The research, explained.
The internet has plenty of visa information. Most of it is outdated, uncited, or contradictory. Here is exactly how we source, verify, and reconcile it.
Source Tiers
Not all sources are equal
Every fact in a VisaScout brief is tagged with a source tier. When sources conflict, higher tiers win. Within the same tier, newer beats older. This is the ruleset, not a black box.
Tier 1
Official Government
Immigration portals, embassy sites (.gov, .go.th, .gov.vn)
Slow to update but highest authority. T1 beats all other tiers regardless of recency.
Tier 2
Official Advisories
IATA, Timatic, government travel advisories
Regularly maintained. Trusted when T1 sources are absent or ambiguous.
Tier 3
Reputable Aggregators
VisaHQ, Sherpa, iVisa
Useful but derived from T1/T2. Used when official sources are hard to access directly.
Tier 4
Community
Reddit, Nomad List, Facebook groups, expat forums
Not authoritative on rules, but often the first place enforcement reality shows up.
Confidence Scores
What confidence actually means
Confidence scores are not AI-generated sentiment. They are a direct function of which sources were found and whether they agree. We never hide a low score. If we cannot verify something from official sources, we say so.
Well Sourced
Act on this.
The official record is clear and corroborated. Two or more official (T1) sources agree — or 4 of 5 research agents reached the same conclusion with no contested claims.
Verify Key Details
Reliable for primary rules.
Verify the contested item or deadline before travel. One T1 source confirmed, or a majority of research agents agree with at most one contested claim.
Verify Before Travel
Content is directional.
Check official embassy or government sources before making any decisions. Official sources are sparse for this destination and agent agreement is low — not a pipeline failure.
Conflict Resolution
We don't pick a winner and hide the rest
Most travel resources pick one answer and hide the rest. We show you the full picture, including where sources disagree and why.
The Thai immigration site says 30 days. A Nomad List thread from last month reports officers asking for proof of onward travel. Both are real data points. Choosing one and burying the other is how people get caught off guard. Every brief includes a conflict report: confirmed, contested, and unverified. Nothing hidden.
Community Intel
Why Reddit and Nomad List are in here
Official sources tell you the rules. Community sources tell you what is actually happening.
Border enforcement changes faster than government websites update. Overstay crackdowns, new document checks at specific crossings, officers asking for proof of funds the rules don't require. This is where it shows up first. We include community sources not to override official rules, but to flag where reality is diverging from the rulebook. You should know that before you land.
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