ASEAN Visa Waiver Program - Association of Southeast Asian Nations

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ASEAN, otherwise known as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is an economic and political union of several Southeast Asian countries. The ASEAN union aims to promote collaboration, free trade, and economic cooperation between member countries. However, since its inception, it has expanded to include visa-free movement between member states and other political collaborations.

Which Countries Are in ASEAN?

The ASEAN treaty is comprised of the following 10 Southeast Asian countries:

Brunei
Cambodia
Indonesia
Laos
Malaysia
Myanmar
Philippines
Singapore
Thailand
Vietnam

Visa Free Travel for ASEAN Member Countries

According to the ASEAN agreement, citizens of the member countries, can enter another country without a visa and stay there for 14 days. They must hold a valid passport for six months from the entry date.

Despite the 14 days visa-free rule, several ASEAN countries allow citizens of some ASEAN countries to stay for longer than 14 days:

Destination	Nationality
Destination	BN	KH	ID	LA	MY	MM	PH	SG	TH	VN
Brunei	n/a	14 days	14 days	14 days	30 days	14 days	14 days	30 days	14 days	14 days
Cambodia	14 days	n/a	30 days	30 days	30 days	14 days	21 days	30 days	14 days	30 days
Indonesia	30 days	30 days	n/a	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days
Laos	14 days	30 days	30 days	n/a	30 days	14 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days
Malaysia	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	n/a	e-Visa	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days
Myanmar	14 days	14 days	14 days	14 days	e-Visa	n/a	14 days	30 days	14 days	14 days
Philippines	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	n/a	30 days	30 days	30 days
Singapore	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	n/a	30 days	30 days
Thailand	30 days	14 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	14 days	30 days	30 days	n/a	30 days
Vietnam	14 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	30 days	14 days	21 days	30 days	30 days	n/a

It’s important to remember that the visa-free period is eligible for only tourist purposes. So, anyone who wants to work, live, or study in another ASEAN country must apply for the appropriate visa.

A Brief History of ASEAN

Here is a summary of the ASEAN foundation timeline:

On July 31, 1961, the ASEAN predecessor was established, consisting of Thailand, the Philippines, and the Federation of Malaya.
On August 1967, the first ASEAN Declaration was signed by Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Singapore, and Thailand.
In 1976, the first ASEAN summit was held, where several projects were initiated, and the Treaty of Amity and Cooperation was signed along with a Declaration of Concord.
On January 7, 1984, Brunei joined the agreement becoming the sixth member of the treaty.
On July 28, 1995, Vietnam joined as the seventh union member.
On December 15, 1995, Southeast Asia was turned into a nuclear-weapon-free zone as the ASEAN member states signed the Southeast Asian Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone Treaty.
On July 23, 1997, Laos and Myanmar joined as the eighth and ninth members of the ASEAN treaty.
On April 30, 1999, Cambodia joined as the 10th and final member of the union.

AESAN Visa Application

A common visa for all ASEAN countries targeting third-country nationals is yet to be launched, so there is no application for an AESAN visa. The visa is expected to be implemented soon, and the application will likely be online.

Can I Get One Single Visa for the ASEAN Countries?

Unfortunately, there is no uniform visa for all ASEAN countries; you still have to apply for an individual visa for each country you want to visit. However, the ASEAN member countries are negotiating to implement a common visa which will enable all visitors to enter each member state with a single visa. But, if you are from a visa-free country, you may be eligible to enter without a visa for a specific time.

Is ASEAN the Same as Schengen?

The ASEAN union is not the same as the Schengen agreement, despite the many similarities between the two treaties. It’s important to remember that the Schengen agreement deals with specific European countries and provides a uniform Schengen visa for third-country nationals. On the other hand, the ASEAN agreement is a visa-free waiver that affects only the member countries— at the moment.

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