Thai authorities plan to scrap a requirement that pre-arrival vaccinated tourists present a Covid-free certificate to aid the economic recovery from the pandemic and the fallout from the invasion of Ukraine by Russia.
A proposal from the Health Ministry to waive RT-PCR test requirements before traveling to Thailand will be discussed by the nation’s main Covid task force on Friday, according to Kiattiphum Wongrajit, the Permanent Secretary of Public Health. He added that the ministry also plans to lower the minimum medical insurance requirement from $20,000 to $10,000.
An RT-PCR test will still be required upon arrival and a self-administered rapid antigen test on day five, Kiattiphum said.
Thailand, where there is an omicron-fueled Covid outbreak, currently requires vaccinated visitors to apply for a visa after taking an RT-PCR test and to have a negative RT-PCR test taken within 72 hours of an international flight.
In a bid to attract more tourists, the Thai tourism industry has branded visa rules cumbersome and requested free entry for inoculated travelers. Tourism is essential to sustaining a nascent economic recovery after attracting 40 million foreign visitors and generating $60 billion in revenue in 2019. Due to travel disruptions following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Thai Chamber of Commerce expects Russian tourist arrivals to be 50% lower than a forecast of 500,000 for this year.
According to Kiattiphum, further relaxing of travel requirements this Friday will be proposed since the Covid-19 situation seems to be moving in the right direction. He predicted that new cases will slow down by mid-March.
