Tourism ministry wants all travel restrictions removed by June 1 if Covid rate drops

Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said if the number of Covid-19 cases does not increase over Songkran next month, the ministry will ask the Cabinet and Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) to allow foreign arrivals to take ATK tests on the first and the fifth days of their trips from May 1 onwards.

“If the government approves [this move] and the situation improves further, the ministry will propose lifting all travel restrictions on June 1," he said, adding that this means fully vaccinated foreign tourists would be able to enter Thailand freely.

Meanwhile from April 1, travellers entering Thailand under the Test & Go scheme will no longer be required to present a negative RT-PCR test taken in the 72 hours before departure, according to a CCSA announcement on March 18. However, they must still book a hotel plus RT-PCR test on the first day of arrival and take a rapid antigen test (ATK) on the fifth day.

Phiphat said the timeline for lifting restrictions would facilitate tourists, stimulate the economy and comply with the Public Health Ministry's policy of switching from pandemic to endemic in July.