Overstay Penalties by Country (2026)
Overstay penalties are national. There is no global fine table. The United States uses 3-year and 10-year unlawful-presence bars after 180 days or one year, not a daily tourist tariff (USCIS). The UK uses re-entry bans from 12 months to 10 years, and can disregard 30 days or less of overstay when you leave voluntarily at your own expense (GOV.UK). Thailand publishes 500 baht per day up to 20,000 baht. Indonesia, via UK FCDO guidance, charges 1 million rupiah per day up to 60 days, then detention and deportation. The UAE lists AED 50 per day in Cabinet Resolution 89 of 2022. Schengen entry bans are framed up to five years under the Return Directive, while fines are set by each country. Where a government has not published a single number, this post says so.
This hub is for travelers who need a country-by-country map of what an overstay actually costs, not a copied spreadsheet of unverified euro amounts.
The problem is that blogs invent tariffs. Schengen has no EU price list. Mexico and Canada warn of fines or removal without a public daily rate. Singapore publishes jail, caning, or a fine ceiling, not a per-day tourist invoice.
After this post you will know which countries publish a daily fine, which use bars instead, and which only describe a range. For what to do if you already slipped, see accidentally overstayed your visa. For a narrative of consequences, see visa overstay consequences by country.
Staywise (the visa compliance app for digital nomads) exists to keep you off this table.
Key facts
| Fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Is there one global tariff? | No |
| US | 3-year bar (more than 180 days, less than 1 year) or 10-year bar (1 year or more), then depart |
| UK | Mandatory refusal periods 12 months to 10 years; 30-day disregard if voluntary self-funded exit |
| Thailand | 500 baht per day, maximum 20,000 baht |
| Indonesia | IDR 1,000,000 per day up to 60 days (FCDO describing Indonesian practice) |
| UAE | AED 50 per day (Cabinet Resolution 89 of 2022 annex) |
| Schengen | National fines; EU entry ban generally up to 5 years |
How to read this table
Use it as a risk map. Amounts change. Some figures are maximums, not invoices. Bans often matter more than the cash line.
A "not a single published tariff" cell means we found no official daily schedule to cite. Do not fill that cell with a forum number.
Voluntary exit almost always beats inland arrest. That pattern repeats from Bangkok to Heathrow.
Comparison table: overstay penalties by country
| Country / zone | Published fine or money penalty | Ban / bar (typical official frame) | Official or government-advice source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Schengen Area | National; no single EU amount | Entry ban generally up to 5 years with a return decision | Return Directive 2008/115/EC |
| United States | No daily tourist overstay tariff | 3-year or 10-year unlawful-presence bars | USCIS unlawful presence |
| United Kingdom | Not a published daily fine | 12 months to 10 years; 30-day disregard if voluntary self-funded | GOV.UK mandatory refusal periods |
| Thailand | 500 baht per day, cap 20,000 baht | Deportation and re-entry ban if more than 90 days | Royal Thai Embassy, Washington |
| Indonesia | IDR 1,000,000 per day up to 60 days | Detention, deportation, possible ban after 60 days | GOV.UK Indonesia overstay |
| UAE | AED 50 per day | Unpaid fines block exit; long cases can add bans | ICP; Cabinet Resolution 89 of 2022 |
| Singapore | Fine up to S$6,000, or jail up to 6 months and caning | Deportation and bar on re-entry | ICA media release, 16 March 2026 |
| Japan | Not a single daily tourist tariff in English ISA materials | Departure order: often 1-year landing denial; deportation: 5 or 10 years | ISA departure-order system |
| Australia | Not a published daily tourist fine | Overstay more than 28 days can mean a re-entry ban up to 3 years | Home Affairs: no valid visa; re-entry ban |
| Mexico | Fines exist; no single daily tourist rate in Canadian advice | Detention and deportation possible | Travel.gc.ca Mexico |
| Canada | No published daily visitor-overstay tariff | Out of status; restoration in limited cases; future refusal risk | IRCC extend stay / visitor record |
Schengen Area
Overstaying 90 days in any 180-day window is illegal stay. Member States issue return decisions. The Return Directive says an entry ban accompanying a return decision shall not in principle exceed five years, unless the person is a serious threat to public policy or security.
Fines are national. Germany, France, Spain, and Italy do not share one euro menu. Country snapshots and practice notes live in Schengen overstay fines and bans by country.
The Entry/Exit System records entries and exits for non-EU short-stay travelers. Automatic detection replaced the old missing-stamp story. See what happens if you overstay a Schengen visa.
United States
The US does not charge a 50-dollar-a-day tourist overstay fine. The statutory hammer is unlawful presence.
USCIS states:
- More than 180 days but less than 1 year of unlawful presence during a single stay, then voluntary departure before removal proceedings, triggers a 3-year bar.
- 1 year or more of unlawful presence, then departure or removal, triggers a 10-year bar.
- Accruing more than 1 year in total, leaving, and re-entering without admission can trigger a permanent bar under INA 212(a)(9)(C).
ESTA/VWP travelers who overstay generally lose reliable visa-waiver use. Details: US overstay, ESTA, and future visas. Check your I-94 rather than a stamp.
United Kingdom
Overstay starts the day after leave expires. Home Office guidance sets mandatory refusal periods (re-entry bans) by how you left:
- Voluntary departure at your own expense: commonly 12 months
- Voluntary departure at public expense: 2 or 5 years depending on timing
- Enforced removal at public expense, or deception in an application: 10 years
A period of overstaying can be disregarded for some ban purposes if you left voluntarily, not at public expense, and overstayed 30 days or less where overstaying began on or after 6 April 2017 (90 days or less for older start dates). Even a disregarded overstay can still be asked about later. Full path: UK overstay consequences.
Thailand
The Royal Thai Embassy in Washington states:
- Minimum 500 baht per day
- Maximum 20,000 baht for overstays of 40 days or longer
- Overstay of more than 90 days is a serious offence: deportation and a ban whose length depends on how long you stayed
- Pay and leave after a short overstay, and the embassy says you generally will not have a black mark for future return
- Inland arrest without funds can mean detention
Ban length still depends on voluntary surrender versus being caught. See Thailand overstay: fines, detention, bans.
Indonesia (including Bali)
GOV.UK guidance describing Indonesian practice states:
- Up to 60 days overstay: 1 million rupiah per day, payable in cash rupiah at the airport
- More than 60 days: detention, questioning, deportation, possible ban, no daily fine in that tier
- You pay the deportation flight
- Working on a tourist visa can add separate charges
This is one of the steepest published daily rates in Southeast Asia. Details: Indonesia overstay: Bali fines and blacklist.
United Arab Emirates
Cabinet Resolution No. 89 of 2022 sets administrative fines for ICP-related violations. The annex lists AED 50 per day for staying after the allowed period following cancellation or expiry of an entry visa, residence permit, or related permission. ICP is the federal authority. Dubai-issued files also use GDRFA Dubai.
Tourist overstays generally have no grace day. Some cancelled residence categories have a grace window. Unpaid fines commonly block a normal exit. Check the live amount in official apps rather than a screenshot from 2024. See UAE overstay: daily fines and travel bans.
Singapore
ICA repeats a standard penalty line: overstaying can mean a jail term of up to six months, and a minimum of three strokes of the cane or a fine of up to S$6,000. Offenders are deported and barred from re-entering after sentencing or payment. There is no published 50-dollar-a-day tourist schedule. The ceiling is criminal, not a polite airport invoice.
Japan
The Immigration Services Agency describes a departure-order system for certain overstayers who turn themselves in: no detention in that track, and a landing-denial period that is generally one year (five years in a listed short-stay re-entry case). Ordinary deportation carries a five-year (sometimes ten-year) landing denial. Criminal fines and imprisonment exist in the Immigration Control Act. ISA English pages do not publish a single per-day tourist overstay tariff. Do not invent one.
Australia
Home Affairs states it is unlawful to stay without a valid visa. If you cannot get a new visa, you must leave. The department can detain you, remove you, and bill removal costs. If you leave after more than 28 days without a valid visa, another visa can be refused for up to 3 years except in limited cases. Some people can be permanently excluded. Sources: If you don't have a valid visa and re-entry ban. There is no official daily tourist fine in those pages.
Mexico and Canada
Travel.gc.ca states that if you overstay in Mexico you may face fines, detention, and deportation. It does not publish a daily peso rate. Mexican law uses administrative fines in UMA units that officers set in regularization or exit cases. Treat the amount as case-specific.
Canada does not publish a daily visitor-overstay fine. If you want to stay longer, IRCC requires a visitor record before status expires. Remaining after expiry puts you out of status. Restoration exists in limited situations. Future visitor applications can be refused. File an extension on time instead of hoping for a tariff.
Example: two 12-day overstays, 2026
Case A. Sam, a UK citizen, overstays a Thai exemption by 12 days and pays 6,000 baht at Suvarnabhumi on 20 June 2026, then boards. Embassy guidance treats a paid short exit as generally compatible with later return.
Case B. Sam instead overstays a US I-94 by 12 days and flies home on 20 June 2026. There is no 6,000-baht equivalent. Twelve days is under 180, so the 3-year bar does not attach, but ESTA use is now unreliable and the next B visa interview will ask about the overstay.
Same length, different systems. Cash in Thailand. Discretion and program ineligibility in the US.
How overstay records travel
Bans and alerts move through SIS in Europe, CBP and consular systems in the US, and national blacklists in Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, and the UAE. Later visa forms ask about immigration breaches. See how overstays affect future visa applications.
Leaving voluntarily and quickly is the consistent way to stay on the light side of every column in the table.
If you are already over, do not crowd-source a fake stamp. Pay the published fine where one exists, keep the receipt, and get a lawyer for bars and bans. How overstays affect future visa applications covers the long tail. This hub is the penalty map, not a do-it-yourself removal kit.
How to avoid overstay penalties without a spreadsheet
Day counts fail when you mix Schengen 90/180, a US I-94 date, and a Thai stamp end date. Staywise tracks days across countries, applies those rules, and sends alerts 7, 3, and 1 day before a limit. Passport details stay on your device. Only travel dates sync. Available on iOS.
For tool comparisons, see Best Visa Tracker Apps for Digital Nomads (2026) and How to Track Your Days in Multiple Countries.
Download Staywise on the App Store
Common mistakes travelers make
- Copying a euro "Schengen fine" from a blog. There is no EU tariff. Fines are national.
- Assuming a daily fine means there is no ban. Thailand's cap is 20,000 baht. The 90-day cliff is the ban.
- Staying in the US to "avoid starting the bar." The 3-year and 10-year bars start when you leave after enough unlawful presence. Get advice. Do not invent a strategy from a forum.
- Paying an Indonesia fine in foreign currency at the gate. FCDO says officers want cash rupiah.
- Treating Mexico or Canada like Thailand. Those countries did not publish a 500-a-day tourist menu in the government advice cited here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which country has the highest overstay fine?
It depends whether you mean daily cash or the long-term ban. Indonesia's published daily rate of 1 million rupiah per day for up to 60 days is among the steepest cash schedules. Singapore's official line is jail, caning, or a fine up to S$6,000, plus a bar. The United States uses multi-year bars rather than a daily invoice. Compare systems, not one converted dollar figure.
Is there a single Schengen overstay fine?
No. EU law frames return decisions and entry bans, generally up to five years. Each Member State sets local fines and procedures. A short overstay found at exit in Spain is not billed from a Brussels price list. See Schengen overstay fines and bans by country. If a website quotes one euro amount for the whole zone, treat it as unverified.
What happens if I overstay by one day?
In Thailand, embassy guidance describes 500 baht and, for a few hours, possible discretion. In Indonesia, FCDO describes 1 million rupiah with no meaningful free first day. In the US, one day can still end easy VWP travel even if the 3-year bar needs more than 180 days. In the UK, 30 days or less can be disregarded for some ban purposes if you leave voluntarily at your own expense. One day is never a free extra holiday.
Do overstay bans apply to other countries?
Sometimes. A Schengen entry ban can be shared through SIS and block the wider area. A US bar blocks US admission. A Thai or Indonesian blacklist is national unless another country asks about it on a form. Always answer truthfully on later visa applications. Other states can refuse you for a past breach even without a shared database. Lying about an old overstay is often worse than the overstay itself.
How do I avoid overstay penalties?
Leave on or before the last authorized day. Track the correct clock: I-94 for the US, stamp or exemption end date for Thailand, rolling 90/180 for Schengen. If you need more time, apply for an extension or a residence title before expiry. Staywise counts days and alerts you. It does not replace official sources or a lawyer if you are already over.
Related guides
- Visa overstay consequences by country
- Schengen overstay fines and bans by country
- Accidentally overstayed your visa: what to do
- How overstays affect future visa applications
About Staywise
Staywise is the visa compliance app for digital nomads. Built by nomads for nomads, it tracks your days across every country automatically, alerts you before overstays, and keeps passport details on your device for privacy. The in-app AI assistant answers visa questions in plain English. Available on iOS.
Important: This content is informational and does not constitute legal, tax, or immigration advice. Visa rules, tax regulations, and entry requirements change frequently and vary by individual circumstances. Always verify current requirements with official government sources or a qualified professional before making travel decisions. Staywise tracks your days and surfaces compliance information, but final responsibility for compliance rests with the traveler.