Thailand Plans For A Schengen-Style Visa Program In Southeast Asia

Southeast Asia is a popular tourist destination for Indian travellers and one of the places where the Indian rupee’s strength positively affects the wallet.

The news that Thailand is exploring a joint-visa program with six other nations should be music to travellers’ ears and those hoping to visit the region soon. Along with leaders from Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar and Vietnam, Thai Prime Minister Srettha Thavisin is looking to provide a seamless and unrestricted travel experience for citizens of these six countries.

The grouping collectively welcomed an estimated 70 million visitors in 2023. Thailand and Malaysia contributed over half of this total, generating approximately USD 48 billion in tourism revenue. The Thai leadership is banking on the Schengen-style visa facility to boost an anticipated tourism boom in the coming years.

Tourism is a significant contributor to Thailand’s economy as it provides approximately 20 per cent of total employment and accounts for 12 per cent of the nation's USD 500 billion economy. With the exception of the pandemic years, tourism has been a bulwark of support against downturns in the manufacturing and exports sector.

Indian travellers can currently enter Thailand without a visa till May 2024. The rest of the countries either provide a visa-on-arrival facility or require an e-visa application submission before arrival.

Thailand has temporary visa waivers for travellers from Taiwan and Kazakhstan as well. It has signed an agreement to remove visa requirements for visitors from its biggest tourism market, China.