Ease visa rules for Chinese or face THB250 billion tourism loss: Thai Sang Thai
The Thai Sang Thai party has called for urgent changes to entry rules for Chinese tourists, warning Thailand risks losing up to 250 billion baht in tourism revenue.
Hotel industry leaders visited Thai Sang Thai’s Bangkok headquarters on Saturday and complained that Chinese arrivals were declining due to convoluted visa procedures.
Adith Chairattananon, secretary general of the Association of Thai Travel Agents, told the party that entry restrictions designed to combat illegal Chinese businesses operating in Thailand have discouraged Chinese nationals from visiting the country.
Under current rules, Chinese travellers applying to visit Thailand have to copy each page of their passport, report all overseas travel in the past 10 years, and take a selfie while holding their passports. Chinese tourists who make more than four trips to Thailand per year also risk having their visas rejected. Meanwhile, any errors in the paperwork result in the visa being denied.
Adith added that the number of visas issued to each travel agency is limited to 90 per day.
Thai Sang Thai leader Khunying Sudarat Keyuraphan said her party will send a letter to the Foreign Ministry requesting urgent changes to entry rules for Chinese nationals.
Thailand has targeted seven million Chinese arrivals annually, but only one million can visit the country under the current rules, she said.
The entry restrictions do little to combat the problem of illegal Chinese businesses but instead cause difficulties for legitimate tourists, Sudarat said.
Thailand risks losing tourism revenue worth up to 250 billion baht even as its popularity among Chinese tourists surges following China’s reopening in January, she added.
