Six countries have added mandatory pre-arrival digital forms in the past two years, and none of them talk to each other. Thailand’s system opens 72 hours out. Malaysia’s counts differently. Laos wants you to file again on the way out. Cambodia gives you a full week but only if you’re flying in. If you’re routing through more than one of these countries — which most overlanders are — the forms themselves become part of the itinerary planning, not an afterthought at the gate.
This guide puts all seven of the region’s systems in one place: what they’re called, where to file, how far out the window opens, and the specific thing that trips people up in each one.
The Master Table
| Country | Form | Official Portal | Filing Window | Cost | Required on Exit? | New Form Per Entry? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Thailand | TDAC | tdac.immigration.go.th | Within 72 hrs of arrival | Free | No | Yes |
| Laos | LDIF | immigration.gov.la | Within 3 days of arrival/departure | Free | Yes | Yes |
| Indonesia | AIAC (All Indonesia) | allindonesia.imigrasi.go.id | Within 72 hrs of arrival | Free (+ IDR 150,000 Bali levy) | No | Yes |
| Malaysia | MDAC | imigresen-online.imi.gov.my/mdac | Arrival day + 2 days prior | Free | No | Yes |
| Singapore | SG Arrival Card (SGAC) | eservices.ica.gov.sg | Within 3 days of arrival | Free | No | Yes |
| Cambodia | e-Arrival (CeA) | arrival.gov.kh | Within 7 days of arrival — air only | Free | No | Yes |
| Vietnam | Digital Arrival Card | prearrival.immigration.gov.vn | Within 72 hrs of arrival — select airports/borders only | Free | No | Yes |
All seven are genuinely free on the official portal. Every paid version you’ll see in search results or Google ads is a third-party reseller charging for a form the government hands out for nothing.
Country-by-Country Detail
Thailand: TDAC
Replaced the paper TM6 in May 2025 and is now required for every entry mode — air, land, sea — and every nationality, no exceptions. The window is a strict 72 hours before arrival, and it’s set in Indochina Time (UTC+7), which matters more than it sounds: flying from the US West Coast or Europe, your “72 hours before” mark can land at an inconvenient hour depending on which way you’re counting. File 24–48 hours out rather than right at the edge of the window. Miss it entirely and you’re not stuck — five airports (Suvarnabhumi, Don Mueang, Phuket, Chiang Mai, Hat Yai) now have self-service kiosks, though peak-season queues there run 20–40 minutes.
Full guide: Thailand entry requirements 2026
Laos: LDIF
The one system on this list that catches overland travelers specifically, because it’s required going out of Laos as well as in. Since expanding to nationwide coverage in early 2026, LDIF applies at all international checkpoints, including the Lao-Thai Friendship Bridge. If you’re doing the classic Vientiane-to-Thailand overland run, you need a fresh LDIF for that exit — a second form most first-timers don’t know exists until they’re standing at the bridge.
Full guide: Laos entry requirements 2026
Indonesia: AIAC
The All Indonesia Arrival Card folded three separate systems — the old paper card, the customs e-CD, and the SATUSEHAT health pass — into one form, and as of mid-2026 it’s compulsory at every international gateway in the country, not just Bali, Jakarta, and Surabaya. The detail that actually trips people up isn’t the card itself; it’s that Bali charges a separate tourist levy of IDR 150,000 (roughly $9) per person, per entry, which is not collected through the AIAC and is easy to miss if you assume the arrival card covers everything.
Full guide: Indonesia eVisa vs Visa on Arrival 2026
Malaysia: MDAC
Malaysia counts its window differently from everyone else on this list: not “72 hours before,” but “arrival day plus the two days prior.” Functionally similar, but the portal will flatly reject a submission that falls outside that specific frame, and travelers used to the Thailand-style countdown sometimes file a day too early. The payoff for getting it right is real — MDAC submission now unlocks Autogate access at KLIA/KLIA2 for travelers from dozens of nationalities, cutting a queue that used to run over an hour down to about 20 seconds a person. First-time visitors still can’t use Autogate on that initial trip, since biometrics have to be captured at a manual counter first.
Full guide: Malaysia entry requirements 2026
Singapore: SG Arrival Card (SGAC)
Bundles your arrival declaration with a mandatory electronic health declaration under Singapore’s Infectious Diseases Act — false answers here aren’t a paperwork issue, they’re a legal one. The 3-day window is standard, but the newest wrinkle is worth knowing before you book: since January 30, 2026, ICA can issue a No-Boarding Directive straight to your airline if you don’t meet entry requirements, which means the check now happens at check-in, not just at the Singapore counter.
Full guide: Singapore entry requirements 2026
Cambodia: e-Arrival (CeA)
The most generous window in the region — 7 days — and the only system that merges immigration, customs, and health declaration into one form from the start. But it comes with a limit the others don’t have: it only applies to air arrivals at Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, and Sihanoukville. Cross by land from Thailand, Laos, or Vietnam, and you’re still filling out paper at the border, same as five years ago.
Full guide: Cambodia entry requirements 2026
Vietnam: Digital Arrival Card
The newest and least complete system in the region, and the one where “mandatory” needs a footnote. It launched at Tan Son Nhat (Ho Chi Minh City) in April 2026 and has since expanded to Phu Quoc, Noi Bai (Hanoi), Cam Ranh, and Da Nang, plus the Dong Dang land border and a growing list of seaports — but it is not yet required nationwide. If you’re flying into one of those five airports, treat it as mandatory. If you’re entering elsewhere, the paper NA1 form (or your Visa on Arrival paperwork) is still what’s used, though filing the digital form anyway is free and can’t hurt.
Full guide: Vietnam entry requirements 2026
Philippines: eTravel
Unlike the others, eTravel cuts both ways: foreign arrivals file it before landing, and Filipino citizens file a separate departure registration before leaving — both on the same 72-hour window. Foreign nationals departing the Philippines don’t need to register on the way out, which is a detail worth knowing if you’re trying to figure out why a Filipino travel companion has an extra step you don’t.
Full guide: Philippines entry requirements 2026
The Submission Windows Are All Different — And That’s the Trap
Every one of these forms opens on a countdown, and no two countdowns are measured the same way. Thailand and Vietnam use a strict 72-hour clock. Singapore and Laos use “within 3 days,” counted inclusive of arrival day. Malaysia counts “arrival day plus two days prior” — which lands in roughly the same place as everyone else but will reject you if you file too early rather than too late. Cambodia gives you a full week. File outside any of these windows and the portal simply won’t accept the submission; there’s no partial credit for trying early.
Here’s where it actually bites: a Bangkok → Vientiane → Hanoi week. Say you land in Bangkok on a Monday, cross into Laos by land on Thursday, and fly to Hanoi the following Monday. You need a fresh TDAC for the Bangkok leg, filed up to 72 hours before that Monday landing. You need an LDIF for entering Laos on Thursday — and, separately, a second LDIF to exit Laos the following Monday, since Laos requires the form on both directions. And if your Hanoi flight lands at Noi Bai, you’d file Vietnam’s digital arrival card for that leg too, assuming Noi Bai is on the covered-airport list at the time you travel (it was added mid-2026, but confirm before you fly since Vietnam’s rollout is still expanding). That’s three separate portals, filed at three different points in a single week, none of which can be done all at once at the start of the trip.
Which Ones You Need Again on Exit
Almost none of these forms apply to departure — you file once, on the way in, and that’s it. Laos is the outlier. LDIF is required for both arrival and departure at any of its international checkpoints, which means overland travelers crossing back into Thailand via the Friendship Bridge need a second, separate LDIF just to leave. The Philippines is a partial exception too: Filipino citizens departing need their own eTravel registration, though foreign visitors leaving the Philippines don’t.
Every Official Portal (And the Fake Ones Charging You)
- Thailand: tdac.immigration.go.th
- Laos: immigration.gov.la
- Indonesia: allindonesia.imigrasi.go.id
- Malaysia: imigresen-online.imi.gov.my/mdac
- Singapore: eservices.ica.gov.sg (or the MyICA app)
- Cambodia: arrival.gov.kh (or the official CeA app)
- Vietnam: prearrival.immigration.gov.vn
Every one of these portals is free, and every one of them has a paid shadow economy sitting above it in search results. Some are outright scrapers with no connection to the government; others are legitimate “concierge” services charging $20–$60 to fill in a form that takes five minutes and costs nothing on the official site. Neither is dangerous to use, exactly — your entry isn’t at risk either way — but neither is necessary. Bookmark the official portal the first time you use it, and use that bookmark on every future trip instead of clicking whatever comes up first in a fresh search.
What Happens If You Arrive Without One
- Thailand: you’ll be diverted to a kiosk or manual processing; five airports have kiosks for this, but expect a 20–40 minute wait in peak season.
- Malaysia: processing delays and possible additional questioning at the officer’s discretion; you cannot use Autogate without a completed MDAC.
- Singapore: since January 2026, this can now happen before you even board — ICA can direct your airline not to let you fly if you don’t meet entry requirements, including SGAC submission.
- Cambodia: you’ll need to complete the form at the airport before immigration, adding time but not typically blocking entry.
- Vietnam: at the five covered airports, expect a manual fallback process; the paper NA1 route remains standard everywhere else.
- Laos and Indonesia: manual completion at the border is generally still possible, but airport Wi-Fi is the wildcard — plan to file before you’re standing in line.
The Details That Catch Travelers Off Guard
Save your QR code as an offline screenshot, not just an email link — airport Wi-Fi on landing is inconsistent across the region, and every one of these systems hands you a QR code as the actual thing an officer scans. Every form also asks for a Thailand-, Laos-, Indonesia-, or wherever-in-Indonesia accommodation address before you’ve necessarily locked in your first night; any real hotel name and address you’re considering is fine to use, and Thailand’s and Indonesia’s portals in particular don’t lock you into that plan afterward. Passport name mismatches are the single most common rejection reason across every system — every field has to match your passport’s Latin-character MRZ line exactly, not how you’d normally write your name. And Malaysia’s Autogate access, arguably the single best payoff of any of these forms, is invisible on a first trip: biometrics have to be captured manually before the e-gates will recognize you, so don’t queue there your first time through KLIA expecting it to work.
FAQ
Do I need to complete these forms if I already have an e-visa or visa on arrival? Yes. Every one of these arrival cards is a separate declaration, not a visa. Holding a valid visa, e-visa, or visa exemption doesn’t remove the requirement to also file the country’s digital arrival form.
Can I submit the form before I’ve booked accommodation? You need an address to file, but most portals let you use any legitimate hotel or address you’re considering and don’t lock you into staying there. If your plans change, you’re not typically required to go back and update it.
Is there a single form that covers multiple countries? No. Despite the regional trend toward digital pre-arrival systems, every country runs its own independent portal, and none of them share data with each other. A multi-country trip means filing separately for each border.
What happens if my flight is delayed and I land outside the window I filed for? In most systems, the QR code is tied to a submission window, not an exact flight, and a same-day delay generally isn’t an issue. If you’re rebooked to a different date entirely, check the specific portal — several, including the Philippines’ eTravel, have an edit function for this exact situation.
Do children and infants need their own form? Yes, in every country on this list. A parent or guardian can usually complete multiple family members in one session, but each traveler, regardless of age, gets an individual QR code.
Are any of these forms transferable between entries on a multi-entry trip? No. Every system requires a fresh submission for every single entry, even if you’re re-entering the same country days later on the same trip.
Is it worth paying a third-party service to file these for me? Generally no. Every official portal takes under ten minutes and charges nothing. The paid services aren’t scams in the sense of taking your money and delivering nothing — most do file the form — but you’re paying for a convenience that doesn’t exist, since the free version is equally fast.
The Bottom Line
None of these seven forms is individually complicated. What makes the region genuinely tricky is that they don’t sync with each other — different windows, different portals, different rules on whether you need a second one on the way out. Treat the arrival card for each leg of your trip as its own task tied to that specific border, not a single box to check once at the start of the itinerary, and none of them will catch you off guard.
