Govt works to have regulations in place for first group of tourists in October
After a meeting with the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration on Monday, Tourism and Sports Minister Phiphat Ratchakitprakarn said a limited number of foreign tourists will be allowed to come to the country under the new special tourist visa rules.
Also read: More foreigners to be allowed entry into the country
The Interior Ministry will draw up a draft regulation on this special visa before it is sent to the Council of State for examination and then officially approved by the prime minister.
“The entire process should be completed in line with the intention of opening the country to the first group of foreign tourists in October,” Phiphat said.
The government has been looking into the option of offering foreign travellers a special month-long tourist visa, which can be extended twice for 30 days each time.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha has instructed all related agencies to ensure every arrival undergoes a 14-day quarantine, and if the global situation improves then the seven days and six-hour quarantine criteria can be applied.
Separately, a group of 150 tourists from China’s city of Guangzhou will land in Phuket on October 8, before another group of 126 flies to Bangkok on October 25.
On November 1, 120 tourists from Scandinavia and other European countries will arrive in Bangkok on a Thai Airways flight.
Phiphat said all these tourists will spend their first 14 days in Thailand at alternative state quarantine sites in Chonburi, Buri Ram and Phuket. So far, five hotels have been approved as alternative state quarantine sites, of which one each is in Chonburi and Buri Ram, while the rest are in Phuket.
