Three declarations are compulsory. Japan’s is optional, and all four services are free

The four, side by side

Checked 3 September 2026 against the sources named in each row.

Australian government advice covers three of these directly. Smartraveller states you “must complete a Thailand Digital Arrival Card (TDAC) within 3 days before arriving in Thailand”, that “All international passengers are required to complete the All Indonesia Arrival Card online and within 72 hours (3 days) of your travel to Indonesia”, and that you “must complete a New Zealand Traveller Declaration Form (NZTD) before passport control on arrival”.

The part worth reading twice: they are free, and people are being charged

This is the only genuinely dangerous thing in this article, so it goes near the top.

Smartraveller’s Thailand advice says it plainly: the TDAC “is free of charge and must be submitted online through the Thailand Immigration Bureau website”, followed by “Beware of fake websites charging you a fee for the TDAC.”

Japan’s Digital Agency has posted its own warning, listing “Suspicious apps such as ‘Visit Japan Web Info'” among its announcements.

The pattern is the same everywhere. A government launches a free digital form, a search result appears above it charging thirty or forty dollars to fill in the same fields, and it looks official enough. Some of these sites do submit your form. Some just take the money. All of them collect your passport number, date of birth and travel dates, which is a worse outcome than the fee.

How to not get caught. Type the official address rather than searching for it, or follow the link from Smartraveller’s destination page. If a site asks for a card number to submit an arrival card, close it. There is no expedited version, no premium tier, and no reason for any of these to cost anything.

What each one actually asks for

None of these is difficult. The longest takes a few minutes.

Thailand’s TDAC wants your passport details, flight number, where you are staying, your travel purpose and health declaration information. Submit within three days of arrival, not earlier, which is the detail that catches people who try to do it a fortnight out. Airside transit without passing immigration is exempt.

Indonesia’s All Indonesia card replaced a set of separate declarations that used to be handled by four different agencies. One form now covers immigration, customs, health and quarantine, and it produces a single QR code. The window is 72 hours.

New Zealand’s NZTD covers your trip details and what you are bringing in, which matters more in New Zealand than most places because the biosecurity rules are strict and enforced. It is free, it can be done in the app or on the web, and everyone needs one including New Zealand passport holders.

Japan’s Visit Japan Web combines immigration clearance and customs into a single 2D code. Since January 2024 it has been one unified code rather than two separate ones.

Two things that are not arrival cards, and get confused with them

The Bali tourist levy. Foreign tourists entering Bali pay IDR 150,000 per person. Smartraveller is explicit that this “is separate from the e-Visa on Arrival (e-VOA) or the Visa on Arrival (VOA)”, and it is separate from the arrival card too. Three different things, three different payments or forms.

Indonesia’s e-VOA. If you are applying online for the visa on arrival, Smartraveller says to do it “at least 48 hours before your travel to Indonesia”. That is a different window from the arrival card, which opens three days before arrival. If you use the combined All Indonesia flow, complete the arrival card first and then the e-VOA.

New Zealand’s NZeTA is not needed by Australian citizens. Australian permanent residents do need one. The declaration is separate again, and everybody needs that.

Do you need mobile data for any of this?

No, and we would rather say so than imply otherwise on a page published by an eSIM retailer.

Every one of these forms is completed on wifi before you fly, or on airport wifi when you land. Nothing here requires a travel eSIM, and buying one will not make any of it faster.

There is one connectivity detail worth knowing, and it is small. Thailand, Indonesia and Japan give you a code to keep handy; New Zealand does not. Japan’s Digital Agency says that although you can register on a PC, “you will need to present your 2D code at the time of immigration procedures using your smartphone or tablet”. Thailand’s Immigration Bureau says to download its QR document or keep it in your email, and Indonesian Customs says the All Indonesia QR is shown to an officer or scanned at a terminal.

So take a screenshot before you fly. Not because you will not have data, but because a screenshot works when the site is slow, the wifi is bad, or you are ninth in a queue and the page decides to reload. It costs nothing and removes the only failure mode any of this has.

If you want data on arrival for other reasons, the maps and the ride and the hotel address, that is what our destination plans are for. We have separate buyer’s guides for Bali and Japan if either is your next trip. It is just not what these forms need.

When to do each one

A rough order of operations for a trip that needs several of these.

Questions people actually ask

Do I have to pay for a digital arrival card?

No. Thailand’s, Indonesia’s, New Zealand’s and Japan’s are all free. Smartraveller specifically warns about “fake websites charging you a fee for the TDAC”.

Is Visit Japan Web mandatory?

No. Japan Customs says it “recommends submitting declarations electronically via the ‘Visit Japan Web'”, and that “The existing paper version of the Customs Declaration Form can still be used”. Visit Japan Web is the electronic route, not the only route.

How early can I submit a TDAC?

Within three days of arriving in Thailand. Earlier than that and the system will not take it.

What is the window for the Indonesian arrival card?

Within 72 hours of your travel to Indonesia.

When can I submit the New Zealand declaration?

The earliest is 24 hours before you start your trip to New Zealand, and it must be done before passport control.

Do New Zealanders need the New Zealand declaration?

Yes. Everyone travelling into New Zealand completes one, including New Zealand passport holders.

Do I need a travel eSIM to complete an arrival card?

No. Do them at home on wifi. The only thing worth doing with your phone is screenshotting the code before you fly.

What happens if I forget?

Thailand provides kiosks and wifi at arrival points, New Zealand says a paper declaration is available on arrival if needed, and Indonesia may require you to complete the process before its checks. All are slower and more stressful than doing the right form when its window opens. Japan still accepts its paper customs declaration.

Is the Bali tourist levy the same thing as the arrival card?

No. Three separate items: the arrival card, the visa or e-VOA, and the IDR 150,000 levy.

Sources

Thailand TDAC requirement, the three-day window, the statement that it is free of charge, and the fake-website warning from Smartraveller’s Thailand advice, with the transit exemption, required information, kiosks and QR handling checked against the Thai Immigration Bureau’s TDAC FAQ, checked 3 September 2026. Indonesia’s All Indonesia Arrival Card requirement and 72-hour window, the e-VOA 48-hour guidance, and the IDR 150,000 Bali tourist levy from Smartraveller’s Indonesia advice, with the combined declarations, three-day window and QR handling checked against the Indonesian Government’s All Indonesia announcement and Indonesian Customs guidance, checked 3 September 2026. New Zealand Traveller Declaration requirement from Smartraveller’s New Zealand advice and the 24-hour submission window, free service, passport-linked check, paper fallback and airside-transit exemption from the New Zealand Traveller Declaration site, both checked 3 September 2026. Visit Japan Web scope and presentation requirements from Japan’s Digital Agency, and the unified 2D code, electronic recommendation, free service and paper customs alternative from Japan Customs and its fake-site warning, checked 3 September 2026. Government requirements change without notice; check the official page for your destination before you travel.

Written by Lachlan, who runs The SIM Shop from Brisbane and answers the support email himself.