person |
*Fiancé(e) pays no IHS at entry because the visa is under 6 months; the IHS is paid later when you switch in-country to a spouse visa. Fees: gov.uk fees table (8 April 2026). Baht is indicative at ~฿43.5/£1. Last reviewed: June 2026 — always confirm on gov.uk.
Why the baht number is only an estimate: UK fees are set and charged in pounds (£). Your card issuer or the Home Office converts to baht at roughly the mid-market rate plus ~1.5–2.5%, so the ฿ you actually pay is a little higher and drifts every day. Use the live calculator below for today's figure.
Want your own number straight away? The live calculator below adds the government fee, the IHS where it applies, and optional lines like certified translation — in pounds and indicative baht.
This is the master fee table no Thai page assembles in one place. Every government application fee is below, by route and validity, in pounds and indicative baht, with a flag for whether the NHS health fee (IHS) applies on top. The pound figure is the one you pay; baht is a guide.
| Route | Validity | Gov fee £ | Gov fee ฿ (approx) | IHS applies? | Typical all-in ฿ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Visitor (Standard) | 6 months | £135 | ≈ ฿5,900 | No | ≈ ฿8,000–10,000 (§4) |
| Visitor (Standard) | 2 years | £506 | ≈ ฿22,000 | No | ≈ ฿24,000+ |
| Visitor (Standard) | 5 years | £903 | ≈ ฿39,300 | No | ≈ ฿41,000+ |
| Visitor (Standard) | 10 years | £1,128 | ≈ ฿49,100 | No | ≈ ฿51,000+ |
| Spouse / Partner | 33-month entry | £2,064 | ≈ ฿89,800 | Yes — large | ≈ ฿235,000+ (§4) |
| Fiancé(e) | 6 months (to marry) | £2,064 | ≈ ฿89,800 | No at entry | ≈ ฿95,000+ (+ TB) |
| Student | Course length | £558 | ≈ ฿24,300 | Yes — £776/yr | ≈ ฿135,000+ (3-yr, §4) |
| Short-term study | 6–11 months | £228 | ≈ ฿9,900 | No | ≈ ฿11,000+ (+ TB) |
| Skilled Worker | Up to 3 years | £819 | ≈ ฿35,600 | Yes — £1,035/yr | ≈ ฿175,000+ (3-yr) |
| Skilled Worker | Over 3 years | £1,618 | ≈ ฿70,400 | Yes — £1,035/yr | ≈ ฿295,000+ (5-yr) |
| Visitor in Transit | Up to 48 hours | £74.50 | ≈ ฿3,240 | No | ≈ ฿3,500+ |
All government fees from the gov.uk fees table (8 April 2026), applied for from outside the UK. 'Typical all-in ฿' figures are worked through in §4 and include the IHS where it applies plus tests/translation; they are estimates only. Baht uses ~฿43.5/£1. The Skilled Worker fee can be lower (≈ £628 / £1,235) for Immigration Salary List jobs. Last reviewed June 2026 — confirm current figures on gov.uk.
Not sure which route is yours? The visitor, spouse, fiancé(e), student and work pages explain each one, and our router can point you the right way.
The Immigration Health Surcharge (IHS) is the UK NHS health fee. It is £1,035 a year for adults (about ฿45,000) and £776 a year for students and under-18s (about ฿33,800). It is paid up front for the WHOLE length of the visa, and any part-year over 6 months is rounded up to a full year. Crucially, it is NOT payable on visit or transit visas.
Because the IHS is charged for the whole grant and rounds up, the number can surprise people. Two common cases:
| Case | Charged as | IHS £ | IHS ฿ (approx) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spouse entry grant — 33 months | 3 years × £1,035 (adult) | ≈ £3,105 | ≈ ฿135,100 |
| Student — 3-year course | 3 years × £776 (student) | ≈ £2,328 | ≈ ฿101,300 |
The 33-month spouse entry grant counts as 3 years of IHS (part-years over 6 months round up). IHS rates and rounding from gov.uk. Baht at ~฿43.5/£1, indicative.
The IHS is often the single largest cost on a long-stay visa — for a spouse entry grant it is about £3,105 (≈ ฿135,100), more than the application fee itself. It is fully refunded if the application is refused.
There is no family discount. The main applicant and each dependant pay their own IHS for the same visa length: £1,035 a year for an adult partner, £776 a year for a child. So a family of three on a 3-year route pays three separate IHS amounts on top of three application fees.
You attend a VFS Global centre in Thailand — Bangkok, Chiang Mai or Phuket — to give your fingerprints and photo (biometrics). A standard appointment with no add-ons carries only the basic service charge; everything else is optional. Below is the add-on menu that is normally scattered across several sites, gathered here in baht.
| Optional VFS service | What you get | Typical cost ฿ |
|---|---|---|
| Premium lounge (optional) | Faster, quieter service in a separate area | ≈ ฿4,000 |
| Prime-time appointment (optional) | Early-morning or weekend slot | ≈ ฿3,850 |
| Document scanning (optional) | Staff scan and upload your papers | ≈ ฿880 |
| Courier passport return (optional) | Passport posted back so you don't collect in person | ≈ ฿480 |
VFS optional-service prices are indicative, from third-party listings, and change without notice — confirm the current menu on the official VFS Global Thailand portal. A 'keep my passport while you wait', SMS and photo service may also be offered. Service-charge ranges differ by city.
Two faster-decision services are paid to the UK government (not VFS): Priority at about £500 (≈ ฿21,750) and Super Priority at about £1,000 (≈ ฿43,500). For out-of-country family/settlement applications, Priority usually targets a decision within about 30 working days. Super Priority is generally framed as an inside-the-UK option and is not always offered for out-of-country settlement, so check availability in Thailand first.
There are VFS centres in Bangkok, Chiang Mai and Phuket. The basic service charge differs a little by city. Our city guides cover each one:
This is the part no Thai page assembles: the realistic all-in total per route, in pounds and indicative baht. Pound figures are government fees from gov.uk; small baht-only lines (tests, translation) are indicative. None of this includes the money you must SHOW in your bank — that is covered separately below.
| Government fee (6 months) | £135 ≈ ฿5,900 |
| NHS health fee (IHS) | ฿0 |
| VFS standard + courier (optional) | ≈ ฿480+ |
| Certified translation (if any) | ≈ ฿700–2,000 |
| Realistic all-in | ≈ ฿8,000–10,000 |
No IHS, no TB test under 6 months, no English test. Our service fee (if used) is separate.
| Application fee (from outside the UK) | £2,064 ≈ ฿89,800 |
| IHS for the 33-month grant (3 years × £1,035) | ≈ £3,105 ≈ ฿135,100 |
| TB test (required, in baht) | ≈ ฿3,800 |
| English test (A1 level, in baht) | ≈ ฿5,800 |
| Certified translation (document set) | ≈ ฿4,000–8,000 |
| All-in at entry (before service fee) | ≈ £5,169 + ฿~16,000 ≈ ฿240,000 |
The £5,169 (fee + IHS) is ≈ ฿224,900; adding the baht-only tests and translation brings the typical all-in to roughly ฿240,000 for one adult. Our admin service fee is separate. This is the most-wanted, least-served number for Thai–UK couples.
| Application fee | £558 ≈ ฿24,300 |
| IHS (3 years × £776 student rate) | ≈ £2,328 ≈ ฿101,300 |
| TB test (required, in baht) | ≈ ฿3,800 |
| Certified translation + VFS (optional) | ≈ ฿2,000–6,000 |
| All-in (fee + IHS + tests) | ≈ £2,886 + tests ≈ ฿135,000+ |
Living-cost 'show money' (£1,171–£1,529/month) is separate — it stays in your account; see §7.
| Visitor fee × 4 (£135 each) | £540 ≈ ฿23,500 |
| NHS health fee (IHS) | ฿0 |
| Household government total | ≈ £540 ≈ ฿23,500 |
Each child needs their own application; visitors pay no IHS. Add any translation/VFS options on top.
Couples planning for the long term often ask the total cost to settlement. The partner route to Indefinite Leave to Remain (ILR) is roughly: the entry application + IHS, then a 30-month extension (FLR-M) + IHS, then the ILR fee. The settlement (ILR) application fee is a large one-off near the end. Confirm each figure on gov.uk when you reach that stage, because fees change between now and then.
Across the whole 5-year partner route to ILR — entry + extension + settlement, with IHS along the way — government charges commonly run well past £11,000 (over ฿478,000) for one adult. Treat this as a planning estimate and verify each fee on gov.uk; the settlement (ILR) fee in particular is large and changes.
Route-to-settlement total is an approximate planning figure built from the entry fee + IHS + a later extension + IHS + the ILR fee; the exact ILR fee is not in our source list, so verify it on gov.uk before you rely on it. Baht at ~฿43.5/£1.
Build your own all-in figure with the live calculator — it converts to today's baht.
Certified translation is about ฿700–1,000 per A4 page (roughly £15–22). UKVI rejects documents that are not in English or Welsh without a certified translation — a certified translation must include the translator's confirmation that it is accurate, the date, the translator's full name and contact details, and a signature. A typical spouse document set (bank statements, marriage/relationship records, birth certificates) can run to several pages. If MFA legalisation is also needed, that is separate (~฿2,400 per document).
We provide certified Thai→English translation as part of our document service.
A TB test is required for stays over 6 months (Thailand is a listed country), and also for fiancé(e) applicants even though that visa is short. It costs about ฿2,350–4,000. Only a Home Office-approved clinic is accepted — in Thailand that is IOM Bangkok (about ฿3,800 for ages 11+, ฿2,350 under 11) or BNH Hospital Bangkok; the certificate is valid 6 months. A certificate from a non-approved clinic is rejected.
Where a route requires it, the basic A1/A2/B1 SELT used by partner visas is about ฿5,800–6,800; the higher 4-skills IELTS for UKVI (B2, used by Skilled Worker) is about ฿7,710–9,100. Visitor and most student applicants do not take a separate SELT.
Full legal representation in the market commonly ranges from about ฿30,000 to ฿100,000+. We are different: we offer document preparation, certified translation and VFS appointment booking — admin work only — at a transparent fee, separate from every government charge. This is informational; it is not legal advice, and we never assess your chances.
The fees are always set in pounds (£). You pay online by card on gov.uk, and your card issuer or the Home Office converts to baht at roughly the mid-market rate plus a margin (commonly 1.5–2.5%). So the baht figure you saw on any page — including ours — is an estimate that changes daily.
To estimate today's baht: £ amount × today's GBP→THB rate × about 1.04 (to allow for the card margin). For example, at ~฿43.5 per £1 the £135 visitor fee is about ฿5,873; add ~4% and you might actually be charged closer to ฿6,100. A baht card may add its own foreign-transaction fee on top.
One more note: the official gov.uk fee tool often displays figures in US dollars. The pound figure is the source of truth; our baht is the localised equivalent at an indicative rate. Use the live calculator for an up-to-date conversion.
This is the single most common confusion. The fee, the IHS and the tests are money you PAY — it is spent. The bank balance or income is money you must SHOW (evidence) — it stays in your account; you never hand it over. They are completely different things.
| Money you PAY (spent) | Money you must SHOW (stays yours) |
|---|---|
| Application fee · NHS health fee (IHS) · TB & English tests · VFS options · our service fee | Visitor: no fixed minimum (people often show ฿100,000+ as adequate funds — NOT a rule) · Partner: £29,000/yr income or £88,500 savings · Student: living costs £1,171–£1,529/month — all kept in your account |
The partner financial requirement is £29,000/year (or £88,500 savings alone). The proposed rise to £34,500 then £38,700 is PAUSED — the MAC reported on 10 June 2025 advising against the £38,700 alignment (it recommended a lower range); as of June 2026 no change is in force and £29,000 still applies. This is informational, gov.uk-sourced — not an eligibility assessment.
For the visitor route, our dedicated guide explains how much to actually show; for the partner income rule, see the spouse-visa page. Use the checker below to compare your situation against the published evidence types — it shows options, not a pass/fail.
Most of the VFS add-ons are skippable. A standard appointment is fine — you do not need the premium lounge (≈ ฿4,000) or a prime-time slot (≈ ฿3,850) unless they genuinely help you. Skip 'keep my passport' if you do not need your passport during processing. Choose courier return (≈ ฿480) only if collecting in person is hard. Priority (£500 ≈ ฿21,750) is worth it only when a real deadline depends on a faster decision — for ordinary timelines it is not. And translate one certified set of exactly the documents you need, rather than over-translating papers UKVI will not ask for.
Remember: Thai nationals need a full visa, not an ETA. Use the planner to work out when to start, so you pay and book in good time before you travel.
Last reviewed: June 2026. This page is general information based on public gov.uk sources, not regulated immigration advice. Government fees, the IHS and exchange rates change — always confirm the current pound figures on gov.uk (the fees table and the healthcare-surcharge page) before you pay. The pound figure is the source of truth; the baht is an approximate conversion at ~฿43.5/£1.
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Sunaree founded UK Visa From Thailand and writes and reviews the guides on this site. We're a document-preparation and certified-translation service — not a law firm and not IAA-registered — and every figure here is sourced from GOV.UK. Read Sunaree's full bio →
