If you are headed to Thailand anytime soon, we've got good news. Thailand has extended its visa exemption program for Indian and Taiwanese tourists until November 11, 2024. This means that you can now enter Thailand without a visa and stay up to 30 days for the next six months, giving you enough time to explore Bangkok's lively markets and Thailand's other hidden gems. The main goal of this move is to attract more foreign visitors to boost Thailand's economy, which relies heavily on tourism.
According to a report from Bloomberg, Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin announced the extension after a cabinet meeting on Tuesday. He stated that travellers from India and Taiwan can now stay up to 30 days in Thailand without a visa.
Previously, tourists from India and Taiwan were only allowed to stay for 15 days in Thailand under a visa-on-arrival scheme. After the success of the initial waiver implemented last November, Thailand has decided to extend the exemption. The new extension aims to encourage longer stays and more frequent visits from these countries.
This extension follows the success of an initial waiver launched in November last year, which allowed Indian and Taiwanese tourists to stay in the country with a visa-on-arrival facility for up to 15 days. These relaxed visa rules have been initiated with the consideration that Indian tourists are one of the largest groups of visitors to the country (alongside Russia, South Korea, China, and Malaysia). It is worth noting that in 2023, 1.6 million Indian visitors made it to the country, recording a whopping 86 per cent rise from 2022.
While Thailand has grappled with over-tourism in the recent past, relaxed visa rules for select countries have been launched to support the current cabinet's goal to attract 80 million tourists by 2027. Given that tourism is a primary contributor to Thailand's economy, generating 20 per cent of total jobs and comprising 12 per cent of the nation's USD 500 billion economy, this move is poised to bolster the country's position even further.