Tamanna Reza
Thailand is removing the requirement of undergoing a PCR test and brief quarantine on arrival from May for arrivals who are vaccinated against COVID-19, an official said on Friday, the latest measure to revive its battered tourism industry.
Visitors are encouraged to perform antigen self-tests during their stay, instead of the current “Test & Go” scheme, where arrivals must isolate in a hotel while awaiting the result of a test on arrival.
The new measure follows the removal last month of a pre-departure test requirement.
“Adjusting measures has an impact on drawing in tourism receipts,” Taweesin Visanuyothin, spokesperson for the coronavirus taskforce, told a news conference.
Tourism is a crucial driver of the economy in Thailand, one of Asia’s most popular holiday destinations, representing about 12% of gross domestic product before the pandemic, when visitor numbers hit a record high.
Although, Thailand is seeing a peak in tourism, numbers are still down sharply from that level, with 210,800 arrivals in March, up from 6,700 in the same period last year, but far less of the monthly average of 3.3 million in 2019.
However, visitors still require online travel clearance, for which proof of vaccination and insurance must be presented. The “Thailand Pass” has long been a source of frustration over the time taken to be granted approval.
Other rules eased on Friday include reducing the required insurance coverage to $10,000 and granting entry to unvaccinated visitors, providing they show a negative pre-departure PCR result.
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