Thailand to extend visa exemption for tourists from India and Taiwan

Thailand has announced that tourists from India and Taiwan will be able to enter the country without a visa between November 10 and May 10.

• Thailand is implementing a visa exemption for tourists from India and Taiwan in an effort to attract more visitors during the high season.
• China, India, and Taiwan are important source markets for Thailand’s tourism industry, with significant arrivals from these countries.
• The Thai government is considering making the visa exemption for Chinese tourists permanent and expects a significant increase in Chinese tourist arrivals in the coming years.

This move is aimed at attracting more tourists as the high season approaches. Thailand had previously scrapped visa requirements for Chinese tourists, who were the country’s top tourism market before the pandemic.

From January to October, Thailand received 22 million visitors, generating 927.5 billion baht. India is currently the fourth largest source market for tourism in Thailand. The government hopes that the travel sector can help offset weak exports and stimulate economic growth.

The Tourism Authority of Thailand had hoped that Taiwan and India would be the next countries to receive visa waivers after China. The number of Chinese tourists is expected to reach 4 million to 4.4 million in 2023.

Thailand’s tourism sector has traditionally relied heavily on Chinese visitors, with over 10 million Chinese tourists visiting the country each year prior to the Covid-19 outbreak.

The current government in Bangkok is making efforts to recover these figures, including the removal of visa fees for Chinese tourists from September 26 for a period of 5 months.

But recent incidents, such as a shooting in a Bangkok shopping mall, may further discourage Chinese visitors. Some companies are now turning their focus to Indian tourists to make up for the lack of Chinese visitors.

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Boris Sullivan

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Boris Sullivan is a business news editor based in Hong Kong. He has over 15 years of experience in covering the latest trends and developments in the Asian markets, as well as the global economy.

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