Thailand to tweak tourist policy, cuts visa-free stay from 60 to 30 days to tackle illegal businesses
Thailand plans to halve the number of days it allows foreign tourists to stay without visas to 30 days as the Southeast Asian nation cracks down on travelers exploiting the waiver to engage in illegal businesses, according to Tourism and Sports Minister Sorawong Thienthong.
THAILAND may reduce the visa-free stay for tourists from 60 to 30 days to address illegal business activities.
Multiple ministries support this decision, which comes as the country seeks to boost tourism, targeting a record 40 million arrivals in 2024, according to a report by Bloomberg.
From July 2024 onwards, Thailand had permitted passport holders from 93 countries to stay for 60 days for tourism purposes.
The move to reduce this time period to 30 days was approved by various ministries, the report said, citing local media.
The Association of Thai Travel Agents raised concerns about the rising number of foreigners engaged in illegal business in the country.
Additionally, the Thai Hotels Association partially blamed the long visa-free period for the rising number of illegal condominium rentals to foreign guests, the Bangkok Post reported.
Tourism is one of the major contributors to Thailand's economy. The government is targeting 40 million tourists this year. Between January and March 9, Thailand had 7.66 million foreign tourists, up 4.4% on the year.
Indian tourists in Thailand
On December 11, 2024, the Royal Thai Embassy in New Delhi announced the implementation of Thailand's Electronic Visa (E-Visa) across India. The embassy posted an order on its official social media account on X.
“We’re thrilled to announce that Thailand’s e-Visa will be implemented in India from 1 Jan 2025," the X post read.
Further, a 60-day exemption period was granted to Indian passport holders.
“However, the 60-day visa exemption for Indian passport holders remains effective,” the embassy said.
In 2024, India will be the third-largest source of tourists in Thailand, Mint reported earlier, citing travel news website Skift.
A record 2.1 million Indians visited Thailand in 2024, nearly 30 per cent more than in 2023, surpassing the pre-pandemic high of slightly less than 2 million. One of the major factors for the surge in Indian tourists travelling to Thailand is its visa-free policy.
