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Arriving in Cambodia Without a Printed eVisa PDF — What Australians Should Know (2026)
You land at KTI, SAI, or KOS without a printed eVisa PDF — what happens next. Cambodian Immigration usually accepts a QR code on a phone, but the bigger risk in 2026 is the Aussie gate agent at Sydney or Melbourne. Here is what works at each step.
I'm landing in Cambodia without a printed eVisa PDF — what happens?
Cambodian Immigration at KTI (Phnom Penh), SAI (Siem Reap), and KOS (Sihanoukville) generally accepts the QR code shown on a phone screen for inspection, so most Aussies in this situation clear immigration without drama. The bigger risk is at the Australian end before you board — Qantas and Singapore Airlines gate agents at Sydney and Melbourne sometimes ask for a paper visa printout and have denied boarding without one, even when Cambodian Immigration would accept the phone. The safest move is to print two copies at home before flying. If you have already landed without paper, KTI has a small print kiosk near baggage claim charging around $2 USD (~$3 AUD) per page. Through us, your eVisa is delivered as a printable PDF by email with the QR code embedded.
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- Cambodian Immigration at KTI, SAI, and KOS will usually accept the QR code on a phone screen, but a small share of officers still ask for paper — carry a printout if you can.
- The bigger risk is the Aussie gate agent at Sydney or Melbourne — Qantas and Singapore Airlines sometimes deny boarding without paper proof of a valid visa, regardless of what Immigration will accept on arrival.
- KTI has a small print kiosk near the baggage claim charging around $2 USD (~$3 AUD) per page; SAI has a similar service; KOS does not reliably.
- If you lose your printout in transit, email the PDF to yourself once before boarding and again at the destination airport's wifi — recovery takes 3 minutes.
- Through us, the eVisa is delivered as a printable PDF by email with the QR code embedded — print two copies before leaving home and the whole 'forgot to print' problem evaporates.
Why this matters in 2026
There is a small but persistent gap between what Cambodian Immigration will accept and what Australian gate agents expect, and that gap is the entire reason this article exists. The Cambodian eVisa is a digital document — a PDF with a QR code embedded — and in 2026 the Phnom Penh, Siem Reap, and Sihanoukville immigration counters are perfectly capable of scanning that QR code straight off a phone screen. From the Cambodian side, paper is increasingly redundant.
From the Australian side, things are a bit different. Airlines carry the legal responsibility for transporting passengers without valid documentation, which means a Qantas or Singapore Airlines gate agent at Sydney or Melbourne can choose to deny boarding if they decide your documentation is unclear. Some agents are completely comfortable with the eVisa on a phone screen. Others have an internal preference for a paper printout, and a small but real share will not budge.
This guide walks through what actually happens at KTI, SAI, and KOS immigration in 2026, the phone-on-screen workaround and when it fails, where you can print at the Cambodian airports if you forgot, the gate-agent risk before you board from Australia, and the recovery path if you lose your printout somewhere in transit. The Cambodia eVisa PDF print and format guide covers how to set the file up before you leave home so none of this becomes a problem in the first place. For the full eligibility picture, the Cambodia eVisa for Australian travellers hub is the canonical source.
What Cambodian Immigration actually accepts at KTI, SAI, and KOS
Cambodian Immigration's published policy is that the eVisa is a digital document and the QR code is the canonical proof — paper is acceptable but not required. In practice at all three international airports, what officers actually do is consistent enough to summarise in one line: most will scan the QR code straight off your phone, a small share will ask for a paper printout, and almost none will refuse the visa outright if the QR code scans successfully.
The phone-screen workflow at the counter is straightforward. The officer turns their handheld scanner toward your phone, you hold the phone steady at the QR code page (most Aussies open it in the email attachment view), the scanner beeps, the officer reads the matching passport details on their screen, stamps the passport, hands it back. The whole interaction takes about 90 seconds — same as the paper-printout path.
Where the phone-screen path can hiccup is in three small ways. First, screen brightness — a phone on auto-dim in a brightly lit immigration hall sometimes drops too dark for the scanner. Solution: turn brightness to maximum before you reach the counter. Second, screen-lock timeout — a one-minute screen lock can cut you off mid-scan. Solution: set the screen timeout to 5 minutes or longer for the morning of arrival. Third, the QR code shown is from a screenshot of a screenshot rather than the original PDF — quality degradation can break the scan. Solution: open the original PDF attachment, not a forwarded screenshot.
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Will Cambodian Immigration accept my eVisa on a phone screen?
Usually yes. At KTI, SAI, and KOS, immigration officers will typically scan the QR code straight off the phone — the interaction takes about 90 seconds, same as the paper-printout path. A small share of officers still ask for paper, so carrying a printout is the safest option. Turn screen brightness to maximum and screen timeout to 5+ minutes before reaching the counter.
Can my Aussie airline deny boarding if I do not have a printed eVisa?
Yes, occasionally. Qantas and Singapore Airlines gate agents at Sydney and Melbourne sometimes ask for a paper visa printout and have denied boarding without one. The airline carries legal responsibility under ICAO rules for transporting passengers without valid documentation, and some agents apply that responsibility more conservatively than Cambodian Immigration would. The fix is to print before flying.
Where can I print my eVisa at KTI Airport (Phnom Penh)?
KTI has a small print kiosk near baggage claim, between the arrivals hall and the taxi pick-up area. It charges around $2 USD (~$3 AUD) per page, USD cash preferred. Open 7am-10pm local. The kiosk sits after the immigration hall, so paper is recoverable for customs and onward use, but not for immigration itself — you need to clear immigration with the phone screen first.
What if I lose my printed Cambodia eVisa during transit?
Recovery is short. Open your email, find the original PDF attachment from the confirmation, download it to the phone's Files app, and forward the email to yourself as a backup. At the transit airport (Changi or KLIA usually), use a business centre or lounge print station — typical cost $1-3 SGD (~$1-3.50 AUD) per page. If no transit option, print at the destination airport after immigration.
Can I print my Cambodia eVisa at Sihanoukville (KOS) airport?
Not reliably. KOS is a smaller airport and the on-site print service has come and gone over the years — in 2026 there is no consistent kiosk. If you are landing at KOS without paper, plan to use the phone screen at immigration (it almost always works at KOS) and print in Sihanoukville town at a hotel business centre after arrival if you want a paper copy.
How many copies of the eVisa PDF should I print?
Two is the right number. One to hand to the gate agent at the Aussie airport, one tucked into your passport for Cambodian Immigration. Some Aussies also carry a third copy in their main bag separate from the carry-on as a redundancy. The PDF prints to a single A4 page, so two copies cost essentially nothing at home or under $1 AUD at a print shop.
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