Travelers will be happy to hear that Thailand will grant visa-free entrance to visitors from Taiwan and India for a six-month period starting on November 10, 2024, and ending on May 10, 2024.
As the tourist season approaches, the decision has been made with the intention of attracting more visitors, a Thai government official told news agency Reuters.
Thailand welcomes visitors from Taiwan and India for a 30-day stay, according to Thai government spokesperson Chai Wacharonke.
He continued by saying that the government anticipated the plan would draw an additional
1.4 million tourists and generate an extra 55 billion baht, or $1.5 billion, in revenue.
According to AFP, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin stated, “We will provide visa-free entry to India and Taiwan because a lot of their people like to travel to Thailand.” Currently, travelers from Taiwan and India must apply for a 15-day visa at immigration checkpoints, provide proof of lodging, and produce bank statements.
Chinese nationals no longer need a tourist visa to enter Thailand as of September of this year. Before the pandemic, China accounted for 11 million of Thailand’s record 39 million arrivals in tourism in 2019.
The second nation to offer visa exemptions for Indian travelers is Thailand. As part of a trial effort to support the island nation’s tourism through March 31, 2024, Sri Lanka also recently announced visa-free entrance for visitors from seven nations, including China and India.
According to government data, 22 million tourists visited Thailand between January and October 29 and brought in 927.5 billion baht, or $25.67 billion. Of these, since the start of 2023, around a million Russian visitors have visited Thailand.
Thailand is expecting over 28 million tourists this year in an attempt by the government to counterbalance the weak exports that have hindered the nation’s economic development.
Though it accounts for about 20% of Thailand’s GDP overall, the country’s tourism industry has had difficulty recovering since the COVID-19 outbreak.
According to data from the tourist ministry, from January to September 2023, over 1.2 million Indians traveled to Thailand, ranking it fourth in popularity behind Malaysia, China, and South Korea.
